As you look at most Crossfitters, they appear to be fit athletes, but the thought of power lifter does not come to mind. I have attended several Cert’s and visited several affiliates and there appears to be a common theme overwhelming the Crossfit community. As you grow stronger your Metcon will improve as well.
I am not going to put all of the scientific reasons this happens in this post, I am just going to share the empirical data/observations. As I talk to affiliate owners, watch our own athletes, and then have conversations at Certs. it becomes clear that the people who excel in Metcons are usually the strongest as well. Look around the Gym and watch the data on the strength portion of our workouts and then look at who usually has the best Metcon times.
Don’t just take our small sample, but go to a Rippetoe Starting Strength Seminar (formerly Barbell Cert.). Rip shares his experiences and evidence (and the science) travelling the Crossfit community and discussing atheltic performance. I did this a few weeks ago and listened to Rip’s empirical data, and then also listened as affiliate owners or other trainers shared the same experience.
Now I am not suggesting you can not have great Metcon times without strength. Depending on the content of the Metcon (Cindy is a good example) strength may not be a limiting factor. If you look at the goal of Crossfit, preparing for the unknown and unknowable, pulling workouts from the hopper, it is highly likely that a “Strong” individual will outperform.
Lastly to bring the message home let’s look at some empirical data that is broader than our gym. Crossfit Games this year had an event with a 505# Deadlift. All of the top 5 finishers lifted this weight or 95% of it. Now let’s look at an individual who is typically held in high regard within the community and consistently performs at the highest levels, Josh Everett. Look at these stats:
Bodyweight 185#
Deadlift Max 570#
Squat Max 440#
Clean & Jerk 347#
I only aspire to put those weights up and if you are not convinced of his Metcon, search the main site and look at his most recent “Isabel” video.
To wrap up, an extremely long post for me, take a look at our recent programming with a significant portion dedicated to strength. Hope this post clears up why the programming looks the way it does and convinces you that we are always committed to making all of us the best athletes possible.
HOORAH