CrossFit founder Greg Glassman once summed up CrossFit in the following sentence:
- “The magic is in the movement, the art is in the programming, the science is in the explanation, and the fun is in the community.”
If you were to step into any CrossFit gym anywhere, you would likely always see a few things.
- There’s always a “Workout of the Day,” classes are usually an hour long, and the whiteboard is full of seemingly made-up words and acronyms.
And at least one person is working out shirtless, no matter the weather.
However, despite following the same methodology and principles, every gym is unique in its own way, defined by its location, its own culture, and community.
- We took to social media to learn about some traditions or special events that gyms across the affiliate map celebrate, and we got some pretty cool answers. Check them out below.
- Note: Some of these quotes were lightly edited for clarity.
Birthday Specials
Doing burpees for each year is a tradition, but some gyms celebrate that special day with a twist.
- “If you show up for the workout on your birthday, after the WOD, you get to do an Echo bike sprint for your age in calories, and then you chug a drink of your choosing. It’s pretty fun, and pretty much everyone agrees that the biking is easier than the chugging! – User @InnateAdept via Reddit.
[Related: Best Home Gyms]
- “They have this wheel of exercises that you can spin on your birthday, so you never know what you’re gonna get,” — User @Birdflower99 via Reddit.
- “If it’s your birthday, you have to wear the birthday weighted vest for the workout so everyone knows you’re one year older,” — CrossFit Murrayfield.
Community Events
Whether it’s an annual fundraiser, monthly outdoor WODs, or daily class practices, CrossFitters lean into their communities hard. Here are a few of the examples we liked:
- “If you have been a long-time member and you’re moving away, you come in [and] take part in all the classes on Friday so you can say goodbye to the other members and coaches. This one is a choice, but we have a lot of people take it up. This is a hopper WOD, always random,“ — CrossFit Murrayfield.
- “Once a month, we have a ‘FUNctional’ day. Friends and family are invited. Last month, it was a WOD on the football field. This month, it’s a four- or eight-mile hike in one of our nearby parks,” — User @Rhinestone_Tiger via Reddit.
- “We have icebreakers every day, like ‘say your name’ and ‘would you rather this or that?’ I love it, and [it] is an amazing way to get to know new people. Like last time was, ‘Would you rather have a dog that can speak or a cat that can pay half the rent?’ People’s replies were funny 😄,“ — Cigar City CrossFit.
- “Our affiliate does a guys’/girls’ night, monthly. Open to members and non-members, we get together for a workout and then do something fun after. The last two guys’ nights have been the ‘Bear Complex’ followed by a cornhole tournament and a fun chipper followed by a beer pong tournament. This makes for a light-hearted event to get to know other guys/gals that visit at other times as well as a fun intro for anyone wanting to try CrossFit,” — User @logasandthebubba via Reddit.
- “[On the] first Friday every month, we meet up at one of one member’s pizza restaurant for a social after the PM classes,” — RCF CrossFit.
- “Our gym in Budapest, Hungary, regularly runs a cardio & cocktails event. One of the coaches and two members are amongst the best bartenders in Budapest, so members are in for a treat,” — CrossFit Glasshouse.
[Related: Best Creatine Supplements]
- “We have spring and fall market days. Members set up tables and see products or services they make. Ranges from homemade jams [and] pastries to 3-D printed toys or business services,” — CrossFit Convergence.
- “We are hosting our annual charity competition for the seventh year. It’s an all-day event to raise money for West Michigan Veterans. Every penny goes to the charity. Foods, prizes, sponsors, fun!” — Rogue River CrossFit.
[Related: Best Squat Racks]
- “We have Lions Day every Friday. It’s a special long workout [with teams] of three, and you get to know new people from class and work out,” — CrossFit Al Ain.
- “My gym has a monthly challenge where you have pretty much all month to complete. The catch is nothing done within the WOD can count towards the challenge. This month, it’s a 15,000-meter row,” — CrossFit Siege Nation.
Holiday Workouts
Most holidays on the calendar now have a CrossFit WOD attached. Some holidays are marked by hero or memorial workouts, like “Murph” on Memorial Day. Others, like Christmas, are celebrated with grueling team or community-style workouts like the “12 Days.”
We wanted to learn what CrossFitters outside the U.S. do and find out about some of the lesser-known celebrations. Take note for the next time you’re traveling abroad!
- “Our box celebrates all the big festivals in India, which are many, in a very cool manner. For every festival, they have a party and then a WOD designed around the festival with cool names to the movements,” — User @hustlrrrrr vía Reddit.
- “Our gym does a tribute WOD every September for a former member, Rob Hayes, who passed away a few years ago, and another one in November for former member Jess Allman. We also have our inner-box competition every spring,“ — CrossFit M4G in Indianapolis.
[Related: Best Rowing Machines]
- “Mixtape Athletics has an annual tradition of a champagne brunch following our Pride WOD,” — Mixtape Athletics.
- “On Canada Day, we always do ‘The NCR,’ where we run a couple of miles to a local beach in partners. We do a brunch of alternating hill runs when we get there, then a ton of burpees and push-ups and squats, and then we go back to the gym another couple of miles for beers and BBQ. Every August, we have a memorial golf game (The Chris Messina Golf Classic) for the bother of one of the guys in our gym who died of cancer. It’s teams of four from the gym, and this year, we raised $35,000 for the local children’s hospital,” — CrossFit NCR.
More CrossFit Stories
- “It’s Time to Fan the Flame”: Lena Richter Lights a Spark in Huntington Beach
- Meet the Man Who Did 1,000 Murphs
- From Weightlifting to Gym Ownership: Meet Two-Time Olympian and CrossFit Affiliate Owner Wes Kitts
Featured image: @welcome_to_the_mill / Instagram
