Josh Martin
Founder
In the early months of 2011, I approached my wife Mandy with an idea – I wanted to leave my nice, cushy corporate job to open a CrossFit gym. Shrugging it off, she told me she’d take me serious when I showed her my “business plan.” What she didn’t expect was for me to have it ready. She was shocked! After looking it over, and some deep discussion between us, she told me to go for it.
Ok, it was on and my wheels were turning – I found a space, had my equipment list, figured out the gym insurance stuff. Now, we just needed a name. We toiled over this piece for a long time because we knew we wanted the name to convey not just what we did (CrossFit), but why we do it. We wanted it to covey what we believe. Nearly all the names we came up with were already taken or simply didn’t fit us. Then as if out of a movie, I woke up out of a dead sleep one night, scribbled something on a notepad I kept on my nightstand, and went back to sleep. When I woke up the next morning, I grabbed it immediately and as Mandy was getting ready for work that morning, I remember asking: “Hey love, what about ‘CrossFit For Glory?’” “Perfect,” she said.
Next we commissioned a dear friend, Whitney, to draw our logo. There is no denying that that original logo, and the one that adorns our wall, is the shape of a cross. Yes, CrossFit For Glory is a Christian owned and operated company. What does that mean? Well, a couple of things really: it means that we lovingly accept any and everyone with open arms. It means that we serve others joyfully, with compassion and integrity. It means that we have a genuine appreciation for where each person starts their journey and how they choose to navigate it. Yes, we are faith based. We believe that faith is the glue that holds it all together. Faith has an understandably religious connotation to it, but it also is an explicit trust in the process and support of a larger purpose. In our case, it is moving forward the movement of increasing the health and wellness of our world. That begins with those who walk through our doors.
And then, it all changed. Mandy told me that summer that we were expecting! How exciting I thought, a new gym AND a new baby!? Mandy was not quite so sure…leaving the comfort (and health insurance) of my job wasn’t to be taken lightly. But we both figured, if not now, then when? Mandy has always been the rock behind me – both supporting me when I needed to be held up and pushing me forward when I needed a kick in the pants!
So in November 2011, I turned in my resignation in pursuit of something bigger – my purpose. The next month, on December 3rd 2011, with a wife who was 7 months pregnant, we opened the doors to CrossFit For Glory.
