I’d like to start this article off by highlighting two YUL athletes’ recent achievement. Julie Dodds and Megan Woodworth, recently won their region in hockey. These two girls play for the Lac-St-Louis Selects (AA hockey for those who don’t know), and they will be going to the dodge cup (which is a pretty big deal in Quebec). Congrats ladies!!
Here is Megan’s view on how CrossFit has helped her in hockey.
“I started Crossfit in July of 2013 and was hoping to become stronger and fitter for my upcoming hockey season. It didn't take long for me to notice results in the gym and more importantly, on the ice. I really found that the coaches encouraged me to push myself harder and harder with each workout. I found that I now have better stamina, more speed and explosiveness then I had ever had before. My new fitness level and strength allowed me to excel to levels I hadn't been able to reach before. The encouragement I have received this year has allowed me to reach my goals on the ice this season.”
I wish CrossFit existed back when I played hockey competitively. My coaches would always tell me that if I wanted to go further in this sport, that I would have to put on size. I was pretty lanky, and easily got pushed around by the bigger girls. When I was looking to play in University, I began working with a personal trainer during the summer. Although I did see some results, the results CrossFit has brought me (years later) are unparalleled. I believe this is attributed to the competitive nature of CrossFit, the accessibility and the translatable results.
For a visual. Right is me while I was playing hockey and working with a trainer in the summer, and left is me after doing under 2 years of CrossFit.
What makes CrossFit great for sport teams is that it is designed to be done with a group. Therefore, the equipment, the space, the programming and the coaching are all designed to serve teams of people. In CrossFit classes, everyone is competing with each other, because at the end of the workout your score goes on the board. However, the biggest competition is always with yourself. As a CrossFit athlete you are constantly striving for new personal records, and reaching new goals. We are constantly pushing our limits, and every time we step into the gym, we seek to improve ourselves. CrossFit really teaches you the importance of goal setting and changes your perspective on practice and training all together. Back when I played sports, practice and training always felt like the team vs. the coach. I believe that my attitude toward practice would have been completely different, had I been introduced to CrossFit. In CrossFit, our goals revolve around tangible numbers, and we really see the fruits of our labour. It has shown me that if you set out to improve yourself each practice, instead of just going throug the motions because the coach says so, you can really obtain remarkable results. As anyone who has played on a team knows, achieving and “suffering” as a team leads to team bonding and with CrossFit it will give an entire team similar goal-orientation.
At the CrossFit level 1 course, we were taught “that the fear of sporting failure is worse than the fear of death” (CrossFit, 2009). Human beings are competitive by nature, and by adding competition into performance programming, CrossFit has yielded unprecedented results. Just to point out a few: Fran times are dropping below 2 minutes, CrossFitters are snatching 300# and deadlifting 500#, all while maintaining a sub 21 minute 5KM run. The numbers CrossFitters have been putting up are astonishing, and far from plateauing. Year after year, CrossFit has been pushing the limits of what the human body is capable of.
The CrossFit philosophy has become so popular, because at the end of the day, it obtains results that translate any athletic endeavor. Each person who walks into a CrossFit box, is treated like an elite athlete. Professional athletes have been training this way for years, football players, hockey players etc, today, ppl want to look and move like pro athletes. CrossFit programming is not “dumbed down” to avoid the challenging situation of teaching people with no experience, how to perform functional movements. They are called functional movements, because they appear in everyday life, for all of us. CrossFit believes that each person deserves the respect of having the chance to reach their full potential. It has been shown time and time again, that functional movements are what get people results. Therefore, CrossFit makes sure that everyone is working on these movements.
Great athletes all have powerful hip prowess. CrossFit has found that “powerful hip extension alone is necessary and nearly sufficient for elite athletic performance” (CrossFit 2009). All human movement is generated from the hips or core, and released to the extremities of the body. A Strong core is crucial to movement efficiency. If you don’t believe me, check out Max Pacioretti and PK Subban in these two videos:
Max Pacioretti doing a 57” inch box jump… 4 foot 9 inch box jump.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qnhEzHdmJLg
PK Subban doing a sled pull.. I counted 10 plates
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PxWlBJEXQok
To build athletes with a powerful core, CrossFit prescribes a strength and conditioning program. First, it is a core curriculum, meaning the fitness it develops is foundational to all other athletic needs. Secondly, in the literal sense, much of CrossFit’s work focuses on the major functional axis of the human body, the extension and flexion of the hips, and the flexion, extension and rotation of the torso (CrossFit, 2009). CrossFit builds their athletes from the inside, out (core to extremety), which is how we naturally recruit muscle, making CrossFit functional to all other athletic needs.
The difference between amateur athletes and PK & Max, is that, amateur athletes aren’t making millions to play their sport. PK and Max have the luxury to afford some of the best sport trainers in the world. What’s great about CrossFit, is that, it has made elite athletic training accessible to all. These days, to obtain CrossFit-like core strength and conditioning programming with a personal trainer, top dollar must be paid. I used to train with a notable sports trainer during the summer, and it cost my parents thousands of dollars for just 2 and a half months, and only 2-3 a week.
Today, I could have joined a CrossFit gym with unlimited training sessions per week, high quality coaching, for only about $150 per month. Moreover, many CrossFit gyms now offer off-season training deals for teams. Although CrossFit is a general program, coaches are able to make programming more sport specific. For instance, there now exists CrossFit Football, Striking, and Gymnastics.
Before joining any CrossFit gym, do your research. Some gyms are much more bargain for your buck. CrossFit has had much adversity because coaching quality varies from gym to gym. Look for gyms with head coaches who are: accessible, have degrees, have lots of experience training athletes, and have a wide variety of certifications. As mentioned there are some CrossFit sport specifc certification, but not many, it is important to look for coaches who understand your sport or have enough education (understanding the body) to make sport specific programming. When I first joined YUL, I was happy to know that the coaching staff was well equiped. For instance, the head coach alone not only had over 4 CrossFit certifications but he also has a Master’s in kinesiology and nutrition. I knew right away that I could trust him and his fellow coaches to program and advise me in a safe and effective way. Moreover, I loved that all the coaches at YUL are previous competitive athletes (in other sports), they really undersood the mind set of an athelete.
In conclusion, I think every team and/or athlete should be taking advantage of CrossFit. It will strengthen every athlete both physically and mentally. Not everyone is born with a natural gift/ability of being a competitive athlete, but I guaratee that stepping into a CrossFit gym will bring you closer to reaching your athletic goals. I would love to hear more from any other YULer or CrossFiter out there who has made gains in their sport after starting CrossFit. How has CrossFit helped you in your Sport!?!? Comment on the article or email me [email protected].
