This Post Got Away From Me

10 Rounds For Time:
2 Rope Accents (Advanced Do Legless Climbs)
3 Thrusters (75% of 1RM)

As a coach I have the opportunity to observe countless individuals exercise (its truly a privilege people) and notice trends in regards to the types of activities people tend to excel at as well as those that are a struggle.  This observation coupled with an insatiable desire to read all the crap the internet has to offer has lead me to develop concepts of why and how we become the specimen we are today.  Though it seems deathly obvious when I put it these terms, it seems that an individuals' past athletic history directly and explicitly dictate who one becomes as a CrossFitter.

It should be no surprise that an individual with a background in high intensity functional movement is likely to find fast success in CrossFit but what does that mean exactly?  Let's look at some sports or activities and how one might expect this athlete to perform in CrossFit:

Let's consider that these people have known only their respective sport and have no physical experience outside of this realm for the sake of minimizing variables.
Football- great power, speed, agility, coordination, and decent flexibility but might struggle with technical bodyweight movements and will gas out in longer aerobic efforts.  This athlete will shine in 2-5 min workouts and O-lifts if they can learn the form.  Ideal WOD- heavy squat clean "Grace"
Gymnastics- Unmatched upper-body strength to bodyweight ratio, flexibility, and proprioception.  This athlete excels in anything technical and bodyweight.  They probably have not developed great leg strength or a metabolic background though the conditioning would come (they're lean).  Ideal WOD-30 Muscle ups (Duh)
Distance Running- This athlete excels at simple movements that test lower intensity consistent efforts.  Workouts that test longer time domains (15+ minutes) are great but they probably cannot keep up on high output bouts.  This athlete is unfortunately, inflexible, weak, lacks power, and is uncoordinated.  Ideal WOD- I truly am not able to think of one that isn't composed of only running and/or rowing.
Wrestling- This athlete has a great sense of leverage and ability to move an awkward external load (maybe they should try strongman if they're a heavyweight?) and an awesome metabolic engine.  The time domain of a wrestling match is very similar to that of most CrossFit workout thus are in their element when it comes to the misery and pain of exhaustion.  They aught to be pretty flexible, for this would be an advantage on the mat, though might have issues with some of the more technical gymnastics elements (is the mushroom going to be in the throw-down Justin?) Ideal WOD- fran
Bodybuilding- This guy is yoked! If it weren't for his inflexible shoulders he could probably knock out a lot of HSPUs and strict pullups (if he's cutting rather than "cultivating mass"). Unfortunately the athlete did not develop any athletic qualities from a (real) sports background so is slow, unpowerful (though could be strong, but power=strength+speed), uncoordinated, and have the worst metabolic engine of those listed.  If this person grew up an athlete and became a bodybuilder they might do well but otherwise their nervous system will be shocked by the demands of intensity.  Ideal WOD- Lynne with 1 round and partial ROM bench
Soccer- Good power-to-size ratio at the hip though their shoulders are weak.  Excellent speed and aerobic conditioning though the shorter, heavier workouts would illicit an unfamiliar response.  They are fast, coordinated, agile but are lacking max strength and spend little time under tension (don't develop big guns) though some of these qualities vary by position (like football).  Ideal WOD- Helen

If I were to design the perfect CrossFit athlete they would grow up a gymnast, learn the basics of Olympic weightlifting at a young age, compete in wrestling (in part for the mental toughness) from middle school through college (Travis this could be your daughter)...and then win the CrossFit games after a national championships in wrestling.

Of course, life is not lived in a vacuum and we've all had physical experiences outside of single sports and thus are not defined by them.  The activities which one invests the most time in and the time proximity of the investment will greatly dictate one's abilities in CrossFit.  This means that though you may have been a soccer player 10 years ago and maintain residual qualities you've since been inactive and thus take on the qualities of an inactive person.  You know Aristotle's saying "you are what you do repeatedly, so excellence is not an act but a habit" (or was it "you are what you eat?")... well the saying(s) hold true in the sense that your physical body adapts to the demands and the environment that it functions in and dictates your capabilities.   Sit at a desk with poor posture all day...shitty flexibility, rock climb for 15 years...awesome grip and pullup strength but pigeon legs, compete in powerlifting...crazy strong with no work capacity (past 20 seconds), sit on your arse for 20 years...that's probably one inflexible, unconditioned, weak, flabby arse.  This is not meant as a knock on any person, training system, or value.  Your values are your own.  This is meant as a reality check to those that don't understand why others are "blessed" with an ability when you yourself may not be...it is because they've developed the capacity over time (or at least not allowed it to erode away).

 

Comments

[Jimy Enriquez]

Great Blog!

[Kelli Brogan]

Once again, great post blake!

[That Black Guy]

Well said...

[Scott]

I notice you didn't mention golf.

[Justin Riley]

Well, it all makes sense now. I played all of those sports in my youth. That's how I god so good at everything.

[Matt P]

Love how Justin slipped I that he is a God at CrossFit.

Hey, I dozed off reading the post, can anyone point out where being a Clydesdale class triathlete fits in as a benefit for gymnastics?

[AO]

Um I didn't do any of these things growing up.....just ate lots of junk food and played golf....how does that fit into this?

[adam k]

I spent a lot of time drinking way too much and being lazy. Which is why I'm going Rx PLUS on tomorrow Super Bowl WOD.

By the way, will there be a bbq at CFES tomorrow?

[Mallory]

What about people with no athletic background? Could that be adventitious?

[Justin Riley]

Mallory, you're just lucky. You might have been an Olympian had you actually played sports as a kid.

[Mallory]

Oops. Automatic speller messed my question up. Advantageous.. If you started crossfit w/ no athletic background could that in any way be good thing?

[Scott]

Justin: that's nice of you to point that out. Way to go dude.

Mallory: not that I'm an expert, but my distinct impression is no.

[brother mike]

Blake, next time I see you I might give you a powerful kick in the ass . . . that is if my distance running leg was not so inflexible and lacking in power that it couldn't.

[Mallory]

Ya I didn't think so Scott ;) and Justin that's exactly what I was thinking

[Scott]

Mallory: let's forge some elite fitness anyway.