What is CrossFit?

CrossFit originated in the United States. Since its development in 2000, it has become a very mature sports system. After forming an alliance with the sports brand Reebok, it created a craze that spread all over the world. There are currently more than 13,000 CrossFit gyms (commonly referred to as CrossFit Boxes) around the world, and they are growing at an astonishing rate. There are currently 14 in Taiwan. The CrossFit Open competition, held every year, has become a major sporting event. The competition sees a bunch of incredibly strong people competing for the world championship.

CrossFit originated in the United States. Since its development in 2000, it has become a very mature sports system. (Photo provided by Dr. Dai Dawei)

But you must first know that those people at CrossFit Open, who train in an almost inhumane way, are not the CrossFit we are talking about. The true spirit and core concept of CrossFit is a popular sport suitable for everyone!

CrossFit Movement Patterns

CrossFit's sports model uses a variety of elements to compile a training menu, including (but not limited to) weightlifting, gymnastics, running, rowing, cycling, skipping rope, swimming... Its scope covers aerobic and anaerobic exercise, spans various sports fields, and pursues the comprehensive improvement of ten sports abilities. These ten athletic abilities are cardiopulmonary capacity, endurance, strength, flexibility, speed, explosive power, coordination, agility, accuracy, and balance.

The Official Definition of CrossFit

CrossFit training utilizes "continuous, diverse and high-intensity functional movements". The purpose is to enhance the body's ability to complete tasks in a variety of situations, thereby improving the quality of life and extending healthy life expectancy. CrossFit is not just a training method, but also a lifestyle that pursues health and fitness.

The official definition sounds a bit confusing, so let's break it down below:

Element 1: Functional Movement

The core concept of CrossFit is to bring comprehensive health and strength. Rather than lifting heavy weights in the gym, improving the quality of life outside the gym is what CrossFit wants to pursue more. Therefore, in CrossFit Box, the training is mainly based on "functional movements".

For example, the squat is the movement of standing up from a sitting position, the deadlift and medicine ball clean are similar to lifting heavy objects in daily life, and the push press is the movement of placing heavy objects on a high cabinet. These movements can not only enhance athletic performance, but also improve the quality of life. You should know that when you are old, whether you can stand up easily from a chair by yourself will have a vital impact on the quality of your life!

So you won't see single-joint movements or movements that simply train a single muscle, such as flyes. This is because almost all movements in daily life involve the coordination of multiple joints and muscles.

Element 2: Continuous Diversity

People who only engage in a single sport may find other sports more difficult. Even for athletes who have reached a specialized level, such as marathon runners, you can find that although they are capable of running 42 kilometers, they will find it difficult to jump or do activities that require muscle strength. Even swimming may make them tired easily, and they may even be worse than the average person. This is the sacrifice that athletes have to make in order to improve their performance in a single event.

But the tasks that ordinary people face in their daily lives are all-encompassing, such as heavy work, long hours of standing at work, pulling heavy suitcases to catch the high-speed train, moving mattresses for cleaning, and having to climb stairs when there is a power outage and no elevator. If the purpose is to improve "physical strength" and promote health, what we need is not special training, but continuous training of our bodies in a variety of ways, so that we can adapt to the changing, unknown and unpredictable life situations.

Element 3: High Strength

The high intensity here does not mean that everyone has to use heavy weights, fast speeds, and exercise like an athlete. The intensity here refers to the intensity relative to one's own level. In the world of CrossFit, at the end of each exercise, you have to complete an exercise menu, which we call WOD (Workout of the day), such as running 400 meters and doing 10 pull-ups, repeating the cycle three times. Everyone should perform at a high intensity that is within their own tolerance, so as to constantly stimulate their body's potential and expand their body's ability to complete different tasks.

Comprehensive fitness is the core spirit of CrossFit

CrossFit is not just a training method, but also a lifestyle that pursues health and fitness. Both you and Olympic athletes need a wide variety of functional movement patterns; the only difference is in the intensity!

This article is from: Dr. Tai Dawei's blog Ta-Wei, Tai MD

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