I am so
excited and grateful to be celebrating a special anniversary with my business
partner, Dega Schembri. 2013 marks 20 years for our gym, City Fitness, and 30
years for Fit Physique, Inc., our parent company. Little did I know that when I showed up at 1500 Mass. Ave.,
Washington, DC, with only my O’Neil surf bag to my name to audition to teach
classes for Dega that this was one of those life-changing moments.
As a
child my father moved every six months.
My grandfather, Otis worked on a road crew, known for his excellent eye
for leveling. He paved many of the
roads through the High Sierra in California, Nevada and the deserts of Arizona. Because of this, my father was committed to raising his children in one
place. He said it was difficult on him
to move every 3-6 months as a child because he never had a chance to bond to a
place, make lasting friendships or participate in sports. My father went into
the Air Force and when he got out in 1964 he was stationed in Clovis, New
Mexico, where I was born. He moved our family to Round Valley, near Bishop
California and got a job working for Union Carbide, a tungsten mine or as some
called it “The Mine In The Sky.”
He kept his word, raising his three daughters at the base of
the 13, 470’ Mt. Tom, on the Eastern Side of the Sierra, in a small mining
village called Rovana. This was in
company housing provided by Union Carbide.
Here we had the freedom to run wild.
We never meet a fence we would not cross or a yard we would not play
in. At the heart of this small,
isolated, rural community was the gym.
It was here the fathers played on the company basketball team as the
kids ran around playing hide and seek under the bleachers. Some of my earliest memories are of my
handsome, six foot three father who was strong and lean looking like Elvis as
he shot hoops, trained with old leather medicine balls and shadow boxed with
old leather boxing mitts. Our TV
reception was poor so many nights were spent watching old black and white film
of Causuis Clay and George Forman fights when we were not planet and star
gazing.
As I grew, the gym and the baseball field became the place
to explore my own athletic abilities.
We considered ourselves “tomboys” and played every sport the boys did;
baseball, football, basketball, volleyball, track and field & skiing on
Mammoth Mountain. When we were not playing sports we rode horses, swam in the
creeks, climbed the mountains and chased the coyotes and mule deer through the
sagebrush. At 11 years old, I became a
cheerleader and my love of dance and movement began.
As a teen, growing up in one of the most isolated
communities, I had a dream to travel the world. Inspired by my love of Jane
Fonda and Jazzercise I announced at my high school graduation that I wanted to
be a Diet and Fitness Consultant for the Rich and Famous. This got quite the laugh, as this was
unheard of in my small town and not a career path in 1981.
My professional fitness path started out at The Total
Workout 1983 in North County San Diego.
It was here I was introduced to the person who was instrumental in
getting me a job at the exclusive spa Cal A Vie where I trained such
celebrities as Gary Busey, Stockard Channing, Leslie Ann Warren - my childhood
Cinderella - and fitness star Kathy Smith.
Meeting the rich and famous at this job opened doors to working as a
trainer on the east coast at the Norwich Inn and Spa which lead to me to
the opportunity to audition and become the trainer for the Sports Illustrated
Super Shape Up Video Series with Cheryl Tiegs, Elle McPherson and Rachel
Hunter.
Riding the wave of the release of this popular video set,
and being a bit of a gypsy for a few years, I moved to DC. Soon, I found myself pregnant, a single mom
to be, and I realized in order to make it work I needed to settle down. Having done what I said I wanted to do
traveling to some amazing places in the world and training the rich and famous
I was ready to see a long held vision of my own fitness business come to a
reality. My son was born in 1992 at Georgetown Hospital, and like my father
before me, I wanted to raise him in a close-knit community.
I was hired by the Forsheimers to design and open City
Fitness Gym on October 1, 1993, and became business partners with
Dega Schembri October 1, 1996. Together we purchased City Fitness Gym. We have
built a wonderful community here in Cleveland Park. This neighborhood has been a support network to our families. My
son went to the neighborhood public schools, he has many friends that he met
here in kindergarten and has an extended family made up of the gym staff and
members. He is now 21, with a son of
his own, and I get the grand adventure of a grandmother with a growing
family!
I want to share my gratitude to my family of origin and
their encouragement of my physical activities and dreams. My childhood community and friends were
always up for an adventure and my DC family made up of friends, staff, fitness
instructors and gym members make my amazing world go round everyday. I want to thank my son for giving me a
reason to get my act together 20 years ago.
Last but not least I want to thank Dega for her commitment to our life
as business partners as we work together creating this amazing space where I
can “Be Lucinda” and offer up my unique talents and serve with her to help make
the residents of DC happier, healthier and fit!
A master in the art of living draws no sharp distinction
between his work and his play: his labor and his leisure: his mind and his
body: his education and his recreation.
He hardly knows which is which He simply pursues his vision of
excellence through whatever he is doing, and leaves others to determine whether
he is working or playing. To himself,
he always appears to be doing both.
Francoise Rene Auguste Chateaubriand
