New Jersey’s Ronald and Anna Lubischer are bonded in health. As former athletes and lifelong health fans, the 2 have been launched by a mutual buddy in 2010, and have been married 4 years later. Then, having already owned his first fitness center, Ronnie would take his partnership with Anna to the following stage after they determined to workforce up professionally and get critical about launching a number of places. Now, with a busy household life, and a ardour for creating the right place to pump iron, this duo is disrupting the sterile, franchise fitness center mannequin.
As followers of old-school, dungeon model gyms, Ronnie and Anna are being revolutionary with their amenities, whereas staying true to the thought of the hardcore exercise. M&F sat down with the pair, who function a number of places of their Burn-N-Blast fitness center idea, to search out out extra.
“We encourage hardcore coaching however demand ‘no nonsense’ respect for our fitness center and members,” says Ronnie. “For those who bend a bar from urgent a heavy weight, we take that bar and retire it to a particular rack that has all of the bent bars that our members have earned through the years by way of spectacular lifts!”
There’s little doubt that Ronnie understands the mindset of an all-in exercise since he performed semi-professional soccer earlier than competing as an NPC bodybuilder, within the heavyweight division. “Nonetheless, “For those who’re dropping your weights and screaming and yelling for no good motive, we’ll politely let you know that this isn’t how we do it right here,” he provides. “You possibly can convey your personal chalk and use it anytime so long as you clear up after your self. You possibly can load the leg press with twenty-four 45s, however your reps higher be immaculate… and it’s understood that you simply at all times rerack your weights.”
He provides: “Our motto is ‘The place old-fashioned ideas meet new college know-how,’ and we stand by that to at the present time. Our gyms are a throwback to the previous hardcore basement model gyms of the previous the place everyone seems to be accepted, as long as they respect the best way of the iron and their fellow fitness center members.”
Burn-N-Blast: A Combo of Outdated-College and New Tech
There’s little doubt that there’s a plethora of shoppers in search of a substitute for a number of the trendy, nameless trying gyms, that always supply model however little in the best way of substance. Ronnie and Anna are having fun with large membership numbers from all expertise ranges—from inexperienced persons to superior lifters to skilled athletes. Thankfully, they’re greater than certified to take each particular person by way of their journey to greatness. Anna was a nationally-ranked determine skater and coached ice skating for greater than 15 years. She’s additionally a profitable bodybuilder, incomes second-place on the New Jersey State Championship simply six months following a C-Part after giving beginning to their first baby.
By design, every Burn-N-Blast location is exclusive, with a person checklist of apparatus, however one factor that all of them have in widespread is that they’re proudly impartial.
“We’re completely impartial, household owned and operated, with zero exterior buyers,” says Ronnie. Many gymgoers will not be conscious that franchise gyms are sometimes managed by large conglomerates that don’t at all times select their gear primarily based on a love of figuring out. All too typically, offers are finished to be sure that fitness center places all characteristic the identical gear due to profitable distribution agreements and an emphasis on maximizing earnings as an alternative of maximizing muscle-mass.
“Fairly actually, myself and Anna personal all the pieces right down to the drywall of our places, and this provides us the liberty to run our gyms precisely how we see match,” provides Ronnie. “And this gives our members with a direct hyperlink to possession, to expedite any and all questions, strategies, issues, and many others. This additionally permits us to equip our gyms in any manner potential with out {the handcuffs} of a company ground plan, or a set ‘purchase checklist.’”
Ronnie and Anna Lubischer Plan Their Gyms Proper Right down to the Period
“There are particular fitness center chains which can be required to hold a predetermined stock of apparatus,” says Ronnie. “In our case, we are able to combine and match not simply manufacturers however eras of apparatus too. Every of our places is a singular mixture of the very best of some new, cutting-edge manufacturers resembling Prime, Watson, Arsenal, and Atlantis blended with up-and-coming mom-and-pop designers like Uncooked Motive Works, Cross Axes Tech, and GymBros. Then, there’s old-school items which can be out of manufacturing, like the unique Nautilus, BodyMasters, Flex, and Paramount items simply to call just a few. Our objective is to construct larger and badder ‘storage model’ gyms.”
For Burn-N-Blast gyms, all the pieces stems from a love of bodybuilding. “Selfishly, for myself and Anna, we plan with the precise specs of what we would like for our personal completely executed exercises, however then we invite all of our buddies to come back and prepare with us too,” explains Ronnie of the event course of. “As an gear collector and aficionado, I like to only let different folks take pleasure in instruments they both don’t have entry to, or by no means even knew about. We provide an setting that doesn’t actually exist within the present fitness center panorama anymore and our membership pays tribute to that.”
The underside line, as Ronnie explains, is each individual of each talent stage is welcome at Burn-N-Blast, as his each day glimpse of his attendance proves. “As an illustration, not too long ago at our Lengthy Department location I used to be coaching a rising sophomore ice hockey participant from the Citadel whereas a newly minted IFBB professional was smashing legs, together with two NFL beginning offensive linemen who have been getting in a exercise pre-beach, as we’re a beachfront location. Then, considered one of my older ‘fitness center rat’ kind members got here as much as me and thanked me for the 2 new curated items that I’d added—a uncommon and intensely functionable Cybex Eagle Kneeling Lateral Increase and a Life Health Signature Sequence Seated Uni-Lateral Biceps Curl.”
The Hardcore Health club Empire Strikes Again
“Everybody who involves [Burn-N-Blast] loves to coach however we now have a higher cross-section of shoppers that you simply’ll expertise at a ‘harder-core’ ambiance fitness center,” explains Ronnie. “That’s why you’ll see households coaching collectively at our places. We have now one household that comes virtually day-after-day collectively. We additionally see three brothers who all are cops or fireman domestically, their sons who’re school athletes, their daughters who’re native highschool athletes, and their wives who use the cardio machines. All of them come and prepare as one unit virtually every day even with totally different ranges of health and objectives. That’s actually cool, that’s actually one thing we’re happy with, and that’s what makes [Burn-N-Blast] distinctive.”
The Lubischers personal two, 24-hour gyms (in Lengthy Department and West Lengthy Department, New Jersey) in addition to a high-end personal private coaching studio in West Lengthy Department. Proper now, they’re actively scouting for a 3rd, 24-hour location. So, as a defender and innovator of the hardcore fitness center empire, what a part of Ronnie’s assortment is he most happy with? “Wow that’s a troublesome query,” he says. “Virtually every bit of apparatus at each location is particular to me for various causes. As an illustration, in our personal studio we now have three authentic PowerTecnic items. We have now the Tremendous Excessive Stepper, The SuperCAT Squat, and an authentic Energy Runner. To at the present time, for athletes, you may’t get a lot better.
“All of my Randy Coyle authentic items are close to and pricey to me as properly, as we boast a SwingSquat. We’re additionally considered one of lower than 50 gyms within the nation with a plate loaded entrance squat machine known as the Saxon Squat, in addition to a custom-made plate loaded multi-grip bent over leverage row that was hand delivered to us. We even have a prototype gifted to us known as the GlutePress. After which there’s the Flex Hamtractor, or tall body Pit Shark. I might go on, however that’s why I actually say we don’t buy gear like most different fitness center homeowners. We curate our Burn-N-Blast fitness center flooring for optimum outcomes.”
With half of all fitness center members anticipated to give up inside their first six months of membership, discovering the best setting is crucial for staying motivated and sticking with a sustainable exercise regime. Thankfully, with their Burn-N-Blast places, the Lubischer’s are taking the time to share their lifelong ardour with those that wish to turn out to be the very best variations of themselves. “Our members know we’re right here to assist, and I’m more than pleased to let folks make their very own errors,” explains Ronnie, who together with Anna, created their very own barcode-activated tutorial movies for every Burn-N-Blast machine. “However, in the event that they’re doing one thing that may endanger themselves or different members, it’s my job to step in and cease it, however these are teachable moments the place hopefully they take our recommendation and develop mentally and bodily for a few years to come back.”
