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Fitlab filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in Delaware, reporting estimated liabilities of $100 million to $500 million, assets of $10 million to $50 million and 1,000 to 5,000 creditors. The filing follows Y7’s studio closures and Nike Studios’ shutdown; Ragnar’s CEO says a new investor group is funding events as it works toward acquiring the race series.
Fitness holding company Fitlab, whose portfolio included the Y7 yoga studio chain and Ragnar relay races, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in Delaware this week, reporting estimated liabilities of $100 million to $500 million. The filing comes weeks after Y7 closed all its physical studios and as Ragnar moves toward new ownership.
In its petition to the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware, Fitlab estimated assets of $10 million to $50 million and listed between 1,000 and 5,000 creditors. Those figures are estimates in the bankruptcy filing; the reported ranges do not establish the eventual value of assets available to creditors or the final amount of claims.
The filing follows the closure of Y7’s physical locations. Founder Sarah Larson Levey wrote in a Sept. 16 Substack post that studios began going dark in late August and September, with the last closing by Sept. 11. Fitlab acquired Y7 in late 2024. The chain’s planned move into franchising did not take place, according to the report.
Fitlab’s portfolio also included Ragnar, fitness equipment maker Assault Fitness, RPM Training, XPT and other studio and fitness businesses. Nike Studios, which Fitlab operated, opened in 2023 and ended operations in March. The report also describes Mile High Run Club as defunct and says Racked appears to be closed.
The Filing Puts Several Fitness Brands at Risk
The filing matters to creditors, employees, customers and event participants because it places Fitlab’s finances under a court-supervised bankruptcy process. The company’s estimated liability range is substantially higher than its estimated asset range, although the filing alone does not say how much creditors will recover or which businesses will continue operating.
For Y7 customers and workers, the studio closures have already changed access to the chain’s in-person classes. For Ragnar participants, the immediate question is different: whether scheduled races can continue while the ownership process advances. Ragnar CEO Philip LaHaye said a new investor group has funded seven events since mid-August, offering a sign of ongoing event activity but not, by itself, confirmation that the acquisition has closed.
The case also affects businesses that were grouped under one holding company but may have different operating prospects. The bankruptcy filing and related developments do not establish that every Fitlab brand will close. Their status may depend on ownership arrangements, financing and decisions made during the court process.
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Y7 Sale and Closures Preceded Filing
Fitlab acquired Y7 in late 2024 in a deal that founder Sarah Larson Levey said was intended to support franchising. In comments to Athletech News in September, she said Y7 was generating $10 million in annual revenue and $1.2 million in consolidated EBITDA when she sold it. Those financial figures are her account of the business at that time, not figures established in the bankruptcy petition cited in the report.
Larson Levey said an entity called VM Fitness took over Y7 this summer and missed payroll in early August. She attributed the chain’s decline to decisions by Fitlab and VM Fitness. The cited report does not provide a response from either Fitlab or VM Fitness to those allegations. The chronology places the reported payroll issue and studio closures shortly before Fitlab’s bankruptcy filing.
Fitlab’s other brands had also faced change. Nike Studios closed in March, while Ragnar is moving toward new ownership. In a letter to participants sent the day after Fitlab filed, Ragnar CEO Philip LaHaye said an investor group had funded seven events since mid-August and described Fitlab’s bankruptcy petitions as a step toward completing the race series’ acquisition.
“Watching it end this way has broken my heart in a way I don’t have words for.”
— Sarah Larson Levey, Y7 founder, in a Sept. 16 Substack post
Creditors and Brand Futures Remain Unclear
The available filing details give broad estimated ranges rather than a final accounting of Fitlab’s debts, assets or creditor claims. The report does not specify which creditors are owed money, how the liabilities are distributed among Fitlab’s businesses, or what recovery creditors might receive. The company’s plans for restructuring or selling assets are also not described in the source material.
The future of individual brands remains unsettled. Y7’s physical studios have closed, but the source does not establish whether the brand, its assets or any other parts of its business will be sold or revived. Larson Levey’s statements about VM Fitness, missed payroll and responsibility for the chain’s collapse are allegations attributed to her; responses from Fitlab and VM Fitness are not included.
For Ragnar, LaHaye’s account confirms funding for seven events since mid-August, but does not confirm that the acquisition has been completed or set out its terms. The filing’s effect on future events and the timing of a change in ownership remain unclear.
Court Proceedings and Ragnar Deal
Fitlab’s Chapter 11 case will proceed in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware. The filing begins a court process in which the company’s finances and any restructuring or sale proposals can be addressed. The source report does not give a hearing date, a proposed reorganization plan or a timeline for resolving the case.
Ragnar’s next milestone is whether the investor group’s effort to acquire the race series reaches completion. LaHaye said the bankruptcy petitions were a step toward that outcome and that the group had funded seven events since mid-August. The terms, timetable and final status of the acquisition were not provided in the report.
Creditors, employees and customers will need further court filings and statements from the companies to learn which Fitlab businesses may continue, change ownership or cease operating. Until those details emerge, the reported asset and liability figures remain estimates and the status of Fitlab’s other brands remains uncertain.
Key Questions
What did Fitlab report in its bankruptcy filing?
Fitlab estimated $100 million to $500 million in liabilities, $10 million to $50 million in assets and between 1,000 and 5,000 creditors in its Chapter 11 petition in Delaware. These are estimates reported in the filing.
What happened to Y7’s studios?
Y7 closed all its physical studios. Founder Sarah Larson Levey said the closures occurred in late August and September, with the final location closing by Sept. 11.
Is Ragnar continuing to hold events?
Ragnar CEO Philip LaHaye said a new investor group funded seven events since mid-August. The report does not confirm whether the group’s acquisition of the race series has been completed or detail the schedule for future events.
Does the filing mean every Fitlab brand will close?
No such conclusion is established by the available information. Fitlab’s filing puts its finances into a Chapter 11 process, but the report does not specify the future of every brand in its portfolio.
What is not yet known about the case?
The source does not provide a final accounting of Fitlab’s debts and assets, a plan for restructuring or selling businesses, or expected creditor recoveries. The timing and terms of Ragnar’s proposed ownership change are also unclear.
Source: athletechnews.com
