“The first crossfit gym we checked out was Notorious. After Alex Martinez, the original founder, led us through our first class, that was it, we did’t need to visit another place. The members there really felt like a family. We loved the atmosphere, the community, and I felt very comfortable having my kids there because I knew that they’d have good role models.

The only inconvenience at that point was paying for both a martial arts and a CrossFit memberships, but I didn’t mind because I saw the benefits they were providing for us.”

“When Erica and myself got our black belts in Kung Fu, our teacher Master Wu asked, “Alright, are you guys going to open your own school?” We thought “no” at first but in the beginning of 2019 we got our opportunity.

The owners of Notorious at that time found that they needed to focus more on their own full time careers and were in need of a transition. So with my family’s support, I offered to buy the gym. They were really happy to transfer the business to me and my family. That was the beginning of our journey as gym owners.

We wanted to do more than just provide crossfit classes, so we incorporated nutrition, martial arts, kickboxing, Kung-fu, steel mace and yoga. Because we knew the struggle of paying for classes at different gyms, we wanted to offer a membership that allowed people to enjoy fitness in whatever way they wanted to that day.”

“Right when we were feeling comfortable near the end of 2021, the building owner explained the rent was increasing next year. We either had to pay more than double the rent or find a new place. That was another turning point for us, do we shrink or do we grow?

We decided to grow and moved into our current location in Portage Park. With two and a half times the space, we’re really able to provide the place of our dreams. Not only do we have the space for our different classes, but we’ve been hosting new workshops and community events. There’s so much more we want to do, we’re just getting started right.

We love what we do and share that excitement with our members. It shows because everybody that comes into our gym enjoys themselves. When I see everybody happy, working out, sweating together, I think, ‘Yes. That’s what it’s all about.'”