I remember a similar post I made about a year ago, about the things that I really liked about Crossfit. I figured it was time to put together another post on the topic. If nothing else, this just helps reaffirm how exercise used to be. Keep in mind, this list is in no particular order, just a brain dump.
Just a little background, I am now 34 years old, married with 3 kids. In high school, I rowed crew for a few years, and ran track as well, that is until I started partying and smoking, then most of my healthy habits tapered off. Despite the partying and smoking, I used to lift weights when I could here and there. In college, I still smoked and drank, but I tried every now and then to workout without too much success. At 24, I was diagnosed with atrial fibrillation and was told that I had to quit smoking; it took me another 3 years to quit, I know right, how bad is that!?
At that point, I dropped the ball on working out until I was about 27 or so when I finally quit smoking, then I got back into lifting weights. At that point, I was pushing 215lbs, woa. At first, I wasn't terribly dedicated, I would workout when I had time at my house, doing curls, bench, incline bench, stuff like that. Around 28 I decided to join a gym, and got a lot more serious about working out. I would hit the machines, all different movements, going 4-5 days a week. I still didn't hit a long-term consistency. I might be "on" for 4-6 months, and then slip for a few months (not totally, maybe working out 2 times a week). I really was never into "cardio", those machines are horribly boring, but I would try to add more "cardio" to my routine every now and then. Sometimes, I would do good with it for a few months before slacking off on the "cardio".
For the few years I was working out, I would read Muscle and Fitness magazine, see what the supplements were, and tried the routines to change things up. In 2008 I decided it was time to "get big", and I hate a ton of food, took the creatine and protein, and hit the weights hard, no "cardio". I got pretty strong, but also pushed back up to 205lbs in the process. Keep in mind, "strong" for me was bench pressing 300lbs, and my "curls" were great as well. I never squatted a lot, or did deadlifts, but MAN were my cable crossovers great!
That leads me to my decision to try Crossfit in the end of 2008. Earlier that year, in muscle and fitness magazine no less, I read an article about Crossfit, some crazy ass routine done by some guys in a warehouse someplace in California. I remember reading it, and the saw the "Filthy Fifty" workout, and thinking that no human should be able to do that much work. In November of 2008, I once again had fallen off my workout routine, and got pissed off with myself. I remembered Crossfit, and looked into it.
I found a local gym, Crossfit OTG, and decided to give it a go. Back then Crossfit OTG was a cool setup in a big 3 car garage. My first impression was, "what the hell, the gym is in a garage, this ain't gonna last." I met Nick DiMatteo, he talked to me about my goals, my history, explained a little about Crossfit, and then threw at me the "mini-cindy" WOD (workout of the day), which was 5 pullups, 10 pushups, 15 air squats, as many rounds as possible in 10 minutes. I could do 2 Dead Hang pullups at the time, so I did the pullups assisted on a band. I did 4 rounds back then, and thought my lungs were going to explode. I was hunched over, leaning on just about every part of that gym that night gasping for air, and yes, it was only 10 minutes. When I left, I had serious doubts about whether or not I could do it. The next day, I decided to give it a go for a month to see how it would go, I figured I could always quit after.
The rest is history. I have been at Crossfit for OVER 2 years now pretty consistently. I currently workout unlimited at OTG in their new gym, which is a lot bigger than the old place (more workouts can be done indoors).
Anyway, here is my list, of the reasons why I love Crossfit...
1. Because I like to see results
I put this at the top of the list because it really keeps you going. I remember when I used to "lift weights". When you come off a layoff, and start bench pressing for the first time, you are kind of weak. The first 6-8 weeks, you really see some noticeable gains in your strength AND muscle. You start popping some creatine, and your strength goes even higher, muscles get even more pumped. Very quickly though, you plateau, at least I did. You thought you would keep marching towards ultimate beastliness, but things slowed down considerably.
Because Crossfit touches every aspect of fitness, you are always getting better, its addicting. You'll do a Workout one month, then do the same workout 2 or 3 months later, and you'll crush your previous record. It's crazy, but it's true. Here's a real life example of continuous progression from my experience. My first Mini-Cindy was 4 rounds. A month later, I did 6 rounds without a pullup band. A month after that, I did it again, 7 rounds unassisted. 6 months after my Mini-Cindy, I did a regular cindy (which is 20 minutes instead of 10), and did 13 rounds. It kept going like that, until 14 months after my first Mini-Cindy, I did 22 Rounds in 20 minutes! Amazing, in that workout, I got through 12 rounds in the first 10 minutes, I had increased 300% in a year.
2. Because I hate thinking about working out
Do you ever get tired of your workout routine? I always did. I tried mixing it up, maybe do "Chest and Tris" this week, maybe "Chest and Bis" the next. Should I be doing 10-12, 8-10, 6-8 or 4-6 reps? Let me change number of sets, rest time (30 seconds, 60, 90, more). Let me try some supersets, trisets. Should I focus on upper chest, lower chest? No matter how much you "mix it up", you are still on the same machines going through the same motions, mixing it up is very difficult, and draining. To stay on it, you had to think every day about what your routine would look like. It might be something like:
Bench Press 3x8
Incline Press 3x8
Fly Machine 3x8
Cable Crossovers 3x8, 1 pump set
French Press 3x10
Dumbell Kickbacks 3x12 (ooooo, they burn)
Look familiar, maybe I would do an elliptical machine or treadmill afterwards, but mostly I wouldn't. And that brings me to what I love about crossfit, Constant Variation. I never, ever ever ever, have to think about a workout. The coaches at the Crossfit gym dream up new, constantly varied, and oft times demented ways to totally kick my ass. You walk into the gym, and there is the WOD, at that point, my stomach typically turns, but I start stretching and warming up, you gotta do it.
The workouts also test various aspects of your fitness. Some will be lighter and longer, 15 - 30 minutes, testing your endurance, stamina, and wind. Some will be all out sprints, 3-5 minutes, where you do a TON of work in a short time. Some are heavier, where you are moving a decent amount of weight, really testing your strength. Regardless, almost every one of the workouts is different. You do have some baselines, like the "girls" like the Cindy I mentioned above that you will repeat. You have to do the same WOD to see the progression. But mostly, every day is different.
3. Because you need Cardio and Weights
Most people know you need both, but it is pretty hard to do both. If you hit the weights hard like you want to, how much energy do you have left to run for 20 minutes? The inverse is also true, if you run for 20 minutes first, how much energy do you have left for weights? I always struggled with this, because I always prioritized weight lifting, cardio was the one to suffer. So I would zigzag, that's to say I would hit the weights hard for 6 weeks or so, then I would realize how little cardio I was doing, so I would do some elliptical, treadmill, running, stairmaster stuff for a week or so, get tired of it, then back to the weights.
Wouldn't it be great if you could get both in the same workout? That's exactly what you get with Crossfit, and then some. Crossfit incorporates many different types of movements meant to develop all aspects of fitness. These include strength, agility, flexibility, stamina, power, and more. Almost every workout, you will feel like you just got done running a 5k as hard as you can, and you may have only worked for 4 minutes (see Fran). Your lungs are burning, your heart is pumping, you've just moved a lot of weight for a lot of reps. You got your cardio, and your weights, and improved many other aspects of fitness at the same time.
4. Because cardio machines are boring
There, I said it. The cat is out of the bag, and I stand by my perspective that elliptical machines, dreadmills, stationary bikes, stairmasters and the rest of them are really torture devices masquerading as fitness machines. That may be taking it a bit far, but you are lying to yourself if you claim to "love" these things. If you put up a firm argument with me about how much you love running on a treadmill, you have been doing it so long, and hating it so long, that you have brainwashed yourself into thinking it must be great, otherwise why would you be killing yourself on it all of the time if you didn't love it?
With Crossfit, there are no machines, period, me likey.
5. Because I don't have a lot of time
When I was big into weights, I would find myself in the gym for over an hour. On the occasion when I was committed to do some form of cardio as well, I would be there for over an hour and a half. That is a lot of working out, and for me, it was too long. I am a father of 3 with a pretty demanding job, my schedule doesn't entertain long workouts. As a result, I would cut my workouts short, leaving off a movement or cutting out the cardio to save time.
Crossfit WODs are designed to be short, and extremely intense. I would say most workouts average 10-12 minutes. You might be telling yourself, "There's no way I can get what I need in 10 minutes!" Well, you're wrong, because in that 10 minutes you will be doing a lot of work, and by work I mean stressing your system, pushing yourself beyond your abilities. And when you are done, you will know how much work you just did by how you feel, and it feels terrible and awesome at the same time.
6. Because I like to look good
Working out with weights is great, because you really "pump up" your muscles. Within a few short weeks, you have instantly added some nice aesthetics to your physique, and you look better in the mirror. People call this "muscle mass", but really it isn't. I always noticed that I would carry this "mass" around for longer periods when I first got into the weights. But then, over time, as my body conditioned itself to the weight routine, this muscle mass appearance wouldn't last as long, or wouldn't be as dramatic. This is bad, because certainly appearance is important. You don't want to put in a lot of effort, and look like Fat Bastard.
When I first started crossfit, I was about 200 pounds. I lost a considerable amount of weight in my first 6 months, dropping down to 175. The most noticeable thing is my waist, which went from a 40 (not officially, but using my measuring tape) down to a 34.5 during those 6 months. Things have slowed considerably since then, I still weigh about 175, and my waist is about a 33. Now, with Crossfit, I am not going to lie, you don't get that "muscle pump" as much you do with the weights, at least not as frequently. However, I can see a lot more muscle since I am leaner, and everything appears much bigger. I have also gained muscle in my legs, back, abs where I never had them before.
7. Because I am in the best shape of my life
This is no joke. I am 34 years old, I have 3 kids, I am an ex smoker on heart medication to treat my A-FIB, and I am stronger, faster, more powerful, leaner, and meaner than at any point previously in my life, which includes high school rowing crew. So what does that mean "in the best shape".
You may say "My bench press is the most its ever been". But does that define fitness? How about your chest size or thigh size, does that mean you are fit? You maybe strong and big, but what is your 5K time? How many double unders can you do, unbroken? How many pullups?
You may say "My 5k is the best it ever been". But does that define fitness? How much can you deadlift or squat? How many times can you press 115 lbs over your head?
For me, it is all about total fitness. I can deadlift 400lbs and run a 5k in 20 minutes (well, almost, but pretty damned close). I can do 30 pullups unbroken, 75 double-unders, and can jump on a 24 inch box until the sun goes down, and I can jump on a 46 inch box if I have to. I can clean 215 pounds, squat 265, and press 175. I am fit, in every way you can define it.
8. Because I love learning new things
What's the difference between an incline fly and flat bench fly? Those cable crossovers are kind of cool. You hit different muscles with a wide grip vs. a close grip, supinated v. pronated. Are any of these really neat? When you first learn about them, maybe, but the difference between palm up and palm down is hardly exciting to me. Bottom line, there are only so many machines in the gym, and they all do the same essential movements. You really need to fine tune how you lift weights to change things up, and that is well, boring (sorry, boring for me).
Crossfit teaches so many different movements, I always feel like I am learning. At the very least, I am doing something I have never or rarely done before, and stuff I couldn't have ever imagined doing.
Have you ever heard of a Double Under? It is being able to swing a jump rope under twice in a single jump. I never heard of it before crossfit. At first, they are hard, because I ain't a coordinated guy. They take time and patience, a LOT of patience because if you can't do them in a workout, you get pretty angry tripping up on them. Now, I can do 100 of them unborken, and maybe more.
There are all kinds of new movements I can do, like a kipping pullup, which is a way to use body english to propel yourself over a bar. The list of crazy shit I know is endless. I know what a snatch is, and I fully understand why I am not good at it (but I am working on it). I know the difference between a power clean, squat clean, and hanging power clean. I know the difference between a press, push press, and push jerk, and I still can't do a good split jerk. I know what a burpee is, and why they suck. I know what a man maker is, and can do it with kettle bells and a barbell...I know what a kettle bell is, and how to use it, pop them hips. I know what a Turkish Getup is, and that they cause a nice little bruise on my forearm if I don't hold the kettle bell right. I can do Knee To Elbows, Toe To Bar, Handstand Pushups, Frog Stands, Tripods, HeadStands, Elbow levers, Muscle ups. The list is purposefully long, but the best part is, I AM STILL LEARNING! There are all kind of things I haven't done yet.
9. Because working out with others is fun
I spent the majority of my time working out by myself. When I was younger, I would workout with some friends, which is pretty cool. We would motivate each other, push each other, "do one more curl!" I still workout by myself 2-3 times a week, but that's how things are right now, I would much rather be at the crossfit gym working out with my crossfit brood than going it alone.
I think most can agree, working out with others is really fun. That's why you go to those pilates, step, and spinning classes, because seeing others better than you pushes you. Seeing others push themselves inspires you to do the same. Crossfit is a great community of people who support each other. They scream and curse at you to pick the bar up, to do another rep, go faster, and finish strong. They reach out their hand to help you up when you are done, and tell you how great you did. They give you pointers on conditioning, form, diet. And they all go through the pain, put in their time, and bask in their results, just like me.
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