Welcome to CrossFit Kids

What is CrossFit?

CrossFit is a strength and conditioning program entwining metabolic conditioning, strength training, and gymnastics into workouts designed to improve your quality of life, fitness, and health. It is evidence-based fitness with measurable, observable, and repeatable results.  CrossFit is a General Preparedness Program designed to prepare our athletes for life outside the box. 

What is CrossFit Kids?

CrossFit Kids is a new brand of CrossFit designed for children and teenagers to prepare them for life.  CrossFit Kids is CrossFit specifically designed for children and teenagers.  While including scaled down versions of adult skill training and workouts, CrossFit Kids also focuses on fun to get kids excited about exercising.   

How can CrossFit Kids benefit my child?

CrossFit Kids enhances a child's motor skills by teaching better movement and cognitive skills through engaging children to think about their movement, count their reps, remember the sequences, and work towards goals.  CrossFit Kids augments a child or teen's involvement in sports by incorporating strength training and conditioning to make our CrossFit athletes better athletes at any sport.  

In addition to increasing a child's or teen's fitness and athleticism, CrossFit Kids:

• instills a lifelong definition of health and positive body image, 
• reverses prevalent health issues such as obesity, 
• protects against injury, 
• creates a community of like-minded individuals for support and self-confidence, and 
• hones life skills such as concentration, problem solving, perseverance, dedication, motivation, and goal-setting.  

CrossFit Kids is functional fitness designed to benefit our young athletes throughout their lives.  

How will you run CrossFit Kids classes?

Our job as coaches is to make exercise fun and to help children and teens move better--safer and more effectively--to prepare them for the rest of their lives.  At least two certified, insured coaches will supervise and run kids classes.  Classes are set up to include a warmup, skill work, workout, and game using the skills.  This makes learning and exercise fun!

What can I do as a parent?

We encourage parents to support their children and the class, stay and spectate from the sidelines, cheer, participate in CrossFit adult classes, help their children maintain consistency in CrossFit attendance, and provide healthy meals at home and for school.  Healthy meals consist of protein, carbohydrate, and fat at every meal.  The tenets we follow are: lots of lean meat, vegetables, nuts, and seeds, some fruit, little starch, no sugar, and no grains.  These foods are the optimal fuel for the most sophisticated machines: our bodies.  We emphasize the importance of unprocessed, real foods in balanced proportions.  For more information on the nutritional guidelines we follow, ask us about Paleo and Zone.  Scientific studies and personal trial and error among ourselves and our athletes have found that these dietary choices make us feel good, improve our physical and mental performance, and enhance our physical and mental health.  We also insist that parents of our underage athletes inform us of medical conditions and allergies that may impact a child's health, performance, and capability.  

What is inappropriate behavior for parents?

Generally, we would like parents to resist the urge to interrupt class or counter our training expertise.  Behavior we would like parents to avoid includes but is not limited to the following: shouting cues to children, encouraging rivalry and competition, encouraging risky behavior, encouraging bad form, encouraging heavier weights, choosing weights, arguing with coaches during class, stealing child's attention and focus, interrupting class, infringing upon class space, bringing children late to class or pulling them out early (exception: emergency situation), criticism of children or coaches, overriding coaches' decisions, or bringing sick kids to class.  CrossFit Kids should be a fun experience for kids and their parents, so we want to keep it that way!

What is inappropriate behavior for children?

Generally, we would like children to maintain self control and not act against the coaches' instructions.  Inappropriate behavior for children includes but is not limited to: inappropriately distracting others during class, not listening to the coaches' instructions, disobeying coaches' instructions, disrespecting others, disrespecting equipment, creating a dangerous environment for self and others, criticizing others, or acting without own or other children's safety in mind.  CrossFit Kids should be fun, so we want to keep it that way for everyone!

LEGAL DISCLAIMER

IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT YOU AND YOUR CHILD'S HEALTH: 

CrossFit Kids and CrossFit Santa Cruz services are not a substitute for professional medical advice or a medical examination. Prior to participating in any program, activity, or exercise you should seek the advice of your physician and other qualified health-care professionals. You understand that these exercises can be strenuous and should be done in moderation. There is an inherent risk in any exercise that, while providing some health benefits, can also cause unknown health issues. You understand that there are weights, balls, bars, mats, chairs, and many other items commonly associated with a gymnasium that can be left around by any person associated with CrossFit Kids and CrossFit Santa Cruz. It is every person's responsibility to anticipate these items being left in places where they can cause injury. Application or reliance on the techniques, advice, ideas, and suggestions of any person associated with CrossFit Kids and CrossFit Santa Cruz are at the sole discretion and risk of the participant and his/her parent and guardian. You agree, by participating in any program associated with CrossFit Kids and CrossFit Santa Cruz, that CrossFit Kids and CrossFit Santa Cruz shall not be liable for any direct, indirect, special, consequential, or exemplary damages for any injury or harm to you or your child incurred in or around the property where exercise occurs.