AN NJ POWER COUPLE INVESTS IN THEIR COMMUNITY THROUGH THEIR TINTON FALLS GYM AND SWIM CLUB

BY ERIK SCHONING  PHOTOS BY ALEX BARRETO

Few endeavors are more personal than fitness. Dejay and Andreas Roestenberg, the husband-and-wife duo behind Rock Sports Club in Tinton Falls, have made a career of personally investing in the health and fitness journeys of their New Jersey neighbors. At the two-year-old facility, they bring a family-first approach to swimming, personal training, and general fitness that’s rooted in community. The couple met in 2000 while Dejay was working as a personal trainer and Andreas was training for what would have been his third U.S. Olympic trial in swimming.

Over the next 23 years, they would have five children together, Andreas would start his own swim team, New Jersey Race Club (which now trains at the gym), they would run a retail shop outfitting swim teams, and Dejay would launch a career as a stunt performer in TV and film. It’s been a busy quarter-century for the couple, but at their core, they are athletes: a fast-paced schedule feels natural. Rock Sports Club is, in many ways, the culmination of a lifetime in swimming and fitness. “The idea of a training facility for the New Jersey Race Club has been something my husband has always dreamed of,”Dejay Roestenberg said. “When we were given the opportunity two years ago to take this facility over, it was a no-brainer for us. There’s no fancy gimmick that comes along with what we are. We just look to make it a great experience for anybody who steps through our doors.”

Rock Sports Club is a full-service fitness center that features a cardio deck, a weight room, group classes, circuit training, stationary bikes, and more. Coupled with the New Jersey Race Club facilities, which include a separate locker room, this is a one-stop-shop for parents looking to get their kids in the pool, for young swimmers in search of a competitive, supportive environment, for adults interested in casual exercise, and for serious trainers alike.

Unlike other gyms, which often vacillate between a generic, one-size-fits-all approach or a hyper-specialized, hyper serious environment that can feel intimidating for newcomers, Rock Sports Club is a big tent for anyone looking to foster a healthy, active lifestyle. Roestenberg attributes the club’s welcoming environment to the origins of the New Jersey Race Club. “My husband started the team with maybe 25 kids who were bold and brave enough to leave whatever team they were on at that point and follow him down to Asbury Park to swim at the boy’s club,” she said. “We’re up at almost 300 children now. A very large majority of those kids come through our door and see this as their second home.

They might see their coaches as a second parental figure. To have that and to know it’s something that other kids aren’t able to experience is extremely rewarding.” Youth swimming requires a massive commitment, and the Roestenbergs bring the same fastidious attention to detail to Rock Sports Club that they did to their nascent swim team years ago. Andreas is at the facility every day: coaching, making the rounds, even working out with gym members in the facilities. When Dejay isn’t on set, she’s onsite too, cultivating relationships with the swimmers and coordinating with the club’s manager to make sure every piece of the machine is running smoothly.

It is a true family operation; their eldest daughter even teaches yoga. In the two years since the club opened, membership has been steadily growing. In a fitness landscape dominated by big-box franchises and corporate gyms, people are always on the lookout for a more personal experience. “It’s a community,” Dejay Roestenberg said. “The family connection gives people something that they can relate to. They know this isn’t a corporate big-box operation that’s happening back there. As important as it is for our memberships to grow, and they do consistently grow, there is something nice about the fact that almost everybody that has come into our gym has been recommended by someone.”

The gym itself continues to grow even within its own walls as Dejay is always looking to add new facilities and features to the space. Sheen visions Rock Sports Club as a kind of incubator for fitness entrepreneurs in the area, providing them with a home base while expanding the gym’s on-site offerings. Recent additions to the Rock Sports roster include Greg Mihovich, a strength and self-defense trainer who runs Max Capable, and physical therapist Dr. Chris Bayona. A newly opened recovery lab offers full-spectrum infrared saunas, a cold plunge, and a hot tub. “I want the club to be a place where people can launch their ideas, then grow and turn that idea into something,” Roestenberg said. “We have great personal trainers who freelance out of our building. That’s where I want to continue to go. We want to be an all-encompassing hub.”

Looking toward the future, the Roestenbergs are committed to forwarding Rock Sports Club’s expansion over the coming years. They are constantly ruminating over ideas: pilates and hot yoga, perhaps, or an on-site coffee shop and juice bar. For many, launching an ever-growing fitness club alongside fruitful careers while raising five children might seen like a crowded plate, but then again, athletes tend to be built differently from the rest of us.

Rock Sports Club 3092 Shafto Road Building 3, Tinton Falls 848.209.6111 / therocksportsclub.com