Like SoulCycle and yoga, it’s become almost a religion for its practitioners, as Tara Isabella Burton wrote at Vox in 2018. Before this current controversy, there were more than 15,000.ĬrossFit devotees are fanatical, and the brand has built a loyal community that views it as a lifestyle, not just a workout. It’s not as strict as a franchise arrangement, meaning they can use their own logos and individualize their methods. Gyms that use the CrossFit name are called affiliates and they pay $3,000 per year. It uses basic equipment like kettlebells, ropes, and sandbags, with the exercises reminiscent of calisthenics and PE class - burpees, pull-ups, push-ups, box jumps. Some of the workouts are dubbed “ hero” workouts and honor military and first responders who died in the line of duty.Ī CrossFit program stipulates a different routine each day, called WODs, or “workouts of the day.” Gyms that feature the methodology are called “boxes,” with none of the fancy bells and whistles you’d find at upscale gyms. Dave Castro, the new CEO who has been with Glassman since the early days, is a former Navy SEAL.

He ended up teaching his quirky method of functional fitness techniques to the Santa Cruz sheriff’s department, and the brand forged a strong connection to the law enforcement and military communities. Glassman, an outspoken libertarian, founded the workout in 2000 after spending the ’90s getting kicked out of gyms where he worked as a personal trainer, according to a 2013 Inc. “But it’s been brewing for quite some time.” CrossFit’s history is littered with controversies about LGBTQ rights, guns, and raceįrom its inception, CrossFit has been polarizing.

“Nothing has ever happened to these guys,” says Maillard Howell, a co-founder of Dean Crossfit in Brooklyn, which he says is the largest black-owned CrossFit gym in New York City. And CrossFit has so far done everything wrong. The demand for systemic change amplified by the recent Black Lives Matter protests, however, have made this scandal seem more dire for the company, forcing actual action. “We’re not mourning for George Floyd - I don’t think me or any of my staff are”ĬrossFit and its sometimes contentious founder have weathered other controversies but for the most part have seemed untouchable. And Glassman retains ownership in the brand, meaning that even if he is out as CEO, he still earns money from the enterprise. Reebok, Rogue Fitness, and other brands cut ties with CrossFit. High-level trainers, athletes, and owners have resigned, vowed to disaffiliate from the brand, or spoken out, including past CrossFit Games winners like Katrin Davidsdottir, who owes her career and lucrative brand partnerships to CrossFit. Then, he made offensive comments while on a call with CrossFit gym owners (the audio of which was leaked to BuzzFeed), including, “We’re not mourning for George Floyd - I don’t think me or any of my staff are.” Glassman “retired” from his role as CEO on the evening of June 8 after backlash in the community grew, but at least 1,200 gyms of 15,000 so far have still threatened to pull their affiliations with the company. CrossFit didn’t even do that, remaining silent for over a week after Floyd’s death, which some in the community found disconcerting and even damning.įounder Greg Glassman then outraged people further when he wrote a controversial tweet about Floyd, comparing Floyd’s killing and the subsequent uprising to the coronavirus.

Consumers have demanded that brands take real action on racial inequality rather than just posting platitudes on Instagram. Since George Floyd’s killing at the hands of police and the global protests that have followed, companies across industries have found themselves in the middle of a reckoning. Now, the company is losing acolytes right and left. The pain they willingly put themselves through with small groups of other devoted fans forges deep bonds within the community. Proponents have been known to vomit into large tires after workouts involving throwing those tires around, and then come back again the next day. While many workout regimens have cult-like adherents, CrossFit still manages to stand out.

Strong together hackettstown crossfit