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Integration of Concepts Paper

Ben Tripp

California State University, Sacramento Kinesiology 133

Dr. Smith 3/25/2016

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Crossfit is an aspect of the fitness industry that draws a lot of different opinions . These

opinions can range anywhere from, “Crossfit will fix the obesity epidemic of this country,” to

“Crossfit is the worst thing since the Atkins diet.” There are many views and opinions of

Crossfit from experts in the field of Kinesiology, like Mark Rippetoe or Dr. Allison Belger for

example. I am going to show you how Crossfit is viewed by these sub disciples: sport

psychology, sport history, sport sociology, and exercise physiology.

Sport psychology is the study of psychology in the field of sports and athletics, to see

what makes a player succeed or not. This is much different than traditional psychology, which

just studies illnesses and disorders. Sport psychology watches and observes how and why

people act and think a certain way in a kinesthetic setting. Crossfit, according to Dr. Belger

(2012), is a positive psychological experience. Is Crossfit really as inclusive as it sounds? In the

sports psychology world, this question gets asked about Crossfit regularly. First, let’s look at

regular gyms. Crunch Fitness is a gym that has the slogan, “No Judgments.” This implies that

when you go to this gym no one will look down on you or judge you no matter what experience

level you have or what physique you have. On the flip side, Gold’s Gym, is not known for

emphasizing no judgments. Instead, it is a gym that actually seeks members who have the

perfect physique. They do this for various reasons and do not cater specifically to overweight

people or those new to exercising. Crossfit can be either nonjudgmental or exclusive

depending on the gym and its individual philosophy because every Crossfit gym operates

individually as its own entity; anyone can open a Crossfit gym and sell to whoever they want.

One gym, which is called a box, will cater to the individual that is seeking some activity, but you

can go to the other extreme where a box will only train athletes that are training for the Crossfit

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Games. The thing that Crossfit does do is create a community of people. It is not a s ecluded

community that only certain people can get into. A quote from Dr. Belger (2012), who is a

Crossfit gym owner and a clinical psychologist says, “We know that communities can provide

the kind of social support and connectedness that foster a myriad of positive outcomes in

people’s lives” (p. 32). Belger reinforces that a community can be found anywhere in Crossfit.

Will one cater to the needs of a specific individual? Yes, and so does a normal gym like Crunch

or Gold’s Gym.

The history of sport in American culture is something that reflects the identity of our

country as a whole. Crossfit feeds right in to the history of sport in America. Competition and

sport is something that is ingrained into the fabric of the American culture. Some parents will

spend more money on their kids training and traveling in youth sports hoping for a college

scholarship, than if they just saved that money to pay for college. This shows how American

sports have developed a high competitive nature within each sport.

Crossfit, at its roots, is a competition based sport. Athletes compete each workout

against themselves, their time, and their peers’ performance. How did Crossfit become what it

is today and why is it so competition based? This derives from the root of American society. If

you look at almost every aspect of American life, we are constantly in competition, or perceived

competition. Americans love to compete against others like baseball, bodybuilding and tough

mudders, which is what Crossfit is really about. The founder of Crossfit, Greg Glassman, takes a

different approach to why Crossfit is so successful. Glassman (2002) explains, “From the

beginning, the aim of Crossfit has been to forge a broad, general, and inclusive fitness” (p. 1).

The part that Glassman leaves out of his description is the competitive aspect to the sport. The

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Crossfit games are an example of competition at its finest. This is an event that brings together

the best of the best “crossfitters” to compete against one another in various workouts. This is

why Crossfit is seen as a constant competition against others. If you watch the Games , you will

see what values Glassman holds: broad and general exercises, and athletes congratulating one

another after the competition. Crossfit will not be going anywhere anytime soon and will make

its mark on the history of sport.

Crossfit, in the realm of sport society, is a controversial topic. When you talk to

people within Crossfit and read some of the articles writing by Crossfitters, they all come to the

conclusion that they don’t worry about what other people think of them. They will defend their

institution when needed, but all in all they aren’t worried about others opinions. They

themselves don’t really place an opinion on others, but if you ask people within Crossfit they

think that most, if not all, people should be doing Crossfit. They also get a lot of joy in going to

their box every day. Parker (2012) is quoted saying, “One thing I love about Crossfit is that

every day is different—different movements and different workouts” (p. 6). Parker wrote a

journal as a beginner going into Crossfit. Parker argues that even the most untrained individual

can do Crossfit because every day is different than the next and there is always a variation to an

exercise. Mark Rippetoe, one of the leaders in the US on strength training, suggests that

Crossfit isn’t as great as it sounds because of the lack of education provided to Crossfit Coaches .

Rippetoe (2013) says, “The Ugly is that there are many thousands of CrossFit affiliates around

the world and hundreds of new “coaches” each weekend. Think about this very carefully

(Rippetoe, Do you have what it takes for a CrossFit workout? Hint: No beginners, 2013) ,” (The

Ugly section, par. 14). As mentioned before, Crossfit brings in a lot of different opinions from

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people outside of the Crossfit society. One conclusion that most people would agree with is

that Crossfit can help you become healthier. Society will always have a mixed view on Crossfit,

but in general there is no denying that they are very well liked in our society based off the rate

of new box gyms opening up in this country.

From an exercise physiology stand point, Crossfit hits on the anaerobic phases of

training, which comes with some benefits to your body and health. Crossfit hits on a multitude

of physiological realms. The main two are phosphocreatine phase and glycolytic phase. Both

are short and quick movements that last, at most, for a few minutes. Two of the most common

training methods for Crossfit involve time. The first one is called AMRAP, the second is called

EMOM. AMRAP stands for “As many repetitions as possible.” The WOD, or workout of the day,

will prescribe a certain time, then you perform as many repetitions within that designated time.

This would satisfy the glycolytic phase of training. EMOM, is “every minute on the minute,” this

is usually comprised of one repetition max. Every minute you do a repetition of a certain lift

and then rest for the 50 seconds in-between. This is satisfying the phosphocreatine phase of

training that Crossfit prescribes. WOD’s are not necessarily better for you since it is similar to

other types of training, like high intensity interval training, which provides the same

physiological benefits. Dan Diamond (2015), a health and fitness writer for Forbes, points out

that WOD’s only caters to people that can be obsessive with fitness and in turn becomes

detrimental to their physical health. Crossfit tries to counter this by coming up with fictional

characters that show the negative effects of over training. This character is called, uncle

Rhabdo, he represents rhabdomyolysis which is a breakdown of muscle fibers that get into the

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blood stream and destroy the liver. Crossfit has many physical benefits, but it can also come

with some detriments just like any other form of exercise.

I see kinesiology as a great major that is integral in our society. Kinesiology as a whole is

so important because it is about humans. The last time I checked, humans are not going

anywhere anytime soon. The department of kinesiology as a whole is extremely broad in the

name, but allows for a vast amount of sub disciplines within the name. I see this major

continuing to grow and expand, especially in America with our epidemic of obesity and

preventable health issues. I think that there will be a continuing growth and demand for

kinesiology based professionals based solely off of this issue alone.

The program as a whole at Sacramento State University is now a part of me that I will

never loose, and I mean that in the most positive way. I have grown and learned so much

information about the movement of the body and all of its sub disciplines, that I would not

have learned on my own. The part of PACC that I wish to have changed or adapted would be

less of an emphasis with some classes on physical education and more on physical activity. One

class that I think did not adapt to PACC majors was Kins 138. It was exclusively about being a PE

teacher and was not modified or adapted to help integrate PACC majors. It had content that

was applicable for PACC majors, but you were left to translate the information yourself. A class

that met in the middle for both majors was Kins 135. This was structured and taught in a way

that allowed the PETE majors to talk and act like a teacher and then let the PACC majors talk

and act like a PACC major. An example of how Kins 135 did this was on the assessment project.

Dr. Wright let each individual set their own scenarios for the assessment project instead of

restricting the criteria. I think it would be beneficial for Kins 138 to adapt this strategy or make

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a class that teaches about strategies in physical activity. Besides this slight change in the PACC

program, I think the types of classes that are required in this program are applicable to life

outside of college.

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Reference List

Washington Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction. . (2011, June). Washington State

OSPI-Developed Fitness Assessment . Retrieved from Washington State Assessment

Program:

http://www.k12.wa.us/HealthFitness/CBAs/Elementary/ElemConceptsOfHealthFitness.

pdf

Appetite for Health. (2012, July 31). CrossFit: Cult or Conditioning Program? Retrieved from U.S.

News: http://health.usnews.com/health-news/blogs/eat-run/2012/07/31/crossfit-cult-

or-conditioning-program

Arnold, J. (2015, October 20). PE Central Lesson Ideas. Retrieved from PE Central:

http://www.pecentral.org/lessonideas/ViewLesson.asp?ID=132781#.VtYQQZMrJsN

Belger, A. W. (2012). The Power of Community: CrossFit and the Force of Human Connection.

Las Vegas: Victory Belt Publishing.

Belger, D. A. (2012). The Power of Community: CrossFit and the Force of Human Connection. Las

Vegas, NV: Victory Belt Publishing.

Buss, R. (2015, September 15). PE Central Lesson Ideas. Retrieved from PE Central:

http://www.pecentral.org/assessment/renae/LocomotorSkillAssessment_Renae.pdf

Diamond, D. (2015, May 11). Is CrossFit Safe? What '60 Minutes' Didn't Tell You. Retrieved from

Forbes: http://www.forbes.com/sites/dandiamond/2015/05/11/is-crossfit-good-for-

you-what-60-minutes-didnt-say/#4c643a413845

Everett, G. (n.d.). Catalyst Athletics Forum. Retrieved from Catalyst Athletics:

http://www.catalystathletics.com/

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Forgione, M. (2010, October 12). Do you have what it takes for a CrossFit workout? Hint: No

beginners. Retrieved from Los Angeles Times:

http://articles.latimes.com/2010/oct/12/news/la-heb-crossfit-20101012

Fortner, S. (2015, October 19). PE Central Lesson Ideas. Retrieved from Pe Central:

http://www.pecentral.org/lessonideas/smartgoals/SmartGoalSettingExampleForm.pdf

Glassman, G. (2002). Foundations. Crossfit Journal, 8.

Glassman, G. (2002). What is Fitness? Crossfit Journal, 11.

Glassman, G. (2007). The CrossFit Level 1 Training Guide. Crossfit Journal, 10.

Government of Newfoundland and Labrador. (2016, January 16). Physical Education:

Kindergarten Sample Assessment Tools. Retrieved from The Department of Education

and Early Childhood Development:

http://www.ed.gov.nl.ca/edu/k12/curriculum/guides/kcurriculum/appendix_c_july_28.

pdf

Hoback, B. (2015, September 15). PE Central Lesson Ideas. Retrieved from PE Central:

http://www.pecentral.org/lessonideas/ViewLesson.asp?ID=132759#.VtYRvpMrJsM

King, I., & Schuler, L. (2003). The Book of Muscle. Emmaus, PA: Rodale Inc.

MacKenzie, B., & Cordoza, G. (2013). Power speed endurance: A skill-based approach to

endurance training. Las Vegas, NV: Victory Belt Publishing.

Parker, W. (2012). A Beginner’s Perspective. Crossfit Journal, 6.

Prince Edward Island Department of Education and Early Childhood Development. (2014).

Prince Edwards Physical Education Student Resource. Retrieved from The Government of

Prince Edwards Island: http://www.gov.pe.ca/photos/original/eecd_PED10Tools.pdf

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Riddick, A. (2015, 10 20). PE Central Lesson Ideas. Retrieved from PE Central:

http://www.pecentral.org/lessonideas/ViewLesson.asp?ID=132773#.VtYPXZMrJsM

Rippetoe, M. (2013, December 10). Do you have what it takes for a CrossFit workout? Hint: No

beginners. Retrieved from Huffington Post: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mark-

rippetoe/crossfit-good-bad-ugly_b_4420922.html

Rippetoe, M., & Kelly, J. (2013). Starting Strength. Wichita Falls, TX: The Aasgaard Company.

Spark. (2011, March 3). Spark Assessment Tools. Retrieved from Spark:

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Catalyst Athletics.

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Outline

1. Sport psychology

A. View

i. the positivity of having a community

ii. is it a secluded community? (Belger D. A., 2012)

B. Values

i. Team values

ii. Competition values

C. Ask questions

i. Is Crossfit really as inclusive as it sounds? (Appetite for Health, 2012)

ii. Does it create psychologically healthy people?

2. Sport history

A. View

i. Americans need for sport and competition

ii. How did Crossfit become what it is today? (Glassman, Foundations, 2002)

B. Values

i. Why Americans love Crossfit

ii. Will it last or diminish? (Parker, 2012)

3. Sport sociology

A. View

i. how people within Crossfit view others and themselves, (Rippetoe, Do you have what it takes for a CrossFit workout? Hint: No beginners, 2013)

ii. how people view Crossfit and the people within it. (Stoddard, 2011)

B. Values

i. What does Crossfit value as a society (Glassman, What is Fitness?, 2002)

4. Exercise physiology

A. View

i. the benefits to Crossfit.

ii. The issues faced with Crossfit and an obese country

B. Values

i. The types of exercise programs or “WOD” (Glassman, The CrossFit Level 1 Training Guide, 2007)

ii. Are WODs better? (Diamond, 2015)

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5. How I view Kinesiology

A. Why it’s a great major

i. Enjoyed the broad overview of all the sub disciplines

B. The program

i. The good: very informative with movement as a whole

ii. PACC needs to be a little more towards PA and less towards PE