CrossFit® focuses on functional movements through weightlifting, gymnastics and endurance exercises. Its ever changing Workout of the Day (WOD) keeps things interesting and enjoyable for people of all ages. Whether you’re a hard-core athlete, or someone new to the gym, the exercises can be adapted for your level of fitness and for your individualized goals.
“In your CrossFit® class, every age and ability are mixed,” says Teresa Briest, owner of Tangletown CrossFit. “You can modify and you can scale and our coaches are trained how to help you.”
Teresa grew up playing sports - first basketball, then volleyball, and then her real passion, swimming. After she had her children, she got into triathlons, which led her to CrossFit®.
“One of my friends from triathlon decided to try CrossFit®, and lo and behold, we then got into CrossFit®,” she says. “That was 10 or 12 years ago and it’s been CrossFit® and swimming ever since.”
Teresa took over ownership of Tangletown, which opened in 2012, just over five and a half years ago. She says it’s a community-based gym with really great members.
“I think right now with COVID, it allows people to come in and feel safe, but also communicate and socialize with friends,” she says. “We’re very supportive of everybody, so everyone is welcome. It’s exciting to see the coaches and the athletes and people helping each other out.”
Teresa says all it usually takes is one to two times for people to get hooked on CrossFit®. Tangletown encourages folks to come in and try it out to realize that it’s not intimidating. Sometimes people will start with drop-in classes, but the majority become long-term full members once they decide that once a week is not enough.
“They just find that CrossFit® offers a lot, from barbell lifting with the Olympic lifts, plus strength training with squats and deadlifts, to gymnastics and metabolic conditioning, which is your cardio, like swimming, running, or biking,” she says.
When you come into Tangletown and most CrossFit® gyms, says Teresa, the main thing you’ll see is their rig which is right in the middle. This is where all your pull-up bars and squat stations are located.
“Our rings hang from there and so that’s your main focus,” she says. “You’ll also see a lot of Olympic lifting barbells, dumbbells, kettlebells and medicine balls. Since CrossFit® is constantly varied, there are also sandbags and ropes. You can learn one movement on dumbbells, and then you transition that movement to a barbell and then you do it with the sandbag. There’s a lot of ways to change that same movement so you’re not using the same piece of equipment all the time.”
Including Teresa, there are a total of eight coaches, each with very diverse backgrounds. She, of course, is a swimmer, while another has a Pilates and yoga background. One is an NCAA track athlete, and another is an Olympic lifting coach. All are certified in CrossFit®.
In addition to group classes, Tangletown also offers personal coaching. “If you want to work on a certain skill, you have that one-on-one time that’s catered just for what you want to get better at,” she says. “Or, if you’re limited in your movement, are injured, or have been injured, it’s a good way to work with a coach one on one to assess what they can do to help you. That’s why personal training works well for people.”
Besides guidance on exercise, Teresa has also incorporated a nutrition program into their repertoire. “We have three different nutrition coaches and I’m one of them,” she says. “We’re not dieticians, but we have certificates in nutrition.
“The nutrition part of what we do is more behavioral and emotional. Basically, how to get healthy and stay healthy for the long haul based on what you’re already doing or what you can do better, and making better choices. It’s about living life with a doable nutrition program that is very specific to each individual based on what they need.”
Teresa said that they’ve seen the latest group of people grow and make some really good and healthy changes during this time when people are not getting out much, but have time at home to cook.
Throughout the pandemic, Teresa states that they have been doing an excellent job of keeping clients and staff safe. Even though they are allowed to have 14 people in a class at one time, they cap them at 12. All participants are more than eight feet apart, so they go above and beyond the six feet requirement. Everyone has their own sanitized square to work out in, with their own equipment.
“We know beforehand how many people are coming and exactly who’s coming,” says Teresa. “After they leave, the floors are sanitized and cleaned. We also open up our garage-sized doors to let in fresh air all the time. Everyone wears masks, except when working out, which is also allowed under the state of Minnesota guidelines. When it comes to those, we’re top notch.”
To find out more about Tangletown CrossFit, go to https://www.tangletowncrossfit.com/.