Impact of a CrossFit Intervention as an After-School Program for the Boys and Girls Club

Format

Poster Presentation

Location

Harborside Center

Strand #1

Mental & Physical Health

Relevance

The presentation is strongly related to the “Health”: mental and physical health strand. This presentation highlights the impacts of a 16- week CrossFit intervention after school program for middle-school youth who are members of the Boys and Girls Club. Focus is placed on intellectual, social, physical and personal development.

Brief Program Description

Research has shown that middle school youth are vulnerable to disconnection from school, family, and communities as they experience changes in their bodies, minds, and emotions or encounter comprehensive shifts in their life-structures (Fernades-Alcantara, 2014). CrossFit’s framework was used to assist the participants by addressing physical and personal challenges and changes. The presentation will highlight how the intervention was used to address potential disconnections.

Summary

The presentation will highlight how CrossFit was used as an afterschool intervention program to impact middle school aged youth who have been identified as being at risk. The presentation will focus on the:

  1. Creation of the CrossFit model for our group:
  • Employing young, energetic CrossFit certified coaches to develop and implement sessions
  • Focused on the structure for the sessions that kept the participants engaged
  • Developing a contract/agreement that all participants sign to guarantee them being part of a supportive environment
  • Provided a lesson of the week that was taught, discussed, and recapped during each session
  • Encouraged and supported self-reflection from the workouts that address challenges, struggles, knowledge gained for a person about what they are willing to do
  • Figuring out ‘the hook’ for our participants and sticking to it to maintain engagement and energetic session programs

Overall, we will explain how we developed the model. We will highlight what worked and what needed to be addressed, changed, or removed from the program.

  1. Direction/modification to the intervention
  2. Gained knowledge – based on working with the youth-at-risk population in a CrossFit setting that uses fitness routines that are broad, general, and diverse.

Evidence

The objectives for the intervention were:

  • Participants increased or maintained good grades and attendance and behavior records, which was monitored through school reports.
  • Participants reduced their completion time of the baseline workout (comparing the times of completion for pre-and post- baseline workout), indicating that they have increased on their fitness.
  • Intervention participants reduced or maintained a healthy Body Fat measured through skin fold caliper.
  • Participants developed healthy eating habits and decisions which was evaluated through food logs
  • Participants identified physical activity as part of their lifestyle evaluated through focus group discussion
  • Positive changes in motivation to workout which are measured through the Motives for Physical Activities Measures - Revised: MPAM-R instrument
  • Positive changes in goal setting skills was measured through The Goal Setting Skills Scale
  • Positive changes in social awareness was measured through The Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ)
  • Positive changes in satisfaction with life which was measured through The Satisfaction with Life Scale and the Physical Activity Enjoyment State Scale

Biographical Sketch

Christina M. Gipson, PhD is an Assistant Professor of Sport Management n the Department of Health and Kinesiology at Georgia Southern University. She earned her PhD at Brunel University in London, England in Sport Management and Sport Sociology. She completed her M.S. in Sport Administration from Georgia State University in Atlanta, GA and her B.S. at Methodist University in Fayetteville, NC in Sport Management and Athletic Training. Her primary responsibilities are teaching Sport Management, undergraduate and graduate, and research interests include, youth at-risk, CrossFit, gender issues in sport, and volunteerism. Her role for this study includes organizing the dates for data collection, organizing and disseminate data collection tools, assist in focus groups and conduct observation. Dr. Gipson will take the lead in study design.

Michael Moore, EdD is a Professor of Literacy Education in the Department of Curriculum, Foundations and Reading in the College of Education at Georgia Southern University. His undergraduate degree is in English Education from Duquesne University. He has advanced degrees in both English Education and Literacy from the University of Pittsburgh. He taught in middle grades and high school for twelve years in Western Pennsylvania. He teaches graduate courses in literacy education at Georgia Southern. His research areas are standards based reform, common core state standards, text complexity and education funding. Dr. Moore will assist with designing and implementing the study. Dr. Moore will be involved in many aspects of this project including data collection, secure data storage, data analysis, and presentation of findings.

Trey Burdette, EdD is an Associate Professor of Coaching Education in the Department of Health and Kinesiology at Georgia Southern University. He earned his Ed.D. in Educational Leadership from Georgia Southern University, studying coaching behavior and leadership. He also received his M.S. in Health and Kinesiology from GSU in 2003, specializing in Coaching Behavior. He earned his B.A. from and lettered in baseball from Maryville College in Maryville, TN in 2001. His primary teaching responsibilities are in Coaching Education, undergraduate and graduate, and his research interests are in sport performance and sport leadership. He has instructed at both national and international coaching clinics and currently coaches CrossFit classes. In his leisure time, he enjoys participating in athletics, reading, and traveling. Dr. Burdette will be involved in many aspects of this project including data collection, secure data storage, data analysis, and presentation of findings.

Charles Hal Wilson, Jr., PhD is an Assistant Professor of Coaching Education at Georgia Southern University. He earned a Ph.D. in Kinesiology and Sport Studies and a M.S. in Human Performance and Sport Studies from the University of Tennessee, and a B.A. in English from UNC Wilmington where he walked on the basketball team. Relative to this project, he is a former Strength and Conditioning Coordinator at the high school level, ran strength, speed, and agility camps for boys and girls ages 7-17 for many years, has 19 years of basketball coaching experience, has experience working with inner-city youth through sport since 1995, and also partnered with the Boys & Girls Club in multiple states while running his MVP Basketball Academy in North Carolina and Tennessee. Dr. Wilson will be involved in many aspects of this project including data collection, secure data storage, data analysis, and presentation of findings.

Keyword Descriptors

Kids Crossfit, CrossFit for Youth-at-risk, Impacts of CrossFit

Presentation Year

2016

Start Date

3-8-2016 4:00 PM

End Date

3-8-2016 5:30 PM

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Mar 8th, 4:00 PM Mar 8th, 5:30 PM

Impact of a CrossFit Intervention as an After-School Program for the Boys and Girls Club

Harborside Center

Research has shown that middle school youth are vulnerable to disconnection from school, family, and communities as they experience changes in their bodies, minds, and emotions or encounter comprehensive shifts in their life-structures (Fernades-Alcantara, 2014). CrossFit’s framework was used to assist the participants by addressing physical and personal challenges and changes. The presentation will highlight how the intervention was used to address potential disconnections.