“There goes our sport.”

Reading through some Facebook posts the other night, I saw this pop up via Progenex:

The Biggest Loser begins tonight, and according to Bob Harper the entire season will be all CrossFit. Will this be good or bad for the sport?

Sadly, one of the first comments I read was this:

There goes our sport.

There have been times when I have been ashamed of some of the people that opt to represent CrossFit, and reading that comment was surely one of those times.

CrossFit is not something designed solely for the super elite.  If you read ANY box website or talk to a trainer, they will tell you to come in regardless of your fitness level.  They want you to come in, workout, improve, grow, get stronger, and get faster.  I have yet to hear one of our trainers say “Well, you are just too fat.  Sorry, we can’t help you.”  How about the main site?  Does it say “CrossFit is for athletes who are not obese?”  In fact, it says something quite the contrary:

The CrossFit program is designed for universal scalability making it the perfect application for any committed individual regardless of experience.

When I read that, I see that any of these workouts can be scaled to meet the needs of the participant while at the same time presenting a unique physical challenge to them, helping them grow as an athlete.

Just because Bob Harper is doing CrossFit, doesn’t mean that on day 2 of the ranch he is going to have a 400 pound guy do Fran.  I mean, let’s get serious here.  I think Bob Harper understands the benefits of high intensity, functional movements and is planning on applying those concepts to The Biggest Loser participants’ workout routines.

Perhaps there will be an influx of participants at CrossFit boxes all over.  Maybe people that do not typically fit the “athlete” mold will join.  Maybe people that need to lose weight instead of improve their Grace time will join.  Maybe CrossFit will become an even more household name.

And if that happens, why is that bad for CrossFit? 

Why does that mean the sport goes to hell in a hand basket?  Aren’t we all about making people better versions of themselves?  If I saw a largely overweight person walk into our box, I would love nothing more than to shake their hand and tell them that they got tons of guts for stepping foot in the door and that if I could help to just holler.  I would hope I would be the kind of person that would cheer them on during their workouts, or even finish an extra set of reps or a run with them to let them know they are not in the fight alone.

Let’s let people experience all of the benefits of CrossFit.  Not just weight loss, but strength, speed, and most importantly confidence.  The last thing I would do would be to claim this sport as my own, something a selfish, shallow, and insecure person would do.

42 Notes/ Hide

  1. blissmanifesto said: I love this post! You are so right. It’s a shame when people let their egos drive them to act snobbishly towards beginners or those who need a lot of help to get started. It just makes it harder for a newcomer to enter.
  2. crossfit-finesse reblogged this from ourtimetochange
  3. gillsquirt said: you, sir, are a gem.
  4. cupcakesandchaucer reblogged this from ourtimetochange and added:
    This. This. This. All of this. I was so intimidated by the idea of Crossfit. “I’m overweight. I’m out of shape. There’s...
  5. mr-smit said: That’s the exact mentality that kept me out of the gym for so long. I felt like I didn’t fit in and that people were judging me. (Obviously I’ve learned that’s not the case). Kudos to you for calling it out and being supportive.
  6. neon-spandex said: I don’t CrossFit, but well said. How is exposing people to a new sport, new exercise ideas a bad thing, ever? Maybe running wasn’t for them, but CrossFit is the perfect fit.
  7. ourtimetochange posted this

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