Crunch to Host Nationwide Fundraising Event to Support Augie's Quest to Cure ALS

NEW YORK, May 5, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Crunch Fitness, a leading high-value, low-price gym, today announces it will host its nationwide fundraising event to support Augie's Quest to Cure ALS (Lou Gehrig's disease). The initiative will take place at participating Crunch Fitness, Crunch Select, and Crunch Signature locations nationwide on Saturday, May 31, from 9 am to 10:30 am local time, with the ability for Crunch members and non-members to participate, donate, and help in the fight to find a cure for this debilitating disease.

During the event, Crunch will host a 90-minute Love Your Muscles class consisting of three 20-minute formats, including strength, core, and mobility, finishing with a 30-minute dance segment. The Love Your Muscle Classes cost $20 to participate, with 100% of proceeds donated directly to the organization. Crunch will also provide additional options to donate without securing a class spot.

The Love Your Muscles Class formats include:

• Love Your Muscles Augie's Quest Fundraiser – (with Zumba)
  • Love Your Muscles master class consists of three 20-minute segments combining strength with Stripped Down Strength, Tough Core with Tough 20, and the best of mobility and stretch with Joint Ventures. Finish with a special 30-minute Zumba party and a dedicated playlist to celebrate our bodies and our love for movement & fitness.
• Love Your Muscles Augie's Quest Fundraiser (with So You Think You Can't Dance)
  • Love Your Muscles master class consists of three 20-minute segments combining strength with Stripped Down Strength, Tough Core with Tough 20, and the best of mobility and stretch with Joint Ventures. Finish with a special 30-minute So You Think You Can't Dance party and a dedicated playlist to celebrate our bodies and our love for movement & fitness.

"At Crunch, we believe in making serious fitness fun, including engaging our community with awesome classes to support a larger cause. We're proud to have supported Augie's Quest over the years through direct donations and by helping to raise awareness and funds for ALS research in support of Augie Nieto's incredible mission," said Chad Waetzig, CMO of Crunch Fitness and Augie's Quest fitness advisory council member. "We're honored to be uniting the Crunch community across the country through powerful programming that not only celebrates the 20-year legacy of Augie's Quest but also energizes our members and fitness enthusiasts to move their bodies for meaningful change."

Fitness pioneer and founder of Life Fitness, Augie Nieto, established Augie's Quest to Cure ALS. Augie was diagnosed with ALS in March 2005 and made it his mission to find a cure for the terminal disease until his death in February 2023. Since its inception, Augie's Quest has raised over $200 million for the cause.

To learn more about the fundraising event, donation opportunities, and to sign up for the special classes, please visit loveyourmuscles.com.

About Crunch
Crunch is a gym that believes in making serious exercise fun by fusing fitness and entertainment and pioneering a philosophy of 'No Judgments.' Crunch serves a fitness community for all kinds of people with all types of goals, exercising all different ways, working it out at the same place together. Today, we are renowned for creating one-of-a-kind group fitness classes and unique programming for our wildly diverse members. Headquartered in New York City, Crunch serves three million members with over 500 gyms worldwide in 41 states, the District of Columbia, Australia, Canada, Costa Rica, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Spain, and India. Crunch is rapidly expanding across the U.S. and around the globe.

About Augie's Quest to Cure ALS
Founded by Augie Nieto, Augie's Quest to Cure ALS is the unwavering force driving breakthroughs in ALS research, defying limitations, and empowering hope for a future without this devastating disease. Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Motor Neuron Disease (MND), and Lou Gehrig's Disease, is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that causes the degeneration and eventual death of motor neurons in the brain and spinal cord. This results in the wasting away of muscle, loss of movement, and progressive paralysis. One in 400 people will be diagnosed with ALS in their lifetime. Augie's Quest is committed to advancing the field and translating scientific knowledge into real-world solutions. Through strategic investments, we've supported groundbreaking studies that are uncovering new insights and potential treatments.

SOURCE Crunch Fitness