Like many of us, Joe worked for much of his life at an office job and didn’t think much of physical fitness. In fact, he didn’t step foot in a fitness center until he stopped into Anytime Fitness in Destrehan, Louisiana, to cancel the membership of his late wife, Betty. To Joe’s surprise — and delight — the staff at the gym not only knew Betty, but they spent almost an hour recalling stories of Betty and sharing their favorite memories with Joe.
Joe quickly realized that Anytime Fitness was more than just a gym, and why Betty had been drawn in. Although she had goals to lose weight and feel more confident, what she ultimately found was a true community.
“We’re a family,” says Daniell, a Coach and co-owner of the Destrehan location. “And you might hear that like it’s just thrown around, but we truly are.”
Joe felt this to be true right away, and he decided to keep Betty’s membership as his own.
Getting started on the right foot
The first step was for Joe to meet with the staff for his free Fitness Consultation. Joe recalls, “[My Coach] asked me, Joe, what are your goals? I said, ‘I want to run a 5K with my daughter, and I want to [take a bike] ride with my brother.’ So the first time we trained, he pulled out a spinning bike and I got on the bike and I think I pedaled for 2 minutes.”
They kept working on Joe’s strength and endurance. Today, he’s worked his way up to cycling “20, 40, sometimes 60 miles a day.” An impressive feat for anyone — let alone someone in their 70s.
A new strength — physically and emotionally
Regular exercise has done wonders for Joe’s physical health. In fact, recent Evolt body composition scans showed that he had the health of a 57-year-old! But physical changes weren’t the only improvements he’s experienced since joining Anytime Fitness.
Joe infused himself into the gym family that embraced him when Betty passed, and he began participating in the community events they held.
The supportive relationships formed at the gym were hugely impactful for Joe during the grieving process. “I don’t think there’s any place that got me past Betty’s death as much as Anytime Fitness has,” Joe says. “Anytime Fitness is more than just physical accomplishments. For me, we’re there for each other.”
Joe’s daughter, Julie, has seen a transformation in her father. “Since Mom passed away and Dad’s been a member of Anytime Fitness, I’ve seen a huge change in him,” she explains. “He got a lot stronger, but I think it also helped him emotionally get through Mom’s death,”
Joe’s other daughter, Valerie, agrees. “A year ago, I didn’t think we’d still be sitting here with him, you know, being able to do anything, much less ride a bike. “
Coach and gym co-owner Brandon adds: “[Joe] lives his entire life differently because someone cared about him. Someone listened to his story. They put their arm around him when he was in a bad place.”
Pictured: Joe with his daughters Julie (left) and Valerie (right).
“Not a day goes by that I don’t think about [Betty],” says Joe. He even speculates that it was Betty’s way of letting Joe know that joining the amazing family at Anytime Fitness was what he needed to do.
Valerie is thankful to his new gym community. “I thought that he was going to be lost. He really found another home at Anytime Fitness.”
