There are many ways to take on our fitness journeys and it's about the best way to get there whether it's a traditional gym or boutique fitness. We sat down with Brookelyn Suddell, Group Fitness Strategy and Development at Crunch Fitness which has an array of options for its members including typical gym offerings, group fitness classes and boutique fitness as well. We wanted to know more about the DNA and ethos of Crunch Fitness, how you go about Crunchifying fitness methods that are there and even learning about popular methods that actually got its start at their gyms. ATHLEISURE MAG: When we began our path of adulting and actually paid for our own membership with our corporate job, Crunch Fitness was where we signed up. We knew we wanted to work out, to have that mix of the gym as well as the fun studio environment. For those that may not have had a membership or are not familiar with this brand, can you tell us about Crunch and what their ethos is? BROOKELYN SUDDELL: Absolutely and you know, Crunch and our ethos is what I love the most about being part of this company! I have been here for 14 years and it’s actually my 14 year anniversary this month. So I started as a Crunch member and when I joined, Crunch it’s one of those places where you’re not just running in to get your workout and then running out. You can, you totally can, but being able to walk into the gym and to have the opportunity to get the workout that you want – whether it be on the gym floor with machines or free weights or with a trainer in a group fitness class or a virtual class, Crunch is not just a gym, it’s a community gathering place. It’s a place for people who are members to come that they have a home and they have someplace that they can go. Even if they don’t want to get a workout in, they have other areas throughout the clubs whether it's the relax and recover area stations, tanning, hydra massage,
the saunas, the steam rooms – there is always something that you can do when you walk through the doors at Crunch. The community part, the culture part is something really important to me personally that I work with the company and that I really believe in the culture and the fabric of what the brand really believes in. We’re a culture of No Judgements. Whenever I am talking with my team, I always start my meeting off with going through our 7 core values which are being: Responsible, Passionate, Kind, Inclusive, Innovative, Alternative and Fun – most importantly. What we are is a diverse community and we have a culture of fun and people are our priority and that’s how we drive our business forward. We listen to our people and we strive to give them everything that we possibly can. AM: Tell us about your role as the Director of Group Fitness Strategy and Development. What is your day-to-day like, what do you do? BS: I know! It’s a very long title and I love when people ask that and whether it fits on a business card – barely! It’s really interesting. As I said, I joined Crunch Fitness Gyms 14 years ago as an instructor. Then in 2016, I jumped onto the corporate side. Another of the things that I love about Crunch is that they’re very open to your ideas – your unique and individual outlook on things. When I started on the corporate side, it was kind of an open-ended role. I came from a marketing events background and I just jumped in on the group fitness side, because I did know group fitness inside and out and I really kind of found that I was good at leaning into partnerships and coming up with new ideas. I was good at being able to see what was trending and what was the pulse of fitness right now. You know, we are alternative, we are fun, we always want to stay front and center as far as all of our offerings go. As fas as my day-to-day goes, we're al-