Screenshot of ForFitness's online class (Matt Forgie)
Rothesay’s ForFitness and Athletics is providing its members with opportunities to break a sweat and work off stress in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic through its online fitness classes.
“I started the idea of online classes when the idea of social distancing started to become more pronounced,” said Owner and Operator Matt Forgie. ForFitness has been running online classes for a week. “It’s interesting because you’re still getting like that community like feeling and we haven’t really lost too many members; it’s been kind of cool to see it all happen.”
People who have a membership to the ForFitness gym, gym plus classes or a class pass have been accessing all of the online sessions. Members can then check the gym’s Facebook page and reach out to instructors.
ForFitness is also communicating with its gym members through the Team Builder app, allowing them to see what they need to do on their phones.
Screenshot of ForFitness’s online yoga class (Matt Forgie)
“We have times of the day where people that are following their own individual programs can contact us and we have live discussions through the gym,” he explained. “It’s every day for an hour so we’re just waiting for people to call us or join into the live feed.”
All of the classes the instructors used to do in-person are now run online; strength and conditioning (three times a day), kettlebell, mobility and strength and balance.
Forgie adds the earliest classes have seen a lot of activity from those stuck at home.
“The kids are still sleeping so the parents can go into the class and they don’t need to worry about the children and by the time the children wake up, the class is done.”
Three to four classes are held every day, with yoga classes on Monday and Thursday evenings added with golf fitness starting next week.
“I think the thing is that all of our community is really enjoying it, they’re super pumped, so as long as I can keep that like that mindset with a lot of the people we have part of our world, I think we’re doing good stuff,” he said.
ForFitness Gym (Matt Forgie)
At this moment in the pandemic, Forgie and two staff members are working to keep up with the class demand and have only lost one percent of their members. While class attendance is about 50% of what they used to be, a learning curve is to be expected while everyone tries to figure out the new normal.
“We’ve actually called every single one of our members and we’re asking them how they’re doing, making sure that they’re happy with everything, he said. “We’re essentially trying to do everything we can to keep up with their fitness goals with the tools they have.”
He also feels adjusting to online courses was easier than they first thought it would be, “I have to thank my staff for making that happen, it’s definitely a huge team effort.”
ForFitness owner Matt Forgie and his daughter
Forgie’s primary concern is the gym’s community and not losing that community while also enticing people to become involved in ForFitness. He plans to start offering free online classes next week and is in the process of uploading videos of all of the exercises they currently have to their YouTube channel.
For now, like several other businesses, ForFitness is taking it day-by-day and adjusting as needed.
While gyms across the Maritimes are following a similar path of uploading classes to online platforms such as Vimeo, ForFitness was ahead of the curve.
“Anyone I’m calling, I’m like ‘guys this is what we’re doing, start doing it,’” shared Forgie. “What I was telling my friends in Halifax is that people like to hear other people having fun and chirping and that interaction is actually pretty important for the class stuff.”
