LITTLE VILLAGE — A gym in Little Village has expanded into a bigger home after two years in the neighborhood.
Owner Danny Diaz opened Compact Fitness — now called Compound Fitness — at 2006 S. Washtenaw Ave. in September 2020. Earlier this month, he moved the operation nearby to 1954 S. Troy St. — and it’s been a hit, he said.
Diaz, born in Chicago but raised in Texas, said he decided to open a gym on the Southwest Side when he moved back to the city after high school. The gym specializes in group strength and conditioning classes, similar to CrossFit.
The original gym was small, and Diaz said he grew out of it. The space served him well considering he opened during the pandemic, when only a handful of people could be in a room, he said. But when the building’s owner acquired another property and they offered Diaz a spot in a much larger space, he jumped on it, he said.
“It’s really unreal,” he said. “I come here and look around and can’t even believe it.”
The new location is nearly five time the size of the original one, which means Diaz was able to add more classes, more seats in each class and offer a private training area, he said. The gym now offers yoga and Olympic weight training.
Compound Fitness is intended to be approachable for people who have never tried this style of fitness before, meaning it doesn’t have typical gym policies like contracts or early cancellation fees, Diaz said. He also said he keeps his class costs reasonable compared to similar gyms.
“We want people to experience us without breaking their wallet,” he said. “We’d prefer you to be able to test it out.”
Diaz said about 30 more people have joined the gym since he opened on South Troy Street, bringing the total number of clients to about 100. The majority of clients live on the Southwest Side, he said.
Even though there’s still work that needs to be done to perfect the new location, Diaz said he’s set his sights on opening a branch in Bridgeport in the future.
“It’s going to be a lot of hard work, but I’m really passionate about it,” he said.
To keep up with Compound Fitness’ classes and promotions, follow its social media.
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