“CrossFit is bad for you” is a common myth I hear from people of all ages.

When you see the fittest men and women on Earth doing wild, expert-level movements, like ring muscle-ups and barbell clean-and-jerks, you may think “there’s NO WAY I can do that stuff… I’ll get hurt”

And you are right!

But that is not CrossFit.

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CrossFit is a scaleable method of functional fitness, and can be effective for anyone

There is a 72 year old woman at my CrossFit gym named Carol.

Carol is fitter and stronger than 99% of people her age because she does CrossFit regularly. She consistently executed functional movements against resistance in a safe manner.

The more her body adapts to these movements, the more resistant Carol is to injury and disease.

But, before I act like CrossFit is some miracle drug, let me first describe what it is.

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CrossFit is functional movements performed at a high intensity

There are 2 important elements of this statement:

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1. Functional movements

These are movements that prepare you for daily life:

• Lifting objects off the ground
• Moving your bodyweight through space
• Squatting, pressing, rotating…

The list of functional movements goes on forever.

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2. Intensity

Intensity is relative.

10 wall push-ups for Carol at age 72 could be the same intensity as 20 ring muscle-ups for Tia Clair-Toomey (6x fittest woman on Earth - recently had a baby)

Each workout comes with “scaled” versions that are designed for people with less fitness experience

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3 reasons I love CrossFit

1. Comradery

After baseball, I felt a competitive void.

I missed challenging my teammates

I missed working together toward a common goal.

I missed high-fiving during workouts with loud music filling the room

CrossFit filled that void for me. You bond with people much faster when your barriers are broken down by a hard workout.

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2. Mood

I used to say “I do CrossFit 80% for my mental health and 20% for my physical health”

When you regularly perform high-intensity, challenging workouts:

1. Your hormones are regulated
2. You produce dopamine
3. You build anti-fragility (strengthen your mind)

In every workout, there is a point where you hear a voice in your head saying “stop… I’m uncomfortable”. Every time you overcome that voice (in a safe manner) you build your discipline muscle - in my opinion, the most important one you’ve got!

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3. Unparalleled fitness

In 45 minutes, you can get a workout that torches calories and works every muscle in your body. When you slowly add speed and intensity to good movement quality, you quickly increase your work capacity and overall resilience (aka “fitness”)

So, next time you hear the word CrossFit, try not to scoff at the thought of a cocky young man maxing out with 400lbs overhead.

Instead, think of Carol, the 72 year old woman living an amazing quality of life full of activity and friendship.

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See you next week!

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