cross fit newbie

smileymaxine

Well more curious... I'm getting a tad bored with body pump ... I still love it just not feel super challenged and abs and *kitten* today made me feel I was in the romcom of exercise classes.
Can anyone give me an idea of what the classes involve ? If having a still recovering ankle will stop me doing most things ? And any tips ??
I don't like doing things by half and love something that really pushes me to my limits and since long distance running is out I need a new fix

OsricTheKnight

If you're new to crossfit, a typical class will start with explanation of a specific movement (say a deadlift, or power clean, or what have you) on a whiteboard. This might be 5-15 minutes.

Then you'll have an extensive warm up, which will take about 30 minutes. This will involve different exercises but typical warmups include lunges, rowing, jogging, etc.

Finally you'll do the "WOD" - workout of the day - which will feature the movement you learned at the start of the class. The typical WOD is 8 to 20 minutes in duration and should involve working out at high intensity.

WODs come in 3 basic types:

- work to find the maximum weight you can lift with a particular lift (and record your 1RM)
- work as fast as you can, to see how many rounds you can complete (called "AMRAP" - as many rounds as possible)
- work as fast as you can, to see how soon you can complete the workout (e.g. Do 100 burpees, pushups, wall-balls, run 800 meters for time - start the timer before the burpees, measure until after the run)

WODs should repeat months or years later to demonstrate that you have improved at that workout even though you haven't repeated it in months.

Crossfit is as good as the trainers you find and their programming. A good "box" (crossfit gym) could have excellent trainers with years of experience in powerlifting and fitness who can produce excellent workouts and teach you good form and keep you entertained and tired for years. I would look into the credentials of the instructors.

Crossfit is a business. As a business they are motivated to train new trainers and get new boxes (franchises) established as fast as possible. Crossfit exercises can injure you if done improperly, and exercising to exhaustion can be dangerous if not supervised properly.

Crossfit is a lot of fun, hope you like it. It matches your desire to "push your limits".

Osric

OsricTheKnight

Oh I should have said you can find example WODs with videos on crossfit.com.

And their "Killing the fat Man" series on youtube is hilarious. Gary Roberts is still active in crossfit.

Osric

smileymaxine

OsricTheKnight wrote: »

Oh I should have said you can find example WODs with videos on crossfit.com.

And their "Killing the fat Man" series on youtube is hilarious. Gary Roberts is still active in crossfit.

Osric

Thank you Osric !!! It sounds like genuine hell but if I survive then I'm sure it is worth it ... Though I'm already crying on the inside about 100 burpies

besee_2000

I started in July and do not regret it (other than maybe halfway in a WOD). My box is super supportive and makes it fun. If you are competitive it really drives you to push harder.

GiddyupTim

Many (most?) Crossfit boxes have "on-ramp" classes. If you have never done Crossfit before, they make you take these classes for a while. Don't worry; you can get a good workout in these classes, but you don't do some of the more complex weight lifting movements, or the rope climbs, or anything like that. They teach you those exercises, but you do not do them in your workout. It is a way for the trainers to ease you into it, and to teach you some of the harder movements before you jump right in.

AlciaMode

This has been super informative and is making me think about starting crossfit even more!

Upstate_Dunadan

I started Crossfit about 2 months ago (after resisting for over a year and doing various workout splits in the gym). I now wish I had started sooner. I love it. I read a great article a week or so ago by Jason Khalipa on why he does Crossfit, and one of the things he said I felt nailed it on the head -

it puts a timer to your workout so that you can quantify them, and then push yourself against your previous time. This isn’t about doing the same workout every time, but always striving to do the best workout you’ve ever done. The internal competition is a lot more motivating than plugging in your headphones and zoning out.

You can read the full article here theplayerstribune.com/why-i-do-crossfit/