Tips for CrossFit beginners

We have all been beginners and we have seen how the rest of the class "did things much better than us", but if you don't give up you will end up being like one of them, believe me it's only a matter of time. 

Here are a few tips to help you to better cope with the adaptation at the beginning.

Do not be afraid

Being the new kid in the class can be a little scary, but remember that people don't care about you as much as you think they do..

Although it may be shocking to see others doing a lot of things, very fast and with a lot of weight, don't worry, we all need time.

Don't compare yourself with othersYou don't know how many hours of training they have ahead of you. Focus on enjoying yourself.

You don't need anything to get started

You will see that your colleagues are equipped with a lot of accessories that you didn't know about before. Don't worry, you don't need to get all the equipment at once.

The most important thing is not the accessories, although they can help you to avoid chafing, to have a more comfortable shoe, a less painful grip... But nothing is essential.

Little by little you will discover what you need, you will probably start with suitable footwear and then come all the rest.

This is me when I started my first classes in 2014, I was wearing Free Run shoes, gym gloves, the rope was the one in the box....

Ask anything you need

Does what's written on the board sound like Greek to you? What does AMRAP, RM, EMOM, T2B... mean? And more and more. It will take you a while to get familiar with the English terms, but don't worry, you'll get to know them all.

If you want to study a little bit here is a post that explains the types of wods and here exercises in English. 

Don't pretend to learn everything on the first day, but don't be left with doubts that leave you lost. Remember that no one is born taught. Ask the coach, ask the guy next to you, everyone will help you. At CrosFit we are very nice people 😉.

In CrossFit we do a lot of exercises, you will have time to learn the different movements.

First the technique, then everything else

Don't be in a hurry to add weight to the bar before you really feel comfortable with any exercise. Always technique first, and when technique is yours and you are gradually training strength, you can add weight to the bar.

Keep in mind that if you don't follow this order and start moving a lot of weight without the correct technique, your evolution will not be good. Either you will easily stagnate or you could even end up hurting yourself. Your coaches will always help you, listen to them!

If you want to consult some articles written by experts in the field, here are some tutorials gymnastics, weightlifting, rowing...

Scaled is not synonymous with easy

Linked to the previous point, technique is always the most important thingbut now even more so. 

It is time to learn the exercises, integrate them and get to know the sensations.. For that it is necessary to do the exercises at your level, it does not matter if it is a "scaled" version.

Climbing is about adapting to your needs. It is not to make it easy, but to look for the point that is demanding at your level, not above your possibilities.

A good coach will help you determine what type of training is best for you, so that it is demanding but realistic at the same time. 

Have no doubt that all RX had to be Scaled before. 

Even when you have been training for a long time, you may not always end up doing the wods in the RX version and with some wods you may have to scale the movements.

More is not always better

We've all been hit by CrossFit fever. You meet it and you're immediately hooked. You see the results and you just want more and faster.

More is not always better. Recovery is important to stay injury free and keep training at a good pace.

We are talking about lThe risks of CrossFit here.

And above all, don't forget what your goal is. Unless you want to go on to compete in the Games (less than 1% of practitioners achieve this) CrossFit has to be demanding but also fun.

Don't get frustrated.

By now you've probably figured out that doing CrossFit means doing a lot of things you've never done before and may resist at first.

Don't get indignant, put things in perspective. Professional weightlifters spend their whole lives perfecting 2 moves: snatch and clean and jerk. 

CrossFit combines many disciplines, there is a lot of work, don't compare yourself to the wrong people. 

Be patient and use the Open Box classes to improve those things that interest you the most.