{"id":330928,"date":"2025-12-04T23:22:13","date_gmt":"2025-12-04T23:22:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/330928\/"},"modified":"2025-12-04T23:22:13","modified_gmt":"2025-12-04T23:22:13","slug":"how-a-gym-near-mass-and-cass-is-helping-people-stay-sober","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/330928\/","title":{"rendered":"How a gym near Mass. and Cass is helping people stay sober"},"content":{"rendered":"

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tLocal News\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tThere’s no membership or fee. The only requirement is 48 hours of sobriety, on an honor system.<\/p>\n

\"\"
\n\tEric Henderson chills out at the Phoenix Gym and Community Center in Boston. (John Tlumacki\/Globe)\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tBy Annie Jonas<\/a>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tDecember 4, 2025 | 12:44 PM\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

2 minutes to read<\/p>\n

For most people, April 8, 1997, was just another Tuesday. For Scott Strode, it marked the start of an entirely new life.<\/p>\n

It was his first day in recovery from cocaine and alcohol, a milestone he still cherishes, even if he did have to look up the exact date to make sure he had it right (to his delight.)<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s always a gift to be sober long enough that you have to look it up,\u201d he told Boston.com in an interview.<\/p>\n

\"\"Scott Strode (center). (Photos by Danny Bristoll) \u2013 Danny Bristoll<\/p>\n

Strode, a South End father of two, grew up under the power lines of childhood trauma. His father suffered from untreated mental illness and his step-father from untreated alcoholism. This led his self-esteem to suffer, he said, which fueled the flames of his addiction.<\/p>\n

At the time he began recovery, Strode was living in Boston and working as a woodworker in the boat yards at Charlestown Navy Yard. His addiction, he said, was eating him and his ambitions alive.<\/p>\n

\u201cSubstance use was just stripping away the dreams of who I thought I could be,\u201d Strode said.<\/p>\n

His recovery didn\u2019t begin in a 12-step program or rehab \u2014 it began with exercise.\u00a0<\/p>\n

A boxing class in Kenmore Square led him to buy a Gore-Tex jacket, which led him to climb New Hampshire\u2019s White Mountains. \u201cI thought getting outdoors might get me out of my addiction,\u201d he laughed over the phone. Turns out, his impulse purchase was the silver bullet.<\/p>\n

\u201cEvery time I got to the top of a climb, I was more of a climber than an addict, and that shift started to help me solidify my recovery,\u201d he said. \u201cI just wanted to share it with other people.\u201d<\/p>\n

Strode is the founder of The Phoenix<\/a>, a nonprofit gym built around a simple idea: exercise, community, and creativity can support sobriety. There is no membership or fee associated with using The Phoenix\u2019s gyms. The only requirement is 48 hours of sobriety, on an honor system (no drug tests are conducted). The classes are mostly taught by volunteers who are in recovery themselves.<\/p>\n

Since its 2006 founding in Colorado, The Phoenix has expanded nationwide serving more than a million people. Strode brought it to Boston in 2018, opening a gym at 54 Newmarket Square \u2014 near the heart of the city\u2019s opioid crisis. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s exactly where our front door needs to be open,\u201d Strode said.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\"\"\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\tWhy readers want Mass. and Cass declared a public health emergency\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"(Photos courtesy of The Phoenix) \u2013 Courtesy of The Phoenix<\/p>\n

Research<\/a> supports the approach: exercise can \u201cprovide important mental, physical, and social benefits integral to sustaining recovery and supporting long-term well-being,\u201d according to Current Sports Medicine Reports.<\/p>\n

The Boston location has now served approximately 20,000 people, with about 100 people served per day, offering 10-12 daily programs including group exercise, yoga, boxing, jiu jitsu, coffee socials, and support meetings. First responders are also welcome to train in the gym. It\u2019s a part of Strode\u2019s goal to create community and show \u201cthe hope side of recovery.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have fire cadets that train in here and are working out alongside people whose lives were saved on the street\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

Strode believes The Phoenix is more than just an alternative recovery model; he sees it as a way to help reverse the stigma around addiction by sowing compassion, not discord.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have folks that society would view as on the fringe or the problem in our community,\u201d he said. \u201cIn this moment, where we can feel polarized and divided, if the Phoenix community can help each other rise, we can do that more broadly as a country.\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\t\"Profile\t<\/p>\n

Annie Jonas is a Community writer at Boston.com. She was previously a local editor at Patch and a freelancer at the Financial Times.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSign up for the Today newsletter<\/p>\n

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