Queer Couple Opens Powerlifting Gym In West Loop During Pride Month: 'I Want People To Feel Welcomed'

The founders of Goals Not Dreams, a new powerlifting gym in the West Loop, want everyone to feel comfortable in the gym to reach their full potential.

WEST LOOP — Kelli Coleman never felt like she fit in at traditional gyms.

A personal trainer and powerlifter, Coleman felt like her appearance made her an outsider — so she set out to open her own gym for anyone and every body.

“I was always in spaces that I didn’t fit in because I was overweight, I was big, I didn’t look like the typical trainer. … I knew I needed a space for people like me to feel more comfortable,” Coleman said.

In 2018, Coleman started Goals Not Dreams, her personal training brand. She spent three and a half years as director of the corporate fitness facility inside Willis Tower — until the pandemic hit.

Coleman lost all of her clients. In 2021, with her salary and hours cut, she decided to get the ball rolling on launching her own company under Goals Not Dreams, with the ultimate goal of opening a gym.

Later that year, Coleman met her now partner, Alexys Napper. They bonded through their love of fitness, and Napper started working as a trainer for Goals Not Dreams in November 2021.

This December, the couple started putting in work to open their own gym. Goals Not Dreams, 328 S. Jefferson St., is one of the only independently owned powerlifting gyms in the area.

The gym already had 25 clients ahead of its soft opening Thursday, and it has five trainers on staff, including Napper and Coleman. The couple said they hope their gym will make fitness more inclusive and comfortable for everyone.

“We’ve had a lot of clients that say that they didn’t feel comfortable at past gyms … so that’s a big one, because that has a lot to do with their ability to grow,” Napper said.

Napper and Coleman relate to that feeling, saying they’ve experienced gyms where they haven’t felt fully welcomed or comfortable.

“We were both in the same gym before, and I don’t even know how to describe it,” Napper said. “It felt like we couldn’t even be who we are together naturally because it was just so stiff and weird. … Here, we can be who we are.”

“I want people to feel welcomed. I want them to feel like they belong, like they have a place here, that they’re not excluded … that we’re all rooting for them,” Coleman said.

The gym has a large, open layout with two spaces dedicated to training. The larger, main area has deadlift platforms, three combo racks, a treadmill and a cable machine. A second room is dedicated to sports performance with power racks, turf, dumbbells and more.

Clients also have access to lockers, locker rooms, showers and a lounge area with drinks and snacks. Eventually, the lounge will also include access to a meal-prep service.

Coleman and Napper also have a space for an independent massage therapist, physical therapist or chiropractor. The space isn’t filled yet, but the couple said it’s a great opportunity for someone who’s trying to break out of a traditional corporate structure.

The goal is for the gym to be a true “one-stop shop” for all of their clients.

“This should be like a full-service type of situation with our athletes, so they can come here, get their massages or whatever adjustments,” Coleman said.

Goals Not Dreams focuses on semi-private training with one-on-one and group training of up to six people. Regular memberships are available for people not looking to work with a trainer. The gym will eventually offer group classes, Coleman said.

Pricing for training sessions vary per trainer. One-on-ones are $85-$120 per session, and semi-private sessions cost $50-$70. Group classes will likely be $20-$25 a class, Coleman said.

Goals Not Dreams is accepting new clients with a big push to prioritize LGBTQ+ people and allies during its soft opening through Pride Month, Coleman said. Those interested in personal training can fill out an intake form online.

The gym is having a pride party June 24, the day before Chicago’s Pride Parade, and a grand opening party July 15.

“We’re truly building a legacy for our future children and really making noise, because to be Black and queer and run a business in West Loop, Chicago — not gonna happen. But it takes a leap of faith to really be like, ‘Hey, you got me, I got you, we’re gonna do this,'” Coleman said.

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