Meet FitKid Matteo Toriello

Meet FitKid Matteo Toriello
Written by Arielle Bloom

You may have seen Matteo on a Saturday smashing out hundreds of kettlebell swings, or rowing upwards of 1,000 meters with a casual grin on his face while the rest of the class featured the “pain face”. Or maybe you’ve seen him at noon on a Wednesday knocking out burpees to a target or wall climbs and handstand holds.

Matteo is the son of Tasha Toriello, and is a member of our Fit Kids program with the Urban Discovery Academy. Every Wednesday, as school lets out for early dismissal, Matteo and many of his classmates venture over to Invictus to learn about health and fitness. Like many kids his age, Matteo is high-energy and athletic, which makes the Fit Kids program the perfect outlet to utilize these attributes. Over the course of two trimesters in school, I have had the pleasure of getting to know Matteo, and every time I speak with him I learn something new. Full disclosure, I did not actually know any of these kids before teaching the Fit Kids program, which makes learning about them all the more fun and interesting!

Even before the kiddos walk into the gym on Wednesday afternoons, I meet them at the school for lunch, where I check in with them about what’s new in their day, week, and life. As I walk into the crowded lunchroom, full of kids chatting and talking with their friends, I look around to locate my students. Most of the time, they’ll sit together at a table labeled “CrossFit”, and sometimes they’ll spread out to catch up with their friends in different early dismissal programs. I can always find Matteo at the CrossFit table talking with someone about Pokemon, the Guinness Book of World Records, or Star Wars. He comes equipped with new Pokemon cards every week, and the eagerness to explain their function.

No matter if we are discussing Pokemon or deadlifts, Matteo is always eager and willing to explain, demonstrate, or try it out first. This kind of enthusiasm is equal to none, and it further encourages me to keep teaching them new movements and skills. At such a young age, Matteo is developing skills that many of us learned when we started CrossFit much later in life. When asked what his favorite movement is in CrossFit, Matteo’s answer changed weekly, ranging from burpees, to rowing, to kettlebell swings. One thing is definitely consistent; His favorite game to play at the end of class is Pizza Tag. Pizza Tag is a game designed to develop coordination, balance, speed, and control, along with teaching patience, focus, and how to stay calm in moments of stress. Matteo has worked with me over the course of several weeks to develop new rules to ensure that the game is played fairly and effectively, and he takes great pride in that.

Matteo and his classmates are one of the many highlights of my week as a coach with Invictus, and I constantly look forward to working with them each week. Our Fit Kids program runs every Wednesday from 12:30-1:30pm, and works off a trimester schedule with UDA. If you are interested in registering your child into the program, please feel free to reach out to me, or any of our member representatives and we can get you set up! Email: info@crossfitinvictus.com

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