Sept. 7, 2014 By Michael Florio
CrossFit Gantry is bulking up.
The Long Island City-based gym that focuses heavily on the CrossFit training program—which helps participants build strength and endurance– moved into a much bigger space last week to keep pace with its growing membership.
The establishment is now located inside a 5,000 square foot facility at 10-19 46th Road. Prior to the move, the gym operated out of a 2,300 square foot space at 10-20 47th Road.
Jay Hachadoorian, the owner and a former triathlete, opened CrossFit Gantry about 18 months ago. He said that in the past six months his membership has grown from about 90 people to nearly 150.
“We have built up a nice membership within the community,” Hachadoorian, a Long Island City resident, said.
Hachadoorian’s training program relies heavily on pushups, sit ups, squats and lunges. CrossFit combines weight lifting with activities such as gymnastics and rowing.
The new location has allowed Hachadoorian to add dumbbells — which he did not previously have space for– as well as sandbags, additional pull-up bars, medicine balls, barbells and weight plates.
The new equipment is a big benefit to those members who are in great physical condition and are close followers of the CrossFit training program, Hachadoorian said.
The new facility also offers three Olympic weightlifting platforms, which are used for a specific workout like the snatch and the clean and jerk.
Currently, the gym offers six CrossFit classes per day, which consist of power lifting and endurance classes. Classes are offered at 6 am, 7 am, noon, 5:30 pm, 6:30 pm, and 7:30 pm.
The new facility can accommodate much larger class sizes. In the past, the maximum class size was about 15 people. With the new space it is 25. Hachadoorian hopes to offer more classes in the future.
Meanwhile, Hachadoorian’s old space is now a CrossFit Kids facility, a separate business run by Michele Kelber.
Hachadoorian aims to host an event celebrating his new space at the end of September.
