Crossfit? (Dublin)

cactusgal

Hi everyone ,

Just wondering if any of you have experience with Crossfit, particularly in Dublin? Do you reckon it's better than a "normal" gym? I'd have a pretty decent level of fitness, but have been doing the same kinds of exercise for a long time now and would like to get fitter and lose about a stone. Crossfit is a lot more expensive than the gym (the one nearest me is around e130 a month) so I'm curious, is it a lot different or better?

I know there's a few other Crossfit threads in this forum, but they're pretty old. If anyone has any feedback, I'd like to hear it. Thanks!!

MightyMandarin

It depends what your goals are. If you want to improve your physique and get stronger, a 'normal' gym is grand. Crossfit gives you a lot of variety in workouts and the workouts are probably more fun than individual training in normal gyms. That said, I find my gym perfect, as I have good equipment, the guys there are sound and it's very cheap (€200 p/year). Crossfit will get you fit, and as long as your diet is good, your physique will improve, I just find that normal weightlifting will get me to my goals faster as I'm breaking down muscle fibers and I'm not burning as much calories as I might do in a Crossfit gym. But do whatever feels best, although €130 p/month is quite steep.

ted1

MightyMandarin wrote: »

It depends what your goals are. If you want to improve your physique and get stronger, a 'normal' gym is grand. Crossfit gives you a lot of variety in workouts and the workouts are probably more fun than individual training in normal gyms. That said, I find my gym perfect, as I have good equipment, the guys there are sound and it's very cheap (€200 p/year). Crossfit will get you fit, and as long as your diet is good, your physique will improve, I just find that normal weightlifting will get me to my goals faster as I'm breaking down muscle fibers and I'm not burning as much calories as I might do in a Crossfit gym. But do whatever feels best, although €130 p/month is quite steep.

The first rule of crossfit club, is to talk about crossfit.

It's a big investment both money wise but also lifestyle. Everybody I know that goes it have dropped other things and it's taking over their life. Constantly training their and when not training their talking about it.

Now if your happy to put in the hours and dedication then go for it , you will see results, but it deffo different than joining a regular gym.

I myself have a cost v results policy and at 130 a month + countless hours I'd rather get liposuction/ plastic surgery and do a few hours of cardio.

After all my spare time is precious

CrazySka

Here goes, dont post here much, people will probably disagree with me but I have been dong crossfit for the last four years or so, in a couple of different boxes (with some visits to others). Haven't for the last few months as I'm injured (my own fault not Crossfits), Ive been training in an ordinary gym but will be going back to Crossfit ASAP to be honest.

Crossfit can be good or bad depending on the level of knowledge of the trainers involved, quite a few different boxes I visited had no long term strategy for their clients and basically have a plan of pushing people to their physical limits with limited correction to poor form which has a lottery of results depending on the client. Some of the others though, have great really knowledgeable coaches and a safe approach towards progression in terms of strength and form.

Anyway, that's a digression from the original question, speaking from my experience,
Positives: Really good initial results, really great community in most boxes, class format is a big motivator.
Negatives: Cost is the big one, people will say injury but in the right facility with good coaches I think its less likely than training in an ordinary gym after a trainer has briefly gone through movements with you.

Theres some movements performed in crossfit that I'm not sure are useful spending time learning due to their complexity depending on the age of the person who'll be training and how regularly theyll be training, some other gyms do similar stuff but without these movements, they can be worth considering too, some crossfits will have an alternative that wont include these more advanced movements till later.

Anyway here's a couple of links for you that might help:

http://breakingmuscle.com/crossfit/crossfit-crossfit-right-how-choose-good-crossfit-gym

From an Irish gym:
http://crossfitfifteen.blogspot.ie/

LuckyLloyd

Hey,

I've been training in Crossfit Ireland in Sandyford for two years now. I'd recommend it to most people. The reasons I'd recommend CFI are:

- good and knowledgable coaches who can scale things to the individual's needs;
- a realistic ramp up process for members new to this style of training;
- a focus on good form and slow predictable progress;
- a training philosophy that eschews more complex / niche movements and instead offers a more robust S & C programming template;

CFI have made huge strides in points 2 - 4 since I started there. I think you need to do your research when making such a financial investment. Scour social media and forums for any reviews on the box you intend to join:

- are the coaches qualified?
- can the coaches scale appropriately around your abilities / injuries?
- does the gym culture fit with your goals?
- are people achieving results there over the long haul?

I disagree with some of the posts above. Crossfit doesn't have to be anything more than three good training sessions a week - it doesn't require an obsessive life commitment. Additionally, €130 is a small amount to spend each month if it achieves consistent results you desire. Price is what you pay, value is what you get.

Beware places that have beginners to weight training doing Olympic lifts; places that lack structure in their programming; places that value speed / weight over form.

Best of luck with whatever you decide.

boredatwork82

Just have to offer my 2c, I was a member of a regular gym (Ben Dunne) great gym, really affordable, saw some good results because i trained hard.
But time is of the essence, I just want to be fitter and healthier and I find crosssfit to be brilliant for me. I can go get a workout done in and out in an hour, and always feel good and challenged. I think the variety, and the fact that you just show up make it brilliant if you stuck for time.
Good instructors, Olympic lifting classes where you get a chance to correct your technique on your lifts. as well as having instructors looking at you every session.

You don't have to be a part of the "crossfit cult", you can also just turn up, train for 1 hour, and see good benefits.

andrea1983

I found crossfit useful in some respects, thing is though, olympic lifts aren't for everyone and doing complex lifts for speed is really an accident waiting to happen. Power lifts like clean and jerk etc are explosive movements that really shouldn't be done for speed and you need to have a good coach ensuring that your form is good or else you can risk significant rotator cuff injuries etc.

OpenShutter

Having trained in Crossfit for over a year and a half now, I would highly recommend it.
There are a number of reasons that I joined,
I wanted to be coached to take the hassle out of programming myself
I wanted to be pushed, lets be honest, when you want better results you need it.

Now I also train in a local Ben Dunne, and all of the knowledge that I have gained from the box
helps me train better when i am on my own. I can honestly say I am in the best shape I have
ever been in, and I am happier and a lot stronger.

Like any training you will pick up injuries along the way, but life is for living lads
your not going to die.

Yes it is expensive, but so is lots of other ****e that we spend money on.
Do yourself a favour and join for a month, you wont regret it.
Health is wealth!

cactusgal

OpenShutter wrote: »

Yes it is expensive, but so is lots of other ****e that we spend money on.
Do yourself a favour and join for a month, you wont regret it.
Health is wealth!

Thanks for your response, and for all the other responses, everyone. Much appreciated.

So it would be possible to join for just a month?

OpenShutter

From my experience most Box's run on a monthly contract, and you can just ask.

Ronin Crossfit
RF Strength and conditioning
Swords Crossfit

All good places to go in my opinion

OpenShutter

Well Cactusgal, how did you get on, did you join anywhere?

cactusgal

OpenShutter wrote: »

Well Cactusgal, how did you get on, did you join anywhere?

Hi, sorry for the delayed reply ... life got in the way and I didn't get to join, but was planning to go to Ronin Crossfit this Sat for the free intro session. But, what is the deal with the 6 intro classes that you have to do? There's one night that I can't do bc of work, so I was told I'd have to pay for private classes instead

shutup

cactusgal wrote: »

Hi, sorry for the delayed reply ... life got in the way and I didn't get to join, but was planning to go to Ronin Crossfit this Sat for the free intro session. But, what is the deal with the 6 intro classes that you have to do? There's one night that I can't do bc of work, so I was told I'd have to pay for private classes instead

The intro classes or 'fundamentals' is important. It means you can hit the ground running when you do start the classes proper.
However I do think thats a bit poor from Ronin to make you pay for a private class. Surly they could let you catch up the next time they are covering the components you missed or even take a few mins for free when you are available
You are paying for the intro, you are paying by the month so to demand you get an expensive private on top of that is bad form.
We all take ourselves very seriously these days. I suppose how else would we become elite?
Having said that. I wouldnt let it put you off crossfit. Its a great thing to do with your life and Im sure Ronin is a good gym.
Id just try to negotiate that private class!