A free outdoor gym opened Saturday in the parking lot of the shuttered Big 5 Sporting Goods store on Main Street in Longmont.
Shams Abdul-Rhaman, a bodybuilder and owner of King Penny’s Supplement Company, opened The Weight Pile On The Rockies outdoor gym with help and donations from local businesses.
“The parking lot was empty, and it was kind of dirty and there was a larger homeless population — so what we did was we went and cleaned it up and roped off eight parking spots that are adjacent from each other,” Abdul-Rhaman said.
To start the project, the bodybuilder shared his vision of an outdoor gym to local businesses — RMA Concrete Pumping, Liberty Auto Sales, District 303 Art of Hair, Comfort Craft and Schad Agency.
“I pitched them my idea and said hey, California has workout areas on the beach, Miami does — why doesn’t Colorado have anything? Where people who enjoy being outside can work out outside,” Abdul-Rhaman explained. “And everybody says, ‘oh that’s an interesting idea’ and they got behind it, and it turned into a whole thing — next thing you know, we had a whole bunch of equipment, a whole bunch of weights.”
Abdul-Rhaman said he’s hoping to inspire Longmont to become a more fitness-oriented community. A lot of visitors have stopped by to check out the new gym, but the first few days of its opening have been quiet, he said.
“The turnout hasn’t been what I expected, but a lot of people come by and ask questions,” he said. “The free concept kind of throws people off I guess — they ask how you join or become a member, and I just tell them ‘there’s no catch — it’s a free workout area.’”
Personal trainers are encouraged to bring their clients to the outdoor gym, he said. One of the benefits of the new space is people can drop weights loudly and make noise, which isn’t always the case with indoor gyms, Abdul-Rhaman explained..
The gym, at 1610 Main Street, is open every day from 7:30-11 a.m. and 3:30-7 p.m. Abdul-Rhaman said he’s looking for more people to donate their time so the hours can expand.
“If we can find more people to be there during the day, we can leave it open all day,” he said. “There’s someone there at all times when it’s open, just to help people as spotters or to show people a couple workouts … we like to have people there who can show them the proper form.”
The bodybuilder said he hopes the new outdoor gym will bring the community together.
“Working out outside I think fosters a kind of camaraderie for most people,” he said. “People helping each other and being there for one another — like ‘hey can I get a spot,’ or ‘hey can I get that after you’ — there’s more communication and togetherness.”
