PUBLISHED by The Cambridge Chronicle
Cambridge —With a glass-encased waterfall in the lobby, earth-toned decor and marble countertops, Evolve Fitness looks more like a spa than a gym.
The new facility in Alewife, which opened last Monday Feb. 16 with close to 700 members, is designed and run to cater to customers’ tastes, making it different from a typical gym, Evolve’s owners said.
“We want people to come here and feel glad that they did,” said Lucio Paolini, a co-owner from Woburn. “We want it to be the best part of their day every day.”
The 21,000-square-foot, two-level facility at 52 New St. houses the latest in fitness technology, including touch-screen cardio machines that are iPod compatible and kettlebell free weights, said co-owner Mark Rozman. Members also have the option of creating workouts online and plugging them into the machines.
A video wall with nine television monitors play music in front of the rows of cardio machines, and special flooring absorbs the banging sounds of heavy weights. The waterfall in the lobby will soon be part of a “little oasis” with lounge chairs and free Wi-Fi, Rozman said.
Members will also enjoy a smoothie bar, a tanning bed, saunas in the wood-paneled locker rooms and marble-tiled showers. When the weather warms up, Evolve will host outdoor boot camps and marathons, and on Mondays, friends are welcome for free.
Rozman, a physical therapist who lives in Ashland, said he and Paolini started Evolve Fitness in Nov. 2005 when they bought a gym in Framingham, which now has 3,800 members. The Alewife location is their first expansion, and they are interested in looking for more new locations, Rozman said.
“It’s convenient for people. It’s a highly traveled area,” he said. “There’s a lot of gyms in the area, but we’re different.”
Evolve’s new location is bringing the company in the green direction, Paolini, a physical trainer, said. The floors are made from recycled rubber and carpet and bamboo paneling, while the paint contains milk, making it less toxic than regular paint, he said.
Keeping consistent with the spa atmosphere, the gym’s lighting is full-spectrum lighting, which is more natural lighting that helps reduce Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), Paolini said.
Assistant manager Dafna Hayman said the gym is donating 5 percent of each member’s initiation fee to local charities, such as the New England Center for Children and the Floating Hospital for Children.
“It’s really about making this not just a gym where you go and work out but being part of a community that stands for something,” she said.
Evolve looks to help customers that may be intimidated by working out, Hayman said. For example, the Alewife location was built with a woman’s weight room upstairs because many female customers said they preferred to lift weights separately.
Dominic Ricci, general manager, said that many people are insecure about their bodies and working out, and Evolve looks to make the process of working out as enjoyable and as easy as possible.
“Our motto is ‘A passion for fitness and changing lives,’” he said.
To reduce hassle for members, plans for Evolve are flexible and do not include a contract or long-term commitment, Ricci said. Membership rates start at $19 per month, but they vary, he said. The initiation fee depends on the member’s chosen payment plan.
Many members working out at Evolve on Monday said they had signed up months in advance. Zakia Paschal, 28, said the club’s low rate and close proximity to her apartment convinced her to sign up in November.
“I tried the Boston Sports Club, but it was so cold in there, and everyone was doing their own thing,” she said. “Nobody was chit-chatting, and I didn’t know how to do anything. This one, they tell you.”
Aviva Costello, 25, said she signed up two months ago when she saw the billboard out front. She said Evolve was cheaper than the gym she belonged to before, and she lives right around the corner.
Dan Finkle, 32, of Belmont said his wife suggested he sign up for Evolve a month and a half ago.
“We were members at another gym not nearly as nice, and the cost was the same,” Finkle said. “I figured, for the same price, I’d go for the nicer, furnished gym.”
Evolve is currently offering a free, three-day guest pass to try out the facility before joining.
“It’s what makes us different—no pressure,” Paolini said. “The product sells itself. We’re pretty confident. When people walk in, they’ll see the facility and how they’re treated.”
Evolve Fitness facts
Location: 52 New St. in Alewife
Size: 21,000 sq. ft.
Owners: Lucio Paolini from Woburn, a physical trainer, and Mark Rozman, a physical therapist from Ashland
The new Evolve Fitness facility was renovated from an old warehouse.
The owners invested upwards of $1.5 million in the project.
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