no truer words

I read a lot of blogs.  Well, I read a lot in general and today I stumbled across this gem of a quote that not only defines the progress at the gym, but also most projects in my life (i.e. the garage sale, re-decorating our room, organizing the kid's rooms):

“I wonder why progress looks so much like destruction.”

John Steinbeck

 Oh how true!  You have to be willing to let everything look worse before it looks better! 

the winds of change

I've said it before, but I'll say it again...our gym right now is exactly the type of MMA gym you would picture in your mind.  Walk in the front door and you're likely to find sweaty guys throwing each other on the ground with another four or so guys in the boxing ring hitting each other.  There's holes in the walls (that's what happens when we pack the place).  We have plywood behind some of the mats.  The bathroom is something out of a horror movie or really bad truck stop.  The guys literally strip from their work clothes and leave them on the floor.  It drives me crazy, but that's how it is.  Steve Berger's Red Nose MMA is a perfect "guy's gym", but focusing on such a niche group has hurt us.  We aren't making enough money to do much more than pay for the gym's bills. 

Things are getting ready to change drastically for everyone.  This will be an awesome change, but I know the long-time students are getting antsy, and maybe a little nervous to see how much things are going to change.  One student asked me the other day if Berger MMA was going to be gone and the truth is YES, it will be gone.  The name will be gone.  The dirty bathroom, hole-in-the-wall brawler's gym will be gone.  The team will remain the same...an awesome, loyal group of people with a great record (only two losses this year so far)!  The new gym will still have a man-cave in the basement--the "wreck room", "the dungeon" are a couple names we've been throwing around for this boy's only space at the new gym.   It's time to figure out a way to incorporate "Berger MMA" into the new place and sit back and let the winds of change take their course!

Here's a couple of gyms that I love!

tic tock

well, things have slowed down considerably at the new gym space....thanks to the city, county and fire department permits taking FOOOORRREEVVVVER (said in my very best "Sandlot" voice).  the good part about not doing the physical work at the gym is that it has given me a lot of time to work on the "behind the scenes" stuff.  

we were planning on hiring a certified yoga instructor but i've always wanted to get certified so i'd rather pay myself of sink the money back into the gym and teach it myself.  so it looks like i will be newly certified by the time the new gym opens.  

in other news, the schedule is almost finished and i stumbled upon these great drawers at a hallmark store that's being remodeled.  they will look perfect in the locker rooms and function wonderfully! instead of sinking a ton of money into lockers, i plan on building simple cubbies and using the drawers at the bottom for items to remain hidden from site. 

something similar to this:

definitely NOT like this: 

while the schedule is still being put together, NOW is the time to put in your two cents.  email us at bergermma@gmail.com for input or other inquiries.

words that inspire

I am amazed at how quickly things are coming along.  I spend my nights dreaming up the finishing touches for the gym.  Tonight, artwork is on my mind. 

I really like vintage or vintage styled fight posters like these:

I also like the message in these (although I'm not in love with the colors or fonts in all of them):

I love this one, but only because it's so very true:

The bones of the gym will be super clean and classic, but I think giant prints will spice up the place and can easily be changed out when the time is right. 

dirty work

The demolition has gone very smoothly. We've tried to salvage all the lumber from the walls we removed to help with the cost of rebuilding. This takes away from some of the fun of 'breaking' things, but it's better for the environment and our wallets. Using recycled or reclaimed materials is important to us and an important aspect of this new gym. It's almost time to start space planning...which to me (Carly), is going to be the most fun. I've said it before but we are so lucky to have such great students and friends to help us with this new endeavor.

this space WAS an office and will soon be half of the 1,000 sqft cage

locker area

cage area

steve and david standing in front of their pile

a small glimpse of the terrible sponge paint that once plagued this entire area

the wall dividing the future yoga studio

...and so the journey begins

We finally signed it!  The space is ours and we have a LOT of work to do.  Here's a few BEFORE pictures:

So much potential and did I mention that its almost directly on a highway! 

The view of our soon-to-be yoga studio. 

Right-half of the front room.

3,200 sqft basement the boys have already dubbed the "war" room.

Where our 1,200 sqft cage will be. 

Left side of the front room (the front room is a massive 3,200 sqft)!

out with the old

Among several other things, our new gym was once a dog training facility and a (very successful) bird store (who actually ended up being our new neighbors at our old gmy).  This is all great....except for the fact that the entire place was carpeted!  Dog training + wall-to-wall carpet = grossness. 

So the first order of business was to get all of the old flooring out! 

Here is Steve standing next to our carpet pile. 

Next on the list is to demo the old office space which, in my absence already happened.  I'll try to paint a picture for you; old wood paneling + periwinkle sponge paint + drop ceiling. It was bad, you should probably thank Steve and David for knocking it down before I could get proof of how terrible it was.