CFC Members:
As a Rest/Skill day you have the options of (a) taking the day off, (b) coming in and working on skill/movement of your choice, (c) making up a WOD from the immediately prior 3-day rotation if you missed it, or (d) just coming in and hanging out with us.
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I want everyone to read the following post by Dutch Lowy (a decent friend of mine), and the following comments to the post…and then take a moment and reflect as openly and honestly as you possibly can what CrossFit (and hopefully in no small part CrossFit Champions) means to you…possibly in relation to…or if you prefer, totally separate from, what you’ve read in the post attached.
http://www.dutchlowy.com/2009/09/28/a-post-for-russ/
Feel free to share your thoughts and comments here.
Matt’s right, gotta read the Russ/Dutch comments; they’re better than the post!
So, what does Crossfit mean to me . . . . . complex question! Would have been a lot simpler if you’d asked me 3yrs ago what 24-hr Fitness meant to me; one-liner there!
Broadly stated my goal at CFC is to get fitter. Unlike my experience at previous gyms, this ‘goal’ has touched the areas of brute-strength, endurance (both physical and mental), nutrition, motivation (self and of others), education (learning new skills), and listening closer to my body (knowing when NOT to push-it to the edge).
So has the programming at CFC helped my fitness? Like all the back-and-forth around IWCABTAMD in the post demonstrates it depends on how you measure fitness. I love the WODs that we do at X-fit but in all-honesty my 5k time hasn’t improved over my 2yrs at CFC – in fact it’s decreased. I’ll be the 1st to admit that a 5k, 10k, or 26.2 time is a pretty narrow guage to measure X-fit with or against, but I love running and that’s an important metric to me. It can certainly be argued that I over-train as I typically do an endurance workout at lunch and then the CFC-WOD in the evenings. On more than one occasion I’ve done a 45+ min run at lunch and then a 40+min (brutal) WOD in the evening and gone home tired and hurting. This overtraining has undoubtedly led to some of my injuries and thus hurt my running times overall. I can’t tell you how happy I was when CFC changed to a 3-on/1-off schedule from the 5-on/2-off schedule!
So does not cutting my 5k time mean I haven’t become more fit across-the-board – no, I don’t think so. In fact I’ve seen my overall strength increase in the past 2yrs and that’s not something I’ve really emphasized or cared a lot about. I’ve certainly acquired new skills and know a lot more about nutrition, although eating right remains a BIG problem for me – seems there can be a pretty big chasm between KNOWING and DOING.
Anyway; heavy squats vs 20+min . . . . In other words, do we at CFC do the optimal balance of strength & endurance? Personally I think the back-and-forth between Dutch and Russ is somewhat academic. Very important for the elite athletes but for most of us the X-fit programming is adequate and is a hell of a lot better than what we were getting prior to X-fit. Each athlete has his/her own unique need and thus has their own unique set of needs for strength/endurance training. That being said it stands to reason that the WOD we see every day isn’t optimally tuned for every single athlete that does it. But even if it isn’t perfectly dialed-in for me . . . . It’s a hell of a lot better than 3-sets of 10 Bench/curl/situp I did at 24-hr Fitness!
That was a long read, but I agree 200% with Dutch. The stronger you are, the less effort a WOD will take to complete, therefore, decreasing the time it takes to complete it. It’s because of this belief that I am trying to lift more than Rx on each WOD. My time might decrease temporairly, but in the end, when it matters at competition and I’m lifting the women’s Rx weights, my time will reflect my strength.
After reading the blog my thoughts are that I could honestly care less if Dutch or Russ is right. They both argue their points well and the right answer probably lies somewhere in between.
The success of any training program is what you are getting out of it. You can see that on any given day if you sit and observe a WOD – every athlete in there is getting their own unique benefits out of Crossfit.
CFC for me is pushing myself 100% harder than I would have at a ‘regular gym workout’, feeling strong and healthy, challenging myself mentally and physically, supporting other athletes and getting that same support in return, getting the opportunity to hang out with people that share your same drive and lust for life and all it has to offer. Pushing yourself to do something that is never fun at the time but offers long term benefits for your body and mind builds confidence that you would never get otherwise.
Almost anyone can walk into 24 hr fitness and go through a circuit in 30 minutes. Not everyone is cut out for Crossfit or will push themselves to the limit that is required to finish these workouts. CF is for those who want to excel and be the best that they can be. That’s what I want for myself and my family. For those of you who know me that doesn’t at all mean putting the best time on the board, but under the circumstances of any given day, doing the WOD to the best of my ability, with the best form that I am capable of on each exercise, as quickly as I am capable of doing it.
23:37
green band only!
45 lb
I agree with Amy Jo, but I have to elaborate on one point she makes very well…
“The success of any training program is what you are getting out of it. You can see that on any given day if you sit and observe a WOD – every athlete in there is getting their own unique benefits out of Crossfit.”
This is something that is very true and, especially in my case, something that CFC, in itself, embraces with each athlete that belongs to their box. I, for example, have a goal of qualifying for the CF Games, so my path to getting there through the WOD’s will be different than those with a different goal. CFC takes that challenge, and although we are all doing the same WOD, they will tweak it so we can all reach whatever goal we desire (as long as we put in the needed work). That’s something else you won’t find at a “regular gym.”
Great post, Amy Jo!
The comments to the Dutch post are entertaining reading, but totally beyond my level of caring at this point. But I’m also not trying to qualify for CFC Games anytime soon.
Goes to the points already made about individual goals, and how those change over time once you get started with Crossfit. My goal early on was to get through a workout without passing out, and some days that’s still my goal. Other days it’s jumping the 18″ box without bailing to step-ups, no matter how long the workout takes me (but that used to be the 12″ box). And other days it’s not giving in to the temptation to do “just a little more weight” and then not go deep enough on a back squat. My weights are still very light, but way more than 6 months ago. And I think that’s the point for me – even with pretty simple goals and with encouragement (and occasional nagging when needed) from trainers and fellow athletes, I’m in better health and general shape than I’ve ever been, and doing things I never would have considered pre-Crossfit. And I’m still having fun!
What crossfit means to me as a trainer/ athlete/ LEO/ and father……
Whether Im training to compete in a crossfit competition, helping others reach their personal goals, leading from the front as a police officer, or just making sure I can always keep up with my busy kids, I push for being better than the norm.
CrossFit is the reason I feel great, the reason I will never fear fatigue again, the reason I remain actively involved with my son on the sports field and the reason I take on new physical challenges with confidence. This sport of fitness has improved my physical and mental strength, mucle endurance and cardio. With the guidance of CFC trainers they (Matt and Pam) have helped me become above the norm and are making me a better trainer as well. I have seen several CFC members make great strides in their quest for overall fitness and achieve several personal goals. I have been through several workout routines, diets and crosstraining circuits in my life but I have seen very very very few show great long term results the way CrossFit has.
I love this sport as an athlete. As a trainer, there is nothing more rewarding than seeing the well aged, the young ,the mother’s,the fathers, sons and daughters all together striving for one common goal. (Getting Better)
I have read the post and do not argue with Dutch’s responses. I have been through his programming seminar and he makes very strong points to his presentations. I have noticed that Matt and Pam have implemented some of those things into CFC programming such as the strength days followed by a short WOD. All I can say is, If that type of programing wasnt successfull I do not think CFC would have incorporated it.
In the end I LOVE THIS SPORT!!!!!!
With regards to Crossfit programming, I believe Greg Everett of Catalyst Athletics/Performance Menu has the best take.
Greg Everett Article
IMO, the debate about “increased work capacity across broad time and modal domains” is pedantic.
IWCABTAMD is an elegant abstraction. It is perfect for describing the general concept of Crossfit. I don’t think it is real useful beyond that. It is no different than P90X touting “muscle confusion.” It is rhetoric that helps describe the program. But I know from reading Rippetoe that you can’t confuse a muscle. It contracts or it doesn’t. All you can do is challenge its ability to produce force.
It is fortunate that Crossfit is highly transparent, and you can dig as deep into all the various areas (stimulus/adaptation/programming, recovery, nutrition, technique, etc) as you wish.