I had an interesting, fun, and productive experience here! The patrons I felt initially (like so…read moremany others whom I've spoken with who initially joined) were in cliques, not welcoming, and I felt very much like an outsider at first. The Crossfit community in northern Indiana was very welcoming from the beginning no matter how diverse a person is. Being openly gay, I felt it was difficult at first to establish a rapport with anyone. I don't talk about my sexuality unless I'm asked. I overheard a couple of homophobic remarks from the patrons, not the staff. Jay, the owner, immediately squashed this when he heard a remark from a patron which I very much appreciated.
The positives from my experience: I was trained by individuals who obviously have a passion for Crossfit. I was able to establish a rapport with a few fellow patrons. Through hard work, encouragement, and consistency, I improved my fitness level! The staff is very educated and Jay, Holly, Andreas and others became a sizable part of my success. I never was one to ever have a goal to compete in Crossfit games (or even an intetest) rather I wanted to get fit. I feel more of the attention of the some coaches is placed on individuals who actually want to compete in local competitions and feel perhaps a seperate class for those individuals may be more ideal. Once I established friendships, it truly is a familial type of environment where the patrons encourage one another for the most part. I hired Jay Roney and Andreas Peter for personal training. I've worked with and had MANY trainers in my lifetime. I can say with total honesty these two men are great trainers and worth the extra money and personal training time. Andreas is better than some of the strength and conditioning coaches at my Alma Mater IMO. What he lacks in tact he makes up for in knowledge and program design. Jay Roney stayed after evening classes to meet with me for training sessions! I think I was his first. He is very motivated in helping his patrons. Simply stated, he appears to care and goes above and beyond the scope of his work. The price of this great facility is very affordable as far as Crossfit facilities go. They are charitable and very involved in the community and wellness events.
The negatives: again, I felt like an outsider like others who join initially, I did not see an AED around and I hope all employees are CPR certified (there may be one there and I just overlooked it), initially nobody responded to me when I asked for personal training sessions for which they advertise on their website and I felt like it might have been personal as to why no one would call me back (they did eventually call after I made multiple phone calls and emails), they have childcare but the staff HAVE THEIR INFANTS in the front of the room! That's my biggest complaint. One instructor in particular would sometimes be holding and focusing on her baby instead of the class as pointed out to me by another staff member. I get it. As a new parent, I would want my child with me all the time. I don't have children though, I'm the customer, and I'm paying for services. I want staff eyes on my form because these Olympic style motions require immaculate form otherwise injury results. I'm not paying for staff to tend to their child during class and having infants sitting in the front of the room is foolish, dangerous and irresponsible! I don't care if they have a babysitter in front of the gym, it's dangerous! I know that statement comes across rigid and negative, but the reality is infants and toddlers have no business being in a room where adults are throwing and swinging around weights, jumping on boxes, running in and out of the room! Also, injuries galore! From trainers to patrons, the ortho department at KDH is getting plenty of clients. Lastly...rumors. When I left the midwest for travel nursing, one of the staff members sent me a message stating she heard that I said the classes never helped me and she was sorry I had a bad time! I never said anything like that! I didn't defend myself against such a foolish and childish remark based on gossip. It was obviously started by someone who probably has homophobic roots and glad to see me go for whatever reason. In fact, what I did overhear was a lot of the staff and patrons talk negatively about each other behind each other backs, but I chose to stay out of it. How high school!!! I'm a RN and I help people for a living, so I attend Crossfit to alleviate stress...not to be a part of it. Every fitness facility has gossip and pro's/cons and the pros, for the most part, outweigh the con's here IMO. If you are looking for a fitness facilty with a highly educated staff who go above and beyond to help you obtain the best version of you at a reasonable price, this is it. The classes are well-designed to help you obtain your fitness goals if YOU put in the work. You will just have to find the right instructor that works for you.
