Anna, Chris, and Steve Cristini of Cristini Athletics have been providing expert fitness programming for 13 years. It all started with Anna toting her sons to the gym where she taught aerobics in the 80s. Skip forward some years, and both Chris and Steve went on to pursue their interests in fitness and degrees in Kinesiology, while Mom made the leap to teaching kettlebell, spinning, and more. Finally, the threesome launched their own official enterprise in Markham, Ontario.
The Cristinis were early fans and adopters of CrossFit. Chris stumbled upon the brand as an athlete and personal trainer in his early 20s, and it showed him “another level of training and community that fit my personal goals,” he says. “CrossFit helped me get fitter faster, and the community kept me consistent, motivated and honest with myself.” In 2012, the Cristinis opened their second location: a Reebok CrossFit East Woodbridge, which took their former side-hustle into full-time business growth mode.
Ultimately, the constraints of the CrossFit brand proved too tight for the family’s multidisciplinary, push-the-boundaries attitude. “We’re always thinking of new ways to make workout routines fun and engaging,” says Chris. “While consistency is something we all need, we also believe that, in order to stay motivated, workouts need to remain innovative and interesting to keep the mind and body continually challenged.”
To beef up their offering, Cristini Athletics rebranded under their own name, and incorporated gymnastics equipment and therapy rooms into their 5000 sq. ft. classical resistance and conditioning facilities. They also developed a variety of specialty programs, including specific training for gymnastics, weightlifting, strongman, kids, and teens.
All ages, shapes, and abilities are welcome in the community that the Cristinis consciously nurture. Every member is assigned a professional coach who can customize a comprehensive fitness prescription that may include HIIT, strength training, lower intensity aerobic training, and more to boost strength and metabolism, increase muscle, and decrease body fat. Cristini coaches “lead members past their fears and into their personal success zone with proper progressions and movements for sustainable, long-term fitness.”
“Our competitive edge comes down to our core values,” says Steve, “and our two most important values are family and evolution.” Cristini Athletics is dedicated to community and to treating members like family, and they continue adapting to the currents in the industry and the changing needs of their community. “As fitness changes, so do we.”
