In 2011, Australian Rob Deutsch saw a gap in the health club market. Options included large, commercial gyms or personalized training. There wasn’t much in between.

So Deutsch started F45 (the “F” for functional and the “45” for a 45-minute workout), which mixes cardio and resistance in a way that mimics the everyday movements humans are engaged in. It also takes a team approach and views its facilities and classes as community centers for people who want to work together to meet their fitness goals.

“We’re all about team training,” says Yana Tymoshenko, owner and operator of an F45 Training studio that recently opened in Willowbrook. “We’re very hands on with two trainers in each class. Our classes are different each day. People really like the social aspect of training and I know all of our members.”

Tymoshenko, who had always had an interest in fitness, sold an insurance and financial services agency to open up F45 franchises in the Western Suburbs. She had grown frustrated with having to attend sessions at multiple gyms to get the kind of workout she wanted. She tried F45 and was hooked.

“My husband asked if I was going to join and I said, ‘no, I’m going to open my own,’” Tymoshenko recalls. “Within two months I sold my agencies and opened my gym.”

A number of innovations help distinguish F45 from other forms of fitness training.

“We do 45-minute sessions in a group environment, training every day without hitting the same muscles,” says Tymoshenko. “What you do today will not hurt tomorrow. Compared to the cost of a personal trainer, we deliver results fast if you stick with the program.”

In addition to the workouts, F45 offers an exclusive app for members that provides access to recipes to help guide food choices. Workouts are customized using an Evolt 360 body scan, which can record more than 40 different body composition measurements—including body and visceral fat—and analyze them in real time.

Saturday workouts, which extend to an hour, feature a live DJ and more of a party atmosphere. Four challenges are offered throughout the year to help members meet their fitness goals and the membership roster, which hit more than 100 within six weeks of the studio being open, runs the gamut from fitness novices to professional athletes.

“At our studio you can train like professional athletes train,” Tymoshenko says. “Across the country, skiers, snowboarders, football and soccer players, and swimmers are training at F45.”

Costs are a reasonable $40 to $55 per week depending on level and length of commitment, a bargain considering the program’s level of customization.

“For people who want to lose weight and put muscle on, this is the perfect workout,” Tymoshenko says. “And you’re not on your own; you’re joining a community of people who help push each other to meet their fitness goals.”

F45 Willowbrook is located at 6300 Kingery Highway in Willowbrook, 630-272-7151, f45training.com.