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The Crossfit model of fitness

When some magazines started to crown Triathlon athletes as the “Fittest on Earth”, Crossfit was born judging this definition by simply questioning these athletes capabilities in comparison to a Decathlon athlete – whom not only has outstanding endurance and stamina like the Triathlon athlete but also would win by far regarding strength, power, speed and coordination.

In this vacuum of a satisfying and fair definition of Fitness, Crossfit went megalomaniac and created four models that together would explain its concept of Fitness.


1st Model: the 10 general physical skills:

Pretty simple idea: a person is fit (optimum physical competence) when they train and practices the 10 general physical abilities and will never settle for a mastery in one while in detriment of another

2nd Model: the hopper

As many of you will know – the first ever Crossfit Games had its movements and repetitions randomly drawn out of a hopper in “The Ranch” and this total lack of predictability has embody one of the sport’s moto: “be prepared for the unknown and unknowable”. The implication here is that Fitness requires an ability to perform well at familiar and unfamiliar tasks combined into infinitely varying forms

3rd Model: the metabolic pathways

Again a pretty simple and generalist idea: the concept of Fitness defended by Crossfit believes and develops competency in each one of the three existent metabolic pathways aiming to achieve some kind of balance in our energetic system and again not prioritizing one to the exclusion of the other.

“The first, the phosphagen dominates the highest-powered activities, those that last less than about 10 seconds. The second pathway, the glycolyt, dominates moderate-powered activities, those that last up to several minutes. The third pathway, the oxidative dominates low-powered activities, those that last in excess of several minutes.“

What is Fitness (Part 1)” at the CF – Level 1 Training Guide

4th Model: Sickness-Wellness-Fitness Continuum

This last model includes the notion of fitness as a potential health marker and tries to establish that the fitness model defended by Crossfit is only valid when promoting health.

Therefore you would have a line going from “Sickness” – at any kind and level; going into “Wellness” – which is the first step, where all your health markers are in the normal and expected range; finally going into the last stop of the line, the “Fitness” – a state where through Crossfit and its models of fitness would bring you to achieve a certain margin of protection against the “Sickness” state – you may call it the “Super-Wellness” state.

Sickness, Wellness, Fitness Kontinuum

The idea behind such a megalomaniac model is to simply reach for the broadest and most general concept of fitness, while promoting and aiming to achieve HEALTH as a consequent natural effect.

Autor: Marcella


Based on “What is Fitness (Part 1)” at the CF – Level 1 Training Guide