"Even if someone comes in for MMA, I always explain to them what CrossFit (is) and extol its virtues.”
Joel Gerson recently added CrossFit to his 13,000-square-foot mixed martial arts facility in Toronto. He found CrossFit similar to the training he knew and loved as a teen. At age 12, Gerson was taught by an Israeli judo and jiu jitsu master with a very interesting approach to training.
"I was lucky in many ways. In each class there was an intense commando-style workout using functional bodyweight exercises that were never the same — ever,” Gerson recalls. “I mean, I was training for over a decade with him and exercises were always varied and workout sessions were stimulating and fun."
Throughout his teens, Gerson fought at the international level for jiu-jitsu and the national level for judo. He fought in the oldest MMA organization in the world (Shooto from Japan) where he was the first person to defeat the reining Japanese champion, Rumina Sato. Sato was regarded as one of the best pound-for-pound, no-holds-barred fighters in the world at the time. It was Gerson's first professional fight, and he won in the first round.
Gerson was a five-time Canadian Jiu-Jitsu Champion, three-time Ontario Judo Champion and the North American Fearless Fighting Champion. With 25 years of experience in martial arts and fitness, Gerson is a certified MMA judge. He has been teaching for 20 years and holds black belts in judo and jiu-jitsu.
In 2005, Gerson opened Revolution MMA in Thornhill, Ontario. Two years later, he was quickly becoming overloaded with clients and he opened his second location in North York.
CrossFit was becoming popular in Toronto, and Gerson visited CrossFit Academy of Lions to give it a shot. Soon after, he completed the Level 1 Seminar, added CrossFit to the schedule at Revolution MMA and CrossFit Rev MMA was born.
The incorporation of CrossFit has been seamless from its inception, Gerson says. With four training areas, an octagon and a boxing ring, there are possibilities for several combinations of workouts.
“Often people might push what they believe to be the best fitness program onto someone. But if someone does not enjoy that program and their attendance is lacking for whatever reason, then it renders the applicability of its fundamentals and principals useless. So the key in my experience is for the average person to find something they enjoy doing and at least get them moving and active, and possibly learning a new art,” Gerson explains.
"Not everyone will be able to smash deadlifts, or be able to choke out a guy twice their size, but they can be in better shape than they are now. Even if someone comes in for MMA, I always explain to them what CrossFit (is) and extol its virtues.”
If people come to Revolution specifically for CrossFit, boxing or Krav Maga, Gerson finds they are generally curious and will cross between classes offered in the programming.
"The CrossFit WODs are an amazing opportunity to gain an edge over our competition. The equipment is especially great for our Brazilian jiu jitsu competitors,” he says. “It's almost an unfair competitive advantage for grip development (key in grappling) to have ropes and chin-up bars everywhere."
