TruFusion Builds Both Strength and Community (Ladue News)

Feature, Ladue News, June 14, 2018

By Allison Babka

Courtesy photo by TruFusion

Need a little extra motivation to hit the gym? Try taking the same fitness boot camp as former New York Yankees star Alex Rodriguez – right here in the metro area.

TruFusion, a luxe new Clayton group fitness studio, counts the baseball star as one of its board members and investors. Local wellness buffs are signing up en masse for the pro-athlete treatment after A-Rod visited the studio, giving the Barefoot Bootcamp class a shoutout on Instagram.

Although members can’t work out with Rodriguez every day, they certainly can get into all-star shape with one of TruFusion’s 18 daily classes. The cutting-edge fitness center boasts 17,000 square feet dedicated to yoga, Pilates, kettlebells, boxing, cycling, the barre and boot camps, all designed to remove barriers to good health for members of all ages and abilities.

“Nobody can really say, ‘I can’t fit it into my schedule,’” owner Joe Goldberg says. “We’ve lowered the cost threshold and removed the inconvenience of going to different places. It’s been great. We’ve had people who have come almost every day since we’ve opened, and there are about 200 to 250 people a day coming to our classes.”

Goldberg knows all about the difficulty of trying to schedule workouts. As a former director at a wealth management firm, he made it a point to squeeze fitness into his heavy travel schedule.

“As I was traveling, raising a family, I realized the importance of my group fitness routine for my mental health, physical health, concentration, everything,” Goldberg says. “And when I realized how much I was spending on it, it just seemed like it was unattainable by the majority of the population. There had to be a better way to make quality and variety of group fitness more convenient and more accessible.”

That’s when Goldberg decided to open St. Louis’ first TruFusion location, building a community of instructors and members who cheer one another on. He says the group aspect makes all the difference.

“Our goal is that when you walk in here, you’ll leave happier,” Goldberg says. “Everywhere else in life, you get graded. But here, nobody’s going to judge you. There are people of all shapes and sizes right alongside you, helping to push you, and you’re helping to push them.”

In addition to group fitness classes that bring balance to the body through strength and stretch, TruFusion offers personal training, spalike locker rooms, organic personal care products, massage and a boutique full of fitness and athleisure wear. Revel Kitchen, founded by a former St. Louis Cardinals team chef, opened its second location on-site, so TruFusion members can enjoy healthy meals, snacks and smoothies after workouts.

Even though TruFusion’s Clayton location just opened in April, Goldberg says he’s already looking at options to bring the fitness center to other parts of the metro area.

“My intention is to open three over the next five years,” he says. “As our membership grows, I think we’ll have a need to take some of the traffic off of the Clayton location. We have people coming from far away to take our classes, so ideally, we’ll head out west.”

TruFusion’s unlimited membership starts at $95 per month, with new member, autopay and yearly discounts available. Students, teachers, nurses, first responders, military veterans and employees of charitable organizations can receive further discounts.