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Needham natives open Koko FitClub in Needham

By Steven Ryan
Wicked Local Needham
Posted Apr 02, 2010 @ 09:00 AM

Needham — The inside of the Koko FitClub on Highland Avenue doesn’t look like a typical gym. Instead of various machines and free weights, there are just a few white, space age-y-looking machines that resemble beefed-up Wall-Es with attitudes.

As Jeff Lesse of Needham worked out on one of the machines, he faced a computer monitor coaching him through the various exercises in his 30-minute workout, making sure he does a complete set and stays on pace. 
“It’s idiot-free,” Lesse said, noting a bar on the screen indicating his pace. “You have to keep the bar in that guideline. Not too fast, not too slow, you can’t cheat.”

The machines are the signature feature of the Koko FitClub franchise, which opened its second Massachusetts gym in Needham about three months ago. The company is based in Rockland and has a corporate gym in Pembroke.
Adam Landry and Paul Romeo, the Needham gym’s owners, grew up together in town and had long thought about opening a gym here. When Romeo came back home after a stint in Los Angeles, he and Landry, who was working on an MBA from Babson College, began exploring the possibilities.

“I always wanted to do a gym,” Romeo said. “We did some research and came upon Koko. It seemed like an interesting idea, but we were a little skeptical. But we got in touch with the franchise, went to Pembroke, did a workout and were sold.”
Landry said the efficiency of the workout is part of what sold him on the idea.

“The system here solves a lot of pain points,” Landry said. “It gives people a chance to make fitness a part of their daily lives. It takes 30 minutes. For those who get bored easily, it’s an energizing, inventive workout.”
The owners said the workouts are customized to each individual after a strength test and assessing a person’s height and weight. The machine allows a person to do circuit training without moving from machine to machine. It also provides gym-goers with an evaluation on their performance at the end of the workout for further motivation.

“It’s maximum efficiency; one set of repetitions to the next without rest built in,” Romeo said.

Lesse has been to several other gyms in the past, but finds it easier to stick with the Koko machines, calling it “quick, easy and relatively fun.” The pursuit of a perfect score is part of the motivation. But a perfect score isn’t everything.

“I never had a perfect workout, but I lost 25 pounds,” said Mike Caplan, a customer from Watertown.

Aside from building strength, the gym also has cardio machines — treadmills and elliptical machines. Each machine has an MP3 player programmed with a 15-minute cardio workout utilizing the machine’s speed, incline or resistance. The workouts are based on the principles of interval training, in which relative rest periods are interspersed with more work intense periods of activity.

“It’s easier for people to stay consistent if the workout is just 15 minutes,” Landry said.

Janna Ostrovsky of Wellesley said she doesn’t enjoy going to gyms, but her husband, who is a workout buff, “tricked” her into visiting Koko one day, and now she’s hooked.

“My husband lied and said, ‘Let’s go for a ride.’ We stopped at this place and he brought me here,” Ostrovsky said. “He said, ‘Enjoy this club or you won’t get your birthday gift.’ I joined different clubs but couldn’t stand it. I came here and fell in love with it.”
Ostrovsky touted the gym’s small, friendly atmosphere for her newfound love.

“Everybody knows me,” she said. “It’s so welcoming, so nice. I feel comfortable here.”

She also likes the guidance from the machines.

“I need someone to lead me,” Ostrovsky said. “I can’t afford a personal trainer, but I like to have someone tell me what to do, how many repetitions, how much weight. I don’t have to think about what to do next.”
Ostrovsky’s fitness goal was to simply stick with an exercise program. With that in mind, she feels the Koko gym has been a “100 percent” success for her.

“People don’t believe me when I tell them I go to a gym; I was bad about exercising and was a couch potato,” she said. “It’s a miracle.”

http://www.wickedlocal.com/needham/news/lifestyle/health/x1838118631/Needham-natives-open-Koko-FitClub-in-Needham