With a luxurious approach to designing workout spaces at home, interior designer/fitness guru Carlos Enguidanos Loma-Ossorio takes elevated living and wellness to a new level.
WRITTEN BY: JEAN NAYAR
If you’re going to workout every day, why not do it in style That’s the thinking behind Gymage, a posh fitness facility on Lincoln Road in Miami Beach founded by Madrid native Carlos Enguidanos Loma-Ossorio. “Nowadays the most important lifestyle priorities are different than they were ten years ago, when working out was last on most people’s list of top ten issues,” says Enguidanos. “Today, now that the idea of ‘self-care’ is at the forefront of a lot of people’s minds, working out is right up there behind food, sleep and work as primary concerns.” To respond to that lifestyle trend, he created Gymage-what he calls “the most beautiful gym in Miami.”
Combining his experience as an interior designer with his background in the fitness industry, Enguidanos opened the flagship Gymage fitness venue/restaurant-lounge 12 years ago in Madrid, where it quickly caught the attention of high-profile body-conscious locals and visitors, such as Portuguese soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo, Welsh actor/singer Luze Evans, and Spanish actor Mario Casas. “I wanted to create a place where people would feel really inspired to work out,” Enguidanos explains. Following the success of Gymage in Madrid, the designer/impresario expanded his operation to Miami four years ago when he opened his second buzzy setup on Lincoln Road-and locals here have responded with equal enthusiasm, some even prompting him to create custom gyms in their own homes.
“Inspired by my clients, I began touring mansions, high-end condo buildings, and hotels and realized that while many had basic gyms and workout facilities, none were really beautifully designed,” says Enguidanos. So with his commercial concept as a springboard, he more recently established Gymage Home, a design service that helps individual homeowners, condo developments and hospitality environments to custom craft workout facilities with the same attention to materials and details found in a luxurious residential bedroom suite, kitchen, or bath. “The Gymage brand is actually a blend of the words ‘gym’ and ‘image,'” says Enguidanos, who has since designed elevated workout spaces and standalone gyms for a variety of homes throughout South Florida–from Palm Island and Pinecrest to Weston and West Palm Beach.
The idea, he says, is to create beautiful private fitness oases that make working out a pleasure rather than a chore. He’s also in the planning stages for facilities as part of amenities packages in new condo developments in Brickell, Edgewater, and Miami Beach as well as a longevity clinic and spa in Miami.
Four essential materials palettes–based on black or white marble, bronze, or wood-serve as foundations for Enguidanos and his team to fashion personal bespoke workout/wellness spaces, which he says can range anywhere from 2—0 to 3,000 square feet in size. Collaborations with equipment manufacturers, Technogym and Life Fitness, also enable them to craft weights and machines with custom touches like gold finishes and detailing that holistically align with broader design concepts. For those who want even more customization, the designers can also draw on a home’s existing design with materials and equipment of a client’s choice.
Now with grander plans to expand on a national level, Enguidanos envisions that demand for his company’s services will grow as more homeowners seek new ways to enhance wellness and lifestyle features into their home. He also sees his luxurious workout spaces as a clear value-add from a real estate perspective. “My clients tell me they used to just pass by their old utilitarian home gyms when showing their houses to family and friends,” says the designer. “Now their beautiful workout spaces are one of the first things they show to their guests- they’ve become a point of pride.”
