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Eager for the start of Thursday’s “Uniquely Abled Class” at CrossFit Burke, Hunter Fields rushed toward the center of the gym.
The first task is the icebreaker — the question of the day — which attendees responded to while sitting in a circle. Afterward, Fields and several others warmed up, doing a burpee and sprinting across the room.
Then, with help from three instructors, the group worked through a set of weightlifting.
Twice a week for 45 minutes, the Fairfax County gym offers kids the chance to get stronger and faster in an environment they can manage. It’s been a Unique Abled Fitness Chapter for a year, one of six in the United States.
“I look forward to coming here,” Fields said. “It might be very important to keep our body strengths.”
Inspired by his son, who has autism, co-owner Chad Ciri launched the group fitness classes for the neurodivergent community. Ciri said he realized there was a gap in opportunities — sports programs were available, but there wasn’t anything that emphasized overall fitness.
So, on Thursdays and Saturdays, the gym hosts about 15 kids, whose parents buy packs of classes five weeks at a time. Everything is adapted to each individual, but otherwise, it looks similar to a traditional strength and conditioning class.
Kids work through weightlifting, moving objects, conditioning and gymnastics.
In many cases, kids are initially shy or reluctant but walk away excited and happy with their progress after a month or two, Ciri said.
“It fills my cup,” Ciri said. “Emotionally, psychologically, it’s amazing to just be a small part of growth for those kids, and just to see the changes in their confidence level.”
Some attendees are in work-transition programs at school, so the exercise classes help them build strength that could assist them in future jobs, Ciri said.
“It opens up a huge window of opportunity that might not otherwise exist,” he said. “But outside of that, it’s really just the benefits that anybody else would get from exercise, just activities of daily living become easier.”
Drew Gatto, a CrossFit coach and adapted physical education teacher with Fairfax County schools, said the workouts usually involve a warmup and sometimes a finisher to conclude. The sessions emphasize individualized feedback.
“I coach traditional adult classes, and nothing is as rewarding as this 45 minutes on Saturday and now also Thursday,” Gatto said. “I leave, I feel fulfilled.”
Chase Goodfellow, who also coached Thursday’s class, said the kids’ energy is contagious.
“These kids are the happiest athletes that we have in here,” Goodfellow said. “I’ve never seen anybody smile when they do a burpee until I started coaching these classes.”
Meanwhile, Fields said he always enjoys using the machines during class. But regardless, when it’s finished, it feels exhausting and, “I can feel it in my stomach and my whole body.”
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