Does anyone have experience with the crossfit protocol? I am thinking about replacing just calithenics with this: www.crossfit.com I know that it is picking up some steam in the military/police, and I wanted to know the opionion of ESB on it for boxing. I like the fact that they change exercice everyday, but I am afraid with no olympic weightlifting training, I might get some forms wrong or something.
Look like killer workout sessions, Ross Training has some really good ones, you can check those out too. Crossfit is bound to make your conditioning at top level I am sure.
I am in love with Cross fit bro, it is very intense and doesn't take up much time during the day. I can get an awesome workout session in 30 mins if I am in a time crunch. In my experience over the past 2 years it has lead to less injuries in those I work with, versus the normal grind of long drawn out workout sessions.
Its a little cult-ish, and some of it's followers get a little ate up by it... but that said, it's a great workout. Recommended.
Not recommended. There's nothing sensible about having your workout chosen for you every day by a fat guy on the internet. I know/have heard of exactly zero boxers who follow crossfit. Because it's not for boxers.
Very poor program. No rhyme or reason to the programming. Concept of being crosstrained across energy systems and strength training is good, but programming is all wrong. It is based very little on scientific research and it is VERY dangerous to do olympic lifts with the protocol they require. If you are training like a real boxer(ie. sparring several times a week, bag work) you will burn out very quickly. My advice is avoid it.
Thanks dudes... Kill something and vonLPC please give me a bit more info and support for your arguments. :good
Of course. In all honesty, I can't figure out what they are trying to do with the programming. They will have a power lifting workout, then an absolutely exhausting met con workout, then a workout which takes up to one hour, it makes no sense and is not geared toward anything in particular with the exception of getting better at crossfit. Most crossfit workouts consists of some type of metcon work, resulting in the heart rate rising above the anaerobic threshold frequently. Boxing, whether amateur or pro, relies primarily on the aerobic system for energy(most figures in energy expenditure charts for muay thai and boxing 3 x 2 rds show a 65% of energy below anaerobic threshold, pro bouts even higher) thus utilizing the oxidative energy system. That being said, crossfit does very little work in the aerobic energy system, far too little to make the cardiac adaptations stable. In addition, Crossfit combined with boxing is a recipe for burnout. The work would be too much, regardless of level of fitness. In addition, their strength protocols do not support the necessary recovery needed, as so much other work during the week relies heavily on met con workouts, and other taxing methods. The idea of "CROSS" fit, meaning being fit across all energy systems, strength, agility, etd. is a great concept. In order to train this properly, one would need to assess their areas of weakness, and program 6-8 week training blocks to address that weakness, perhaps much longer. For example, I have always had good strength, but difficulty with cardio. Therefore, I could do 1 weight workout per week 1-2 heavy sets, but would need to program cardio workouts 3-4 times weekly, keeping HR at or below anaerobic threshold for 6-8 weeks in order for cardiac adaptations to begin to stabilize. I do not believe under any circumstances in any one size fits all workout program. Hopefully it makes sense why not to do O lifts/variations of technical proficiency such as snatches, Overhead squats,etc. with fatiguing types of workouts. Hopefully that supports my strong original post against Crossfit for boxing.
All of what von said. Additionally, there's really no progression built into the program. Just random workouts every day, many of which are really complicated and dangerous for some folks. I especially agree with the idea that Crossfit is designed to make you better at Crossfit. Most of the improvements in workout times that people cite can simply be attributed to better form or worse form. Ie you can cheat your way through a workout and hurt yourself to get a better time. They basically encourage this (look at all the photos they have of folks with the skin ripped off their palms).
Yall put that crossfit thing down, doing this work out here will be making you hit as hard as tyson and as fast as manny. [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XozvH6VmVeI[/ame]
Wait... doesn't crossfit incorporate Oly lifting every now and then in the WOD??? I was under the impression that it was fairly well integrated in it: http://board.crossfit.com/showthread.php?t=2452 Maybe they drastically changed their methodology since that time, but you tell me.