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26 | THEBURGNEWS.COM | 01.23 W hat if you went to a gym and trained not just for your physique, but to function better in your day- to-day life? at's what Austin Qualls, owner of Rogue Sol Training, believes in. He operates under the premise of high-intensity "functional" training. "e idea is that, when you go out when it's snowing and you step on that ice and get that 'oops,' you have the ability to catch yourself, no matter who you are or where you're at," he said. Qualls' gym is nestled in the basement of the imposing King Mansion located on Harrisburg's Front Street, a hop, skip and jump away from the Susquehanna River. at blessing is not lost on Qualls, who often has to remind himself, "is is my address." But the blessing did not come without years of finding himself and plugging away at a goal when he didn't always know the destination. Originally a native of Akron, Ohio, Qualls was always an athletic child. He was also a LeBron James TRAINING, FOR LIFE Austin Qualls is more interested in a life lift than a dead lift. BY RACHEL CURRY 330 Ambassador, joining a program that selected 23 high school students in Akron who "created positive change through service," according to the LeBron James Family Foundation's website. Despite his athleticism, Qualls functioned in a way that left him, as he said, "de-conditioned." You can be in shape but, without the proper stretching and movement, still prone to injury. In the years that followed, Qualls joined the military, moved to California, started a family, and took to boxing—a sport he almost went pro in. In fact, when he walked into a boxing gym in California, he made an agreement to sweep the floors, clean the mirrors and the like in exchange for training. His coach taught him a couple of things. e first was, "Just get here. Once you get through the door, the rest is going to handle itself." e other? "Imagine yourself walking in here with a piggy bank, and if you don't give it your all, you still have nothing. But if you give it your all, you can drop a coin in that bucket. e more you give it your all, the more you're investing in yourself." at analogy stuck with Qualls. Still, something else called him, but he wasn't far off. "I've always been driving really hard to build a legacy, make something that my children can stand on when they get to that age," Qualls said. Enter: Rogue Sol. Head down the stairs along the side of King Mansion next to Woodbine Street, and you'll find a gym equipped with all kinds of functional training equipment, as well as murals of the late martial artist Bruce Lee and rapper Nipsey Hussle, who had a tattoo that reads "prolific" across his temple. As a whole, the space is one where people can go to train independently, in pairs or in groups. Qualls recently implemented a new service, offering shared-time experiences that let folks bring a buddy and split the cost of the hour. is is his way of accessing more people and giving them a community, even those who cannot afford the full cost. ACTION ORIENTED Fitness became a way for Qualls to fight his way out of mental health struggles like depression and anxiety. "A lot of this was built out of pain, and it was built out of struggle," he said. With Rogue Sol, that same avenue for taking control of your fate is available to others, too. "It's not about you wanting to train with me," he said. "It's about you walking in the door motivated to do something and then pivoting to the point where you're like, 'I want to do this for myself.'" Health and fitness tend to take center stage at the dawn of a new year, but for many, New Year's goals fizzle out before they become habitual. According to a study from physical exercise tracking app Strava, of the 41% of Americans who set New Year's goals, just 9% keep them. How can people change the status quo? Qualls said that having a group of people to keep you accountable is key. "You also want to be action-oriented," he said, explaining that it's better to have a goal of going to the gym for 20 minutes than saying you want to lose two pounds. Set small, incremental goals, he said, because it encourages you to get up and do something without overwhelming you. He also recommends reading James Clear's "Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones," first published in 2018. Ultimately, Rogue Sol is a place where people improve their circumstances in a holistic way. "We're not training to give you muscles; we're not training for you to lose weight; we're not training for you to be able to lift a truck," he said "ose things are symptoms of the real work." en he added, "We need to train for life." Rogue Sol Training is located at 2201 N. Front St., Suite 3, Harrisburg. For more information, visit www.roguesoltraining.com. HBG SMALL BUSINESS ARTICLES ARE PROUDLY SPONSORED BY: Austin Qualls

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