Uptown Fitness – If You Can Dream It, We Can Help You Achieve It

Photo courtesy of Andy Gunsaullus, Director of Personal Training/Owner, Uptown Fitness.

With the New Year right around the corner, quite a few of us are revisiting last year’s resolutions (yikes) and brainstorming new ones for 2021. If you are putting the quintessential “Work Out More” on your list this year, why not set yourself up for success with a little much needed specificity? Gift yourself with a membership at Uptown Fitness, where an extremely talented team of coaches can help guide you to your healthiest, fittest year yet. Their small classes, knowledgeable staff, and emphasis on creating a safe environment for everyone makes Uptown Fitness one of the best local resources for Minnesotans with ambitious fitness goals.

Andy Gunsaullus, founder and owner of Uptown Fitness, did not start his professional life in fitness. After pursuing a career in finance and spending several years as a stay-at-home dad, Gunsaullus realized that fitness was his passion. He went back to school, got a Double Masters in Sports Performance and Sports Nutrition, and then transformed an old Snap Fitness location into Uptown Fitness: a gym specializing in small classes and personal training where everyone is welcome.

Photo courtesy of Andy Gunsaullus, Director of Personal Training/Owner, Uptown Fitness.

One of the reasons why many of us fail to achieve our fitness goals year after year is that going to the gym is overwhelming. People “don’t want to [stare] at a sea of equipment wondering what they should do next,” Gunsaullus explains, “By working out with a coach, all they have to do is show up and we’ll take it from there.”

Coaches are not just for personal training at Uptown Fitness. By offering small class sizes, Uptown Fitness gives its gym members “the feel of group fitness” combined with the attention normally reserved for personal training. “[T]hey don’t get lost in a crowd, they get real coaching on their form and technique, and they get a workout that’s personalized to their goals and experience,” says Gunsaullus. The team at Uptown Fitness is serious about personalizing workouts to member goals, going so far as to create classes for small friend groups or couples who want to work out together. If you can dream it, Uptown Fitness can do it.

Every coach at Uptown Fitness is a Certified Personal Trainer with additional certifications reflecting their fitness niche. Whether you are interested in running, movement correction, kettlebells, powerlifting, ultra-endurance training, or want someone to help your teenager be their best athlete – Uptown Fitness has a coach with an advanced skill set who will help you find and hone your athleticism.

Photo courtesy of Andy Gunsaullus, Director of Personal Training/Owner, Uptown Fitness.

Gunsaullus strives to make sure everyone is comfortable at Uptown Fitness. “It is very important to me that I create a training space that makes every person feel welcome, regardless of their gender identity, their orientation, their appearance, their experience in a gym, and their goals,” he pauses, “The most important thing to me (besides member safety of course) is creating a training environment where nobody feels unwelcome, not strong enough, not ‘fit’ enough, or simply like they don’t belong.”

Photo courtesy of Andy Gunsaullus, Director of Personal Training/Owner, Uptown Fitness.

Uptown Fitness has also introduced new equipment and protocols to ensure everyone at the gym is as safe as possible during the pandemic. New air purifiers, sanitizing equipment, and rules regarding mask use are among the COVID-related measures at the gym.

In addition to that, the small group model that is the Uptown Fitness trademark “is ideal when people are hesitant to return to a gym with larger group fitness or crowded areas,” according to Gunsaullus. The small class sizes and the large gym make for a winning combination. Gunsaullus explains, “We’re able to spread everyone out so they can have their own space and still get a great workout. With a group workout in progress, and a personal training session running concurrently, we still only have a max of 7 people in the gym at one time, including staff, spread out over 2500 sq feet!”

Photo courtesy of Andy Gunsaullus, Director of Personal Training/Owner, Uptown Fitness.

Uptown Fitness has been incredibly adaptable in its response to the pandemic. “During the first as well as the second shutdown, we were able to lend out equipment to those who chose to maintain their membership and train online at home,” Gunsaullus explains, “[W]e provided the three things that people look for most in a gym; the equipment, the workouts, and the accountability.”

If you are looking for a local gym to finally make your fitness related resolutions come to fruition, Uptown Fitness might just be the right fit for you. Hopefully we do not have another lockdown in our collective future, but it sure feels good to know that your gym has a plan if that does happen. No matter what 2021 has in store, Uptown Fitness is ready to help keep your health and fitness goals on track.

**EDITOR’S NOTE**  All photos were taken before the pandemic.