Good for the mind, body and soul

The Lab offers more than a gym

A few years ago, Debbie Cheatham’s bone density scan showed she was on the verge of developing osteoporosis. She wasn’t going to let the common skeletal disorder often responsible for broken hips get the best of her. So, she did her research, learned weight training can help regain bone strength and decided to give it a try.

While Debbie had exercised through the years, she never used weights, thinking weight training was mostly a workout plan for athletes. She started lifting slowly, with help of a trainer, steadily increasing the weight and number of repetitions. She could feel herself getting stronger. However, the results of her most recent bone density scan shocked both Debbie and her doctor.

Her bone loss had reversed and her bone density improved. “My doctor told me to tell everybody how I did it,” Debbie says.

Now, working out four times a week is part of Debbie’s routine. She joins more than 1,000 other members at The Lab, a Pikeville gym located in a former factory.

Experience

Business partners Travis Smith and Tommy Haupert, with 25 years of sports medicine and athletic training experience, first opened Omni Rehab in 2001. They added Erlanger Bledsoe’s outpatient therapy department a few years ago.

They were already thinking about opening a multipurpose gym to expand their rehab operations when a longtime Pikeville factory closed. “Part of this comes from a factory going out of business and I didn’t want to see a building get mothballed in our community,” Travis says.

Now, Omni Rehab and Erlanger Bledsoe’s outpatient therapy departments operate inside The Lab. The 20,000-square-foot facility offers plenty of space for rehab services, in addition to world-class fitness training for all experience and ability levels. There’s space for basketball, boxing and archery, along with fitness classes and prescribed physical therapy.

“We have over 1,000 members at The Lab in a town of about 2,000,” Travis says. “About 25% of our members are driving in from other communities.”
On Sundays, the facility transforms into the Pikeville campus of the Cumberland Fellowship Church in Crossville. “We get everybody together in person here, we have a live worship band and the senior pastor’s sermon is livestreamed,” Travis says. “We’ve become more than a gym and a place to work out. We have a place our members can congregate for worship and fun.”

Something for all ages

Not only does Debbie participate in weight training, she also takes Silver and Fit classes for seniors, as part of her goal of working out four days a week.

The Lab’s other programs include boxing, archery, kids’ basketball and classes such as Dance2Fit, Warrior Fit and War Fighter, a tactical conditioning class.

The Fighting Falcons Boxing Club, based out of The Lab, is Bledsoe County’s only club where children and adults alike can build endurance, discipline and strength through boxing. The club’s Lucas Mitchell earned the title of 2021 Silver Glove State Champion in the 145-pound category. The Lab also offers boxing classes, sparring and even traveling competitions to those who are interested.

“We are helping better our community by providing a safe, clean and fun space for people to become the best version of themselves,” Travis says. “Whether you are a college athlete, a child interested in learning more about their sport or someone who simply wants to get in better shape, we have space to help you achieve your goals.”

School sports teams also utilize The Lab’s facilities and physical therapy treatments.

The extensive training available at The Lab has attracted athletes from Bryan College. Some athletes livestream their workouts, and they’re viewed in Europe and Canada by professional sports organizations. “When I started my career 27 years ago, I never would have imagined that we would get that kind of exposure in Pikeville, Tennessee,” Travis says.

The BTC Fiber internet service makes it possible. “It gives us the tools we need to be better and more efficient at our jobs,” Travis says.
Outpatient therapy services provided by Omni Rehab and Erlanger Bledsoe require a fast fiber internet connection, and some of the exercise classes taught at The Lab are streamed on the big screen. Local students even do their homework using The Lab’s internet connection.

“The internet we have in our area is better than what’s available in a lot of large cities, and that helps us do more for our community,” Travis says. “And we want to do everything we can.”

Services through Omni Rehab and Erlanger Bledsoe are typically covered by insurance, and that helps the cost for gym memberships remain low at $39 a month. It’s an additional $10 a month for family membership. Membership includes access to all equipment and classes.
The Lab’s trainers provide custom workouts designed for the needs of individual members, such as Debbie’s strength training regimen. She works her arms, upper body and abdominal muscles in addition to her lower body. She increased the weight of her leg presses, now up to 110 pounds. This strengthens her legs and hips, which lessens the chances she’ll need a hip replacement in the future.

“My overall outlook is better,” Debbie says. “I’ve turned into a regular gym rat.”