'We prioritize your health and well-being:' The Fit Me, opens June at Waterfront Warehouse

Stockton's Waterfront Warehouse has a new tenant, The Fit Me.

A grand opening with a ribbon cutting took place on Wednesday, April 24 at the Waterfront Warehouse at 445 W. Weber Ave. #131-B.

"I would describe it as a community space where we prioritize your health and well-being in its totality," said Lakeisha Little-Shaw founder and owner of The Fit Me. "So yes, it is a physical fitness gym."

The word "Fit" stands for "focus, inspired and transformed," she said.

The space will open to the community on June 1, Little-Shaw said. In the meantime, she will be offering free community classes.

"We're inclusive, we're diverse and this space is for everyone," she said.

Greater Stockton Chamber of Commerce CEO Time Quinn, left, speaks as Lakeisha Little-Shaw, owner of the Shaw Bar, stands by during a ribbon cutting ceremony for Little-Shaw's new business the F.I.T. Me gym at the Waterfront Warehouse in downtown Stockton on Apr. 24, 2024.
Greater Stockton Chamber of Commerce CEO Time Quinn, left, speaks as Lakeisha Little-Shaw, owner of the Shaw Bar, stands by during a ribbon cutting ceremony for Little-Shaw's new business the F.I.T. Me gym at the Waterfront Warehouse in downtown Stockton on Apr. 24, 2024.

More than just a gym

Little-Shaw said The Fit Me will offer mental health classes and workshops, yoga, pilates, High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) workouts, and private training classes. Members will be able to reserve time slots to work out by themselves.

They are also working on adding Zumba, Little-Shaw said.

Shaw 4 Community, Little-Shaw's nonprofit, will also use the space "to bring individuals from underserved low-income marginalized communities" to teach them about health, well-being and offer them workout classes at no cost, she said.

Little-Shaw also owns The S.H.A.W Bar, just steps away from the new gym at the Waterfront Warehouse. The juice bar offers nutritious meals and beverages. Each item on the menu can be catered to the customer's specific health needs, according to S.H.A.W Bar's website.

Little-Shaw's ultimate goal was to cater to every aspect of living a healthy life.

"So to have The Fit Me, it's like it's full circle," she said. "That was my dream and now I have every avenue to be able to really give the community what it needs to focus on health and well-being in its totality."

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Lakeisha Little-Shaw, center, owner of the Shaw Bar, wields large scissors during a ribbon cutting ceremony for her new business, the F.I.T. Me gym, at the Waterfront Warehouse in downtown Stockton on Apr. 24, 2024.
Lakeisha Little-Shaw, center, owner of the Shaw Bar, wields large scissors during a ribbon cutting ceremony for her new business, the F.I.T. Me gym, at the Waterfront Warehouse in downtown Stockton on Apr. 24, 2024.

Health and wellness at an affordable price

A Fit Me membership will be $20 per month, and the facility will have a Monday through Friday schedule. The goal is to make the gym space "affordable for everyone," Little-Shaw said.

She also plans on partnering with Stockton nonprofits and organizations to offer free services to the community.

"It gives a lot more people access to the health and wellness aspect...it is gotten expensive for a lot of people to do this," Timm Quinn, CEO of the Greater Stockton Chamber of Commerce, told The Record. "Health and wellness shouldn't be a price there shouldn't be a barrier to that. So she's opening it up to everybody. We're excited about the access that she will give to the community."

Little-Shaw said the facility will offer an eight-week fit mentorship program with full mentorship for 20 individuals every eight weeks. The eight weeks will include mental health workshops, spiritual and physical work, and nutrition classes, she said.

"The goal is at the end of the eight weeks we find the perfect fit for them," Little-Shaw said. "A space on their fitness journey where their focus where they're inspired, and where they're transformed."

The gym can accommodate eight to 10 people per class. No more than five people will be allowed for individual workouts, she said.

"We want the space to feel special, and private, and exclusive," Little-Shaw added.

The Fit Me currently has eight coaches, with plans to add four more coaches, Little-Shaw said. Registration will be required for classes, however, walk-ins are welcomed if space is available.

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For more information visit thefitme209 on Instagram.

Record reporter Angelaydet Rocha covers community news in Stockton and San Joaquin County. She can be reached at arocha@recordnet.com or on Twitter @AngelaydetRocha. To support local news, subscribe to The Stockton Record at https://www.recordnet.com/subscribenow.

This article originally appeared on The Record: The Fit Me Stockton