When you enter Carey and Ebonita Foster’s boxing gym take a right, walk down the hallway and take another right down the steps you’ll be in “The Dungeon,” the official name of the gym and the place where boxers, football players, basketball players, athletes, humans and aliens go to workout and recover.

The Dungeon, located at 11505 Brown Bridge Road next to Brown Bridge Auto Repair, had its grand opening on July 18. The gym was birthed from an idea from Carey and Ebonita to help support their son, Randy Foster, who got into boxing five or six years ago and is now ranked No. 1 in the state of Georgia and fourth in the country, but now it’s about more than that. It’s about helping the kids in the community and more.

“Our son was our initial motivation for the gym, but as of July 18 when we had our grand opening we got to meet and greet a lot of different kids and their parents and honestly all of the obstacles that we went through as far as obtaining this space and getting this place up and running, as of that day I’ve come to realize that this is way bigger than us, especially in this community here in Covington,” Ebonita said. “Having conversations with the kids and the parents, this vision, it started off with our son and the family business, but this building is here for a reason and it’s way bigger than us. I’m glad that we’re here to be able to provide that kind of services that we can to these kids.”

Carey Foster says he’s seen kids with talent go to college and end up having to sit long before they start simply because they weren’t conditioned to compete at a collegiate level. He and his wife want to eliminate that problem for kids in Covington.

“A lot of kids in this area have the talent, but they don’t have the resources or support to get them to that next level or get them notoriety or get them seen on a national level,” Carey Foster said.

“My wife and I, we came together and we just figured that if we were going to do something for our son then why not get a facility to where other kids in the community could utilize it as well. It’ll help get ‘em off the streets, give ‘em something to do and then if they really want to take it to the next level we have the equipment here that can help them do so,” he added.

Carey added that in any sport when you get to a nationwide elite level, everybody has talent, so it’ll come down to who has the strength, conditioning and the desire. As a gym, they focus on strength and conditioning for all sports, which is why it could be such an ideal spot for any athlete.

The equipment at The Dungeon is state-of-the-art. Carey says you’ll probably have to go to Atlanta or Gwinnett to get the type of equipment they provide. The equipment he’s speaking of other than the usual bench press, punching bags, speed bags is the equipment they have that helps athletes recover faster such as the infrared sauna, which pushes toxins out of the body through sweat glands. There’s also the hyperbaric oxygen machine, the cold/hot tub and body vibration machine, all of which help athletes recover quicker.

“At our gym it’s about recovery, health and wellness. We understand that the quicker you can recover the quicker you can get back to the gym and get back to the grind of it,” Carey said. “If it takes our competitors four or five days to recover but we have the equipment here that’ll allow you to recover in two-and-a-half days then come game night or come fight night then we’re gonna be a lot faster, a lot stronger and a lot better than our opponent. That’ll give us the upper hand. So far it’s been working.”

Ebonita says that they don’t just focus on working out. The Dungeon offers other services such as leadership, teen summits, and tutoring services inside their computer room where students can also do homework before getting in a good workout.

“It’s not just about getting your body strong, getting your hands strong. It’s about the strongest muscle in your body should be your brain,” Ebonita said.

Training classes for boxing vary based on age and experience ranging from novice, to intermediate and finally advanced.

The Dungeon offers many services outside of workouts and tutoring for children. They had their first zumba class on Wednesday and they’re looking to rent out space for dance classes, and they’re also looking to host amateur events, self-defense classes and strength training classes. To join, membership costs $60 for adults and $45 for kids, both with a one time $50 registration fee. The Fosters are also willing to work with families that join for their group rates.