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Old Forum Honest opinions on Crossfit

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Iron_Man_02181987

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Hey everyone I'm getting pretty close to graduating college and during the last three years I've been doing the best I could with trying to stay in as best shape as I can and I honestly can say I haven't done all that bad BUT lately getting close to the end with finals and being so stressed out with everything I feel I have slipped and cracked here and there.

There is a Crossfit that is pretty close to me and for a while I've been giving serious thought to trying it. Now I obviously haven't done it before so I was wondering if people here could please give me some insight on it and what you think about it. Now I know that they are big into kipping pull ups ( which I'm not a big fan of at all because they aren't REAL pull ups ) but so far that's the only negative I can see about it so far.

Anyone's thoughts? Thanks

 
 
I have never gone to a cross fit gym, but I have known several guys who have been into crossfit.  I understand that all crossfit gyms are not the same, but the guys I have known who were into it described being pushed to their limits every workout.  I think they did a different workout every day.  these guys talked about 20 rep sets of deadlifts and circuits involving Olympic lifting movements.  Quantity and volume were stressed above quality of movement and perfect form.  It is not even possible to maintain good form and do 20 rep sets of deadlifts or Olympic lifts while fatigued.

Compare that to the PM where Pavel teaches to do swings to a comfortable stop or to the principles taught in PTTP or Easy Strength.  Stopping while you still have gas in your tank doesn't sound as macho as pushing yourself to exhaustion all of the time, but it is more effective.
 
Yeah man you're going to get more or less variations of the same on this board but listen to them and you'll be happy later.  Its hard to accept because we're so brainwashed by the North American culture of anxiety and its "push it! push it!" mentality but before I even got into this strength training stuff I definitely learned the hard way that wearing yourself out is not the way to go.  You feel like you're getting somewhere but you're not.  You'll just end up with an endorphin rush followed by sore, stiff muscles that you'll mistake for "progress" and cumulative fatigue that will eventually cause you to crash and go back to zero.  Anyone I know who has continued to develop themselves athletically past their early twenties has managed to do so and to do so well because they were psychologically equipped to internalize this lesson.  People who fail to do so eventually burn out and give up or just push until they become so numb they no longer feel what they're doing to themselves until it comes time for surgery in their early fifties.
 
You can meet beatiful girls everywhere, not only at crossfit gym ;)

In past i trained a lot to failure, I don't know if that was crossfit oraz something else. I got only few injuries and almost zero progress. Not cool.

Personally for me the whole attitude 'training not to failure' was very hard on the beginning, but i don't give up. Now training to success is my new attitude. After each training i am very fresh, full of energy and each time much more stronger. I love this form of training.

Of course if i wanna get so hard, i am doing tough sprints, hill sprints or other brutal circuits. But if  i see, that my technique is low and i am close to exhausted, i just stop.

Here in Poland are many crossfit gyms, but it seems not that popular like in USA.

 
 
My experience from a Crossfitgym (2 clients, 2 certified trainers with them)

the workout was as follows:
1. Pull ups (as many as they could to x3)
2. Battleropes untill exaution (x3)
3.  Standing military press
4. Jumping Squats x3
5. Lounges x2
6. Assisted Deadlift going for a "max max".
 
Here we go.

Nick, why dont you go to crossfit's website and look around. Call the local ones in your area, I'm sure there is more than one. Everyone's experience is different. I have no problem with crossfit, I do crossfit workouts sometimes. In the military we love getting stronger, faster, having more endurance. At its core its designed for general physical preparedness, forget the crossfit games and all the sport aspect. It uses many different things to achieve it, including kettlebells. Try it and decide for yourself. And yes, kipping pullups are NOT real pullups. I hope this helps.
 
Crossfit took a good thing: brief, intense bouts of exercise with a small handful of movements to stimulate the metabolism, burn fat, and develop GPP, and turned it into:

Too many movements too often, too fast, with too little practice.

That said, intelligent practitioners scale the workouts down to a level at which they're comfortable. That's what's important if you get into crossfit. Don't worry about what everyone else is doing, or how fast they're doing it. Forget about your "fran time", etc. Check your ego at the door and start slowly. It'll never give you the same strength as a powerlifting routine, the size of a bodybuilder, or the endurance of a marathoner...but you'll be somewhat prepared for a wider range of physical demands.

A capable generalist rather than a qualified specialist. It all depends on what you want.
 
I am a crossfit addicted, most of my training is kettlebells, barbells and bodyweight , sprints and other gymnastic exercises. Everything worked with keeping a good technique. Lucky to have the higher qualified Coach in WA. You can have a look of what you can expect from a very good crossfit gym @

THECELLFITNESS.COM.AU

 
 
Nick,

Here is some info that may help you: http://www.tabatatimes.com/the-7-most-overrated-crossfit-exercises/ and this http://breakingmuscle.com/crossfit/how-injury-proof-your-crossfit and this http://www.strengthvillain.com/?p=303 and this http://www.scienceofrunning.com/2012/01/crossfit-endurance-tabata-sprints-and.html and this http://www.sweatpit.com/forum/ubbthreads.php?ubb=cult.

Do your homework. Know what you're walking into. Ask questions and make sure that they are answered to your satisfaction or better yet search for a local SFG or RKC instructor and  work with them.
 
There is a Crossfit that is pretty close to me and for a while I’ve been giving serious thought to trying it. Now I obviously haven’t done it before so I was wondering if people here could please give me some insight on it and what you think about it. Now I know that they are big into kipping pull ups ( which I’m not a big fan of at all because they aren’t REAL pull ups ) but so far that’s the only negative I can see about it so far.
My thoughts: Crossfit is crap.

I write this because the "Crossfit" name is used for everything. It can be for facilities run by those who are not even certified with Crossfit, people who took the 50 question multiple choice test, or people who have greater studies and experience. How can you tell? The Crossfit site outlines dangerous, random, and pointless routines (WODs, I think they are called). Doing them is dangerous by nature, regardless of fitness level.

However, Crossfit facilities can have SFG owners, Olympic weightlifting coaches, gymnastics coaches, etc. You never know.

I would look at the facility and get credentials. You do not want this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=-k0NTB2DTGs

It is not a parody.

Kipping pullups are the least of your worries. Directionless, random, unstructured, and counter-productive "training" is.

 

 
 
Michael,

All of those are great imo except the science of running one that turns into so many arguments its silly. I also enjoyed your article on Breaking Muscle.
 
Why be Cross Fit when you can be Strong First?

There are many training modalities out there - we don't say that what others do doesn't work because that's not true.  We do say, however, that our methods are chosen for their combination of safety, effectiveness, and time efficiency.  I can't tell you CrossFit won't be a good experience for you.

-S-
 
I know a few people that recently got into CrossFit and they are in the best shape of their lives. Being StrongFirst myself, they end up being more sore and hurt than me but to each their own. That's really the only thing I have against CrossFit is the higher risk of injury. That's not to say you can't get injured using kettlebells etc but the chances are definitely lower if you are taught properly
 
food for thought...

Crossfit competitors, especially at the higher levels, are learning that they win more if they devote more of their training efforts to basic strength (gasp!).

 
 
Along these lines, if you wanted to get as well conditioned as possible in the shortest period of time, would you turn up the heat or would you stick to the PM as written?  In the long run the PM is the better option, but is there a better option for more immediate results?

Lets say you had an event coming up in 3 months that you needed to be really well conditioned for?  Is it good to push to failure or almost to failure for short periods of time?  When fighters have an event coming up, their training camps essentially consist of pushing themselves harder than what they would be able to sustain for longer periods of time, presumably for the purpose of being better prepared than they would be if they trained at a pace that would allow for sustained improvement for the next year.
 
I almost peed in my pants watching the video Joseph posted. My God you're telling me that was real?
 
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