HEALTH & WELLNESS
Workout Challenges and Comrades at CROSSFIT 782 Words by Rebecca Spinner Photos: LaVie in Pictures
CrossFit 782 is a true success story. This local gym didn’t just outgrow its previous address—its membership has virtually doubled in about a year.
B oth Mike Ives and his CrossFit 782 co-owner, Brett Roberts, seem excited that their gym now has more than 200 members. They’re especially enthusiastic about members’ diverse ages, genders, and fitness levels. “It’s open to everybody,” emphasizes Ives. Ages range from seniors to teens; Roberts coaches a 3:30 p.m. class especially for teenagers.
short. They combine gymnastics, weightlifting, running, and lots of other things.” While CrossFit is accessible, it’s also challenging. It’s “very popular with athletes and first responders,” Ives notes. Members can tweak workouts for their strengths and weaknesses, and the atmosphere is far from high- pressure. On the contrary, members keep each others’ morale high. “The workouts are great. The coaching is rock- solid. But overall, CrossFit 782 is about community.” “It’s a positive, supportive environment people want to belong to,” agrees Roberts, who says members’ visits bolster “both physical and mental health.”
New arrivals at CrossFit 782 get their bearings at a complimentary intro class, subsequently learning the ropes through a private or semiprivate three-class Fundamentals Program. Following the Fundamentals Program, they’re free to attend classes and “open gym” hours as often as they choose. Both Ives and Roberts have trained in CrossFit for years —which, apparently, isn’t rare. “We have members who’ve been with us for a decade,” Ives says. However, “We want everyone to leave every class better than when they arrived, whether you’ve been with us ten years, or ten classes. At the end of the day, it’s you against yourself.”
Among people unfamiliar with CrossFit, Ives acknowledges,
misconceptions about workout intensity aren’t
unusual. However, he doesn’t describe CrossFit as punishing or elitist. Rather, he says, it’s a straightforward system consisting of efficient, varied workouts emulating natural body movements. “Workouts are sometimes long, sometimes
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