CrossFit affiliates change lives. From weight loss, to reversing chronic disease, to achieving optimal health and wellness, it all starts in the affiliate.
But perhaps a less talked about but equally effective avenue of change is the impact CrossFit affiliates have on mental health. Realizing this, CrossFit’s affiliate team has been hard at work developing a program to empower affiliate owners and coaches to positively impact the lives of athletes who have experienced trauma.
What is ACEP?
The goal of CrossFit’s Affiliate Community Empowerment Program (ACEP) is to arm affiliates with the tools and education they need to create and host programs that serve people who have experienced trauma by improving their health and fitness, and helping them find a community.
During its soft-launch phase, the ACEP team will assist affiliate owners with administrative support to identify organizations in their community that can provide funds to help them start a program, pay their coaches, and sustain the program. The ACEP team is experienced in grant writing and local and federal funding for community programs and is familiar with affiliate operations and logistics.
“Affiliates around the world strive to stand up and sustain programs that give back to the community while helping demographics in need,” said Danielle Hale, CrossFit Senior Manager of Affiliate Engagement. “Although the passion is there, the ability to sustain such programs has proven very difficult. … We understand the most basic needs of an affiliate owner are members, revenue, and giving back to the community through coaching and changing lives. ACEP aims to provide all three of these to the affiliate.”
Trauma Training
For an affiliate owner interested in starting a program, the first step is to take a trauma training course. There are many program options to consider — whether your program will serve youth on probation or first responders who experienced trauma on the job, for example, the trauma training course will teach owners and coaches how to use an athlete-centered approach to work with people who have endured various forms of trauma. As 70% of adults have experienced trauma in their lives, this training is helpful for coaching new members as well as an affiliate’s existing member base.
The next trauma training course will take place Jan. 21, 2023, at Rogue HQ in Columbus, Ohio. Register here.
Through the use of breakout sessions, workout floor plans, role-playing, and education around appropriate language, the course seeks to arm trainers with the tools and confidence they need to ensure success in their program. Trainers and coaches will complete the course with an understanding of how to effectively interact with athletes who have experienced trauma, and to recognize cues that may signal the athlete is being triggered by past trauma or exhibiting the effects of trauma. All of these skills will benefit coaches and owners as they work to create a program for their unique affiliate.
“The trauma training gives coaches the ability to recognize when an athlete is experiencing a trigger, is agitated, or feels to be in danger or uncomfortable, and teaches them how to approach that athlete with subtle language to meet them where they are,” explained Matt Shindeldecker, ACEP Program Consultant and owner of CrossFit Crave. “Coaches are also given strategies to implement both physically and emotionally to coach each individual athlete and keep that class moving safely and efficiently.”
Read “Beyond Tomorrow: How CrossFit Crave Is Breaking the Incarceration Cycle” and watch “Expanding Horizons With CrossFit Crave” to learn more about how an ACEP program can benefit your community.
A Sustainable Resource
ACEP has the potential to eventually provide increased revenue to the affiliate once the program is up and running. Additionally, successful ACEP programs have the potential to foster member retention, and allow owners to professionalize their coaches, Hale said.
“CrossFit is proud to be working toward a program that offers affiliates new members, revenue, and community redevelopment,” said Hale. “In the future, we hope to see our owners have the chance to open additional affiliate locations using these programs as a financial base.”
“By including a community program supported by ACEP, affiliates will be able to have a continuous source of revenue via outside funding once the program is established,” she added. “Once we’ve done the work necessary to grow the program, the ebb and flow of ownership and membership will continue, but this stream of revenue can remain consistent.”
There is no limit to what can be accomplished with the collaboration of the CrossFit community and ACEP, and Hale hopes to grow the program widely and make organizations like Expanding Horizons and others accessible to affiliates everywhere.
“Our goal is to provide a permanent support team for affiliates to use as a resource as new affiliates build their business and existing affiliates broaden their reach,” she said. “We look forward to identifying successful community programs within the CrossFit ecosystem in order to scale, attach revenue, and ensure sustainability.”
Interested in learning more about ACEP? Fill out this interest form or register for our upcoming seminar, scheduled for Saturday, Jan. 21, 2023, at Rogue Fitness in Columbus, Ohio.
If you have any questions or concerns, please email us at ACEP@crossfit.com.
Please note: Currently, the ACEP team is learning how to best support U.S. markets with the goal of expanding the program internationally at a later date.
Praise for ACEP and Expanding Horizons
- “This program works to fix what’s broken with our kids by using that physical energy for a positive purpose.” —Judge Matthew Gilmore, Mercer County Probate/Juvenile Court Judge
- “This program connects kids to the community.” —Angie Gehle, Chief Probation Officer
- “It’s not just that one kid you’re helping. You’re breaking generational poverty.” —Andy Wilson, Sr. Advisor for Criminal Justice Policy for Gov. Mike DeWine
- “The biggest thing that facilitates change is relationships. So, if these kids have a diagnostic issue, trauma … that coaching style has to be trauma sensitive.” —Dr. Aaron Kuhn, Counseling & Consulting Services, LPCC-S, LICSC-CS
- The Expanding Horizons program was recently granted the Director’s Award from the 2022 Community Recognition Awards in Columbus, Ohio.
What is the Affiliate Community Empowerment Program?