Local Business Owner - Building on Success at the Cardio Club

Reagan Reed

By Matthew Avitabile

DELHI — A popular institution in central Delaware County continues to grow under the leadership of Raegan Reed. The Cardio Club and Delhi Dance Studio on Elm Street in Delhi grew from Reed’s skill and interest. The Cardio Club is a 24/7 full access gym and dance studio in Delhi!

Even from a child “dance meant a lot to me” Reed said. She started dancing at three years old and practiced gymnastics. Reed has a degree in dance from SUNY Brockport and also brought her administrative experience, including her degree in business from FIT in New York City to the table. She transformed her career from working as a sales assistant at a fashion company into teaching fitness full time. This was well-suited to Reed’s personality— she wanted to be a talk show host in her earlier days.

Being able to both teach and run a successful gym is a “win-win,” she said.

The Delhi native taught dance on her summer break from college and came home to teach dance and fitness full time in 2006. Her father had passed away and she didn’t want to be far away from family. After a stint in Florida, she and her husband Travis Reed, also from Delhi, relocated home. Raegan started renting space from former Cardio Club owner, Melissa Wakin, when the gym was located on Main Street, Delhi. After outgrowing the existing space, Reed approached Wakin who said she was ready to pass the torch, and sell the business to Reed in 2009.

The process of becoming a business owner was a fulfillment of Reed’s dream. “I have always been an entrepreneur. I love movement and people! “I found my perfect career,” she said.

In particular, Reed loves bringing communities together, including working with other businesses and community organizations. She and her team head up the Delhi Children’s Christmas Fund alongside Barb Sturdevant, as well as the Delhi Community Fund.

At the Cardio Club itself, the gym offers scholarships for dancers— “little ones, teens and even grownups unable to make it happen,” Reed explains. This year the total amount of scholarships is about $15,000. This includes scholarships for dance class and more with the support of the Delaware County Youth Bureau. The scholarships have been a regular feature since 2009 and now take on a “bigger scale.” Those who can’t afford dance classes are given the opportunity thanks to Reed and her team.

There are a number of young people working at the gym, including some as assistants and some who teach their own classes. Reed said that young people taking on leadership allows them to learn “work ethics” and how to enter into the workforce. There is “discipline about dance classes,” she said.

For those interested in traditional muscle building, the gym is open 24/7 and includes free weights, cardio equipment, locker rooms with showers, a kid’s zone, two upstairs studios, and an infrared sauna. There are a number of time slots available for classes at The Cardio Club six days a week, including 5:45am-9am and 4-6pm, taught by Reed and others.

The Cardio Club offers a one week FREE TRIAL for anyone who wants to check out the gym or classes. Being introduced to all of the dance, fitness and yoga classes allows “people to see what they like,” said Reed and “ensure better commitment if they enjoy what they are doing.”

The environment fosters “community, friendship, and lots of accountability,” said Reed, likening it to the sitcom Cheers “a place where everyone knows your name”. We have everything from Silver Sneakers and chair classes, to full body bootcamp, yoga and spin, as well as personal and small group training.

Much of the growth of the gym was sparked by the pandemic. Reed started her small group training sessions at that time, which sparked an even higher sense of community. During the time when social contact was restricted, her husband Travis Reed built the entire stage in the back of the gym.The stage allows classes outdoors during the warmer months and is covered by a canopy, which Reed describes as giving a “beautiful backyard workout”.

Before the Cardio Club moved to its current location, the space was the youth center for the Assembly of God Church. Reed credits Travis Reed alongside Tommy Engels for remodeling this building back in 2013 and Gary Leahy, Heather White, Tony Giaccone, Rick Roberts and all the fabulous instructors, who help make the gym and dance studio a great place to workout, dance and play. The Cardio Club also hosts aerial yoga parties. The gym drops down aerial silks and provides pizza and cake (or the option for people to bring their own food) for two hours. The price gets you both upstairs studios, the aerial silks, tables, chairs, music, disco lights and fun!

In the back office there is Viafore Family Chiropractic. There is also Krystina Palmatier and her eyelash, wax, and facial salon. There is a dropoff for the 607 CSA and studio rental.

The Cardio Club offers a chance to help with physical and mental health, and a “community with other grown ups during the busyness of life,” she said. There are both fun interactions in and out of the gym, fostering a “special community and deep friendships.”

Reed and the gym team are always learning, growing, and improving, she said.

“If not, what’s the point?” she asked. We offer fitness challenges, special workshops, alongside kids craft blast in the summer and a summer dance intensive too.

Reed is the successful creator and organizer of the Catskill Mountain Yoga Festival, and has taught yoga around the world, including hosting her own Yoga Retreats. Reed recently relocated the Catskill Mountain Yoga Festival to SUNY Delhi. She was lucky enough to work with Christina Viafore, Caitlin Bartlett, and Chris Harper during the transition for the Yoga Festival. SUNY Delhi was a perfect new home for the fest in its first year at the venue, after previously being hosted at Plattekill Mountain. We can't wait to do it again! Always the fourth Saturday in July! New this year, General Admission for the Catskill Mountain Yoga Festival will be FREE!

The Cardio Club and Delhi Dance Studio offers a professional interior as well as outdoor classes “surrounded by the sound of running water” and wildlife. For those looking to improve their mind and body, you can’t ask for much else. Check it out thecardioclub.com or call (607) 746-7050!