This is CrossFit. It is full body strength and conditioning.
Weights... Presses...Pull ups... Tire flips... For all ages.
It is a maximum effort workout, done in condensed time, with few breaks. And it has the nation working up a sweat.
"It's so diverse you don't know what's coming. There's always a surprise. There's so much drama that can happen within a workout."
"Really use those hips to jump the dumb bells up."
Others are lured to CrossFit by more than the prospect of a lean physique. Celebrities, like new Miss America Mallory Hagan, Jessica Biel, Brad Pitt, and action star Jason Statham. Just to name a few, all credit CrossFit with keeping them in A-list form.
"You can see it on television and you can see those athletes going out there. They got 2% body fat, lean, mean. Everybody wants to look like that guy."
And that, says trainer Chase Thomas, is one of dangers of cross fit.
Trying to lift too much, too fast, creates poor form, like this. And that puts you at risk for serious injury. It is this extreme training that has fueled critics, since CrossFit was first created in Santa Cruz in 1995.
"The idea of CrossFit is fantastic. I love the idea of CrossFit. The Olympic style lifts is where I have issues with it because all of the squats, things like that and people don't do them correctly."
So, like any work out, proper form, and knowing your body's own limits are key.
So when in doubt, check with a trainer, or your doctor before you attempt any extreme training.
Supporters of CrossFit also say you can get injured during any type of workout, and the critics of this extreme training have not hurt its popularity. That popularity spawned the CrossFit Games back in 2007, and every year since, athletes have competed for the title of "Fittest on Earth."
TXT 24
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