When you’re 50 you don’t expect to hear your doctor say you’ll be lucky if you live five more years. Yet that was the situation for Dave Lewis of Richmond Heights when he turned to The Fitness Edge for help. Morbidly obese and facing two knee replacements, he needed to make a change, and fast. Eighteen months later, he had shed 250 pounds and kept both knees.
Since 1984, The Fitness Edge has dedicated itself to helping people improve their well-being. The seed for the business was planted when founder and owner Mike Jaudes, after making a name for himself in local bodybuilding competitions, began getting requests for exercise and nutrition plans. “I had a lot of knowledge in the industry, so I just started helping people get fit,” he says. Over the years, he’s acquired the top certifications in the
industry, he adds, and in 2004 and 2005 was named one of the best trainers in America by Men’s Health Magazine.
After only his first year in business, Jaudes already had enough clients to start expanding his team. Now, his staff of 30 trainers offers extensive personal training and nutritional counseling services to nearly 1,000 clients of all fitness levels. The Fitness Edge also offers functional training programs for those with physical limitations, and many medical professionals refer patients to Jaudes’ team for post-therapy or post-surgery rehabilitation training.
Operating out of a 12,000-square-foot training center in Creve Coeur, The Fitness Edge is much more than a place to sweat, Jaudes notes. Clients can take advantage of babysitting, concierge, massage and porter services, and can purchase Complete Nutrition supplements, healthy meals from Fit Flavors and workout apparel on site. “We deliver everything a person could want in a personal training environment,” Jaudes says.
Unlike a health club or gym, The Fitness Edge lavishes individual attention on its clients, Jaudes says. “We’re private trainers and always have been,” he adds. “There are a lot of gyms with classes and memberships, and one of their many services might be personal training. Personal training is our only service, and it’s all about the client.”
A high priority is placed on making people feel welcomed, particularly those desperate for a lifestyle change who haven’t stepped into a gym for decades. “It’s a difficult decision for someone who is highly inactive, with a whole array of health problems, to make a change,” Jaudes says. “We do everything in our power to make that person feel secure and comfortable, and we encourage that person to succeed.”
Helping clients achieve a healthier, happier life fuels Jaudes’ passion for his work. “The best medicine on the planet is proper eating and exercise,” he says. “Our mission is to change people’s lives and help them function better outside these walls. We try to make sure the time they’re not exercising is highly impacted by what we do here. They sleep better, move better, think better and have more energy and less stress.”
Photo: Bill Barrett
Pictured: Mike Jaudes
[The Fitness Edge provides full-service personal training and is located at 10571 Old Olive St . For more information, call 314.993.3343 or visit fitnessedge-stl.com.]
