New gym to replace Maxx Fitness

The owners of Maxx Fitness have decided to close the gym, at 7060 Columbia Pike, Annandale, Dec. 30, because it has not been profitable.

Carol Zach Reuss, the manager of the Annandale Shopping Center, told the gym owners the building will be renovated and a new gym will open in that space in six weeks. The equipment will remain, and the new gym might retain the Maxx name. People who have already paid for memberships at Maxx can roll over their accounts to the new gym or request a reimbursement.

One of the co-owners, Olympic weightlifter Ahmed Ragheb, says he will spend more time overseeing the gym he owns in Egypt, but plans to stay in the United States to continue doing weight training with clients on a one-to-one basis. “I love America; it’s my home,” he says. [Anyone interested in working with Ragheb is encouraged to call him at 703/863-3215.]

According to another source close to the gym, there had been a proposal to allow Foundation Fitness, the personal training company that subleases space at Maxx, to take over the gym, but that did not work out. While the Annandale Shopping Center had been generous with Maxx in the past, the relationship soured in recent months.

Foundation Fitness will open a new personal training studio at 7230 Columbia Pike (across from Fuddrucker’s) in early January, says co-owner Lance LeTellier. It will have weights and universal machines but will not be a fully equipped gym. Training sessions will be $50 an hour for individuals and $30 an hour for group sessions.