Lots of exercise programs this time of year claim to get residents in the best shape of their life. But how many can claim to draw some of the top trainers in Los Angeles, thousands of cops and a large number of Navy SEALs in the best shape of their lives? Such is the draw for The Stronghold CrossFit & Brazilian Jiu Jitsu gym, located at 2176 Chatsworth Blvd., where work has been put back into working out.
Point Loma’s avid exercisers are venturing from their traditional training programs into a broad, general and more inclusive workout armed with old-school gym moves and a stopwatch that combines for some of the fastest results available.
Adapted from a program called “CrossFit,” which has developed a vast underground following on the Internet, workouts at The Stronghold gym are not only effective but perhaps the most time-efficient workout most have seen, according to the gym’s coaches. This double espresso of a cross-training regimen takes familiar functional multi-joint exercises like squats, pull-ups, and medicine ball exercises in bursts of cardio that has participants cranking up the intensity by clocking it all with a stopwatch.
Most days, participants blitz through it in 20 minutes or less. Easy, right? Well, as one is standing there ready to pass out, easy probably won’t be the first word that springs to mind.
“Our speciality is not specializing,” said Raquel Regno, co-owner of The Stronghold. “We’ve used our same CrossFit routines for elderly individuals with heart disease as we have for cage fighters one month out from televised bouts. We scale load and intensity, but we don’t change programs.”
The belief behind the gym is that the needs of Olympic athletes and grandparents differ by degree, not kind. CrossFit is the principal strength and conditioning program for many police academies, tactical operations teams, military special operations units, champion martial artists and hundreds of other elite, professional athletes worldwide. The CrossFit program is designed for universal scalability, making it the perfect application for any committed individual regardless of experience.
“The Stronghold CrossFit & Brazilian Jiu Jitsu offers a safe place smack-dab in the middle of a residential area across from Point Loma High for people to come and exercise under supervision, while feeling at home in their neighborhood with the community,” said Regno. “In addition, we offer an extension of your workout by posting the workout of the day (WOD) on the gym’s Web site so that you can continue training at home and make it a lifestyle.”
The CrossFit Journal and WOD that is placed on the Web site is designed to support the CrossFit community, detailing the theory and techniques that are practiced by coaches in the gym, in essence bringing one’s garage or gym into theirs, making participants a part of the CrossFit family.
“Working out was not one of my favorite words until I joined the CrossFit and kettlebell classes that have taken my workouts to a whole other level.” said Michelle de Guzman, a participant at The Stronghold. “I look forward to what my coaches have in store because the workouts definitely evolve day to day in a pace I can manage. I’m never bored and I feel so invigorated after each class. If you’re looking for a quick, intense and fun way to get into shape and see results within weeks, The Stronghold is the place for you.”
Owners Mike Cusi and Raquel and Ray Regno are inviting Point Loma residents to a grand opening party on Jan. 12. Free door prizes will be given away and information about class schedules can be obtained.
For more information, call (619) 674-4677, or visit| [email protected].