Natalie Raitano has lived in New York and Los Angeles. The fitness expert has acted on television shows and trained numerous celebrities.
But for her, there’s no place like home.
Raitano moved back to Charleroi, Washington County, right before the pandemic in 2020 to be closer to her family.
“I am glad I did because right after I came back, my parents got covid,” said Raitano, 56, at her boutique fitness studio in Rostraver. “My sister has Down syndrome, so I just felt like I needed to come back. My hope is to better the community and to create a welcoming place for women my age to work out. After menopause, it can be more challenging to lose weight.”
Raitano packed up her belongings and her French bulldog Mya Rose, whom she rescued from Vanderpump Dog Foundation in Los Angeles, and flew home.
She was training clients in her father’s garage when a space became available at a boxing gym.
Superbodies by Nat, which she started online, will host a grand opening from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Saturday.
“I am reinventing myself in this fitness journey,” she said.
That journey took her to Los Angeles to become an actress after graduation from Mercyhurst University, where she studied dance and earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts. Her parents, Angela and Bart Sr., her brother Bart Jr. and sister Nicky have supported her every step of the way, she said.
From Los Angeles, she moved to New York and then back to Los Angeles. Her acting roles include the television show “VIP” with Pamela Anderson, where she played Nikki.
Raitano became a master trainer for Jillian Michaels, a fitness expert and renowned life coach perhaps best known for her stint on “The Biggest Loser.”
Raitano trained singer Cyndi Lauper in ballet and sculpting, as well as music producer L.A. Reid.
She worked for Barry’s Bootcamp in New York, which is where she met Kimberly Thier of California. The two continue to work out together virtually.
“In a world full of options, she stands out from anyone else,” Thier said. “I have not been able to find anyone like her, so that’s why I work out with her from across the country. What she brings is rare to find. She is so positive. She has definitely found her calling. She is truly one-in-a-million.”
She is, agreed Tammy Lenhart of Rostraver, who met Raitano at a kickboxing class. Lenhart told Raitano she was struggling to lose weight.
“Natalie told me, ‘I can fix that,’ ” said Lenhart, who has been working out with her for a year and a half. “And she did. She changed my workout, and I lost weight. She works you hard, and she cares about you, and you see results.”
Those results come from the commitment to exercising on a regular basis and from doing the correct workout for your body, Raitano said. As women age, they need to work their lower and upper body as well as their core.
Her clients range in age from teenagers to close to 80 years old and her studio is also open to men. Raitano offers one-on-one training, in-person classes and virtual. She uses punching bags, free weights, dumbbells, resistance bands, ankle weights, jump ropes and medicine balls.
“The workout is inviting with a lot of diversity,” said Georgette Baldwin of Stockdale, Washington County. “She keeps it fun. And it’s a whole body, mind and soul workout. She cares about us and you can tell.”
It’s not just about physical exercise.
“I am very faith-based,” Raitano said. “It’s a huge part of my life.”
She had her pastor, Garry Zeigler from the Spirit Food Christian Center in California, bless her studio virtually.
Her father got her involved in fitness at a young age. He would take her to the Charleroi High School track and she would sit and play in the sandbox in her hometown in the Mon Valley.
“You make your own happy,” Raitano said. “It’s great having my own business here where I grew up. I am living my purpose.”
JoAnne Klimovich Harrop is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact JoAnne by email at [email protected] or via Twitter .