Scobel Wiggins Photography

Inside a CrossFit gym—where is the basketball court?! A modular training space is a potent tool in the hands of a capable coach.

CrossFit is not a franchise. CrossFit gyms around the world are an extension of the CrossFit philosophy. However, each gym is allowed to run their business, their training philosophy, their fee structure, their class format, their every other detail about them in whatever way they like. Unlike McDonalds, what you get at one CrossFit does not represent what you will get at another.

Think of it like bike shops in Portland, Oregon. Some have multiple locations in town, most just have one location, some are in large 5000 square feet spaces, some are in little garage setups in the neighborhood, some are known for great customer service, and some have been around for decades. It is the same scenario with CrossFits in your area. The differences in the details, especially the coaching, are very important because they factor into whether or not you reach your athletic goals.

CrossFit gyms are notorious for being minimalists and come in all shapes and sizes. Some are garage gyms literally in someone's home. Many are 2K-5K square foot "boxes", warehouses that have been converted into a training center. Some look like the barn Rocky trained in before his fight against Draco. Some have all the modern bells and whistles of a 24 Hour fitness center.

It turns out great training requires very little in complicated equipment. If you have a squat rack, a barbell, some bumper plates, a pull-up bar, then you are doing really well for yourself. Although you will not find many weight machines at Crossfit Portland, you will find actual coaching on how to squat, deadlift, press, clean, jerk, and snatch. If the coaches at a CrossFit gym are not proficient in these areas, this might not be the right gym for your athletic goals. You will also find a supportive community, much like your Ultimate team, at a CrossFit gym.

CrossFit gyms are not like your typical gym where you can just drop in anytime and workout. At CrossFit Portland, members come to 1-hour classes scheduled throughout the day. Our class sizes average from 8-12 and this allows me to give individual attention during the class. I instruct, organize, and provide feedback in a class but do not do the workout. My role is to pay attention and coach. First, all classes start with a thorough warm-up, then it moves into organizing and practicing for the WOD, then "3, 2, 1...Go!" and the WOD commences. Scores are recorded, and then the class ends with targeted mobility work, a final part of training that is emphasized at CrossFit Portland.

How To Start

When I started CrossFit in April of 2007, there were about 400 CrossFit gyms in the world. Just two and half years later, there are almost 2000 gyms in the world. When I started, it was checkout a free class and then if you liked it, you could jump right into classes. That type of entry system into a CrossFit gym still exists but, in my opinion, is not the best way to start. Many gyms now require new members to do personal training or enroll in an initial course to learn the basics of CrossFit first. This ensures a higher level of safety for you when you do join the regular CrossFit classes. It also forms a "common language" among members at the gym and makes coaching much more efficient and effective for all. At CrossFit Portland, we have a 3-week On Ramp program that prepares new members for our classes. The focus of our On Ramp program is to teach the many lifts, especially the Olympic lifts, that we will use in our classes.

I am going to breakdown how you can start Crossfit with athletic goals in mind from the least expensive to the most expensive option.

The least expensive way to do CrossFit is at your typical gym or the campus rec center. Depending on your gym, you will find most of the equipment there. Follow CrossFit.com or Crossfitfootball.com for your WODS, watch as much as video as you can on the movements online at CrossFit.com. If you are interested in figuring out how to start CrossFit without hurting yourself, see this guide on CrossFit.com. I would also subscribe to the online CrossFit Journal ($25/year) and you will have access to excellent online coaching content that is not available for free. Problems with this method is that gyms tend to be busy and packed with people and your gym manager is not going to appreciate you taking up a bunch of equipment for your whacky workout and scaring the other patrons in the gym. CrossFit is so much more prevalent now that typical gyms are starting to create policies to ban CrossFit inside their facility. Finally, although this method is inexpensive, you still have the issues of motivation and intensity. Working by yourself and pushing it to high intensity is not something everyone is capable of.

An alternative method for all you do-it-yourself handyman types is to build your own garage gym. With some luck on craigslist and a few choice purchases, you can have a truly effective training setup in your own garage for a little over thousand. Here is a guide from CrossFit on how to outfit your own world-class garage gym. Pros are you can train whenever you want, drop weights, and do whatever you please since it is your garage. Cons are you can train whenever you want. As a friend of mine likes to put it, sometimes the freedom to choose is not really freedom at all. In my experience, people adhere to new behavior much more readily if you give them structure, like a set class schedule for instance.

If the two previous options do not appeal to you, it is time to visit a local CrossFit box near you. At most CrossFit gyms, there is usually a free introduction or trial class so you can see the gym and meet the coaches. You might live in an area where there are 30+ CrossFit gyms (i.e. Seattle) or only one gym. Remember, every CrossFit gym is independently owned (a few exceptions to this exist) and the differences between each do matter. I would first research the websites/blogs of the CrossFit gyms near you. CrossFit gyms usually have blogs as their main website to post their WOD, pictures, videos, and other stuff about their gym. You can tell a lot from a gym's website, like what kind of clientele they are targeting, do they make their own WODs, do they just follow CrossFit.com, do they regularly program strength lifting and Olympic lifting into their classes? What I look for in a gym is whether they create their own WODs, whether they lift heavy and Olympic lift every week, and if it looks fun and challenging. Most importantly, in my opinion, you should personally talk to the coaches about their athletic backgrounds and their ideas for Ultimate training. I got really lucky and started my training with Scott! Once you have found the right gym for your goals, be prepared to pay in the neighborhood of $120-$200/month for unlimited classes a month.

You don't have to go to a CrossFit gym for this type of training. You can get similar training if you have access to your collegiate strength and conditioning program for varsity athletes or from an experienced strength and conditioning professional in your local area. The former is usually not possible unless you are a collegiate athlete and the latter is the most expensive option.

Up until I found CrossFit, I thought my last year of collegiate Ultimate was when I was in the best shape of my life. My ACL injury in 2004 really set me back physically and mentally. After ACL rehab, the thought of returning to those "glory days" seemed far fetched. After CrossFitting for the last 2 1/2 years, I am now in the best shape of my life with renewed confidence and motivation to reach my goals. I am currently working on basic gymnastic skills and 10 yard, 40 yard, and 400 M sprint times.