Crossfit--worth it or too extreme?

I agree - I personally think it is too extreme. I went to one class with my husband and could not walk up and down stairs for 4 days afterwards. I was in so much pain that I could not do the daily exercise that I do (bike riding, yoga, running) so we never went back. I know a few people who have become absorbed into the cross-fit 'cult' - all they do now is talk about cross-fit and paleo eating, which for me would never work - i think if you are working out that hard you need some healthy carbs in your body for energy and all of that meat/cholesterol cannot be a good thing in the long run. One person I know on the paleo diet deprives herself of carbs and sugar, preaches to everyone about how unhealthy carbs are, and then binge eats cinnamon buns when no one is looking. I just do not think it is a healthy, sustainable lifestyle.

That being said, just because it would not work for me, doesn't mean that it's not the right thing for someone else. You could always try out a class and see if you like it.

I think it probably depends on the particular one you go to and who's running it. My brother in law and his wife rave about it. But I've also heard it's "too extreme" from some folks on MFP. LivingSocial or Groupon recently had a 1 month unlimited Crossfit offer for $50... maybe this is still available.. might be worth buying and checking out in your area.

To play devil's advocate... the normal price is $150/month, and that sounds too extreme to me..... You can get a $50/month gym membership instead and spend the remaining $100 on buying up equipment to build a home gym

Crossfit, like everything, can be taken to extremes. I am not part of a Crossfit box, but the workout modality that Crossfit uses works very well as long a good form in the exercises is emphasized. Some boxes don't do that, they push for people to go faster and faster with no caution about good form. That is what leads to injuries. The problem with seeing it as extreme is that everything you said about Crossfit could be said about running. I have known runners who are completely into running and their running group. They run no matter what the weather conditions, even when it is extremely icy, and they push themselves and shrug off injuries. I think it is more a matter of your family members finding something at Crossfit they are missing elsewhere in their life. Thus their passion for it. BTW, I see people here being that obsessive about MFP also.

I'd give it a go when I'm fit enough but I've heard that there's a strong culture of going too far within it.

It's one thing to pride yourself on pushing the envelope but it's another thing to ignore your body when it's about to pop a muscle or wreck a joint.

Just give it a go but be mindful that the instructors will probably not care if you get a cramp and will try to make you push through pain. Stay in control of your own body and stop if you feel you need to stop.

Love Cross Fit!! I think it is awesome!! It makes you push yourself more than you really think you're capable! My husband has thrown up, but I slow down if I start to feel nauseous. Just know yourself & you don't get sick. :sick: At our Cross Fit gym, we have been told some about the Paleo diet, but we are not currently doing it, so I can't really comment on the diet part. But I think think Cross Fit is well worth it & so awesome!!

I've not done Crossfit, but have looked into it. What I've found on numerous sites is that it can be very "cultish". It is very extreme and seems to throw people of all fitness levels into the same group. The fatigue factor kicks in during the workouts and a lot of times people are performing exercises, that are too advanced for them already, incorrectly. Too much potential for injury.

These are just things I've read from people who have attended these classes in different areas.

My friend was obese all of his life, one day he got into cross-fit and within a year he lost ALL of his weight, his fat, his spare tires around his waist, and he is doing very well for himself. I do not agree with his eating habits, but it works for him and he can do it so whatever works for you. He is now a cross-fit trainer and has kept the weight off since he lost it.

Before I knew what cross-fit was I asked him to help me lose some weight, and I am on a -eat meat rarely, avoid cheese, and milk is a serious no-no - diet, first thing he did was attack my diet. I told him as a woman my age I should be getting 55-65 grams of protein a day (according to most websites, doctors, and MFP), and i can easily attain that goal without animal products, he said flat up " that is no where NEAR good enough" He said that our problem in america is the carbs that we eat, our body turning it into insulin and then us becoming resistant then making us diabetic. My thing is, most Vegans LOVE carbs and eat them as much as they want to. Most vegans are on average, very fit and very healthy, and live 10 years longer than the average American. If 'carbs' do this, why do vegans on average live a whole decade longer than meat eaters?

Needless to say, we don't talk about diet or fitness around each other

Do research, try it out yourself, see what works for you

Most people involved with Crossfit are extremist about their workouts. Crossfit is known for that.

I am not training to be a first responder or hand-to-hand combat warrior, or anything like that. I just want to be healthy and reasonably fit, and for that, Crossfit offers you nothing of value that you can't get at a more reasonable, safer level at plenty of other places.

One of my friends in High School used to be into Crossfit. She had a deal with her boyfriend at the time where they would point out if the other gained any weight. He told her she started gaining some, she joined Crossfit. She told him he was gaining, he dumped her. So she worked her butt off and is now doing MMA at her University. She LOVES it, but she also looks great. I haven't seen anything in her logs or updates that things were extreme. Sure, the workouts look difficult and more power to her for doing them, but it was an outlet for her. She has a lot of energy, very sweet and not in anyway someone who would overdo something or go to extremes. So it's probably an individual thing. Could also be serotonin levels from working out. Especially as a group, that could really make one excited!

Any form of physical activity runs the risk of injury. Period. Know your limits, remember technique, and get help, if needed. I've seen the inside of a CrossFit gym and personally, I wouldn't know how to work half of the equipment, and even if I did, I'm not sure I'd want to put my body in some of those situations. That's JUST me, though. My advice would be to check out the gym for yourself, maybe take a session with one of their trainers and make a decision from there.

My advice is just go to a normal gym and forget Crossfit. Then you won't have to figure out how to modify their extreme exercise routines so a normal person might be able to do them.

Crossfit routines were created for fitness extremists. If you're not an extremest, you probably won't enjoy being in that kind of an environment.

Those of us who crossfit bash our heads every time we see her posts. Talk about beating a dead horse. Bottom line you can get injured doing anything. Crossfit takes functional everyday movements, makes you stronger at them, and like at my box to your ability level. That's important to look for in a box....my coach pushes me when he knows I'm gaming a workout. I've never piker, piker more in high school basketball practice.

I'd much rather be an "average human" that gets fit gradually than a Crossfitter in the emergency room!


http://www.bookofodds.com/Accidents-Death/Articles/A0501-Exercising-Yourself-into-the-ER-Living-the-Tale

You made your point earlier. You have a real vendetta against Crossfit, and a tendency to put forward situations like this as the norm, not the exception. Again, as I said above, I can point you to examples of this with pretty much every exercise modality. Enter anything from weight lifting to running to cycling knowing the potential dangers, but don't demonize it because of the wack jobs out there.

Things I enjoy about CrossFit:

* The workout is always different. Some days are more strength focused, some days are more cardio focused, some days are a really good mix of the two.

* All the workouts can be modified based on skill and strength.

* There is a trainer there who can and will point out right away if I'm doing something wrong, or if I need to push harder, or if I'm pushing too hard and need to go down in weight or speed or whatever. It's almost like having a personal trainer.

* There is a great sense of community. When someone does something great or needs support, the whole class is right there. And this doesn't just apply to the super strong guy setting some amazing PR. It's also for the 60 year old grandmother who just set her own PR.

But I'll admit it, there are people I know that CrossFit who are extremists. I am not, and in general, people at my box are not. There are people there who do paleo, but our onsite dietitian does not recommend it.

I think it depends on which Crossfit you go to. My son has friends who go to the one in our city. He went with them once to observe their workout and he said the form was really bad, and the trainers weren't bothering to correct it. He said he was just cringing waiting for someone to get injured. That said, his friend's mom has had great success with weight loss and her only workouts have been at Crossfit.