Pratt Street’s New WIP Fitness Owners

We love a set of powerful women, both figuratively and physically. Mary Kate and Laura aren’t just your average fitness guru, business owner moms (are there even many of those out there?) – in fact, they’re two full of life women whose friendship and passion for balance makes their gym and relationship with a healthy lifestyle all the more unique.

Pratt Streets new Work in Progress

Mary Kate and Laura are the owners of the established Work In Progress (WIP) Fitness, who recently decided to open their third location right below our office on the beautiful Pratt Street. Nothing got them more exciting than bringing WIP to downtown and to be right in the heart of the city.

“We look forward to joining forces to shine the light on this cool and unique neighborhood.”

This gym isn’t the scream in your face – expect you to know every move – heavy lifting – type of gym. While there definitely is some lifting, it’s nothing to make you feel intimidated. In fact, after each boot camp class, you’ll be walking about the gym like ..

Finding their own path

Mary Kate and Laura both fell in love with the boot camp, circuit style of training, but they struggled to find a gym that had everything they were looking for. They wanted positive, motivating trainers, a welcoming environment where people were routing for each other and a gym where the client was put first. After testing out many different local gyms and taking dozens of different classes, they decided to just say screw it and create their own gym – WIP Fitness.

These two live by the quote “We are all a work in progress,” and when they were brainstorming a name to call their gym, they couldn’t think of anything more fitting. Whether you’re looking for mental clarity, to lose weight, get stronger, or just for balance, it’s important to these gals that WIP Fitness is there to offer you the tools to help you achieve your fitness goals.

They’re just like you and I (except more fit)

As for their motivation to workout? You can thank their love for good food and spirits. On most weekends you can find the two at New Park Brewing enjoying a cold craft brew and sampling eats from their favorite food trucks – YardBird and Mercado. These two are all about balance –

How can you not want to be their bff?

You can also find them at the beach and chilling with their husbands and pack of kids. These two spend a lot of time together – they’re the definition of work husband and wife. In fact, some of their best WIP Fitness ideas have come from those family beach days.

Not your average gym

Most gyms are owned by trainers, but what makes WIP Fitness unique is that the gym is owned by clients – Mary Kate and Laura. This gives the two a unique perspective in their operation. It was important for them to offer affordable, flexible membership options – they promise to never charge you with those bogus enrollment fees. They also workout alongside the trainers everyday so they get to experience the workouts first hand (they go through your pain too) and to make sure that they’re offering the best gym experience they can –  “that makes us different from most gyms.”

A look inside a WIP Fitness class

If you haven’t been to a WIP Fitness class before, here’s what you can expect:

• Total body 50 minute workout suitable for all fitness level – no one is left behind
• The class starts off with a group stretch, then you dive into core work and a ramp up to get your heart racing
• Each class consists of a variety of circuits to keep your muscle groups working and to keep you from getting bored each week
• You use a variety of equipment, from dumbbells and kettlebells to resistance bands
• Each workout makes you sweat, challenges you, and leaves you feeling ready to kick some ass
• Amazing connections are made here and you receive an abundance of support from both your coaches and your class

We look forward to having not only this unique gym on Pratt Street but for the initiatives these two women are going to take and the community they will bring the downtown Hartford.

You go ladies,

Your biggest fans (weHartford)