CrossFit South Brooklyn

Caught these two legacy members at open gym today. Chris and have been staples at CFSBK for over 15 years!! Put some respect on their names! 🏴‍☠️

On Saturday, July 20th, CFSBK will host a special event with our besties from Join us for a 1RM Back Squat and 1-mile run challenge as part of their “Hunting for Gold” campaign. This free event is open to members and non-members alike. It’s going to be an epic day! Link in bio under events!!

(most) of the CFSBK coaching staff posing for a post meeting handstand pic!

CFSBK is proud to announce that coach has been promoted to a new role at the gym called the Director of Training. Whitney first walked through CFSBK’s doors in 2009 and has seen and done it all from member, to front desk staffer, to coach and now our DOT. Her professionalism and passion for coaching is evident to everyone who’s worked with her and we couldn’t be more excited to have her in this role. Please join us in congratulating coach Whit on this promotion!

The Director of Training role will spearhead three critical areas that contribute to the ongoing success of CFSBK:

1. Onboarding: Through organized processes, we’ll ensure new coaches integrate smoothly into our gym culture while utilizing their unique voice.
2. Group Class Programming: While Coach Whit won’t write every cycle, part of the role will be to orchestrate and shape the class program across the calendar year.0
3. Coach Development and Continuing Education: Central to this role is the cultivation of a learning culture. By investing time and energy into the professional growth of everyone on the coaching staff, we’ll continue to develop our skills and elevate the member experience.

This year will be our 17th annual Memorial Day “Murph” event! As always, we’ll be running heats of this workout all morning as well as grilling and having a great time with the CFSBK community. Members can sign up on Zen Planner and check our events page (link in bio) for more information about the event and our benefactor 🐕

Get ready to laugh your abs off at our fourth annual comedy show on Friday, May 10th! We’ve assembled an incredible lineup and can’t wait to share this amazing night with our community and their friends. The show, “Strong Sets,” features some of NYC’s top stand-up comedians performing – yep, you guessed it – stand-up comedy! We’re proud to be the only comedy show in the world hosted at a gym, making us officially the strongest comedy show out there. No contest.

Your co-hosts for the evening are the hilarious (Sirius XM) and (Bravo), and they’ll be joined by a fantastic roster of comedians guaranteed to leave you in stitches.

Here’s the lowdown:

Doors open at 7:30 pm
Show starts at 8 pm
Tickets are $15 – LINK IN BIO! (All funds go to Comedians)
Oh, and it’s BYOB, so feel free to bring your favorite drinks.
Ayanna Dookie
Courtney Fearrington
Shalewa Sharpe
Petey DeAbreu
Tom Delgado
Maria Heinegg

Let’s give a big congratulations to our May Member of the Month, Jackie Wong! Hailing from Brooklyn, Jackie started CrossFit in 2017 in Long Island City and found his way to CFSBK after moving back to his home borough. It didn’t take him long to realize he’d found the perfect community – his first Saturday class was packed, the music was loud, the sweat was sweating, and the energy was through the roof. Read his full interview on CFSBK.com link in bio!😎

We’re delighted to announce Nora Ritchie as our April Member of the Month! Her CrossFit journey began with a chance discovery of CFSBK in January 2019. Starting with Short Circuit classes, she gradually transitioned to CrossFit, finding her groove and a supportive community. Despite a hiatus due to Covid, Nora returned in 2022, diving deeper into CrossFit and Short Circuit classes.

What draws Nora back to CFSBK? It’s the camaraderie, the lively atmosphere, our excellent coaches, and, last but definitely not least, the friendly dogs. Full interview on CFSBK.com link in bio

Some amazing shots from 21.1 by RJ at .shoes.media see the entire album of almost 400 picture on our Flickr. Link in bio

Let’s give a big round of applause for our March Member of the Month, Omar Francis! For the past seven years, Omar has brought nothing but dedication, passion, and positivity to CFSBK. His love for CrossFit, Cleans, and love/hate relationship with Double Unders, inspire us all to push harder and aim higher in every workout.
Beyond his performance, Omar’s warmth, optimistic outlook, and love for his swolemates, make him a cherished member of our community. Not to mention, his affection for those weekend baked goods always brings a smile to our faces.

Read his full interview on CFSBK.com!!! Link in bio

It’s Arts & Crafts theme week at CFSBK! Take a crack at drawing a staffer. We’ve got art supplies at the front of 597 for you to flex your creative muscle. Here is the one and only rendition of the entire training staff! 🥺🖤

What an incredible turnout for team CFSBK in the 2023 Open! Thank you to everyone who stepped up and signed up for the challenge!! Week 1 was no joke with those toes to bars. Don’t forget to submit your scores tonight and buckle up for week 2.

😍 The ladies of Fit55+ with a post class flex!💪💪💪
Led by coach Avery

On Friday we introduced coach and now we’re formally announcing coach Grant! Grant has been a long time member of the gym, a co coach with our Phoenix program and a friend to all. We are so excited to welcome him aboard. Learn more about Grant below:

Grant first encountered CrossFit in 2012 at CrossFit 212 in Manhattan. He’d recently begun a journey in recovery from alcohol and drug addiction, and was looking to meet new people, face new challenges, and find new ways to spend his time. Outside of strength training as a lifelong hockey player, he had never once lifted a weight voluntarily. He quickly learned that he loved long grunty workouts, machines, and sharing in the suffering of others, and was more resistant to mobility work and olympic weightlifting. These things still hold true.

For Grant, CrossFit is a constant reminder that working through resistance offers the most remarkable rewards, and that movement can allow us to build resilience and vulnerability on a daily basis. In 2022, Grant made a decision to build a career at the intersection of movement and recovery. He now spends most of his waking hours developing fitness and community programming for people impacted by addiction in NYC via his role at . He considers coaching at CFSBK an extraordinary opportunity and responsibility, and one he is immensely grateful for.

CFSBK is onboarding some new coaches and we’re so excited to welcome to the team!

Lizzy received her Bachelor of Science in Athletic Training and Master of Physician Assistant studies at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, PA. Her fascination of anatomy, physiology, and kinesiology combined with personal athletic injuries over the years, led her down the career path of becoming an Athletic Trainer and Physician Assistant. She currently works at Hospital for Special Surgery as an Orthopedic Surgery Physician Assistant on the Sports Medicine Service.

Lizzy’s passion for movement and athleticism was sparked at an early age starting with dance and gymnastics and continuing with soccer, track, and competitive cheerleading.

Lizzy has been teaching group fitness since 2008 and has taught a wide variety of classes (cardio kickboxing, Pilates/yoga fusion, dance cardio, HIIT, MMA fusion, and boxing to name a few). She worked as a Master Trainer for Beachbody Live from 2013-2019. Empowering people through fitness has been her driving force. She believes that fitness is all-inclusive and has no boundaries of age, body-type, or experience. Her goal is to always keep the environment fun and welcoming and the work safe and effective.

Lizzy’s first CrossFit experience was in 2017 at a small affiliate in Richmond, VA. Although she walked in intimidated AF, she left feeling like she finally found “her people.” She has continued CrossFit ever since – there’s NOTHING like the CrossFit community!

Since moving to Brooklyn in 2018, CrossFit South Brooklyn has become a staple in Lizzy’s life. She is beyond excited to give back to the community that has given so much to her through the many different seasons in her life – the most impactful being pregnancy and postpartum.

Lizzy’s certifications include CrossFit Level 1 (coming February 2023), NASM Performance Enhancement Specialist, AFAA & ACE Group Fitness Instructor, Animal Flow Level 1, Kettlebell Athletics Level 1. She is also completing her certification as a Pregnancy and Postpartum Athlete Coach so she can help other mamas stay safe, healthy, and active throughout their journey!

Team Aggressively Average’s report from
Was it all a dream?!!! 6 events, 3 days, too many memories to recount for what was one of the most incredible weekends of fitness that we have ever experienced. Was it stressful? Yes. Were there unexpected twists and turns? YOU BETCHA. Did we have fun and push ourselves to a whole new level mentally and physically and would we do it again? HELL. FREAKIN. YEAAAAAAAAA. Big thanks to Coach Katie Harper who put all of her past WZA experience to good use and prepared us exceptionally well for the whole competition (especially that Kitchen Sync workout!!!), thank you to CFSBK for giving us the resources to train effectively, and dear god thank you to our community for the endless support, we love you! An extra special shout out to Karl who flew to Miami just to cheer us on! We placed 30th out of 40 which ain't bad for our very first competition at this level and working as a team together - living up to our team name, we are AGGRESSIVELY AVERAGE. Beyond excited for the year ahead to keep training and getting stronger/faster (primed for the Open, what what!) and we are already scheming for WZA 2024 quals. Want to hear more war stories and/or are you considering your own competition experience? Don't hesitate to reach out to us to chat xoxox

Call it a reeeeeally long honeymoon. and are heading out at the end of this month for some extended travel and adventures beyond Brooklyn! We plan to be away for about nine months in total. Our first two will be in Southeast Asia and New Zealand, followed by some road-tripping through the U.S. The details after that are still in the works, but we hope to do a bit of surfing in Portugal, some hut-to-hut hiking in Italy, and checking out what the National Parks in Canada have to offer. This isn’t goodbye, it’s just so long for now, and you may even see us pop by for a workout or two later this spring and again in late summer! We are deeply grateful for all of the love and support we receive from this beautiful community on a daily basis, and we’ll miss you while we’re out on the road, sea, trails, and sky.

One of our long time former coaches and permanent members of the CFSBK family was recently diagnosed with stage IV cancer. Anyone who has worked with Jess knows what an incredible, kind and giving person Jess has been to us all. Now it’s our turn to give back and support her and in this challenging time. Please take a moment to visit the link in bio to visit her go fund me and learn more about what’s going on and how you can help. Let’s get entire CFSBK community is behind Jess and Chris.

Calling all artists! We want to feature your work at the 2023 CFSBK Community Art Show! All mediums are welcome, painting, film, sculpture, music, dance, woodworking, other weird stuff, its all good! Contact Katie to register as an artist

THE 2023 CFSBK CALENDAR IS AVAILABLE FOR PRE-ORDER Until 12/5

Another year, another CFSBK Pupstarz Calendar celebrating the gym dogs and raising money for a great cause. 100% of the profit from this calendar will go to Pupstarz Rescue which is run by longtime gym member

Link in bio!

PupStarz Rescue is an animal welfare group committed to the rescue and rehabilitation of dogs and cats in public shelters at high risk of euthanasia, as well as those in danger of abuse. We are committed to rescuing as many animals as possible, saving over 3,900 dogs and cats since 2015.
PupStarz Rescue is a foster-based rescue, relying on fosters to open their homes and lives to our animals. All animals in our care receive proper medical care, including alteration, vaccinations, and microchipping.
We are committed to the welfare of our “Starz” beyond the adoption process. We maintain open communication with our adopters to ensure a smooth transition, and offer additional support such as positive training techniques.
Founded in 2015, PupStarz Rescue is a non-profit, 501(c)3, no-kill, volunteer run animal rescue organization.

🚨New merch!!!🚨 We’ve got some new apparel dropping soon and are taking preorders now through December 2nd. Check out our Tokebi Tee and Olive Green Hoodie. These are high quality items being printed by our partners at . We will not be stocking these items after the pre-order so jump on them if you want the goods! LINK IN BIO

FGB Halloween costumes pt 2/2

What better way to kick off Halloween than with some Fight Gone Bad Team Portraits! Thanks to everyone who participated! These are the first 10 teams. We’ll post the rest shortly

This year we over doubled our fundraising goal of 10k with over of $23,800 raised for . This was an incredible effort from the entire CrossFit South Brooklyn community with over 270 unique donations! We did have a few folks who went above and beyond with their fundraising efforts. Thank you SO MUCH to everyone who raised anything for this amazing cause and being a part of Fight Gone Bad. We’ve listed the top 10 fundraisers, score and our sponsors for the event. Check CFSBK.com for more details.

We are excited to announce a new addition to our coaching team, Avery Wittkamp!

AVERY’S BIO

Avery comes to CFSBK with over 14 years of coaching experience that include nearly a decade serving as the head coach of CrossFit NYC, one of the largest and oldest affiliates in the world. In her time there she served as a lead programmer, ran the competition team, (including coaching a 60+ year old masters athlete all the way to the CrossFit Games) and coached thousands of hours with individuals and groups of all levels.

Avery also holds a Doctor of Physical Therapy degree which she received from Hunter College. She completed her residency in Neurologic Physical Therapy at Mount Sinai Hospital where she still treats people with neurologic diagnoses (i.e. Parkinson’s Disease, Multiple Sclerosis, post-Stroke, Spinal Cord Injury). She also uses these skills in the gym setting working with people returning to fitness after injury.

As an athlete, Avery participated in kettlebell sport competitions at the national and international level in classic lifts (10 minutes with one hand switch) and half marathons (30 minutes). She holds master of sport ranks and several national records in the 63 kg weight class for 16 kg sn**ch, 16 kg single arm biathlon (sn**ch and jerk), and 20 kg sn**ch half marathon.

Avery’s area of expertise includes working with those new to CrossFit, competitive CrossFitters, Olympic Weightlifters, Kettlebell Sport athletes, older adults, and people with neurologic diagnoses.

Additional credentials Avery holds are: CrossFit Level 2 trainer, Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS), Functional Range Conditioning Mobility Specialist (FRCms), IKSFA Level 2 Kettlebell Sport Coach, USA Weightlifting Level 2 Coach, and has attended multiple Olympic Weightlifting seminars.

WOW! With just over a week to go the CFSBK community brought the smoke and raised over $10k, for BCHS] !!! The final week is always the biggest rush of donations and we’re so excited to see where we wind up by next weekend. Keep up the great work everyone and if you’re still on the sidelines this is your sign to rally and contact some friends and family. BCHS] provides literally life saving services for people to move their lives forward with housing and essential resources.

Some shots from last weekend by the incredibly talented check CFSBK.com to see the entire photo set! Link in bio

The drip god can’t contain his joy after getting his hands on an exclusive pair of x CFSBK shoes. Plus a pair for the Man !

will be at tomorrow to celebrate our collaboration with !!!!

CFSBK 15 year Retrospective

HOMEGROWN COACHES

Did you know most of our coaches were once members? Currently on staff, Jeremy, Whitney, Brett, Katie, Erick and Lynsey all started out as group class members. This holds true for most of our former coaches as well. Over the years many people have expressed interest in coaching at CFSBK and when the circumstances and fit were right, we brought them on full time. Pictured above is Coach when she worked as a manager at lululemon. The local store contacted David about trying CrossFit and he was strangely more than happy to provide free private classes for the group. After the program ended, Whitney kept coming to group classes regularly and after expressing interest in coaching she transitioned careers. The photo above was in 2010 not too long after moving into 597.