Marblehead Fitness Studio Set To Expand After Surviving Pandemic

MARBLEHEAD, MA — It took 13 days to nearly crush the business vision of Kelly Lorenz.

Sixteen months later, not only has the Marblehead fitness instructor survived the punishing effects of the coronavirus crisis on her studio, she is ready to expand.

Lorenz opened Tread Tabata, MHD as a license owner on Bessom Street on March 1, 2020. Less than two weeks later, she was told she needed to close her doors with the onset of the pandemic that would thrust her hopes and fears through a vicious cycle of capacity limits, distancing guidelines, mask mandates and other ever-evolving obstacles over the course of more than a year.

But things started looking up early in the spring as virus restrictions began to ease with the May 29 elimination of all business restrictions bringing back nearly all of her studio's old membership — as well as a healthy crop of newcomers.

"As soon as people could come back without the masks and with the vaccinations they started coming in right away," she told Patch. "I am overwhelmingly shocked and surprised that my team and I were able to maintain our clientele this whole time.

"We've grown significantly during COVID and since we've continued to grow."

In addition to the Tread Tabata workout, Lorenz said she began offering an online workout called Form 01945 that she developed along with fellow instructor and Swampscott resident Emily Couture. She describes that workout on her website as "a heated, high-energy, mat-based class that draws on principles of strength training, cardio conditioning and creative sequencing."

The only issue for Lorenz was that interest was so high in the new program she quickly maxed out the few available spots she had for classes in her current studio. So on Aug. 1, she will open a second studio inside the Bessom Street location for Form, hot yoga and kickboxing classes.

"We were beyond capacity," she said. "Now we will still be doing the Tread Tabata, and (Form 01945) will be all under my watch, which I am super excited about."

She said she hopes to offer three to four Form classes per day in the new studio soon after it opens next month.

Lorenz said she expects to nearly double her staff with the new studio as she looks toward enjoying the brighter days that were sometimes hard to envision this time last year.

"I was only open 13 days and the world shut down," said Lorenz, who also struggled with the loss of her father to cancer in November. "That, on top of COVID, and all the other things going on, makes this feel like a real big win.

"I feel grateful to come out on the other side of all this the way I have."

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Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. Twitter: @Scott_Souza.