Mackenzie Wells Fitness is joining the wave of brick-and-mortar businesses reopening their doors as COVID-19 infections decrease and vaccination rates increase. 

She will host a grand opening at her new location at 124 E. Morrison - the southeast corner of the square - this Saturday. 

Wells previously had a gym space on the west side of the square under the name Get Bent Fitness. She taught in-person fitness classes locally from 2014 until early 2020, when she transitioned to a fully online program offered on her website, mackenziewells.com.

She was already in the process of setting up an online program when the pandemic hit. “It was years in the making,” she said of her website. “I bought my first website domain in 2017. And then I just chickened out.”

The market was already saturated with online fitness instruction programs. But people reached out to her asking if she’d offer online instruction - some of them as far away as the United Kingdom. 

“The more people who reached out to me, I thought, maybe I should just do this,” Wells said. “I finally went for it in 2020 and… two weeks later, they started talking about COVID on the news, and, bam!”

Wells had been looking for an opportunity to open up a physical space for a while when Gold Apple Boutique owner Cana Conrow mentioned to Wells that she was moving her shop down the street. “I immediately messaged the owner and said, please rent to me!”

Wells has spent the last few weeks remodeling the space to fit her needs, sealing the brick, installing flooring and painting, among other things. 

She will open Saturday with a 45-minute workout class at 8 a.m. for $5, or free with an existing online membership, and then she will stick around with an information table. Regular classes begin next week with 20-minute Tuesday and Thursday “Lunch Crunch” sessions offered at 12:20 p.m. for $5/class or $32/month, and regular classes at 8 a.m. on Saturdays. Saturday sessions are included for customers who subscribe either to her online program or to Lunch Crunch.

“To me, that just seems fair,” Wells said, “and like a cool bonus.”