I've been a member at 2st for one year and a little over one month, and I can say with complete certainty that I would not have been able to get through the past year without the community and support of this gym.
When I first joined, I was in my last semester of my graduate degree and it was about 3 months before the pandemic hit us here in Philly. I had been lost trying to stay healthy and motivated on my own and was unhappy with how I felt, how I looked, and how my body had changed as I had gone from being very active to working 3 jobs and being a full time student with no time to take care of myself. I joined 2st because I was curious. I knew classmates in my graduate program who had found success and support in CrossFit style gyms. I googled "CrossFit near me" and found 2 street.
My trial class, I spent the whole time both amazed and insanely jealous of how confident, strong, and casual everyone was with their barbells. I was absolutely terrified. Being insecure and nervous, I made jokes about how I could never do that. The coach, Emily, looked at me like I had 3 heads. "Of course you can".
Over the course of the first three months of 2020, each coach made sure I was not only included in class, but that I had everything I needed to succeed. It didn't matter to anyone in the gym that I was using a PVC pipe or empty 15lb barbell, which allowed me to be less self critical and celebrate each any every small success. Everything I did was met with genuine support and excitement, and the attitude and culture in the gym was far from what I expected when I first heard of crossfit. Coaches are always able to identify where you need support, where you need to be pushed, and alway encourage you for showing up. All you really have to do is show up, and the coaches will help you get through.
Through the pandemic, the sense of community, trust, and camaraderie has only grown. Everyone wears their masks, cleans everything they touch, and each member is courteous and mindful of the comfort level and needs of other gym members. I genuinely feel safer at this gym than my workplace as an 'essential worker'.
Beyond the safety and support I have felt, beyond the personal growth and how I have been taught to safely and successfully lift weight and do crazy, fun, exciting movements I never thought I could, I have found a group of people that I can be my genuine self with. I've shown up to the gym in the midst of anxiety attacks due to how the pandemic has affected me personally, I've shown up so disoriented from trying to finish my graduate thesis in one night (whoops) that I couldn't see straight, and I've been given nothing but support - "you're here now, you can leave everything else and we will help you find something here to make you feel better". Both times, it was like someone had hit a refresh button or a restart button. I had never realized how impactful exercise was to mental health until those moments. On the good days, no one is thrown off by my terrible sense of humor or my bad puns. I'm never judged on my appearance, on my gender, or sexuality. Instead of being baffled or thrown off by my personality, I'm accepted for who I am and not only welcomed for it, but encouraged to keep being myself and being honest with who I am.
2 street is anything but 'just a gym'. It's where you can walk away from the stress of everything else and find success within yourself that you get to carry with you everywhere you go. It's a place where you are celebrated for being yourself, for your individual goals and successes, and where you will find friends that will encourage you to be the best version of yourself and root for you every step of the way. I can say with complete certainty that I would not have gotten through the past year without the support of this gym. read more
