General News
17 January, 2025
A passion for CrossFit creates community based on health and wellbeing
HCF Horsham CrossFit builds community out of health and wellbeing.
After falling in love with the sport of CrossFit while working as a nurse and living in Geelong, Maddie Iredell and her partner Ravi Araujo decided they wanted to share their passion and bring it to Horsham.
In 2022, the pair launched HCF Horsham CrossFit at its O'Callaghans Parade gym, and it has since blossomed into a diverse community based on health and wellbeing.
"HCF CrossFit is a place for people to find people with a common interest and share experiences and community," said Mr Araujo.
"I think we first can be pictured as a gym, but then the minute you sign up, and you start to participate, you realise that we are way more than just physical fitness.
"We're also about mental health and having fun, finding people with common goals, and surrounding yourself with the right kind of atmosphere.
"HCF CrossFit is a community."
Ms Iredell said it is the chance to teach people 'how to move and move well' that the pair have enjoyed about operating HCF CrossFit.
"It's not just going to a gym and getting a good workout. You're actually learning to be fit for life," she said.
Mr Araujo and Ms Iredell both started CrossFit while living in Geelong.
"I first got into it because I love the sport of it," said Ms Iredell.
However, sports and competition are not the focus of every member of HCF CrossFit.
"Our biggest challenge is for people to understand that CrossFit can be done by everyone," said Mr Araujo.
"I think the biggest misconception is that you need to be very fit to do what we do here."
That misconception of CrossFit was a setback for the business in its early days.
"We needed to show to people that it's not about what you see on television, that's the competition side of CrossFit, that's not what we are," said Mr Araujo.
"We are here to be a safe space for people to move, to find friends and have fun."
Ms Iredell, who was raised a Horsham local, noted that when she would return home there was 'never a place to train' like she can in a CrossFit gym.
"I was kind of sick of nursing at that stage as well," Ms Iredell said.
"Then we said, let's move back home, let's show everyone [CrossFit]."
Ms Iredell said it is amazing to look at the community they have created two years after HCF Horsham's opening.
"We thought it was good when we first opened.," said Ms Iredell.
"Seeing so many people come in and try and staying consistent with it is amazing."
As HCF CrossFit goes from strength to strength, Ms Iredell and Mr Araujo look to the future, with ambitions to turn their business into a health centre.
"We want this to be a place where they can do everything that related to fitness and health," said Mr Araujo.
For now, they just want to see more and more people give CrossFit a go and 'get more people into their health.'