My Why: I love CrossFit and that style of training so much. I was truly blessed to discover it as an adult, but I often wish I had found it when I was younger. It’s not that I wasn’t active as a kid—I had opportunities to play sports, stay active, and work with some great coaches. But I knew I wasn’t going to go pro in those sports, and they weren’t necessarily going to teach me lifelong skills for health, fitness, and movement outside of those specific games.

 

Imagine if we introduced kids to movement early on, teaching them not just to play sports but to enjoy moving their bodies and learning to do it well. This kind of foundation could support them throughout their lives, whether or not they continue with sports as adults. They wouldn’t need to “start over” learning fitness as adults; they would already have a solid base to carry them through, enhancing their lives and even their sports skills as they grow.

 

So why not start them young? One of the most common things I hear from adults in a CrossFit box or anyone who starts high-intensity training later in life is, “I wish I’d found this sooner.” We, as adults, know how transformative it can be, and we have the chance to offer that same life-changing opportunity to our kids now.

 

Often, athletes who make it through high school, college, or even professional sports face a loss of identity when their sport ends. Many struggle to stay active and healthy because their sport was their structure for fitness. If we help kids grow up using fitness to improve themselves—not just their sports—then when their sport ends, they won’t be left searching for purpose or a way to stay fit. They’ll already have the tools to keep themselves healthy, happy, and strong for life.

For science and studies on how fitness helps kids' brain and body development- see Movement Toolkit Book on Amazon

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