On a recent 90-degree morning, a dozen or so gals and a couple guys of varying ages and sizes, some wearing flamboyant retro leg warmers and spandex, stand outside of a hot pink and black Burbank storefront.
They’re all about to fight for their lives and test their endurance during an hour-long workout like no other. While they jump, kick and punch, menacing monsters and serial killers (Pinhead from “Hellraiser,” Freddy Krueger from “A Nightmare on Elm Street”) appear behind them, looped on a giant video screen.
Will they survive Slashercise?
Vanessa Decker, center, teaches “Slashercise” at her studio Killer Fitness.
(Juliana Yamada / Los Angeles Times)
The signature class at the new workout space called Killer Fitness, which doubles as a gift shop filled with clothing and movie memorabilia, is led by co-owner Vanessa Decker. She rocks the studio’s campy branded ensembles — some with blood splatter designs, others with fangs and skulls — as she demonstrates movements that bring to mind iconic scream scenes.
“Horror movies are a form of adrenaline-pumping escapism and so is exercise,” says Decker, when asked how the idea of melding horror and fitness came to be. “I don’t know, it just works!”
Clockwise from left: Horror-themed props decorate walls of merchandise at workout studio Killer Fitness. Ama Lea holds the fake “Slashercise” movie she made. Vanessa Decker, Ama Lea, and Nadia Teichmann talk after the “Slashercise” class. (Juliana Yamada / Los Angeles Times)
But it takes real physicality too. There are stabbing actions and fight-for-your-life moves as Decker throws out petrifying puns, making the class chuckle between huffs and puffs.
There are also props: plastic chainsaws and fake knives, which might seem like schlocky touches but help with strength training. The repetitive movements, inspired by vintage Jane Fonda and Richard Simmons tapes, burn calories and tone muscles. After my first class, my arms, thighs and calves were sore for days.
Killer Fitness opened in May with the hope that horror’s increasing popularity at the box office could translate to this unique, in-person third space. It offers 20 exercise classes a week (available on ClassPass) and hosts evening film screenings with panels and Q&As. The day and night offerings are part of a larger spooky universe that’s helped Decker become a tastemaker online, amassing 133,000 followers through her “Horror Vixen” identity on Instagram.
Killer Fitness co-owners Vanessa Decker, left, and Ama Lea.
(Juliana Yamada / Los Angeles Times)
Decker and partner Ama Lea connected at “Slashback Video,” a 2017 art installation that recreated a vintage video store environment at the Mystic Museum, a horror hub in Burbank. Real and reimagined movie packaging filled the exhibit, and Lea created a box for a fake film called “Slashercise.”
“It all began with ‘Linnea Quigley’s Horror Workout,’” says Lea, who designed the piece in homage to the B-movie actress’ underground classic. “She was a scream queen, but her workout video was mostly just funny skits, like doing aerobics with zombies and stuff. We started talking about making a real horror-themed workout film with Vanessa starring and me directing — the concept was a slasher movie that had actual routines in between. We got horror celebrities to be in it and eventually, we found our narrative.”
A silly poster hangs above the water fountain, underscoring the studio’s sense of humor.
(Juliana Yamada / Los Angeles Times)
“Slashersise,” the 2024 movie, features a serial killer named “Meathead” (his head is literally a piece of raw beef) bludgeoning instructors at an L.A. gym. Routines are spliced into low-budget practical effects, gore and gags, inspired by other horror movies with fitness themes like “Death Spa,” “Body Melt” and “Killer Workout.”
The pair garnered momentum for the DVD after appearing on horror streaming service Shudder’s “The Last Drive-In With Joe Bob Briggs” (the hosts make cameos) and soon, fans started asking where they could experience Slashersise for real.
Last year, at Midsummer Scream, a popular L.A. horror convention, they presented workout skits and had a life-changing conversation with the owners of Dark Delicacies, the landmark Burbank retailer known for creepy collectibles and comics.
Owners Del and Sue Howison were planning to close after three decades in business and offered Lea and Decker (and silent partner Kay Elyse) first dibs on their retail space for the campy cardio concept.
Fast forward a year later, and Killer Fitness is now a bustling brick-and-mortar shop with a horror-driven boutique and on-theme exercise experiences. “Horror Yoga” is focused on restorative stretching, while “Fitness Ghouls” offers low-impact exercise.
Angel Strong, Nadia Teichmann, and Aimee Torres take “Slashercise” at workout studio Killer Fitness.
(Juliana Yamada / Los Angeles Times)
“TERRORTwist,” a high-energy dance workout, feels like a rigorous rehearsal. Mashing tunes from Lady Gaga (“Zombieboy”) and She Wants Revenge (“Tear You Apart”) with blood-pumping choreography from Michael Jackson’s “Thriller,” “Little Shop of Horrors” and “The Rocky Horror Picture Show,” the class is one of the more challenging on the schedule, but instructor Angie “Starheart” Shriner makes it entertaining and approachable, reminding the class to listen to their body parts.
“Killer Fitness is special to me because it’s inclusive, no judgment, and it’s just a bunch of people who have a horror obsession blending it into the exercise,” says Roxie Rose, a makeup and tattoo artist who frequents Shriner’s class. “This is the place I go to have fun and get away from everyday life.”
“We’re here for everybody and all body types,” adds Lea, who also designs the shop’s workout wear in a wide range of sizes. “That’s so important to us. Of course, most of the people who come in are horror fans, too. “
But you don’t have to be obsessed with frightful fare to fit in. Killer Fitness is at its core a celebration of nostalgic pop culture and the community that connects with it. And mastering moves like a fierce “final girl” is doable with effort and consistency. (All instructors are certified by the American Council on Exercise.)
Decker differentiates Killer Fitness from chain gyms, which she calls bright and annoying. “Working out can be daunting, so we just want it to feel inviting,” she says, adding that there are themed workouts all around L.A., like goat yoga.
”So why not a gym for horror fans?”
Vanessa Decker stands with a chainsaw prop after teaching “Slashercise.”
(Juliana Yamada / Los Angeles Times)
This story originally appeared on LA Times
