
WILLIAMSBURG– The James-York Plaza in Williamsburg will have a gym opening this summer.
The gym is owned by husband and wife duo, Joseph and Kat Welday, as well as supported by their two children ages 16 and six. Joseph Welday is a current Active Duty Marine one year away from retirement and Kat Welday is a nationally qualified Wellness competitor and Delta Flight Attendant. The two have always enjoyed working out and living an active lifestyle.
“We were living in North Carolina during the peak of COVID when everything was shut down, including the gyms. We started buying equipment to build a home gym so we could continue working out through the pandemic,” Joseph Welday explained about what inspired him and his wife to open their own gym. “What started as a two-car garage gym turned into 3 storage units full of equipment and a newfound dream of opening our own gym one day.”
“When we moved to Williamsburg in May of 2023 we quickly realized our side of town was a ‘gym desert’ and our dream began to take shape as we searched for a space to lease,” Joseph Welday continued.
The facility will have over 8,200 square-feet of usable space that is planned to be as filled as possible. Members will have 24-hour access and can enter the facility with a key fob or scan a barcode from the phone app.
According to reports, the gym will feature a variety of equipment including squat racks, deadlift platforms, free weights, machines, and a functional use area with turf. The gym also plans to offer personal training, weightlifting classes for teens, and boot camp-style workouts in a group setting.
The gym is also looking forward to having a number and variety of equipment offered. Equipment has been hand-picked with the goal of preventing members from having to wait around for equipment as well as offering different styles to members can find what works best for their bodies.
“One of our main goals is to get youth into the gym and fall in love with fitness! We are going to run fundraisers and plan to gift free memberships to teens every chance we get,” Joseph Welday expressed when discussing what part of the gym he was most excited for.
The gym currently plans to have its first fundraising event on April 8. The gym will be hosting a presale membership social at the Queens Lake Clubhouse from noon to 5 p.m. with memberships being offered at a discounted rate. Donations will also be collected to sponsor the first youth memberships.
The gym is currently in its building phase. The gym also supports an open-door policy to invite the community for offers of feedback, comments, and concerns. For additional information about the progress and membership rates, please visit the gym’s official facebook page.