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I've only done it at http://www.crossfitv16.com http://www.crossfitv16.com so my experience may not be typical, but in the classes I've been taking, there's a s

I've only done it at http://www.crossfitv16.com http://www.crossfitv16.com so my experience may not be typical, but in the classes I've been taking, there's a strong emphasis on good technique and no pressure to push yourself past reasonable limits. It's definitely a bit amateur compared to what top coaches can offer, but it's also affordable to amateur athletes. Finally, the workouts are clearly not optimal for strength gain, but the idea is to train coordination and balance as well. So I guess my point is, YMMV when it comes to Crossfit gyms, perhaps unsurprisingly given that it's a franchise.

zo1 12y ago
Doesn't sound like you read the whole article. The author specifically addresses the "but my gym is doing it correctly, it's the others that aren't" cult-like mentality. Each gym does it, and it's a form of indoctrination.
- vertis 12y ago
  (Note: I don't do CrossFit, and I'm not looking to defend CrossFit) Of the whole article, I found that point the weakest. The author hasn't been to every CrossFit gym out there, so I don't know how he can claim "every single thing that I’ve posted in this article refers to EVERY SINGLE GYM THAT FOLLOWS CROSSFIT"
  - blankenship 12y ago
    The Workout Of The Day is one of the main things he takes issue with. The OP can claim “every single” because the primary methodology of Crossfit is ubiquitous—that’s what makes it a Crossfit gym. He doesn’t have to visit every Crossfit gym to know they do a WOD; it wouldn’t be a Crossfit gym without the WOD. It’s like saying I don’t need to visit every movie theater in America to know that they all show movies at regular intervals.
    - ZenPro 12y ago
      I cannot +1 this comment enough. I have seen recently, particularly from STEM-themed forums that the standard rebuttal is "you cannot speak for every X since every X is not documented/viewed/visited". The cinema analogy is very well put. It is an exceptionally weak attempt to divert an argument by claiming *all X must be tested." In reality all that is required is a reasonable belief of proof that withstands questioning. The OP easily withstands questioning when speaking for all of CrossFit.
      - 2muchcoffeeman 12y ago
        Except that blankenship and the author are wrong. Go to 10 different gyms on the same day and you'll get 10 different workouts with 10 different formats. WOD is simply an acronym of a phrase used to describe what you are doing today. There is no definition. I have been training at a CrossFit gym for several years now. I do the WODs that most people do sometimes. However we also have a small rock climbing "system wall" that I do climbing drills on. I have also been cycling through running programs to be a better runner, single leg programs to improve stability and balance due to injury (not CrossFit related) and just for fun a one arm chin up program just to see if we can do it. All under some supervision from the head coach. We also have ultra marathoners and dedicated Olympic lifters at our gym all doing different WODs. My CrossFit gym clearly does not conform to the "Reebok CrossFit Games" style of working out and I challenge you to show me when rock climbing drills came up in any WOD. All these arguments against CrossFit are really against the common public perception of CrossFit. Plenty of gyms out there that don't do that and still have "CrossFit" in the name. BTW, I agree that the popular form of CrossFit is stupid and everyone should probably stay away from these gyms.
        defen 12y ago
        > Go to 10 different gyms on the same day and you'll get 10 different workouts with 10 different formats. But, that is the point they are making. WOD means that your workout is not tailored to you. Everyone in a particular gym at a particular time does the same WOD.
- nailer 12y ago
  I read that too, but saying 'this applies everywhere' without any supporting arguments doesn't come off as a particularly strong position.
  - zo1 12y ago
    This comment addresses that quite a bit: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=7762796 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=7762796
    - nailer 12y ago
      The work outs are consistent, but some people will be doing the workout with no weight loaded whatsoever. Other people will be using giant elastic bands to help them do pull ups. Other people will be doing something else entirely, since at the start of every WOD the coach asks if anyone is injured and provides substitute exercises. I spent a year with a bare bar since I couldn't squat.
- kareemm 12y ago
  This is a nice rhetorical technique she used. Since there are no standards when you become a CrossFit gym, all gyms are different. That means some will be better and some will be worse. Which means some of those members are correct when they say their gym does things correctly.

zo1 12y ago

Doesn't sound like you read the whole article. The author specifically addresses the "but my gym is doing it correctly, it's the others that aren't" cult-like mentality. Each gym does it, and it's a form of indoctrination.

vertis 12y ago
(Note: I don't do CrossFit, and I'm not looking to defend CrossFit) Of the whole article, I found that point the weakest. The author hasn't been to every CrossFit gym out there, so I don't know how he can claim "every single thing that I’ve posted in this article refers to EVERY SINGLE GYM THAT FOLLOWS CROSSFIT"
- blankenship 12y ago
  The Workout Of The Day is one of the main things he takes issue with. The OP can claim “every single” because the primary methodology of Crossfit is ubiquitous—that’s what makes it a Crossfit gym. He doesn’t have to visit every Crossfit gym to know they do a WOD; it wouldn’t be a Crossfit gym without the WOD. It’s like saying I don’t need to visit every movie theater in America to know that they all show movies at regular intervals.
  - ZenPro 12y ago
    I cannot +1 this comment enough. I have seen recently, particularly from STEM-themed forums that the standard rebuttal is "you cannot speak for every X since every X is not documented/viewed/visited". The cinema analogy is very well put. It is an exceptionally weak attempt to divert an argument by claiming *all X must be tested." In reality all that is required is a reasonable belief of proof that withstands questioning. The OP easily withstands questioning when speaking for all of CrossFit.
    - 2muchcoffeeman 12y ago
      Except that blankenship and the author are wrong. Go to 10 different gyms on the same day and you'll get 10 different workouts with 10 different formats. WOD is simply an acronym of a phrase used to describe what you are doing today. There is no definition. I have been training at a CrossFit gym for several years now. I do the WODs that most people do sometimes. However we also have a small rock climbing "system wall" that I do climbing drills on. I have also been cycling through running programs to be a better runner, single leg programs to improve stability and balance due to injury (not CrossFit related) and just for fun a one arm chin up program just to see if we can do it. All under some supervision from the head coach. We also have ultra marathoners and dedicated Olympic lifters at our gym all doing different WODs. My CrossFit gym clearly does not conform to the "Reebok CrossFit Games" style of working out and I challenge you to show me when rock climbing drills came up in any WOD. All these arguments against CrossFit are really against the common public perception of CrossFit. Plenty of gyms out there that don't do that and still have "CrossFit" in the name. BTW, I agree that the popular form of CrossFit is stupid and everyone should probably stay away from these gyms.
      - defen 12y ago
        > Go to 10 different gyms on the same day and you'll get 10 different workouts with 10 different formats. But, that is the point they are making. WOD means that your workout is not tailored to you. Everyone in a particular gym at a particular time does the same WOD.
nailer 12y ago
I read that too, but saying 'this applies everywhere' without any supporting arguments doesn't come off as a particularly strong position.
- zo1 12y ago
  This comment addresses that quite a bit: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=7762796 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=7762796
  - nailer 12y ago
    The work outs are consistent, but some people will be doing the workout with no weight loaded whatsoever. Other people will be using giant elastic bands to help them do pull ups. Other people will be doing something else entirely, since at the start of every WOD the coach asks if anyone is injured and provides substitute exercises. I spent a year with a bare bar since I couldn't squat.
kareemm 12y ago
This is a nice rhetorical technique she used. Since there are no standards when you become a CrossFit gym, all gyms are different. That means some will be better and some will be worse. Which means some of those members are correct when they say their gym does things correctly.