Crossfit

I worked with someone who was into Crossfit. He thought it was fabulous. Then he hurt himself and he found out that a lot of people hurt themselves doing this. You can hurt yourself at any gym, but I'd just be careful. Maybe try it out for a month

Too many people have warned me it's cultish and I can't do high impact such as running due to an old ankle injury.

It helps to keep your mind off your problems.

Don’t know anyone who does CrossFit. I’ve read it’s cultish and pushes people to go beyond safe boundaries and they wind up injured.

I know a woman who joined a similar “gym” here on the UES who describes it as “like CrossFit but it’s not”. Got her whipped into shape and it’s become the main source of her social life.

It’s a cult.

Super Fit

Canadian Brent Fikowski

Fucking HOT!

I think the injury rate is high. It looks to be really hard on the joints - not worth it, you could fuck yourself up for the rest of your life.

Injuries worth it if u can get banged by one of those bros!

It's cultish and the guys are really religious. You won't fuck any of them probably.

Look for a gym that does some of the similar stuff (pushing tires around, swinging on ropes, etc.) but isn't called CrossFit. I can't remember the name for it but it's a mode of exercise.

Cult. Jillian Michaels is very much against it. She said the injury rate is enormous. You'd be better off taking martial arts classes. Get in shape AND learn a very valuable skill to defend yourself.

Why do so many born again ex gay porn stars wind up in Cross Fit? Is it sort of a culty AA for ex cocksukers?

Also involved is a strict diet

Another problem is that, due to the crossfit craze, a lot of people who have no idea about basic kinesiology and sports medicine have started calling themselves "experts" and training other people who are not nearly at the fitness level required to do a lot of it.

Read a cautionary tale - it is not a regular workout and you're putting your health in the hands of someone who might be a charlatan himself by not conditioning you properly.

Gurl all this stuff looks like it will kill your knees and joints. All these crossfitting whores will be getting knee replacements. I'd rather sit and be a lazy bitch with the knees Im born with

CrossFit can be dangerous because not a lot of attention is placed on proper form, body mechanics, and personal weight limits. It's animalistic. Folks who love pushing themselves beyond their limits are attracted to this, and folks who are blessed genetically will see results. I've seen a number of trainers and clients get into CrossFit-like exercises who end up blowing out their shoulders and knees, along with random ankle sprains, etc.

A physical therapist friend of mine LOVES Crossfit- it sends him a steady stream of clients.

Didn't Bob Harper get into crossfit after his heart attack?

People who Crossfit are not big picture thinkers.

My experience with it locally: it's a Paleo offshoot that raises your inflammation to the point that the resulting stress hormones actually jack your weight up MORE. Most of the people I see doing it are not slim or trim.

crossfit and the paleo diet often go hand in hand. This diet is also known as the caveman diet..............it means eating mostly protein........alot of meat actually

My own personal opinion is you can probably get away with cross fit and paleo while you are young, and if you dont do it long term...........but eating tons of meat is associated with increased cancer. risk............and it isnt a lifestyle diet to do forever and like other posters say, the crossfit workout is extremely energetic and I would think it would lead to more injuries. I do know somebody in their mid 50 s that does cross fit and he is bodybuilder huge but he is borderline too heavy..........

Crossfit is dangerous and stupid.

It's a cult. It's like Jazzercise. I had to flat out block and unfriend former associates on FB for shilling it nonstop...

Check out this spazzy crossfit guy doing their weird form of pullups, he starts at about 1:30. It has funny commentary from the uploader which you might find obnoxious.

Crossfit Athlete Kevin Ogar Drops 240lb On His Neck and Becomes Paralyzed

R13, cuz they have no other choices in their lives except keep torturing their bodies

R26, omg, it's gruesome

OP, what age are you?

No, don't do it for reasons above. If you must, quit after six months.

I prefer HIIT. Less time. Good results.

Is it born again Christian fitness?

What is frightening R 26 is he credits crossfit for him surviving that incident.

Sorry for the space. R26

R30 is there a place I can get good HIIT group workouts in?

R29, I'm 26

It’s a great way to meet hot dudes who into aesthetics and fitness, some fitness model caliber

a woman i know, healthy and in her 30s, started crossfit. she ended up with a "dislocated stomach" (that's how she called it). they had to drain a lot of blood from her stomach. it was awful and painful.

Crossfit kind of freaks me out. I see pictures of people that do it and the one move that freaks me out is the weight lifting one where you do a deep squat with a barbell extended overhead. I believe it's called a squat snatch. That looks like a move that is very easy to fuck up and do improperly.

My dentist loves cross fit. She's a slim woman--on the petite side--and she's really enjoying it. I think it's the group support or something. We used to work out at the same gym which is how the topic even came up. She's not fanatical or anything, but I could tell she's really motivated by it.

CrossFit seems to be more focused on achieving fast goals rather than long-term wellness. I know CrossFit people who can do the moves but are still layered with chubby. I like Performance courses that mimic college training but which assess your strength and body type before you start...

I don’t know many chubby long term Crossfitters. They tend to be jacked

READING COMPREHENSION 101: The guy at R26 was not involved with Crossfit when he had that accident. It occurred during a weight lifting competition. He later credited Crossfit for helping him recover. (I learned this from clicking through to the actual article.)

Losing weight is mostly about diet, not exercise. You can do Crossfit three times a day but if you are eating 6K calories, you'll still be fat.

But if you were that into Crossfit (or running. Or yoga. Or any other exercise) chances are you'd be motivated to change your diet as well in order to get the most out of it.

A lot of Crossfitters seem to develop weird barrel-shaped bodies with muscular protruding stomachs.

I think the women who do it get really broad shoulders and a kind of squareish looking body. I did it for about 10 months and had to quit because I was sick of throwing up during intervals and ended up having to get bunion surgery due to the stress certain exercises put on my feet.

There are now more Crossfit gyms in the US than Starbucks. That means that some of them will be run by people who don't know what they're doing. Same with yoga studios, traditional gyms or any other form of exercise.

Crossfit is, as R37 notes, all about being supportive, especially of newcomers. They will scale the exercises for people who can't do things (e.g., have them do a different exercise) like what R37 described. In fact, it often takes people a year or more to even almost be able to do those sorts of moves.

Crossfit's philosophy is actually the exact opposite of what R38 posits--it's about wellness for life and long-term goals, not short term and the idea is that people progress over years, not weeks.

Do people get injured? Of course. Mostly because they do not listen to the coach who tells them to use a lower weight or go easier on the exercise. But these are the same people who'd hurt themselves in yoga class by ignoring the teacher and trying to get into a position their body wasn't ready for or who'd run too far and too fast too soon and wind up tearing a ligament or who'd pull their shoulders out at the gym by putting too much weight on whatever the Cybex equivalent is these days.

I actually find the muscular stomachs that stick outwards kind of hot...

Crossfit is a weird blend of MLM and Scientology. It is most certainly a cult. I thought it would have died out by now.

My partner has been doing it for a year plus. He is looking so good, though he looked good before. I love it for him.

I did it for a year. I think it's absurd. And can be very dangerous. A few people I know have fucked themselves up after not being properly onboarded to some of the more punishing routines.

I weened myself off of it and though I still do some of the core stuff, but I now just focus on variety of exercise (weights one week, swimming and yoga the next, hiking)...

Well, smell you R47. Curious to know how much your partner has paid for dues, "supplements", recruiting, and merching., And that is aside from payment for any medical issues.

They look hot

They all look mighty fine to me.

Great description r42.

Protruding stomachs? WTF are you talking about?

R53, check out the guy on the right. Stomachs that just stick outwards like that are common among crossfit guys. I find it hot but it is kind of unique to them

I've been to a Crossfit Games event a few years ago and all I saw were the fittest human beings on this planet.

You saw roads r55 crossfit can get you looking good naturally, but humans are not capable taking the punishment of the crossfit games events. It's months worth of wear and tear in a few hours. It's actually not safe to even attempt that stuff without heavy juicing.

You saw roids*

It's nuts and attracts nuts. weirdo MRA racist libertarians and the dumb cunts who put up with their shit.

Why do I suspect everyone dissing Crossfit in this thread weighs 300 lbs + and and finds walking up stairs to be extreme exercise.

And the bullshit responses like R43. If you were to throw up, any responsible coach would tell you to sit down immediately and stop and possibly get some medical attention and they would be sure to modify the exercise next time to ensure you did not come anywhere close to throwing up.

Do you do crossfit R59? What is your experience?

yes R60

I have found it to be a very supportive environment with everyone from 60 year old housewives to buff 20somethings, that the workouts are challenging and that I feel I am in the best shape I've ever been in, that there are still things I can't do and that (a) I'm not the only one and (b) there's always some form of modification--e.g.,some of those older housewives are doing knee push-ups or push-ups leaning on a bench, that the super buff guys like the one in R53 are the exception rather than the rule and that they tending to spend way more time at the gym practicing or doing extra during off hours, that it's incredibly efficient (in and out in an hour) and that having someone else decide my workout for me is a huge plus.

I have never seen anyone even remotely pressured even to do something they were not comfortable with either--if anything, the coaches will talk people down, tell them to go easier so they don't hurt themselves.

I guess the stereotypes must come from someplace though, e.g., there must be people who are complete douches about it, though I have not met any in over six years of doing it and visiting gyms in different cities as well.

I thought the protruding stomach was a sign of steroid use. I am sure there are steroid users among the cross fit crowd. It's not limited to Gold's gym.

DL is filled with a bunch of angry bitter out of shape people jealous of people with the hot bods that others chase and seek to emulate. It’s tired.

But I AM THE EXCEPTION!!!

Oh, shopbottom @ R63...

I've been to a CrossFit gym. It was more of a warehouse with large fans, no airconditioning. It reeked of b.o., testosterone and ass sweat. It was heaven!

Hot

Squats

I thought that was going to be one of the videos where the squatter poops.

I worked with a young woman who was into it. She was obsessive, eating six or eight meals a day, at the same time of day, NO EXCEPTIONS. She left work for workouts whenever she wanted despite being a junior employee, got into competitive weightlifting, got an arm sleeve tattoo and started wearing only sleeveless shirts in the office. It was very weird. She was a data analyst, so it just seemed...ill fitting. Also had anger management issues and ultimately was fired because of it. We all wondered if she was taking steroids or testosterone supplements.

The guy doing the "pull ups" cracks me up. He can't even do a proper pull up. The commentator had it right; the guy looks like a fish.

No pull up should involve wiggling your body. Is that how Cross Fit teaches people to do pull ups?

That's the difference between a good personal trainer and a lot of people who run these crossfit boot camps. When I started working with my trainer, he told me point blank that he would never ask me or allow me to do a particular exercise until he's confident that I have the right form for it. Otherwise, it's an injury waiting to happen. Now, years later, when I walk into the gym and see what some guys are trying to do and how they're going about it, I shudder.

My boss and a VP at my office both got into working out for a while. These are rich guys who buy “the best” of everything. Both had THE BEST personal trainers. My boss bragged that his was a kinesiologist, a nutritionist, etc. etc. Anyway, foregone conclusion, my boss has had two back surgeries and an arm surgery since he injured himself working out, and the VP has had shoulder surgery since injuring himself with a kettlebell and two knee surgeries from running (which he probably should not do since he is obese). “The best personal trainers” didn’t do either any favors. I also know people who have been injured with CrossFit. And I injured myself years ago with weight machines and no trainer and I don’t work out anymore.

Well, there are personal trainers and personal trainers. There's one in my gym, who's a professional bodybuilder or, at least, used to be. His clients are primarily wealthy Torontonians and local celebrities (Dave Salmoni is one, for example) He lets those people do whatever they want since they are paying *a lot*. So, you want to bulk up in the upper body? Oh, no problem, we'll start you on the deadlifts and all those things, never mind that I never made sure you know how to position your lower back so that you do not injure yourself - knock yourself out, as long as you take your whey protein afterwards!

R51 pic = toxic straight white malehood, or why the world suffers every day.

What? Like it’s hard?

So weird. I can be turned on by a body like the ones in R51, but seeing a bunch together doesn’t arouse me at all. It’s creepy. They all look the same. They’re complete conformists doing the same things, trying to attain the same bodies. I can hear them in my head grunting and oo-rahing. Not attractive to me at all.

Seeing this endless parade of sameness through Instagram has had the same effect on me. What was once sexy is now alienating and disturbing a lot of the time. The dudes post the same shirtless flexing photos with interchangeable inspirational sayings that tell you that you, too, can be just like them!, intermixed with photos of the foods they eat, and the occasional before-and-after photo of themselves two, five or 10 years ago to highlight what an extraordinarily same-y physically conformist creature they’ve become.

One thing fiction hasn’t done yet to my knowledge is to give us the perspective of zombies. What does the world look like to them? Now we know thanks to Instagram. Zombies look back at their former human selves as shameful failures, and now that they’ve attained a state of superhuman greatness, they’ll keep spreading the joy and letting everyone know why their state of being is better and how to become more like them.

BS. They try to push you past the healthy limits for your body.

CrossFit people I’ve known don’t necessarily always seem to be in it for the health. They ones I’ve known have mostly acknowledged they do it 1) because they are competitive and it’s based on being “better” than others in a group setting; 2) they want to look fuckable and feel like the CorssFit look equals fuckable; 3) it’s sort of a new version of a selective meat market—people there meet other people to fuck, see their bodies first, don’t have to go to a bar, etc. And there are no real connections. It’s just a place to go to be physical and get your rocks off. Seems like a very 20s thing to do. Beyond that I see it as kind of sad and trying way too hard to reclaim youth and spread seed.

I have a new young coworker who does cosplay and CrossFit and she was very honest about her motivations. She said she realizes that she overdoes it and pushes her body too far, and she will probably injure herself and knows it’s not wise—but she is in her 20s and can’t help being motivated by wanting to look good, even though she realizes she will likely regret prioritizing her appearance over her health later on.

Hope that replacing all her joints or potential paralysis is worth it to her, R79. There’s just no denying the depths of human stupidity.

R75, you seen delicate and professionally offended. Moreover, you don’t know the orientation of those dudes.

CULT

Can be fun at times:

Just make sure you aren’t doing it for the thought that you might screw 1 or 17 of those guys.

You’ll be pegged as the cockhungry old gay guy from Day 1.

Don’t care how hot, masculine, or how 30 could be mistaken for 28 you look.

These guys will know and you will become BFFs with the pudgy stocky women as you will be marginalized soon enough.

R84 Thanks for your advice. I'm not trying to fuck any of the guys there, maybe oogle them though

And fwiw, I'm actually 26 lol

R84, uh no. I do CrossFit with a lot of guys that are legitimate friends beyond CrossFit. I’m not predatory or prowling for sex.

Of course you do Crossfit now. Uh huh. 🙄

Other than it being a cult, sure, go for it.

Bump

Who bumps a thread twenty minutes after the last reply?

R90 - Exactly.

You don't need Crossfit!

I've done crossfit and agree--the trainer is everything, and if they're pushing too hard or allow the client to push too hard there can be serious injury.

Currently I'm a member of GoldsFit, the Gold's gym equivalent, which initially attempted to deliver a much more tailored program, with emphasis on proper form and strict supervision. Anyone, at any age, could plug in at their level of fitness and only have themselves as competition--"Better than Yesterday."

HOWEVER, now even that program has succumbed to competition fever--pitting clients against each other for better time, more reps, longer distance...and prepping them for regional competition. Coaches are turning over, and the younger ones are on their cell phones or chatting up the pretty girls--and they're not nearly as attentive as they used to be (I've seen this in two gyms). They're also making videos (instead of training), looking for that hot clip and pics to share online. Again, the coach is everything, and should be spending 99% of his time on monitoring the clients during each training segment and providing guidance and feedback.

Sat/Sun workouts are usually designed by the coach, not the program. One Sunday after a grueling week our coach did nothing but an hour of stretching and shooting the shit about goals, music, what people would like to work on. He read the athletes and did what was right.

I stay because I love my fellow fitters, feel great and am doing more athletic moves and activity than I ever did on my own. I am in my best shape overall, even though I've had bigger muscles in the past. There is so much focus on core strength and aerobics, I have to trade off and lift weights in order to keep some bigger muscle. So now, for me, the fit program is a supplement.

Since the program builds during the week there is a feeling of missing out if you don't go regularly. I can see how people think of it as a cult, especially considering the feelings of accomplishment, camaraderie, fun, endorphins and group support. That stuff is addictive, and I have gone through periods where I had to make myself lay off to recover/rest properly.

With all of this said, I've had two injuries: 1) a pulled groin during sprinting. I wasn't warmed up and stretched and went too hard too fast. That was a three-month recovery. 2) I did 100 strict pull-ups early on during training and got that syndrome where your body tries to flush too many toxins through the kidneys at once. Forget the name. Again, my fault. I was showing off and refused to use the bands for support.

My advice for anyone wishing to join such a program is to really interview your coach, make any health/issues known, insist on taking your time for progress, ask for supervision/feedback and don't compete with anyone else other than yourself.