When focusing on fitness and committing to a healthier, more active routine, it’s important to align yourself with like-minded people in environments that encourage you to meet challenges and fulfil your goals. We’ve always been active members of CrossFit and feel it’s one of the best ways to keep in shape.
For some people, solo fitness is key (running, home workouts) and for others the solitude of sticking in your earphones and spending an hour in the gym around others is best, but CrossFit brings much more to the table, it’s about developing health and fitness habits whilst also being in a community of other fitness-focused people. It’s not just a gym, it’s a lifestyle.
It’s a set of exercises that are based around functional movements and is a much more safe and effective way of working out and uses compound movements for maximum effect on both broad and acutely targeted elements of physical fitness. It’s a combination of a wide variety of exercises that play into achieving an overall better level of fitness in the body. Balance underpins everything and there’s elements of gymnastics, anaerobic training, weightlifting and strength training in CrossFit.
Here are some of the benefits we’ve personally found from CrossFit:
Better strength and conditioning
If you’re lagging with the constant motion of cardio and weight training zoned in on specific muscle groups, CrossFit focuses more on ‘power’ moves and using your own bodyweight as resistance.
Greater Consistency
CrossFit is all about sustaining and routine. Stamina and endurance. It’s effective because it’s consistent, specific and because slow and steady progress sits at the heart of it.
Better Conditioning
There’s a whole argument and feeling for aesthetics right now in the fitness industry, but conditioning is key to long-term physical fitness. CrossFit keeps the body conditioned in a way few other classes or programmes can.
More Variety
Every WOD (Workout Of The Day) is different. Every session is individual, and because trained CrossFit instructors are developing plans, you’re challenging yourself to new exercises or movements that you know will work. So under the eye of professionals, your workout routine will be consistently changed up to keep things fresh, interesting and enjoyable.
It’s an Intense Calorie-Burner
CrossFit is designed to be short bursts of intense compound workouts and challenges, so it hugely increases your metabolic rate and burns calories far faster than you would by standing around a gym looking in the mirror.
Meet New People
It’s an outlet to engage with others interested in challenging their fitness levels in a unique environment. You’ll make friends and connect with others in similar (and possibly wildly different) situations. It’s also an alcohol-free environment, which is becoming more and more rare these days. Everyone’s on the same team and there’s great camaraderie between CrossFitters.
