[Closed] Anyone on here do Crossfit.

Circuit training & brainwashing = cross fit.

Do you have a lot of friends you can tell all about it in social media each day, if so it may be for you!

In honesty, I've never tried it, but a friend moved to NZ and got into it and he's certainly not in bad shape because of it. It does seem a lot like a religion though.

It's not so bad. Nothing groundbreaking, it's just competitive circuit training with some oly lifts thrown in. Can be good fun, and can be downright dangerous due to the lack of weightlifting experiences some coaches have. I believe that the CF olympic lifting cert is 2 days which is dreadful.
I think I was viewed as "difficult" due to the fact I refused to do some of the dumber shit encouraged by CF. Kipping (anything), KB swings overhead, oly lifts for time etc.

Crossfit - How to perform good lifts badly

I train in a CF gym. CrossFit is an interesting franchise scheme, created by a Libertarian, so there is virtually no quality control as he believes that the good boxes will succeed and the bad ones fail and that the market will provide quality control.

If your local box has good coaches then it will be really good.

Interesting interview with Greg Glassman (CF founder) here: http://www.cbs.com/shows/60_minutes/video/2V3s2ipVtqaIhDBTZ9TVxmx7ZvSz6RuW/king-of-crossfit/

Kipping (anything)

There's nothing wrong with Kipping if you realise that it's a gymnastic move and not a substitute for a strength exercise. Eg a kipping bar muscle-up is a really elegant and impressive skill and not a substitute / alternative to a pullup etc.

What are you currently doing at the gym? Lifting on your own?
I do standard circuit training/interval training in a gym as part of a group these days. It's a lot slower than cross-fit but works for me.

created by a Libertarian,

they refuse to be an incorporated franchise as they don;t want liability if someone ****s up.

It can be fun, but the organisation is rotten to the core.

Oh really? Glassman and Castro behave nothing like libertarians!

I'm not a fan of Glassman or CF really, I just use a Box to train on my own.

However, the requirements to become a box are really really lax, you need one PT with the L1 course (£1k outlay and 2 days, which you can't really fail). Then you only pay the license fee (£2k per annum) and that's it! You can run the gym as well or badly as you like and be a Crossfit affiliated box. No other franchise / brand is that lax about quality control.

If you were a traditional gym eg Virgin Active, DW Fitness etc you'd have minimum kit levels, kit types, changing room specs, towel specs, uniforms etc. It's a real breath of fresh air in the fitness industry and (so far) very, very successful.

Edit: having said I'm not a fan, I have watched a lot of classes in my local box and as such I would recommend it to anyone as the standard of instruction is very high, but that's an endorsement of one box rather than the brand.

For people who have never played a team sport or struggle to push themselves when training alone I can see the attraction, but for the most part I think it's a load of over-hyped, expensive rubbish.

It's more expensive than a traditional gym because they have a much higher attendance rate per member. A standard gym (DW, LA, Virgin) will have several thousand members of whom only a very small percentage attend every week. A CF box will have typically 80-200 members of whom 95% attend once a week or more.

The VFM is probably higher with CF as your access to kit / coaching is much better.

Over hyped maybe, but it's not expensive; about £5/session around here. For an instructed class, it's actually very reasonable.

I would recommend that anyone looks around for any "functional" gyms nearby. They are popping up and the ones I've been to have proper UKSCA coaches with far more emphasis on form and far less macho bullshit.

Whatever your fitness goals are, there's a better way to achieve them than crossfit.

All good comments.

I'll say up front that I do Crossfit and enjoy it, but again that could be due to the box than the actual movements. There are some things that annoy me about it, but overall I prefer training there than at the local normal gym. Classes are smaller, there is a far lower student to instructor ratio and no fighting over equipment.

Costs? It's more expensive than the local gym, but not by much and I go four+ times a week, something I never did at the other place. I get more access to weights, get to train outside classes if I want and get to socialise outside classes too, something that the other gym never really did. People just went in, used the equipment in silence for an hour, then went home.

Anyway, I enjoy it.

get to train outside classes if I want and get to socialise outside classes too, something that the other gym never really did. People just went in, used the equipment in silence for an hour, then went home.

That's one big reason for it's sticking power, by having a smaller membership but with much more active members, it creates a community which you just don't get in larger gyms.

It's success seems to be a combination of three things:

1. They've found a formula for competitive training, which seems to motivate people to push themselves
2. They've got a good scheme for accessibility via scaling, I've been in a CF Box in the US which had a class with both clinically obese people and steroid monsters, who all did the same class (via scaling) and it worked surprisingly well.
3. They foster a community spirit by having a smaller number of higher attending members

The number of boxes opening and expanding show that it works commercially. My local box has doubled to a 7000 sqft unit in under two years and there are 3 more in and around Cambridge.

Indeed. Another one opened up a couple of months ago in Over. Bloke that runs it is a really good lad.

Over hyped maybe, but it's not expensive; about £5/session around here. For an instructed class, it's actually very reasonable.

£185 for an unlimited monthly membership at the one near my house, I stand by my expensive comment.

£185 for an unlimited monthly membership at the one near my house, I stand by my expensive comment.

Central London?

I pay £77/month for unlimited access to the gym (but 2 classes per week), which I though was steep enough! I train for 1.5 hours 5-6 times a week.

£185 for an unlimited monthly membership at the one near my house

I pay £59 a month for two interval classes a week.
The group size averages around 6.

Central London?

Wimbledon area. There's a 'performance' gym 5 mins walk away with high level equipment, indoor track etc and unlimited classes which is 1/3 of the price.

Crossfit have certainly built a strong brand which they are milking for all it's worth!

Crossfit have certainly built a strong brand which they are milking for all it's worth!

Or at least that franchise is, there is no control over fees from the mother ship and the franchise fee is a flat $3k per annum no matter what size the box is.

Judging by house prices in Wimbledon, I suspect the rental on a unit is pretty steep!

Thanks for the input, i currently pay £28 a month so crossfit would compliment my existing training, costs are a one off £40 induction + £10 per session.
I do a fair bit of body weight based stuff with very short rest periods so crossfit just seemed a move in the right direction, got to say i'm not a fan of the kipping pull up though, wouldn't want to destroy my shoulders at my age.
Perhaps interval training may also be worth a try, that would be included in the £28 i currently pay.

Pick the classes you want, it will vary completely by box as they're all locally set. My box has a good variety all suitable titled eg Strong man (Power lifting), Bar Bell Warriors (Olympic Lifts), Gymnastics, traditional cicuits, etc.

If you do crossfit you have to tell everyone at every opportunity that you do crossfit

jools, the kind of people in my circle would only look at me blankly if i mentioned Crossfit, no-one i know cares or is impressed i can do 40 straight pull ups.

Somewhere on the net there's a well reasoned article on crossfit's limitations by Mark Rippetoe.

https://www.t-nation.com/training/crossfit-the-good-bad-and-the-ugly

IMO. It looks like a fad, walks like a fad, and quacks like a fad. So to speak.

I always remember to rehydrate with a herbalife energy tea after my crossfit sessions.

This eloquent American gentleman sums it up quite well:

Probably not safe for work.

It looks like a fad, walks like a fad, and quacks like a fad.

Much mocked, but very successful and I'd wager it's here to stay.

As with any gym, it's only as good as the instructors, some are bad, some are excellent and most are somewhere in the middle.

A cross-fitter and an Ironman walk into a bar; how do you know which is which!?

They'll tell you.

As with any gym, it's only as good as the instructors, some are bad, some are excellent and most are somewhere in the middle.

That sounds like really bad model for a franchise. Surely the one thing you want from a franchise is some consistency and hopefully an assurance of quality.

I always remember to rehydrate with a herbalife energy tea after my crossfit sessions.

i did some contract work in a herbalife office once, the whole place was plastered in company slogans and everyone appeared to buy in to the company message. I got out of there at the first opportunity.

no-one i know cares or is impressed i can do 40 straight pull ups.

By god, if anyone on this place was doing crossfit you would know all about it.

As others have said, there's a lot of emphasis on doing / lifting lots and very little emphasis on form.

I have a mate who does crossfit, he basically lifts anything like he's got very comprehensive insurance shares in the local physio...

I always remember to rehydrate with a herbalife energy tea after my crossfit sessions.
i did some contract work in a herbalife office once, the whole place was plastered in company slogans and everyone appeared to buy in to the company message. I got out of there at the first opportunity.

Wasn't in Edinburgh by anychance?

My cousin and her husband are well hooked to the point of giving me the hard sell at my grandfathers 100th birthday!

That sounds like really bad model for a franchise. Surely the one thing you want from a franchise is some consistency and hopefully an assurance of quality.

Intersting point.

If you look at the competition, mainstream gyms, they offer even less than CF. Virtually no instruction bar maybe a 30 minute orientation, weight machines which do virtually nothing for you, massively over subscribed classes, etc. Their whole business model is based on people not turning up very often and hence massively over subscribing their ineffective equipment.

So, whilst CF isn't perfect, it's probably a notch up to start with.

Yes, there are terrible CF instructors out there, but there are also terrible electricians, plumbers, builders and you don't write off all builders or decide never to refit your kitchen just because some trade people are bad.

I've never heard of Crossfit so I will have a look but firstly, if we are comparing prices, I've started going to a Gym that only does classes.

They are a couple of cardio sessions and a muscle one, 5 classes a day spread out over different aspects.

£49.99 per month, go to as many classes as you can handle and a one hour personal training session is included in that price. Diet plans etc and discounts at the health food shop are also included.

Yes, there are terrible CF instructors out there, but there are also terrible electricians, plumbers, builders and you don't write off all builders or decide never to refit your kitchen just because some trade people are bad.

True but if they were part of a franchise I'd expect the same level of service/advice/professionalism from them wherever i was in the country.

To liken it to one of the more obvious franchises. Some independent places that sell burgers are nice some are horrible but if I bought a McDonalds burger in Plymouth I know it would be the same as one I'd buy in Glasgow or York. So that's what I'd expect from a franchised model.

I think your other points are entirely valid, gyms are a hit and miss affair entirely dependent on the character, ability and enthusiasm of individual staff. If you're lucky you'll find someone thats brilliant but in my experience for every one of them there are ten that are less than ideal.

True but if they were part of a franchise I'd expect the same level of service/advice/professionalism from them wherever i was in the country.

You can see it two ways, each Box has a character which is unique to the owner a bit like each Pub is different even though they may sell beer from the same brewery. The whole CF ethos is not to have identikit gyms although they are very much alike in style (I've been to Boxes in the UK, Poland and USA now and they all have a similar warehouse look to them).

Are we allowed to called them gyms, with a small 'g'? Or would STW get sued and shut down?

if we are comparing prices, I've started going to a Gym that only does classes.

I go to a gym that charges £17 a month and that includes classes.

By comparison, Crossfit is [i]reassuringly expensive[/i].

I'm not saying that I have travelled the world and gone to a million different Crossfit gyms, but... Work sent me to the US West Coast earlier in the year for four days. I knew I was going to be jet-lagged to hell for the whole time I was there, so I thought I would at least try and fill my early mornings.

I found NorCal Crossfit in the nearby location and they did an early, early morning class and were very relaxed about me turning up to it a couple of times. It was very much like being at the gym I normally go to; people made me feel welcome, there was a lot of banter and the instructor was happy to help get the movements right.

I _like_ that Crossfit is (generally) more social than a standard gym. I don't buy into the paleo lifestyle, but I do enjoy the banter, the varied workouts and the more technical aspects of lifting. Then again, one of my regular instructors is pretty keen to make sure that any lifting that we do is spot on for form.

Crossfit = Gym Strava

My Chiro LOVES CrossFitters!!!

I was one for many years, but the injury rates were phenomenal (myself included!) and regular folks being struck down with Rhabdo - a very serious disease only normally seen within the forces or extreme enduro athletes.

Now, i'm back to my roots Thai Boxing and riding the good old steed! Injury free for 2 years! 🙂

Give it a try and if you like it, fine, if not, dont worry about it. Theres other stuff.

Be prepared though to encounter some right c*cks. There were / are some at the one i went to. Two weeks in and they thought they were in the SAS! Tragic. Still MTB'ing attracts its fair share of 'enthusiasts' though!!

no-one i know cares or is impressed i can do 40 straight pull ups.

as I can't do 3, I'm quite impressed

I found NorCal Crossfit in the nearby location and they did an early, early morning class and were very relaxed about me turning up to it a couple of times. It was very much like being at the gym I normally go to; people made me feel welcome, there was a lot of banter and the instructor was happy to help get the movements right.

What I like about the US boxes is they all seem to have a first visit free policy, which makes going to a gym in a random town when on business very easy.

it seems to be a very effective method of becoming a musclebound lump of beef - handy for hanging round the park taps off and getting sleeve tattoos, but not much use if your a cyclist

it seems to be a very effective method of becoming a musclebound lump of beef -

top crossfitters (such as Froning and Klokov)

You're confusing sports there, Klokov has never competed in crossfit and is a recently retired Olympic weight lifter (20yr career inc World Champion, Olympic medal holder). He is now making a living doing OL seminars (mainly in Crossfit boxes) and is coming to Scotland next month for a quick tour of a few boxes. He also has his own line in OL lifting kit, mainly targeted at CF.

One of the good things to come out of CF is the fact it has introduced 1000s of people to olympic lifting and as a result OL is having a bit of a resurgence. Our local Olympic Lifting League is growing 100% every year all fed by CF.

It's just circuits.

For anyone In Sheffield the fitness club is a small independent gym doing excellent t classes with great instruction. Since leaving Sheffield I've never found a gym that comes close.

Klokov is crossfits current poster boy. He pops up in anything CF related so please forgive me for not knowing he's not a CFer, but it's strongly implied.

Actually the joke is;
Crossfit; turns women into men and men into women!
It has been established that the biiiig, top crossfitters (such as Froning and Klokov) don't train crossfit (as crossfitters do).

so please forgive me for not knowing he's not a CFer, but it's strongly implied.

Not implied at all, he's actually recently signed up to a team in a rival sport ([url= https://www.npgl.com ]NPGL[/url]) which pretty much means he's persona-non grata at CF HQ (they've threatened to disown other CF athletes who sign with NPGL, including getting one or two major stars to withdraw from NPGL).

Like I said, most people who slag off CF don't actually know anything about it!

I haven't slagged it off. And I've trained at two different boxes for a few months, so I know a lot more than most. Like I said it's fun, but nothing revolutionary and is more of a w@nker magnet than even most bodybuilding gyms.
WRT the klokov thing; it doesn't matter. They'll fall out and Glassman/Castro will slag him off eventually just they do with everyone.

They'll fall out and Glassman/Castro will slag him off eventually just they do with everyone.

I don't think Klokov would even notice. You obviously have no idea how big he is in weight lifting, he is a living legend.

I do know who Klokov is, and his accomplishments.
He still doesn't train crossfit (except for the cameras)

it seems to be a very effective method of becoming a musclebound lump of beef

Really? Doing a random selection of random stuff has been fairly well established as being a good way of not becoming any different at anything.

I submit any musclebound beefcakes doing crossfit are actually bodybuilders on a holiday.