Rest Day/Theory

Journalist Jon Friedman offers his views on why CrossFit has become an easy target for media criticism.

Throughout history, there is one other constant in addition to the inevitability of death and taxes: It is the principle that the media love to build you up and then knock you down. You can chalk it up to the price of success.

This syndrome affects politicians, rock ’n’ roll stars… Continue Reading

Researchers are discovering exercise—especially intense exercise—can be an effective part of treatment of addiction, but it isn’t the only part.

The solitary-confinement cell at Florence State Prison in Florence, Ariz., is 8 feet by 5 feet. It contains a bed and a toilet. Prisoners in the hole are permanently shackled, and they spend 23 hours a day in the tiny cell.

Michael Gonzales spent five years in that cell. He lost 60… Continue Reading

Epictetus never did Karen or Fran, but he definitely would have understood your determination to get through the many tests of the CrossFit Games Open.

“Let others practice lawsuits, others study problems, others syllogisms; here you practice how to die, how to be enchained, how to be racked, how to be exiled.” —Epictetus, The Discourses

The 2014 Reebok CrossFit Games Open is almost here, and we are about to be tested again… Continue Reading

Long-married couples offer relationship advice that has nothing to do with an obnoxious red teddy bear holding an I-love-you sign.

We’re good at Valentine’s Day. From fine chocolates to red-and-pink candies, shelves are stocked with heart-shaped everything the moment Christmas ends.

Feb. 14 allows flower stores to make a killing on roses and sweetheart bouquets, while restaurants enjoy one of the busiest nights of the year. Children in grade… Continue Reading

Love: you know it when you taste it.

A great many people take their coffee very seriously; they say they love coffee and can’t do without it. Some even say they have found the perfect cup, and it’s at CrossFit HQ.

There are a handful of brewing methods practiced at the office, but the one that has taken hold most firmly is rooted deep in the West Coast practice of “letting it drip.”

As you might… Continue Reading

In December 2013, CrossFit offered its first women-only Level 1 Seminar. It was two days in Dubai that hinted at rebellion, equal rights and a movement still at its infancy. Andréa Maria Cecil reports.

Abeer Al Khaja was visibly excited as she introduced herself to CrossFit Inc. Level 1 Seminar Staff in late December 2013. It’s a scene that plays out every weekend inside CrossFit affiliates the world over, but at… Continue Reading

Bodybuilder Coco Kissack shares her story of a dark descent into the world of steroids and side effects. Maureen O’Hagan reports.

At first, her vision started to go. There was blurriness and vertigo. And everywhere she looked, there was a floating spot.

She was putting on weight, watery, puffy weight. She was just plain uncomfortable in her clothes, and she sweated right through them. That was new. Meanwhile, she was losing her voice.

“I convinced… Continue Reading

At Cairo’s lone CrossFit affiliate, athletes sweat out the stress of living through the Egyptian Revolution. Bryan Anderson reports.

Adham Salloum, 26, is standing inside a health club on the edge of Cairo, Egypt. He grabs a pair of gymnastics rings and heaves himself up.

A dozen of his comrades are standing around him. They clap and they shout, urging him on: “Yalla, Adham!” (“Yalla” means “come on” in Arabic.)

He pulls on the rings again… Continue Reading