After eight years with Cressey Sports Performance, I’m stepping away. There are no hard feelings—just a mix of gratitude and excitement about a new path that will give me more autonomy and help us plan for the future.
Cressey Sports Performance began from a simple phone call. Eric, then working as an independent contractor, called Pete Dupuis and said, “Dude, it’s time. Want to open up a gym?” Pete happened to be between jobs, waiting to hear back on another offer. If Eric had waited even a little longer, CSP might not have happened.
We were three guys with little business experience: two twenty-somethings and a balding thirty-something. We rented space inside an indoor batting cage in Hudson, Massachusetts, with just a barbell, a few plates, a sled, and a forearm-gripper. That was the first version of CSP. We eventually put up our own walls and office space, about 2,200 square feet in total, and learned the value of starting small.
We already had a solid roster of local high school baseball players, and some clients followed us from our previous locations. Growth came from local college players and general fitness enthusiasts, helped by our growing online presence, as a few local New England professional baseball players began to train with us. Tim Collins, a quiet left-hander from Worcester who wasn’t recruited by any Division I program, eventually signed with the Toronto Blue Jays and became a big-league pitcher—an unofficial CSP staff member in spirit if not in title.
We’re proud of what we built: a facility that grew into one of the premier strength and conditioning programs in the world, with thousands of clients, hundreds of interns and coaches who passed through our doors, and a culture we helped shape. I’m grateful to have been part of CSP and to have learned so much from Eric.
Eric and I connected online before social media existed, and he became a major influence on my career and my writing. He was my first editor and pushed me to step outside my comfort zone. Through him, I pursued opportunities I might not have otherwise considered. I even met my wife, Lisa, through these connections.
So what next? It’s scary to leave a place that’s felt like home for eight years, and I’ll miss the CSP family—the coaches who pushed me to be better, the athletes and clients who inspired me, and the daily camaraderie that kept me sharp. I want to thank the coaches and staff who helped shape me, including those who were part of CSP’s core in recent years, for helping me grow with professionalism and integrity.
I’m excited to start something new in Boston. I’ve been stocking equipment and planning a small studio space in Brookline, not far from my apartment. For now I’ll be sub-leasing a studio and offering semi-private sessions for small groups (2–4 people). I’m still finalizing the schedule, but I aim to launch in mid to late October and I’d love to hear from anyone interested.
If you’d like to hear more about what I’ll be offering, please email me and I’ll fill you in. Thank you again to CSP and to everyone who supported me over the years. This isn’t the end of the story—just the next chapter.
