![Natalie McGrory stands at the top of a mountain, an interior shot of the new Peaches and Gains gym and McGrory poses for a photo with client Elizabeth Rodi at an event. [Natalie McGrory]](https://www.inmaricopa.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Image-38-1-696x365.jpeg "Image (38)")
Stepping into the gym for the first time isn’t easy for anyone. Natalie McGrory knows it can be even harder for women.
“A lot of women go to the gym with every intention of doing weights, but they feel intimidated and end up on the cardio machine,” she said.
Intimidation can stem from self-consciousness, unfamiliarity with equipment or even harassment by gym members with a Y-chromosome. Yep — that happens in Maricopa.
That’s why four years ago McGrory started Peaches and Gains with a friend in Maricopa. At the time, she offered personal training out of her garage and hosted fitness classes at a rented space near Maricopa.
Now, she’s preparing to host a grand opening tomorrow at 11 a.m. for her new gym at 19342 N. Maricopa Road, Suite 110, in the Heritage District.
“I’m just so excited because I just want to change [women’s] lives,” McGrory said. “I’ll meet a new client and think, ‘How can I motivate her, how can I push her?’”
The grand opening is for anyone interested in the gym, including men, according to McGrory whose own son is a gym buff.
“I know a lot of husbands were interested in coming to see where their wives will be working out, so I’m opening the doors for everybody to come and check the place out and to see what the gym is all about,” she said.
The event will take place until 1 p.m. with a ribbon-cutting at noon. McGrory said she will also host a raffle and hand out goodie bags filled with shirts, treats and other merchandise.
For more information about classes, programs or to sign up, visit the gym’s Zen Planner website.
