Fitness has evolved from being a craze back in the 1970s and ‘80s to becoming a way of life today. Here in Baton Rouge, entrepreneurs have come up with all sorts of interesting and innovative to keep customers in the Captial Region in good shape.

Elle Mahoney is the franchise owner and Louisiana area rep for Orange Theory Fitness, a new type of fitness center that’s taking the local market by storm. Orange Theory offers 60-minute group interval workouts that combine cardio and strength-training with some pretty smart science – pushing participants into the orange zone, where their heart rates are pumping and they’’re burning the maximum amount of calories. Elle opened her first Orange theory in Town Centre in Baton Rouge in 2016. 

Alicia Willemet is a veteran yoga instructor and the owner of the Louisiana Yoga School, which officially hung out its shingle earlier this year and offers training to the growing number of yoga instructors in the area. Alicia doesn’t actually have a brick and mortar yoga school; rather, she goes around to different yoga studios and holds her 200-hour training seminars there. Alicia has taught as an instructor at several studios in the area, including Yoga Bliss, Purusa and Agame.

Photos at Mansurs on the Boulevard by Ken Stewart.