Made in the 956: Brownsville man offering free workouts to anyone in the community
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Made in the 956: Brownsville man offering free workouts to anyone in the community
A Brownsville man is offering free fitness classes to anyone in the community, one workout at a time.
John Cuvillier is the founder and owner of People Moving People Race Productions, which started as a race production company but has since grown into a community fitness movement.
Cuvillier is an avid runner who wanted to bring races, including 5Ks, to the Rio Grande Valley. He began using money raised from those races to fund free fitness classes for anyone who wanted to join.
"Strength training, running, swimming, biking, paddling. This is my way of giving back to the people," Cuvillier said.
For many in the community, a traditional gym membership is unreachable. Cuvillier's classes remove that barrier entirely.
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"Everybody has a purpose in life and I feel like I have many purposes," Cuvillier said.
One person who found his way to those classes is Michael Lopez. Lopez once weighed more than 400 pounds. After deciding it was time for a change, he started working out with Cuvillier.
"I met John not too long ago, about 6 months after I started my journey and since then we've been basically Batman and Robin together," Lopez said.
Lopez lost 110 pounds and currently weighs 295 pounds. He credits the free and welcoming nature of the surrounding community.
"I think the biggest thing that benefited me is the fact that this was a free movement, so to speak, everybody that's helped me along the way that I've met through John and the wellness community," Lopez said.
Every Tuesday and Thursday, Cuvillier hosts strength training classes open to anyone willing to show up.
"There are people in the community like me, they offer free running and free strength training around the community," Cuvillier said. "It's a self-race, it's you against you."
Click here to contact John Cuvillier.
John Cuvillier is Made in the 956.
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