Body By Berle, a personal training center providing one-on-one instruction in the Fresh Meadows Shopping Center, has been bringing the burn for almost 40 years now.
Founded on March 22, 1986, by Richard Berlinger — an avid supporter of lifelong fitness — the gym is celebrating its anniversary and reflecting on its decades-long legacy of life-changing exercise instruction.
Body By Berle, located at 61-18 190th St. in Fresh Meadows, provides a personalized approach to exercise and strength training.
A handful of certified personal trainers are available for 30-minute sessions, which cost $45 each, ensuring not only that clients are safely and correctly using the equipment, but also that they’re in and out in a timely manner.
Berlinger said he never originally planned to enter the business of fitness instruction, explaining that he started out working in the restaurant business.
He received a business degree from Long Island University, formerly C.W. Post, and was contacted by the National Restaurant Association, which placed him at a restaurant in Bellmore near where Berlinger grew up. “I always had an entrepreneurial spirit,” he said.
However, Berlinger also kept fit, consistently exercising and using free weights, barbells, and dumbbells while following along with Arnold Schwarzenegger’s “Encyclopedia of Bodybuilding.”
Berlinger said fitness was always a part of his life, beginning with high school sports. His father’s death from a heart attack at age 46, however, had a huge impact on Berlinger’s drive to take care of himself and stay active.
The founding of Body By Berle
While in the restaurant business, Berlinger said he rarely had time to follow along with Schwarzenegger’s intense 5-6 day workouts, and many gyms at the time had normal equipment that owners didn’t even know how to use.
That’s when Berlinger discovered Nautilus, a line of strength-training machines designed for biomechanical efficiency, invented by Arthur Jones.
What attracted Berlinger to the concept, he said, was that he only had to work out 2-3 times a week for 30 minutes.
Berlinger began studying books about the Nautilus equipment, which he now keeps on a bookshelf in his office, and attending seminars in Florida, not yet knowing he would be going into the business yet.
But, by the time Berlinger was 31, he decided he would open a gym himself using an appointment-based model that allowed clients to schedule time with a personal trainer who would help them learn to use the equipment properly.
While Berlinger intended to open the gym with 30 clients, he opened with 92. “I was very successful, beyond my wildest imagination,” he said.
Berlinger kept the gym in Great Neck for 16 years before he moved to Queens in 2002. He recalled passing the Fresh Meadows Shopping Center and realizing it would be a perfect location for the gym due to its close proximity to the Long Island and Clearview expressways and Grand Central Parkway.
What the workout entails
Berlinger explained that clients can schedule up to two 30-minute appointments per week — time he said fits into many people’s busy schedules and can be treated just like a dentist or doctor appointment. “They can go other places and do anything else they want to do,” Berlinger emphasized.
The equipment at Body By Berle has the capacity to work out over 600 muscles in the body, he continued, improving joint function and increasing flexibility.
He said each client performs circuit training, meaning they spend time on each machine in order to target different muscles over the course of the 30-minute session.
Circuit training is important for cardiovascular health, Berlinger emphasized, so each trainer pushes their clients to elevate their heart rate.
Clients are also instructed to use lighter weights and instead do repetitions slower without straining their muscles for a low-impact workout compared to running or jogging.
Berlinger said it’s not just the equipment that’s important to the gym’s model, but also trained staff who know how to use the equipment and train clients.
To ensure his staff is providing the most educated instruction to clients, Berlinger requires applicants to read a short book about the Nautilus equipment and become Nautilus Certified, after which he trains them on the equipment for a few weeks.
Jeffrey Millman, a trainer who began as a client, has been working at the gym for over 20 years. Before attending Body by Berle, he said he tried seeing a personal trainer and using a combination of free weights and workout machines.
“Here, though, it’s structured for the best outcomes,” said Millman, who sees about 30 clients per week. “That’s what I liked about this place.”
Millman said something clients express to him is that the gym’s 24-hour cancellation policy helps keep them from getting “lazy,” forcing them to stick to their word and attend their sessions.
One of Millman’s favorite parts of working at the gym, he said, is hearing people’s stories about how they’re able to do day-to-day things that they weren’t able to do before.
For example, he said one client in her 60s told him that she couldn’t lift half a gallon of milk and would have to ask her husband to pour it into a glass for her.
However, after attending Body By Berle, Millman said this client is able to not only lift the milk, but large bags of cat litter into her car, as well.
“It’s a great way for people to stay fit,” Millman said. “You can come here knowing nothing, having never worked out before, and we instruct you to make sure you end up getting a better quality of life.”
Clients say it’s life-changing
Clients at Body By Berle — many of whom are seniors ranging in age from their mid-60s to early-90s who are looking to retain strength and mobility — said the gym changed their lives
Roslyn Schwersenz, who is in her 90s, said she began coming to Body By Berle in August 2019 to build and maintain strength. When she was originally researching gyms to start her fitness journey, she said Body By Berle was the only location that specialized in the kind of exercise she needed.
“It’s one-on-one help, so you know you’re doing it right,” Schwersenz said. “You’re not going to hurt yourself because it’s all done for you.”
She said the trainers also show her exercises she can practice at home to maintain her arm strength throughout the week.
Schwersenz said her experience at Body By Berle is always pleasant, and she’s built a rapport with her trainer who knows exactly what she can do and can help push her a little harder.
“I feel good when I leave,” she said. “I feel like I’ve accomplished something.”
Janice Oldak, who’s attended Body By Berle for over 20 years, explained that she began going to the gym because her job as an art teacher is very physical. Between carrying supplies, jumping on tables and keeping up with the kids, she said she quickly realized she needed help maintaining strength.
Oldak said she tried attending another gym at first but found it unsatisfying and lacked incentive.
However, at Body By Berle, Oldak prepays for her session, which she said incentivizes her to show up each time or face a cancellation fee.
Having a personal trainer that is attuned to her body’s needs, she continued, is another important aspect of her incentive to go to the gym.
In terms of personal growth, Oldak said stamina has been her greatest achievement. She said she’s more fit than even some younger faculty at the school.
However, Oldak said she doesn’t like to compare her personal performance against others and instead focuses on her own improvement on a day-to-day basis.
“I’m a grandparent now, and I want to be able to take care of my grandchildren without aches and pains,” she said. “So, I’m going to stay with this as long as it’s open.”
Oldak now describes herself as an “exercise junkie” and would even like to attend more than twice a week because she enjoys the endorphins she gets from her sessions.
“I look forward to it,” she said. “The trainers are very warm and really care about what you’re doing. They push you to improve, and they want to see you progress every time you come.”
June Sadowski-Devarez, 80, said she was in “desperate” shape when she first started coming to Body By Berle 11 years ago.
She said she’d spent a fortune on other gyms and injured herself from incorrect use of equipment. She could never stick to a regimen, she continued, and found her mobility decreasing over time.
But when Sadowski-Devarez sought out Body By Berle, she said 30 minutes twice a week was a schedule not even she could come up with an excuse for. She was quickly hooked.
“The trainers are phenomenal,” she said. “The technique is so unique that no matter what age you are, you can still do this because you’re working to your own ability.”
Sadowski-Devarez said even with her back problems, which are related to a medical condition, she has been able to build a lot of muscle. “Nobody tells you how important muscle is until you need it,” she stressed.
When Sadowski-Devarez broke her ankle last year, she said the staff at the rehabilitation center she attended for her recovery were shocked at her mobility.
“They couldn’t believe the way I moved, because most people my age can’t,” she said. “The strength training here has saved my life. From the bottom of my heart, I really do believe that.”
How to start at Body by Berle
Interested individuals can contact the gym at (718) 264-8787 or visit their website at BodyByBerle.com for more information about its services.
Clients are provided a free trial workout to better understand the experience and decide whether it will work for them.
Each $45 session includes personalized instruction from Nautilus Certified trainers for the entire duration of the session, and no more than two sessions are scheduled at a time in order to provide a private atmosphere with no crowds.
Clients are also provided a personal diet coach to approach their fitness goals not only through exercise, but nutrition as well.
While the gym has been around for 40 years, Berlinger said Body by Berle isn’t going anywhere and encouraged those interested in getting in shape — regardless of age, gender or fitness level — to try it out.
He said he never would have believed his gym would be around for 40 years, nor that he would still be in such good shape thanks to the workout regimen outlined through his research on the Nautilus machines.
“I’m going to keep going,” he said. “I never thought I’d still be here, so I’m going to keep doing it.”
