More than 15 local fitness facilities and the Park District of Oak Park are joining forces to offer free classes to the public later this month.
OPRFitness week — coordinated by Ali Haynes, owner of The Barre Code in Oak Park; Anne Pezalla, co-owner of Lively Athletics; and Jenny Shepherd, owner of Jenny Shepherd Public Relations — was created to give the community a chance to try various fitness studios from May 22-28.
Haynes said a sister studio in the Detroit area had success with something similar.
“And with the community around here, we thought it was kind of perfect,” Haynes said. “The idea behind it is to get Oak Park and River Forest up and moving.”
Oak Park has a strong fitness-minded community, and it was easy to get so many gyms, yoga studios, personal trainers and the park district on board with the idea, Pezalla said.
“We all have good relationships with the studios anyway,” she added.
The event is geared toward exposing people to local fitness studios they haven’t yet joined or tried, Shepherd said; Fitness Week offers anyone one free class per participating studio or gym during that week.
“Getting them through that door is the biggest component,” Haynes said.
Scheduling is done through the OPRFitness Week website, which Haynes said provides a way for the organizers to track Fitness Week users. Sign-up for classes is available online eight days prior to that class.
“It’s kind of a good, free way to try them out,” Pezalla said, adding that those interested could take multiple classes per day during that week.
Many of the participating studios are direct competitors, Shepherd pointed out, but they were excited to take part in the event.
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“There’s something for everybody,” she said. “Most people, I would say, don’t even know what’s in their backyard.”
Additionally, eight local businesses that support a healthy lifestyle will offer coupons for use during the week. And many plan to run specials or hold events during the week, Pezalla added.
Haynes said they envision Fitness Week appealing to a variety of age groups and levels of fitness. Shepherd said they are keeping it simple this year to see how well it works, but they hope to see the event grow in the years to come, including greater development in the area of fitness involving children.
For more information or to sign up for classes, visit the OPRFitness Week website: www.oprfitnessweek.com.
Caitlin Mullen is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.