Safety First

Safety First

by Chad Cilli

As Crossfit grows, we are met with a growing opposition which insists that Crossfit is inherently dangerous. First off, what isn’t dangerous? You could get hit by a car running down the side of the road or on your bike, you could drown swimming laps, people have suffered from rhabdomyolysis following marathons, Ironmans, and spinning classes, you could subluxate your radial head walking your dog. Should we do nothing? In my opinion, doing nothing has to be the most dangerous thing to do. As obesity continues to rise in this country, I expect to see more insulin induced disease and a further decline in our overall health as a nation.

What makes Crossfit dangerous? The most common attack is the high rep “technical” movements. This would be a good argument if you looked on youtube or facebook for a bit. Many “Crossfitters” butcher these lifts in pursuit of so-called “scores.” To those of us who actually understand the stimulus, these “Crossfitters” are idiots.

“What about rhabdo?!” What about it? The best defense against rhabdo is Crossfit. The next best defense against rhabdo is smart programming. There are alot of bad coaches and even more unknowing athletes who are willing to blindly follow any workout thrown at them. Often, we forget how easy it is to break people. It is better to err on the side of too light than too heavy. Great attention must be given to considering each individual’s ability and level of conditioning.

I could go on, but I think you’re getting the point. So, what do we do? As Crossfit certified trainers and coaches, and as Crossfit athletes, it is OUR responsibility to make the program safe and show others that we know what we are doing. Let’s start with the ego jerks. A clean, snatch, deadlift, etc, performed correctly is safe at post max weights. This means that if you’re max deadlift is 300 and you try to lift 500, nothing will happen. No injury, no tearing muscles, no broken bones, nada. Done improperly... that’s another story. How do we fix this? Two ways: either get a lighter weight or go slower. Let’s say for instance you’re doing Isabel. It starts well, but after a few you start having to press to lock out instead of landing locked out. It would be nice to say that you did it as prescribed, but... this is a perfect example of a situation where you need to drop the weight. Regardless of whether or not pressing to lockout is immediately dangerous to you, pressing to lock out is improper for the movement and thus unacceptable. Another example, I recently witnessed a workout where athletes’ form completely broke down. The workout had sets of heavy deadlifts. Each progressive set, backs were more rounded than before, and the once smooth deadlifts suddenly became jerky and labored. In this situation, a judgement has to be made. Either the weight should be dropped because it is too heavy to maintain good form, or the athlete should be instructed to slow down and perform each rep strictly. One of the things I have learned is that unless you’re doing a sub 2 Fran, nobody cares whether or not you’re doing it with 95 or 75 pounds, and no one is impressed by a sloppy performance no matter how fast you did it. I am much more impressed by someone doing Fran slowly, deliberately, and correctly than I am by someone doing Fran quickly, uncontrolled, and improperly. I know that I’m not the only person who feels this way, you would be amazed how many affiliates do not have a leader board and instead simply post that day’s scores. Something specific I would like to share; while at Crossfit Invictus in San Diego, I heard CJ Martin say, “Who is going to win this one?” before a workout. A few athletes said “I am.” CJ replied, “No one’s going to win. I want to see you do it right.” I instantly felt comfortable and happy to be there.

Now to the programming. High reps of GHD situps, pullups, burpees, deadlifts, etc, are a loaded gun. There is no reason for a first time Crossfitter or even a regular novice to be performing these movements in high rep schemes. In fact, I don’t think I would even let a new athlete attempt a Hero WOD. This is just plain logic and common sense. Injured athletes make for poor referrals. Furthermore, it is unwise to “overprogram” WODs. Some coaches have developed a very sensitive and tuned sense for programming. If you are aware that you tend to overprogram, accept it, pick someone else’s programming to follow, and move on. My personal recommendation is Maximilian Mormont’s programming at www.maxfitusa.com. Some coaches tend to overprogram the bodyweight WODs and movements. This is unlikely to injure athletes, but leaves them deficient at strength movements and heavy WODs. Other coaches overprogram making WODs too heavy and for too long. These coaches injure athletes and add to the image of Crossfit being dangerous. The heavier it is, the shorter it should be. If you frequently see your athletes grabbing their backs, stretching their backs, or complaining of back pain, you are overprogramming, failing to scale appropriately, or you are not coaching the movements properly. Regardless, it’s your bust, fix it. Along with proper programming for the WOD, a warm up and cool down should be performed for before and after each workout. The warm up must raise the body temperature, stimulate the nervous system, and prepare our bodies for physical activity. The cool down should be just that. We should static stretch to tell our bodies to relax and release tension on our muscles. We can also use this time to increase flexibility and foam roll to stimulate recovery.

Finally, I will address safety in the gym. In my travels, as limited as they have been, I have been to about a dozen Crossfit affiliates. I have seen many good things and a few bad. First off, everywhere I’ve been has been adequately spacious. Large open floors allow for equipment and athletes to move safely and freely without fear of collision. Rubber floors are also a must. Not because they soften falls, but because you’re less likely to slip on them. All equipment should be sturdy and secure. The Ironmind racks appear to be the best I’ve seen so far. No fluff, no frills, just good solid steel racks. The GHD needs to be stable and positioned far enough away from activity that no one is in danger of colliding with the athlete using it. The Sorinex models are only slightly more expensive than other brands, but they are far superior in construction. The safest gym layouts have had almost “stations” for each athlete to train at. These stations ensure that athletes have ample room to complete the workout without fear of colliding with another athlete or equipment.

Another thing I noticed was that nearly every gym has taped their pullup bars to ensure a safe and secure grip. The few that did not have tape had a texture on the bar that was rough and held the chalk very well. As many of you know or witnessed, I had a recent experience slipping off a pullup bar. Thankfully I suffered no serious injuries, but another few inches over and I doubt I would be writing this. This carries over into all of the equipment. Everything should be as “non-slip” as we can make it whether it’s pullup bars, kettlebells, rings, or the floor. This is a no-brainer, but just like in the home, most accidents come from slips and falls.

As I stated earlier, it is OUR responsibility to make Crossfit safe. Any idiot can throw a bunch of weights around till they’re tired, our duty as coaches and athletes is do it properly every time. There is no substitute for proper form. Through these simple, and quite obvious, changes and steps we can ensure the safety of ourselves as athletes and of those we coach.