Good Neighbor Podcast: Delco
Bringing Together Local Businesses and Neighbors of Delaware County, PA (Delco"") and the surrounding Philadelphia Metro Region.
Good Neighbor Podcast: Delco
Infrared Sauna Fitness: Jen Luft's HOTWORX Journey
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Infrared Sauna Fitness: Jen Luft's Journey to HOTWORX
What if you could revolutionize your fitness routine by working out in an infrared sauna? This episode of The Good Neighbor Podcast answers that hot question with the help of Jen Luft, co-owner of HOTWORX, in Media, Pennsylvania. Jen introduces us to the franchise fitness concept of "HOTWORX," where members can exercise in the comfort of infrared saunas with clean, dry heat that boosts calorie burning and offers numerous health benefits, within a 24/7 accessible facility providing a variety of virtual instructor-led sessions. The hot topic of this episode is the benefits of a non-intimidating and private workout environment suitable for all fitness levels.
Listen as our host Bob Blaisse asks Jen Luft about the unique features that make HOTWORX a standout in the fitness landscape. You'll hear Jen share how she and her husband, Tom, experienced HOTWORX in another part of the country and wanted to bring the same personalized fitness options to their hometown of Media, PA. The couple was so impressed with the personalized fitness options, from isometric sessions to high-intensity cardio, they purchased a HOTWORX franchise licence for their region. Members benefit from using private infrared heat saunas, facilitated by the user-friendly HOTWORX Burn Off App, which fosters a sense of community and well-being among their members.
If an unconventional work schedule is holding up your personalized workouts, or you want to learn how less expensive personalized fitness coaching can also include the novel benefit of HOTWORX infrared heat to improve workouts and speed muscle recovery, listen to Bob's interview with guest Jennifer Luft, Co-Owner of HOTWORX, in Media, Pennsylvania.
HOTWORX
484-421-2876
www.HOTWORX.net/studio/media
Instagram: @hotworxmedia
Facebook: www.facebook.com/hotworxmedia
--- About The Show--- Good Neighbor Podcast is a spotlight on local businesses in and around Delaware County, PA (“Delco” ) and Beyond... The executive producer and host, Bob Blaisse, is a community sponsorship advocate, business branding specialist, and publisher of several hometown magazines, including: Newtown Square Friends & Neighbors, Marple Friends & Neighbors and Newtown Edgmont Friends & Neighbors, mailed monthly to more than 12,000 homes in Western Delaware County, PA, and also available for reading online.
Innovative Fitness Concept
Speaker 1Hello , delco . This is Michael Barkan , welcoming you to the Good Neighbor Podcast , where fans of local businesses and their neighbors come together . It's my pleasure once again to introduce my friend and neighbor , our host Bob Lacey .
Speaker 2Michael Barkan and welcome again to another great episode today of the Good Neighbor Podcast . We call it Good Neighbor Podcast Delco . What's Delco ? Well , it's the shortened form for Delaware County , pennsylvania . That county , as you can imagine , is pretty close to the state of Delaware . We're in the southeast corner of the state of Pennsylvania , delaware County , lovingly referred to as Delco , and the county seat of Delaware County is Media Media Pennsylvania . And today our guest is from the county seat , from Media Pennsylvania for her whole life and then traveled a bit , but we'll hear about that A really cool business that her and her husband have launched in media . And when I say cool not really cool that way I mean neat , but I should say a really hot business . Let me introduce to the stage Jen Luft . Jen , welcome to the program .
Speaker 3Hi , bob , thanks for having me .
Speaker 2Jen , you're a woman of business who has started a kind of a franchise-typed business in media not uncommon in media Pennsylvania . But this is a different kind of business . It's in the fitness world and there's a lot of those kind of businesses out there , but this one . I've never heard anything like this before . I'm going to tease the listeners a bit and then turn it over to you Listeners . This business is kind of a for the most part a singular . You work out by yourself . Perhaps you could have a guess , but you work out by yourself . And of course when we work out we get very hot . But , as some would say , working out hot is not for me . I like working out . Jen , this is an exercise fitness where we're purposely bringing on the heat . Tell us a little bit about Hotworks in Media Pennsylvania .
Speaker 3Yeah . So Hotworks is unique in that , first of all , it's open 24-7 to members , but , yes , you're working out inside of our infrared saunas , which just elevates your workout to the next level , torches calories , but there's also many other benefits to it .
Speaker 2So when you say infrared sauna , not related to the color red , but it related more so to the type of heat . My knowledge of these things is across the board , but I mean I think when I think everybody thinks of sauna , we think of cedar and a little smelly , real hot . Don't touch that , this or that , you're going to get burned . What really is at least the difference from a heat perspective with what is called infrared ?
Speaker 3heat . Yeah , so our saunas are made of hemlock wood , so nothing is hot to the touch when you're in there , but the infrared . The heat from our saunas comes from our infrared heaters , and that's what makes the sauna hot .
Speaker 2And it's not like casting . I mean it's casting heat but it's not like like the way microwave heat works .
Speaker 3No , no , no , not at all .
Speaker 2So , we have really kind of a real clean and dry heat that comes from a heat source that we don't have to really be fearful of , because it's not . It's not really super hot to the touch . I mean , you want to stay away from the elements , but it's a ceramic heating type heating . Now we're in the box , say what are we doing there ? Are we just going in to get hot and sweat like a sauna , or is it something else in there ?
Speaker 3Yes , we have 12 different sessions that we offer at Hotworks Media . They're all led by virtual instructors , so every sauna has a television screen inside of it and you follow along with a pre-recorded workout . So your instructor never calls out sick , they're never late , they're always there for you . We have modifications , we have more advanced options , so the idea is you choose a level of workout that's suitable for you at that time in your life .
Speaker 2I see a great fit because it's kind of like a middle zone for people who definitely know sweating is important and some people just don't necessarily like the sweat a whole lot , but they most of us know and that's really the sign that pounds might be coming off or at least the cardiovascular is really getting work . But you know , some of us and listeners out there , I think , men and women alike don't necessarily like being in fitness class . I mean , maybe when you get older and you're retired or you meet friends and that's all like a social element that happens . But you know the few classes I've ever been into I have to say more than half of them I wish I was on like the other side of the room , not next to this person . And so in this case it's a , it's a private workout .
Speaker 2When you talk about being in the box , the hot box and and really what a great name for the business Hot Works and listeners , it's Hot Works with an X at the end Hot Works . You should look this up online . It's very interesting . But when you say you have these saunas , these boxes , give us really an idea of how big they are . So I mean , do we have to worry about feeling claustrophobic in them , or what no ?
Speaker 3not at all . They're nine by seven , so they're 63 square feet . They are built to hold up to three members at a time . That doesn't necessarily mean there will always be , you know , two other people in the sauna with you . Most times it's you by yourself or you with someone else , but , yeah , it is a private feeling type , but you also . The sessions is led by one virtual instructor , but there's also two other instructors on the screen , so there's three instructors there on the screen with you and then , of course , if you have another member in with you , but they're very private , you don't need to worry about looking silly . We have people of all different levels , ages . The idea is you do , you , you do what you can do , and no one's there judging you .
Speaker 2And so you have the option of , if you have friends that are members also , you could go and do a workout together and have your own kind of privacy . But you're saying you might have another person in there . Is that what , if they want to do one program or they're at a different kind of fitness level to be able to do it better or stronger ? If they want to do one program or they're at a different kind of fitness level to be able to do it better or stronger ? Tell us a little bit about what the recordings are and how we would , how we stage ourself for for developing through this process .
Speaker 3Yes , so , like I mentioned before , we have 12 different sessions . Three of those are our HIIT high intensity interval training . They're the cardio options . Those are 15 minutes long . And then the other nine sessions that we offer . Those are isometric sessions and those are about 40 minutes long . But every session , as I mentioned , there's a main instructor leading it and then there's a modification instructor and a more advanced option . So if you're in there with somebody who's brand new to fitness , they could be following the modifier . If you have somebody that's been coming to hot works for a long time , they could be following the more advanced option . But , um , we have a very supportive , um close knit membership and everyone's there just cheering everybody on .
Speaker 2You get to know each other and would you say that it's um um equally split with between men and ladies , or is it more like um equally split between men and ladies , or is it more ?
Speaker 3like different hours of the day . Yeah , it's probably 80% female , 20% male . It definitely is more geared the marketing and everything that the franchise puts out . It's geared more towards the female base , but men should definitely not be afraid to come in and check it out for sure .
Speaker 2The thing that makes that so interesting is that if men are there less , it might only because men don't want to necessarily be in a group and where the ladies might want to be more social . With this and the idea of being able to come by yourself , have your own private sauna , infrared sauna , is pretty cool , tell me , I think . Have you kind of flipped the switch a bit and instead of like classes being at certain times , obviously you can come anytime , but does that really mean anytime ? Is it around the clock ? Around the clock ?
Speaker 3Around the clock , 24 seven . So that's another benefit of having the virtual instructors . So they're all pre-recorded workouts . We do get new workouts every month . They just , you know , flip , flip the videos and so , yeah , you could go in at 2 am and do a session . We have a lot of members who are shift workers , police nurses , and this helps them get their fitness needs in .
Speaker 2I have to think this is so different that you , being somebody from media Pennsylvania , traveled and saw this and said we've got to bring this is so different that you , being somebody from Media Pennsylvania , traveled and saw this and said we've got to bring this to media . Tell us a little bit about how you discovered Hot Works .
Speaker 3I discovered it . I was in Oklahoma about three years ago visiting family , and I went as a member , as a guest of my sister-in-law , to her her location there , and I was , you know , blown away . I it was amazing . It helped me with . I was having issues with my back and I didn't have any pain while I was doing the session , and so when I came home , I just wanted to join . I just wanted to become a member , and there weren't any locations yet in Pennsylvania , so my husband and I decided to open one , and we were the first location to open in Pennsylvania , in Media , my hometown , and it's just been amazing . We have almost 800 members . People love it . It's helping them in a way that nothing else ever has .
Speaker 2I can believe that . The little that I do know about infrared heat is it's got a kind of I mean , all heat feels kind of good and you know , you even got those saunas where you're . You know , come out of the hot room , infrared that releases certain either elements into our body or eradicates certain things , and I have heard it somewhere along the lines of for inflammation and that kind of stuff . Tell us a little bit more about what the real advantage of infrared heat is over just hot , hot sauna .
Speaker 3Most of us are . The pain that we're having is because of inflammation and that , I think , was my issue with my back . The infrared energy . It's penetrating your skin at a cellular level up to an inch and a half and that is what's . It's healing your muscles as you're working out , so soreness is not a factor . You know any pain that you had or inflammation . It's helping with that . We have people that have had knee pain for years . They come in , they do one session and they're they feel better . It's , it really is amazing . I mean , yes , you're burning a ton of calories , you're torching calories , but to me it's the . It's the health benefits pain relief , you know , detox , your skin clears up , you sleep better . There's just so many extra benefits to just burning calories .
Speaker 2And that's before we even get to the .
Unique Fitness Studio
Speaker 2I thought the biggest elements of this were the uniqueness of being able to have a private workout , now specialized not only specialized with you know , infrared heat elements around you while you're working out , really really turning up the heat and getting that advantage . But the privacy , I could say , but maybe even more so the the around the clock . And so if someone's a shift worker or they just cannot sleep , what do they do ? Come over and have some kind of a key card that lets them into your facility at odd hours .
Speaker 3Yes , so we do keep the door locked at all times , even when we're staffed . But yes , members have access to the door via the Hotworks Burnoff app . It just uses Bluetooth and location technologies and they just get you know close to the door . Hit a button and it unlocks , lets them in and locks behind them .
Speaker 2That must be really cool to be able to like come anytime and almost have the whole place to yourself . We're talking to Jen Luft here . Jennifer Luft is a business entrepreneur woman married . Her and her husband have bought this franchise . It's called Hotworks H-O-T-W-O-R-X and if you want to look up Hotworks on the internet , you'll learn all about it , because there's not many other uses of that word H-O-T-W-O-R-X .
Speaker 2For our listeners that would like to learn more about Hot Works in Media , pennsylvania . They're located at 511 East Baltimore Pike , media , and the phone number if you want to reach out to Jen Luft is 484-421-BURN and it's cool because you'll remember that right , burn is 2876 . But just remember BURN . The number is 484-421-B . 1 burn and you'll be able to talk to Jen . Remember that because this is something to see , not only just online .
Speaker 2But I would think , jen , you have people who find you and think what you know . This is interesting . This is different . I got to see this because what you have when you walk in the door is a kind of eye candy . Yeah , it's not out in the open . We're not going to get these big balls , we're not going to . You know , have a bunch of ladies coming in all around as crowded today . It's not really two people , it's really . You know what you're going to get when you walk in . I've learned it's a private sauna studio Uh , maybe one other person , but . But the cool thing about it is this expense that somebody would pay for an exercise bike that has a really skilled trainers calling you on to work harder . You have the built-in lessons now in in in these kinds of fitness exercises . Does it ? Does it trip into ? You know , actually like Pilates and yoga and that kind of instruction ? Oh yeah .
Speaker 3We have yes , we have the nine different isometric sessions . We have our ISO buns , yoga , pilates , warrior , core warrior core bands , stretch and bar none , and they're all 40 minutes long . Those are the ISOs , um , the hit cardio is . We have cycle , a cycle bike a blast . It's like a total body trainer , so kind of like a bike elliptical combo . And then we have dual pulley water rowers , um , which is popular with the men .
Speaker 2Yeah , so there's , there's like equipment , but it's on the walls or whatever , so you can kind of be using equipment for those that are inside the .
Speaker 3So we have four saunas that are have the equipment in them . Right , and then the other four saunas are dedicated to the isometric workouts .
Speaker 2Oh , this is . This is exciting . I don't live too far from media Pennsylvania and I have got to see . I have to see what this looks like .
Speaker 3You've got to come in .
Speaker 2I can imagine what it is , and I've read about infrared heat . I have never heard of Hot Works , the franchise . I have looked at the website and for our listeners it's hotworksnet , and remember it's with an X there hotworksnet You'll find all about what Jennifer Love has talked to us about this infrared heating . But I have to think , as we part here , Jen , that one of the nice cool things about this is friendships . You had mentioned 800 members already coming at their different times , but you see people come and go and then , before you know it , media is such a hot town .
Speaker 2You're getting a cup of coffee or something , You're going to have lunch and it's . It probably is very social . So for the ladies and the men that are interested in not only getting some pounds off , being able to have some instruction without joining a fitness club , to get private lessons or something , here's private recorded lessons in a private studio with that added advantage of infrared heat . And I have to say , Jen , this is a good neighbor business . We talk on the Good Neighbor podcast here about businesses that are really doing things for their customers and doing things for the community and while it's a business you and your family kind of supporting yourselves . It is really also helping the community with good health .
Speaker 3Yeah , and that was honestly why I wanted to open it , because I had struggled . I had been an athlete my whole life , played softball in college and my body couldn't take the workouts I was doing to it anymore . Once I hit 40 , my body just kind of gave up on me .
Speaker 2You said it , so I needed to find something . Well , you're married , with your husband and kids .
Speaker 3Yep , we have two boys , nice Two boys yeah .
Speaker 2And so the kids . Is it safe enough for the kids to get in the hot box too ?
Speaker 3Oh , yeah , actually , the minimum age is 12 . So we have a few members who have signed their kids up as well . Of course , the parent guardian needs to be with them in the studio .
Speaker 2But yeah , it's , you can come as early as probably close with . So the listeners are probably just wondering like it's not , it's not for charity , it's , it's a business , but it's probably very economical . I would imagine we don't have to talk about prices , but imagine it's a kind of unlimited use , membership or something like that . Right , yeah , and I don't mind mentioning the prices .
Speaker 3It's yeah , it's unlimited sessions are . We do have a couple of different membership options . The lowest tier is $59 a month less than $2 a day you know less than your coffee costs and you . You know it's available to you 24 , 7 , 365 days a year .
Speaker 2Yeah , and for different age groups that have different reasons of winning privacy or time of day or infrared heat , something different lessons
Good Neighbor Podcast Promotion
Speaker 2of instruction . I love it . I think it's one of the best things I've heard about here on the Good Neighbor podcast .
Speaker 3Bob , if your listeners want to reach me , I'm available . They can give the studio a call at 484-421-BURN , that's 484-421-2876 .
Speaker 1Thank you for listening to the Good Neighbor Podcast hosted by Bob Lacey . This is Michael Barkan inviting everyone to get on the Good Neighbor team . Nominate your favorite local business to be featured on an upcoming episode by going to gntdelcocom or by calling Bob at 610-557-3745 .