About the Co-Founders
Created by Franca Stadvec and Angela Bennett, best friends since college, Fit On was born out of their passion for health, fitness and community. Both women had tried chain fitness centers and various exercise studios, but were unsatisfied with the atmosphere and wanted more personal attention. They yearned for the sense of community and camaraderie experienced so often in their day-to-day lives in Manhattan Beach. Dedicated volunteers and long-time non-profit fundraisers, Stadvec and Bennett believe that success comes from shared purpose and positive ‘X factor’ energy that can lift people up to achieve their goals. With these core values in mind, they designed their studio as a place where women and men, from pre-teen to 70something, can come together, supported by community, to invigorate and revitalize body, mind and spirit.
Angela
Angela brings her unique enthusiasm, high energy and motivational tactics to the cycling seat, leading classes as early as 6 am and sometimes up to four or five times a day, with NO drop in energy! She has been involved in indoor cycling for more than five years and is Spinning® certified. Her class looks at the entire ride as a whole, with a calorie burning, entertaining and inspirational ride from start to finish.
“I discovered indoor cycling and I was amazed at how quickly it changed my body and level of fitness. I truly believe it’s the most efficient 50-minute workout and it never gets old. I’m having just as much fun today as I did when I started out years ago,” Angela says.
Angela lives with her husband and three children in Manhattan Beach, where’s she’s been active in the community through Sandpipers and PTA. Angela grew up in Lima, Peru in an active family that taught her early in life about healthy living.
Franca
Anyone in Franca’s Barre class knows she has two mantras: “Strive for progress, not perfection” and “Clear your mind of can’t.” These inspirational words help her and her students achieve more each day in Barre and in life.
Involved in fitness since her childhood, Franca was a soccer player during her teen years, segued to pilates with Mari Winsor in her 20s and 30s and then became a sought-after Barre instructor. She was an actress in LA for 10 years before making Manhattan Beach home with her husband Michael and two great kids. Franca lives and breathes Fit On Studio’s tenet of community involvement every day: volunteering for PTAs at multiple schools, the Manhattan Beach Education Foundation, the Manhattan Country Club and American Martyrs Church. It’s all a part of her love for Manhattan Beach and gratitude to live in such an incredible place with inspirational people.
“My clients inspire me every day,” says Franca. “Their commitment to wellness and fitness keeps me going. Fit On is my ‘happy’ place!”
Michael
Michael has been involved in the fitness industry, off and on, for more than 25 years, starting as a personal trainer and then he began cross training with mountain biking. He later managed the Los Angeles studio of renowned pilates innovator Mari Winsor of Winsor Pilates. After taking five years off, Michael rediscovered his love for the bike, started spinning again and lost 20 pounds.
“I’ve been the super dedicated athlete as well as the not so focused, ‘maybe I’ll get a workout in’ person – and everything in between – so I can empathize with the wide range of clients we have at Fit On,” says Michael. “No matter what someone’s individual situation, my goal is to motivate and get each person to meet his or her personal goal.”
Michael’s class brings the mountains and the flats into the Fit On Cycling Studio with an emphasis on body and muscle awareness. His musical preferences swing from a hard driving rock mix of Pearl Jam, Tool, Whites Stripes to some funk like G. Love and the Gorillaz.
In addition to in-studio workouts, Michael leads a group of local Dads on 100-200 mile bike rides: climbing the Palos Verdes hills, early morning intervals on Westchester Parkway, long climbs up Topanga Canyon or the sprints of Malibu. He lives in Manhattan Beach with his wife Franca and two children.
Kristin
Kristin has a passion for indoor cycling. New students as well as die-hard cyclers enjoy the personal journey she takes you on in a class that’s all about digging deep and finding strength to reach your personal fitness goals: in her class and in your life. Kristin plays a wide variety of music ranging from Bob Marley and Linkin Park to Rihanna and Vampire Weekend. Her goal as a teacher is to have each one of her students walk out the door feeling happier and healthier than when they walked in!
Kristin is a mom of three boys who believes that fitness is a way of life. Before becoming a spin instructor in 2007, she participated in marathons, half-marathons, triathlons, and backyard sports with her kids. She also enjoys a nice long road bike ride and she brings her experience of the great outdoors into each one of her classes, helping students visualize hills, flats, ocean views and beautiful days. Before coming to teach at Fit On Studios, Kristin taught classes at Space Studios in MB and also at Manhattan Country Club.
Mandi
A former UCLA Volleyball athlete and founder/owner of multiple training facilities, Mandi has been dedicated to sports training and inspiring people in fitness for more than 20 years, both as an elite athlete and coach.
She is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS), a Group Fitness Instructor (ACE), and at one point held four certifications in group fitness cycling before having two babies! Mandi taught spin® at Crunch, Gorilla Sports, LA Fitness, 24 Hour Fitness and Spectrum before joining Fit On to continue her passion of teaching and motivating people. She loves cycling to great music with lots of energy, whether it’s electronica, techno, pop or alternative – anything to make you move, ride to the beat and get a great sweat!
Kim
Kim’s passion for both music and fitness brought her to cycling over 15 years ago. She thrives on hard work and challenges herself and her students to push themselves beyond their limits. Her classes include interval training, hills and speed work.
After leaving her long-time career as head of marketing and publicity at Paramount Television, Kim began looking for new goals to achieve which lead her to begin training and participating in local triathlon, ½ marathon and 10k races.
Both of Kim’s parents are retired coaches, so sports and fitness have always been an important part of her life. She hopes to motivate her students to constantly face their fears and push themselves beyond their comfort zones. She lives in Manhattan Beach with her husband and two daughters.
Jen
Jen is a certified Spinning® Instructor and Personal Trainer with more than 15 years of experience. A Division 1 collegiate swimmer and a top finisher in triathlons (including Ironman and securing several first place finishes in 2010), Jen is a true competitor. She transferred her passion for exercise into her business, Climb Fitness, where she empowers people to make changes to their current lifestyles. Her philosophy is time spent exercising will be multiplied and returned back as extra energy and a better ability to handle life’s ups and downs. As a mother of two young children, she understands that there are many facets to training, not the least of which is life balance.
Jen’s classes provide plenty of variety and there’s always a theme. Get ready to test your endurance, power through some interval training, or surge up the hills to a blend of up-beat alternative and rock music. Ride with a purpose, have fun, and be ready to sweat!
Sue
Sue developed her love for running while conditioning for tennis at age 14, and picked up swimming and cycling in college to eventually become a competitive triathlete. After having her second child, she began focusing on indoor cycling as a great way to stay in shape while caring for her FOUR children. Sue has been teaching indoor cycling for more than 13 years.
When she’s not training, Sue is busy with her company, AdVinylize, which takes the vinyl from used billboards and diverts them from landfills by repurposing them into one-of-a-kind totes and bags (hint-hint…they make great gym bags!) She loves music, social media, spending time with friends and family and seeing people get fit through hard work, sweat and goal setting.
“I’ve been teaching spin for 13 years and am a firm believer in how spinning conditions and makes you stronger, whatever your fitness goals may be,” Sue says. “I’m a mom of four, wife, own a promotional products company and love the philosophy ‘Work Hard, Play Hard!’”
Chrissy
Mountain biking and music have long been dear to Chrissy’s heart, and indoor cycling has always been a perfect combination of those loves. She uses her strong knowledge of exercise physiology and body mechanics to create challenging classes that emphasize postural awareness, strength/endurance, and calorie burn. Coordinated, high-energy music factors into every class to enhance and push every work out.
Chrissy has a Master’s degree in Physical Therapy and worked in Sports Medicine and Rehab at UCLA before she had her two boys.
Jennifer
Jennifer is a midwest gal who is passionate about health and fitness as well as emotional well-being. She is trained in a number of different fitness techniques and believes that the Barre Physique technique is an exceptional challenge. She recommends it to anyone looking to mix up their routine and who would like to see results after just one month.
Jennifer’s class is great for beginners to intermediate levels and will leave you feeling calm, collected and proud of the hour you dedicated to your personal fitness. She loves to work the upper body, thigh and seat areas so be ready!
Darryl
Darryl brings a fighter’s mindset to Fit On, taking his experience and knowledge as a six-year professional Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) fighter and turning it into teeth-grinding motivation. A former commercial airline pilot and flight instructor, Darryl is now a Boxing/MMA instructor and the head coach of a local high school wrestling team. He has taught indoor cycling for eight years, including his class at Fit On.
Kelley
Kelley has three decades of experience teaching fitness, evolving from being a competitive ballet, tap and jazz dancer to teaching high-impact aerobic classes in the 80s (she even made three of the first exercise videos for Gold’s Gym!). Since then, she has been a personal trainer and a frequent mountain biker in the Santa Monica Mountains. “Teaching spin brings me back to my good ol’ mountain biking days – love for fun, high energy and ‘shake your booty’ music…as well helping people achieve their fitness goals.” Kelley has degrees in Kinesiology and Physical Therapy from UCLA and USC, respectively, and worked at UCLA Hospital before she and her husband had two active boys.
Lanita
Lanita is a trained dancer specializing in modern dance, incorporating Graham, Limon, and Horton techniques. After graduating with a degree in Dance from Sacramento State University, she danced professionally for two years in the 24th Street Theater modern dance company in Sacramento. She then lived in Japan for a year choreographing productions, and choreographed “Playboy Girls of Rock and Roll” in Vegas, Memphis and China for Hugh Heffner Playboy Enterprises. Still an active choreographer and a mother of three, Lanita is a Reebok certified indoor cycling instructor and has been teaching for 14 years.