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Crossfit/Running

PropStop

PropStop

Kool-Aid free since 2001.
pilot
Contributor
I'm a Crossfit believer - but it requires strict attention to form and good instructors. I was fortunate and had a very good box at my last duty station. If I was doing an exercise improperly, they'd stop me and make me do it right, regardless of what it would do to my score that day. They didn't want me to get hurt and they wanted me to come back. I really think it is a sound workout system, but as many other have said, it isn't enough for OCS. You gotta run, a lot. Also as others have said, the weight lifting won't do you much good at OCS, but the woodchipper workouts will.

I think a better prep for OCS might be something that does body weight exercises at high intensity for longer. I think that Insanity is like that, but I'm not sure. A sufficiently intense aerobics class might too, not sure.

A civilian coworker of mine at my last job was an avid Crossfitter and distance runner. He got picked up for Army Guard OCS and said that Crossfit was helpful, but he was actually in better shape before going to OCS than after.
 
insanebikerboy

insanebikerboy

Internet killed the television star
pilot
None
Contributor
Ralph said:
I know a couple of seals who do crossfit. Didn't know that it had such a bad rap.
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Go ask them how mucht they add on to the workouts Crossfit has. I would be extremely surprised if they said they didn't add anything else into their workout program.
 
wlawr005

wlawr005

Well-Known Member
pilot
Contributor
sealfit.com is a great place to find augmented crossfit workouts supplemented with plenty of running, swimming, and endurance exercises. Take a look there and I think you will find an excellent routine that will well prepare you for military fitness.
 
Spekkio

Spekkio

He bowls overhand.
MattWSU said:
CrossFit is too general for OCS prep. I would do a subset of it that is more focused on bodyweight movements and less on Olympic and power lifting.
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jtmedli said:
Crossfit is great if you kinda ignore the olympic lifting and stick to the basics.
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insanebikerboy said:
Go ask them how mucht they add on to the workouts Crossfit has.
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So at what point does making modifications to the CrossFit routine make it stop being 'CrossFit' and start being 'I'm just doing my own thing?'

If you can't follow the workout routine as designed then it's not a good routine, IMO.
 
Ventilee

Ventilee

Active Member
pilot
Contributor
I did powerlifting and running until about 3 months before OCS, at which point I transitioned into a Crossfit, running, and some bodyweight exercises routine until I shipped to Quantico. I wasn't crushing the PT, but I made it through without falling out of any runs or hikes.

You should check out www.marineocs.com for some more ideas.
 
MattWSU

MattWSU

Well-Known Member
pilot
Contributor
Spekkio said:
So at what point does making modifications to the CrossFit routine make it stop being 'CrossFit' and start being 'I'm just doing my own thing?'

If you can't follow the workout routine as designed then it's not a good routine, IMO.
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Unless the routine was poorly designed in the first place. Relevance to OCS aside, I think there is a lot of inherent danger in CrossFit. I did it for a few years and drank the Kool-Aid but it's becoming more evident with every high-profile injury (http://therxreview.com/kevin-ogar-suffers-serious-injury-at-oc-throwdown) that high repetitions and technical Olympics movements don't mix.

There are ways to tailor any routine to your needs and have it still be effective. CrossFit is just an abstract term for high intensity circuit training. Call it whatever you want.
 
BigBadBoJenkins

BigBadBoJenkins

NA
pilot
In my experience with crossfit there are some viable concerns. The biggest problem is when an irresponsible gym will take on a new customer that is in horrible shape, and has never been an athlete in their life, and then throw that person into the deep end of the pool doing very advanced weightlifting with high reps. While I have been doing it I have seen many people come in for a trial, and never see that person again. I have also seen a lot of people get injuries. The culture is pretty intense, and people don't want to stop themselves when they start feeling pain sometimes.
 
xj220

xj220

Will fly for food.
pilot
Contributor
BigBadBoJenkins said:
In my experience with crossfit there are some viable concerns. The biggest problem is when an irresponsible gym will take on a new customer that is in horrible shape, and has never been an athlete in their life, and then throw that person into the deep end of the pool doing very advanced weightlifting with high reps. While I have been doing it I have seen many people come in for a trial, and never see that person again. I have also seen a lot of people get injuries. The culture is pretty intense, and people don't want to stop themselves when they start feeling pain sometimes.
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That is the other end of it and I completely agree that with some there is that culture. I've been very fortunate though that the gyms I've been to have not had that culture. Again, one of the issues with crossfit is the lack of overall structure and uniformity between the gyms. If you are going to do crossfit, check out the gym first and look for any warning signs. In the end, you know your body and only do what you are comfortable with doing.
 
Facepalm

Facepalm

SNA hopeful
Looks like you've already got a few answers but I'll throw in my $0.02. When I was first interested in PLC my PFT was around 240, now I can get a 300 with little effort. Find something fun, and stay dedicated and you'll be fine, and what ever you do don't add to much milage to your program too quickly. You shouldn't run anything over 10 miles a week at first if you're a beginner. Than you should only increase 10% a week example:

Week 1: 10 miles total
week 2: 11 miles total
week 3: 12.1 miles total

I recommend working on speed once a week, and endurance on the other days you choose to run.

Good example of a speed workout that I like to use:

warm up: jog 800 m

Workout:
run 800 m @ goal 5k pace
Rest the amount of time it took you to run 800m then repeat 5 more times.

Cool down: light jog for 4-5 minutes. Then get a really good stretch to speed up recover and help reduce tightness.

Side note on cross fit, if you do it, don't kip...cuz that makes you a gay.
 
enlUSMC

enlUSMC

It's SWOtastic
Try the MARSOC 10 week prep course (maybe modify to less rucking and more running).

Also, I put together workouts using Mark Lauren's body weight fitness iPhone app. I supplement with extra running as needed and I probably saw faster gains than I had in the gym. No amount of curls can make you do a thousand burpees or push-ups at OCS.
 
webmaster

webmaster

The Grass is Greener!
pilot
Site Admin
Contributor
Over the last year I have seen the most gains by interleaving dedicated sprinting days with my longer distance runs. Probably the best advice I have received for working through some running times that I was having trouble decreasing. Ymmv.
 
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