JADE FITNESS
Neighbors Helping Neighbors Stay Fit; Lessons Learned from the Shutdown by Pattie Cinelli
Jade Fitness offers 1 on 1 personal training, group fitness classes, yoga and small group training
J
ade Fitness is one of the boutique studios on Capitol Hill that survived the COVID shutdown. Its survival has been dependent on a number of circumstances, and its continued existence depends in part on their tapping into the leading edge trends in the industry, staying abreast of members’ needs and wants and steady support from the community. “Jade Fitness has always been about residents of Capitol Hill and that’s what people like most,” said owner Jesse Heier, who lives one block from their Pennsylvania Avenue location. “Customers work out with people they see at the grocery store or while walking their dogs. They also meet new people and make new friends that are their neighbors.” Even though Jade has been open since 2014, Heier noted that after the shutdown it’s almost like the gym was opening for the first time. “We have to build up the numbers of clients and schedule new routines. Prepandemic, when one of our members moved we’d feel bad but knew there were more signing up. In the past two years, when someone
leaves no one is replacing her/him.” Jade’s experience has national statistics that bear out the change. In September 2021, when more than 87 percent of fitness clubs across the U.S. had reopened, 60 percent of members still hadn’t returned to their gyms while 20 percent had stopped exercising altogether, according to ClubIntel. Heier said so much has changed in the time the gym was closed. People have no set routines anymore. “We find it very difficult to figure out the best time for a morning class. Nowadays our 3 p.m. Friday class is one of the most popular offerings. We have a good core group of people every week.” He also said the noon total body workout class, which was not popular pre-pandemic, is now very well attended. “The nature of Hill people’s work schedules is different.” Another change Heier witnessed is clients’ broader view of wellness and how they contribute to their own health. “We see much more awareness about what being healthy entails, and it’s not just about lifting weights or doing an hour of cardio,” he said. “It involves eating well, July 2022 ★ 91
