I've been a member of Albany Crossfit for six months and work out at four days a week. I've also been a member of Crossfit club in New Jersey for another six months. I'm a senior (65 yrs old) who has been an absolute non-athlete for my entire life; workouts are new to me, and I take them seriously.
While to outward appearances I haven't changed, my physician was so impressed after he examined me, noticed my muscle tone, and saw my blood work, that he pumped me for details about Crossfit. So I told him. Crossfit programming alternates between three kinds of routines: those that build strength, such as lifting weights; those that improve one's energy metabolism, such as box jumps, rowing, and burpees; and those that improve one's coordination and movement through gymnastics, such as ring dips and hand stands. Routines frequently involve high intensity interval training, such as Izumi Tabata's protocol. Crossfit routines do vary constantly. Finally, Crossfit only develops functional muscles--the muscles one uses in life and sports, like one's gluteal muscles and hamstrings. I also told my doctor that with my rotator cuff repair, the ruptured disc in my lower back and my mild anemia, my coaches tailor my routine to test my outer limits; my workouts are invariably challenging. Finally, I said I thought Crossfit improved on his somewhat sage advice, which was do anything that makes you breath hard for an hour a day.
Returning to my opinions about the ACF, for a club that's grown quickly, I'm pleased by the quality, training and morale of ACF's coaching staff. Because of my variations in my personal schedule, I'm continually switching class times, and coaches. I find that while the coaches are each different people with their own ways, at the core, they teach the same skills; any variations I see as trivial idiosyncrasies. New coaches are continually in training; when I help them help me, it helps us both. One coach I thought was ignoring me, until I asked for help; as it turned out, he'd been leaving me alone out of respect for an old codger! Another coach solicits my mantras for use in class--most memorably ""eat the pain.""
ACF's community spirit shows itself in many ways. Recently I was touched to see an apparent novice coming down the home stretch on a workout. As she struggled with her last dozen push-ups, a couch joined her, matching her push-ups count for count, while counting down aloud. Soon she was surrounded by nine other class members, each matching her efforts push-up by push-up, also counting down aloud. As she stood up after finishing, she had a satisfied smile on her face. For me, that's a supportive community! That gesture showed respect for and reaffirmed the effort she put into her workout. While on the subject of community norms, another is that members are humble about their capacities; mostly, people check egoistic attitudes at the door. Complaining is not ""in;"" ""wimping out"" is viewed as gauche.
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