Crossfit

P90x is definitely more homosexual than Crossfit, that's for sure. I got a hard on watching those videos. It was like Jane Fonda meets International Male.

Crossfitters tend to have the same stubborn and ignorant mentality as classic meatheads except for the inbred feeling they give off.

While the wild claims and cult mentality get old, it's hard to argue that the exercises used by CF aren't very effective. Squats, Deadlifts, Cleans, Snatches, Dips, Pull-Ups, and Presses combined with running and rowing intervals are pretty good selection of exercises and to argue that they're not would be foolish. Take a look at the last few workouts of the day here http://www.crossfit.com/ I'll bet 80% of the people reading this couldn't complete half of the WOD if given an hour. The WOD for today has you do 100 pullups, 100 push-ups, 100 sit-ups, and 100 squats w/o weight. Push-ups, sit-ups, squats = no problem, but how many people here can do 100 pull-ups. I know many Crossfitters do kipping pull-ups (I'm ex-military and do traditional pull-ups), but if kipping pull-ups are cheating (and therefore easier, right?), then do 100kipping pull-ups. It ain't easy folks. You might not want to do them (the WOD), you might not find they're best for you, but if you can do them, you're a pretty fit bastard.

I also do some of Ross Enamait's stuff too - www.rosstraining.com Try the workouts in Infinite Intensity.

Ross is smart, likable and strong. He's also safe.

The issue with Xfit isn't the type of exercises, but the manner that they use them (speed cleans for example) and their inability to teach proper form.

I do speed work. Just today I did 30 reps of speed squats with 55% of my 1RM, but I broke that into 10 sets of 3, so I could focus on form. I'm sure I could have done 2 sets of 15, but my form would be compromised on the last 5 or so and therefore have no benefit to my goal, which is getting stronger.

Plus ... I don't name my WOs after girls.

lefty

Lefty,
Why would you say they have an inability to teach proper form? Did someone from CF teach you improper form? Seriously, unless you've been to a CF affiliate or CF certification and been taught improper form, that statement doesn't hold much weight.

I lifted with an O-lifting coach for about 6 months to dial in my C&J and snatch although I did those exercises in the WOD for several years w/o coaching. I learned quite a bit about form just using their videos. The C&J is pretty easy to learn; the snatch I found more difficult. The squat, deadlift and others...I learned on my own. Anytime you do ballistic type exercises, the danger goes up. Partner that with the fact that very few gyms have bumper plates and lifting platforms and even fewer have trainers who can teach others and you get exercises that aren't done much and are often considered dangerous.

I jumped right into CF at age 39 and pretty much took on the WOD as written. I've never been injured. The speed/form issue comes up from time to time. Grace is 30 X 135 lb. clean and jerk for time. In other words, do them as fast as you can. Will form break down in the quest for speed? Of course it does, but the point isn't the form or the weight (after all, a 135 lb. C&J isn't any great feat). The point is the cardio demands of doing it. Try it some time (maybe you have); you'll feel like you sprinted a mile. Makes heavy C&J singles seem easy by comparison.

I like Ross's stuff alot. He uses many of the same ballistic exercises that CF uses, but he does them with dumbbells. DB's are a little easier to control in the ballistic moves, but it's still a dangerous move. Take a 35 year old guy and have him do DB split snatches with 50 lb. DB's and you're asking for injury there, too. Somehow, Ross is safe though? Unless you live in CT where Ross trains, how is he teaching you proper form any differently than Greg Glassman? BTW, CF highly recommends scaling their workouts until you can handle it. More than likely, if you've been working out a while, you'll be able to handle it right away.

Originally Posted by 95///M3

Click to expand...

As far as kipping pullups... Helen kicked ****** yesterday, middle of second round of pullups and I smashed my head on the bar behind me (my fault) which subsequently smashed my lip into the bar I was hanging on. Finished the workout and went to the ER. Hit by a car on my bike on my way to the plastic surgeon from the ER. 8 total stitches. I had a great day.

Yes, Kipping pullups, couldn't remember the exact name. I've never actually trained them and I guess gymnasts use them to work muscles otherwise not used in regular pull ups.

But I've seen workouts that start and end with 50 kipping pull ups. Even with momentum and all that, it seems reasonably hard, especially the last 50. anyone ever done anything like this?

Oh yea, ****** day too...

Originally Posted by Grayland

Click to expand...

Lefty,
Why would you say they have an inability to teach proper form? Did someone from CF teach you improper form? Seriously, unless you've been to a CF affiliate or CF certification and been taught improper form, that statement doesn't hold much weight.

I lifted with an O-lifting coach for about 6 months to dial in my C&J and snatch although I did those exercises in the WOD for several years w/o coaching. I learned quite a bit about form just using their videos. The C&J is pretty easy to learn; the snatch I found more difficult. The squat, deadlift and others...I learned on my own. Anytime you do ballistic type exercises, the danger goes up. Partner that with the fact that very few gyms have bumper plates and lifting platforms and even fewer have trainers who can teach others and you get exercises that aren't done much and are often considered dangerous.

I jumped right into CF at age 39 and pretty much took on the WOD as written. I've never been injured. The speed/form issue comes up from time to time. Grace is 30 X 135 lb. clean and jerk for time. In other words, do them as fast as you can. Will form break down in the quest for speed? Of course it does, but the point isn't the form or the weight (after all, a 135 lb. C&J isn't any great feat). The point is the cardio demands of doing it. Try it some time (maybe you have); you'll feel like you sprinted a mile. Makes heavy C&J singles seem easy by comparison.

I like Ross's stuff alot. He uses many of the same ballistic exercises that CF uses, but he does them with dumbbells. DB's are a little easier to control in the ballistic moves, but it's still a dangerous move. Take a 35 year old guy and have him do DB split snatches with 50 lb. DB's and you're asking for injury there, too. Somehow, Ross is safe though? Unless you live in CT where Ross trains, how is he teaching you proper form any differently than Greg Glassman? BTW, CF highly recommends scaling their workouts until you can handle it. More than likely, if you've been working out a while, you'll be able to handle it right away.

Gray,

while I've never been to a Xfit camp, school or church, every time I see some video it seems a miracle that someone isn't hurt with the lousy form they promote and exhibit on big lifts. That's a fundamental failing of lifting weights for a prescribed time - something has got to give. The saving grace is that the weight, as you point out, is light enough that you can usually get it up--ugly form or not. My guess is that people are being hurt and dropping out never to be heard from again, though they seem to have enough new recruits ready to sign up to keep the clubs growing.

What Ross does is effective, but safe GPP with DBs, KBs, BW, and found objects. While I can certainly tax myself or even burn myself out swinging a 10 pound sledgehammer at a tire, I probably can't really hurt myself. I believe Ross also has a 500 dead as shown in his challenge video. Not bad for a guy who doesn't really train for deads. Are there Xfitters that can do an almost 3XBW dead? They seem to believe that they can based on their superior training.

I will admit an enormous bias due to the general dumbfuckery of the average Xfit attitude. Hot chicks, though.

lefty

The Crossfit chicks are pretty hot, huh?

I like Ross's stuff. I've done both Infinite Intensity and Never Gymless. I love his "cheap" approach to fitness. I also like his emphasis on sprints and shorter runs rather than LSD. CF and Ross's stuff are very similar and many of workouts could be interchanged. Ross is a boxer by nature so his stuff is more conditioning. You'll rarely see his workouts (never that I've done) include just a day of max squats, deadlifts, or cleans. CF does have those "heavy" days. There are a few CF's with 3 X bodyweight deadlifts. I've seen the video of Ross doing it, but to imply since Ross can do it, his followers can do it is a stretch. Crossfit only trains heavy deadlifts about once a month, so it's not like they specifically train the DL either.

One of the problems with CF is that many people consider it a competitive sport and sacrifice form for time. Check out the exercise how-to videos ( http://www.crossfit.com/cf-info/excercise.html ) and thell me they promote bad form. You said you guess that many people are getting hurt and dropping out, never to be heard from again. You're right; you are guessing. Neither of us really knows. I'm sure many drop out because they find it too intense, they don't find it meets their goals, but I don't know or haven't read of anyone dropping out due to being hurt from bad form. The 2-3 well publicized incidents of Rhabo (spelling?) in the 5 years I've been doing it were the result of too much intensity early on; they had nothing to do with form.

Either way, I'm a big fan of the CF/Ross approach to fitness. Like teenage sex...brief and intense. If you're a fan of Ross, we have a lot in common.

Originally Posted by Grayland

Click to expand...

Either way, I'm a big fan of the CF/Ross approach to fitness. Like teenage sex...brief and intense.

Sex and lifting, Gray ... slow and steady wins the race.

lefty

I haven't tried CrossFit but when I get back to working out (september, can't wait) after I'll be done with the routines I have in mind, I'll probobly try CF.

You really should try some of Ross's stuff too. Infinite Intensity is a great investment and Ross does come across as a helluva nice guy.

Coach



Ross Enamait

crossfit is a system, like anything else, with pros and cons. i've been doing it for about two years with great results. part of those results come from the fact that crossfit suits well to my body type and my fitness goals.

i come from a long background of endurance athletics and soccer with mixed cross- and strength-training thrown in as a supplement. Years of long distance running have taken a toll on my connective tissue. Historically, I've tried to balance my love of running with my need for lifting. With work and family, there isn't usually time to do both in a day. They're also somewhat incongruous training methods.

crossfit has allowed me to maintain (and improve a great deal) my aerobic capacity, while making significant strength gains with very little increase in weight. i've maintained my weight, have dropped to about 8% body fat, and bench 150% of my body weight.

the most impressive thing for me, though, is that the fitness gains from the high-intensity workouts carry over to my distance running. whereas before, my favorite weekend long runs were subject to aches and pains of weekly training, i can now go out and enjoy a 15 mile run on saturday without injury, because i've decreased mileage. and instead of suffering from performance drops in my distance running, i've actually gotten faster, because i'm pushing my VO2 max harder than i ever did before.

i don't have to go to a crossfit facility, i have a gym at my office that lets me work out in peace. lots of crossfitters are fanatical and dopes, that's for sure.

it does some things really well -- if it works for you, do it. if something else works better, do that. those are my thoughts on the matter.

I don't know about crossfit per say, but the women in the tabata squat videos are HOT. Going to get my gf doing tabata sets when I get home for our workout together. I was thinking tabata burpees or tabata hindu squats.

CrossFit and Rosstraining are two sides of the same coin. Both are functional fitness, and the goal of each are to blur the distinction between strength training and metabolic conditioning for the simple reason that nature's challenges are typically blind to the distinction.

Personally, as a Kyokushin practitioner, I like the blend of conditioning and power lifting that Crossfit provides. It means that there are figters out there who can get off more shots per round than I can, but chances are each of my shots are individially more powerful, and that's a tradeoff I'm willing to accept.

Originally Posted by cgardel

Click to expand...

Coach

Ross Enamait



Christian Thibaudeau.



Crossfit is exercise for people with ADD.