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Irvington Friends Are Now A Franchise Force To Be Reckoned With

Two best friends from Irvington are behind GYMGUYZ Westchester, the franchise where the gym literally comes to you.

James Bonavita, left, with GYMGUYZ CEO Josh York, center and Sam Langer, right, with their "Franchise of the Year" award.

James Bonavita, left, with GYMGUYZ CEO Josh York, center and Sam Langer, right, with their "Franchise of the Year" award.

Photo Credit: Submitted
Sam Langer of GYMGUYZ working with a client.

Sam Langer of GYMGUYZ working with a client.

Photo Credit: Submitted

Sam Langer, owner and head trainer, who now lives in Tarrytown, and Co-Owner James Bonavita, who still lives in his childhood Rivertown, grew up together -- their parents are close friends -- played football in their youth, and, as it happened, studied to be personal trainers, albeit at different colleges.

When they heard of the opportunity to buy the GYMGUYZ franchise -- thanks to a tip Langer's dad got (he chatted up a guy in line at a vacation resort's buffet line who ended up being the CEO of a newly formed GYMGUYZ) -- they jumped on it.

As it turned out, they were the first ever GYMGUYZ franchise to open. That was four years ago. Now, there are 125 locations across the country and Langer and Bonavita have won "Franchise of the Year" two years in a row.

What makes them special, said Langer, is their personal service, enthusiastic energy and willingness to go anywhere, anytime. He said he and his crew -- there are 12 total  -- generally work from 5 a.m. to 11 p.m., seven days a week -- depending on a client's specific needs.

And no, you don't have to have a big house or an in-home gym to hire GYMGUYZ.

All vans -- they just bought their sixth one -- are stocked with state of the art equipment, so they bring everything to you. Often, said Langer, they simply move a coffee table and some sofas to make a family or living room into an insta-gym.

GYMGUYZ -- which, despite the name also includes female trainers -- also works with corporate offices, bringing Bootcamp, kickboxing, zumba, yoga, and pilates classes to their business, as well as hospitals, nursing homes and schools. They also work with athletes, specifically those training for upcoming sports or races.

Langer says he particularly enjoys partnering with elementary schools where his goal is "to train little minds that fitness is good and fun."

He also enjoys the nursing homes where they work to get folks up and moving.

"You could say we serve everyone from ages two to 99," he said. "Our oldest client now is 99."

Each van is stocked with everything and anything -- from free weights, kettle balls to resistance bands, and even a portable bench and strength work outs.

"We have over 365 pieces of equipment in each van," said Langer.

The 27-year-old said what has made GYMGUYZ so successful, not just in Westchester, but elsewhere across the country, is that it fits in with the "Amazon trend."

"We're now living in a society where everything is delivered to your home," he said. "Think of GYMGUYZ as ordering take out from the gym."

For more information, go to www.gymguyz.com/westchester-county/ or call 914-586-2266.

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