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Sunny Miller. Photo courtesy of subject
HUSTLE’s Sunny Miller Talks Inspiration, Inclusive Fitness + Next Move
June 13, 2022 @ 2:00pm
Fitness instructor Sunny Miller is redefining the meaning of the hustle.
Miller is the co-founder of HUSTLE, a boutique fitness studio that specializes in cycling and HIIT training. The studio is currently operating out of a space at Washington’s Union Stage, but will soon move to a new facility at Amazon HQ2 in Arlington within the next six months.
In conversation with District Fray, Miller opened up about HUSTLE’s steady growth, her observations toward wellness culture in the DMV and her experience building a studio centered around connection and inclusivity.
In a city of suits and ties, Miller noticed that Washington is still a very active city.
“It’s not just D.C., but the whole DMV,” Miller says. “I find that people are very aware of physical health and conscious of their mental health.”
For Miller, an eye toward individual wellness that prioritizes the balance of body and mind contributed to her decision to open HUSTLE alongside co-founder Lorenzo McFarland. On top of that, after working as a master SoulCycle instructor for five and a half years, the pandemic pushed her to contemplate and carry out her next move.
In early 2020, Miller recalls, “We all lost that routine we had, we lost our self care — whether that be taking care of your mental health or your physical health.”
One month into the global shutdown, she asked, “How can I get people back together into some sort of routine where we feel like we’re taking care of ourselves again?”
This was the moment Miller envisioned the creation of her own studio. A dream soon became a reality — after lockdown restrictions ended, HUSTLE began in-person classes in accordance with Covid-19 protocols around the DMV.
“The inspiration behind HUSTLE was really connection and community — just getting us back together so that we can get our mental health back on track,” Miller explains.
At the helm of HUSTLE’s fitness experience is creating an inclusive environment for patrons to work out regardless of their personal fitness goals. The studio doesn’t perpetuate compulsive exercise, or promote the subscription of unattainable “body goals.”
“I think that fitness should be accessible to everyone,” she says. “HUSTLE is providing something for everybody without making it feel like you should be a certain way or look a certain way.”
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Inclusivity is embedded into multiple levels of HUSTLE’s wellness experience. In particular, the studio is crafting individual experiences for its patrons to ensure, like Miller says, “You can get your fitness anywhere you want, however you like it.”
While HUSTLE is offering indoor cycling classes at Union Stage, the studio is still operating under a hybrid model, with weekly outdoor HIIT class at Longbridge Park and a wide range of online classes.
Ultimately, Miller is changing the connotation of the word hustle for the better.
In recent years, there’s been a turn away toward the “hustle culture” that defined the 2010s (such as the “rise and grind” mindset). This lifestyle shift minimizes the possibility of burnout and stress in a professional setting — the same can be applied to people’s relationships with exercise.
For the instructor, exercise is the healthiest form of escapism for our bodies and minds. Rather than pushing the limit, HUSTLE is an opportunity to reset and return the focus to mental and physical health, she says.
To learn more about HUSTLE, visit their website and follow them on Instagram at @hustle_dmv.
Union Stage: 740 Water St SW, DC; unionstage.com // @unionstage
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