CrossFit® functional fitness: everything you need to know

Blown in from the USA, there’s no escaping CrossFit® boxes anymore – try walking around the city without spotting one. Still not really familiar with the concept? Don’t you worry. All you need to know about this multidisciplinary sport is right here. Read on and fall in love.

What is CrossFit and what does it do for you?

The American Greg and Laura Glassman were the founders of CrossFit®. Very typical about CrossFit® is the combination of different training styles. Think of a fitness element and it’s in your CrossFit® training. Lifting weights, powerlifting, gymnastics, athletics: CrossFit® has it all. But why is that exactly?

The philosophy behind combining as many parts of fitness as possible is as follows: when changing up your workout routine as much as you can, your body gets maximum gain. Great, right?

During a CrossFit® training you’ll get going at high intensity with functional movements executed in a varied way. Think of natural movements with the help of some accessoires like dumbbells, kettlebells and barbells, but don’t forget the occasional rope, sandbag or tractor tire. These props give a great extra dimension to exercises like lifts, pushes, climbs, runs, pulls, jumps and thrusts. In case you were wondering: no, a CrossFit® training doesn’t leave a single bodypart untouched.

Another gigantic pro about CrossFit® is the variation. Thanks to the different training techniques a CrossFit® session is never the same. This keeps the fun in working out and meanwhile you’re getting the most efficiënt training ever. You get to train areas of your body you didn’t even know of and at the same time you’re working on your endurance. How’s that for a win, huh?

What’s a WOD?

A CrossFit® training is also known as a WOD (Workout of the Day). During the WOD you get to do a solid warming up, ’cause is there anyone who likes injuries, really? After that, there’s a short briefing about the training, so you’ll know your task for the day. And then – finally – it’s time for the actual CrossFit® workout of 10 to 20 minutes.

What kind of CrossFit® exercises will you be doing during a training? Like we said, every training is different. There are different kinds of squats, the deadlift, shoulder press, bench press, a clean & jerk and the muscle up. The list is endless, you can see this as sort of an indication.

The way you perform your sets, differs every time. Sometimes a CrossFit® WOD is bodyweight only and another time you’ll use accessoires. Also, there’s a lot of variation when it comes to the goal of your WOD.

There’s an AFAP (As Fast As Possible) for example, to perform the WOD – yeah – as fast as possible. During the AMRAP (As Many Rounds As Possible) it’s all about frequency. You try to do the WOD over and over again, until you have nothing left anymore. The EMOM (Every Minute On the Minute) entails one of more CrossFit® exercises with a lot (a LOT) of weight. It’s the strength that really counts here: you’ll do a certain amount of reps per minute.

Did you know some of these CrossFit® WODs are even famous? The CrossFit® ROMWOD for example, which means Range of Motion WOD. The goal is to try and improve your range, but the ROMWOD is also perfect if you need to learn how to recover and relax once you’re done. The Cindy WOD is a workout for the true tough girls and the CrossFit® Hero WOD is a tribute to fallen soldiers. With the CrossFit® Murph WOD you don’t exactly see what you get. It seems like you’re in for an easy ride, but that couldn’t be farther from the truth. Imagine this: running for 1 mile, followed by a 100 pull ups, 200 push ups, 300 air squats and a 1 mile run again for dessert. Ouch.

CrossFit® clothing

What to wear during a killer CrossFit® training? Most of all, you want your clothing to be comfortable, well-fitted and certainly not in the way of anything. Trust us, the last thing you want to be thinking of during your CrossFit® WOD is your clothing.

CrossFit® clothing for the ladies consists of a good sports bra and a tight. CrossFit® clothing for the gents is nothing more than a shirt and a CrossFit® short most of the time. CrossFit® shoes need to be functional, because all of the running but also flawless deadlifting you need to do in them. Take a look at Reebok’s CrossFit® Nano series or Nike’s CrossFit® range.

Want to complete your CrossFit® attire? There are even CrossFit® socks and CrossFit® gloves in the market. Those particularly come in handy (pun intended) when you’re not a fan of heavy barbells slithering onto your pinky toe.

More about CrossFit®

CrossFit® is hot; this much should be clear. We get it if you need more info right about now. What about CrossFit® and nutrition for example? What kind of nutrition plan does go well with all your CrossFit® ambitions? Are there any CrossFit® supplements that can give you that extra kick? Are there CrossFit® classes especially designed for women and is CrossFit® for the kids too? And the best thing, secretly: where to find the best CrossFit® before and after pics?

It’s not that hard to find the answers to your CrossFit® questions. The internet is exploding with tips. For more in-depth info you just need put on your Sherlock-mode and before you know it you find all you ever wanted to know about CrossFit®. This website will take you a long way.

CrossFit® Games 2020

Such popular sports come with competitions. There are some in the Netherlands too, but THE CrossFit® event out there is the CrossFit® Games. Since 2007 the CrossFit® Games are hosted by CrossFit® Inc. in California, USA. Within seven days all the CrossFit® disciplines will be handled. Think weightlifting and gymnastics, but also swimming, running and cycling. The amount of contestants says a lot about the popularity of CrossFit® too: until 2013 the CrossFit® games had 26.000 participants, by the time of 2014 that amount had increased to 200.000. Say whut?
Can’t wait any longer to watch those CrossFit® Games live? No biggie. Just turn on ESPN and watch the CrossFit® Games from start to end. Want to read some stuff beforehand? The CrossFit® Games leaderboard is right here.
Are you convinced into becoming number 1 on the CrossFit® leaderboards of 2020? Well then, the first step is to pay a visit to your new favourite CrossFit® box. We’d love give you a little hand. Find the CrossFit® hotspots in your city below.

CrossFit® gyms in Amsterdam

A CrossFit® training in Amsterdam is to be found anywhere. Open your front door and within five minutes you’re sweating your ass off in a CrossFit® box. To name a few:

Where to do CrossFit® in Rotterdam?

Finding a CrossFit® box in Rotterdam is easy too. Hotspots below:

  • CrossFit® Rotterdam Noord: CrossFit® Blijdorp
  • CrossFit® Rotterdam Alexander: CrossFit® SDS
  • CrossFit® Rotterdam Zuid: CrossFit® Nultien
  • CrossFit® Rotterdam Kralingen: CrossFit® Kralingen
  • The best CrossFit® boxes in The Hague

    Practice CrossFit® in The Hague with your OneFit membership right here:

    Where to go for CrossFit® in Utrecht?

    CrossFit® in Utrecht is booming too. There are several spots to train hardcore. A cool box in Utrecht is CrossFit® 030 Utrecht for example.

    Unfortunately, we don’t have any CrossFit® boxes in our Utrecht network right now. But, we are working really hard to connect one for our Utrecht CrossFit®-lovers. Just keep an eye on the app. It won’t take long before you’re killing that deadlift in the city with your OneFit membership.

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