So who here does Crossfit? (please no Crossfit haters... it's played out)

[Irving]

Oh I don't know. I finished last (I don't care as long as I do as much as I can). Probably less than, but close to, 30 minutes. The guy told us to try double unders today. I didn't bother because the ropes aren't great and I knew I'd be pretty tired at the end of the work out. I'll get there. The first set I got to 91 before I screwed up. *Pro-tip: When you screw up jump rope while wearing Vibram Five Fingers, the rope gets stuck between your toes EVERY TIME. So instead of just stepping back in, you have to step on the rope with one foot, while you yank it out of your other foot.

[Jer]

Oh I don't know. I finished last (I don't care as long as I do as much as I can). Probably less than, but close to, 30 minutes. The guy told us to try double unders today. I didn't bother because the ropes aren't great and I knew I'd be pretty tired at the end of the work out. I'll get there. The first set I got to 91 before I screwed up. *Pro-tip: When you screw up jump rope while wearing Vibram Five Fingers, the rope gets stuck between your toes EVERY TIME. So instead of just stepping back in, you have to step on the rope with one foot, while you yank it out of your other foot.

30min is a long time to try to keep your intensity up. The bulk of our METCONS fall in the 10-12min range. 30min of that many movements & reps might start being counterproductive to building lean muscle. I know with HIIT you want to have as much explosiveness as you can for a very short duration and if you go beyond this you will start being counterproductive. A good way to think about it: Think of all the marathon or cross country runners you've ever seen. What do they look like? Now think of Olympic sprinters and what their builds are like. Which would you rather look like? Olympic lifters don't lift weights because of vanity, their bodies naturally maintain more muscle because it supplies hormones they need in an instant for sprinting. If you go longer than sprints your body will actually start breaking down muscle to feed itself. There's a lot more technical jargon to it and some of the physiology I don't even fully understand (or recall) but that's the basic idea anyway. The problem you're going to run into is w/o weights you're not going to have the kind of resistance needed to do the higher weight, lower rep count stuff to build the strength you want. You'll get killer cardio and drop weight but if you desire to put on some mass you'll need to change things up a bit. Just starting out though anything you do is good so don't over think it too much. Just know that eventually you'll want to look into some tweaks possibly.

[275RLTW]

your response

I definitely don't fit into either category. I've learned to find positive aspects in everything and also ways to improve upon them, not taking traditional norms in blind faith. I agree with most in this thread that there are many benefits of doing crossfit, for certain types of people. I do not think crossfit is ideal for everyone. For people who are looking to get into, or back into shape, have limited time to dedicate to it, and enjoy the camaraderie found at most crossfit boxes; it is perfect. I'm glad to see that the sport has taken a better and more thorough approach to correct form as that has not always been the case. Any time you're doing olympic style lifts and trying to hurry is a sure path to an injury. Yes, it can happen anywhere with any lifting style as there are numerous lifters with torn pectorals, hamstrings, etc.., however weight + rush = injury.

I've done a few WODs and always get picked on for doing dead hang pull ups instead of "kipping" however I'm not going for just checking the box that I did X reps...I need to be able to pull myself up and over a wall from a dead hang (I will point out that the local crossfit coach couldn't do it despite being able to do 37 "crossfit" pull ups). I also need to focus on tomorrow. I need to be able to do my job tomorrow and not have my knees any more damaged than they already are. Crossfit does little, if any, to promote longevity. The abuse on joints is well documented despite crossfits relative new status as a sport (12-15 yrs or so), and there is little focus on adequate recovery cycles.

As I stated before, there are benefits to it, just not for me. I agree with some of the concepts but not all of them. It is not "functional fitness" for my life. I don't ride a desk though and do enough agility running, squatting, jumping up, carries, (mostly in armor) etc... in a normal day to qualify for several WODs. I need something a bit more specialized. Either way, its good to see people out at the gym/box consistently and yes, the women are good to look at. For examples of what I'm working with, google Ranger Athlete Warrior program v.4 or SOF athlete on Instagram.

[Irving]

I already do want to look at tweaks. I understand the weight stuff. I know the workout on Monday was over in like 15 minutes. I'll start paying more attention to time. I'm usually there for an hour, but there is a lot of talking before, and after.

[Irving]

Just for Jer (and anyone else interested in our physical limits). First half deals with physical limits, second half with mental limits. Great program this weekend.

Radio Lab: Limits
https://www.wnyc.org/radio/#/ondemand/233680

The video of Julie Moss crossing the finish line of the Iron Man, crawling on the ground, is pretty cool too.



In case you're wondering, yes she did crap her pants.

[Jer]

In case you're wondering, yes she did crap her pants.

That's hot!

[Irving]

Update Jer?

[Jer]

Update Jer?

I wasn't aware anyone was even following anymore.

I've been going 4-5 days per week now and am still working around injuries. I'm getting more 'in shape' and stronger but not losing weight. In fact, I've gained probably 10lbs or so as I track my weight to the tenth of a pound daily when I wake up after I pee but before I drink water so I have a pretty consistent idea of where my weight is. This can be disheartening to look at the number alone when my focus is trying to lose weight to take pressure off of my joints and such. Someday when the fat starts coming off at a faster rate than lean muscle goes on I will see weight loss but as of right now no real weight loss to report. I know it's good weight gain though because I gain a tenth or so every other day during the week when I'm working out & there have been a few times now where I've had to take a break for a week or two due to injury or traveling and my weight steadily decreases when I take time off. That and all of my lifts have gotten stronger & I'm using tighter notches on the belts so I know I'm heading the right direction. We still love it and I just wish I would have started a decade ago because I'm sure I'd be healthier today and not as injury prone as I am now. I wasn't one to get injured playing sports or working out when I was younger and was very active but the last decade or so of lazy coupled with old-age has really done me no favors. I still recommend it to everyone who asks and I feel as though it's one of the best ways to get into shape. It's a blast! We've had some rough workouts and the rougher they are the better you feel when you complete it... especially if you do well.

In fact, my last workout was probably my best to date following what was probably my most disappointing workout to day. The disappointing one was purely due to injury and not due to lack of effort on my part. I had to tap out for the first time during a workout since I started and was unable to find suitable work arounds mid-workout. I'm nursing the sore shoulder still and in addition I think I've developed a bulged disc in my mid-back similar to the one I had in my neck for the first half of last year... pre-Crossfit. So I'm not blaming Crossfit for my back issue but the two injuries coupled make it very difficult to work around sometimes. I was pretty bummed for about 23hrs or so but the following workout (my last one) was awesome. Here's how it broke down:

400m run for warmup
DROMs (mobility & stretching)
10min whatever you want to work on (more mobility for me trying to rehab the shoulder and back)
Strength: pull-ups - 4 rounds of max effort (lots of times we do a compound Oly lift here)
METCON (primary portion of workout for those who don't follow Crossfit):
3 Deadlight (60% of one-rep max)
3 burpees
3 box jumps
Rest 2min
Repeat two more times total

I started out and the deadlift felt light so it got me into the sprint mindset right out of the gate when looking at it I thought it might be a little bit of a slower pace. Knocked out the first round in about a minute and 20 seconds. I was taking my 2min break when I noticed one of the coaches was also on his break (finished before me about 10-15 seconds) and about 30sec after I stared my break he was back on round two. Well... eff that noise! I thought to myself and cut my rest too as I wasn't that out of breath. Bam! Knocked out the 2nd round in pretty much the same speed as the first round and got to me break. Cut it short again and took off on round three. I remember the 2nd burpee laying on the floor for a couple of second to catch my breath and then on the 2nd box jump my right leg wouldn't even jump (lol) but luckily I wasn't over the box when I realized this. I took a second, got my composure and finished strong at 7:38. In 2nd place to the coach. My wife finished around 10min which was mid-pack to give you an idea. Then, one of the co-owners said that for most it wasn't a high-cardio workout (most went a medium pace like I had planned on since it was just a total time for the whole thing) so for those that wanted more cardio we could do a 1000m row sprint. Sign me up! I shouted. lol I ended up doing a 3:42 1000m row immediately following that METCON which I felt was pretty damn solid. Not too bad for a fatass coming up on his 37 year old birthday tomorrow.

[Irving]

Well done. When I do the crossfit/plyometric workouts, I notice the benefit in my running. I just topped my best 5k time the other night by 23 seconds, when before I got within a second. Honestly I think it is a fluke because I tripped over the dog and fell in the street, coming to a complete stop. THEN, the dog pulled out of her harness and I had to put it back on in the dark. So blasting a record by 23 seconds with TWO complete stops sounds like a fluke to me.

Glad to hear you're feeling more healthy all the time.

[Jer]

Well done. When I do the crossfit/plyometric workouts, I notice the benefit in my running. I just topped my best 5k time the other night by 23 seconds, when before I got within a second. Honestly I think it is a fluke because I tripped over the dog and fell in the street, coming to a complete stop. THEN, the dog pulled out of her harness and I had to put it back on in the dark. So blasting a record by 23 seconds with TWO complete stops sounds like a fluke to me.

Glad to hear you're feeling more healthy all the time.

I am if it wasn't for these stupid injuries that seem to keep creeping up.