5 Helpful Tips When Shopping for a CrossFit Gym

Are you new to an area and searching for a new CrossFit gym (or “box”)? Or maybe you are finally wanting to try CrossFit for the first time? 

There are some key things to look for before you commit to joining a gym. Some of these things will be based on what’s the most important to you but here is a general list of things to be on the lookout for! 

5 Helpful Tips When Shopping for a CrossFit Gym:

1.Facility: Do they take care of their facility? 

While CrossFit is known for the old school garage gym aesthetic, this doesn’t mean it’s an excuse to let the gym be dirty and for members not to take care of the equipment. Does the gym look maintained? Do they have broken plates, malfunctioning machines, and generally not take care of their equipment? This is a sign that staff and members aren’t taking pride in their gym. If the gym is cared for, it means the community cares about the facility. 

2. Coaching: Does the coach come and greet you when you walk in the door? Was the coach hands on and helpful during the class? Did they correct your form? 

There is NOTHING worse than walking into a new gym (which can be very intimidating) and standing in the door awkwardly without a coach or staff member coming to help you. Personally as a CrossFit coach, I will wrap up anything I am doing as soon as possible to greet a potential new member and introduce myself clearly as a coach. I don’t want anyone standing there feeling lost and unwelcome. If the coach doesn’t make you feel welcome and show you around, this is a red flag for the attentiveness of their staff. 

If you try a class and the coach just tells you what the workout is and then acts as a cheerleader, that’s not a true coach. Is the coach demonstrating the movements in the workout? Are they explaining tips to perform well in the workout, and providing scaling options for more complex movements? Do they correct your form or give you tips and encouragement throughout the class? The coaching is HUGE when it comes to finding a CrossFit gym. 

3. Community: Are the members friendly? Do you like the community? 

We all can remember our first day of CrossFit, or our first day at a new gym. I’ve been a member of a few different communities as I’ve moved to new cities. I can vividly remember the exact members who came up to me on my first day and introduced themselves to me and made me feel welcome at each gym I’ve been a part of. Do any of the current members come up and introduce themselves to you? Or do they ignore your existence and make you feel left out? You need to feel like the community is the right vibe for you. 

I also love to ask if they do activities outside of the gym. So many of my close friends in my life have come from CrossFit. This is because we’ve been part of gyms that have done social events and helped us forge friendships both inside and outside of the gym. 

4. Programming: Is the programming well rounded? 

HUGE tip: ask to see the past few week’s programming. The programming at a gym is going to be what actually makes you a better athlete as it’s literally the workouts you will be doing every day. While it’s tough to determine good programming vs. not so good programming if you aren’t an experienced CrossFitter, here are a few ways to tell if you aren’t getting the best programming: 

• Are there any lifts they simply AREN’T doing? Example: do you look at the gym’s programming and notice that there aren’t any snatches programmed in the past few weeks? This tells me that their coaches aren’t experienced enough to be able to coach this movement, OR that they are avoiding a movement entirely due to fear. No CrossFit gym should shy away from coaching or including movements due to previous experience.  

• Are all the workouts similar timeframes or is there variety? Example: is everyday a long metcon, and you don’t see any EMOMs or shorter duration workouts? If we only train one type of workout each day, our body starts to adapt and they become easier over time. That’s why CrossFit’s motto includes “constantly varied”. If you do the same thing every day, you remain the same. You need to see variety with AMRAPs, EMOMs, long workouts, and short workouts. 

• Are they working on skills as well as lifts? Example: do you lift everyday, but there is never designated time to work on gymnastics skills like pull-ups, handstand push-ups or more? There are many movements in CrossFit that require more than just strength, they require technique and skill work. While you might not do skill work every day, it’s important that you see it periodically in programming!

5. Overall vibe: Do you find yourself wanting to go back tomorrow? 

While all of the things above are important, the real question is: do you want to go back tomorrow? If you are excited to go back for another workout, then you know you have found a place where you will be happy. 

There is never going to be a perfect CrossFit gym. But there ARE going to be CrossFit gyms that are perfect for YOU.