CrossFit LA is school of ELITE FITNESS located in Santa Monica, California. We teach basic to advanced level classes in functional exercise, athletic conditioning, plyometrics, kettlebell training, Olympic weightlifting, medicine ball and dumbbell training, power-lifting, gymnastics, rowing, running and jumping rope. Our students are extremely diverse in their experience, conditioning, and lives; and include students, business executives, stay-at-home moms, athletes, writers, producers, and martial artists. We utilize CrossFit as our primary training method, and focus our students on optimizing physical competence in each of 10 recognized fitness domains (Cardio-respiratory endurance, Stamina, Strength, Flexibility, Power, Speed, Coordination, Agility, Balance, and Accuracy.) The stimulus provided is always varied and the results are dramatic. The atmosphere is one of support and camaraderie to anyone willing to put in the work.

To provide the world's most effective health and fitness training.

A community that is healthy, strong and vital, who'se participants have the courage to live outside the generally accepted as "normal" belief that health, fitness and vitality must decline with age.

To us, fitness is a state of mind, way of being. It shows up in the way you talk, walk, sleep, eat, work, play, dress and relax. It is the physical embodiment of the character traits of honor, courage, confidence, discipline, integrity, responsibility, dedication, and joy. It is also instrumental in reducing the immediate and cumulative effects of stress and anxiety. We’ve found that the fitter a person is, the more he/she is physically able to do the things that bring joy and fun to life – everything from feeling strong, confident and energetic through your normal work day, running around with your kids, being physically active and playing sports, to traveling to remote corners of the earth. Being physically fit is inspiring, feels good, enriches your life, and adds both years to your life, and life to your years. People that are fit seem to have a clearer, more optimistic view of life. For us, the bottom line is this: Fitness allows you to live your best.

“Live Your Best!” Who do you know that when asked, would say that they don't want to live their best? Yet how many people actually do it? We've found that truly enjoying life, making the most out of it, and having fun at the same time requires commitment and hard work. It's difficult, yet its also as rewarding as it gets! When you're "Living Your Best," you are getting the most out of life, truly "sucking it dry" - but you're not necessarily having "fun." Instead, you are committed, challenged, confronted, and very often afraid, and yet somehow, especially when required, you find the courage to press on. CrossFit LA is committed to that somehow – helping you find that ability – in your mind, and subsequently your body. To do this, we offer the most effective coaching available in fitness conditioning, diet and nutrition, and re-conditioning.

Why do athletes train as they do? Because it works! Our program is based on functional movements that have been around for thousands of years. These movements, like the squat, have survived the test of time for one reason only – they get results. Whether you’re a beginner or have years of experience, functional training that closely parallels real life and sport movements, and that challenges your mind and body works the best – in spite of all the modern technology and machines you see at most gyms today. When we combine this with variation, movements that require skill, balance, accuracy, agility and power, you’ve got our program. Our CrossFit classes draw from gymnastics, weightlifting and cardiovascular training – they will present a workout that challenges you to your core, at whatever your level of experience. Click here for more info [Why CrossFit].

Andy Petranek is the founder of CrossFit Los Angeles. He has been inspiring people to lives of health and fitness for over 15 years. His passion for life and sport has led him in many directions - from classical music as a teenager, to the Marine Corps, whitewater kayaking, and professional adventure racing. His skills as a coach come from years spent as a student - Andy is currently studying gymnastics, and is actively training as a Zen Buddhist. He coaches individuals and groups of all ages and fitness levels in nutrition, fitness, and athletic conditioning. His workouts, designed to be completed in less than 30 minutes, are the most effective and efficient you'll find anywhere.
...continued here...

Becca Borawski started as a student at CrossFit LA (then Petranek Fitness) when we first opened in 2004. Currently she is CrossFit LA's Program Director and head of the CrossFit Kids LA program as well as a class instructor. Nothing happens here without her knowing about it first!
...continued here...

Michael is CrossFit LA's newest instructor. He joined us in 2006, and, finding something here that he had never found in his workouts and training before, quickly rose to the top of our leader boards. When he expressed an interest in instructing, we welcomed him with open arms.



...continued here...

Jonesy came to us in 2007 completely frustrated by "pop-fitness" in Los Angeles health clubs. Finding our gym was a relief to him since we gave him a place to train more like what he was used to - and great for us, since he brought with him so many years of athletic training experience.
...continued here...

Click here to see videos of the major exercises we use in our workouts.

Click here for answers to frequently asked questions about CrossFit.

Most personal trainers rely on their clients to not think. They are happy when their clients leave the gym and have no idea what they did. They also count on their clients not quite achieving their goals. It’s called job security. If your client never achieves his/her goal, and never really knows what to do in or out of the gym for a workout, he/she will always need you!

At CrossFit LA, when you hire us, you are hiring a coach. Our job is to help facilitate your listening, thinking, learning, being aware and being responsible. We guide and steer you on a course and are there to help you maintain your heading when a “storm” throws you in the wrong direction, however, it is clear from the start of our relationship that YOU are ultimately responsible for your health, fitness and vitality. Our instruction focuses on movement techniques and skills, physical conditioning, and the development of healthy workout, eating habits, and self-discipline, so that after a period of time, you’ve got all the essential elements, experience and confidence to make it through your life with health, fitness and vitality.

Why is it that gymnasts never have to do a bicep curl to get big and strong biceps? How about weightlifters... you may not know it, but they NEVER do leg extensions, leg curls, leg press, or adduction/abduction exercises. Weight machines were designed by engineers to simulate the isolated movement of one muscle in your body. In real life, your body rarely uses one muscle at a time independently of all others. So while you may be getting bigger biceps, you are functionally less strong.

At CrossFit LA, you'll NEVER do a bicep curl or a leg extension. We choose exercises that make large demands on your nervous and muscular systems and require many muscle groups to work together synergistically. Body weight exercises challenge you to be strong and agile enough to be in control of your body (pull ups, dips, handstand push ups, push ups, etc). Weightlifting exercises require technique and skill, and call upon a large number of muscles in your body to work together at the same time (squat, deadlift, clean, jerk, snatch, kettle bell, etc).

Most gyms emphasize training on benches or with weight machines. They also have trainers teaching exercises originating from bodybuilding. They do this because it is "safe", easy, and requires little thought or effort outside the specific movement for which the machine or exercise was designed. Next time you're in your gym sitting in a weight machine, ask yourself, "How closely does this resemble a movement in real life?" How would it look to kick a ball from just your knee down or to take a drink out of a glass by moving just your forearm? Single joint movements (like those done with typical weight machines and and traditional bodybuilding exercises) will isolate a specific muscle, however, rarely in life does our body activate isolated muscles without the support from others. As soon as you sit or lay down on a bench or machine, all of the balance, stabilization, proprioception, and accuracy functions that your body must use in normal activities of real life and sport completely shut down, their functioning unnecessary.

At CrossFit LA, most of what you will see when you come to the gym is open space. Our "machines" are free weights - to simply use them pick them up requires skill, balance, stabilization, proprioception, and accuracy. The skills and movements we teach are all functional and multi-joint (require movement across 2 or more joints in your body). These neuromuscular activities are commonplace in both life and in sport, and since our objective in training is to mimic both, we find that free weights, with proper instruction and coaching, do this best.

Exercising is something many people do to make themselves feel fit. You’ve seen examples of this: people on the treadmill reading the newspaper; a person moving through the machines, taking lots of breaks, talking to their trainer, looking hardly like they’re “working.” These people get to feel good about themselves because they’ve “checked the box” on their to do list labeled “workout.” These are also the people you see whose physiques never seem to change.

You will never see our clients doing "cardio" while sitting on a bike, reading a magazine. Nor will you see them "exercising" using a weight machine. Our workouts are intense - challenging you and your body to do things you never dreamt possible. They require you to be mentally alert, present and focused and will call upon your coordination, agility, strength, speed, endurance, stamina and flexibility. This is what we call "training" - and its purpose is to make improvements regularly in all areas of fitness.

When you step into most gyms, the first thing you usually see is a multitude of weight and cardio machines configured as closely as possible together to fit as many as possible into the space. Moving around without bumping into something is next to impossible. After you’ve found the little space that is available, you must squeeze between people, weight machines, off in the corner, or in the middle of a walkway. And forget about leaving your spot or bench or piece of equipment for more than 30 seconds – it will be taken by someone else. In this environment, athletic training is not only impractical, it is impossible.

At CrossFit LA, our emphasis is on space - space to move, to jump, to lift to balance, to climb, tumble, or in other words, train as an athlete, unencumbered by equipment, people and/or other “stuff” in the way.

CrossFit is a fitness and conditioning system developed by Coach Greg Glassman through many years of watching, working with, and coaching all types of people – from those considered “normal and average”, to top athletes. Coach Glassman's idea – take what worked best from the sports and movements that create the most versitile athletes (gymnastics and weightlifting), and throw the rest out. Actually, the system really created itself - if a workout or an exercise proved functional and got great results (ie- challenged you to the bone), it stayed in the system. If not, well, you got the picture. CrossFit is what remains - bar none, the most effective fitness and conditioning system in the world!

One of the things that makes CrossFit unique is that it addresses the fact that the fitness needs of an "Average Joe" are identical to that of a top athlete – the only difference being intensity (speed & weight) and volume. In all cases, the best results come when training included functional movement (that which replicates real life movement), at high intensity and with constant variety. Any exercise program that meets these three criteria can be considered “CrossFit,” from shoveling dirt, hauling rocks and cutting down trees to weightlifting, pull ups and sprinting.

CrossFit has been called "The Sport of Fitness" because it re-introduces personal athletic achievement and performance to training. The mindset at the start of each workout is to be stronger, move faster, more efficiently, with better form than ever. This is why even after years of training CrossFit style, scores and times in workouts continue to drop and athletes continue to improve. Its hard, fun, exciting, challenging, and will push you to be your absolute best!

CrossFit is by design broad, general and inclusive. Its specialty is in not specializing, and its workouts elicit a maximal neuro-endocrine response from your body by taxing your body to its core with variety, intensity, and multiple joint, full body, functional movements. As our friends at CrossFit North say of the workout of the day, “It should CRUSH YOU.”

Why Crossfit? Results. Period. To gain a greater understanding of CrossFit, [click here] to download the free trial issue of the CrossFit Journal. Once you’ve read this, you’ll understand that most other training programs either take way too much time to get the results or are incomplete, leaving a well rounded athlete with a chink in his/her armor.

In gyms and health clubs throughout the world the typical workout consists of isolation movements and extended aerobic sessions. The fitness community from trainers to the magazines has the exercising public believing that lateral raises, curls, leg extensions, sit-ups and the like combined with 20-40 minute stints on the stationary bike or treadmill are going to lead to some kind of great fitness. Well, at CrossFit we work exclusively with compound movements and shorter high intensity cardiovascular sessions. We’ve replaced the lateral raise with push-press, the curl with pull-ups, and the leg extension with squats. For every long distance effort our athletes will do five or six at short distance.

Why? Because compound or functional movements and high intensity or anaerobic cardio is radically more effective at eliciting nearly any desired fitness result. Startlingly, this is not a matter of opinion but solid irrefutable scientific fact and yet the marginally effective old ways persist and are nearly universal. Our approach is consistent with what is practiced in elite training programs associated with major university athletic teams and professional sports. CrossFit endeavors to bring state-of-the-art coaching techniques to the general public and athlete who haven’t access to current technologies, research, and coaching methods.