"After getting my Level 1 (certificate), I knew this was something I wanted to bring to my community at the Y ... When I pitched the idea of an internal CrossFit ... they liked it the idea right away."
January is notoriously the busiest month in the fitness industry.
January 2 is like Black Friday in gym parking lots as New Year’s resolutioners flock to gyms around the country — especially at the YMCA, the oldest gym in the nation located in every state (founded in 1844).
The organization maintains a strong presence in Charlotte, N.C., with 22 gym locations throughout the city and surrounding metro area. Offering programs in everything from Zumba to Pilates, yoga to aerobics, youth sports and swimming, as well as a fully stocked weight room and cardio equipment, there is something for everyone — even CrossFit.
Ballantyne CrossFit at the Morrison Family YMCA and Harris YMCA CrossFit are transforming the fitness culture of the local Charlotte YMCA, as more and more dedicated Y-members take the risk to get off the stair master and give CrossFit a try.
“CrossFit is one of those things that you either are all in, or not in at all. Once you go CrossFit you never go back,” Crystal Trawick, senior fitness director of the Morrison YMCA, says on her discovery of CrossFit two years ago.
Before CrossFit, Trawick was a typical fitness enthusiast. A personal trainer at a local globo gym, she loved a good sweat and was always up for a challenge. But when a friend suggested she give CrossFit a try, Trawick was skeptical.
“I was completely against it at first. You know, it’s completely different than what I had always done,” she says. “Cardio. Weights. Routine. But then I gave it a chance at an affiliate here in Charlotte, and now, I’m hooked.”
Trawick now oversees the operation of Ballantyne CrossFit at Morrison YMCA — the first YMCA CrossFit affiliate in the greater Charlotte area.
“I fell into this job by coincidence when I met the head coach, Michelle Crawford, at my first competition,” she recalls. “She told me all about the impact CrossFit was having within the local YMCA and I knew I wanted to be part of it. As the fitness director, I oversee all the wellness programs, and I can’t be biased, but I have to admit, I believe everyone should do — or at least try — CrossFit.”
Crawford says many people at the Y have decided to do just that.
“We initially started in a very small room next to the indoor cycle studio. We only had one pull-up bar, a few barbells, boxes, plates and med balls, but the program took off and people started drinking the Kool-aid quickly,” Crawford says. “Within a year, we had totally outgrown that first space. So the Y decided to convert one of its basketball gyms into a CrossFit space, where we put in rubberized flooring, turf, a Rogue pull-up rig, rings and ropes in September 2011.”
The partnership is working well, Crawford says.
“After getting my Level 1 (certificate), I knew this was something I wanted to bring to my community at the Y where I had all my clients and had been training and working out for years,” she says. “When I pitched the idea of an internal CrossFit to the management, they liked the idea right away. I was also pregnant with my second child at the time, and I knew I would not be able to go to a traditional box without childcare for my own work and workouts, and I knew other moms could benefit as well.”
Member Edward Sutton agrees. He joined CrossFit at the Y primarily for the family-friendly atmosphere.
“The fact that my entire family can be members and I only have to pay a small surcharge for the opportunity is a luxury,” Sutton says. “If I had to have my own membership at a separate box it would be cost prohibitive.”
Sutton says he tries to educate and inspire other Y members who might be intimidated by CrossFit.
“If anyone is interested in CrossFit and they ask me about it, I tell them to sit down because this is going to take a while,” he says. “My best selling point is that I am 37 years old and in the best shape of my life. It can be intimidating because on TV all you see is Spencer Hendel or Rich Froning. What people do not see is the 65-year-old in the box snatching 75-pounds.”
To join Ballantyne CrossFit, one must already have a membership at the Y. An additional $90 will get you unlimited CrossFit classes.
Harris YMCA CrossFit
Brendan McNeirney, founder of Harris YMCA CrossFit, is on the same mission to open the eyes of gym-goers to an entirely different workout.
Open since October, McNierney is slowly changing the fitness attitudes at the Harris YMCA.
“Before I finally got the affiliate established, I was working at the Y, just as a part-time job helping out on the weight room floor, checking people in and everything. I would also help people out with their training, just as a volunteer, and lead them through a CrossFit workout or teach them some of the movements, and soon enough, you start seeing results,” he says. “Then, the other personal trainers started noticing and wondered what I was doing different, and they began asking me questions. There’s nothing like CrossFit.”
Within the Y, McNeirney still faces some skepticism about CrossFit, but is gaining a band of loyal followers.
“There are 20,000 members at the YMCA alone, so more and more people are curious about what CrossFit is and they are beginning to trickle in every month,” McNeirney says. “A big challenge in the beginning was having to share a lot of our space with the rest of the gym members. We made it work, and we recently finally got our own room and pull-up rack, but it still can be tight. The other gym-goers and trainers call us the ‘barnyard animals.’”
Coach Drew Hammond says he wished he found CrossFit a long time ago.
“I grew up here in Charlotte, training at this YMCA with the machines and free weight, and I wish I only would have known how to train then like I do now. I can very much relate to those typical ‘gym guys’ who think it’s crazy.”
Both McNeirney and Hammond are confident that more people will see the value of CrossFit.
“Affiliating with a YMCA is a good stepping stone for someone who may want to affiliate on their own, but wants to have the security that comes with essentially having someone watching over their shoulder,” Hammond explains. “And that is as much a good thing as it is a bad thing. Ultimately, I don't think we'll ever be where we truly want to be until the YMCA gives us some free reign with what we want to do. Sure, you can make your own decisions and control your own box, but practically everything you want to get done has to go up and down the chain of command before any money is spent or any equipment is moved.”
In the end, he just wants people to CrossFit.
“I'm all for people getting on board and kicking ass, whether that’s in the Y or not."
