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Date: 11/16/2020
SOUTH HADLEY – A local fitness studio working to help people get in shape and become healthy has finally opened their doors again after postponing their expansion due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
April Marion, who owns Get Movin’ Fitness with Charlene Resnick, told Reminder Publishing she began helping people on their fitness journey in 2012. It was at this time, she said she began to teach classes at the Polish American Club in Granby. “I would just rent that out and hold classes for the community. It was a small space, 600 square feet,” she said.
Marion said the classes, which she described as dance based fitness and Zumba, quickly filled and soon she outgrew the space. In addition to her outgrowing the space, she said the Polish American Club was also shutting their doors around the same time.
With about 40 clients, she began the process of relocating in early 2020. However, shortly after starting to lease a new space to teach classes, the coronavirus pandemic swept through the region, forcing her to close her doors for months.
“We leased a space, it was more than 1,500 square feet, more than double the space. We moved in February, early March. We were all set to have our grand opening on April 4, and we were shut down March 18,” she said.
She said the switch to remote teaching was made easier as she’d already had the idea to broadcast her lessons digitally while also teaching in person. “I was more prepared than others who had fitness studios. I had the accounts, the cameras, I just hadn’t completely pulled the triggers because I wasn’t forced,” she said. “It wasn’t easy, I was at home doing it. I didn’t even do it at the studio, I wanted people to see me in my home working out.”
Once she began teaching from home, she said it wasn’t easy, but she found solace in helping people with their health journey during a difficult time. “A lot of our clients are mostly active, older women. [It’s] helping them fight depression. A lot of them are home with elderly parents or children, women who are stuck in the house 24/7,” she said. “They need this, even the kids. They’re stuck in front of the computer all day long.”
Throughout the summer she slowly began to open her doors and her new space at 577 Granby Rd. “Halfway through the summer we were able to do outside classes and a few inside with masks. But because of the temperature it was hard,” she said.
Another part of the new location, she said, was a shake bar. This, too, was put on hold due to the pandemic holding up the licensing process. “We couldn’t open the shake bar yet, everything was closed down, the process took a lot longer,” she said.
When the summer ended, Marion said they began to open their doors in September with proper safety measures in place. “We kept it pretty small, classes small. Asked our members to be wearing masks in and out of the studio,” she said. Marion added that while there was a “spaced off area where you can remove [the mask] when it’s safe.”
In addition to social distancing, she said staff have increased cleaning measures and are asking customers to bring their own equipment if possible. “We’re keeping everything clean. Our staff wear masks, we have an intern with us now doing extra cleaning,” she said. “We don’t use a lot of equipment, but we have students bring their own if the need it.”
Now, in addition to in-person classes, she said the studio has continued to offer classes online and has opened the shake bar. They have also added kids classes.
Marion said in addition to helping people with exercise, they also help with their nutrition as well. “We help with nutrition, not just shakes and workouts, but we do online challenges where we help people clean eat,” she said.
Those interested in learning more about the studio, the shakes, or classes offered by the studios can do so by visiting the Get Movin Fitness Facebook page, by downloading their app or by visiting their website at www.getmovinfitness.org.