CrossFit isn’t just for people who are already in good shape, it’s a great way to lose weight and get strong for overweight and out of shape people as well.

It’s a place where people of varying abilities and levels of fitness can come together and take part in the same workout, at different skill levels but all with the same great attitude and goal of self-improvement.

I started CrossFit about half way through my 80 pound weight loss journey, and was really nervous at first because I was so out of shape. But it didn’t take long for me to get comfortable, and to start seeing myself change in the mirror even faster than I already was with light exercise and good nutrition.

How CrossFit Works

The most important aspect of CrossFit is in the name… it aims to train your body across a wide spectrum of movements and abilities.

Each day, there is one workout called the WOD (Workout of the Day), where everyone who attends the class that day will be doing the same workout. Everyone works with the trainer as a group to warm up, learn the proper movements for the day’s activity, and to do the workout itself which usually takes less than 30 minutes.

The type of exercises involved in CrossFit vary from cardio and running, to body weight exercises, to weight lifting. This variety not only makes for a body that is well balanced in muscle and ability, but it is also very effective for weight loss.

Weight training is a surprisingly great way to boost your metabolism over a period of days, making it an excellent fat burning method in addition to the more obvious muscular benefits. With the combination of both resistance training and cardio in your routine, you allow your body to burn fat and transform very quickly.

But most importantly when you pair your workout routine with healthy eating, you will truly be giving yourself the best chance for long term success and rapid results, as well as make your weight loss journey much easier overall.

Anyone Can Do It!

One of the first things a trainer will tell you is that all of the movements involved in CrossFit can be scaled down meet to anyone’s needs. “Scaling” a workout is extremely normal, even for those who you would consider to be in great shape, so don’t feel like you’d be out of place by taking advantage of it because it’s completely expected.

If you’re worried that you can’t do a pull-up, it’s okay because there are easier variations of the pull-up, and you can bet there will be other people in class doing them like that too. Eventually you will work your way up to normal pull-ups and have one of those CrossFit moments where you do something you never knew you could.

If the weight for the workout is a bit too high you can simply reduce it… and for any other movement or activity there is a way to make it work for anyone of any fitness level.

Being Surrounded By Great People

If you don’t notice from the moment you set foot into a good CrossFit gym, then surely right after your first workout you will see that it is a safe place to come and improve yourself without the worry of clashing egos.

I was really nervous going to my first class because I was so out of shape, but I saw right away that because of the people I was surrounded by, CrossFit was a safe place for me to continue my weight loss journey.

At the very end of my first workout, when everyone else was finished and I still had one more lap to run, instead of gathering their things to leave like I thought they might, everyone gathered around me for another lap to cheer me on until the finish.

It was possibly the most empowering moment of my entire transformation so far, to have a circle of people around me encouraging me to keep pushing myself harder than I knew I could, caring only that I was giving my best and not that I had fallen behind.

This is exactly the type of community and support that is such a big part of the CrossFit tradition.

With a good gym comes a strong sense of community and support, which in itself is one of the most powerful aspects of being a part of CrossFit… being surrounded by people who want to see you succeed and those who know how to help you reach your goals.

Amazing Things Happen at CrossFit

At CrossFit, you will constantly discover you are able to do things that you never thought you could. It’s an amazing thing to discover that you were able to do something you were previously incapable of doing, like doing a pull up or running a mile without stopping.

Each day will leave you feeling excited about the accomplishment of finishing the WOD with your partners, and completely confident that you made excellent progress towards your fitness goals.

CrossFit isn’t just for well-conditioned athletes, it’s a place for anyone of any size and shape to come and improve their health. When you talk to the other students in class, you learn that many of their stories begin with being overweight and wanting to make a change for the better.

We all have that friend who at one time or another has tried to get us to go to a CrossFit class… so why not give it a try? You never know, it may change your life!

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