Meet Luca: Defying Expectations, One Workout at a Time

Long before Luca became a ZOOZ athlete, his story began with something his family wasn’t sure would ever be possible.

Years before Luca was born, his mom, Dana, was in a serious accident that affected multiple organs. She was told she wouldn’t be able to have children.

Then came Luca.

His arrival was anything but easy. Luca was born about three months premature after an emergency C-section, weighing just under two pounds. He spent his first three months in the NICU, and his family faced tremendous uncertainty about whether he would survive and what his future might look like.

For Dana, the fact that Luca was here at all felt like a miracle.

Even his name tells part of that story. Luca means “bringer of light” in Italian, and his name is also an anagram of UCLA—a tribute to the doctors and nurses at UCLA who cared for both Dana and Luca.

Growing Up Luca

From the beginning, there were many predictions about the challenges Luca might face.

His family was told to prepare for significant health and developmental issues if he survived. Over the years, Luca underwent surgeries, including procedures related to his hearing. His irises also never fully developed, giving his eyes their distinctive shape. Around two and a half years old, he was diagnosed with autism and began receiving services and therapies.

Through it all, his family continued finding ways to support him, encourage him and give him opportunities to grow.

Today, Luca is 23 years old.

He attends Pierce College, where he is taking classes focused on building independence. He’s great with computers and has an extraordinary ability to put together puzzles—Dana says he can complete a 2,000-piece puzzle in about two weeks. He also plays piano, including pieces by Mozart and Beethoven.

And more recently, Luca discovered something else he loves.

Fitness.

Finding a Place Where Luca Could Thrive

Before ZOOZ, exercise wasn’t a regular part of Luca’s life.

He had participated in some activities, including basketball and karate, but Dana struggled to find an environment where she truly felt comfortable leaving him.

At ZOOZ, she found something different.

“I could leave him here and I’m fine because I know that he’s safe,” Dana says. “I would never do that anywhere else.”

Luca initially joined ZOOZ through group classes, including boxing.

Coach Chris remembers those first classes clearly.

Luca was shy, quiet and hesitant to make eye contact. The sounds, movement and activity of a group boxing class could be a lot to take in. Instead of expecting Luca to immediately adapt to the environment, Chris and the ZOOZ coaches gave him time. They positioned him where he could feel more comfortable and allowed him to gradually become familiar with the class.

Class by class, Luca started participating more.

And there was one part he especially loved.

At the end of the boxing class, the athletes would come together, raise their hands and cheer “ZOOZ Boxing!”

Luca would stretch his arms into the air and hold them there, sometimes long after everyone else had finished.

For Chris, it was an early glimpse of how much Luca enjoyed being part of the group.

From “He Doesn’t Really Run” to Sprinting

As Luca became more comfortable at ZOOZ, Chris began working with him one-on-one.

Chris asked Dana what she wanted them to work on.

Her answer was fairly open-ended. Luca didn’t really run. He didn’t really jump. Whatever Chris could help him with, she welcomed.

So they started there.

One of the first breakthroughs came with running.

Dana told Chris she had never seen Luca truly sprint before. He would walk or jog, but at 23 years old, she had never watched her son run fast.

Chris began incorporating running drills into their sessions.

And then one day, Luca sprinted.

Dana watched.

For a mother who had spent Luca’s entire life watching him challenge expectations, seeing her son run that fast for the first time was emotional.

Then came jumping.

At first, Chris worked on simply teaching Luca to jump forward with both feet together. They practiced moving from circle to circle, then jumping side to side and backward.

Eventually, they moved to vertical jumps.

Six inches.

Then nine.

Then 12.

Chris says Luca eventually progressed to approximately a 12- to 15-inch box jump.

But what stood out to Chris wasn’t simply the height of the box.

It was Luca’s determination to get on top of it.

If Luca struggled with an exercise, he didn’t want to move on. He wanted another chance. Chris learned how to give him space, redirect him when necessary and then challenge him to try again.

And when Luca finally landed a jump, there were high fives, cheers and a very proud mom watching nearby.

“He doesn’t quit,” Chris says. “He works hard.”

Building Strength and Trust

Running and jumping are only part of Luca’s progress.

Chris has worked with him on balance, coordination, posture and movement mechanics.

Something as simple as standing on a BOSU ball was once intimidating. At first, Luca needed to hold onto a bar. Then he progressed to lightly holding Chris’s hand.

Now, he can balance without holding onto anything.

And instead of avoiding the BOSU, Chris says Luca now looks for it at the end of his workouts because he wants to do it again.

That progress has required something beyond good programming.

It requires trust.

Over the months they’ve worked together, Chris and Luca have developed a relationship that Chris describes as more than simply coach and athlete.

“I also feel like a big brother to him,” Chris says.

As their connection grew, Chris started seeing more of Luca’s personality. He heard him laugh. They began joking with each other. Chris learned when he could push Luca, when to give him space and how to challenge him in a way that made Luca want to keep going.

The Changes That Don’t Show Up on a Fitness Test

Today, Luca comes to ZOOZ five days a week.

He boxes. He runs. He jumps. He does circuit training.

He’s stronger and more physically active than he was before.

But when Dana talks about what ZOOZ has meant to Luca, she doesn’t only talk about exercise.

She talks about confidence.

“I’ve seen his growth just by him working out not only just physically, but mentally,” she says.

She notices it when they walk around the neighborhood.

“He’s walking with a purpose,” Dana says. “He’s got direction…he’s just more present.”

She sees changes at home, too. One morning, Luca became interested in helping her prepare breakfast, cutting fruit and putting it on his waffle. It was something Dana hadn’t seen him do before.

She connects moments like these to the confidence he experiences at ZOOZ, where coaches celebrate his accomplishments and encourage him to keep trying.

Chris sees that confidence growing inside the gym.

The athlete who once entered quietly now runs toward the door, ready to work out.

Luca acknowledges Chris when he sees him. Other athletes greet him. He’s engaging more with the people around him.

“He’s really opening up,” Chris says.

A Gym and a Community

For Dana, one of the most meaningful parts of ZOOZ is knowing that Luca has somewhere he belongs.

Before, he could be relatively sheltered outside of school. At ZOOZ, he is surrounded by coaches and athletes who know him.

People say hello.

They encourage him.

They work out beside him.

They notice when he succeeds.

“It’s like family, to be honest,” Dana says. “I feel like you guys are part of our family now.”

That community extends to parents, too. Dana has met other parents who understand some of the experiences her family has had. The gym has become not only a place for Luca to exercise, but a place for connection.

And Luca makes sure ZOOZ is on the schedule.

Dana says he wants to know which days they’re going, and he talks about it in the morning.

“Are we going to ZOOZ today?”

Keeping the Bar High

There is a tendency to decide what someone with a disability can or cannot do before they’ve ever been given the opportunity to try.

Luca’s story is a reminder of why ZOOZ believes in doing something different.

Chris admits that even coaches can sometimes underestimate what an athlete will ultimately be able to accomplish.

Then the athlete surprises them.

That’s why his experience with Luca has reinforced something at the heart of ZOOZ’s philosophy: don’t lower the bar simply because an athlete has a disability.

“We should always keep that bar high,” Chris says. “Always push our athletes to where we know they can get to…because they’re capable of doing it.”

For Luca, that has meant discovering that he can sprint.

That he can jump.

That he can box.

That he can balance.

That he can get stronger.

That he can make friends.

And that when something is difficult, he can try again.

Twenty-three years ago, Luca entered the world weighing less than two pounds, after his mother had once been told she wasn’t supposed to be able to have children at all.

Today, he runs through the doors of ZOOZ ready for his next workout.

And perhaps that’s the most important part of Luca’s story.

It’s not about proving every prediction wrong.

It’s about what can happen when someone is given the support, patience, coaching, community—and opportunity—to discover for themselves just how much they’re capable of.