Video…..Crossfit: The New Fitness Craze.

Posted October 15, 2012 1:10 pm by

It’s pretty much well-known that the obesity rates in America, and especially here in the Mountain State, have reached new heights.  With people leading busy lives in today’s world, let’s face it- it’s hard to get to the gym.  But, a new fitness craze is taking the nation by storm and might be helping to fix that problem.

It’s called Crossfit.

“Constantly varied, high intensity, functional movements- is basically what it is,” said Darcy Thompson, a personal trainer and Crossfit competitor.

Translation?  A workout that uses everyday motions, with a little extra kick, to get you in shape.

Crossfit enthusiast and Personal Trainer Jon Groves said, “If you need to pick up a box at work, or if you need to carry stuff up and down steps all day long, moving furniture or whatever, Crossfit’s going to get you in shape to do that.”

Crossfit had previously been used to help train firefighters and policemen.  When the Crossfit website launched in 2001, the masses started to pick it up.  The competitions are now aired on national TV.

So, what’s the appeal? For starters, it works different parts of your body each workout and does so in a much shorter amount of time than a regular gym visit.  So, those of you who say there’s no time for the gym, can’t use that excuse anymore.

Thompson said, “You can completely exhaust yourself within twenty minutes and then get the same workout that you would do sitting around on a treadmill for an hour.”

Darcy made it all the way to the regional competition in Washington, D.C last year.  She’s training to do it again this year.  If she makes top three, she’ll compete in Nationals-the competitions aired on the likes of ESPN and ESPN2.

So, why does she keep going back for more?  “It’s addicting. I mean, there’s always something you can get better at, there’s always something when you leave the Crossfit place, that you’re like ‘I think I can do that better.’ “

Another reason people love it: It’s not just for top athletes.  It’s a sort of one-size-fits-all deal.  Each workout can be modified, so that anyone of any age or skill level, can do it.

When John Groves first started, he had to modify everything.  In the end, he not only lost an extra forty pounds doing Crossfit, he became a personal trainer.

“You try, and you don’t think you can do a lot of the stuff, but then you do it, and you get some sort of self-satisfaction,like ‘oh, I really can do this,'” said Groves.

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