Thursday, August 15, 2013

Genesis Fitness / CrossFit West Petaluma

Genesis Fitness / CrossFit West Petaluma

I went up to Petaluma last weekend to watch my friends compete in the Redwood Empire Weightlifting Championships. I competed at this meet last year, but decided not to this year since I just came from Nationals.  Therefore, I dropped in for a workout before the meet at Genesis Fitness / CrossFit West Petaluma.  What a sweet group of people!

The owners, Chris and Joel led the 10am class .  This is what we did:
  • Warm-up: 800m run; 3 rounds: 8 DB Power Snatches, 8 Push Ups, 8 Sit Ups, 8 Leg Swings; Mobility
  • Workout: 2 rounds for time:
    • 30 Thrusters 135#/95#
    • 30 L Pull Ups 
 
Some things I really liked here:
  • Beautiful, organized CrossFit gym.  This is once of the nicest and cleanest CrossFit gyms I've been to.  Decor follows a theme, equipment is easy to find, floor is flat, and well lit.
  • Downtown Petaluma location!  and across the street from Petaluma Pie and next door to an old school ice cream shop!  Haha, you know where I went after the workout. Also, part of the 400m/800m run is along the water.  Great location!
  • Variety of equipments: sandbags, ropes, platforms, benches, parallettes, baby med balls, weighted vests, etc
  • Joel and Chris were very welcoming and accommodating.  They wanted to ensure my visit was top notch.
  • Many class times.  6am-10am and 5:30-8:30 on weekdays, plus two classes on Saturday's.  In addition, Joel and Chris teach most of the classes.
  • Open gym.  You can do your own stuff as long as you do the class and you are not interfering with the class going on.
  • Tight community.  Many people come way before class starts and hang around after class ends.  They're even going on a camping trip together this weekend!
  • Kitchen + dining area.  Currently it's empty, but occasionally they make smoothies.  There is talk about bringing a Paleo chef in to sell food.
  • Main-site programming and a projector to showcase the workout of the day and scores!  On main-site rest days, Chris/Joel will come up with something
  • Visitor friendly.

Some things that could use improvement:
  • More chalk.  They have one tiny cup for chalk for the whole gym.  There are two bags for chalk allocation.  You barely get anything from that bag... like you could barely see a light shade of white on your palms.
  • More barbells.  It seems like there are <10 barbells total (men's bar + women's bar + training bar).

Some pictures:
2. Outside

3. Inside.

4. inside, different angle

5. platforms


6.another view.


7. rowers and ghd

8. kitchen

9. projector


10. back

10. whiteboard

I actually originally tried to visit Sarah Pierce's gym, CrossFit Petaluma since it was about a mile from my Airbnb place.  I had a confirm spot in the 10am class the night before.  However, when I was on the site that morning to look up the address, I accidentally clicked on the Schedule page and discovered that the class was cancelled.  Therefore, I made a quick change in plans and decided to visit Genesis Fitness/CrossFit West Petaluma.  Good decision!  Chris and Joel were super chill and accommodated me super last minute.  Awesome gym and one of the prettiest ones I've been to!  I'll be back as I know I'll be back in Petaluma for more pie!

Nearby Gyms: CrossFit Santa Rosa