Penn State alum and State College pastor Jordan Alturas discovered CrossFit later in life but quickly realized its impact on his lifestyle and decided to make fitness his full-time gig.

He began the process of opening his own CrossFit gym in December 2022, and now, Alturas is in the midst of Treign Fit’s soft launch at 339 Benner Pike.

CrossFit, which Alturas described as “varied functional fitness,” is a combination of powerlifting, Olympic lifting, gymnastics movements, and more.

Treign Fit offers CrossFit classes and a “physique fit” program, which is designed to help folks build and tone muscle to “build a stronger, more aesthetic physique.”

The most important part about opening Treign Fit to Alturas, though, is the people in the gym rather than the workouts.

“I like pastoring because you get to interact with people, and helping people is the whole goal, right? It’s kind of married in fitness and sort of the same thing,” Alturas said. “You get to influence people, help them reach their goals, get healthier.”

Alturas began demolition on the Benner Pike location in August and put the gym equipment into the space just two weeks ago. The gym looks nearly complete at first glance, but Alturas is still carving out the final details of a coffee bar in the corner of the gym that will feature Rothrock Coffee and serve as a multi-purpose event space.

Within Alturas’ entrepreneurial mindset, it all comes back to the people, and he wants to provide a community gathering space for connection.

“You could go into a gym and you could have your programming, but there’s something about being known and having other people to keep you accountable and just do life with,” Alturas said.

Through workouts with Treign Fit, Alturas aims to help participants of all ages and experience levels learn new skills, gain confidence, and surround themselves with positive, encouraging people and coaches.

The goal in CrossFit, Alturas said, is to be above average in everything but not necessarily specialized. While a powerlifter is typically really strong, they’re likely not too quick. The same goes for a marathon runner. That person excels at running long distances but may not be extremely strong. Within CrossFit, Treign Fit members can expect to be well-rounded athletes rather than concentrated ones.

“The goal is [to welcome] everybody,” Alturas said. “Even in coaching, I’ve had 15-year-olds in class next to the 72-year-old next to the college athlete. It’s cool, everything is so scalable.”

Treign Fit plans to host a grand opening in a few weeks, but folks can join its membership starting now and even take advantage of its seven-day free trial.

For more information about Treign Fit and its programming, check out its website here.