Veteran-owned gym in Libertyville helps youth build more than muscles

LIBERTYVILLE – Those involved with Libertyville's veteran-owned Hot Ground Gym say it's more than just a gym.

It's a place where challenges are overcome, said veteran Sam Simpson, who co-owns Hot Ground Gym with veteran Doug Gialds, founder of the business. Unlike other gyms, Hot Ground Gym offers obstacle courses, team-building challenges and life skills such as leadership and problem-solving to children in kindergarten through eighth grade.

It's designed to help children build confidence through teamwork and fitness, but it's also a way for Simpson and other disabled veterans to give back.

"Strengthening the future one kid at a time is very therapeutic to a point where there's nothing like it," Simpson said. "It's not just to help the kids but to help us."

Simpson owns Hot Ground Gym's Libertyville location. Gialds owns an Arlington Heights location. Looking to franchise throughout the country, the two are opening a Hot Ground Gym in Dripping Springs, Texas.

They aim to build character in the next generation and offer veterans a path forward. They welcome any veterans interested in becoming involved.

Hot Ground Gym was founded 11 years ago and restructured a bit during the pandemic. A former Grayslake firefighter who served in the U.S. Army from 2006 to 2014, Simpson started the Libertyville location in the Canlan Sports Complex about nine years ago.

Simpson met Gialds after military service.

"I promised when I became a fireman I would work with him because I believed in him and his program," Simpson said. "I believed in him so much that I stopped firefighting and I fully went into this program."

The facility offers classes, day camps, team building events and birthday parties, drawing hundreds of children to its events. As they age out of the program, many participants become volunteers and employees, gaining leadership experience while giving back to younger students.

That's the case for 13-year-old Kyle Krause of Vernon Hills, who joined the gym in late 2020.

He was a bit shy and had tried team sports, but they just didn't seem to work out for him, his mother Heather Krause said.

"[Hot Ground Gym] really spoke to him," she said. "He is very competitive with himself. We feel like the way Hot Ground Gym is designed gave him a lot of opportunity to improve himself without the pressures of a team."

The heart of Hot Ground Gym's approach lies in the military-inspired, yet accessible philosophy Gialds and Simpson embody. Challenges involve activities such as lifting heavy tires or navigating an obstacle course blindfolded.

"The term Hot Ground comes from military lingo. It means a place where training is active and ongoing," Simpson said. "While we use some subtle military language as a nod to our brothers and sisters, the gym isn't rigid or authoritarian. We're firm but compassionate with the goal of helping kids push themselves beyond what they thought possible."

Ken Krause, Kyle's father, said he wasn't sure what to expect when Kyle first joined the gym. He felt Kyle wouldn't do well with a boot camp style program.

"I was actually pleasantly surprised," Ken Krause said. "They showed him the course, what he needed to do. He got a lot of self-confidence in doing it faster and faster when he would feel like he conquered them."

Hot Ground Gym's unique ranking system encourages children to advance by mastering physical challenges and life skills such as how to use power and hand tools, first aid and knot tying. At the highest level, participants volunteer their time as junior instructors.

A graduate, Kyle Krause now mentors younger participants.

"I can't express enough what it's done for him as far as confidence," Heather Krause said. "I think he feels very respected and heard by them. I wish everyone in the country had access to it. It's that unique and special."