CrossFit vs. F45 and Barry’s: An Honest Take from a DTLA Coach

I own a CrossFit gym in the DTLA Arts District, so you already know which way I’m biased. I’m going to give you the honest version anyway, because half the people who walk into my gym came from F45 or Barry’s, and I’d rather tell you the truth than sell you something that isn’t right for you.

F45, Barry’s, and CrossFit all get lumped together as “that intense group workout thing.” They’re not the same. They’re built on different ideas, they attract different people, and one of them is probably a better fit for where you are right now. Here’s how I actually see it.

What F45 is good at

F45 is a well-run machine. You show up, screens on the wall tell you what to do, a coach counts you through stations, 45 minutes later you’re done. The programming is the same in every location, which is the point — it’s consistent, it’s approachable, and you never have to think.

For a lot of people that’s exactly right. If you want to sweat, follow along, and not have to make a single decision, F45 delivers that cleanly. The knock on it is the same as its strength: because it’s standardized and the class is big, nobody’s really coaching *you*. The stations move fast, form is roughly “good enough,” and the loads are light because they have to be safe for forty people at once. You’ll get conditioned. You probably won’t get strong.

What Barry’s is good at

Barry’s is a workout with the lights off and the music up, built around a treadmill and some dumbbell work on the floor. It’s a great sweat and a genuinely fun room — it feels like a class and an event at the same time. If cardio is your thing and you want to leave soaked and buzzing, Barry’s nails that.

But it’s fundamentally a running-and-toning class. There’s no barbell, no real strength progression, no skill development beyond “run faster, use slightly heavier dumbbells.” That’s not a criticism of what it is — it’s just not a strength and conditioning program. It’s a very good cardio class.

What CrossFit is (and where it’s harder)

Here’s the honest part: CrossFit is harder to walk into than either of those. It’s not a follow-along class. You’re learning to actually lift — barbells, Olympic lifts, real loads — plus gymnastics skills and conditioning, and that takes coaching and a few weeks before it clicks. There’s a learning curve F45 and Barry’s don’t have, on purpose.

What you get for that is the thing the other two can’t give you: you get measurably stronger *and* better conditioned, a coach who’s actually watching your movement and fixing it, and a program that progresses instead of just rotating you through new ways to be tired. At ESTLR that means Olympic weightlifting, Hyrox-style conditioning, and programming that’s built to move your numbers over an eight-week block — not a random hard workout every day that leaves you sore but stuck.

The tradeoff is real. CrossFit asks more of you up front. If you want zero learning curve, it’s not the pick. If you want to actually get better at something, it’s the only one of the three built for that.

So who should train where?

I’ll say it straight.

If you’re brand new to working out, nervous, and you just want to move and sweat in a room where you can follow along — start with F45. No shame in that. Build the habit.

If you love cardio, you want a fun room, and strength genuinely isn’t your goal — Barry’s is a great time and I mean that.

But here’s the pattern I see over and over: someone does F45 or Barry’s for a year, gets fit-*ish*, and then hits a wall. Same workout, same intensity, same body. Doing the same thing and not getting any better is the number one reason people end up at my door. If that’s you — if you’ve plateaued and you’re ready to actually get strong, learn to lift, and be coached — that’s what CrossFit is for, and it’s what we do.

Come find out for yourself

You don’t have to take my word for any of this. If you’re in Downtown LA and you’ve been circling the idea, come train with us in the Arts District — 431 S Hewitt St. Your first class is on us, current proof of gym membership required. Do one real class, see how it feels to be coached instead of counted, and decide for yourself.

Worst case, you get a hard workout and go back to whatever you were doing. Best case, you find the thing that actually moves you forward.