CrossFit is a fitness movement created by Greg Glassman in the year 2000. You can read more about the history of CrossFit here. This article discusses the essence of CrossFit.
The basic philosophy of CrossFit is to mix different exercises: aerobic, gymnastic, and weightlifting. People who practice it describe it as a great way for overall conditioning, development of strength and endurance, and fat burning. Specific workouts (complexes) are high-intensity, constantly changing, and consisting of functional movements. They aim to improve the strength, explosiveness, endurance, flexibility, balance, coordination, and development of the respiratory and cardiovascular systems. Its creator, Greg Glassman, describes CrossFit training as a simulation of what athletes go through when competing, as well as the people who use it as professional physical training (law enforcement, military, firefighters, etc.).
Workouts are usually held in specialized CrossFit boxes, including warm-up, skills development segment, high-intensity training of the day (WOD), and stretching. Training in the Box is not mandatory, as they are simple enough to be conducted in any well-equipped gym. The training is usually held in groups. The performance in each WOD is usually recorded to track the individual progress of the trainee and to encourage the competitive element.
Commonly used exercises in CrossFit complexes are: Exercises with own weight
- Squatting with your own weight
- Jump on a box
- Burpy
- Shoulder presses from a handstand
- Jumping rope
- El sit
- Attacks
- Strength training
- Recruitment
- Pushups
- Crunches
- Rope climbing
- Buckets on rings
- Raising the knees to the elbows from a height
Aerobic exercise
- Running
- Rowing machine
Exercises with weights
- Deadlift
- Barbell inversion
- Weightlifting
- Swing with Pudovkin
- Squat with weights
- Trust
- Tire reversal
Usually, for CrossFit practitioners, this becomes a way of life. Many exercisers change their lifestyle completely, and many of them prefer the Paleo diet and the “Zone” diet. Many of them also use so-called minimalist shoes. Workouts can also be performed outdoors, and CrossFit, in general, has a lot to do with street fitness, so the two concepts are often confused.
A few CrossFit terms:
BOX – “Box” is a CrossFit certified affiliate. Usually, these fitness centers look exactly like boxes and are mostly warehouses or gyms with suitable flooring and equipment. There you will not find a bar for coffee and fruit juices or a separate aerobics studio.
WOD – Workout of the day. Every day the official site of the CrossFit movement launches a different workout, which usually consists of one gymnastic exercise, one aerobic exercise, and one exercise with weights, as well as a time limit for which the complex must be performed.
RX – this is achieved when someone performs the prescribed number of exercises, with the prescribed number of weights, below the time limit.
Practicing CrossFit is suitable for all types of people of all ages, but the load should be tailored to the level of the trainee. Through CrossFit, you can improve your strength, explosiveness, endurance, flexibility, balance, coordination, and develop the respiratory and cardiovascular systems. Crossfit is suitable for burning fat, as it contains elements of high-intensity cardio.
It is still debatable whether CrossFit training is suitable for increasing muscle mass and building the desired physique. If your main goal is to improve the appearance of your body, CrossFit alone may not be enough, and you will need to include classic bodybuilding programs as a supplement. There are many CrossFit practitioners with enviable physiques, but the question of whether this is due to CrossFit or steroid use remains.
You can read more about the history of CrossFit here.
The story of CrossFit
History, Games, and Business
CrossFit is a fitness movement and company created by Greg Glassman. Although CrossFit, Inc. was established in 2000, the roots of the movement can be traced back to that. In his youth, Glassman was an avid gymnast and cyclist. This combination of two sports influenced him in such a way that he began to practice typical CrossFit complexes to be able to maintain a good level of activity in both sports. In 1995, Glassman opened his gym in Santa Cruz, California, where he practiced workouts developed by him. At the same time, Glassman was hired as a coach at the Santa Cruz Police Department. Overwhelmed by multiple clients as a private trainer and needing enough time to train police officers, Glassman decided to start group training.
The combined complexes at which Glassman trained his clients and group performance led to the birth of the CrossFit trend. Glassman describes typical Crossfit complexes as a simulation of what athletes go through when competing, as well as the people who use it as professional physical training (law enforcement, military, firefighters, etc.).
In 2000 Glasman based brand and company CrossFit, Inc. The first branch of the movement opens a showroom in Seattle. By 2005, CrossFit, Inc. already had 13 affiliates. In 2012, just 12 years after the movement was founded, it had 3,400 branches worldwide, most of them in the United States.
CrossFit Games
Crossfit games play a strong role in promoting the CrossFit movement. Crossfit Games have been held since 2007. The number of participants as well as sponsors has grown greatly since then. The prize pool grew from $ 500 to $ 250,000 in 2013, and the games are now divided into regions. The winners in these regions compete for the grand prize in the finals.
Athletes in the games compete in complexes that they learn only hours before the competition, sometimes these complexes include surprising elements that are not part of the typical CrossFit training. Since 2011, the games have an online format that facilitates the participation of studios around the world. During the CrossFit Open, a new workout is launched online every week. Participants have several days to complete the workout and submit their results online, via video, or under the supervision of a licensed trainer. The best of this selection move on to the regional CrossFit Games, which take place over the next two months. Currently, there are 17 regions and three from each region (men and women), with the highest results go to the finals.
Games are also the main way to promote CrossFit, with most participants demonstrating enviable physiques and achievements. It is debatable whether participants do not use banned substances, as testing is only once a year, which would eventually give participants enough time to use banned substances and then give clean samples.
What is the business model of CrossFit, Inc.?
The income of CrossFit, Inc. comes mostly from licensing the CrossFit brand to fitness centers in exchange for an annual fee ($ 3,000) and training of licensed CrossFit trainers ($ 1,000) who receive the so-called ” Level 1 Certified Trainer “. This allows the coaches who receive it to open their branch and train clients. CrossFit, Inc. conducts about 15 seminars every weekend, in existing branches, to obtain a Level 1 Certified Trainer, and to get it you must complete the Fran complex. There are also specialized CrossFit seminars for gymnastics, weightlifting, martial arts, and CrossFit for children.
Another major item in the income of CrossFit, Inc. is ticket sales and registration fees for CrossFit games. The Reebok brand also pays fees to CrossFit, Inc. as it sells CrossFit branded clothing. Reebok is also a major advertiser in CrossFit games. The founder of the movement, Glasman, claims that the company does not want to enter the segment of food supplements and fitness equipment and accessories.