Maggie Rogosienski, owner of East Troy Body Shop dba CrossFit East Troy has something to share: bar-bell-and-burpee heavy WODs (Workout Of the Day) are not out of your fitness range.

Contrary to popular belief, she said the majority of the people who walk through her gym doors are not insanely fit. In fact, a lot of members had never really worked out before.

Although CrossFit is known for its high intensity and pushing the limit, Rogosienski encourages anyone to give the fitness program a try.

“CrossFit is for everyone. Whether you are an Olympic athlete or someone who has never exercised in their life, this is for you,” she said. “Please don’t feel like you have to ‘get into shape’ in order to do this. Leave that to CrossFit.”

She said the demanding workouts can be scaled for anyone regardless of age or physical ability.

“With CrossFit, you have the elite athlete and Joe Schmo couch potato in the same room, doing the exact same workout, but the only difference is the intensity they are doing those exercises at,” she said. “They are going to complete it together and cheer each other on.”

Rogosienski opened her gym at 2920 Main St. last fall aiming to help her clients meet their fitness goals no matter what their age or fitness level.

East Troy Body Shop was the first of its kind to pop up in Walworth County.

CrossFit, a fairly new workout, has grown steadily since former gymnastics coach Greg Glassman started it in 2000 with currently about 9,000 gyms worldwide.

Rogosienski said if you search for information on the fitness regimen online, most of the stories and videos you find will be about competitive CrossFitters.

Rogosienski, a certified personal trainer and CrossFit trainer, has taken a different route with her gym and has focused on making the exercise program a part of her clients’ every day life.

She said CrossFit work-outs are designed to make you stronger everywhere you go, not just in the gym.

Rogosienski became a personal trainer seven years ago while living in North Carolina. After falling in love with the line of work, she ditched her plans to go to medical school and returned to her home state of Wisconsin to pursue a new fitness dream.

“One of the things I wanted to do as a doctor was change people’s lives for the better and this was showing me almost immediate results,” she said. “Better health and fitness correlated to happier lives and healthier lifestyles – these are all the things as a clinician you hope to see with your patients.”

Rogosienski was introduced to CrossFit in 2012 and instantly fell in love with it.

“You can get in and out of the gym in a hour. The work-outs are right there for you and you leave feeling like you don’t need to do any-more. Plus I was seeing amazing changes,” she said.

Rogosienski had just had her son and said CrossFit rapidly changed her body back to where it was.

Rogosienski, who has played sports since she could walk and has competed in marathons, said the workout allowed her to combine her cardio with strength training in ways she never thought possible.

Her hobby quickly became her business and she now leads CrossFit training work-outs seven days a week.

Rogosienski said the timing and location were right to open a CrossFit gym in East Troy.

Her husband Jeremy’s father owned the former 6,000-square-foot machine shop, which had been vacant for two years.

The Rogosienskis completely transformed the open space using bright colors and natural lighting.

The first thing you notice about the gym is that it’s unlike most others.

There are no mirrors, no machines and a minimal amount of equipment.

What you will find is Olympic barbells, platforms plyo boxes, rowers, kettle bells and other items coaches say are necessary to make CrossFit workouts fun.

Members complete work-outs that change daily ranging from high-intensity interval training to gymnastics-driven exercises to Olympic weightlifting to other exercises.

East Troy Body Shop keeps small coach to client ratios so coaches can ensure undivided attention for proper form and technique.

“Someone who is only ever running or only ever doing the elliptical or only ever lifting weights – they stop seeing results after a certain period of time because their body gets used to it,” said Rogosienski. “Every single time you come into our gym you are doing a different workout.”

A fitness family

CrossFit isn’t just a work-out, but a program that nurtures close-knit communities.

At East Troy Body Shop, people and relationships are key.

“You don’t walk in, stick earbuds in your ear, head to your machine, stare at that for an hour, turn around and leave and never have a conversation with anybody,” Rogosienski said. “There are friendships that are born from the second you join.”

This is because CrossFitters always work out in groups. At any given time, applause can be heard throughout the facility as members chip away at a multitude of reps.

“We push this idea of cheering on each other as if you are teammates because you really are a teammate when you are in here,” she said. “Not only do you have a coach that’s pushing you, but you also have teammates that are cheering you on and how motivating is that?”

Following a recent class, one of Rogosienski’s clients told his new CrossFit friends that he has swapped out his fast food lunches for daily workouts.

CrossFit has already changed his life since joining. He began training three weeks ago and has dropped 15 pounds, Rogosienski said.

It is easy to feed off that energy.

Rogosienski also keeps a big white board front and center that is filled with names and the latest successes of her members.

Rogosienski said she’s gotten a great response since she opened her doors on Oct. 7 of 2013.

Locals looking for something other than the typical workouts at other gyms have signed up quickly.

“Being a female and having gone through the teenage years and awkwardness of body, I’ve never been so confident in my body and who I am as a person as I have now and I truly believe it’s because of CrossFit,” Rogosienski said.

Rogosienski runs free intro classes on Sundays at 11 a.m. to give people a chance to check out what the gym is all about.

Anyone who signs up for CrossFit classes must take a fundamentals class to learn how to do the moves correctly to avoid injury.

Rogosienski is hoping to expand over the next year to meet demand by offering CrossFit for kids and programming for specific athletes.

East Troy Body Shop also offers fitness classes, like Zumba, yoga, Pilates, etc., personal training and massage therapy.

For more information, call (262) 642-4244 or visit www.etbodyshop.com.