When Martin and Kim Musikant of Cranford opened Active Life Fitness in Garwood in 2015, they wanted it to be a place where older people would feel comfortable, get fit, and make friends. “What separates us is the atmosphere and the age demographic,” says Martin.
Membership is only open to those aged 40 and older. The other thing that makes Active Life stand out is the personalized attention everyone receives from the experienced, knowledgeable and caring trainers.
“Most of our trainers are over 50, and everybody is certified and trained by me,” he says. “You don't have to be certified by law in New Jersey, but it’s the right thing to do.” At 62, he has been a trainer for over 25 years, and Kim is also a certified trainer.
While his trainers direct members on how to do their exercises and make sure they're using the right amount of resistance, being a trainer, he says, is not just about the ABCs of training; it’s more about the rapport and relationships that are built. And, these relationships don’t just happen with the trainers, but with fellow members. Because the small group trainings only have about 10 people, members get to know each other.
“We've had members who’ve met here, and now they're hanging out socially,” he says. “They're best buddies.”
Active Life Fitness offers private and online training as well, but regardless of which program they choose, all new members receive their own personalized program before beginning training.
“The first thing we do is sit down and do a strategy session. We learn as much as possible about them, their health and injury history, their goals, and their motivation.”
For some, this could be to increase self-esteem, keep up with grandchildren, play a sport they love, look good for a wedding or because they want to wear shorts this summer.
“They just want to feel better,” says Martin. “Our tagline is ‘Feel better, feel younger, age better.’ That's really what most people want to do.”
Next, members are taken out to the gym floor for a movement assessment. “It's also really important to have some starting numbers, so we have a body composition analyzer. It's non-invasive. They can see the ratio of muscle fat against their total body weight, because the weight on the scale doesn't tell the whole story. I could have two people who weigh 150 pounds and they could look completely different.”
After that, members go back to his office and discuss and design the best program for them. This personalized program is reassessed every six weeks or so.
In addition to weight loss and muscle tone, there are what he calls non-scale benefits, like more confidence. “When people feel better about themselves, it makes everything else in their lives better.”
Active Life offers nutritional coaching as well, which is included with membership. Martin says the people who take advantage of it usually see the best results. “We provide them with resources and teach them healthy eating habits.”
Some of their members have been with them since day one. “That’s because we have an awesome team of coaches, plus my amazing assistant Ileana,” he says. “To have a successful business, you can't go it alone.”
To become a member, go to ActiveLifeFitness.net.