Special Populations

Physiotherapist Sharon Mallia reports on the success of CrossFit-based training with 20 seniors aged 75-91.

CrossFit is becoming increasingly popular in older populations, but so far no academic studies have delved into the topic of CrossFit and older adults. I am a physiotherapist by profession and was introduced to the world of CrossFit about three years ago. Since then, I have been incorporating some aspects of CrossFit in my work at a… Continue Reading

Septuagenarian CrossFit coach Mike Suhadolnik refuses to let his peers age gracefully.

Mike Suhadolnik, a former offensive tackle and middle guard at Illinois State University, spent most of his life powerlifting. At his best, he benched 350, squatted 450 and deadlifted 550 lb. His physique implied fitness. But when his daughter Molly and her now-fiancé Tim Hahn asked him to overhead squat more than seven years ago, he couldn’t get… Continue Reading

Educator Julie Potts applies CrossFit training principles to help her students succeed.

A few months ago, I walked into a CrossFit box hoping to learn new ways to get in shape. What I did not expect was the insight CrossFit would give me into my career as a kindergarten teacher.

Watching a CrossFit class is like witnessing the most perfectly differentiated and inclusive classroom. Every athlete is… Continue Reading

Affiliate owners share how they’re tailoring their approaches to introduce Baby Boomers to CrossFit.

The loud music, the intimidating movements and the unbearable crash of barbells smashing the floor—none of it appealed to Lucia Bragan.

“My husband had been doing CrossFit for four and a half years, and I would go watch sometimes. I knew I wasn’t capable of doing what he was doing,” said the 77-year-old from Maryland.

“And they played… Continue Reading

Jackie and Justin Roth use fitness and healthy eating to improve quality of life and reduce disease symptoms, but the discipline and community they found at Mountain Loop CrossFit changed their lives in unexpected ways.

Jackie Roth was doing her best to prove gym owner Mitch Roehl wrong. In January 2015, she joined Roehl’s Mountain Loop CrossFit in Lake Stevens, Washington, and started working out twice a week. She continued to… Continue Reading

Far too many retirees avoid exercise and doom themselves to decrepitude and loss of independence during the Golden Years.

For most of us who were born before NASA, color TV, McDonald’s, Walmart, Disneyland, Bannister’s four-minute mile and the polio vaccine, we have an emerging problem: We decide not to go to the gym. We are making this choice far too often, and it has a direct effect on how… Continue Reading

Tom Robertson came to a hard realization as he approached his 70th birthday: He could no longer move around like he used to, and with a granddaughter on the way, he wanted to change that.

Robertson’s son Kyle was worried about him.

“We all like to delude ourselves when we’re losing capacity that we could still really do it if we had to,” Kyle says.

Finally, Tom admitted to himself that he needed help. He was no longer able… Continue Reading

While physical capacity inevitably declines as athletes age, fitness has dramatic effects on health and quality of life.

“How much should I be lifting?”

It’s probable every coach or trainer has been asked this question, and the query is usually qualified with variables including age, body weight and so on.

We as trainees, and humans in general, really like to compare what we can do with what other people can do, so we create standards for… Continue Reading