A simple comparison...

It is interesting looking at the fitness industry in general. The personalities, the programs, hypes and trends all hit you as soon as you walk in any typical gym. Some are good, some are less good. None are necessarily bad. As a person looking at the condition of society, I really am happy to see anyone doing anything to better their health. But in the pursuit of the simplest, most direct way to solve a problem (as all of the best solutions prove to be), I must say something about the efficient use of time.

A typical bodybuilding workout would take a person 45 minutes to 1 hour to get a good “pump.” Every time they go to the gym, they can plan on being there that long to train just strength. If they want to do a little cardiovascular training, add 20 minutes on the treadmill or elliptical to that. Now take a look at how much time is actually spent working during the 45 – 60 minutes. With your typical 8-10 reps and 2-3 minutes rest in between (we’ll call it 2.5 min), you are talking 20 seconds of work for every 2 minutes and 50 seconds. That means that only 12% of the time spent in the gym is actually spent doing work. Lets say that they are alternating exercises and resting half of that time. That only bumps it up to 24% at best.

I look at this and I am shocked at how many people in this busy society still adopt this system as their main mode of exercise. I was under the impression that they were looking for efficiency.

Let us now take a look at crossfit. CrossFit trains cardiovascular and respiratory endurance, stamina, strength, flexibility, power, speed, coordination, agility, balance, and accuracy. A typical crossfit workout lasts 15-20 minutes. The amount of time spent working during that time: 100%. Well, maybe 98 or 97% if you calculate time gasping for air or cursing at the trainer. Anyone who has done a CF workout knows what it is like to truly work hard. I have seen many intelligent and successful professionals adopt CrossFit as their sole source of exercise for the sheer efficiency of the program. They don’t need to add 20 minutes to their program to account for endurance training or 10 minutes of stretching to work on flexibility (although this may be necessary when dealing with deficiencies in either). I have repeatedly heard from members that they have more stamina, greater range of motion, and are stronger and faster than they have ever been.

Once again, I need to say that any exercise is better than nothing. There is a place and time for many of the methods out there when dealing with deficiencies in any of the major modalities. However, when each of these modalities is addressed on a regular basis in CrossFit, there is no need for anything else. Weakness, inflexibility, and muscular imbalances are all addressed within the basic moves in CrossFit. The program speaks for itself. If you are seeking out the most efficient and direct way to true fitness, then eventually you will find CrossFit.