Option number 2 is doing a set amount of personal training sessions before allowing an athlete to join the group. I have seen people use 3 sessions or 5 sessions. These sessions are used to teach the fundamental movements before introducing athletes to intensity and group sessions. These sessions are also used as an evaluation period for the the coach to make sure the athlete is competent enough to join class. This is also a time when the conversation about nutrition comes up. This can take up an entire session just to show the importance of it.
Drawbacks: The personal sessions can be costly and keep people from signing up if all they want is group training, 3 sessions is not enough to create good movement from bad with 9 movements, there is no group dynamic to introduce people to the community, there is no guarantee they stick around for the classes.
Option 3 is doing one intro session where the potential new client is introduced to Crossfit and then put through a baseline workout. The baseline is used as an evaluation to place the client into a leveled class or at least have a better idea of how they will peorform in class. This will also give the coach a chance to touch on scaling especially if you can classify the person by their performance in the baseline. The idea here is that a group dynamic will speed progress as opposed to one on one sessions. The new athlete should be motivated by others to better themself. They are also helped along by the current group participants.
Drawbacks: There is no intro to basic movements which makes it harder to teach a class of varying levels,
As for the number of personal sessions required before joining group classes, I have seen up to 8. In these sessions, not only the 9 foundational movements were covered, but other prominent movements like wallball, pull up etc. (a total of 30+ movements) are introduced. The client may speed up the process by showing proficiency in these movements. While this may certainly be good preparation for the group classes, it is also a more costly option and as mentioned, it lacks the group dynamic.
Despite the drawbacks, I feel it is a good idea to give clients at least the option to prepare for the classes with personal sessions: some people are way better learners with one-on-one and have a good chance of taking away a lot from these sessions. For others it may be good to see how they like private sessions and maybe it is something they thrive in.
Option 2b would be to give the option of semi-privates (1-on-2, 1-on-3) which would reduce the cost for the client and introduce some group dynamic. San Francisco CF is one affiliate that offers this option, I believe.
Option 3 is a tough one imo. I see the advantages, but people might get a) get too carried away or b) scared away by the competitive element. I like the idea of the group dynamic and motivation by others, but the early introduction of the performance element (without thorough training of the mechanics) bears the risk of clients becoming results driven (in a sense that they believe it is paramount to chase the clock). Also, if it is just one session, these people will join the group classes with only little knowledge of the foundational movements.
My personal preference so far are privates/semi-privates, if a certain quality of introduction (good coach) for these sessions can be guaranteed. From what I read from Nicki, the on ramp classes seem to work great, and imho this would be a great option if the gym already has a big community going, where people battle for spots in those classes. I feel (semi)privates should still be optional then.
From Jacob Typskin:
I just wrote out this big response to your blog post about beginners and it wouldn’t let me post. Ouch, man. Ouch. Here’s what it said:
At CrossFit Monterey we use the following approach: Newbies are required to take 3 one-on-one elements sessions, each of which teaches one of the three categories of the nine fundamental movements. We only charge $125 total for these sessions, which is the same price that we charge for one month of unlimited training, and while the client is taking the elements sessions, they can also do unlimited group classes. We do this for a few reasons: We feel it’s our duty to provide these sessions. We don’t want to charge more for them, because we think our clients have a right to a firm grounding in the movements and terminology of CrossFit. It’s not something we think they should pay extra for.
Also, it makes life way easier for us. Taking the time to do those individual sessions, even at no additional payment to us, is way easier than trying to teach the movements in the middle of a class. Ever tried to teach a newbie how to squat clean five minutes before starting “Elizabeth?” Not an easy or enjoyable experience, I assure you.
Yes i have and i totally agree with you!