TEST Sports Club: Fitness for Community

Still looking for a way to cut the excess holiday weight and make good on your New Year’s Resolutions? It turns out there’s yet another fitness center that can help you do just that—or train for something more specific—in Martinsville.

TEST Sports Clubs—founded in 1992 by Brian Martin, CSCS—has been operating in its current, flagship location at 1931 Washington Valley Road since building it from the ground up in June 2006.

“Within here, we have a full health club, a rehab center, physical therapy, chiropractors, massage therapy, nutrition, nutritional supplements and our studio for boxing, kickboxing and boot camp to meet the everyday person that wants to get after it, get leaner, decrease body fat and be more time-efficient with their workouts,” said Martin.

“It’s a one-stop shop health and wellness center for the whole family,” he added.

TEST, with a 60-yard turf fieldhouse on-site, is also a premiere workout location for professional athletes. Those athletes have included NFL players, such as the New York Jets’ Mark Sanchez and Bart Scott, Joe Flacco of the Baltimore Ravens and former New York Giants player Barry Cofield.

In all, TEST has trained more than 200 current, former and prospective NFL players, and features many former NFL and NCAA football players on its training staff.

To be sure, though, Martin and his staff enjoy training the everyday person just as much as the professional and college athletes that come into the club.

“We’re really focused on personal attention, body fat reduction, stress reduction, family fitness and we can train the high-level athlete,” Martin said. “The high-level athlete is the centerpiece of what we do and can show what we can do at the highest level, but what we’re most passionate about is helping families, their kids and the moms and dads to be in the best shape possible by offering the boot camps or kickboxing.”

TEST is affiliated with more big names than just professional athletes. Martin said that TEST also runs two corporate fitness centers for Donald Trump, one in Bedminster and one in Colts Neck, where trainers work with clients on skills for sports such as golf and tennis in addition to general health and wellness.

“We’re blessed to be affiliated with the Trump brand,” said Martin. “People know that if Donald Trump puts a stamp on us that we know what we’re doing, we do it right and we do it professionally.”

TEST also has partnerships with several top-flight training programs and centers, including the nationally-renowned Parisi Speed School, which is known as the top speed program in the country for aspiring athletes.

In addition to helping top-tier athletes reach their goals, Martin said, the partnership between TEST and Parisi Speed School is important to helping children of all ages and athletic abilities develop good health and high levels of self-confidence.

“If kids are not athletes, but really want to increase their self-confidence, we bring them to Parisi Speed School to address that,” he said. “It’s called a speed school, but it’s also a fitness and wellness school in addition to speed.”

Fitness and wellness, of course, are just as important for those who are looking to shed a few extra pounds. Martin said TEST rings in each New Year with its 60-day Fat Loss In Progress (FLIP) program, and will be holding an over-40 NFL-style combine for men and women on March 30 to keep clients having fun as they strive for their fitness goals.

“We’re really working on getting people to get those New Year’s resolutions in check,” he said. “I think a lot of our people get here in January, but they stay throughout the year because we make it fun, we make it creative and we’re constantly throwing out challenges.”

Martin, who currently lives in Basking Ridge, has made community involvement an important principle behind TEST Sports Clubs. The club has worked with several charities, has programs for senior citizens and people with special needs and has helped train athletes at several area high schools, including Immaculata High School in Somerville and .

“We’re deeply connected with the community, with Bridgewater, with Basking Ridge, Warren and even Bedminster and Far Hills,” he said. “We’re very involved in the community, we want to help the community.”

That friendly, hometown atmosphere is what Martin believes helps people feel right at home at TEST.

“People have their religion, their family and we want to be the third place where they feel comfortable,” he said. “They don’t have to dress a certain way, they can feel comfortable in sweatpants and loose clothing."

It’s not a muscle-head gym," he added. "We’re here for the family to help you feel comfortable and to help you with whatever you need.”