Snap Fitness, a 24/7 gym, is reopening at its space at 10 Wildcat Drive in Wright City after an expansion and extensive remodeling. 

Owners Carol and Mike Thompson said they added 1,400 square feet and updated decor and flooring, rearranged workout spaces and added new services. 

The weight and powerlifting area is more robust and geared for heavier, safer lifting. With Mike’s personal training certifications and the new equipment, Snap Fitness in Wright City is certified by the United States Powerlifting Association (USPA).

An open room was added as an exercise space for “Fitness on Demand.” The digital program offers video with 297 fitness classes and different fitness levels for individuals and groups. There’s pilates, boot camp, kickboxing, cycling and more. 

Mike said people can use Fitness on Demand alone or in groups. 

They added a stand-up tanning booth and a hydrotherapy massage chair.  

Carol Thompson said the massage chair is a must for exercised muscles after a work out. 

The main room has essential machines from treadmills and ellipticals to rowers. 

“People pay good money to come here. You should have what you need to accomplish your goals,” Mike Thompson said. 

Snap Fitness originally opened in Wright City in 2008. Mike Thompson started working there as a personal trainer. In 2016, the Thompsons purchased the business. 

Fitness is a passion of Mike’s.  He started working out when he was a young man and a prison guard. He decided his 165-pound frame was not large enough. 

These days he is 250 pounds, is a certiffied trainer and close to earning his master’s degree in personal training, and a competitive powerlifter. His goal is to set the drug tested world record championship for his age and weight category in powerlifting. 

Mike Thompson started powerlifting at 56, proving that age has nothing to do with being physically fit. Form is the secret to results. 

“Form is everything. You have to lift correctly. Too many people chase the weight. You can get very good at lifting weight incorrectly,” he said. 

Incorrect form, he added, leads to delayed goals and injury. But its important to add weight lifting to an exercise routine.

“If you lose your muscular, then you put (the stress) on your skeletal,” he said. As a result, bones are doing more work than they were designed for and they weaken faster.  

His personal training package for clients offers guidance with cardiovascular and weight training as well as nutrition.

During the Guns and Hoses Fitness Challenge at the grand reopening, contenders from the Wright City Police Department and Wright City Fire Protection District will draw an exercise. The possibilities are sit-ups, chin-ups, push-ups or planking. 

The final competition is a series of tug-of-war events between the two teams. The team with the most points wins the grand trophy. 

It is a traveling trophy, so next year’s winner will get to take it back to the station until the following year’s competition.

Wright City firefighter Cody West is participating. Some members have upped their training for the event, while others stay in optimum shape because of the job. 

“It’s going to be a good competition,” West said. “I say ‘Bring it on.’ ” 

The Thompsons met in Florida when they both were competitive pistol shooters. They retired and moved to Wright City, where they could be closer to family and live in a town that offered a gym and a shooting range nearby. 

Retirement didn’t stick. Mike was bored.

As Mike Thompson started to explain, “Retirement is for—” 

“—Somebody else,” Carol interjected. 

Snap Fitness in Wright City offers three membership packages at different prices. Free trial periods are available for people who are considering joining.

For more information, call 636-745-8222 or visit snapfitness.com and search for Wright City.

Mike and Carol Thompson are the owners of Snap Fitness in Wright City. The couple expanded and renovated the space to bring in more features and equipment for members. Record photo/ Kate Miller.