1 /5 Juan Manuel Fernandez: Empowered Athletics: Where Your Gymnast Dreams Go to Die
If you’re looking for a gym where your athlete can thrive, stay safe, and fall in love with their sport, keep looking—Empowered Athletics is not it. This gym is the antithesis of what a great training environment should be.
We were initially drawn in by the promise of small coach-to-athlete ratios, innovative training methods, and the excitement of an up-and-coming program. Spoiler alert: We made a huge mistake.
Over three seasons, we watched our daughters regress physically, mentally, and emotionally. Our oldest, who started with a solid foundation from her previous gym, initially excelled—she even won every event at her first state meet. But the cracks quickly showed. Mental blocks developed, progress stalled, and her confidence took a nosedive. Our middle daughter was repeatedly pushed to compete skills she had barely learned, let alone mastered. These were high-risk skills with poor form that set her up for injury. Safety? Not a priority here.
And the boys’ program? Oh, it’s definitely the main focus. But since they can’t get enough boys to pay the bills, the girls’ program is the financial afterthought keeping the lights on. The coaching staff isn’t qualified to coach at high levels (or even medium ones). Most have no competitive or high-level coaching experience. The advertised small ratios? Those vanished as soon as the post-COVID gym boom brought in more athletes/cash.
Let’s talk about meets. Instead of attending convenient, high-quality competitions like Grand Rapids on the Grand, they’ll send you 5-6 hours away (or out of state!) for small meets because they have drama with other local gyms. The meet schedule is a logistical nightmare, entirely built around their boys’ team and Empowered’s tiny coaching staff. Practices are often canceled during meet weekends, leaving your athlete in an “open gym” free-for-all that’s about as safe as a toddler with a chainsaw.
And practices? Wow. A masterclass in inefficiency. Coaches wander around glued to their phones, only occasionally spotting or giving feedback. The “training” time is padded with wasted minutes, leaving your athlete doing less and risking more. Hygiene is apparently optional for both the staff and the gym itself—rat traps scattered around the facility don’t exactly scream “elite training environment.”
Despite training 20 hours a week, the girls compete XCEL—a program geared toward recreational athletes who train half as much. Even then, their athletes struggle at meets because form and fundamentals are ignored in the rush to push athletes into higher levels prematurely. Scores in the 6s and 7s, you ask? All part of the plan! “Eventually it will all come together” (It won’t, bc your kid doesn’t have the right foundation).
Let’s not forget the blatant favoritism. Daytime homeschool athletes, who get nearly 1-on-1 coaching, pay the same fees as the evening girls but receive vastly better training. Want a detailed plan for your child? Good luck. There are no meetings, no check-ins, and no communication with parents.
The whole operation is a mess. Competition Warm-ups designed for boys that make the girls look like a middle school basketball team? Check. No front desk or admin? Check. A coach literally sleeping in the gym and waking up right before practice? Oh, yes. Dust-covered equipment, chaotic practices, and no cleaning service to speak of? Absolutely.
Empowered Athletics is a textbook example of what happens when a gym values growth over quality. The glowing Google reviews from years ago? Those were written by people who fell for the same promises we did, before reality set in. Don’t make the same mistake.
Save your time, money, and child’s well-being. Stay as far away from this gym as humanly possible.
