Post by CrossFit Young Athletes on Nov 13, 2011 16:08:08 GMT -5
First and foremost, welcome to the CrossFit Young Athletes discussion forums. There are a lot of knowledgeable people on these boards, so please don't hesitate to ask questions BUT please read through this before posting especially if you've made it here before checking out the main site (www.crossfitallstars.weebly.com) (work/family/safe). This post is meant to be a FAQ for the forums, as well as a list of "best practices". For quick scanning, look for the blue phrases to find the frequently asked questions on this post.
- When making your first post, think a lot about your goals and write them in quantifiable terms, but be sure to include your fitness goals as well. "I want to lose 25lbs" is all well and good, but is your goal to be generally more fit? stronger? be able to run longer distances like 10k+? The answer to these questions are important to get the best information out of the posters on this forum.
- When you don't know how to do a movement or exercise, refer to the Exercises & Demo's page first: www.crossfitallstars.weebly.com/exercises.html (WFS).
- If you've read through all of the FAQ, scoured the forums for various information, and are still hungry to learn, subscribe the the CrossFit Young Athletes Chronicles at www.crossfitallstars.weebly.com (WFS) and read/watch everything they have that interests you.
- "I'd like to work out in my home gym, what do I need?". Search the Crossfit Journal for "Garage Gym" articles. Also, use my advice on searching (listed below) to search the Equipment forum www.board.crossfit.com/forumdisplay.php?f=10 (WFS)... it has been discussed at length.
- "CF Affiliates are expensive!". Many CF Affiliate gyms are more expensive than your typical "globo-gym". There have been many discussions on this, so please use my advice on searching the forums (see below). It does boil down to the quality of the training, and the fact that you are more 1-on-1 with the trainer than you would be at a globo-gym with a basic membership.
- If you don't have a gym membership, and/or don't have a lot of equipment at home, visit this thread to learn how to do CrossFit with limited or no equipment.http://board.crossfit.com/showthread.php?t=38312 (WFS).
- "How many rest days do I take? I'm worried that I might be over-training." - For beginners, it's highly recommended to do 1day on 1day off to start with. Work your way up to 2/1 then 3/1. Common workout schedules for those that have been CF'ing for awhile include 3/1, 3/1/2/1, and 5/2. The most simple answer: Listen to your body. You're not going to lose out on strength by taking a rest day. Quoting one of my favorite characters on here Jamie Skibicki... "You don't get fitter from training, you get fitter from recovering from training." A general rule is to do a half-intensity week every 4-6 weeks to give your body some rest, and also do a complete week off from CF every 3 months or so.
- "How do you keep track of your workouts?". Many people use the following sites to track their progress: www.logsitall.com (WFS) www.beyondthewhiteboard.com (WFS)
- New to CF, but are an experienced Endurance Athlete or Lifter? Looking for a more specialized intermediate plan? CrossFit Endurance: www.crossfitendurance.com/ (WFS) CrossFit Strength Bias: journal.crossfit.com/2009/02/...ength-bias.tpl (WFS, must be a journal member) www.board.crossfit.com/showthread.php?t=42787 (WFS, Forum Post)
- "What's this 'Starting Strength' I keep hearing about?". Starting Strength (SS for short) is a book/program by Mark Rippetoe. It is designed to take a beginner and improve his/her raw strength and to have strength gains that continue on a linear path (imagine a chart) upward. It is often recommended to people on these forums for people who can't lift enough in the Deadlift, Back Squat, Shoulder Press, etc (though it is often debated what "enough" is as a benchmark). It's a great beginner program and only requires learning 5 lifts: Squat, Bench Press, Deadlift, Power Clean, and Shoulder Press.
- "These workouts seem so short, should I be adding cardio or something?". Depending on your goals, probably not. Especially as a beginner, recovery is important, and these workouts will tax your system PLENTY. Also, while many of the workouts seem relatively short, tell me if you need "cardio" after you run through a workout as fast as possible. If you're looking to improve your 5k or even 10k times, the WOD will provide enough work to improve those runs.
- "I play a sport, how can I do CrossFit?". Work it into your schedule, but be sure to have enough recovery days. Recovery is just as important as the actual work.
- After reading about nutrition, the first question is often see is "Should I do Paleo or Zone?". Remember that Paleo = Quality of food, Zone = Quantity of food. Many people will recommend fixing the quality of your food before you get heavy into weighing and portioning via the Zone. (Search both of the terms "Paleo" and "Zone" in the forums... TONS of info)
- If you don't have access to a coach or trainer, take full advantage of the Digital Coaching Forum www.board.crossfit.com/forumdisplay.php?f=6 (WFS). Post a video of your lifts, take criticism, work on your form, repeat.
- Rhabdomyolysis (or Rhabdo for short) is the excessive breakdown of muscle tissue that the body cannot keep up with, and can result in kidney failure and even death. A few exercises that CrossFit prescribes, done in excess (100+ reps, etc), can and has caused this condition. Read up on this subject (particularly this thread www.board.crossfit.com/showthread.php?t=38220 WFS), and be careful when doing high repetitions of Jumping Pull-ups, Thrusters, GHD sit-ups, and Kettlebell swings.
Finally, one of the more important skills to learn around here is how to search the forum. If you have a question about something, please use the search function (and the advanced search) on the site to look for posts similar to your question. Also, you can use Google to search the boards by typing the site into the search field Example: "Best Bacon Recipes site:http://www.board.crossfit.com/".
Another often overlooked feature of the site is the "similar posts" section. If you find a post about Bacon recipes, and you don't quite find what you're looking for. If you scroll to the very bottom of the post, there will be "Similar Threads". These can be very helpful when searching for something.
- When making your first post, think a lot about your goals and write them in quantifiable terms, but be sure to include your fitness goals as well. "I want to lose 25lbs" is all well and good, but is your goal to be generally more fit? stronger? be able to run longer distances like 10k+? The answer to these questions are important to get the best information out of the posters on this forum.
- When you don't know how to do a movement or exercise, refer to the Exercises & Demo's page first: www.crossfitallstars.weebly.com/exercises.html (WFS).
- If you've read through all of the FAQ, scoured the forums for various information, and are still hungry to learn, subscribe the the CrossFit Young Athletes Chronicles at www.crossfitallstars.weebly.com (WFS) and read/watch everything they have that interests you.
- "I'd like to work out in my home gym, what do I need?". Search the Crossfit Journal for "Garage Gym" articles. Also, use my advice on searching (listed below) to search the Equipment forum www.board.crossfit.com/forumdisplay.php?f=10 (WFS)... it has been discussed at length.
- "CF Affiliates are expensive!". Many CF Affiliate gyms are more expensive than your typical "globo-gym". There have been many discussions on this, so please use my advice on searching the forums (see below). It does boil down to the quality of the training, and the fact that you are more 1-on-1 with the trainer than you would be at a globo-gym with a basic membership.
- If you don't have a gym membership, and/or don't have a lot of equipment at home, visit this thread to learn how to do CrossFit with limited or no equipment.http://board.crossfit.com/showthread.php?t=38312 (WFS).
- "How many rest days do I take? I'm worried that I might be over-training." - For beginners, it's highly recommended to do 1day on 1day off to start with. Work your way up to 2/1 then 3/1. Common workout schedules for those that have been CF'ing for awhile include 3/1, 3/1/2/1, and 5/2. The most simple answer: Listen to your body. You're not going to lose out on strength by taking a rest day. Quoting one of my favorite characters on here Jamie Skibicki... "You don't get fitter from training, you get fitter from recovering from training." A general rule is to do a half-intensity week every 4-6 weeks to give your body some rest, and also do a complete week off from CF every 3 months or so.
- "How do you keep track of your workouts?". Many people use the following sites to track their progress: www.logsitall.com (WFS) www.beyondthewhiteboard.com (WFS)
- New to CF, but are an experienced Endurance Athlete or Lifter? Looking for a more specialized intermediate plan? CrossFit Endurance: www.crossfitendurance.com/ (WFS) CrossFit Strength Bias: journal.crossfit.com/2009/02/...ength-bias.tpl (WFS, must be a journal member) www.board.crossfit.com/showthread.php?t=42787 (WFS, Forum Post)
- "What's this 'Starting Strength' I keep hearing about?". Starting Strength (SS for short) is a book/program by Mark Rippetoe. It is designed to take a beginner and improve his/her raw strength and to have strength gains that continue on a linear path (imagine a chart) upward. It is often recommended to people on these forums for people who can't lift enough in the Deadlift, Back Squat, Shoulder Press, etc (though it is often debated what "enough" is as a benchmark). It's a great beginner program and only requires learning 5 lifts: Squat, Bench Press, Deadlift, Power Clean, and Shoulder Press.
- "These workouts seem so short, should I be adding cardio or something?". Depending on your goals, probably not. Especially as a beginner, recovery is important, and these workouts will tax your system PLENTY. Also, while many of the workouts seem relatively short, tell me if you need "cardio" after you run through a workout as fast as possible. If you're looking to improve your 5k or even 10k times, the WOD will provide enough work to improve those runs.
- "I play a sport, how can I do CrossFit?". Work it into your schedule, but be sure to have enough recovery days. Recovery is just as important as the actual work.
- After reading about nutrition, the first question is often see is "Should I do Paleo or Zone?". Remember that Paleo = Quality of food, Zone = Quantity of food. Many people will recommend fixing the quality of your food before you get heavy into weighing and portioning via the Zone. (Search both of the terms "Paleo" and "Zone" in the forums... TONS of info)
- If you don't have access to a coach or trainer, take full advantage of the Digital Coaching Forum www.board.crossfit.com/forumdisplay.php?f=6 (WFS). Post a video of your lifts, take criticism, work on your form, repeat.
- Rhabdomyolysis (or Rhabdo for short) is the excessive breakdown of muscle tissue that the body cannot keep up with, and can result in kidney failure and even death. A few exercises that CrossFit prescribes, done in excess (100+ reps, etc), can and has caused this condition. Read up on this subject (particularly this thread www.board.crossfit.com/showthread.php?t=38220 WFS), and be careful when doing high repetitions of Jumping Pull-ups, Thrusters, GHD sit-ups, and Kettlebell swings.
Finally, one of the more important skills to learn around here is how to search the forum. If you have a question about something, please use the search function (and the advanced search) on the site to look for posts similar to your question. Also, you can use Google to search the boards by typing the site into the search field Example: "Best Bacon Recipes site:http://www.board.crossfit.com/".
Another often overlooked feature of the site is the "similar posts" section. If you find a post about Bacon recipes, and you don't quite find what you're looking for. If you scroll to the very bottom of the post, there will be "Similar Threads". These can be very helpful when searching for something.