Category Archives: Fun Stuff

It is perhaps the best opportunity of the year for you to feel great after a workout both inside and out! On Saturday, February 23^rd at 3pm LA Fitness is holding a special Zumba class that you can attend in order to support Augie’s Quest and help find a cure for ALS (Lou Gehrig’s disease). CLICK here to learn more about this event and make a donation. *LA Fitness clubs not participating in this promotion: Grove City, OH (Former Urban Active), Grandview, OH (Former Urban Active), and Presale locations.

You probably want to know more, right? Well, who better to tell you than Augie Nieto himself? So, we contacted Augie for a Q&A about Augie’s Quest, ALS and the LA Fitness Zumba event.

Why is it important for everyone to participate in this event?

Augie: The fitness industry has been instrumental to MDA’s Augie’s Quest…we’ve raised over $35 million to date because of clubs and members around the country. YOU have the opportunity to be a part of history and help families fighting ALS (Lou Gehrig’s Disease).  Plus, I can’t think of a more entertaining way to get a workout!

How will the donations received from the LA Fitness Zumba event help Augie’s Quest, ALS and MDA?

Augie: Donations received will go directly to fast-track research for ALS.  Our goal is to find an effective treatment for this disease as soon as possible.

How far has research and treatment come since you were first diagnosed?

Augie: When I was first diagnosed, there were ZERO dollars being invested in ALS research from ‘Big Pharma.’  We’ve been able to change the landscape of ALS research drastically.  The lab we fund is called ALS TDI (www.als.net).  It’s the largest ALS research lab in the world and we are focused on finding drugs to treat ALS.  We currently have two drugs moving into Phase 2 clinical trials and 11 more in the pipeline. I know that one day soon, thanks to the support from the fitness industry, we’ll have effective treatments for ALS.

Your challenges, and the challenges faced with treating ALS are daunting, and yet you continue to persevere with Augie’s Quest, how do you do it?

Augie: What keeps me going is the momentum we have right now…we are truly making great strides in ALS drug development.  Right now there is only one FDA approved drug on the market for ALS patients and it doesn’t do much.  I’m confident the research we are funding will result in new effective drugs for the ALS community.

What would you like to tell those who are attending the Zumba event?

Augie: THANK YOU!  Most people who attend probably haven’t had their lives touched by ALS…it’s amazing to me that so many people come out to support our cause.  Oh…and get there early to get a front row spot!

Fun Question: What would you like to tell those who are hiding behind their poor dance skills as an excuse to skip the Zumba event?

Augie: If I can do it, you can do it!  Zumba isn’t about perfect choreography…it’s about having fun.  I promise you won’t regret it…no one has ever left a Zumba class and said “that wasn’t fun!”