'Leave your inhibitions at the door:' Lakes Region Alternative Fitness brings pole, bungee classes to Gilford

LACONIA — Following the at-home workout craze of the mid-pandemic days, people are flocking back to group fitness and renewing their gym memberships. Yet many people are neither fulfilled by at-home crunches nor confident in the atmosphere of traditional gyms. Beneath the velvet neon hues of black lights, harnessed to large bungees anchored in the ceiling, and boosted by the punching beats of popular dance music, athletes at Lakes Region Alternative Fitness explore a third way — one that combines fun with physical and personal empowerment.

In her mid-twenties, feeling like she needed to do something to boost herself up, Mallory Murphy tried pole fitness for the first time. She went to a studio in Manchester and realized almost immediately that it was her dream to bring a similar space to the Lakes Region.

Years later, that dream has come to fruition: Lakes Region Alternative Fitness found its home in the newly renovated Village at Paugus Bay, one of 14 local businesses filling the center’s 29 commercial spaces.

After its soft opening earlier this summer and ahead of its grand opening in August, Lakes Region Alternative Fitness is building a full roster of instructors and finding its feet in the community. Murphy’s studio so far offers courses in pole, aerial, chair, and bungee fitness, yoga, burlesque, self defense, and Zumba. People of all ability and experience levels are welcomed and accommodated.

“I always loved fitness, but I have never done well in traditional gyms,” Murphy said. “I think there’s often a feeling of judgment, for women especially, in those spaces.” She was drawn to alternative fitness for its level of group and self empowerment. “It’s a group of people there to empower and support one another,” first and foremost, said Murphy, who also teaches many of the classes. Though Murphy’s fitness space centers female empowerment, anyone can sign up for classes there. 

“The goal of alternative fitness is to unwind and have fun while you are working out,” Murphy said. Most classes take place under a black light and feature music, something Murphy said creates a joyful atmosphere and decreases hyper fixation on how participants think they look while they move. “It’s just fun,” Murphy said. “That’s not something people often think about working out.” 

Murphy acknowledged that many people might have misconceptions about what pole fitness, which was her introduction to the alternative fitness genre, is, and why people do it.

Classes are designed to bring out a sense of community, empowerment, and confidence in participants through their movements, whether those be jumping bungee squats or strength movements on fitness poles. Many of the different types of classes offered at Murphy’s studio help build strength and offer a full-body workout without involving weight lifting, she said. 

“Even if you think ‘pole’s not really my thing,’ there are so many other classes we offer that you might really connect with,” Murphy said. 

During classes, instructors give detailed instructions and various modifications to make certain movements more or less difficult. Regardless of participants' experience, strength, or skill level, instructors are trained to ensure they get the guidance they need. Murphy said she has athletes in their seventies who come to classes, especially bungee fitness classes, and anyone aged 10 or over is invited to sign up.

Murphy began looking for a space to house her future studio last August, and, she said, openings at the Village “just fell into my lap.” She said she signed her lease in October, among the first tenants in the Village since its renovation. 

Murphy, who is a native of Plymouth and has lived in Gilford for over a decade, is excited to see the redevelopment of the Village, a business area with which she has been familiar for quite some time. 

Murphy said she has gotten only positive feedback since her soft launch on March 1. 

She is excited to see people from the community come into her studio with an open mind and fall in love with alternative fitness, just as she did. 

“We always encourage people to leave their inhibitions at the door,” Murphy said. “Step into our space and let us show you what we do.”