Twin brothers Mark and Christian Szot, opened Two Pillars Athletics in Larksville with the goal of building ‘an old-school community’ that encourages each other.
Ryan Evans | Times Leader
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From left: Gunnar Grebeck, 17, of Dallas; Jennifer Heck, 51, of West Wyoming; Sam Rolland, 15, of Dallas; Lisa Moore, 44, of Luzerne; and Mark Szot, 31 and co-owner/coach at Two Pillars Athletics. Szot and his brother Christian helped train the group, which competed in the Summer Showdown at PWRBLD Gym in King of Prussia. All four took first place overall in their age/weight classes. Three state records were broken and two competitors qualified for higher levels of competition.
Ryan Evans | Times Leader
LARKSVILLE — Two Pillars Athletics on East Luzerne Avenue breeds monsters.
More than that — and something that’s often lost in commercial gyms — Two Pillars breeds camaraderie, confidence and teamwork.
Owners and twin brothers Mark and Christian Szot, 31, have been in business for just over two years, though they had another gym for about seven.
“We wanted to build an old-school community. I expect everyone to come in and work hard, and when you do that, we do very little promoting,” Mark said. “Everything’s almost word of mouth, but once you do that, you just get the right people.”
Recently, four of those “right people” competed at the Summer Showdown competition at PWRBLD gym in King of Prussia.
The results? Record-breaking.
Sam Rolland of Dallas, a 15-year-old sophomore at Wyoming Seminary, took first place overall in his age/weight class at 56 kilograms. He qualified for Nationals and broke two state records. He squatted 270 pounds and pulled a 320-pounds dead lift at 120-pounds body weight.
Jennifer Heck, 51, of West Wyoming also took first place overall in her age/weight class. She shattered the previous state record for dead lift by 23 pounds, pulling 320.
Gunnar Grebeck, 17, also of Dallas and a fellow Wyoming Seminary student, took first place overall for his class, and qualified for Nationals and Worlds next year in Las Vegas.
And last, but most certainly not least, Lisa Moore, 44, of Luzerne, took first place overall in her class. Moore, as Mark noted, starts her days with a three-mile run … then she goes to work out.
While it would be understandable to have considerable bragging rights after dominant performances, the four instead spoke to the importance of physical fitness, building confidence, staying in shape, and of course, shared their adoration for their coaches and their gym.
“In this gym, you know, I’m 51 and he’s 15,” Heck said, pointing to Rolland, “And we’re working out together. Everybody gets along and encourages each other, and it’s really positive.”
Grebeck added, “People here want you to succeed, often times more than you want yourself to succeed. And you don’t realize it until you hear and see everybody else supporting you and motivating you.”
“I think it’s important to show the people of Luzerne County that they can be doing it, too,” Moore said. “It’s important for everyone to see that no matter your age, no matter your gender, no matter what kind of shape you’re currently in, you could be out there getting better and competing. There’s something for everybody here.”
Rolland, who brought the idea of the Summer Showdown to the gym, spoke to the benefits of the sport he’s now conquering.
“Lifting helps me relieve stress,” Rolland said. “It helps me put my mind and mental capabilities into just the gym, and it’s just overall … it’s a great feeling, just getting stronger and watching yourself grow.”
The Szot twins share a wealth of knowledge between college degrees, industry certifications and just enjoying what they do, drawing inspiration from institutions such as the legendary Louie Simmons of Westside Barbell, Mark Bell and many others.
Whether they’re launching local students into the stratosphere, helping people truly believe age is just a number, or coaching Division I athletes, there’s no shortage of passion for “getting after it”.
As Christian explained, “It’s so unnecessary to go to a gym and everybody’s standoffish, nobody talks. It’s so unnecessary. Everybody’s just there to do their own thing. … The goals might be different, but everybody should be working together to get to those goals.”
And it seems as though they’re certainly on to something with that mentality, churning out friendly brutes in Larksville.
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