Blog

posted on December 11, 2018

It’s that time again. Welcome to December’s State of the Union.

The end of 2018…it has been a hell of a year, both good and bad. We grew as a gym. We’re hoping our members grew in their own way as well. We saw our members hit personal bests in marathons, on the scale, and with barbells. We had many go out on a limb and try new things- powerlifting meets, cardio classes, and first time yogis. We danced and sang through Deutschtown. We mourned for Squirrel Hill. And we wonder what next year will bring as we spend time with friends and family around the dinner table for the holidays.

To follow along with our core values, here is a link to our website:

About

UF values- EPIC: Education—Passion—Integrity—Community

Education
We are extremely proud to announce that Alexa is graduating with her degree in exercise science from Chatham University! She’s been stalwart in figuring out exactly where she wants to land in this world. Through a few changes in majors and multiple internships, she’s been true to herself. And for that, we’re even more proud. She’s a genuine human being and without any effort brings a smile to everyone she crosses paths with. Alexa- thank you for your time, effort, and dedication to the Union Fitness community and to yourself. You make the world a better place just by being you!

Passion
Dedication could be interchanged on this one…Alison came to me and said we need 5:30am classes. I’m not at all a morning person and I trust Alison because she’s the most reliable coworker that I’ve ever been around- so I wasn’t about to find out for myself. A couple months later, all of our morning classes are filled up, and some even waitlisted. So thank you Alison for your passion and dedication. And thank you Union Fitness members for your passion and dedication! It takes a lot of mental fortitude and discipline to set that 4-430-5am alarm and not hit snooze. Kudos to you all. Keep it up in the new year!

Integrity
We dropped the ball last year and didn’t get involved with a giving tree early enough. So we all set calendar reminders for this year and threw it out to our community via social media. We had a ton of suggestions and support, and ended up settling on the Light of Life rescue mission on Western Avenue. We try to keep these things as local as possible, and the Northside is so welcoming and easy to access, so we’re grateful for that. All of the tags were taken from the tree with a few days to spare (30 in total) so next year let’s shoot for 40, and we’ll keep raising the bar from there. Thank you all that took the time, effort, and resources to donate. You’re absolute gems and you all make UF what it is.

Community
Out of the blue on a random day of the week, a member sent me a personal instagram message. I don’t want to share all of it, but the gist of it was…

Thank you for a great gym- the staff and the members are always nice and welcoming. But most importantly, I look forward to going there. I don’t do everything perfectly in terms of my own training…”but I am happier now than where I was before I started a year ago…So before the busy Christmas season…I just wanted to take the opportunity to say thank you.”

This is what gets me out of bed every day. This is what fuels our staff. Thank you for your message (you know who you are). And even better, I shared it on our social media and got so much love in response. There is no secret formula. We try to treat you all with love and respect and kindness. Everyone is on their own journey here and there is no need to compare your first or second step to someone else’s marathon. When you walk through our doors, we want you to take ownership of your health and wellness- this is YOUR GYM. So continue to treat the space, and more importantly, your fellow members with love and respect. We’re all in this together.

Thank you all. I look forward to 2019 with each of you.

-Casey