Tucked away in the corner of Klahanie’s QFC shopping center is the Klahanie Fitness exercise facility. Although rather quiet and unassuming at first, this gym has a special place in the hearts of all its customers.

Although gym-goers are a plethora of adults escaping the daily grind, people trying to improve their health, athletes seeking to upgrade their game, and weight-lifting enthusiasts, all can attest to the fact that they have formed lasting bonds during their time spent in the gym. Skyline’s junior track sprinting standout Alex Lee remarked that he has strengthened bonds with friends he met through sports, such as fellow sprinter Dustin Bratten, by working out together at Klahanie Fitness.

Klahanie Fitness also scores a perfect ten in terms of location. Tired athletes can conveniently cross the street to enjoy a meal at Herfy’s Burgers, Garlic Jim’s Pizza, or Subway.

Former Klahanie Fitness training partner, Maria Faires, trains a client in the weight area.

Despite these great selling points, Klahanie Fitness still has its drawbacks. Junior Paul Chung felt that “Overall, it’s a pretty good gym but I personally think it’s too crowded”. Many gym-goers share Chung’s sentiment and choose to avoid the evening rush of adults heading to the gym from work so that they won’t have to wait in line for exercise stations. Lee went on to say that, as a result of crowding in the gym, “My favorite thing about Klahanie Fitness is that at night when you go there is barely anyone there and it is easier to get through workouts and much more peaceful and easier to focus”. On the bright side, Klahanie Fitness has already taken steps to resolve this problem by completing its tanning bed-removal campaign.

As far as the facilities go, many gym-goers feel a need for Klahanie Fitness to replace its many old and defunct bikes, ellipticals, and treadmills. Lee also added that “They don’t have fans on them [the cardio machines] so I sweat like crazy”. Others have expressed concern over the fact that Klahanie Fitness has only wide and narrow-grip pullup bars with no regular pullup bars to be found.

However, what’s truly important about Klahanie Fitness is the people that make it what it is. Besides the occasional athlete who hazardously drops free weights in an uncontrolled manner, swears after his inability to complete a set, makes others wait half an hour for him to be done with a station, or fails to re-rack plates after he is done with them, the people at Klahanie Fitness are remarkably courteous and are more than willing to spot each other on challenging lifts.

Who are the role models and personal heroes high school athletes training at Klahanie Fitness look up to? Lee expressed that he felt motivated to work hard each day in the gym by his personal hero and track coach, Nick Lombardo. Senior Brian Burgess, an aspiring bench press enthusiast, feels inspired to push his limits by Klahanie Fitness’ resident world-class athlete, Ita Pantilat, a current women’s world recorder-holder in bench press.

All in all, Klahanie Fitness is one of Issaquah’s best local gyms. Although its facilities may not be as cutting-edge as places like Gold’s Gym, it is conveniently located and affordable. Most importantly, it holds a special place in the hearts of its attendees. So if you’re an athlete pursuing an edge over competition, a working adult seeking a refuge from the daily grind, or someone seeking a niche for making friends and getting in shape, join Klahanie Fitness and pump some iron!