Duo finds perfect fit for ever expanding Harvest CrossFit

The couple celebrated the move to their new Dallas location within the old Some Things store with a ribbon cutting and open house Jan. 19. The new space represents a sizable upgrade from the prior location next door.

“The old space was 5,200 square feet, and we really could only work out in just under 4,000 square feet,” Devin said. “This is 11,000 square feet. We can actually work out 9,000 square feet.”

MacLarin added they were bursting at the seams at the old location, which curtailed the ability to run multiple programs at a time. In addition, they couldn’t always fulfill their secondary goal of providing a space for kids.

“Every location we’ve had, we’ve always had space for kids to come and keep themselves entertained while their parents worked out. That’s really important to us to maintain that ability because it’s not often people find locations like this to bring their kids with them,” MacLarin said.

She added problems within the old space included being too noisy, kids “escaping” their designated space or not having enough of their own space to get “their wiggles out while their parents got their wiggles out.”

The new location at 745 Main St. is actually their third location since moving to Dallas in 2014. The duo started with different careers in mind (he a teacher, she a personal trainer) while attending Central Western University. That changed after graduation when they both fell for their second love, crossfit training.

“A friend opened a crossfit gym in Ellensburg,” MacLarin recalled. “Devin became the first member at the gym. He never looked back. It’s so fun, the accountability from being there, a different workout every day. I joined several months later. It was a competitive outlet I hadn’t had since high school. It doesn’t have to be a competitive atmosphere, but if you are motivated by competition, this is a great place for it.”

“I lost 100 pounds in a year before our wedding,” Devin added. “Teaching, I was just so interested in something else, basically wasting taxpayer dollars looking at crossfit on my lunch break, not doing a very good job teaching. Gotta go do something else.”

They describe crossfit training being constantly varied, functional movements, done at relatively high intensity, usually in a class setting. Devin said the nice thing is you don’t need to know how to exercise – they’ll teach you how to move.

“We do all the thinking for you. Think of it as having a personal trainer you’re sharing with from five to 15 people. That coach makes sure everyone moves safely and gets the best workout possible,” he said.

MacLarin explained in crossfit, you can’t use the old excuse of having a bum shoulder, knee, hip, ankle, or back.

“We like to say motion is lotion. If you smartly, wisely continue to move that joint, then odds are it will get better. We are in the business of helping people realize they are capable of more than they are aware of,” she explained. “It’s one of my greatest joys when someone comes in thinking they aren’t going to participate, then they realize that we can modify things for them and can participate along with everyone else. That’s really cool.”

The next obvious step was opening their own crossfit gym. But they set the goal of moving into a smaller town that didn’t already have an established crossfit facility. With family and friends in the Willamette Valley, they narrowed their selection to the towns of Dallas, Monmouth and Independence, before settling on Dallas.

“The funny thing is though, when we did come down, we were meeting with commercial real estate agents. There were multiple people that told us don’t go to Dallas. There’s no market for that in Dallas,” Devin recalled.

“Just based on some conversations and what we knew of the industries of the towns,” MacLarin added, “we chose Dallas because it wasn’t going to be as much of a transient community as the towns closest to the college. We came from a college town, and we didn’t like the fact that people came for two years and were gone forever.”

Membership was slow going at first. But from word of mouth, they soon outgrew each location. Now they average between 150-155 members. Their numbers swell in the summer when students have more time to devote to fitness.

What they don’t get, are those looking in January and February for a weight loss outlet after making New Year’s resolutions.

“I feel New year’s resolutions steer them to regular gyms where they can fly under the radar. We’re different than that. You don’t get to fly under the radar here. You are really known by your coaches and your peers you’re working out with,” MacLarin said. “We see an influx in the Spring and approaching Summer because sometimes when people’s New Year’s resolutions have failed them, and their hiding has resulted not going anymore.”

The couple are excited to see Harvest CrossFit continue to grow, requiring bigger and bigger spaces, reflecting a growing clientele buying into their philosophy.

“It is exciting. We’re excited to grow. We’re going to be here a long time. This place is plenty big for what we need. We can look around and dream about what it’s going to continue to turn into. That is a big undertaking. And super exciting,” MacLarin said.

“I love that it opens up the possibilities,” Devin added. “In the old space, we had lots of ideas. Having the new space just makes them more doable.”

Harvest CrossFit

745 Main St., Dallas

(503) 859-3779