San Francisco is about to take fitness to a higher level with the world's first cannabis-friendly gym. Power Plant Fitness, co-founded by 420 Games boss Jim McAlpine and retired NFL player Ricky Williams, aims to battle the increasingly antiquated stoner stereotype by merging athletics and weed for a more balanced workout that fuels both body and mind.
"Having Ricky Williams as a partner is fucking awesome because he exemplifies a successful and very athletic person who also uses cannabis," McAlpine told Complex. "Ricky is as smart as he is a talented athlete. And that is a big statement."
According to McAlpine, the stigma previously associated with both recreational and medicinal marijuana use still has a long way to go before being eradicated entirely. "I felt ashamed of my lifestyle to some degree," McAlpine told Complex. "I have learned to flip that around. Now I wear my lifestyle as a badge of honor."
The gym, which is set to open in San Francisco this November, will be run by Williams and will focus on "integrative full body and mind training," according to a press release. However, unlike any other gym in the world, members will be able to consume cannabis (inside the gym!) while working out. The ability to just light up a joint inside the gym hasn't been secured due to local law, though in-house vaping and edibles will be available immediately upon opening. In fact, Power Plant already produces a line of cannabis-based athletic edibles designed for both pre-workout and post-workout nourishment:
McAlpine hopes that the success of something like Power Plant Fitness will destroy the idea that the typical weed frequenter is nothing but a source of one-dimensional comedy. "I am proud that I use cannabis and I want to show the world that a cannabis user is not the [Jeff Spicoli] character from Fast Times at Ridgemont High they have been fooled into thinking," McAlpine said.
For McAlpine, the chance to launch this potentially revolutionary fitness center also serves as a logical continuation of the goals he set for his initial venture, 420 Games. In just two years, the 420 Games has gone from a regional California event to a touring celebration of athletics and cannabis that will hit Colorado, Oregon, and Washington later this year.
"The mission of my first venture [was] to show the world that cannabis is not bad and it does not make people lazy nor stupid," McAlpine told Complex. "And that it can be a healthy and productive part of an athlete's life and training regiment." Ready to hit the gym to get your body and your mind right? See you in San Fran in November.
