Crossfit Trial, Day One
With biking done for the year, I knew I couldn't repeat last year's mistake and not work out for four months. Many of my friends do Crossfit, so I tried it out tonight. Here are my thoughts based on a single session at one place that was recommended to me. YMMV.
1. That's a pretty effective full body workout. My legs weren't stressed (yay biking) but my upper arms (no workout for two years) felt it. Cardio was rough, but quickly recovered (again, yay biking).
2. It's not inherently hard on my knee, but unlike a regular workout where I can tailor it to avoid exercises that will stress my knee, I have to modify the workout on the fly if something with knee pain potential is in the agenda for the day. The trainers are happy to help with that, but with the adrenalin going and many variants, it's definitely something I have to think about every time.
3. It's crazy expensive compared to the gym. My company's $300/reimbursement won't even cover three months.
4. The schedule at the place everybody recommended is pretty limited. I can go Monday and Wednesday night or Saturday afternoon, or I can get up very, very early. And actually, if I want to go Monday or Wednesday night, I have to get up early so I get to work early so I can get home in time to walk the dog and still make it to the session. They aren't even open on Sundays. So that's far from ideal.
5. The people are super friendly. Like cult-level friendly. I'm not sure if that's a plus or a minus.
6. They have a friendly dog living in the gym!
7. The place has no showers and not much of a locker room.
8. It's reasonably close to my house.
9. They sell all that muscle milk crap, which I always take as a bad sign.
Currently I'm thinking I'll try it for a few weeks. If I like it and my knee holds up and my spring gaming schedule solidifies favorably I'll go in for three months, which will get me to biking season. And if not, I'll find something else.
1. That's a pretty effective full body workout. My legs weren't stressed (yay biking) but my upper arms (no workout for two years) felt it. Cardio was rough, but quickly recovered (again, yay biking).
2. It's not inherently hard on my knee, but unlike a regular workout where I can tailor it to avoid exercises that will stress my knee, I have to modify the workout on the fly if something with knee pain potential is in the agenda for the day. The trainers are happy to help with that, but with the adrenalin going and many variants, it's definitely something I have to think about every time.
3. It's crazy expensive compared to the gym. My company's $300/reimbursement won't even cover three months.
4. The schedule at the place everybody recommended is pretty limited. I can go Monday and Wednesday night or Saturday afternoon, or I can get up very, very early. And actually, if I want to go Monday or Wednesday night, I have to get up early so I get to work early so I can get home in time to walk the dog and still make it to the session. They aren't even open on Sundays. So that's far from ideal.
5. The people are super friendly. Like cult-level friendly. I'm not sure if that's a plus or a minus.
6. They have a friendly dog living in the gym!
7. The place has no showers and not much of a locker room.
8. It's reasonably close to my house.
9. They sell all that muscle milk crap, which I always take as a bad sign.
Currently I'm thinking I'll try it for a few weeks. If I like it and my knee holds up and my spring gaming schedule solidifies favorably I'll go in for three months, which will get me to biking season. And if not, I'll find something else.