Food, music, family and tradition are often part of the conversation during Hispanic Heritage Month.<\/p>\n
Ray Rodriguez and Juan Ollervides want health and wellness to be part of it, too.<\/p>\n
The Houston couple is behind DUO Social, a business organizing pop-up experiences around Houston that combine exercise, music and community.<\/p>\n
Their latest idea brings together two things people might not expect to hear in the same sentence: Pilates and banda.<\/p>\n
Pilates & Banda is scheduled for Oct. 24 at 10 a.m., but the upcoming event is only one part of a larger story.<\/p>\n
For Rodriguez and Ollervides, Hispanic Heritage Month is an opportunity to talk about how Latinos approach exercise, what they grew up seeing in their own families and a stereotype both men have heard before: Latinos don\u2019t work out.<\/p>\n
Both reject that idea.<\/p>\n
Instead, they say movement has always been present in their culture. It simply has not always looked like a traditional gym membership, fitness class or boutique workout.<\/p>\n
For Juan Ollervides, wellness starts with his own story<\/p>\n
Ollervides was born and raised in Pasadena, Texas. His family is from Matamoros, Tamaulipas, Mexico.<\/p>\n
When KPRC 2 asked what health and fitness looked like while he was growing up, Ollervides described a childhood familiar to many families: weekends together, carne asadas, parties, food and gatherings.<\/p>\n
He also described himself as a \u201clittle chubby kid\u201d trying to understand fitness, health and wellness.<\/p>\n
Structured exercise was not something he remembers seeing prioritized around him.<\/p>\n
Movement was.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe only thing that I would see fitness-wise was dancing,\u201d Ollervides said. \u201cThat\u2019s something that we always would do at parties.\u201d<\/p>\n
It is an important distinction in how Ollervides now talks about the stereotype surrounding Latinos and exercise.<\/p>\n
When asked directly about the idea that Latinos don\u2019t exercise, he pushed back.<\/p>\n
\u201cAlthough it might not be in your traditional box of fitness or working out, we do this all the time,\u201d Ollervides said.<\/p>\n
For him, exercise growing up did not necessarily mean putting on workout clothes and heading to a gym.<\/p>\n
Sometimes, it was dancing at the family party.<\/p>\n
Ray Rodriguez says the stereotype misses everyday movement<\/p>\n
Rodriguez\u2019s story begins across the border.<\/p>\n
He is originally from Tampico, Tamaulipas, Mexico, and told KPRC 2 he became a U.S. citizen about three years ago.<\/p>\n
Before turning his attention to DUO Social, Rodriguez worked in IT project management.<\/p>\n
Unlike Ollervides\u2019 childhood experience, Rodriguez eventually developed a traditional gym routine.<\/p>\n
He said there was a period when he would wake up around 3 or 4 a.m., head to the gym, get on the treadmill, lift weights, go home and then head to work.<\/p>\n
But when asked about the stereotype that Latinos don\u2019t exercise, Rodriguez also questioned what people are counting as exercise.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think we misunderstood the stereotype growing up, but Latinos are always moving around,\u201d Rodriguez said.<\/p>\n
He pointed to walking, running, physical jobs and other forms of movement people perform throughout their daily lives.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think that wellness wasn\u2019t just introduced to us at our household, but like we\u2019re very active people,\u201d Rodriguez said. \u201cWe\u2019re all moving around and we\u2019re always exercising. We just see it in a different way.\u201d<\/p>\n
Their experiences are personal and do not represent every Latino household. But during Hispanic Heritage Month, their stories raise a broader question about how health and wellness are discussed within families and communities.<\/p>\n
DUO Social started at home<\/p>\n
Before there were public workouts and themed pop-ups, there were gatherings at home.<\/p>\n
Rodriguez and Ollervides said hosting people was something they already enjoyed as a couple.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt started as a hobby because we like to host. Hosting is our love language,\u201d Rodriguez said.<\/p>\n
That interest eventually became DUO Social.<\/p>\n
The business is centered around creating social experiences that bring people together, and wellness has become a significant part of what Rodriguez and Ollervides organize.<\/p>\n
Their previous concepts have included Pilates and Matcha and Pilates and Perreo. They also organized a recent event supporting Barrio Dogs.<\/p>\n
The themes change, but the couple says the idea behind them stays similar: get people together, get them moving and make the experience social.<\/p>\n
Ollervides said one of their first events drew about 45 people. He said their concepts have since expanded, with events drawing more than 100 guests.<\/p>\n
For two men who started by hosting people at home, watching strangers arrive at one of their events has become part of the story behind their growing business.<\/p>\n
What happens when the gym doesn\u2019t feel like it was made for you?<\/p>\n
Rodriguez and Ollervides also want to talk about why someone might avoid a traditional workout space in the first place.<\/p>\n
For Ollervides, the answer comes from personal experience.<\/p>\n
\u201cLet\u2019s be honest, I\u2019ve never felt comfortable walking into a gym,\u201d Ollervides said.<\/p>\n
Rodriguez said some people entering traditional fitness spaces might encounter language barriers, unfamiliar workouts or music they do not connect with.<\/p>\n
That does not mean those experiences apply to every Latino or every gym.<\/p>\n
For the couple, though, those experiences influenced the environment they wanted to create through DUO Social.<\/p>\n
Their pop-ups move exercise into a social setting. People arrive with friends, hear familiar music, meet other participants and work out together.<\/p>\n
DUO Social\u2019s events are also not limited to Latino participants. Rodriguez and Ollervides said people from different backgrounds are welcome.<\/p>\n
The cultural influence comes from who they are and what they grew up around.<\/p>\n
Why Pilates and banda?<\/p>\n
On Oct. 24 at 10 a.m., that approach will take another form with Pilates & Banda.<\/p>\n
The upcoming DUO Social event will combine a Pilates workout with banda music.<\/p>\n
The event has not happened yet, but Rodriguez and Ollervides say the idea follows what they have been building through their other pop-ups.<\/p>\n
Take something people already recognize culturally, pair it with movement and remove some of the formality people might associate with a traditional fitness class.<\/p>\n
For Ollervides, there is a simple question behind the idea.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy not do it in a fun way with the music that you already listen to?\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
And for Rodriguez, bringing Latino culture into the events carries another meaning.<\/p>\n
Rodriguez said spending time in Houston\u2019s Hispanic communities reminds him of Tampico and his Mexican roots.<\/p>\n
He described the atmosphere as something that takes him \u201cback home.\u201d<\/p>\n
That connection between culture and wellness is part of why the couple believes their work fits into Hispanic Heritage Month.<\/p>\n
Hispanic Heritage Month can include conversations about health<\/p>\n
Hispanic Heritage Month runs from Sept. 15 through Oct. 15 and recognizes the histories, cultures and contributions of Americans whose ancestors came from Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean, Central America and South America.<\/p>\n
For Rodriguez and Ollervides, celebrating heritage also provides an opportunity to talk about what people want for the future of their communities.<\/p>\n
That includes health.<\/p>\n
Their approach does not ask families to choose between culture and wellness.<\/p>\n
The carne asada does not disappear.<\/p>\n
Neither does the banda.<\/p>\n
Instead, the couple is taking elements they already associate with their culture and incorporating them into experiences centered around movement.<\/p>\n
During their interview together, Rodriguez said prioritizing health is one of the most important things someone can do for themselves.<\/p>\n
Ollervides followed with the question at the center of what they are building.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo why not do it in a fun way with the music that you already listen to?\u201d<\/p>\n
Their business is growing, but the conversation is bigger than DUO Social<\/p>\n
DUO Social gives Rodriguez and Ollervides a business built around something they already enjoyed doing: bringing people together.<\/p>\n
But their experiences also highlight why conversations about Latino wellness are more nuanced than the stereotype that Latinos simply do not exercise.<\/p>\n
Ollervides remembers dancing as one of the primary forms of physical activity he saw growing up.<\/p>\n
Rodriguez remembers people constantly moving, working and staying active, even if nobody called it a workout.<\/p>\n
Now, together, they are organizing events where those cultural experiences and structured exercise meet.<\/p>\n
On Oct. 24, that will mean Pilates mats and banda.<\/p>\n
For Hispanic Heritage Month, their story also asks people to think about their own families and how the definition of exercise has changed from one generation to another.<\/p>\n
We want to hear from you<\/p>\n
What did exercise and wellness look like in your Hispanic household growing up?<\/p>\n
Did your family go to the gym or play sports? Was movement more likely to come from working, walking or dancing at family parties? Was health and exercise something your family talked about at all?<\/p>\n
And would replacing the traditional workout playlist with banda make you more interested in trying Pilates?<\/p>\n
Share your experience in the comments.<\/p>\n
Copyright 2026 by KPRC Click2Houston – All rights reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Food, music, family and tradition are often part of the conversation during Hispanic Heritage Month. Ray Rodriguez and…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":453306,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[2276,56,58,57,20271],"class_list":["post-453305","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-houston","tag-hispanic-heritage-month","tag-houston","tag-houston-headlines","tag-houston-news","tag-pilates"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/453305","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=453305"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/453305\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/453306"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=453305"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=453305"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=453305"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}