Starting CrossFit

Hello Everyone!

It’s been forever since I’ve posted here. Although I typically stick to topics related to my work in digital marketing, I wanted to talk about something else: CrossFit.

I took my first trip to a CrossFit gym near my house back in February (pre-quarantine). I’ll share a little bit about what I’ve learned so far and what I hope to achieve in the next year or so of training.

What is CrossFit?

If you aren’t familiar with CrossFit, it kind of involves a little bit of many styles of workouts. CrossFit is a training style that involves high-intensity, functional movements. It blends olympic weightlifting, gymnastics movements and HIIT to create some REALLY hard workouts.

Why I Started CrossFit

If you know me, you know I love to workout. I love the routine of going to the gym on a daily basis. However, I felt that I had hit a plateau with my training and needed more intensity to keep improving.

I also wanted to meet people that took fitness seriously and were dedicated to keeping a healthy lifestyle. I figured CrossFit would be the perfect place to find those people.

My CrossFit Goals

• Bodyweight Snatch (~180 lb.)
• Bodyweight Clean and Jerk (~180 lb.)
• 315 lb. Deadlift
• Muscle Ups

Bodyweight Snatch (~180 pounds)

Snatch is a lift that I really haven’t done a lot of. Prior to starting CrossFit, I’d do it every so often at the gym but not specifically training it. I’d say my one-rep max right now is somewhere around 145 pounds.

I can definitely reach my 180 pound goal by the end of 2020. If I just work on the movement and get more comfortable in moving weight through the snatch motion, I’ll make progress quickly.

Bodyweight Clean and Jerk (~180 pounds)

My experience with Clean and Jerk is just slightly more than my snatch. This lift is another movement I just need to get more comfortable with before I start setting PRs.

I first did clean and jerk in weightlifting class in high school. I think I went from around 65 pounds to 135 pounds over the course of a semester. I shouldn’t have a problem hitting my goal to C+J my bodyweight by the end of the year, if I regularly work on this lift.

315 lb. Deadlift

I’ve been deadlifting a couple times a week for a few years. My one-rep max is somewhere around 300 pounds. I’m frustrated because I feel like I should be able to lift 315 pounds by now. I can do 245 pounds for 15 reps, but my one-rep strength doesn’t seem to translate from there.

Muscle Ups

Muscle ups are one of the first things that come to mind when I think about crossfit. These seem to be included in workouts at the CrossFit games on a yearly basis. I just want to be able to do ONE. After I get the motion down for one muscle up, I’ll likely be able to string a few of them together.

Other Exercises

There are a number of exercises that I struggle with that I will also be working to improve. Burpees, handstand push-ups, box jumps, and toes-to-bar are a few of these workouts that I need to work on. I’ll definitely continue to improve as I do the movements more and get in better “crossfit shape”.