My Story
I am the husband to my beautiful wife, Sam; father to my handsome sons; son to my amazing parents, Sonia and Domenico, and brother to my two sisters, Agata and Amanda .
My name is Leonardo Crucillo and I am also your Coach at JCFit.
I was born and raised in São Paulo, Brasil with humble beginnings and a little chunky belly. I grew up watching, playing and practicing basketball with my older sister. This is where my love for fitness started. I can remember endlessly playing basketball for hours outside in the Brazilian heat and loving every moment of it. I loved being a part of a team – being a part of something bigger than myself. I took my love for basketball and pursued it even more.
At 18 I became a professional basketball player in my home country Brazil. I played professionally for 9 years. After my professional basketball career was over, I wanted a new challenge in my life that would still keep my mind and body in shape. So at 27 I found CrossFit and my life was forever changed.
I started off like the rest of us – laughing and saying “hell no” at ring muscle ups. But I worked out every single day – sometimes twice a day, because everyday was something different, everyday boasted a new challenge for me to overcome and get better at. CrossFit incorporates all types of workouts possible, including cardio, strength, and gymnastics! I love this fact about CrossFit because you can never get bored and you can always improve one aspect of it. I am 6’2 which is really tall in the CrossFit world and made gymnastics a true obstacle for me. But like me, I want all of you too “be brave enough to be bad at something new”. This is where true growth starts.
In May 2018, I competed in the Latin American CrossFit Regionals. This was a huge milestone for me in my CrossFit career. But I still wanted more. I knew it was time for me to start something new and trust the magic of new beginnings. So I came to America in July 2018 to create a new life for myself and truly live the American Dream.
In December of 2019 I walked into CrossFit Jersey City and instantly fell in love with the community. I remember feeling the welcoming, positive, supportive and goal oriented energy the moment I walked in. For me, it’s all about the community – the JCFit community.
