I get asked this question a lot, and I understand why people ask it. Our gym looks crossfit like, we use kettlebells and free weights, people work hard, people sweat, but thats pretty much where the similarities end.
Let me first say that not all crossfit gyms are created equal. Some are great, and some are not. That being said, crossfit is two different things. The first one is an extreme sport that you sometimes see on ESPN. Training that way would be ridiculous, but taking part in that event is something I compare to playing football. As long as you know chances of injury are high and you are willing to take that risk, more power to you. The second thing that crossfit is, is an intense workout of the day in which everyone at all levels does the same workout with the same weight as fast as possible in order to compete. That’s a little more ridiculous, but again as long as you know the chance of injury is high and it’s not necessarily healthy for you, it’s your choice what you do with your body
What I don’t like to hear about crossfit is that it’s safe or even remotely a good idea for sustainable fitness. What I REALLY don’t like to hear is that its ok for beginners, elderly, sedentary, or injury prone people.
Crossfit is a sport, and that’s cool. Just know it’s not necessarily the best thing for the function and longevity of your body compared to other forms of exercise. Generally speaking.
Complete Fitness Results on the other hand looks to the naked eye like crossfit, but the program design is very much different. Cross training is one of the many things we do, especially in our classes, however, it’s never a workout of the day where everyone does that same thing as fast as they can in order to compete against each other. It’s actually a customized workout with progressions and regressions, where each individual does whats right for them at a speed that makes sense to achieve the goals they desire in a non competitive environment. Pretty much the opposite. Pretty much a run on sentence 🙂
The line is safety. We will still kick your ass if that’s what you like, but we will kick your ass intelligently and safely.
Being safe and intelligent is not cool on the internet. It’s also not as cool to tell your friends how your trainer selected the correct exercise for your level in comparison to how your trainer “crushed your legs until you couldn’t sit down to poop”.
If that’s the case though, we’re ok with not being cool.
So in summary, no, we are not crossfit. Although some crossfits break the mold, most are focused more on intensity and competition, whereas CFR is focused on feeling, looking, and moving better. We view exercise as a modality to improve your life, not as a sport. Is crossfit ok? Sure. Is CFR better? Maybe, maybe not. It really depends on your goals. If your goal is a new sport, Crossfit is way better than CFR. If your goal is sustainable fitness, CFR may be a better fit than cross fit.
Steve