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 Guests will get the chance to see the newly-transformed building
that once most-famously housed the Susan Collier Studio of Dance.
The Bargers have created a fabulous 24/7 gym that features one room
full of the latest in exercise equipment and weights, and another
spacious room that will be the home to the many different classes
that Barger and company intend to teach.
The entire building inside has been given a makeover as well and
folks will really like the new and improved bathrooms and locker
rooms for both men and women. Even the waiting area, where many a
dance mom spent hours as their little ones danced and tumbled inside
the studio, has been given a face-lift. Although, the glass cabinet
where dance announcements and photos used to hang is still intact.
The Bargers believed in keeping some of the history of the building,
as guests will keenly notice. In the meantime, with the
establishment of the new business, the Bargers are ready to embark
on making their own history at the popular location that is just
down the street and under the viaduct a little ways from Mount
Pulaski High School.
A passion for exercise
For Danita Barger, opening a 24-hour gym is not just a new business
venture, but it is also her dream becoming a reality and it involves
her true passion in life - exercise.
 “When I was fifteen I started exercising regularly just on my own
and loved it,” said the 1993 graduate of Lincoln Community High
School and current Mount Pulaski resident. “I started with Denise
Austin. Do you remember her? That’s who I started working out with
because she had the shows on tv, basic cable or whatever it was at
the time, or the local channels it might have been then,” she
recollects. “So I started doing her half-hour shows, “Buns and
Thighs” and that kind of thing, you know, the girlie exercises,” she
laughed. “But I just loved it and I got my sisters to exercise with
me, here and there, but they haven’t stuck with it like I have, but
I am always trying to motivate them to come and workout.” Jody Bruce
of Mount Pulaski and Tina York of Lincoln are Danita’s sisters, whom
she thinks plan on getting memberships at the new gym.
While her sisters may not share her passion for exercising, that did
not discourage Danita. “I was always into fitness and wanting to do
something in that route. It’s just always been something I love to
do. I love to help people and I love to see that transformation from
someone who is not able to do anything, you know they are sitting on
that couch doing nothing everyday, to being fit and eating right,
taking care of themselves and just getting stronger. I just love all
of it.
It’s nice to build those relationships, too. I mean there’s been
certain people that I’ve taken different classes from over the
years, different instructors, and one in particular that I had in
Springfield, he was always like “I am not here to be your friend,
I’m just here to be your trainer” kind of thing. But I feel like you
have to have that relationship and you have to build on that and
eventually you become friends with people. You care about them and
you care about what happens to them. You want to see them grow and
get better and get fitter. I just love it and I love teaching,
Danita says.
The couple’s 17 year-old daughter, Alyssa, is well aware of her
mom’s passion for fitness. “Growing up it was always like my mom
would come home from work and then she’d go to the gym and she’d get
home at like eight or nine. We would always be like “Why are you
working out so much?” She can’t go a day without it because she
loves it so much. Every time you say anything about fitness, she
always has advice or something to say. So being her daughter when
you’re trying to work out and she’s standing there trying to tell
you what to do, you’re like, “Oh my gosh, Mom,” but when I watch her
teach other people you can just tell that she loves it. You can just
see it in her face that she lights up when you say anything about
fitness,” said Alyssa, also beaming.
 “So when we first started thinking about the gym I was like, “Go for
it,” but I am one of those people that thinks you should go for it
if that’s what you want,” said the younger Barger, who will be a
senior at Mount Pulaski High School this fall. Alyssa also noted how
busy the family’s life is, but thinks the gym fits right into that
mix and adds to her mom’s happiness. The wise beyond her years,
senior captain of this year’s cheerleading squad at MPHS, even said
to her fitness fanatic mother, “Mom, I don’t think I’ve ever seen
you happier than you are at the gym.” The teenager added, “She just
wants everybody to come and have fun and she thinks it’s like the
best thing ever. Seeing her getting to do this really makes me
happy,” she said, smiling.
The road to making the dream a reality
Meanwhile Danita, who also works full-time as a financial crimes
analyst for Wells Fargo in Springfield, a job she has held for the
past twenty years, brings years of experience to the community of
Mount Pulaski. Her teaching career in fitness began in Lincoln
nearly a decade ago. “I started teaching at the karate school (PDI)
in Lincoln in 2007,” she said.
She was the kickboxing instructor there at the facility called
Professional Development Institute or PDI on Limit Street. PDI was
owned by Chris Sprague at the time and Danita taught there from
2007-2009. Even Alyssa earned her black belt in karate at PDI from
instructor Steve Hayes.
Moving on from PDI, Danita set up her kickboxing bags at Fitness
Balance on North Sangamon Street. She was an instructor there from
2009-2010.
In 2010 she moved on to the Lincoln Park District /Fit Zone on Primm
Road where she would continue to reach success in her profession as
a Group Fitness Instructor and Personal Trainer.
Crystal Thomas of Mount Pulaski took Danita’s kickboxing and spin
classes at the Rec and she was very impressed with the instructor,
not to mention the positive results that Thomas has seen are crystal
clear. “She is a very good instructor. She knows her fitness and
will take you thru one of the best workouts. Just look at her and
her body. She knows how to keep in shape.” Thomas added, “She is
very educated on fitness and what you need in order to be in great
shape. I am looking forward to her opening in Mount Pulaski and
taking her classes.”
The road takes a right turn
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The Bargers moved from Lincoln to Mount Pulaski three years ago so
Michael could be closer to his job in Decatur. According to Danita,
the very first time she saw the building on Spring Street, she had
her eye on it. “Basically from the time we moved out here three
years ago, I saw the building was for sale, knew it had been for
sale off and on the past few years and I told Michael from day one
when I saw that it was for sale, I said, that would make a perfect
place for a gym for the town.” Danita continued, “I said that I
would love to buy that place and turn it into a gym if ever we had
the money to do that. I actually have a couple that I train that
live out here in Mount Pulaski (Jim and Donalene DeWitt) that knew I
had my eye on this place. We looked at it with Seth Goodman a couple
times.” All this had Danita thinking, “It seemed like it would be
such an easy transition. It’s a big open space and we could
basically do whatever we wanted inside.”
So she started writing the business plan for the bank and coming up
with funds, which included some of her own 401K. “You know, I said I
really want it and I was willing to try and use some of my
retirement to help me purchase this so we could hopefully try and
help the community. It’s worth it to me if I can help people.”
That journey to create True Form Fitness LLC began back on April 22,
2016, when the Bargers officially took possession of the property.
Danita even shared a story about having lunch with Dean and Susan
Collier at the Brickyard Pub and Grill and ending up spending hours
just visiting with the couple who had previously owned the building
for decades and poured a lifetime of love into the former dance
studio. Now the Colliers would be turning the building over to
another couple that was about to embark on the same journey.
Since April the Bargers have been working every day as much as
possible on this project and pouring a lot of blood, sweat and tears
into their dream.
Danita gives all the construction credit to her husband of
twenty-two years, Michael, and her father-in-law, Robert Barger of
Lincoln. The two men have been working tirelessly day and night to
construct Danita’s dream. Michael already works a full-time job at
Ameren in Decatur, and he’s already dropped twenty-plus pounds just
helping his wife to see her dream become a reality. Along with his
handyman father, Robert, Danita has dubbed the two men “Dream
Builders,” and even had that phrase printed on the backs of their
new True Form Fitness T-shirts. Danita smiles while telling the
story and adds, “Michael jokes all the time that he’s busy building
dreams.”
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The name and logo take shape
The reason behind the name, True Form Fitness LLC, is because, as
Danita explains, “I’ve always, when I taught, I’ve always been one
that very much focuses on form and how you’re doing the exercise and
making sure that you don’t get injured. I am always in my classes
saying, “Make sure you have your back straight, make sure your
stomach is pulled in and make sure your shoulders are up,” and that
kind of thing. I know it sometimes drives people crazy but it’s a
very good reminder, even for me when I am exercising if I am
repeating it and teaching the class, it reminds me also to keep my
form where it needs to be. So I wanted something to do with that
because that’s kind of what I am about. So I came up with True Form
Fitness for that reason.”
Barger also searched online for ideas for logo designs and had a
goal of wanting people to know that both men and women are welcome
at the gym. “Which is why we have both the man and woman in the
logo,” she explained. “I wanted the woman to be more feminine
because I know women get intimidated by weights and the weight room
itself. But they need strength training. All women do, and it’s
going to help you burn more calories and it’s going to help you keep
that weight off longer and make you stronger. You need that for even
everyday activities that you do. I made the logo a little more
feminine, but yet strong I think on the woman’s side, I want her to
show muscle, but not too much. I don’t want women to think that this
is just for guys to come in and lift weights, ‘cause it’s not. I
want it to be open for everybody.”
Local artist Scott Lindley also helped Danita and Michael finalize
the logo and Lindley made the signs for the couple. “Scott just put
it all together and we decided this is it.” “Black and red are my
favorite colors, always have been. When it comes to working out I
believe in a strong woman.” Danita also liked the color of the
original beams in the building. “I just knew when we came in, we saw
the beams were kind of a red color. I love rustic. And since we are
in a farming community here in Central Illinois, the barn wood goes
good, too.” Barger said the woman who previously had a photography
studio in the building had added the barn wood and a couple big barn
doors to the building. “I didn’t want to get rid of them because
they are really cool pieces,” she said.
For more of what the Bargers kept intact and have added, be sure and
visit the Open House.
Staff, equipment and classes
True Form Fitness LLC owner Danita Barger poses in
the middle between her two Zumba instructors,
daughter Alyssa Barger, left, and Stephanie Bailey, right.
Danita, who received her ACE Personal Training Certification in
June, plans on being at True Form Fitness LLC for classes on Monday,
Wednesday and Thursday evenings beginning at 5:30 p.m. She will also
make arrangements for Saturday classes as well. Her plan for the
next school year is to keep her Tuesday and Friday nights available
for Alyssa’s senior cheerleading season. She’s a busy mom and
grandmother, by the way, just making it all work.
Danita will offer kickboxing classes, senior classes and personal
training, among other things.
Meanwhile, Alyssa and Stephanie Bailey, are also on staff as
Certified Zumba Instructors. When Alyssa asked her best friend about
being a Zumba Instructor, Bailey did not hesitate. “I quickly said
yes because I love the Zumba classes. I think us being instructors
at the gym will really help people and it will be fun.”
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True Form Fitness LLC will also offer a variety of workout equipment
ranging from treadmills, ellipticals, a recumbent bicycle, a rowing
machine and even a spin bike, to various state-of-the art weight
training machines. Wi-Fi will also be available in the building and
the Bargers plan on installing televisions for guests to enjoy
during their workouts.
“It’s worth it to me if I can help people”
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“I am hoping everybody can really enjoy it and I am hoping we can
add on in the future because that’s our goal,” stated Danita. “We’ve
already thought about how we can expand the building. If we get
enough members, and we can continue it going in a positive way, then
we are hopefully going to add on and add more equipment and more
classes,” Barger said.
 At the present time, Danita plans on being at the gym as much as
possible but she still must keep her day job. No worries for the
members, though, as security cameras will be on-site and if there is
an issue she can be contacted immediately. Members will punch their
own code to get into the building and have the flexibility of
working out any time, day or night.
As far as working long hours, Danita is pretty much used to that and
seems to enjoy it. “People are like, you know you go from your
full-time job to this training thing or teaching classes,” she said.
“But it doesn’t feel like work, you know, I enjoy it so much. I want
to go and train people and I’d much rather be there all day long if
I could, helping anybody that I could. It’s just an awesome feeling
to be able to help people. I love exercise so that’s where my
passion’s always been. I love helping people in general but this is
just where I feel like I am supposed to be.”
Special note about signing up
Danita plans the official sign-up of memberships to take place on
August 7, 8 and 9.
Memberships would be prorated for the first month. Prices have been
set at $35 a month for a single membership with discounts for
seniors, students and veterans.
Classes for members will be $2.00 per class while non-members can
come and still enjoy a class for $3.00.
Danita also mentioned that there may be a drawing for some free
memberships in the future and she will be allowing guests to try the
first class for free.
[Teena Lowery] |
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