Does Your Gym Know Your Name?

“The magic is in the movement, the art is in the programming, the science is in the explanation and the fun is in the community,” – CrossFit CEO and Founder, Greg Glassman. 

A very common aspect amongst anyone who works out at a CrossFit gym is that they cannot stop talking about how much they love it. This fact is so common that it’s even perpetrated pop culture. I believe there was an episode of the “Simpsons” that made a reference to it. The results people have gotten all over the world is a big piece of their passion for the program, but another key component is the community – not only the community at people’s respective gyms, but also all over the world. If you walk into any CrossFit gym IN THE WORLD you will immediately have a whole new group of friends. No questions asked. You could go to dinner THAT night after meeting them and you would feel as if you’ve known these people your whole life. If you go to a Lifetime or Gold’s in your own city that you normally don’t go to, will you have any friends there? I don’t ask to poke fun or belittle the globogyms, but it is strange that it doesn’t happen, isn’t it? I mean people work out at Lifetime or Gold’s and at CrossFit gyms, don’t they? So, why can’t you go to any Gold’s or Lifetime and immediately have friends? The reason is, again, the community. 

Working out is hard. Finding motivation to workout is hard. CrossFit workouts, specifically, are hard. You might go to your globogym with ONE buddy routinely, but what if they can’t go that day? Do you just say, “ehh, i’ll skip today?” Would anyone that works at the gym call you? CrossFit gyms create the environment for you to work out within a group. The reason being is because we know how hard it is to go to the gym every day. People try to bring friends along when they join a CrossFit gym, but the truth of the matter is there will always be a friend at the gym. The people who regularly attend the same session as you become your friends…your extended family in many and most cases. The owners and coaches of the CrossFit gym become your friend and your encouragers. You may go missing for a day and immediately get an email or phone call from someone wondering where you have been.

It’s no secret that people tend to do better in groups, for we weren’t made to be alone. I realize this is a rather gloomy comparison, but think of people trying to deal with alcoholism or drug addiction. They have to have the support of a group in order to get them past those addictions. There’s a reason for that. If left to our own devices, we would all fail to achieve the hard things in life that we really want. The group at a CrossFit gym, the community, is what really forms a bond for people. It becomes a place they enjoy being. They want to go every day because they know more than likely they’re going to see their friends or even new friends. So, does your gym know your name?