BRAWLEY — For many, new year’s resolutions become a fleeting memory with the passing of the first few months of each year—or sometimes even weeks or days.
Breakout Fitness at 435 W. Main St. in Brawley has structured its business to retain and motivate a high percentage of gym members throughout the year, according to Gonzalo and Josh Lorona, the father-son team who founded the business.
“We opened one year ago on Jan. 7,” son Josh said, “The first year of business was a straight roller coaster ride up.”
Gonzalo added, “One of the things I hear a lot from our clients, is they hear that the gym is a family environment. They really like our daycare.”
Gonzalo is from Brawley but said he spends much of his time working in Oxnard. While gyms in urban areas have a larger population from which to draw members, Breakout was designed to be affordable in what might be the more competitive smaller market in Imperial Valley, he explained.
“I have heard horror stories in big cities about trying to cancel a membership. We don’t hold anyone accountable to their one-year membership commitment if they want to cancel. Business is not a one- or six-month commitment. It’s a life-long commitment,” Gonzalo explained.
Price for a one-month membership at Breakout Fitness is $35. The option of daycare with a membership runs $25 per month. This model has worked well for the Loronas as they said their gym has retained 95 percent of its clients during its first year.
“We are open seven days a week. We offer free weight training, cardio training, the sauna, boxing classes, yoga classes and Zumba classes.” Josh added. “We also offer our version cross-fit called rugged training. Our number one class is boot camp. A lot of great results with that class.”
The owners and members at Breakout said they are excited about the newly opened juice bar, which several patrons visited on a recent afternoon.
Helping the community in which his gym is located is also important, Josh said.
“We offer free training for all of the athletes at Brawley Union High School. The wrestling coach at BUHS holds workshops here for his athletes during the summer,” Josh continued. “We also offer free memberships for anyone who is mentally disabled.”
Breakout Fitness is doing an event with El Centro Regional Medical Center at the food court in Imperial Valley Mall on Feb. 1.
“We are trying to get kids involved in healthy activities. Raymond Leon, Brawley’s wrestling coach, will be giving a few tips and doing demonstrations,” Josh added.
Despite the gym’s amenities, the owners said they know the biggest impediment to getting fit is maintaining motivation. As such, Gonzalo shared a tip to help accomplish a new year’s resolution focused on exercise.
“If you are tired of not achieving the results you want, break out from the norm. There is no magic pill,” he stressed. “You can’t come drink a protein drink and look like Arnold Schwarzenegger next month. Change your routine and break away from what does not work.”
Gonzalo noted there is a routine that can be done at home: “This is a five-month challenge. For men, they do 100 push-ups and 100 leg lifts a day. Women do 100 leg lifts and 100 jumping squats a day.”
Every month the number of repetitions for each routine should increase by 50.
“I did it when I started training 30 years ago. If you do this, believe me, you will see a change in your body,” Gonzalo added. For more information on Breakout Fitness, visit its Facebook page or visit the gym.
This story is featured in the Jan 23, 2020 e-Edition.
