Crossfit--worth it or too extreme?

Health_Gal

Not all Crossfit gyms are ran like that either. I went to the "testing" session so they can recommend where to put you in my gym. I am at the very basic, beginner level when I start in 2 weeks.

Yes, they start people at the beginner level so they will join and pay money to belong to the gym.

But check out these links to see where Crossfit really wants you to go as far as extremism.

Getting Fit, Even If It Kills You http://crossfitatlanta.typepad.com/NYTArticle.pdf

CrossFit: The Ugly http://bod****erperformance.com/?p=295

Extreme Exercise: CrossFit Pushes the Body, Sometimes With Dangerous Results

http://www.findingdulcinea.com/news/health/2009/june/Extreme-Exercise--CrossFit-Pushes-the-Body--Sometimes-With-Dangerous-Results.html

Inside The Cult of Crossfit http://fitbie.msn.com/get-fitter/inside-cult-crossfit/page/2

P.S. I hope you can get your money back!.

Huffdogg

RachelSNO: Voted most likely source of MFP user requests for an ignore feature on the forums.

snkeller24

I am not arguing that's what happens at YOUR Crossfit. But there are many other Crossfit gyms where that is not the case, where people are being pressured to exercise harder than they should, where elite Crossfitters look down on those who cannot keep up, etc. And a lot of the Crossfit gyms ARE pushing the Paleo Diet on people with a "30 Day Paleo Challenge" and members that chose not to take the challenge are looked down upon but those that are doing it.

I'm sorry you can't imagine all this, but believe me, it's a very common occurrence.

And you know this by reading the internet right??? There are tons of challenges in every gym - I belonged to one that ran a biggest loser competion every 6 months with money prizes at the end for the person who lost the most weight. It may have just been a motivational tool but it could turn pretty bad if someone wanted to win the money bad enough.
As for the gyms that are pushing you harder than you can go, that is on the person. YOU need to know your own body, if you are uncomfortable leave and find a new box/gym etc. NO ONE is making you stay in one place. A little common sense and some research about the gym BEFORE joining is always a good idea.

The internet doesn't lie, it only posts facts - when you find 5 videos on youtube of poor form or someone complaining about a box you can't automatically think it's all boxes or all people who do crossfit. It's kind of like watching videos of firefighters or cops doing stupid stuff that could get them killed. We preach it all the time 'everyone goes home' but sometimes common sense doesn't prevail. Does that mean all volunteer firefighters are idiots and I should bash them over and over again? Not at all. So you get one bad vibe and you're going to bash the masses? Kind of makes you a sh!tty person. I see crappy people over and over again at work, on Maury, Jerry Springer, but that is a small percentage of the population so there for I don't jump to conclusions that EVERY ONE who "insert whatever here" is "insert whatever name here".

kmboffice88

I am just starting CrossFit. I went in for a trial one day and did bootcamp, and my body killed for 4 days after (I am average weight, but out of shape). I LOVED it. I was using muscles I had never used before, and a few days later I was completely fine.
I am now in the foundations course which is mandatory before joining my box. It's six one-hour long sessions over two weeks that teaches you the correct way to do the most common movements for all the workouts. Today while doing our scaled WoD which included deadlifts and med ball cleans, we had two coaches watching six of us to make sure our form was correct and anytime it wasn't, they showed us how to correct it. I am sure once we get out of foundations our form will be left up to us to perform properly... hence going through foundations to avoid injury. I do not believe CF teaches poor form. If I were to go to a gym and start doing push presses, I would probably injury myself more than at CF.

As for the diet, I think it sounds clean. Like with anything, I believe moderation is key. Just because you can eat meat on the diet doesn't mean you're going to gorge on it, and it's been proven by many that dairy is worthless to your diet anyway. Fruits and veggies will make you feel better than a piece of bread anyway, no matter what diet you're on!

Health_Gal

I have never understood people that love being in pain and are willing to pay people to coach them to exercise to the point of being in pain.

Whether it's Crossfit or just an extreme personal trainer, it's dangerous to exercise to the point of being in pain.

snkeller24

There are different types of pain - which you're now generalizing about. People deal with and feel pain differently. Just because you had a harder workout and are sore doesn't mean it's bad for you. It's better then shin splints from running, which if improperly cared for could do more damage in the big picture.

Health_Gal

Some soreness after a workout is not bad. But when people do extreme workouts that leave them sore for days, and they get that sore repeatedly, as some Crossfit people brag about doing, it is not healthy. I know Crossfit has rest days built into their program, but one day is not enough rest to recover from their brutal workouts.

Staying sore all the time, like many Crossfitters brag about doing is counterproductive and invites injury.

chicklidell

I don't understand crossfit, we have it in our gym, i've seen too many people get hurt. The concept of heavy weight on one's shoulders and squatting for time, like it's a race, it's totally ridiculous, a sure fire way to get hurt, let alone their form sucks, but it's all about time...no thanks. Proper form always.

I_get_fit

crossfit is AMAZING! I just wish it wasn't so expensive... $150 a month!! :noway:

Health_Gal

crossfit is AMAZING! I just wish it wasn't so expensive... $150 a month!! :noway:

There's really nothing amazing about Crossfit. They just took a bunch of exercise moves that have been around for ages, repackaged it as an extreme sport, and put an outrageous price tag on it.

vs1023

I have never understood people that love being in pain and are willing to pay people to coach them to exercise to the point of being in pain.

Whether it's Crossfit or just an extreme personal trainer, it's dangerous to exercise to the point of being in pain.

After being out of the gym for a year and a half due to pregnancy I went back to my regular run of the mill gym. I took BodyCombat and BodyPump back to back, something I did regularly pre-pregnancy and guess what..I was in SO much pain that evening and maybe up to 3 days afterwards I really thought I needed a dr. So guess what, you can injure yourself anywhere if you do too much which is what I did that day. I know my body and what I can handle.

With that said, CrossFit is a fitness goal of mine. Once my contract for my run of the mill gym ($55/month) is up, i'm going to evaluate where I am physically and decide whether to do CrossFit at that time or wait a bit longer. The price is a little higher then I'm doing now and it's a little further past my current gym, but the exercises I've seen are so motivating to me and just look awesome that I want to try it. I want to be strong and get done quickly as I have a very busy life.

ceebs9

Man, I wish I could check out Rachel's progress photos.

As for cost. Yep. CF is pricey! But when I was at LA Fitness one of the sales people tried to sell me personal training. The cheapest package was way more than CF and nowhere near the amount of time. For my $125 a month I can go to unlimited regular CF classes, endurance classes, gymnastics classes, olympic lifting classes, and mobility classes.

I've been doing this for 3 years. My coaches still correct my form almost daily. They don't just leave it up to us to correct our own form. They watch, they coach, they correct, they push, they praise, they stop us if they think we've hit our limit or our form goes to ****.

I'll say it one more time. Not all CFer's work out at an extreme level. Everything an be scaled or modified. Do injuries occur? Yep. They happen at globo gyms, basketball courts, football fields, soccer tournaments, bathtubs, you name it.

I am so not trying to talk anyone in to starting Crossfit. I could not care less what your exercise program of choice is. I don't think one is better than the other. There is NO ONE WAY to work out. It's the bashing by people who have never even tried it that bugs me. You don't see me bashing Zumba or Jillian Michaels. Do what you love.

espence30

RachelSNO: Voted most likely source of MFP user requests for an ignore feature on the forums.

agreed.. way too negative

XFitMojoMom

Man, I wish I could check out Rachel's progress photos.

As for cost. Yep. CF is pricey! But when I was at LA Fitness one of the sales people tried to sell me personal training. The cheapest package was way more than CF and nowhere near the amount of time. For my $125 a month I can go to unlimited regular CF classes, endurance classes, gymnastics classes, olympic lifting classes, and mobility classes.

I've been doing this for 3 years. My coaches still correct my form almost daily. They don't just leave it up to us to correct our own form. They watch, they coach, they correct, they push, they praise, they stop us if they think we've hit our limit or our form goes to ****.

I'll say it one more time. Not all CFer's work out at an extreme level. Everything an be scaled or modified. Do injuries occur? Yep. They happen at globo gyms, basketball courts, football fields, soccer tournaments, bathtubs, you name it.

I am so not trying to talk anyone in to starting Crossfit. I could not care less what your exercise program of choice is. I don't think one is better than the other. There is NO ONE WAY to work out. It's the bashing by people who have never even tried it that bugs me. You don't see me bashing Zumba or Jillian Michaels. Do what you love.

Well said. and I don't talk about my Crossfitting anymore either - nor do I try to get people to drink the kool-aid. I rather have it all to myself :drinker:

sfrye005

To rachelsno,

Crossfit is for people who want to be the fittest they can be whether or not that is you or not i could care less. There are many different types of focus for crossfit. Regular, football for people looking for more strength and power, and endurance for high endurance athletes. I would also like to add that each of these is FREE! www.crossfit.com, www.crossfitfootball.com, www.crossfitendurance.com.....each one of these web sites has a work out everyday sometimes two. they also have a appendix to look up exercises and get to know the lingo. I have been avid crossfitter for about 8 months now and have never had an injury have lost 6 pounds and am 9% body fat because i follow the meal plan and the 3 day on 1 day off plan on crossfit endurance. All of my lifts have gone up and my running has gotten amazingly better. I have not paid a single penny to crossfit or any crossfit gym. Now soreness is good means your body is not hitting a plateau. crossfit keeps you from hitting that plateau by changing to workout every day and very rarely doing the same one maybe once or twice a year something might be repeated. I do know who you are and i am not trying to make piss you off or make you fall in love with cross fit. it is not for everyone. Crossfit is for elitists because they want to be the bet they can be and it makes you good not great good at everything(lifting, running, body weight exercises, etc...and last but not least it costs 1000 a class and you need both the trainer class level 1 and the coaches class level 2 to have your own crossfit affiliated gym. some gyms do crossfit but are not crossfit affiliated. Feel free to reply back

sfrye005

BTW M/22/5'9"/175 and a former collegiate athlete

Health_Gal

No, my goal in life is not to be an elite athlete. I enjoy running, and I also enjoy taking several different classes at the YMCA, all of which are challenging in various ways, but none extreme. Naturally, I want to improve my running time, but as a person that did not start running until I was middle age, I realistically don't expect to win races. I just do them for fun and to see if I can get a better time than I did in the race before. I am within my normal weight range, and exercise mostly to stay healthy and strong and not to start gaining like my mother did when she was around my age. I also exercise as an activity to do with friends that belong to the YMCA.

While I sometimes wish I had more variety in my exercise program, I know I can get it from the various exercise DVDs in my collection or by trying a different exercise program at a different gym. I feel that I am much better off doing that than joining a Crossfit gym or trying to figure out how to scale a bunch of unfamiliar exercise from the Crossfit website to the level where I can do them safely.

sfrye005

I agree scaling sucks and starting crossfit middle age is hard because your body is not use to those movements. sounds like you are happy with your program stick to it and stay healthy.

OregonRunner

Whenever people bring up Cross Fit, I always say, 'No thanks, I already have a religion'...

That being said, I do have some friends who are avid disciples, and I think if you are naturally athletic and very healthy Cross Fit can be a descent program. However when the man who founded it admits it can be dangerous, that should raise some red flags. There are some health conditions where extreme exercise can be very bad for you. People often have these conditions for months, even years before they are diagnosed. It will be interesting if Cross Fit stands the test of time and if it does, what Cross Fit workouts do to people's bodies and health in the long run.

Health_Gal

Whenever people bring up Cross Fit, I always say, 'No thanks, I already have a religion'...

That being said, I do have some friends who are avid disciples, and I think if you are naturally athletic and very healthy Cross Fit can be a descent program. However when the man who founded it admits it can be dangerous, that should raise some red flags. There are some health conditions where extreme exercise can be very bad for you. People often have these conditions for months, even years before they are diagnosed. It will be interesting if Cross Fit stands the test of time and if it does, what Cross Fit workouts do to people's bodies and health in the long run.

Thanks for your comments. I don't think Crossfit will stand the test of time because:

1. They are jujst another exercise franchise that got too big too fast, and there is no true quality standard of Crossfit gyms

2. As far as I can tell, nothing about Crossfit is really original. They just took a bunch of exercise moves that have been around for years, put them together, and made it more extreme

3. The extremeness of the Crossfit program will most certainly contribute to it NOT standing the test of time. Most people that exercise want to feel good for the rest of the day, not be too sore to function or enjoy other activities. So my guess is that Crossfit will either burn out by trying to get more and more extreme, or else scale their program back so more people will actually be able to do the workouts, and become just another national gym franchise until someone comes up with a different fitness program that gets more media attention.

4. The cultish, extremest and elitist attitude that is often associated with Crossfit will also factor into it not standing the test of time. While doing Crossfit so they can feel they have a right to go around with those attitudes may appeal to a small percentage of the population, it will put off a lot more people than it attracts.

Jennan1

So negative. This 41 yr old mother of a 3 yr old loves crossfit, and so do my 60+ year old parents.

Health_Gal

If you think I am being "negative" about Crossfit, read what the NY Times has to say about their dangerous program:


Getting Fit, Even If It Kills You
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/12/22/fashion/thursdaystyles/22Fitness.html?pagewanted=all

thefuzz1290

Geeze, the Crossfit Cultists are out in force :P.

There are good crossfit gyms and bad crossfit gyms. Crossfit is an excellent workout if you are in pretty good shape to begin with, and its definitely not for true beginners. But remember, not all gyms are created equal and I definitely don't' think its worth the money (both Crossfit gyms in my area are $120 a month). A lot of crossfit is doing the amount of reps as fast as you can, while crossing your fingers that you have good form. This leaves you open to a higher chance of injury if you're not familiar with the lifts (and the instructor won't spend the time to teach you).

All in all, its a great workout, but unless you have some experience I'd stay away.

SproutPal

Just wanted to share my moderate, Pro-Crossfit views.

I started in July 2011 with a 2-week 6-class BeginnerSeries (again, mandatory to join my local CF gym). Learned correct techniques as I had never lifted free-weights before, had never done a "wall ball", had never worked with kettlebells... you get the drift. Learned a ton. Continued working out at that CF gym 2-3 times a week for the next 2 months.

I was never part of the CF "family" or "cult", whatever you want to call it. I'm sort of a shy, private person and, frankly, just didn't feel the need to make friends at the gym. If anything, the cult-like mentality of some of the participants rubbed me the wrong way, so I just kept to myself. I showed up to work out, and left immediately afterwards. I was friendly with the coaches and a few other people, but pretty much just came to get my sweat on and mind my own business. Not the typical CF mentality, but it's my personality and it worked for me. I also ate healthy, but frankly ignored their Paleo diet as yet another diet trend.

After those 2 months, I moved to California where CF is ridiculously expensive. I also make less money now and pay more in rent, so I couldn't afford to be part of a CF gym. Instead, I look up the WODs on my previous gym's website and do them privately in my apartment's gym. I have to modify exercises (for example, I use dumbbells for all my lifts bc my gym doesn't have a bar and free weights), but it works. And it's free. I probably pushed myself harder when surrounded by others at the gym, but I do ok by myself.

In the past 6 months, I've lost 15 lbs (am 5'2", now about 120 lbs), 3 inches off my waist, and 5% body fat. I'm stronger than I've ever been in my life. And I'm not part of a cult, or even a CF family - I just do the WODs as best I can, and I see progress without being extreme by any means. To each their own...

angiebarker

I did crossfit when i was in high school and i loved it. It really got me going. It is very intense though. I had more of the free crossfit sessions where i didnt have a trainner i made my own plan. I think that it is better to follow a strict plan if you have trouble planning though. so overall its good for some people not for some others. I say try it once and see what happens you may love it. ~A

rebeccap13

1. They are just another exercise franchise that got too big too fast, and there is no true quality standard of Crossfit gyms

Ummm... Crossfit isn't a franchise. Maybe if you actually understood the roots of Crossfit people would maybe value your opinion. Crossfit is completely free for people who want to work out on their own. And also, coaches provide free scaling of the workouts to any skill level.

And why do you care? Mind your own business. Some people love it, some people hate it. If it isn't for you, THEN BUTT OUT.

tinamarch

I crossfit too,you should just give it a try if you like it than keep doing it if you dont then find something else.

snkeller24

From CrossfitLisbeth:

If you don’t CrossFit, I’m cool with that. If you CrossFit, I’m even happier. But, there are some folks out there obsessed with hating CrossFit and CrossFitters. That’s really funny when you think about it . . . and pathetic.

I don’t care if you drive a Chevy, a Ford, or a Toyota. I don’t care if you smoke or drink a lot — unless your smoke blows my way or your drunken *kitten* gets in my path. You have the right to make what I might think are dumb decisions.

I don’t care if you have bad teeth, a horrible vocabulary, and you like to wear tin foil on your head and private parts. More power to you. Live your life the way you want, right up to the edges of where it affects mine.

I’m too busy serving to get into the business of undermining. Really, who the **** has time for that?

So, let me offer a piece of advice (my own tin foil, I guess), whether you want it or not: If you find yourself getting absolutely red in the face, pulse rising, teeth clenched over what someone ELSE is doing, STOP. Think. Redirect yourself.

The only movement that really matters is the one you are doing now — in the gym or in your life.
You cannot control anyone else — really — no matter how hard you try. But you can control yourself. You can direct your own efforts. You can make a difference. And in doing these things, you can better your life and the lives of those you love.

Work on you. Help those who want and need and will accept your help. Fight where you need to fight and where your efforts can yield results. Drive on past the other battles. Ignore the tin foil. Build. Live. Love. Succeed.

thefuzz1290

Don't pay for the gym membership, do the free workouts if you really want to try it.

rebeccap13

From CrossfitLisbeth:

If you don’t CrossFit, I’m cool with that. If you CrossFit, I’m even happier. But, there are some folks out there obsessed with hating CrossFit and CrossFitters. That’s really funny when you think about it . . . and pathetic.

I don’t care if you drive a Chevy, a Ford, or a Toyota. I don’t care if you smoke or drink a lot — unless your smoke blows my way or your drunken *kitten* gets in my path. You have the right to make what I might think are dumb decisions.

I don’t care if you have bad teeth, a horrible vocabulary, and you like to wear tin foil on your head and private parts. More power to you. Live your life the way you want, right up to the edges of where it affects mine.

I’m too busy serving to get into the business of undermining. Really, who the **** has time for that?

So, let me offer a piece of advice (my own tin foil, I guess), whether you want it or not: If you find yourself getting absolutely red in the face, pulse rising, teeth clenched over what someone ELSE is doing, STOP. Think. Redirect yourself.

The only movement that really matters is the one you are doing now — in the gym or in your life.
You cannot control anyone else — really — no matter how hard you try. But you can control yourself. You can direct your own efforts. You can make a difference. And in doing these things, you can better your life and the lives of those you love.

Work on you. Help those who want and need and will accept your help. Fight where you need to fight and where your efforts can yield results. Drive on past the other battles. Ignore the tin foil. Build. Live. Love. Succeed.

Yes!!!