FHITT moves to West Prospect Road
Apr. 11—SAYBROOK — FHIIT gym owners Matthew and Kourtney Anderson decided to relocate from 331 Center Street to 2539 W Prospect Rd.
The Andersons opened the new location on April 1 and are accepting members.
The gym feels spacious at 10,000 square feet.
Kourtney said that they are known for free weights, but will be getting nine new machines in the next three weeks.
The gym is split into two sides. There's a 24/7 side and a group fitness side. There is also a private cycle room.
For group workout sessions, the dedicated trainers are what set these type of hybrid gyms apart from your regular gym.
"We more so are motivating," Kournety said. "We walk around and make sure you're doing things correctly — correcting your form. We can do it in a group setting so then we can do multiple people at once. This lets us cater to as many people as possible. That's really what got us into group fitness."
Each day of week they train a different muscle group.
Tabata is one of the methods used for group training, which is a style of high-intensity interval training.
FHIIT currently has five personal trainers. According to Matthew, they mainly cater toward weight loss.
"I like to cater to high school kids in sports," Matthew said. "To work on their speed and agility in whatever sport they're in."
The trainers enjoy seeing the change it makes in a members' overall well-being.
"I get to not only be part of people physically transforming, but I get to be part of uplifting and empowering their minds," said trainer Vanessa Marie. "I love that we push people beyond what they think their own capacity is. Clients always leave feeling stronger than when they walked in."
Members can use the entire gym outside of group hours.
FHIIT is doing an eight-week challenge in May in which everyone who participates will get unlimited classes and a meal plan. They will be posting a board that will track everyone's fat-loss percentage. The person with the most fat loss will receive a $300 grand prize.
FHIIT recently introduced a low-impact class. According to Kourtney, this class is catered toward pre-menopausal or post-menopausal women — keeping their heart rate down so that they're not releasing as much cortisol.
The gym also offers special rates for teachers, nurses, veterans, active military and first responders.
"Kourtney and Matt have created a gym where people can do life together, find healing, find friends and be empowered," Marie said. "I'm thankful to be part of their growth since the beginning."
