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TRACY 0:00
A community here, we should support each other rather than compete with each other. And we should share our knowledge and kind of celebrate our community here. And that’s when I thought, hey, there’s a restaurant week, there’s a Fashion Week. Why isn’t there a fitness week? We’re Denver, Colorado, and I think we should have this
INTRODUCTION 0:24
Welcome to the fit and healthy Denver podcast where we discuss all things revolving around health, fitness and wellness in the amazing state of Colorado so you can get behind the scenes information from industry insiders, special events, and more. Coming up is our host, physical therapist and strength coach, Dr. Jamie Beauvais. And here we go.
JAMIE 0:50
Welcome everybody to this episode of the fit and healthy Denver podcast. And I am super excited. Today we have Tracy Mormon of Denver fitness week, Tracy is the founder. And we’re going to quiz her on Denver fitness week, what it is, what they’re trying to accomplish with Denver fitness week, and basically everything else. So Tracy, welcome to the podcast.
TRACY 1:12
Thank you. Thanks for having me. On this snowy day.
JAMIE 1:16
Snowy Day in September in Colorado, you never know. Right? And it’s 99 degrees two days ago. But it is what it is. We’re gonna get snow shovels today. And then, you know, we’ll get back into the sun tomorrow. But today, we’re here to talk about Denver fitness week. And super excited. I’m not sure you know, you’ve been growing. How long has Denver fitness week been going on?
TRACY 1:37
So this is the fifth year that it’s been going on? I can’t believe it’s already been five. But crazier to have it be the fifth year. We were planning on a little more this year. But as with everyone, we are adapting. And I think it’s actually working out pretty well for us.
JAMIE 1:54
Yeah. And what made you want to start Denver fitness.
TRACY 1:58
So I used to work for a boutique bar studio downtown, that was a new concept. And I really wanted to just meet other owners and network with them and thought, you know, our community here, we should support each other rather than compete with each other. And we should share our knowledge and kind of celebrate our community here. And that’s when I thought, hey, there’s a restaurant week, there’s a Fashion Week, why isn’t there a fitness week? We’re Denver, Colorado, and I think we should have this and I asked a few studios that I knew at the time, and they thought it would be a great idea. And that’s how it blossomed.
JAMIE 2:37
Nice. And so how do you go about picking the studios that you want in Denver fitness week? Is it always the same? Or does it kind of change and revolve
TRACY 2:47
So we, I curate them, I try to keep the criteria the same each year, I don’t want it to be the big box gyms or experiences that aren’t as unique and community focused. So the criteria that I have, basically is that you have to support other businesses, you can’t look at other businesses as your competitor, that’s a big one, the community pillar, another is the size of the studio, it has to be a smaller boutique studio. It’s okay if it’s a franchise. And in fact, if it’s a new franchise to the area, we like to support that as well. You also have to have kind of a unique offering. We try to get concepts that people might not have tried before and fitness week is actually a great excuse for people to try things that they might not have ever gone to or tried before. And I think that those pillars are probably the size, the community aspect. And then the unique offering or top three. And this year, we actually had a call for entries, which was new. I typically just kind of hear word of mouth and I call them to invite them to go visit the studio. But this year, we had a more formal process where you had to apply and answer some questions and all of that. So chain to make it a little more streamlined for people and be able to know each year like hey, when can I apply for fitness week? Because it has grown so much in the last five years?
JAMIE 4:23
Yeah, that’s great. I mean, it kind of sounds like you’re trying to do what you mentioned, like what the Denver Restaurant Week does for restaurants. It’s like, Hey, give everybody kind of, you know, a good deal to get them in. Let them try it out. I can’t think of how many restaurants that you know I’ve tried during Restaurant Week and I’d like to go back there again. I’d really like to know, I’m glad I had this yeah throw into their world if you will. So I think that’s really cool. I’m going to tell you, first of all, let’s eat Denver fitness week, because this year is a little bit different.
TRACY 4:55
Yes, it typically is in May every year. Usually the second week in May, but because of COVID, we had to move it to September. And I was hoping that, you know, the fitness industry right now, like all mall industries, restaurant industries and service industries is struggling. So I was hoping by September this year, we’d be able to support the studios and get new clients in their doors. So this year, it started September 5, which was Saturday, and it runs through the end of September. So instead of being a week, this year, it’s actually a whole month, because then capacities and studios are so small, like some only can have five to nine people in at one time, and I didn’t want to overwhelm them. And then overwhelming time as it is, so you can book $10 classes all September long, but this week is the fifth through the 12th. And kind of our closing event is the 24th. We have a lot of special events running the week of fitness week, which is typically only seven days. So we’ve had a few already. We have a few more this week. We have one outside tomorrow. And it’s actually the weather’s going to cooperate for it. So we’re trying to do a combination of outdoor classes and indoor classes. Forever, everyone’s comfort level.
JAMIE 6:26
Yeah. Well, what do you think? You know, I know, Denver Restaurant Week is now not one week anymore. And it sounds like you’re this has been growing pretty pretty quickly over the years, I saw your numbers, and you have a lot of people that participate in this. What do you think about going in the future making this a little longer?
TRACY 6:44
I actually think a month would be good, like a kind of restaurant week evolved because you can’t fit all of the studios in one week. I mean, the goal is for people to try and get as many as they can during fitness week. So that would be really tough to do in 14 days. I think we have like, we have 30 Studios more than 30, probably 33 this year. In the past, we had only 14 So yeah, it probably wouldn’t be feasible to go to as many in a week. So no, probably a test run. Yeah, absolutely.
JAMIE 7:19
Let’s see, see how everybody responds. And, you know, obviously, I’m sure the fitness world has been turned upside down. Right, right now it’s like, Yeah, can’t go into the gym. Okay, you can Okay, now you can, but you have to wear a mask and through changing so I think anything, you know, I’m sure. gyms are really appreciative of you trying to support them right now. So when you’re building this kind of roster of boutique fitness studios, how do you ensure that you have a good blend of different styles of fitness.
TRACY 7:52
So there’s always, you know, pillar studios like yoga and cycling, but what I think has exploded this year, in the last five years, is probably like boot camp style classes, hit classes. And this year, we’ve seen on the scene rowing kind of explode, as well, we have two rowing studios this year. So I am not as hard and fast as a rule, like, hey, we can only have one Pilates studio, we can only have one cycling studio. I like to allow studios to offer, you know, if it’s cycling, maybe have a beat driven class that they’re more to the music and to the beat. And then there’s another studio that does more of, you know, in and out of the saddle, like the styles are so different at so many places that even if they offer the same type of class, it could be a completely different experience. So I try to just curate based upon that, and just that the experience that I had personally, would be something I’d go back for. Then they’re in fitness week, it’s it’s usually pretty easy to decide right off the bat, whether or not Yeah, that’s
JAMIE 9:12
it. And I guess you know, it kind of leads itself out that you know, because if you’re a fitness company, and you are just copying somebody else, you’re trying to do exactly the same. That established company or is already out there, they’re probably you know, you’re never gonna compete. And so I’m imagining just as competitive as the fitness business here in Denver, it probably there is nobody that’s the same. Right? And if they are, yeah, they’re there. They’re never gonna grow or yeah, they’re
TRACY 9:39
exactly yeah. Okay. Super.
JAMIE 9:44
I looked in there. Yeah, you’ve got a pretty good mix of studios in there. Well, one thing I noticed you in the picture of the kind of the participating studios, it’s mostly kind of overwhelming women. Yeah. So, yeah, it’s very. It seems very women focused. Is that on purpose? Or is that just kind of how things have developed?
TRACY 10:09
Well, I think, in the fitness industry in general, like, especially boutique fitness, it’s pretty dominated by women. We have probably 85% of the people that participate are women in fitness week, and we’ve tried to draw more men in different years with different, you know, events and offerings. And we try to like, you know, the bootcamp gyms are becoming more popular and more attractive to men, but over the history of fitness, it seems like men don’t really like the group exercise component, a lot of them tend to just want to do their own thing. But I think that’s changing, as well as the trends like, think they’re the studio, they’re actually trying to go after both demographics now as well, too. And do events like whiskey tasting after class and
JAMIE 11:06
fitness and whiskey?
TRACY 11:09
Yes. Or beer? I mean, that’s a huge industry in Colorado. So cancer testing, yes, it is female dominated right now. But like any smart industry, the more you appeal to more people, the better you’ll do, especially right now. So I’m hoping to get more men to join. Alright, well, if
JAMIE 11:31
you decide you want to do a fitness and fitness and whiskey events next year as well, you let me know, I’ll also support that somehow. Yeah. So when you’re choosing these studios, you probably know about some of their workouts? Or you’ve heard about him, or I’ve personally tried them? What are you looking for, in a good class for people that you want to bring to people who would want to come to Denver fitness week?
TRACY 12:00
So I look like right off the bat. The friendliness of the studios when I walk in? Do they greet you? Do they make you feel comfortable? Is it scary? Like a lot of people who maybe have never tried boutique fitness or tried that particular workout? It’s very intimidating. So if they make you feel that comfort level right off the bat, that’s a big first impression. And then the cleanliness of the studio, the organization, the like, is it a smooth check in processes? Do I know that I have to bring a certain piece of equipment? Do they orient you around the machines or the rooms or the equipment? Safety is a big thing? Do they teach you the proper technique prior to starting or during the exercise? That’s big to me? And then the instructors? Are they engaging? Do they treat each person as an individual? Are they there to just talk like some instructors, you can tell if they’re engaged with the people in the room? Or if they’re just going through the motions? Yeah. I think those all go into the vibe of the class, not just the music, the lighting, it’s, do you feel a connection with the instructor? So those community aspects, like I said, in the criteria of picking studios, that vibe I get in the studio is also huge. Because that’s what’s going to make people come back if they feel like home, if they feel part, part of that team starts to feel like their family. They’re gonna buy a membership there. They’re gonna keep coming back. You’re gonna support that studio. So yeah, that I think the secret sauce, a lot of studios try to replicate.
JAMIE 14:00
Yeah, I mean, it sounds like you know, all that can be wrapped into, I would say two words, and that’d be experienced in community. So it sounds like you’re choosing people and studios and probably classes on what can give people the best experience and what the person who attends when they get that best experience, would they be likely to possibly want to go into that community? And I think that’s super important. Because like, while people do want to work out, they’re also trialing this for more than just a sweat. Yeah, right. Of course. Yeah. They may like their workout, but they don’t love their community or they love the community but don’t like the workout. So this is a nice way that they can trial both, you know, kind of put one foot in the water. You know, go on a date with another fitness company. Yeah, and see what they like. I really like it. Tracy I guess we did. We’d never asked what your background is.
TRACY 14:52
So I was a division one rowing athlete at Santa Clara University. I I wrote all four years of college. And before that in high school, I tried to play every sport under the sun. Basketball was my big sport, tennis, lacrosse, golf, volleyball, I just loved competing in sports. And so when I graduated from college, I wanted to continue that. And that’s how I got into the boutique fitness world. That’s why I started with the bar studio downtown. I just wanted to still foster that relationship I have with fitness where I tend to meet my best friends through sport through fitness. That’s where I’m my own person. That’s where I’m the most genuine person. That’s how I have always been throughout my life. So I was an instructor. I was a master trainer there for a while. And I was just really interested in Oh, my gosh, there’s so many studios opening up in Colorado every week. And I’ve never heard of that. I want to try that. Like, that was another reason I actually started setting this week because I wanted to stay on top of what was all opening in Colorado and what the new and best workout was. So I just, I don’t know, I’m a gym rat, I guess that’s the word that isn’t able to describe it as Yeah. But I’m also a mother of two now. So things have gotten really busy in the past four years. So yeah.
JAMIE 16:31
So as somebody who has as, as somebody who has two kids, and as I’m talking about you, and as somebody who has on digit on the studio and likes to try all these things out, how do you suggest they prioritize and manage their time because I know that can be very difficult.
TRACY 16:50
So there’s always hearing from my husband all the time, I don’t have time to workout, I can’t squeeze it in. Like, that’s always an excuse. And it’s a good excuse for many, I find myself saying I don’t have time for one more thing, like, but as I know my body, I know myself, I am my best person when I have exercised when I’ve had those endorphins. I am my best person socially, when I’m getting out of my house and seeing other people and trying something new that I don’t do all the time. So I have some extreme value in that. And I’m willing to wake up earlier to go try something that’ll help facilitate that feeling I get, I’m willing to, you know, tell my manager like, look, I have this one hour of time that I need to put aside for myself to exercise and I’m a better worker, when I do that. My advice is if it’s something that you know benefits your body and your mind, you will find time for it. And it will make you more productive in the long run. So just try it once. Try to get in the routine of it. And you’ll find yourself finding the time for the things that you really, really love to do. Good advice
JAMIE 18:17
and advice. Uh, so that brings me to another question, kind of let’s talk about group fitness, where it’s at right now with all the craziness going on. So what are your thoughts on people who want to stay active, and they liked the group setting? But right now, you know, that’s a little bit different, just because of regulations around COVID and everything. So yeah, how for the person that likes those big group workouts, or like the community everything, how would you suggest they say
TRACY 18:49
active? So I’ve had that struggle myself, because my son was born in February. So he was a newborn. Thank you. Yeah, and when we weren’t quite sure yet how this all affected the newborn. So I was being very cautious. So I didn’t feel quite comfortable going back into the gym. So I I tried virtual workouts. They’re not really my thing. Some people found them super handy and are addicted to them now, but I need to be with people. So I ended up finding studios that are adapting and doing outdoor classes. So outdoor yoga, like the row house, is doing outdoor classes, I think, probably three times a week where they bring their rowers outside and I actually love it like being out in the fresh air and it reminds me of my rowing days. But I would recommend just if you’re comfortable with outdoor classes, so many studios are pivoting and the ones that are surviving are the ones that are pivoting like that and providing different offerings, such as outdoor and virtual classes. So there are ways to still do it for every comfort level. Yeah. And to support the small businesses.
Unknown Speaker 20:12
Absolutely. So there’s people that want to support their jam, maybe they’ve stayed away for a while. They’re a little bit nervous about going back. What should they look for right now, so that they feel comfortable
TRACY 20:22
going back. So everywhere, they’re required to wear masks now, so that in itself, I mean, this, all the studios I’ve been to are following that to the tee. They’re doing temperature checks, as you arrive, they’re making use of hand sanitizer, they’re wiping down all their equipment. So they are, you know, doing everything in their possible realm to keep everybody safe. And the class sizes are much smaller. So if you feel comfortable with that, across the board, I’ve seen the CDs participating in fitness week are following that to the tee. If they’re not feeling comfortable yet, but want to support buying a gift card at a studio for a later date by maybe some of their likes, they all have, you know, they have clothing offered now retail clothing and things like that, like, support them in that way. Or like I said, a lot of them are offering special outdoor classes, look at their schedule and see what outdoor things they’re offering. Yeah, nice.
JAMIE 21:34
All right. So let’s kind of talk a little bit more about Denver fitness week. So what should somebody look for and choose a new workout during Denver fitness week that they may want to try?
TRACY 21:45
So look at the descriptions I tried on our app and on our website to write a description of each class, so that you’d easily be able to know what it is because some people are like, what is lagree Pilates like? No, it’s not a common thing to look at the description. keywords like high intensity, or low impact or hit if you’re looking for something that’s more restorative look for words like stretching, or like the yoga classes that are restorative should usually typically say restorative. But things like I’ll use the Pilates example. Again. There’s classes that are high intensity, and have a low impact on your body. So if you have bad knees or have an injury or nursing, but you want a really intense and good workout, look for high intensity, low impact and the descriptions, cardio workouts, rowing and cycling, they often offer classes that are either endurance classes or hit classes. So if you’re looking for something that will build up that long term endurance, then usually classes offer both. So don’t be scared away. If it’s just as if it’s cycling, and you want to work on, you know, slow twitch muscles, muscles, or sprints. They all offer that. So look at not only the workout, but the different types of classes each offer because they vary widely within the studios. And then maybe just try to go out on a limb and try something that you typically would never ever try. And you might surprise yourself like Yeah, yep. And we actually also this year have an acupuncture studio on the list. So they just offer acupuncture services. So some of the things aren’t even working out. They’re restorative things for your mental well being as well. Nice. And
JAMIE 23:51
You know, you don’t have to list all of them, but just give our listeners a little bit of an idea of some of the partners that you have in the Denver fitness week that they could try out.
TRACY 24:01
Yeah, so we have. So we’re doing classes in Denver proper as well as South Denver this year. In years past that’s been different. I tried to keep it concentrated in Denver, just Denver proper. This year we expanded down south so bomb fitness is new this year. They’re in South Denver. We have a fierce 45 that has a couple locations. We have a row house which is new to Colorado. We also have a city row, which is an uptown. We have a high ride cycle. loans like we have several bar studios, including the bar standard. They’re a new studio and the Tough Mudder boot camp. It’s actually a pretty cool concept. It’s down in the city park. We have plenty of yoga classes and offerings. I think this year we’ve got I think that Middleton studio we actually had five well being involved but they had to close down temporarily and they offered yoga bombers but Rise Nation, the Versa climbers, those things are new to the market as well their card. Off the top of my head, I think I’ve tried them all. But I would love to go back to all of them and try them again because I think they change their class offerings pretty regularly. Yeah, offer different different benefits as well. Yeah, yeah. What are What’s your type of like, favorite workout?
JAMIE 25:36
I typically do hit workouts. Yeah, a lot of running right now. Not you know, I’m kind of figuring out the whole gym thing like like everybody else when it’s when it’s appropriate when it’s not.
TRACY 25:49
Yeah. Yeah, I do a lot of cool things. Running class on Thursday this week at salons, like, I’ll check that out. Branch running is one of the studios and they do outdoor runs followed by brunch,
JAMIE 26:04
or a combination from food and what you eat? No, are excited if you like, if you like workouts and you eat Yeah. Which is probably everybody that comes to Denver fitness week. They’re there perfectly. So yeah. All right. So I’ll keep this short. I know you wanted to talk about the digital punch cards that are a new option this year.
TRACY 26:23
Yeah. So that I mean, there’s always technology, it takes a while for people to understand it and figure it out. So this year, we rolled out a digital punch card, it’s an app, you can also access it on a web app. So you don’t actually have to download an app if that’s not your thing. But it’s a way to track where you’ve been by checking in on your phone. It has a little QR code scanner built in. And each studio participating has that code at their desk. Or if it’s a virtual class, they’ll send it to you on your email receipt. And you just scan it with your phone and it’ll check you in and show it on your little countdown, we have a goal tracker to try to go to four studios at least. And then you’re entered for a raffle prize. So it helps track where you’ve been. And it shows up with the little kind of passport badge that you’ve been there. It also gives you the geolocation of each studio, see which one is closest to you. But this year, it’s different because you have to pay $15 for that punch card and download the app. And then once you pay 15 It unlocks all the promo codes to book the classes. So people aren’t used to that yet. So there’s been a little slower uptick this year. But it could also just be that people aren’t quite ready yet to go to classes. I don’t know yet. But it’s kind of a test run this year of the app and might be a good year to have a test run.
JAMIE 27:54
Absolutely. Well, Tracy, I want to be respectful of your time. So why don’t you tell everybody where they can find more about you, whether they can find more about Denver fitness week, and where they can go to see if they’re interested.
TRACY 28:08
Yeah, so they can go. We have a website, Denver fitness week.com. Everything’s listed there. There’s a digital punch card tab at the top where you can go to find the links to download the digital punch card. And on that punch card too. It’s free to download and see all the studios participating in what they offer before you purchase. So that’s a good idea to just download the punch card. See what’s out there, see what they’re offering. And if it looks good, then get the punch card and it’s pretty self explanatory, but can also follow us on Instagram at Denver fitness week. Absolutely.
JAMIE 28:47
All right. So thank you, Tracy for jumping on and telling us all about Denver fitness week. If you like fitness, and you like trying out new things, check out Denver fitness week and see what they can offer for you. All right. Bye, everybody. Thank you.
OUTRODUCTION 29:06
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