The idea of a third space is increasingly relevant in 2025. Third spaces refer to spaces that are separate from the home (the first space) and from a place of work (the second space) where broader community can be found. Often found in churches, restaurants, and parks, the third space is a way to engage with community in a wider capacity.

In a world increasingly siloed into narrow e-spaces, the availability to community is more relevant now than ever.

One such example is the explicit community-building found within the Hastings CrossFit Gym (Hastings Strength and Conditioning - CrossFit HSC). One of the reasons Mike Ahn became co-owner of the Hastings CrossFit Gym in March 2025 alongside co-owner Tracy Precious was because of the strong community there.

While owning a gym is a lot more “accounting and cleaning” than one might expect, said Ahn, when it came to the new ownership, an explicit focus was not making too big a change: “There weren’t large changes we wanted to make because we’ve already got a great thing.”

“Our biggest claim to fame is not fitness but the community,” said longevity coach Wendy Loomis. “I couldn’t put one above the other. For whatever reason, the older you get, the harder it is to make friends.”

As the coach for longevity classes, which are not solely for senior citizens but are often populated by them, the social aspect of the class can be just as much of a draw as the physical.

Community is central to the model with explicit focus on comradery, and providing time for “exercising jaws,” as Loomis puts it.

To further blur this line, Loomis gamifies classes by adding cognitive exercises like providing attendees with a grocery list at the beginning of the class and asking them to recall it at the end.

Loomis started as a patron of the gym in 2013. She came to CrossFit because she was able to work out alongside her daughters due to classes allowing variations on their workouts to incorporate differing skill levels.

The intersection within classes of not just skill levels but generations is another avenue for community.

For General Manger Ryan Willette, the community building is a virtuous cycle: making friends and spending time with them outside of the gym can be “a big push to get back to the gym.”

For Ahn, the focus on community is baked into the experience. It makes the gym “a better product.”