CrossFit athletes and NFL players now have more in common than impressive bench press results.
Thanks to a program run by the NFL Players Association’s Player Affairs and Development Department, 10 active and former players are learning the ins and outs of the business of CrossFit:
- Carlos Bradley (Former Player)
- Carl Bradford (Linebacker, Green Bay Packers)
- Justin Forsett (Running Back, Baltimore Ravens) and wife Angie Forsett
- William Henderson (Former Player)
- Vonta Leach (Former Player)
- Tim Masthay (Punter & Co-Alternate Player Rep, Green Bay Packers)
- Earl Mitchell (Defensive Tackle, Miami Dolphins)
- Logan Paulsen (Tight End, Washington Redskins)
- Tim Semisch (Tight End, San Diego Chargers)
- Stan White (Former Player)
“We have a lot of players transition into life after football without being sure what it is they want to do,” said Leslie Satchell, NFLPA Senior Manager of Player Affairs and Development. “We work with the good people at CrossFit to help players obtain their Level 1 Certification, which opens doors to being coaches and trainers. We also want to expose players to the business side of CrossFit to help open their eyes to entrepreneurial opportunities available.”
The NFLPA notified players about the off-season opportunity through e-mails and social media in the winter.
“My curiosity has been piqued in recent years about CrossFit,” Masthay said. “I’d had limited exposure to it, so when I saw the union put this event together, I said, ‘Hey I’d love to go to D.C. and learn more about CrossFit, both the training side and the business side.’”
CrossFit is self-described as a strength and conditioning program that implements constantly varied, high-intensity, functional movement. The three-day NFLPA-run workshop in Washington, D.C. offers something for everyone, whether a player is unfamiliar with CrossFit or he is already well into his career.
The program started by taking participants to different CrossFit facilities in the area – CrossFit Petworth, HumbleBeast CrossFit and Trident CrossFit. At the Boxes, players were able to hear directly from owners about what works best for their business. On Day 2, players will dive further into requirements for Level 1 Certification, including foundations technique, nutrition. They will also master movements…
