POULSBO – Two marathoners are introducing North Kitsap residents to old-school fitness.
Dan and Amy Hollingsworth opened Kitsap CrossFit in the fall of 2009, joining the movement to lead people off their couches and into the pushup position. The gym is different from most, as it doesn’t yield to trendy classes and there’s not a treadmill or high-tech machine in sight. It sticks with the basics: weight lifting, gymnastic movement and sprints, Amy Hollingsworth said.
“People are sick of doing the same old workouts and not seeing any results,” she said.
The gym is an affiliate of a nationwide network based in Arizona and it occupies a wide-open space in the Poulsbo Business Park at 20174 State Route 305. The outlying areas are lined with free weights, kettle balls and the like; climbing ropes hang from the ceiling and a large structure used for pull-ups and gymnastics moves occupies a large chunk of floor space.
Members attend guided classes, so no one is there without an agenda, Amy Hollingsworth said. Each class starts with warm-ups that include running around a 200-meter track they’ve set up in the business park and stretching. The workouts themselves, created through networking with other CrossFits nationwide and through the Hollingsworth’s personal experience, center on multiple repetitions and weight resistance.
Though there is a certain pain threshold in the workouts, people keep coming back because they’re sold on the results. Some members have tried other workout programs but get discouraged, either through boredom or a lack of change in their physique, Amy Hollingsworth said.
The work done at CrossFit can either replace or supplement the other workouts, she said.
When the couple first began CrossFit-style work, neither one thought they’d be sold on it. They were wrong, she said. The strength training helped shave time off both their marathon times and she was able to train all the way through her second pregnancy, she said.
The couple previously lived in the area when he was stationed on the USS Stennis. They married in 1999 and have two daughters, 5-year-old Piper and 6-month-old Sophie.
Dan Hollingsworth is a Level II trainer and CrossFit Headquarters staff trainer. He’s also a certified specialist in orthopedic physical therapy and a certified athletic trainer. Before the couple opened CrossFit, he was a physical therapist for the Marine Corps Special Operations Battalion. Amy Hollingsworth is a certified CrossFit trainer and a speech pathologist specializing in voice and swallowing disorders.
Kitsap CrossFit
20174 State Route 305, Poulsbo
(360) 930-4226
www.kitsapcrossfit.com
