Aeglos
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- Sep 27, 2016
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Because everyone keeps getting their knickers in a knot about it, I thought I'd start a thread for (hopefully) civil discussion of Crossfit.
Provided the irritating people/things in the gym that annoy you stay in the irritating people/things in the gym that annoy you thread I don't envisage this thread being super heavy on traffic, but we shall see how we go.
If the thread content can be limited to
1) finding a reputable crossfit gym/coach to train at/under
2) how to program for specific crossfit events/goals
3) progressions for movements used in crossfit
4) alternative exercises for movements used in crossfit
5) any other general inquiries or FAQ that fall under a category that I currently haven't thought of
For the purposes of discussing Crossfit it is import to clarify what it is defined as.
So far as I see it, you can look at it in 3 ways
1) Crossfit is a competitive sport combing weightlifting, gymnastics and whatever else they can throw at the athletes
2) Crossfit is a training modality as per what is outlined by the HQ daily wod https://www.crossfit.com/workout/
3) Crossfit is a chain of gyms affiliated with a governing body, not too dissimilar to say Fitness First, but with far more leeway about how they operate (as long as they pay the yearly fee lol). This 3rd definition creates a whole heap of grey area around what constitutes "crossfit". Is it still crossfit if you're at an affiliate gym but you're prepping for a body building comp? Is it still crossfit if you're at an affiliate but all you do is yoga? (that last one is a real life example btw)
For the purposes of discussion, I will try and specify which definition I am referring to (competitive crossfit, HQ programming, affiliate gyms)
My direct experiences with the crossfit community as a whole haven't been vast, but I've been on the periphery of what's been going on since mid-2011, having worked for a gym equipment company that would have equipment in every affiliate gym in Australia (and probably 99% of all gyms nationwide)
I'd say about 50% of the employees at said company trained at an affiliate gym so I'd chat to them every day about what they were doing in training etc. I also know a handful of affiliate owners and have discussed at length with them about how they program (for both the average population and also competitive), their movement progressions etc
In 2013 I helped present 6(?) Crossfit Powerlifting Specialty Cert 2-day seminars in the US, UK and Italy (now called Conjugate methods https://training.crossfit.com/conjugate-methods) so I got to chat to about 50 affiliate owners/coaches.
I've been to the Crossfit Games twice (2013 and 2015)
From all that my thoughts (I guess) on the crossfit community are;
- Affiliate coaches are a mixed bag. Some are experienced, with extensive backgrounds in other sports and/or strength & conditioning. Others are like that guy that starts MMA one day, then the next he turns up in $1000 of Hayabusa clothing/equipment. I will say though that the latter group's enthusiasm can't be doubted, and they're pretty sponge like in how they absorb/take in information (this is mainly from my experiences at the special certs overseas, the local guys have been a little bit more close minded)
- It's very much a community atmosphere within affiliate gyms. Everyone knows everyone at the gym. They almost all go out for weekly breakfasts, go to each other's birthday parties etc. It's very much like a local football club in this regard, particularly when you compare it to a commercial gym
- Because affiliate gyms are all private, and run private classes, you know you will have access to whatever equipment is required to do the workout programmed on that day
- Affiliate members (all the way to HQ) tend to be far more emotional and defensive than people who train at other gyms (likely because of the community atmosphere; to them insulting crossfit is like insulting their little sister)
- To some extent, they have re-popularized free weight training and also changed perceptions on what an everyday joe blow can achieve in the gym
Provided the irritating people/things in the gym that annoy you stay in the irritating people/things in the gym that annoy you thread I don't envisage this thread being super heavy on traffic, but we shall see how we go.
If the thread content can be limited to
1) finding a reputable crossfit gym/coach to train at/under
2) how to program for specific crossfit events/goals
3) progressions for movements used in crossfit
4) alternative exercises for movements used in crossfit
5) any other general inquiries or FAQ that fall under a category that I currently haven't thought of
For the purposes of discussing Crossfit it is import to clarify what it is defined as.
So far as I see it, you can look at it in 3 ways
1) Crossfit is a competitive sport combing weightlifting, gymnastics and whatever else they can throw at the athletes
2) Crossfit is a training modality as per what is outlined by the HQ daily wod https://www.crossfit.com/workout/
3) Crossfit is a chain of gyms affiliated with a governing body, not too dissimilar to say Fitness First, but with far more leeway about how they operate (as long as they pay the yearly fee lol). This 3rd definition creates a whole heap of grey area around what constitutes "crossfit". Is it still crossfit if you're at an affiliate gym but you're prepping for a body building comp? Is it still crossfit if you're at an affiliate but all you do is yoga? (that last one is a real life example btw)
For the purposes of discussion, I will try and specify which definition I am referring to (competitive crossfit, HQ programming, affiliate gyms)
My direct experiences with the crossfit community as a whole haven't been vast, but I've been on the periphery of what's been going on since mid-2011, having worked for a gym equipment company that would have equipment in every affiliate gym in Australia (and probably 99% of all gyms nationwide)
I'd say about 50% of the employees at said company trained at an affiliate gym so I'd chat to them every day about what they were doing in training etc. I also know a handful of affiliate owners and have discussed at length with them about how they program (for both the average population and also competitive), their movement progressions etc
In 2013 I helped present 6(?) Crossfit Powerlifting Specialty Cert 2-day seminars in the US, UK and Italy (now called Conjugate methods https://training.crossfit.com/conjugate-methods) so I got to chat to about 50 affiliate owners/coaches.
I've been to the Crossfit Games twice (2013 and 2015)
From all that my thoughts (I guess) on the crossfit community are;
- Affiliate coaches are a mixed bag. Some are experienced, with extensive backgrounds in other sports and/or strength & conditioning. Others are like that guy that starts MMA one day, then the next he turns up in $1000 of Hayabusa clothing/equipment. I will say though that the latter group's enthusiasm can't be doubted, and they're pretty sponge like in how they absorb/take in information (this is mainly from my experiences at the special certs overseas, the local guys have been a little bit more close minded)
- It's very much a community atmosphere within affiliate gyms. Everyone knows everyone at the gym. They almost all go out for weekly breakfasts, go to each other's birthday parties etc. It's very much like a local football club in this regard, particularly when you compare it to a commercial gym
- Because affiliate gyms are all private, and run private classes, you know you will have access to whatever equipment is required to do the workout programmed on that day
- Affiliate members (all the way to HQ) tend to be far more emotional and defensive than people who train at other gyms (likely because of the community atmosphere; to them insulting crossfit is like insulting their little sister)
- To some extent, they have re-popularized free weight training and also changed perceptions on what an everyday joe blow can achieve in the gym
