Urban Med Reimaging as “Athlete Within”
It is a new year; January is the month to refocus your priorities. Have you been dealing with too much anxiety? Have you been ignoring a nagging injury? Are you finding your lateral mobility being limited? If you answer yes to any of those questions, check out Athlete Within (previously Urban Med) located next to Starbucks on 11th, west of Grand Ave. They are offering a free tour, a free cold plunge, and a compression boot experience.
Urban Med was started 13 years ago by Dr Ryan Pendon, who specializes in Chiropractic. His wife, Christine Pendon, is now the owner of Athlete Within. Christine was a division 1 softball player in Florida. She appreciated the perks she received as an elite athlete. While at Florida Atlantic University, she benefitted from one-on-one trainers, utilizing compression boots, and ice baths. Her vision for Athlete Within is to make those same advantages available to everyone. Dr Ryan will continue his chiropractic practice along with Dr Kaitlin Dick and by appointment only, at the Athlete Within facility.
Christine shares all the one-on-one and class training responsibilities with Michelle Pages. Athlete Within also have certified Pilates instructors and licensed massage therapists. According to Michelle, who recently became the Operations Manager, she and Christine are both educators, fitness instructors, and hold a wide range of National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM) certificates. Combined they cover mobility work for all ages, power, agility, body building, nutrition, performance enhancement, and more.
Michelle gave me a tour of the newly enhanced facility including a compression room, Pilates studio, massage therapy, cold plunge bath, chiropractor, and their training area. Michelle touted their elite fitness and recovery equipment including ARP wave therapy that sends up to 500 contractions per second to stimulate the nervous system to help relax and elongate muscles, connect brain to injured areas and grow muscle; The NormaTec Air Compression Boot that according to Hyperice.com, “is scientifically proven to reduce inflammation and swelling and increase circulation in the body.” Keiser Cable Equipment which touts “train the neuromuscular system at the speed of life,” and Rogue Fitness, “state of the art equipment for strength and conditioning.”
Michelle advised that “clients” may join with different membership packages. In addition, even though they are “out of network,” and depending on your specific insurance plan, “patients” may qualify for insurance benefits that cater to recovery programs, physical therapy, etc.… Either way, Michelle, said Athlete Within is specialized in one-on one trainers, small group classes, therapists (physical exercise relieves the mental stress), and advanced fitness training. The facility is not available for individual workouts, and they expect members to utilize what they learn at their regular fitness centers. She felt training at Athlete Within is “like a basketball coach, that teaches you what to do, so you know how to do it once you are on the court.”
According to Michelle, Athlete Within is for executives and everyday people that live busy lives, that work or live nearby and want a focused, highly efficient 45–60-minute workout (showers included), a means to decompress stress, and individuals seeking recovery. Michelle said it is you trusting them with your body. She feels fulfilled when her clients come in full of stress and leave with happy hormones in their brain, a smile on their face, and a relaxed feeling.”
You may want to stop in or book an appointment with Athlete Within. And remember - they are offering a free tour, a free cold plunge, and a compression boot experience.
By Marty Goldberg