8 Ways to Not Do CrossFit at DEUCE

Fitness is polarizing, huh? They say on average 51,000 cars drive by us each day at 110 Lincoln Blvd and most of them drive by and think “There’s that CrossFit gym” and continue slugging through traffic. 

Meanwhile, neither haters nor lovers of CrossFit seem to be able to define it. 

Nonetheless, a sad truth is that our stereotype from behind the wheel of those 51,000 cars rarely comes packaged with a positive connotation. So, for the haters, here’s eight specific ways you can train that won’t make you guilty of participating in the beautifully simple, effective methodology that is CrossFit:

• Strength 101 is the best on-ramp to classic strength training this side of the Mississippi! Learn how to train loaded movement for 8-weeks with the barbell. This course is for all levels and begins Jan. 6th!
• Bodybuilding 101 is all about building muscle in those middle rep ranges. It’s the perfect course for both brand new movers who are intimidated by big lifts and seasoned movers who want to build muscle and take a break from being a cardio bunny. This course is for all levels and begins Jan. 
• Strongman 101 is the original DEUCE Specialty course and introduces new movers to the strength sport of strongman! You’ll load atlas stones and carry kegs and flip tires – oh, my! This course is for all levels and begins Jan. 22nd!
• Pain Free Movement 101 is the perfect course to set a foundation of training. You’ll learn to breathe, brace, and move to safe ranges of motion! This course is for all levels and begins Jan. 23rd! 
• Weightlifting 101 is all about the sorcery of the snatch and clean and jerk. This course only comes around twice per year and features video movement analysis! It’s open to all levels and begins February 6th!
• Personal Training: Virtually every staff coach offers personal training services that are tailored to your ideal training style, goals, and time slots. 
• Breath + Exposure: for thousands of years humans have known that breath is the bridge between the mody and mind. We built LA’s first ice bath and sauna facility and have led thousands through their first experience. 
• Gymnastics: is there are more fundamental training style than one that seeks master of your bodyweight in space. Join us Tuesday evenings at 6:30pm for the most inclusive gymnastics training environment for adults. 
• Nutrition: we have not one, but two nutrition courses to meet the specific needs of our students. Whether you’ve struggled in the past with your relationship to food or you are a seasoned expert in macronutrient-conscious food consumption, we have an offering for you. 

The million dollar question, though, is whether or not General Physical Preparedness (GPP) is CrossFit. Keep in mind the practice of CrossFit is a methodology with the goal of developing GPP. Simply defined CrossFit is constantly varied functional movement executed at high intensity. Our GPP program includes various methods of progression that lack stereotypical CrossFit-level variance (i.e. our 12-week cycle approach). CrossFit classicists would point to this as evidence that we are therefore not practicing. I find that those who understand the CrossFit methodology best hold its execution loosely. 

Nonetheless, every course listed above consists of functional movement executed at a relative intensity with a level of variance that supports the goal of the training experience.

So, either all of this is CrossFit or none of it is. 

Once you leave the conversation of dogma, names, and titles, you’ll have to eventually ask yourself, is what you’re doing working for you? In 2024 in the United States of America, most everyone’s training strategy is specifically not working. 

Regardless of how you classify the training experiences above, they are, in fact, working. Isn’t that what matters?