it is funny that he had to preface his statement by saying he's a "NFL player (albeit "just" a punter)". They must REALLY have a complex. I wonder if they walk around saying, "Hey, I matter too guys!!"

 

Also funny is Chris Kluwe identifying himself as an "NFL player."  Dude's a PUNTER.  I guess technically he's an NFL player, but there is a reason there are no punters in the Hall of Fame.  (only one place kicker too, and they actually score points)

Dave - I know you're a weight lifter...is your reason for not recommending crossfit the cult mentality stuff?  I've tried doing body weight routines at home but I don't stick with it...I don't have any "skin in the game" (costs me nothing, I can do it or not do it with no accountability).  I like the idea of getting some personalized attention, but I don't think I could afford a personal trainer.  Honestly the group exercises I've seen seem like more fun than working out by myself at home or at a gym.

 

That's part of it. I've been approached by folks to become involved in Crossfit. I've researched it and chose not to become a trainer. I don't like the "PUSH, PUSH, PUSH" philosophy. Trust me, I can "PUSH" myself without any motivation. I know there are folks that "need" pushing...but not to the point of injury. Here's an interesting article I read not too long ago...

http://www.livestrong.com/article/545200-the-fall-of-fitness/

Interesting comments on the article as well (I like the one where someone mentions that orthopedic surgeons love Crossfit for all the business it brings them).

There's nothing inherently wrong with training hard and heavy, but when I see people pushing beginners too hard, that's where I draw the line.

Also funny is Chris Kluwe identifying himself as an "NFL player."  Dude's a PUNTER.  I guess technically he's an NFL player, but there is a reason there are no punters in the Hall of Fame.  (only one place kicker too, and they actually score points)

I gave my credentials as being the dad of a decathlete.  Another guy gave his credentials as the son of a power lifter.  Others feel qualified to comment based on working out a lot.  Chris Kluwe has actually spent years in NFL training rooms and gets paid money for his admittedly narrow athletic skill.  Seems like he's more qualified to comment than the rest of us.

DAUGHTER of a power lifter!

My biggest thing with crossfit is they seem to accept poor form as an excuse to accomplish the task. The people in that vid I posted had no business lifting the weights they were trying to move. Absolutely none. All of them should have been learning proper form with a fraction of that weight instead of "rise above your head" mentality that crossfit seems to bring to the show. It may be a solid way to train if you train within your limits, instead of the people in charge trying to push you past what you realistically should be doing.

My biggest thing with crossfit is they seem to accept poor form as an excuse to accomplish the task. The people in that vid I posted had no business lifting the weights they were trying to move. Absolutely none. All of them should have been learning proper form with a fraction of that weight instead of "rise above your head" mentality that crossfit seems to bring to the show. It may be a solid way to train if you train within your limits, instead of the people in charge trying to push you past what you realistically should be doing.

Agreed.  My real gripe with Crossfit isn't the cult mentality or the cost.  Rather, it's the fact that a lot of their training uses the "momentum muscle" to accomplish the task.  While use of the momentum muscle will help you accomplish a particular task such as getting your chin above a bar, it does absolutely nothing to increase your fitness.  And the reason they use the momentum muscle is because the momentum muscle is sexy and exciting.

Unfortunately, there is nothing sexy or exciting about training the right way.  My 5K race pace is 6:00  My morning jogs routinely start around an 8:45 pace unless I had a hard workout the day before.  In that case, I'll start about 9:15.  I frequently get passed out on the roads by folks who can't come close to me on race day.  They get excited if they run faster this week on their normal 3-4 mile route than they ran last week.  I get excited when my per mile splits are within 2-3 seconds of each other regardless of my pace.  They're huffing and puffing and their veins are popping and their foreheads are red and I'm out jogging.

Similarly, if you are doing weight training, there is nothing sexy or exciting about lifting and lowering a weight slowly and doing so in such as way as to isolate the specific muscles you want to strengthen.  You can't lift anywhere near as much weight if you do that and you can't do anywhere near as many repetitions.  But if you want to get the maximum benefit from the workout, that is precisely what you do.  (I recognize the need for certain explosiveness drills for athletes involved in sports where explosiveness is important).  (I also recognize that body building is a whole different animal from strength training).

I will say that what college kids do in my gym has changed A LOT since the advent of crossfit.  Many more people doing compound movements and plyometrics and stuff.  Not sure if they're trying to do crossfit or if those things have just migrated into general fitness, but there has been a noticeable change.

About 15 years ago, my father in law was in a college gym doing this exercise where he takes a weight and swings it between his legs and overhead.  A trainer comes over and starts to explain to him how bad this is (this is when everything was supposed to be slow or even "superslow" if you remember that).  FIL explains that he's 75 and has been doing it for 40 years.  Even at 75 FIL was a big strong fit looking guy (he also ran).  The trainer looked him up and down and said "just keep doing exactly what you're doing".

Funny thing is, I now see college kids using kettle bells (which are from before my FIL's time) and doing the exact exercises that FIL learned as a young man but were out of fashion for decades.  Everything old is new again.

 Unfortunately, there is nothing sexy or exciting about training the right way.  My 5K race pace is 6:00  My morning jogs routinely start around an 8:45 pace unless I had a hard workout the day before.  In that case, I'll start about 9:15.  I frequently get passed out on the roads by folks who can't come close to me on race day.  They get excited if they run faster this week on their normal 3-4 mile route than they ran last week.  I get excited when my per mile splits are within 2-3 seconds of each other regardless of my pace.  They're huffing and puffing and their veins are popping and their foreheads are red and I'm out jogging..

Interesting.  Has absolutely nothing to do with this thread, but I was just asking myself "what pace does LTH run and what gets him excited?". Thank you.  Now I know.