Today we’d like to introduce you to Brent Gallagher.
Brent, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
In my early 20s, I set out to do what most guys long for: Get a 6-pack. My fat loss journey looked like this:
-I literally ran 1,000s of miles training for countless marathons to get my cardio in.
-I consistently slept less than 6 hours so I’d never miss my 5:30am, hour long workout.
-I ate fat-free, gluten-free, dairy-free, sugar-free, and everything in between-free.
What did I achieve?
An increase in my body fat percentage, bad knees and stiff ankles, and wrestled with a 4-year stent of depression because I felt I didn’t measure up to all the ripped up 6-pack guys I was comparing myself to. At just 25, I felt like an 80-year-old.
After a few injuries (funny how most runners are always “hurt”) that forced me to take time off, I laid out a simple plan to “hold me over” until I could get back to serious training that looked like this:
- Sleep 7+ hours nightly
- Develop a better relationship with food (aka: Learn to enjoy real food without all the phobia attached)
- Lift weights for 30 minutes 3 x’s a week
- Short interval work for 15-20 minutes 1-2 x’s a week
- Walk or leisure bike ride for 30 minutes 1-2 x’s a week
To be honest, I had to fight off the workout demons to push harder, go further, sleepless, and do more. But after getting back to the basics consistently for six months, my body felt brand new. I rediscovered moving pain-free, enjoyed exploring food and redefined what “fit” meant to me. I was never going back.
I began to realize that there were countless individuals crushing themselves on the journey to achieve their fitness goals (fat loss, 6-pack, lose baby weight, get my body back, look like I did before kids, etc) and they were suffering the same aches, pains and feelings of not measuring up as I did. I knew that they, like myself, needed a place to feel comfortable getting back to the basics, training just 30 minutes and confidently walking out with their head knowing they’ve done enough, and a community of like-minded people realizing that 7+hrs of sleep is more important than blasting 5 intense workouts in a row.
After working through the business details, landing a location and building out, Avenu Fitness & Lifestyle launched on January 16, 2006. There were 0 people on the schedule to come in that day. Heck, there wasn’t even one person scheduled for that entire first week.
But slowly the word spread about a unique take on living a sustainable and fit life. Since those humbling beginnings, Avenu now has the privilege of serving a thriving community of 600+ individuals at our 2 locations in West U and River Oaks.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
The landscape for fitness studios looked a bit different in 2006. They weren’t on every corner like they are now and Facebook and Instagram weren’t around to share the endless barrage of post-workout selfies to help spread the word. The challenge for us has been staying to true to our pillars of living a sustainably fit life in a world that’s shifting to more extreme workouts, diets and pushing the boundaries of sleepless nights all in the name of getting fit.
Touting the benefits of getting back to the basics, using a crockpot method vs a microwavable, and hanging our hat on the fact that a sustainable fit and healthy life is built on a solid foundation of sleeping 7+hrs isn’t the sexy stuff that’s an easy sale. It’s not the stuff that’s social media worthy. It’s not the get fit quick short-term solution. It’s not the complicated workout and food program most would have you believe you have to follow for success.
We often hear that the message we’re spreading is too simple and that it won’t work. Most want complicated programs and routines so they have something to blame when things don’t pan out the way they desired. In reality, simple is easy to follow. Simple can be taken with you on vacation, a business trip or fits into a busy day. Simplicity, Leonardo da Vinci once said, is the ultimate sophistication.
But what’s easy to do is also easy not to do!
Avenu Fitness & Lifestyle – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
Avenu runs counterculture to today’s fitness norms. We focus simply on 30 minute, small group (2-4 people) fitness & Pilates training. It’s what we call our in30 training experience. Instead of measuring your biceps and waistline, we focus on measuring the quality of your life.
We start by taking an in-depth look at how your current sleep habits, nutritional choices and overall stress level are affecting your health and fitness levels. We know that if you sleep better, it becomes easier to make healthier nutritional choices AND have more energy for your workouts. Which in the end, takes the stress out of striving to measure up to your own standards.
Sounds like a win-win, right?
Our unique, coach led in30 training experiences fit into any busy schedule. These sessions are the perfect mix of strength, mobility and core development that allows each person to move forward at their own pace. There are free in30 conditioning sessions to help you gain a better understanding of how to properly do cardio to achieve the greatest return on your investment as well.
On top of that, we host:
- Real spin classes – ones where you actually ride that fancy bike collecting dust in the garage!
- Farm Fresh Dinners with the perfect backdrop of treadmills, dumbbells and TRX straps.
- Chef led cooking lessons
- Food Truck community gatherings to simply celebrate friends and good conversations.
In a nutshell, Avenu has filled a niche where the busy and stressed feel they have a routine that fits their life without being overwhelmed.
They are confident knowing that a sustainable fit and healthy lifestyle is established when you consistently follow a simple plan:
- Sleep more.
- Eat better.
- Trainer smarter.
What is “success” or “successful” for you?
For me personally, professionally and anywhere in between, I ask these questions to help define success:
- Am I leading by example?
- Am I striving to reach my maximum potential?
- Am I sowing seeds that benefit others?
- Am I asking “What if…?” on a daily basis?
These questions require me to be honest with my own personal actions. They don’t allow me to point the finger, pass the buck or ditch personal accountability. They remind me that my personal success in life is dictated on my personal choices, day in, day out.
Pricing:
- in30 Small Group Training | $35 session
Contact Info:
- Address: 6211 Edloe Houston, TX 77005 (Avenu | West U)
3502 W Alabama Houston, TX 77027 (Avenu | River Oaks) - Website: www.AvenuFit.com
- Phone: 713.661.5800
- Email: brent@avenufit.com
- Instagram: @AvenuFit
- Facebook: @AvenuFit
- Twitter: @BrentGallagher
- Yelp: @AvenuFitness
Getting in touch: VoyageHouston is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
