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<p>Fitness enthusiast Jimmy T. Martin demonstrates excercising on a Brrrn board.</p>
                                 <p>Courtesy of Ruth Corcoran</p>

Fitness enthusiast Jimmy T. Martin demonstrates excercising on a Brrrn board.

Courtesy of Ruth Corcoran

<p>A Brrrn board can give you a cardio workout while sparing your knees.</p>
                                 <p>Courtesy of Ruth Corcoran</p>

A Brrrn board can give you a cardio workout while sparing your knees.

Courtesy of Ruth Corcoran

Jimmy T. Martin is a businessman who always lives life at full throttle. I love hearing the success stories of young entrepreneurs. I ran into my friend Jim Martin at a recent business event, and he told me a little about his son Jimmy’s new business venture. It really piqued my interest, and I decided to give Jimmy a call to learn more.

Jimmy is a hard worker, a real hustler who dreams big and then goes after those dreams with everything he has. I wanted to share his story. He was a decorated athlete at Wyoming Valley West High School who went on to attend George Mason University. While there, he developed a passion for theatre and decided to move to New York City to pursue an acting career.

While auditioning, he supported himself with various “actor survival jobs” include working as a Barista at Starbucks, a writing assistant at a greeting card company, and an art model. Jimmy studied improv with the goal of landing a gig on Saturday Night Live, which he eventually did. He worked for more than four years with the SNL cast and crew as a background performer,achieving one of his biggest goals.

Remember when I said he was a hard worker? During the years he was appearing on SNL, Jimmy worked as a certified personal trainer and a copywriter. He also founded Handsomely Yours, a niche greeting card business, and Jimmy Productions, a business providing copywriting,scriptwriting, and creative consultation services.

Just writing about it makes my head spin.

In 2010, a few years after moving to New York, Jimmy married his college sweetheart, Linmarie. She inspired and supported him in all his endeavors. Linmarie was diagnosed with cancer in 2013 and Jimmy was by her side, helping her fight. After treatment, it looked like she had won her battle, but she had a relapse soon after. Jimmy had been working on an idea for fitness related venture, and Linmarie loved the idea. Near the end of her battle, she encouraged Jimmy to go after his dreams, telling him that his business idea was the “proudest thing she would never get to see.” Tragically, Jimmy lost Linmarie in 2014. Heartbroken, he put everything on hold to mourn his loss.

Eventually, the memory of Linmarie’s words of encouragement inspired Jimmy to move forward with his business idea and he put all his energy on Brrrn — a winter-themed fitness and lifestyle brand based in NYC which he co-founded with his business partner, Johnny Adamic.

Their concept began with trials locally at Bayo’s Ice in Swoyersville where they tested their theory on a cold workout studio. It was based on research suggesting an improvement in athletic performance and added calorie burn when exercising in a cooler environment. Their 50°F fridge workouts were a hit, especially the classes featuring their signature Brrrn Board, a-6foot adjustable slide board class that allowed for a low-impact cardio and core workout that attracted more than 23,000 through their NYC doors.

This success inspired Jimmy and Johnny to consider an at-home experience built around their Brrrn Board, one that would give people goosebumps, but in a different way. When the pandemic hit in 2020, Brrrn was mandated closed, and this forced Jimmy and Johnny to pivot their business model to selling Brrrn Boards for home use. This was paired with an on-demand subscription featuring more than 20 instructors and hundreds of classes. In June of 2020, Jimmy’s year got even better when he married Rachael Donnelly.

Retired speed skater and Olympic medalist, Apolo Ohno, a believer in slide board workouts for fitness and training, joined the partners as an investor and spokesperson. Jimmy believes that Apolo will help them expand the business and introduce the Brrrn board to a much wider market.

The company is currently on track to sell 3,000 Brrrn boards and subscriptions as they head into 2022 and is gaining a lot of attention amongst hockey and wrestling parents as a pivotal training tool for better athletic performance and injury prevention.

As a fitness enthusiast who has had knee surgery in both knees, I’m always looking for a low impact cardio workout, so I decided to give the Brrrn board a test try. I borrowed a board, adjusted it to 5 feet, slid a pair of cloth booties over my sneakers, and slid back and forth like I was ice skating.

It got easier to balance and move as I went along and by the end of about 10 minutes I was pretty winded, but my knees felt fine. I browsed through the Brrrn classes available online or through the app. There’s a wide selection of slide, cardio, core, yoga, and more for any skill level. I think the board is a great way to complete a cardio workout right in the comfort of your living room while you watch your favorite show. The board is also easy to move and store.

If you’re interested in learning more, visit thebrrrn.com for more information.

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Ruth Corcoran is a professional marketer, former restaurant owner, and community advocate. She resides in Bear Creek. Readers can reach Ruth by emailing [email protected].