Crossfit?

shep

Anyone around here taken up this routine? Curious for some feedback...

My girlfriend insisted I go to an introductory session with her yesterday - it was just 2 of us with the gym's owner... He went through a lot of their basic motions and then put us through a short work-out to gauge if we were "ok" to enter some of the gym's classes... After the "test" he was ready to sign us up, but we said we'd have to think about it.

Anyway, everything went fine... Alison was very sore this morning when she got up... however today I'm fine... I knew that would be the case, as I play hockey twice a week, strength train 3-4 times a week, and usually do a 7 mile run once or twice a week... she only runs 2 or 3 times a week, and usually something in the range of 3-4 miles...

My question for others is: have you really seen the benefits for this type of workout?

The owner suggested starting us in the twice a week class that costs $120 dollars/month! :shock: ... I knew it was going to be pricey, but that seems a bit much for me for just twice a week. I'm already shelling out $35/month for a gym, and I'm not going to get into how much it costs to play hockey in a climate that is >90 degrees 8 months of the year.... My problem is that it's only twice a week - if I give up my gym membership I don't see how I'm going to be active enough... If I'm spending that kind of money, I need to know I'm getting serious results... I'm an active person and carry my weight well, but I could easily stand to shed 40 lbs...

Thoughts from anyone who has actually entertained joining a similar program? or anyone actively enrolled? would be much appreciated...

tanks in advance.

JonnyPistachio

My wife loves crossfit. She used to go three times a week. She's also a health-nut, so it was hard to see improvement as she was already very athletic and healthy...but she said with some people in the class who did it regularly, you could see results.

Personally, I like to do things at my own pace. And I think the prices for these things are ludicrous. Absolutely ludicrous...thankfully, my wife's employer paid for it. She prices two others since she changed jobs, and they are between $150 and 250 per month!!! crazy.

DS1119

I have a friend that does it and it's extremely tough on your joints and ligaments. Also, it doesn't take alot for the "coaches" to get certified. Pretty much I can sum up most of the trainers with the links below. It's from my local crossfit gym and actually has become quite the joke around the fitness community nationally (which crossfit is mostly regarded as anyhow). Our local tv station actually just did a story about the video and this gym.

In the article I have attached these two quotes really jump out at me.

"Crossfit doesn't choose to use that lift, it was a one time thing that people got carried away with,” Ackerman said. “That was one movement in a 15 to 20 minute session that we were doing just for fun.”
“We're happy to admit when things we do aren't 100 percent safe and we have corrected a lot of the things we've seen,” explained Houston.

So you charge over thousand dollars a year to have a "coach" lead you in uncontrolled lifts while they are just having fun and learning as they go along???

Here's the complete article.

http://www.fox23news.com/news/local/sto ... eZhOw.cspx

Here's two you tube videos of what I'm talking about. The first was posted by the gym. Notice he had to disable the comments because of the heat he was getting. The second video is the same but someone else posted it so it has the comments enabled. It's quite disturbing actually if you're into fitness. The person filming the video is the Ackerman guy and he owns two of these "gyms". This video can not be defended in any manner.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BDDyxXyf6UU

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M8up6A4QesU

Take some time and read the article and watch the video. The other thing tht strikes me as odd is the owner/coach of the gym doesn't take the video off of youtube...as he sees nothing wrong with it. :?

DS1119

JonnyPistachio wrote:

My wife loves crossfit. She used to go three times a week. She's also a health-nut, so it was hard to see improvement as she was already very athletic and healthy...but she said with some people in the class who did it regularly, you could see results.

Personally, I like to do things at my own pace. And I think the prices for these things are ludicrous. Absolutely ludicrous...thankfully, my wife's employer paid for it. She prices two others since she changed jobs, and they are between $150 and 250 per month!!! crazy.

Don't forget they get you caught up in going to competitions...and guess what? Those aren't included in your membership! Also don't forget they will want to convert you to a paleo diet and guess what? They sell all the paleo supplements and snacks very conveniently in their store at the gym.

How do I know so much and really hate this even though I don't and never would do it. My friend I referred to is actually a coach for crossfit. It took him all of one weekend to get "certified" as a "coach" and now instructs...for free! The only people who get paid at these gyms or "boxes" as they refer to them as are the owners. It's such a scam.

green mountain man

Crossfit workouts are easily accessed on the internet. Tap in to that to get some ideas on how to add variation to your workouts. Their workouts are nothing new. Do not pay anybody for this. The owner's objective is to sign up as many people as possible.
Workout routines are all over the internet. Marketing strategists lead people to believe that their program is the best. This is BS.
The living legend wrestler Bruno Sammartino started working out with 2 paint cans filled with rocks that were attached to a metal pole. He still works out very hard at over 70 years of age. He has never attained that muscle tone that most people seek. The reason being are the foods he chooses.
Your are very active with hockey, running, and strength training. You mentioned that you should drop 40 lbs.
This leads me to believe your focus should on eating nutrient dense foods to obtain optimal health.
Your ideal weight will appear when good health is your ultimate goal.

he still stands

green mountain man wrote:

Crossfit workouts are easily accessed on the internet. Tap in to that to get some ideas on how to add variation to your workouts. Their workouts are nothing new. Do not pay anybody for this. The owner's objective is to sign up as many people as possible.
Workout routines are all over the internet. Marketing strategists lead people to believe that their program is the best. This is BS.
The living legend wrestler Bruno Sammartino started working out with 2 paint cans filled with rocks that were attached to a metal pole. He still works out very hard at over 70 years of age. He has never attained that muscle tone that most people seek. The reason being are the foods he chooses.
Your are very active with hockey, running, and strength training. You mentioned that you should drop 40 lbs.
This leads me to believe your focus should on eating nutrient dense foods to obtain optimal health.
Your ideal weight will appear when good health is your ultimate goal.

^^^^ This.

i enjoy working some crossfit into my weights/cardio routine, but i do it at my gym that costs me $10/month. i life four or five times per week, do crossfit once per week (usually The Bear... look it up!) and run anywhere from 10 to 20 miles per week. it is good to mix it up, for sure.

like gmm said, nutrition should be your focus if you're that active yet 40 lbs overweight.

shep

green mountain man wrote:

Crossfit workouts are easily accessed on the internet. Tap in to that to get some ideas on how to add variation to your workouts. Their workouts are nothing new. Do not pay anybody for this. The owner's objective is to sign up as many people as possible.
Workout routines are all over the internet. Marketing strategists lead people to believe that their program is the best. This is BS.
The living legend wrestler Bruno Sammartino started working out with 2 paint cans filled with rocks that were attached to a metal pole. He still works out very hard at over 70 years of age. He has never attained that muscle tone that most people seek. The reason being are the foods he chooses.
Your are very active with hockey, running, and strength training. You mentioned that you should drop 40 lbs.
This leads me to believe your focus should on eating nutrient dense foods to obtain optimal health.
Your ideal weight will appear when good health is your ultimate goal.

I won't argue with you, changing my diet is definitely the biggest thing that needs to happen... and I'm working on it.... however I do love beer too much to just straight up give it up....

Thanks for the input all..

DS1119 wrote:

How do I know so much and really hate this even though I don't and never would do it. My friend I referred to is actually a coach for crossfit. It took him all of one weekend to get "certified" as a "coach" and now instructs...for free! The only people who get paid at these gyms or "boxes" as they refer to them as are the owners. It's such a scam.

Yea, i can't say I'm surprised there... and I suspected as much... The gym is in a really low-rent area, and 90% of their floor space isn't HVAC controlled (unheard of in Texas)... and the only instructors are the owner and his wife... so I know where the money is going... and $120 a month for an hour and a half a week is too much....

at least their required to get a weeks training though! ... the gym i go to had an advertisement "take a training seminar to become a personal trainer and work here!" so I called the number just out of curiosity... their training seminar was 2 days of instruction, and that was it.... bam! you're certified and can charge $70-100 an hour for your training sessions (depending on the level of stupidity of your customer)...

DS1119

shep wrote:

DS1119 wrote:

How do I know so much and really hate this even though I don't and never would do it. My friend I referred to is actually a coach for crossfit. It took him all of one weekend to get "certified" as a "coach" and now instructs...for free! The only people who get paid at these gyms or "boxes" as they refer to them as are the owners. It's such a scam.

Yea, i can't say I'm surprised there... and I suspected as much... The gym is in a really low-rent area, and 90% of their floor space isn't HVAC controlled (unheard of in Texas)... and the only instructors are the owner and his wife... so I know where the money is going... and $120 a month for an hour and a half a week is too much....

at least their required to get a weeks training though! ... the gym i go to had an advertisement "take a training seminar to become a personal trainer and work here!" so I called the number just out of curiosity... their training seminar was 2 days of instruction, and that was it.... bam! you're certified and can charge $70-100 an hour for your training sessions (depending on the level of stupidity of your customer)...

Read my post again. I didn't say week...it's a weekend! People get so brainwashed with this crap (like my buddy) that he actually PAID to get "certified" and now "coaches" at the gym for free! Yes FREE! All of the money goes to the owners, that's it. It's like the world's best pyramid scheme! They sell themselves as not only a gym but a "community". Also, they have this attitude that they want to take down what they call "Globogyms" or "Cookie Cutters"...gyms like Powerhouse, Gold's, etc. all the while willing to expand whenever they have the chance. They recently signed an endorsement deal with Reebok and they couldn't be happier (even though the biggest three athletic companies shunned them)...pretty comical in my opinion. Here's another video of one of their base excercies. It's called a Kipping Pullup or some shit like that. Could you imagine if an owner of a major sports franchise walked into the training room and saw his conditioning coach do this with his 20 million dollar a year player! The guy in this video has 3 years until shoulder surgery tops.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lh1nV3s4ioU