Three years after opening its doors in Ballston in the middle of a global pandemic, VIDA Fitness is holding a grand opening this Saturday.

“It sounds odd, off the cuff, close to three years after the grand opening to do a party, but this was the first time in the timeline to do it,” VIDA Fitness Director of Operations Aaron Moore tells ARLnow.

The D.C.-native fitness club was waiting for nice weather and a strong enough membership base to throw a party people would attend at 4040 Wilson Blvd. The event is scheduled for May 6 from 3-6 p.m.

Moore credits its fastest-growing program, nutritional counseling, for growing its roster of members. Launched in 2019, it aims to address the health issues Americans are facing — and represents another claim staked on a booming wellness industry some project will be worth $7 billion in 2025.

“The biggest trending term is ‘wellness,’ and that’s a function of being cooped up during the pandemic and leading a sedentary lifestyle,” Moore said. “The average life expectancy has gone down for the first time in decades.”

While the program predates Covid, interest in nutritional counseling jumped after the lockdowns and as people began thinking about health less in silos like “working out” and “eating right” and started viewing these as components of overall wellness. The in-person and virtual 12-week workshop, with group and individual sessions, also demonstrates how better nutrition improves exercise results, work productivity and sleep habits.

“It’s pretty comprehensive and we’ve seen some amazing health outcomes,” he said, even for an area “where people are more in tune with their bodies and taking care of themselves.”

And the benefit sweetening the deal? It is free through many types of health insurance as preventative care, he says. VIDA offers the program directly to individuals and to businesses that want to purchase the benefit for their employees.

Initially, the fitness center focused on generating buzz about the gym’s Covid-era health and safety protocols. Moore said that helped coax customers who were already the 10-15% of people who habitually go to the gym, despite Covid, along with others who were more safety-conscious and planned to return when the pandemic was “over, over.”

“That’s where the communication plan was helpful and productive to talk about our cleaning protocols, our air changeover rate, our check-in and contact tracing system, all that good stuff,” he said.

VIDA Fitness cultivated “the credibility of doing what we said we were going to do” while, at the same time, people got more comfortable living with Covid, Moore continued. Membership rates turned a corner in 2022 because people liked the variety of amenities, services and distinct workout environments provided there.

“That’s when it really started to take off,” Moore said. “We’re thriving now.”

Buoyed by “a great first quarter” and more members, the Ballston location completed a large-scale renovation that included the addition of more strength and squat racks and three Peloton bikes.

“We are now a fixture in the Ballston neighborhood and the Arlington community,” Moore said. “We’ve got a great relationship with the Ballston Business Improvement District, which is an amazing resource, and the Chamber of Commerce is a great partner to us.”

Saturday’s celebration will include tours, opportunities to mingle with trainers and neighbors and free giveaways, per an event page. Food and drinks will be provided by Rosslyn taqueria Taco Rock, Ballston-based True Food Kitchen, Clarendon restaurant Buena Vida, D.C.-area chain Nando’s and Northern Virginia winery Fabbioli Cellars.

Meanwhile, the gym is already building its seventh location, in Reston, which is set to open in the summer of 2024. A would-be Rosslyn location was scrapped last year, the Washington Business Journal reported.

(Updated at 11 a.m.) An athletic club and coworking space totalling more than 100,000 square feet says it will be opening this summer in Clarendon.

Construction on Life Time at 1440 N. Edgewood Street has been underway for some time, following the August 2021 announcement that it was coming to a renovated office building that’s part of The Crossing Clarendon retail center.

Billing itself as an “athletic country club,” Life Time will have high-end fitness facilities including multiple studios, childcare facilities, a salon and spa, a cafe and lounge, and — rounding it out — a 28,000 square foot coworking space.

A preview center for the club is now open, Life Time says, and an opening is expected mid-summer. A press release announcing the opening is below.

Life Time (NYSE: LTH), will open its athletic country club and debut Life Time Work, the first D.C. metro area destination and coworking development, later this summer in Clarendon. A preview center, at 1440 North Edgewood Street, Arlington, is now open for prospective members to learn more about both Life Time and Life Time Work and be among the first to join the development.

The Life Time addition will be a main anchor for Regency Center’s The Crossing Clarendon, a multi-block stretch of mixed-used development with shops, restaurants and offices.

The Crossing was selected because of the vibrant neighborhood, ideal for the more than 113,000 square-foot, four-story Life Time destination featuring an 85,000 square-foot athletic country club and 28,000 square-foot premium coworking space.

“Arlington is regarded as a healthy, vibrant and growing community, and The Crossing Clarendon is consistently voted “Best of Arlington” by Arlington Magazine, making it a terrific location for Life Time and our offerings,” said Jeff Zwiefel, Life Time executive vice president and chief operating officer. “We are excited to debut Life Time here with our athletic country club and our premium workspace, which will provide our members with first-class healthy and wellness experiences for themselves and their families.”

Designed for individuals and companies, Life Time Work will feature highly functional private offices, open-plan workspaces, conference rooms, along with multiple, amenities, flexible monthly memberships and access to every Life Time athletic country club nationwide.

The breadth of programs, services and amenities at Life Time Clarendon athletic country club will include:

• Six dedicated studios hosting more than 100 weekly Life Time Large Group Classes in barre, cycle, group fitness, Pilates and yoga, with additional spaces for Signature Small Group Training programs Alpha, GTX and Ultra Fit.
• Personal Trainers to lead members through highly personalized sessions across the spacious, state-of-the-art workout floor featuring top-of-the-line cardiovascular and strength training equipment.
• LT Recovery for athletic performance and recovery featuring metabolic assessments, nutrition coaching, sports and athletic recovery treatments and chiropractic care.
• [A PR rep tells ARLnow that these items, an outdoor beach club and a basketball court, we’re included erroneously.]
• Kids Academy with infant and toddler areas and three studios for programming, including a Kids Gym, an activity/movement studio and an art/language studio for children up to age 11.
• LifeSpa salon and spa services, including hair, nail, esthetician and massage services.
• LifeCafe and Life Time Lounge with a full-service, fast casual menu featuring wholesome food from protein shakes and smoothies to salad, sandwiches and bowls, and children’s meals.
• ARORA classes, programs and community for older adults who want to stay healthy and social.

A boxing gym is entering the local ring in a big way.

Rumble Boxing, which has an existing location at 2001 M Street NW in D.C., is planning to open at least three new locations in Arlington and Falls Church.

The fast-growing, New York City-based fitness chain lists on its website “coming soon” locations of 1900 Crystal Drive, a new apartment tower in Crystal City, and 110 Founders Avenue in Falls Church, also a new apartment building.

In addition, a leasing plan viewed by ARLnow shows a Rumble location coming to the ground floor of the under-construction Commodore apartment tower in Courthouse, across from the Metro station.

Rumble bills itself as a boxing-centric fitness experience that’s actually enjoyable and not just a chore. Classes are led by charismatic instructors.

“At its epicenter, Rumble is a collection of the most inspired and inspiring fitness instructors on the planet,” the company’s website says. “Impressive athletes in their own regard, they step onto the podium at Rumble as part DJ, part motivational speaker, and complete Master of Ceremony. The 45 minutes that follows is an awesome orchestration of a workout engineered to custom hip-hop and house mash-ups.”

“We remain committed to less cheesy fitness B.S. and more authenticity,” the website adds.

Rumble will compete with a number of homegrown, locally-based boxing gym concepts that also seek to provide engaging, enjoyable workouts. Among them are Teddy’s Fitness Boxing along Columbia Pike, 30 Minute Hit in Ballston, Urban Boxing Arlington in Virginia Square, Bash Boxing in Rosslyn and Ballston.

Bash cofounder Scott Parker says he expected the impending heavyweight competition.

“We always knew they would be coming into the market, they’re a big brand,” Parker told ARLnow. Bash currently has four locations, and a fifth on the way, all in Northern Virginia.

Photo via Instagram

A new LA Fitness has replaced the shuttered Gold’s Gym on S. Glebe Road.

The Gold’s Gym at 2955 S. Glebe Road, at the Arlington Ridge Shopping Center near Gunston Middle School, closed mid-last month, an employee confirmed to ARLnow. Within a few days, though, it was converted it was into an LA Fitness — including a banner announcing its presence — and reopened.

A number of employees were kept on as well as much of the equipment, providing gym-goers with a similar experience as before.

It’s unclear exactly why this Gold’s Gym was closed and converted into LA Fitness. ARLnow has reached out to both companies but has yet to hear back from either as of publication.

In 2020, Gold’s Gym filed for bankruptcy and was acquired by the European fitness operator RSG Group for $100 million.

The closing of the Gold’s Gym on S. Glebe Road leaves the company with three gyms remaining in Arlington. That includes Rosslyn, Clarendon, and Ballston, the site of a parking lot scuffle late last year that ended with D.C.’s deputy mayor resigning from his post. The Gold’s Gym in Courthouse closed in 2019.

As for LA Fitness, exactly a mile from the new S. Glebe Road location is another LA Fitness gym on S. Clark Street in Crystal City. There was also an LA Fitness in Pentagon City until that one closed in 2015.

Elsewhere, another gym is set to open in Clarendon later this year. Life Time, which dubs itself a “luxurious athletic country club,” is expected to start welcoming gym-goers within the next few months in The Crossing Clarendon development.

You’ll likely have to wait a few months longer to tackle those new year’s resolutions at a new gym in Clarendon.

Life Time, the self-described “luxurious athletic country club,” is set to take over much of the one-time office building at 1440 N. Edgewood Street in Clarendon, filling the multi-story, 113,000-square-foot space. The fitness center received county approval in November 2021 to allow for retail and fitness activities in the building.

The plan is to open “likely [in] the first half” of the year, a company spokesperson tells ARLnow via email.

Some signage and window stickers are already up, though, advertising that Life Time is coming to the multi-block stretch of mixed use development known as The Crossing Clarendon.

We first reported that Life Time was opening a large, upscale fitness center in Clarendon back in August 2021. It’s set to feature a spa, dressing rooms, a small cafe, two floors of gym space, and a co-working area.

Life Time also has locations in Fairfax, Reston, and Centreville, as well as a few in Maryland.

Initially, an Equinox gym was going to move into the building but the project was canceled due to the company suffering “financial hardship” related to the pandemic.

The Barre3 studio in Clarendon has closed after four-and-a-half years in business.

The workout spot at 2800 Clarendon Blvd in The Crossing Clarendon (formerly Market Common Clarendon) officially closed yesterday, the company confirmed to ARLnow. It blamed a conflict with the property owner and business challenges brought on by the pandemic.

“Barre3 Clarendon is closed as of yesterday 10/25/2022 due to unresolved conflict with our landlord in relation to the insurmountable losses the pandemic has brought our way,” a spokesperson wrote to ARLnow in an email.

ARLnow is awaiting a response from the shopping center owner, Florida-based Regency Centers.

Clarendon’s Barre3 first opened in March 2018 after a bit of a delay. It was a workout studio that emphasized techniques and equipment more typically used by ballet dancers. It was the only Barre3 studio in Arlington, with the next closest one now on Duke Street in Alexandria. There are more than 170 Barre3 studios across the country.

The Crossing Clarendon has seen other closings and openings recently. The fashion store Loft closed over the summer while seafood restaurant Seamore’s opened last month at the corner of Clarendon Blvd and N. Edgewood Street.

There has been even more drama in the Gold’s Gym parking lot near Ballston.

The parking lot has gained notoriety after featuring prominently into the Virginia Attorney General’s largely unsuccessful lawsuit against Advanced Towing last year and, more recently, being the scene of an alleged assault that led to the resignation of a D.C. deputy mayor this week.

The latest incident happened around noon yesterday (Thursday). Police were dispatched to the parking lot on the 3900 block of Wilson Blvd for a report of a man with a crowbar smashing the window of a car while someone was inside.

“At approximately 12:13 p.m. on October 13, police were dispatched to the report of a destruction of property,” said Arlington County Police Department spokeswoman Ashley Savage. “Upon arrival, it was determined the male victim was inside his vehicle when the suspect approached and smashed the front passenger side window. The suspect fled the scene when he noticed the victim was inside the vehicle.”

The getaway vehicle was said to be a black Honda Civic, according to scanner traffic.

While the timing was conspicuous, given the highly-publicized case involving the D.C. official, police said it does not appear to have any connection to that incident and was likely an attempted theft.

“The victim’s wallet was in the passenger seat at the time of the incident and it appears this incident may have been an attempted larceny from auto,” Savage told ARLnow. “The investigation is ongoing.”

Photo via Google Maps

A D.C. deputy mayor is on leave after a reported assault in Arlington.

The incident happened Saturday around 12:30 p.m. but was not reported to police until Monday evening, an Arlington County Police Department spokeswoman said. It took place in the parking lot of the Gold’s Gym near Ballston, on the 3900 block of Wilson Blvd.

“The suspect and male victim became engaged in a verbal dispute after the door of the suspect’s parked vehicle struck the vehicle the victim was entering,” said ACPD spokeswoman Ashley Savage. “The dispute escalated, during which the suspect allegedly grabbed the victim by the throat.”

“During the course of the investigation, a suspect description was developed and on Tuesday, the victim responded to the Office of the Magistrate, completed a criminal complaint and a warrant for Assault and Battery was issued for Christopher Geldart, 53, of Falls Church,” Savage said. “He was notified by telephone of the warrant, turned himself in and was released on a summons.”

Geldart has served as the District of Columbia’s Deputy Mayor for Public Safety and Justice since being appointed in January 2021, according to his biography on the District’s website.

NBC 4 first reported on the incident and that Geldart is now on personal leave pending an investigation, according to Mayor Muriel Bowser. Fox 5 published surveillance video (below) apparently captured by the gym, which shows the parking lot confrontation.

The victim of the alleged assault suggested that this is not the first time Geldart was involved in an incident at a Gold’s location.

“Something should be done. It’s not okay,” Dustin Woodward, who’s identified as a trainer at the gym, told Fox 5. “We’ve been dealing with him a while at Gold’s. Multiple locations actually that’s how we even figured out who he was.”

Photo via Google Maps

Capital Plan, Bond Referenda Approved — “The Arlington County Board has unanimously approved a $3.9 billion ten-year Capital Improvement Plan that focuses on stormwater management and flood response, climate and environmental programs, parks, transportation, and community infrastructure over the next decade… [as well as] bond referenda totaling $510.5 million to be put before Arlington voters on the November ballot.” [Arlington County]

GOP Group Wants Fewer Vote Drops — “A Republican group seeking to have Arlington election officials reduce the number of 24-hour voting dropboxes in the county got something of a cold shoulder at the July 14 Electoral Board meeting… Representatives of a national Republican voter-integrity effort asked that the number of dropboxes be reduced from nine to as few as three, citing both cost and ballot-integrity issues.” [Sun Gazette]

Primary Voting Stats — “About 57 percent of the just over 25,000 voters who cast ballots in the primary did so on Election Day at polling precincts, according to data reported to Arlington Electoral Board members on July 14. About 30 percent cast ballots by mail, and the remaining 13 percent cast ballots in advance at one of three early-voting sites.” [Sun Gazette]

Car Show This Weekend — The Green Valley antique and classic car show is happening this Saturday from noon to 5 p.m. at Drew Elementary School. The 8th annual event will also feature a parade. [Twitter]

Family Bike Ride Planned — From Kidical Mass ARL: “Tour de Spraygrounds! This Saturday 7/23 meet at 11am at Mosaic Park in @Ballston (come early to play in the water!) We’ll bike on neighborhood streets down to the sprayground at @PenroseSquare. All are welcome. Tell your friends.” [Twitter]

Car Crash PSA — From Dave Statter: “Video of the crash with 1 hurt this afternoon on I-395N at Boundary Channel provides a good reminder. Before getting out of your vehicle after a collision make sure it’s safe to do so & your vehicle is secure & won’t continue to roll.” [Twitter]

Arlington-Born Gym Expanding — “A boutique gym is bringing its boxing-inspired workouts to Fairfax County. Introduced to Rosslyn in 2018, BASH Boxing will soon extend its reach beyond Arlington County for the first time with a new studio at the Mosaic District in Merrifield.” [FFXnow]

It’s Thursday — Humid and partly cloudy throughout the day. High of 92 and low of 78. Sunrise at 6:02 am and sunset at 8:31 pm. [Weather.gov]

An independent spin studio in Rosslyn that opened in 2019 with the help of donations has closed.

Good Sweat was an indoor cycling studio that temporarily became an outdoor cycling studio during the pandemic. It also tried virtual classes, but those quickly faded in popularity, owner Alessandra “Ali” Hashemi previously told ARLnow.

The business closed its doors over the weekend and is now selling its equipment.

Located at 1711 Wilson Blvd, in the low-slung strip mall that also houses Pho 75, Good Sweat sought to differentiate itself through its own charitable donations and commitment to social justice. But that was apparently not enough to overcome the challenging business environment for small fitness studios.

The following note about the closing was posted on its website.

Dear Good Sweat Fam,

We never thought this heartbreaking day would come: Good Sweat will be closing on April 30, 2022.

When we opened in April 2019, we were beyond excited to bring a community-oriented, positive fitness experience to the neighborhood. We knew the first few years open as a small business would be challenging, but we had no way of knowing a global pandemic was on the horizon. Before we were able to celebrate our one year anniversary, the pandemic forced us to temporarily close and since we reopened, we have never been able to fully recover.

While countless other small spin studios and local businesses closed in the area, we never thought we would be the next pandemic casualty. The past two years have been a rollercoaster and caused us to resuscitate the business multiple times. After numerous pivots from online to outdoors to indoors to outdoors, we have hung on for as long as we could. At this juncture, we have come to the difficult decision that we cannot revive Good Sweat another time.

We know that Good Sweat has become a safe space for so many, and we are immeasurably sad to see this day come.Thankfully, there is so much to be grateful for in spending three amazing years together. Good Sweat has been a beacon of light through some of our darkest days. We are so proud of all we have been able to accomplish in such a short period of time, including, but not limited to, raising over $21,000 to donate to local nonprofits as well as being named NOVA’s Best Cycling Studio, NOVA’s Best Outdoor Workout, and Best of Arlington.

Please know how much we wanted to stay open for you – for our riders and our squad who are the heart and soul of Good Sweat. We hope you understand that the fitness industry has been hit so hard and we were so young when this pandemic began that we constantly struggled.

We are trying to not cry because it’s over, but to smile because Good Sweat was so good to us. It carried us through these difficult last few years, and made us all a family. The relationships formed and the personal growth are priceless, and we have all changed for the better because of this studio.

We encourage you to keep in touch and to keep spinning. We highly recommend two other local woman-owned studios, New Trail and Cycled, which both have amazing missions that align with the Good Sweat way.

We will be sharing more on logistics and memberships in the coming days regarding our final 5 weeks of operations, but if you have any questions, please email us directly [email protected]

With Gratitude,
The Good Sweat Squad

A one-stop-shop for a workout and a post-workout meal is gearing up to open in the former Ray’s the Steaks location in Courthouse.

The forthcoming gym-café, FitDistrict, will have a little bit of everything: studios for hot yoga, cycling and interval training classes, and a diverse menu ranging from wheatgrass shots to healthified comfort classics, like shepherd’s pie.

“This has been a dream in the making for a long time,” says owner and founder Catherine Ford, who is also an Arlington resident.

Construction began about two weeks ago on the approximately 7,500-square foot space in the Navy League building at 2300 Wilson Blvd. It housed the iconic, no-frills steakhouse until that closed in 2019.

She expects to open the gym and restaurant at the same time in July.

“We’re all so busy and we are all are craving belonging and community — now more than ever — so it’s going to be fitness and food, but it’s about belonging and community,” she said. “Our tagline is ‘feel good here,’ because that’s what it’s about.”

After finishing a workout, gym members can head over to the café, which will have indoor and outdoor seating, or pick up a to-go order they placed before their workout. Ford designed the menu, which has vegan, vegetarian and paleo-friendly options.

“The whole idea came out of something I wanted in my own life and my personal struggles of fitting it all in,” she said.

As a financial planner, Ford had difficulty finding time for her two passions: attending group fitness classes and cooking healthy food. As someone who enjoyed a variety of workouts, she maintained multiple memberships to different boutique gyms.

The idea for one spot housing multiple studios and a restaurant came to her 10 years ago, when she was hungry after a barre class she had squeezed in before a meeting. She mulled the concept for years before deciding to act on it.

“I am grateful I found the courage a couple of years ago to go after it,” she said. “This has been a journey of a lifetime already.”

Ford incorporated FitDistrict in 2017 and found a bank to work with her in 2018. It took her a few years to find the right location, but she eventually signed a lease on the space a little more than a year ago. Now, she’s focused on construction and hiring for multiple positions.

She still works as a financial planner by day, but her hope is to go full time and, eventually, add locations.