I was thinking today, as a powerlifter in my offseason, training Olympic lifts, how truly lucky we are at our gym. With all these pop-up specialty boxes, I’m reminded that I don’t want to fit inside a box or pay a specialty box price! I want to belong to a box without borders, a fitness community where I come together with others who are different from me but we accept each other’s differences and push and support each other in succeeding in whatever training style we choose to implement into our fitness regime.

In mine and Pierre’s search for our gym home, the primary businesses for sale were thousands of specialty pop-ups in the southeast alone like CrossFit and Bootcamp boxes, Snap and Anytime Fitness’s, Curves, Boxing gyms, Yoga and Spin studios. Sometimes we can be too specialized and sometimes we can be too broad. Balance is the key. It’s hard to place long term trust in a box based on fads and what’s popular in the area at the time. Fitness fads fade and evolve almost as fast as technology. By the time we start one, another new and exciting thing comes out. Our body’s fitness needs also change and evolve at different stages of our lives depending on our lifestyle and goals. I can’t perform at the same level as I could twenty years ago, recovery doesn’t come near as quickly, plus my goals have changed throughout the years. I vary my type of workouts to still get the intensity that I can better myself with but not take me out of the game.

I’m thankful to share a facility with others that has so much talent and expertise under one roof. I specialize in competitive powerlifting but wanted to work on my explosive power in my offseason and needed that guidance from an Olympic lifting professional. Luckily, I happen to be married to one…. I love that, for an affordable price, anyone at our gym can vary their training style from basic fitness and nutrition, HIIT or low impact training, spinning in all different styles, crosstraining and trx, bootcamp and obstacle course training, boxing and kickboxing, bodybuilding, powerlifting, Olympic lifting, strongman implements, and group class settings of a wide variety. No matter what my goals are, whether it’s to train for a sport, or just lose some weight and get in shape, every aspect is covered in the greatest detail. Including having a safe place for the kids to stay while mom and dad workout and being open 24/7/365. We all have different schedules and need a place that is always open, always has people with high levels of expertise to help us expand our fitness horizons without injuring ourselves, nutritional guidance which is the key factor in attaining fitness goals, and having a spa area is a perk!

I’m thankful for all the people that I’ve met and now call friends that I wouldn’t have met otherwise, staying at a specialized powerlifting gym. I’m thankful that I can cheer on my friends who love to run and crawl through mud although I never will. I’m thankful that I can cheer on my friends who train and do extreme dieting to compete in physique contests although I never will. I’m thankful that my friends can cheer me on in my powerlifting and crazy love for Zumba even though they will never train in that manner. I’m thankful that Pierre and I can take what the Hammond’s started 6 years ago and build on the foundation of fitness and community. I’m thankful for not being restricted to a box.

– Amber