Trainers help build speed, endurance

Plenty of area gyms offer membership for general fitness and strength training, but when Tim Prukop's high school athlete son Dakota asked for more training, his father spied a fast-growing field.

"Sports performance businesses are really starting to grow," Tim said, adding that many younger athletes want elite exercises to improve speed, agility and jumping. For them, and for college and professional athletes, 1Up fits the build, he said.

1Up Sports opened in April 2012 and moved to its present location in January 2013. It is housed inside a warehouse built with an expansive training field, weight workout area, men's and women's locker rooms, and space for 1Up Sports' on-staff chiropractor and physical therapist.

Tim, a former football coach at Arizona State University and the University of Southern California and a scout for the Kansas City Chiefs, said he has always loved working with athletes and training. His wife, Lisa, serves as the business's chief operating officer, and their full-time trainer, Ron Curcio, has more than 25 years of experience building such businesses. With three additional part-time trainers, they see more growth ahead, they said.

"There's a lot of fitness centers around, and there's a lot of personal trainers, but there were very few actual sports performance trainers that had sports performance certifications," Lisa said. "We found that out, and that's what kind of drove us into going into business."

1Up has reduced runners' 40-yard dash times by two-tenths of a second and increased athletes' vertical jumps by 5 to 7 inches, Tim said. That is primarily how 1Up has built its clientele—trainees take those statistics to friends in school or on private teams, and others join. Business wellness programs can also sign up for coached workouts at 1Up, Tim said.

In the future, the staff expects more growth because of Curcio's work with winter and summer camps. Curcio said he has taken several sports-performance businesses to top national rankings and knows how to train Olympic athletes. As a Texas native, the opportunity was even more attractive, he added.

Upstairs are the spaces for chiropractor Austin Reynolds and physical therapist Sheldon Sonnenberg. Having them all in the same office cuts down on athletes' drive times, Lisa said, adding that she recalls taking her son to three different locations for chiropractic care, physical therapy and personal training.

"We only have the patient to talk to," Reynolds said.

Tim said he's hopeful for 1Up's future.

"Really, the business is about building the sports performance facilities in the Central Texas area to help Central Texas athletes get faster, and help the adults be in better shape," he said.

1UpSports, 2000 Windy Terrace, Bldg. 10, Cedar Park, 512-433-6334, www.1upsport.com