Exclusive: Vicki Chimenti Feels 'So Lucky' to Be a Founding Trainer at The Pack: 'My Favorite Job I've Ever Had'

Vicki Chimenti, Founding Trainer at The Pack, is thrilled for people to check out the new workout, a high-intensity group fitness class that combines strength training, cardio and street-fighting self-defense for 50 minutes.

"It's my favorite job I've ever had. I feel so lucky to be a founding trainer of such an innovative and unique concept with such a talented team. It's an honor to be able to work with the other trainers and upcoach them to help upcoach clients and members every day. We truly are creating such a great community, and it's so much fun to see our pack grow every single day," the trainer exclusively tells Morning Honey about Rumble Boxing co-founder Noah Neiman's latest venture. "You'll have the most fun with some of the best trainers in the business while mindlessly working out your hardest to great music surrounded by the most uplifting community."

Throughout class, people cycle through three 15-minute stations: Strength (TECHNOGYM benches equipped with dumbbells, resistance bands and weighted knuckles), Cardio (Rogue Assault Bikes) and Self-defense (kicking and punching Body Opposition Bags, which have human-like faces).

Though the workout might be tough, the gym guru loves "getting people to show themselves what they're capable of."

"A lot of workouts allow moments for you to pull back and coast through them. Teaching a class at The Pack opens up a space for people to try something new and push farther and harder than they thought they could. Seeing every person leave that room feeling impressed by themselves is the most rewarding part of being a trainer here," she shares, adding that the "energy" is on another level. "Every person who walks through that door feeds off of each other's energy, including the trainers. It's an unmatched vibe that I have never seen in a space like this before."

"This workout pushes you beyond what any other group fitness class in NYC currently offers. It challenges your endurance, takes your boxing skills way beyond boxing and offers the highest intensity with the lowest impact on your body. The Echo bike brings the group fitness scene to a whole new level. Spending 15 minutes on that bike challenges your mental stamina while improving your physical stamina like crazy. The BOBs get you to see an exact target of where different punches and strikes would land. They improve accuracy immensely compared to a heavy bag. In the strength portion, there's a heavier focus on building steady strength and stability to improve your performance on the other two areas of the class, rather than a lot of plyometric and HIIT work that you'll find in a lot of other group fitness classes," she continues.

Chimenti is a star in the fitness world. From a young age, she danced, which is how she learned so much about her body.

"But for the longest time, I only knew what I knew. When I started discovering how to build more strength combined with flexibility to become a more powerful dancer, I fell in love with feeling. I wanted to dive even deeper into finding out more and then educate others on how to find what makes them feel good. I started as a personal trainer in a small gym, then quickly realized that group fitness was the place for me to be. 10 years later, I'm now teaching for my fourth big group fitness concept and am constantly wanting to learn more to share more with everyone around me," she says.

"It's so empowering. The dance community is incredible, but in my early 20s, it started to feel polarizing and way more about how you looked versus your talent, passion and skill. When I entered the fitness world, I felt so out of place, so weak compared to others, and like I didn't look the part. When I got out of my head and let go of my insecurities, I realized it is the most welcoming world out there. Every level, every type of movement, every skill has a place. Anyone open to entering this world had to start somewhere, which means everyone can relate to the 'beginner.' It's a safe space to learn and grow in every way," she continues.

For Chimenti, "being a dancer built who I am today."

"The discipline it taught me, along with the knowledge it gave me, is hard to even explain. Every rehearsal was an opportunity to do something better the next time. Every new choreographer was a chance to learn differently from a different person in a different style. Every new trick I learned was something I saw as a challenge I gladly accepted. I would be in some of the most intense rehearsals for shows and performances for hours on end. Then, during performances, nothing else mattered. The moment those lights come up and the audience is locked in on you, you give the best show of your life as if it were your last," she explains. "Seeing audience members' faces light up when they're excited or amazed or emotional about what was happening on stage was the most gratifying reaction. It meant they felt what you wanted them to feel. It showed that the message you tried to convey was received. Teaching group fitness feels that way at times. The moment the doors open and a class comes in feels like the lights coming up. That moment when someone is struggling through the final push then lets out a sigh of relief and a smile when it's done, feels like when the audience member clicks with your emotions you want them to feel. And in the end, it feels so similar because whether it's a show I've rehearsed for three months or a group fitness class I can teach after hours of programming, it's about how I'm making the people in front of me feel. And if you felt any emotions after it all, I know I did my job."

Now, she gets to motivate others, which is one of her favorite parts about teaching classes.

"Take chances on yourself, be selfish with every opportunity you get to move and test new territory. The scariest place in the world to me is within my own comfort zone. I encourage every single person who steps into the room to take a baby step outside of it. It doesn’t have to be a giant leap every time. Those baby steps turn into big steps that turn into giant leaps. The little wins quickly add up to big wins," she advises. "I love trying new ways of working out, but I REALLY love challenging what I know I'm capable of doing. Slow and steady progress in how heavy you lift, how fast you run, how mobile and flexible you become over time are all things that show major progress as you look back. Overall, if it makes me feel a little weaker the next day, I know that means that the more I do it, the stronger I will feel over time."

Chimenti, who is training for the NYC United Airlines Half Marathon on behalf of Fred's Team, raising over $2,600 for rare cancer research at Memorial Sloane Kettering, also loves her New York clientele since they're "just built differently."

"There's grit behind everything we do. Whether you're fighting something or facing something, there's a reason strong enough to make you show up at whatever time of day in whatever weather under any condition. The blood, sweat and tears that go into surviving and thriving in NYC is not for everyone, but the ones who have it are the special ones who keep each other going. You feel the authenticity and the hunger in everyone's eyes. That's a special vibe that not every city can bring to the table," she shares.

"I just want to keep building people up. We're in such a weird world, where there is so much that we can be sad, mad, angry and upset about. It's much easier to succumb to all those negative feelings than to fight them. I want to give people more confidence and help them to be happier within themselves because it builds happier environments. Little doses of happiness and kindness go a long way. And we all know those little things go a long way over time!" she exclaims.

She concludes, "I'm grateful this is what I get to do for a living. I'm thankful that so many people have put their trust in me in such a vulnerable space and want to continue learning from whatever knowledge I have to share. It's an honor to get people through both tough times and happy times, but I also thank every single person who has showed up and allowed me to show up through my tough and happy times too. This space is all give and take — I need the community just as much as everyone else. It's an honor to inspire and motivate people daily because they all inspire and motivate me right back, whether they know it or not."