Admittedly, there hasn’t been a training program with the impact of Crossfit for a long time. We are sure that you have started to hear strange words like “WOD”, “Box” or “EMOM” and you may even think that it is another fitness fad that will soon be forgotten, but make no mistake because Crossfit is here to stay. That is why we are going to tell you the X benefits of crossfit that will make you go try your nearest box if you had any questions. However, it is clear that there is no such thing as the perfect training system and crossfit has some drawbacks that we will also talk about.
Crossfit is a high-intensity workout that has as its motto “be good at everything, but great at nothing.” This means that in Crossfit 10 components of physical training are trained: resistance, strength, power, agility, balance, coordination, flexibility, aim, speed and aerobic capacity. However, even if you never go through Crossfit to be as strong as a powerlifter, powerful as a weightlifter, or tough as a marathoner, you will have acceptable levels in all of these categories. A crossfit WOD usually has the following elements:
- Plyometric jumps (such as box jumps)
- Halterofilia (Snatch, Clean and Jerk o variantes)
- Exercises with dumbbells or kettlebells (Kettlebell swing, Military Press…)
- Exercises with body weight on bars or rings (dominated, chin ups, muscle ups…)
- Cardiovascular exercise (running, rowing, skipping, assault bike…)
Your WOD will combine some or all of these elements to make you as complete an athlete as possible. No training is similar to another, except for the “benchmarks” that are the Hero WODs and the Girl WODs.
List of benefits of crossfit
You will improve your strength
The large number of weightlifting and multi-joint exercises along with a progressive increase in loads on them is a perfect cocktail to increase your strength and muscle mass. For example, when you do a lift like the Snatch, Deadlift or Squat, you are activating and therefore strengthening all your muscles from the head to the feet.
There is scientific literature indicating that compound movements such as Squats, Deadlifts, Push Press, Snatch, Clean and Jerk, Pull-ups or Muscle Up are the best for strength gains compared to isolated or compound movements, and surprise, Crossfit is full of the first.
So if your goal is to gain strength, but not be the strongest guy in the world, Crossfit is a great option for you.
you will increase your caloric expenditure
A study from the University of Wisconsin that analyzed two Crossfit WODs in a group of male and female athletes, calculated that women burned an average of 12.9 kcals per minute and men an incredible 20.6 calories per minute. Therefore it can be clearly said that one of the benefits of crossfit is caloric expenditure.
This is also related to Crossfit multi-joint exercises, since the more muscles involved in an exercise, the more calories will be burned per repetition. We’re not just talking about compound lifts, but bodyweight exercises like burpees or muscle ups work a large part of your body as well.
On the other hand, this high intensity training will make you benefit from two more effects on calorie burning. First, the increase in muscle mass will make your metabolism speed up and you can create a caloric deficit more easily if you want to lose fat. Then there’s “Excess Post Exercise Oxygen Consumption” or EPOC, which it says, high intensity training will burn more calories in the hours after your workout, typically 6-15% of the calories you burned training, no small amount! stuff!
you will lose body fat
Not everyone gets into Crossfit to lose weight, but if this is your goal, Crossfit may be a great option for you. Being a workout in which you gain muscle mass and also spend a lot of calories during training and even afterward, it is not risky to say that one of the benefits of Crossfit is fat loss.
The Ohio State University published a study showing the improvement in body composition and aerobic capacity after only 10 weeks of Crossfit. In addition, knowing that one of the key factors for fat reduction is consistency, the community that is generated around the Crossfit BOX helps users to continue working and therefore continue to progress.
it’s good for your heart
Although most WODs are not focused on the usual cardiovascular training methods, consisting of long sessions of low intensity aerobic work, you can work your cardiovascular resistance in short sessions of up to 3-5 minutes. A study from the Tokyo Institute of Technology found significant improvements in cardiovascular health, including VO2 max and blood pressure, only with high-intensity sessions of 3-5 minutes.
it’s safer than you think
Due to the nature of Crossfit of performing complex movements in a state of fatigue, it can be understood as harmful, this must be contextualized. It is true that there are times when it is practically impossible to maintain a correct technique, however let us not forget that we are training in a controlled environment with a coach who will prevent this situation from prolonging.
If we compare Crossfit with other weight sports, it has a higher number of injuries per 1,000 hours than bodybuilding, calisthenics or even powerlifting, although lower than strongman. However, when we compare it to other activities that are carried out in a less controlled environment such as soccer or handball, one of the benefits of crossfit is that it is much less harmful than these sports.
it will help you sleep better
Although there are many factors in your lifestyle that affect the quantity and quality of your sleep, it is known that doing sports helps you rest better and fall asleep. That is why even if Crossfit is not your first option, we recommend that you do the exercise that you like best because it will have a positive impact on your sleep.
However, it has been observed that high-intensity exercises are especially positive for improving sleep quality and resting better in order to continue enjoying the other benefits of doing crossfit.
you’ll get stronger than vinegar
Stronger than a kilo of grapefruit, than a bulldog, than a punch from Goku… call it what you want, but if you diet reasonably well, another crossfit benefit for men (and for women, why not ?) is that you will have a functional, strong and very aesthetic physique.
you will make friends
If you are one of those who go to the gym with a hoodie and headphones without talking to anyone, then Crossfit is probably not for you. Progressing in a new sport creates very strong bonds of friendship while you learn those weightlifting exercises or share your first muscle up. In fact, a review of the scientific literature on Crossfit reveals that it is related to a feeling of community, satisfaction and motivation.
If you enter Crossfit, it is very likely that you will end up making good friends with people who have similar tastes and hobbies to yours. There are even voices that call Crossfit “the new Tinder”
some disadvantages of crossfit
Not everything can be beneficial in Crossfit, there is no perfect program and Crossfit was not going to be the exception. Here we name some disadvantages of Crossfit.
- It is not specific: for people who seek to improve a specific athletic ability, Crossfit is not going to make them reach their maximum in it. If you are looking to specialize, Crossfit is not your thing.
- It is not personalized: although the WODs are adaptable according to levels and abilities, it must be recognized that training is done in a general and non-personalized way. If you need particular treatment beyond improving your general athletic level, you still need another option that adapts the training to you.
- It depends on your coach: this happens in many disciplines, but it is quite noticeable when you have an expert coach who cares about his students and when you have one who works without desire. As we have mentioned before, Crossfit is done in a controlled environment and the coach is the main control element, so if he fails, the quality of the training is drastically diminished.
- It’s not cheap: Don’t get this wrong, Crossfit is worth the money. You are training with a coach for 8-10 people paying attention to you and not in a gym with 50 people at a time and no one supervising. However, for those less affluent, paying 70-100 for training may be out of their financial means.
conclusions
There was a demand for a type of training that avoided the ultra specialization of most sports and simply sought to improve your physical abilities without focusing on any specific one. Crossfit has come to fill that gap and the benefits of Crossfit in all areas are public and notorious.
That does not mean that Crossfit is for everyone, but we do think that there should be no doubt about whether to try it or not, that is why we have gathered the greatest benefits that Crossfit offers so that you can run to the nearest Box.
