A room at the YMCA is filled with movement on a Saturday morning. People toss medicine balls against the wall, hit punching bags, work in the boxing ring and use battle ropes. Srđan Lukić walks around the room, wearing a gray T-shirt with the word “Coach” on the back.

Lukić, the founder of Fight For Hearts — a nonprofit organization in Syracuse — is coaching a workout class. After undergoing three open-heart surgeries, he decided to bring people from all walks of life together through the fitness group. His goal: to make a difference in the life of even just one person.

Fight For Hearts was formed in 2016 to raise awareness for heart health and build healthier lifestyles. To kick off American Heart Month, Lukić invited Cam F. Awesome, a decorated national boxing champion, to help out as a guest coach.

Born with a congenital heart defect, Lukić began boxing as an overweight 21-year-old, aiming to improve his fitness and reduce potential health risks. He kept with it and found himself at an international boxing tournament in Finland in 2009. He and Awesome were roommates there. The two stayed in touch, and when Lukić formed Fight For Hearts, Awesome was willing to help. Lukić wanted to bring Awesome to the workouts to reward those who had been consistently showing up.

“When he shows up, people show up to meet him and get a great workout,” Lukić said.

Fight For Hearts offers several workout programs, including youth fitness, cardio boxing, strength and conditioning and one designed for senior citizens. The programs are free thanks to various partnerships throughout the community. The volunteer coaches work together to create workouts and mix up the routines from week to week.

Syracuse has a history with boxing, Lukić said, but the last national championship winner from Syracuse was Frank Liles, who turned pro in the 1980s.

Awesome, a Long Island native now based in Kansas City, has won many national championships. The energy he brings to the workouts is palpable, Lukić said.

Awesome said he’s happy to volunteer in communities and work for positive change. He speaks at schools about anti-bullying efforts, drug-free lifestyles and the use of technology and social media for education instead of distraction.

The champion boxer wasn’t always an athlete. He didn’t make any sports teams in middle or high school.

“I thought if I were to join a gym, I would be able to lose weight and stop being bullied and take a pretty girl to prom,” Awesome said. “The only free gym in my neighborhood was boxing. That’s why I chose boxing.”

Like Lukić, Awesome said he appreciates the health benefits of the sport, and also the life lessons it teaches.

“You still learn those lessons whether you box for boxing or fighting or just the fitness aspect of it,” he said. “It’s basically me just competing against myself to be better than I was yesterday. I believe it’s universal toward any goal in life, so I think a lot of kids should be doing it.”

Awesome, who stars in the 2017 Netflix original documentary “CounterPunch,” said he hopes to achieve a point of influence equal to that of Kim Kardashian, joking that he’d be “Cam Kardashian.”

He said he would like to influence others to live happier, healthier lives.

“I’m a fan of doing what you want because it is your life, but a lot of times, people take shortcuts … and toward the end of their life they start regretting the way they treated their body because they don’t know any better,” he said. “It might be slightly inconvenient, but it’s worth — well, I haven’t been old yet — but I can see that it’s worth it.”

Awesome’s desire to help others lead balanced lives aligns with Fight For Hearts’ mission, Lukić said. The organization consists of volunteer coaches who use their exercise science backgrounds to bring fitness to the mainstream population. Different moves can be tailored to the fitness level of the individual, Lukić said.

Lukić graduated from Syracuse University with a degree in electrical engineering and earned an MBA at Le Moyne College, which he used to create the business model for Fight For Hearts. But he credits the community for the organization’s success.

“I’m basically just facilitating this and using what I’ve been blessed with to put this in motion,” he said. “And I am picking up these creative and positive people that I’ve met throughout my life, and they are the ones that are really executing this in our community.”

James Pigg, a volunteer coach who is a Certified Strength Coach and USA Boxing Certified Coach, said it’s important to keep people moving at all ages.

“As soon as you stop moving, it all goes downhill,” Pigg said.

Courtesy of Fight for Hearts

Although the group has expanded to offer more than boxing, boxing remains the root of the organization. Pigg said having Awesome as a guest coach underlines those roots.

For their second workout of the day that Saturday afternoon, Pigg, Lukić and Awesome are at the Magnarelli Community center in McChesney Park. Their use of the space is part of their partnership with the city’s Department of Parks and Recreation.

“Left, right, center, over,” Lukić’s voice booms as a boy navigates through a grouping of hurdles. “Get your hands out of your pockets.”

The group continues a warm-up cycle as “MotorSport” bumps over the speakers in the background. Lukić sits on a bench, observing the group’s form.

In its first year, Fight For Hearts focused on branding. Lukić said now, since the organization is more established, he hopes to use the second year to build the program’s capacity.

When Lukić started, his goal was to change just one person’s life.

Said Lukić: “Now that I’m actually seeing how receptive people are and how high of a quality of a service we provide … I think that changing the world can happen.”

Published on February 5, 2018 at 10:18 pm

Contact Taylor: tnwatson@syr.edu