CrossFit
Encyclopedia
CrossFit is a strength and conditioning brand
that combines weightlifting
, sprinting, gymnastics
, powerlifting
, kettlebell
training, plyometrics
, rowing
, and medicine ball
training. CrossFit contends that a healthy, fit person requires proficiency in each of ten general physical skills: cardiovascular/respiratory endurance
, stamina
, strength
, flexibility
, power
, speed
, agility
, balance
, coordination
, and accuracy. It defines fitness as increased work capacity across all these domains and says its program achieves this by provoking neurologic and hormonal adaptations across all metabolic pathway
s.
CrossFit athletes run, row, jump rope, climb rope and carry odd objects. They frequently move large loads quickly over short distances, and use powerlifting
and Olympic weightlifting techniques. CrossFit athletes also use dumbbells, gymnastics rings
, pull-up bars
, kettlebells, and many bodyweight exercise
s. CrossFit is used in nearly 2,000 gyms worldwide and by many fire departments, law enforcement agencies, and military organizations including the Canadian Forces
, and the Royal Danish Life Guards.
Classes at affiliated gyms typically include a warm-up, a skill development segment, and a high-intensity workout that lasts around ten to twenty minutes. Affiliates often use scoring and ranking systems in an effort to transform workouts into sport. Some affiliates offer additional classes which are not centered around a WOD, such as Olympic weightlifting classes.
CrossFit Inc. certifies CrossFit trainers and licenses the CrossFit name to gyms. Affiliates are free to develop their own programming, pricing, and instructional methods. Many CrossFit athletes and trainers see themselves as part of a contrarian, insurgent movement that questions conventional fitness wisdom. CrossFit is noteworthy for its use of a virtual community
Internet model. The company says this de-centralized approach shares some common features with open source
software projects and allows best practices to emerge from a variety of approaches, a contention that is disputed by some subject matter experts, competitors, and even affiliates who have parted company with CrossFit. CrossFit adaptations include programs for children, pregnant women, seniors, football players, military special forces candidates, and endurance athletes including triathletes, runners, swimmers and rowers. CrossFit has been adopted by U.S. and Canadian high school physical education teachers, high school and college teams, and a major league baseball team.
Beginning in 2011, the Games were opened up for competitors all over the world by turning the sectional event into an online format. Athletes will have six different workouts to complete in a week-to-week manner, with only one workout being released at a time and the next workout being released following the close of the previous workout. Athletes are able to submit their scores by either completing the workout at a registered affiliate, who will then submit the score, or by sending in a video of themselves completing the workout which would then be reviewed.
Thirteen different regional divisions in North America
and South America
(North West, Canada West, Canada East, North Central, Central East, North East, Mid Atlantic, South East, South Central, South West, Socal, Norcal and Latin America) and four regional divisions in the rest of the world (Europe
, Asia
, Africa
and Australia
) have been set up to find the best in each region to compete in the Games. The top athletes from the sectional event will face off in a regional event, based on the region that they register in, held on a designated weekend. The top athlete(s) from each region will then be eligible to compete in the CrossFit Games. Past winners and the top five athletes of the previous years Games are automatically eligible.
Different divisions are also available in the Games. The divisions include men, women, masters men, masters women and teams. Masters men and women are split up into age groups (45-49, 50-54, 55-59, and 60+). Reebok
is the current sponsor of the CrossFit Games and has increased the total purse to $1,000,000 ($250,000 for male and female champions).
, Bill Starr, and Mike Burgener. Former NFL player John Welbourn
developed the CrossFit Football program. Other CrossFit subject matter experts include Dr. Nicholas Romanov, inventor of the Pose Method of running and Dr. Barry Sears, originator of the Zone diet
. Fitness experts formerly associated with Crossfit include Mark Twight, Mark Rippetoe
, Robb Wolf, and Greg Everett. CrossFit offers speciality certification seminars in gymnastics, Olympic weightlifting, powerlifting, running and endurance, kettlebells, mobility and recovery, CrossFit Kids and CrossFit Football. In the past, Crossfit also offered a Jump rope
certification.
The editors of PureHealthMD writing for Discovery Health Channel
found CrossFit "equals better fitness and stronger muscles in a more reasonable amount of time" compared to trying to "build muscle and get in shape by spending 60 minutes or more in the gym several days a week..." Their conclusion was that the program "is a different type of exercise routine ...a well-rounded and very efficient way to achieve a higher level of fitness ...that does not need a whole lot of fancy equipment, but does offer a nice variety to keep the interest level up and provide the challenge needed to keep the exercise fun."
. He successfully sued his trainers and was awarded $300,000 in damages. According to Dr. Stuart McGill, a professor of spine biomechanics
at the University of Waterloo
, the risk of injury from some CrossFit exercises outweighs their benefits when they are performed with poor form in timed workouts. He added there are similar risks in other exercise programs but noted that CrossFit's online community enables athletes to follow the program without proper guidance, increasing the risk. Because of the perceived risks of Crossfit, it has been difficult for many trainers and affiliates to get insurance. As a result, Crossfit has established a risk retention group
(RRG). An RRG is a form of self-insurance that is common among professionals that engage in high risk activities, such as law enforcement officers, emergency medical workers, and contractors.
Articles on many websites criticize CrossFit for lack of periodization
, illogical or random exercise sequences, and lacking quality-control accreditation standards for trainers and affiliates. Crossfit Level 2 and other specialty seminars are not yet certified.
. Starting in May 2005, CFHQ has published numerous free articles in the online CrossFit Journal about Rhabdomyolysis
, three of which are also included in the CF Manual provided to all prospective trainers.
Brand
The American Marketing Association defines a brand as a "Name, term, design, symbol, or any other feature that identifies one seller's good or service as distinct from those of other sellers."...
that combines weightlifting
Weight training
Weight training is a common type of strength training for developing the strength and size of skeletal muscles. It uses the weight force of gravity to oppose the force generated by muscle through concentric or eccentric contraction...
, sprinting, gymnastics
Gymnastics
Gymnastics is a sport involving performance of exercises requiring physical strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, and balance. Internationally, all of the gymnastic sports are governed by the Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique with each country having its own national governing body...
, powerlifting
Powerlifting
Powerlifting is a strength sport. It resembles the sport of Olympic weightlifting, as both disciplines involve lifting weights in three attempts. Powerlifting evolved from a sport known as 'odd lifts' which followed the same three attempt format but used a wide variety of events akin to Strongman...
, kettlebell
Kettlebell
The kettlebell or girya is a cast-iron weight used to perform ballistic exercises that combine cardiovascular, strength and flexibility training.Sizes may range from to...
training, plyometrics
Plyometrics
Plyometrics is a type of exercise training designed to produce fast, powerful movements, and improve the functions of the nervous system, generally for the purpose of improving performance in sports. Plyometric exercises may also be referred to as explosive exercises...
, rowing
Watercraft rowing
Watercraft rowing is the act of propelling a boat using the motion of oars in the water. The difference between paddling and rowing is that with rowing the oars have a mechanical connection with the boat whereas with paddling the paddles are hand-held with no mechanical connection.This article...
, and medicine ball
Medicine ball
A medicine ball is a weighted ball roughly the diameter of the shoulders . Often used for rehabilitation and strength training, it serves an important role in the field of sports medicine...
training. CrossFit contends that a healthy, fit person requires proficiency in each of ten general physical skills: cardiovascular/respiratory endurance
Endurance
Endurance is the ability for a human or animal to exert itself and remain active for a long period of time, as well as its ability to resist, withstand, recover from, and have immunity to trauma, wounds, or fatigue. In humans, it is usually used in aerobic or anaerobic exercise...
, stamina
Endurance
Endurance is the ability for a human or animal to exert itself and remain active for a long period of time, as well as its ability to resist, withstand, recover from, and have immunity to trauma, wounds, or fatigue. In humans, it is usually used in aerobic or anaerobic exercise...
, strength
Physical strength
Physical strength is the ability of a person or animal to exert force on physical objects using muscles. Increasing physical strength is the goal of strength training.-Overview:...
, flexibility
Flexibility (anatomy)
Flexibility or limberness refers to the absolute range of movement in a joint or series of joints, and length in muscles that cross the joints. Flexibility is variable between individuals, particularly in terms of differences in muscle length of multi-joint muscles...
, power
Human power
Human power is work or energy that is produced from the human body. It can also refer to the power of a human. Power comes primarily from muscles, but body heat is also used to do work like warming shelters, food, or other humans....
, speed
Speed
In kinematics, the speed of an object is the magnitude of its velocity ; it is thus a scalar quantity. The average speed of an object in an interval of time is the distance traveled by the object divided by the duration of the interval; the instantaneous speed is the limit of the average speed as...
, agility
Agility
* Agility is a physical trait of an animal or person, and a component of physical fitness. It is the ability to change the body's position and direction with speed and precision.Agility may also refer to:In Sport:...
, balance
Balance
- Equipment :* Balance beam, a piece of gymnastics apparatus.* Balance board, a piece of training equipment.* Balancing machine, a machine that balances mechanical rotating parts to lessen vibration.* Balance wheel, a watch component....
, coordination
Motor coordination
thumb|right|Motor coordination is shown in this animated sequence by [[Eadweard Muybridge]] of himself throwing a diskMotor coordination is the combination of body movements created with the kinematic and kinetic parameters that result in intended actions. Such movements usually smoothly and...
, and accuracy. It defines fitness as increased work capacity across all these domains and says its program achieves this by provoking neurologic and hormonal adaptations across all metabolic pathway
Metabolic pathway
In biochemistry, metabolic pathways are series of chemical reactions occurring within a cell. In each pathway, a principal chemical is modified by a series of chemical reactions. Enzymes catalyze these reactions, and often require dietary minerals, vitamins, and other cofactors in order to function...
s.
CrossFit athletes run, row, jump rope, climb rope and carry odd objects. They frequently move large loads quickly over short distances, and use powerlifting
Powerlifting
Powerlifting is a strength sport. It resembles the sport of Olympic weightlifting, as both disciplines involve lifting weights in three attempts. Powerlifting evolved from a sport known as 'odd lifts' which followed the same three attempt format but used a wide variety of events akin to Strongman...
and Olympic weightlifting techniques. CrossFit athletes also use dumbbells, gymnastics rings
Rings (gymnastics)
The rings, also known as still rings , is an artistic gymnastics apparatus and the event that uses it. It is traditionally used only by male gymnasts, due to its extreme upper-body strength requirements...
, pull-up bars
Pull-up (exercise)
A pull-up is an upper body compound pulling exercise where the body is suspended by the arms, gripping something, and pulled up with muscular effort...
, kettlebells, and many bodyweight exercise
Bodyweight exercise
Bodyweight exercises are strength training exercises that do not require free weights; the practitioner's own weight provides the resistance for the movement...
s. CrossFit is used in nearly 2,000 gyms worldwide and by many fire departments, law enforcement agencies, and military organizations including the Canadian Forces
Canadian Forces
The Canadian Forces , officially the Canadian Armed Forces , are the unified armed forces of Canada, as constituted by the National Defence Act, which states: "The Canadian Forces are the armed forces of Her Majesty raised by Canada and consist of one Service called the Canadian Armed Forces."...
, and the Royal Danish Life Guards.
Description
CrossFit practitioners may train at gyms affiliated with CrossFit (often referred to as "boxes") or on their own. CrossFit workouts are commonly centered around a "Workout of the Day" or "WOD". Affiliates typically create a new WOD each day, while those who follow the CrossFit methodology without attending an affiliated gym often follow WODs posted on the main CrossFit website or that of an affiliated gym.Classes at affiliated gyms typically include a warm-up, a skill development segment, and a high-intensity workout that lasts around ten to twenty minutes. Affiliates often use scoring and ranking systems in an effort to transform workouts into sport. Some affiliates offer additional classes which are not centered around a WOD, such as Olympic weightlifting classes.
CrossFit Inc. certifies CrossFit trainers and licenses the CrossFit name to gyms. Affiliates are free to develop their own programming, pricing, and instructional methods. Many CrossFit athletes and trainers see themselves as part of a contrarian, insurgent movement that questions conventional fitness wisdom. CrossFit is noteworthy for its use of a virtual community
Virtual community
A virtual community is a social network of individuals who interact through specific media, potentially crossing geographical and political boundaries in order to pursue mutual interests or goals...
Internet model. The company says this de-centralized approach shares some common features with open source
Open source
The term open source describes practices in production and development that promote access to the end product's source materials. Some consider open source a philosophy, others consider it a pragmatic methodology...
software projects and allows best practices to emerge from a variety of approaches, a contention that is disputed by some subject matter experts, competitors, and even affiliates who have parted company with CrossFit. CrossFit adaptations include programs for children, pregnant women, seniors, football players, military special forces candidates, and endurance athletes including triathletes, runners, swimmers and rowers. CrossFit has been adopted by U.S. and Canadian high school physical education teachers, high school and college teams, and a major league baseball team.
CrossFit Games
Competitors from around the world have competed in the annual "CrossFit Games" since 2007. In July 2010, the male and female champions each won $25,000. CrossFit asserts that the Games are a laboratory for human performance that may suggest which variants of its methodology work best.Beginning in 2011, the Games were opened up for competitors all over the world by turning the sectional event into an online format. Athletes will have six different workouts to complete in a week-to-week manner, with only one workout being released at a time and the next workout being released following the close of the previous workout. Athletes are able to submit their scores by either completing the workout at a registered affiliate, who will then submit the score, or by sending in a video of themselves completing the workout which would then be reviewed.
Thirteen different regional divisions in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
and South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
(North West, Canada West, Canada East, North Central, Central East, North East, Mid Atlantic, South East, South Central, South West, Socal, Norcal and Latin America) and four regional divisions in the rest of the world (Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
, Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
and Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
) have been set up to find the best in each region to compete in the Games. The top athletes from the sectional event will face off in a regional event, based on the region that they register in, held on a designated weekend. The top athlete(s) from each region will then be eligible to compete in the CrossFit Games. Past winners and the top five athletes of the previous years Games are automatically eligible.
Different divisions are also available in the Games. The divisions include men, women, masters men, masters women and teams. Masters men and women are split up into age groups (45-49, 50-54, 55-59, and 60+). Reebok
Reebok
Reebok International Limited, a subsidiary of the German sportswear company Adidas since 2005, is a producer of Athletic shoes, apparel, and accessories. The name comes from the Afrikaans spelling of rhebok, a type of African antelope or gazelle...
is the current sponsor of the CrossFit Games and has increased the total purse to $1,000,000 ($250,000 for male and female champions).
| Year | Male champion | Female champion | Affiliate Cup | Masters Men | Masters Women |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | James "OPT" Fitzgerald | Jolie Gentry | CrossFit Santa Cruz | ||
| 2008 | Jason Khalipa | Caity Matter | CrossFit Oakland | ||
| 2009 | Mikko Salo | Tanya Wagner | Northwest CrossFit | ||
| 2010 | Graham Holmberg | Kristan Clever | CrossFit Fort Vancouver | Brian Curley | Laurie Carver |
| Year | Male champion | Female champion | Affiliate Cup | Masters Men (45-49) | Masters Women (45-49) | Masters Men (50-54) | Masters Women (50-54) | Masters Men (55-59) | Masters Women (55-59) | Masters Men (60+) | Masters Women (60+) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Rich Froning | Anníe Mist Þórisdóttir | CrossFit New England | Scot DeTore | Susan Habbe | Gord Mackinnon | Mary Beth Litsheim | Steve Anderson | Shelley Noyce | Greg Walker | Betsy Finley |
History
CrossFit was founded by former high-school gymnast Greg Glassman and his ex-wife Lauren Jenai. The first CrossFit affiliated gym opened in Santa Cruz in 1995, the same year Glassman was hired to train the Santa Cruz police department. The number of affiliated gyms grew from 18 in 2005 to almost 1,700 in 2010. Weightlifting coaches associated with CrossFit include Louie SimmonsLouie Simmons
Louie Simmons is a Powerlifter, Writer,Inventor and a Pioneer in Strength and Speed development in order to better athletic performance.Louie's current objective is to bring the highest standard of theoretical and practical training methodologies to the current strength and conditioning, coaching...
, Bill Starr, and Mike Burgener. Former NFL player John Welbourn
John Welbourn
John Welbourn is an American football offensive tackle and guard who is currently a free agent. He was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles in the fourth round of the 1999 NFL Draft. He played college football at California...
developed the CrossFit Football program. Other CrossFit subject matter experts include Dr. Nicholas Romanov, inventor of the Pose Method of running and Dr. Barry Sears, originator of the Zone diet
Zone diet
The Zone diet is a diet popularized in books by biochemist Barry Sears. It advocates consuming calories from carbohydrates, protein, and fat in a balanced ratio.- Theory :...
. Fitness experts formerly associated with Crossfit include Mark Twight, Mark Rippetoe
Mark Rippetoe
Mark Rippetoe is a national-level, American strength training coach and author. He is one of the few strength athletics authorities to publish both peer-reviewed articles as well as books for the lay population...
, Robb Wolf, and Greg Everett. CrossFit offers speciality certification seminars in gymnastics, Olympic weightlifting, powerlifting, running and endurance, kettlebells, mobility and recovery, CrossFit Kids and CrossFit Football. In the past, Crossfit also offered a Jump rope
Jump rope
Jump rope or skipping rope is the primary tool used in the game of skipping played by children and many young adults, where one or more participants jump over a rope swung so that it passes under their feet and over their heads...
certification.
Support
Dr. Tony Webster of the Pacific Institute for Sports Medicine at Camosun College in Victoria, British Columbia suggests CrossFit be used "safely and sensibly" and finds some support for the program in current academic research: "It’s safe to say that a CrossFit-style program performed three-to-five times per week will almost certainly provide a weekly dose of “vigorous” aerobic exercise that will easily satisfy current public-health guidelines. More and more research studies are demonstrating the efficiency of shorter high-intensity exercise bouts in improving not only fitness but also a whole range of health markers. In fact, plenty of scientific evidence suggests vigorous activity has inherently greater health benefits than moderate activity. Used safely and sensibly, I believe CrossFit has potential not just to change people’s lives, but also to change the fitness industry for the better."The editors of PureHealthMD writing for Discovery Health Channel
Discovery Health Channel
Discovery Health Channel is a website owned by Discovery Communications, created for people interested in health and wellness. Until December 31, 2010, it was a U.S. cable television specialty channel dedicated to television programming that highlights various aspects of health and wellness...
found CrossFit "equals better fitness and stronger muscles in a more reasonable amount of time" compared to trying to "build muscle and get in shape by spending 60 minutes or more in the gym several days a week..." Their conclusion was that the program "is a different type of exercise routine ...a well-rounded and very efficient way to achieve a higher level of fitness ...that does not need a whole lot of fancy equipment, but does offer a nice variety to keep the interest level up and provide the challenge needed to keep the exercise fun."
Criticism
A person, who had suffered injuries while performing a CrossFit workout on Dec 11, 2005, at Manassas World Gym in Manassas, VA under the supervision of an uncertified trainer, claimed that CrossFit poses an elevated risk of rhabdomyolysisRhabdomyolysis
Rhabdomyolysis is a condition in which damaged skeletal muscle tissue breaks down rapidly. Breakdown products of damaged muscle cells are released into the bloodstream; some of these, such as the protein myoglobin, are harmful to the kidneys and may lead to kidney failure...
. He successfully sued his trainers and was awarded $300,000 in damages. According to Dr. Stuart McGill, a professor of spine biomechanics
Biomechanics
Biomechanics is the application of mechanical principles to biological systems, such as humans, animals, plants, organs, and cells. Perhaps one of the best definitions was provided by Herbert Hatze in 1974: "Biomechanics is the study of the structure and function of biological systems by means of...
at the University of Waterloo
University of Waterloo
The University of Waterloo is a comprehensive public university in the city of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. The school was founded in 1957 by Drs. Gerry Hagey and Ira G. Needles, and has since grown to an institution of more than 30,000 students, faculty, and staff...
, the risk of injury from some CrossFit exercises outweighs their benefits when they are performed with poor form in timed workouts. He added there are similar risks in other exercise programs but noted that CrossFit's online community enables athletes to follow the program without proper guidance, increasing the risk. Because of the perceived risks of Crossfit, it has been difficult for many trainers and affiliates to get insurance. As a result, Crossfit has established a risk retention group
Risk Retention Group
A Risk Retention Group is a type of insurance company. The way that an RRG is different than a "traditional" insurance company is that each of its policy holders are also stockholders...
(RRG). An RRG is a form of self-insurance that is common among professionals that engage in high risk activities, such as law enforcement officers, emergency medical workers, and contractors.
Articles on many websites criticize CrossFit for lack of periodization
Sports periodization
Periodization is an organized approach to training that involves progressive cycling of various aspects of a training program during a specific period of time. It is a way of alternating training to its peak during season. The aim of periodization is to introduce new movements as you progress...
, illogical or random exercise sequences, and lacking quality-control accreditation standards for trainers and affiliates. Crossfit Level 2 and other specialty seminars are not yet certified.
Response to criticism
CrossFit vigorously disputes the criticism of its exercise methodology. Crossfit Level 1 trainers are certified through the American National Standards InstituteAmerican National Standards Institute
The American National Standards Institute is a private non-profit organization that oversees the development of voluntary consensus standards for products, services, processes, systems, and personnel in the United States. The organization also coordinates U.S. standards with international...
. Starting in May 2005, CFHQ has published numerous free articles in the online CrossFit Journal about Rhabdomyolysis
Rhabdomyolysis
Rhabdomyolysis is a condition in which damaged skeletal muscle tissue breaks down rapidly. Breakdown products of damaged muscle cells are released into the bloodstream; some of these, such as the protein myoglobin, are harmful to the kidneys and may lead to kidney failure...
, three of which are also included in the CF Manual provided to all prospective trainers.