Wilmington Training Center offers free fitness classes to community - StarNewsOnline.com

<p>The purple gym on Carolina Beach Road advertises "free community fitness classes" even though the grand opening is more than a week away.</p><p>While the phrase "free classes" seems too good to be true, owners John and Marty Kosmeh insist that the exercises classes are indeed free.</p><p>On a Thursday in December, a diverse group of 10 gathered to kick and punch along to a Les Mills Combat DVD in the group exercise room. Nobody produced a membership card; nobody paid a visitor's fee.</p><p>Jenny Pinette, a Team Beachbody coach, brought some energy to the room. Some class members were young and agile and never missed a step even as the instructor was transitioning to new moves. Others needed instruction on proper form and weren't going to be kicking down doors any time soon. By the end of the 30-minute workout, though, all the participants were all sweaty and fatigued.</p><p>That is the free part of Wilmington Training Center, which partners with the United Way. Coaches log their time as volunteer hours through the United Way and the United Way will send them referrals, Marty Kosmeh said.</p><p>Team Beachbody is a business, so coaches do sell nutritional supplements and workout DVDs. They measure clients and chart their success. But anyone can attend a free workout.</p><p>While the grunts and whoops from the Combat class occasionally filtered through the walls, Lorenzo Rich presented his story to other Beachbody coaches in a separate room. He spoke of weighing 278 pounds and being rushed to the <a href="http://www.starnewsonline.com/section/topic9969"><b>New Hanover Regional Medical Center</b></a> emergency department with chest pain. Diagnosed with coronary artery disease, he was put on cholesterol medication. After meeting John Kosmeh and joining Team Beachbody, he lost more than 40 pounds and no longer needs the medicine.</p><p>"I'm not going to die from something that I can control," he told the group.</p><p>As a coach, he is invested in the success of Team Beachbody, and he is also one of its success stories. That's the business side of Team Beachbody.</p><p>But the Kosmehs insist that the Wilmington Training Center was not opened solely as a way to earn more money.</p><p>"We opened the center with the idea of helping the Wilmington community get healthier," John said.</p><p>"We want to make sure everyone can afford fitness," Marty said. </p><p><a href="http://www.starnewsonline.com/section/topic87"><b>Mike Voorheis</b></a>: 343-2205</p>