Opinion: CrossFit sucks and we’ve got no qualms in saying so.

It’s a fad that’s caught on and spread like an infectious disease.  One that many lifters and bodybuilders are pretty opposed to and with good reason. The whole practice is madness. The system is based around a concept of high intensity – a concept that any bodybuilder could get behind. It’s not particularly mind-bending or unusual. So why do we have a problem with it?  Because, particularly for a bodybuilder, the whole practice ends up being useless.

The idea of intensity is all well and good, but the fact that it’s geared toward performing high reps in a fast motion can lead to injuries. Bodybuilding exercises are usual movements performed with practiced and correct forms intended to promote muscle growth not destroy your body. We could do deadlifts for 4 sets and 8-10 reps with an adequate amount of weights, nothing wrong with that. But doing deadlifts in explosive motions, as fast you can for 20 or 30 reps doesn’t sound all that reasonable. In fact it sounds like a recipe for disaster.
.

Lifting vs The Clock

Go ahead, try and perform as many snatch and cleans as possible within a two minute period. Let’s see what kind of shape you end up in. Conventional wisdom will say that you’ll probably rip or pull something when it’s all said and done. Olympic and powerlifts were not meant to be done for an untold amount of reps against a clock. Lifting shouldn’t be about beating your best time, but about correcting your form for better strength and muscle gains.
.

Speed + Bad Form = Dumb

There’s no doubting it. If your form sucks then bad things are in store for you. So what exactly could make matters worse? Add accelerated motion to crappy form. It just doubles the chances of one, not getting anything out of the exercise, and two, getting hurt while doing so. Which leads us into our next point…
.

Injury

Bad form usually ends up meaning one thing: injury. Many injuries occur because the people aren’t taught the exercises correctly. As stated earlier, it’s already hard enough to do one deadlift with correct form. Doing 30 incorrectly, in explosive movements means bad news for your back. No matter how you slice it, bad form just compounds things.
.

Poor Muscle Recovery Time

Crossfitters also live by a philosophy of high impact and less resting periods in order to up the intensity. Stupid. You need time for you muscles to recover between sets. You can’t go full blast nonstop with no period of rest and expect your muscles to grow and recover properly. That’s why a one minute resting period is great for muscle recovery and growth.
.

Rhabdomyolysis

Yeah, we’ve got trouble pronouncing it too, but this disorder is no joke. Through the breakdown of muscle tissues, when the body is overtaxed by these strenuous workouts, toxins are released into the blood and can cause kidney damage. It’s a rare case, but one that is commonly found in crossfitters. Unlike bodybuilders who have a specific regimen to follow, crossfit has no specific sets or reps which causes more of these cases to happen.

Check out Bro Sciences’ stance on the Crossfit workout…

So what’s your take on Crossfit in general?  Just a fitness fad or good practice? Let us know what you think in the comments below be sure to follow us on Facebook and Twitter.