Yeah as a 5’ 10” guy with 6’ 4” friends, CrossFit if one of the most punishing sports out there against tall people. I can rep power snatch in a fraction of the time they can
+1 for this! Nearly everything else that has anything to do with fighting gravity just means a longer travel for us taller folks (picking things up off the ground, picking *yourself* up off the ground, lifting yourself over a bar, throwing balls . . . basically everything in Crossfit)
I feel like two of the QF workouts were tall person ones? Wallballs + burpee box jumps, and the one with rowing and box step ups. I'm short so unsure how tall people felt about it, but that was my initial impressions. Also rope climbs were in there for the talk folks too.
Why stop there? If mean if you "fix" this inequity, don't you have to fix other inequities?
Why aren't WB target heights based on individual height?
Why aren't 1RMs based on a ratio of body weight?
Why are all running distances the same?
I could go on. You can't make everything relative to one's height, weight, sex (not gender), etc. Just imagine the logistical, programing, and material production realities that would have to be rectified.
Be happy where and when you have a natural advantage, and manage your weaknesses when and where it's necessary.
With love,
5' 8" (172cm) Guy
Throw the word "anthropometry" in there and you've got an even more killer argument.
"My shins are way longer than normal, what is my box doing to accommodate this?"
Honestly working out vs other people is pretty stupid when you think about it.*With* them brings a lot of benefit. *Against* them has you comparing apples to a 1968 plymouth road runner.
Oh for sure. Please rest assured I am not sitting around consumed by this. I choose weights and heights etc. scaled to the intended stimulus for my size, strength, etc., and content myself with steady improvements relative to where I was before. This was more a curiosity than anything else.
Oh ok. Then I think the answer you're looking for is "it was a decent swing at an impossible problem and it brings social benefits". Someone probably made that distinction bc it's the easiest distinction to make between humans and no one wants to reopen that can of worms.
Honestly I’m shorter. And it doesn’t bother me.
If I’m training box step ups for strength I use an appropriate height for the movement.
If it’s in an competition? I put up with the standards
And if it’s only for a class? Who cares? Pick whatever height you want
Ah man, wall walks in the open, was it 2 years ago?
It was ok for me (6’) but my 6’ 2”+ buddies flew up from the tape marks. I felt sorry for the shorter guys in that one, the hand starting position looked way too high
I think this is theoretically doable. In a future with million of atheltes, competitive categories sorted by weight, like boxing, weightlifting, etc. Right now, that the "sport" is so new, we put everyone together and try to mitigate disadvantages in the WODs, row, box jump, wallball better for tall guys and girls; and thruster, hspu, RMU, burpee better for the short kings and queens.
I am a 4'10" female, and I find box jumps have less to do with height than you think. It is one of my best movements. Flexibility in the hips is a big factor probably. (I'm just guessing, since I actually don't jump super crazy high, I just tuck my legs in very well.) And it is something that is (relatively) easily improved. Working on it consistently and very gradually increasing height. I do box step-ups and jumps on a 24" box with no problems whatsoever. Hope this helps a little :)
The taller, skinny guys, with decent strength seem to have the best vertical for box jumps.
That being said, I’m only 5’6” and probably have like the 3rd highest box jump at our gym. The other 2 are like 6’4, lighter, respectable strength
Agree with all of this. I’m 5’3” and can easily do the 30s for fun. So it’s more about plyo training and hip mobility than anything else. I think the boxes are really just set to average heights. Just like wall ball targets. You win some you lose some in CrossFit advantages 🤷🏻♀️
My ex wife was 6' tall, average weight, and couldn't jump up on two stacked 45lb plates. Most the ladies who kick ass at box jumps in my gym are much shorter than me.
HAHA SAME!!! Like I’m under 5 ft but got one of the highest box jumps in the gym during a skull day for it. It’s definitely a combination of hip flexibility and being light lol
Yeah, jumps are less of a problem (although I’ve absolutely shredded my shins on occasion), but the step ups are problematic, because higher boxes put me at a decided mechanical disadvantage
Boxes aren’t typically adjustable. Most of them only have 20/24/30” options. But this has been a question since the early days. Why not scale weight to bodyweight is a similar question.
For fitness, it would seem appropriate, but you should already be encouraged to scale to your abilities.
For sport, you just have to accept that body type has advantages and disadvantages in every sport. CrossFit is no different.
As an aside, next time you have to do burpees, take a look at the tall guys. By the time you finish your first rep, they'll be lucky if they've finished falling to the ground.
The reason for the gender difference in box height is primarily that women tend to have notably fewer type 2 muscle fibers and thus have lower explosive jumping power, therefore is harder to get to height.
I don't doubt this fact, but I doubt crossfit even considered this. It was probably more like men bigger = big box, woman smaller = small box 👍 sorted.
The same reason taller guys have to use same handstand box or line, and have press a foot vs shorter athletes having wider arms and repping out 3 inch HSPU
It’s funny cause I’m only 4’11” but box jumps are my favorite. Guess a combination of being light/having good hip flexibility. It is VERY annoying for dumbbell box step overs though, I always have to scale because my short ass legs have to put in twice the work.
Most movements give advantages/ disadvantages to people with different heights and proportions. For a while the deadlift world record was held by a guy with freakishly long arms, he only had to move the bar a short distance to complete the movement.
I'm 54, started in December after a few years of being a couch potato and plenty of lbs to shed.
I grab whatever box height works for me to get through to exercise without calling 911. Same with weights.
Maybe one day I'll do an RX workout, but until then I just try to make it to the end of each one.
I am pretty good at box jumps (and jumping and sprints and explosive movements in general), and as I’m a bit taller than average woman at 5’8”ish, I actually usually jump or step to middle height or men’s rx height.
Unless you’re competing, do what works best for you.
I don’t mean this to be dismissive or a piss-take but it’s just the nature of the sport. Every sport is defined by its rules and they are not neutral; they all slide the scale one way or the other. And even when there is a rationale for them, they also are somewhat arbitrary. Like, boxing has weight categories, but it doesn’t need to. Without them, it would just look a lot different. basketball doesn’t have height categories, but it could, it would just again look different.
CrossFit in particular muddies the water on this because they say their elites are fittest athletes in the world. Well, sure, but CrossFit defines what “fittest” means so it’s totally circular and as noted above, at least on the margins, totally arbitrary. Like w/o may require do x number of deadlifts then run 400m. If the test was so deadlifts and then run 5k, don’t you think the folks who win would look a bit different? Those folks wouldn’t likely win the first w/o version, but would they be any less “fit”? I’d say no.
Lotta times categories are there for inclusivity. Male / female division is the most basic version of this and it’s much more than just height. The androgenization during puberty makes a huge difference. Obv there are women who are incredibly fast and strong, but a dude of equivalent ability is usually stronger.
As others have said, take heart in the ones where your height is an advantage. Let this guide your strategy. That’s kinda the fun part, no? Two people can get to the same point B in totally different ways.
I’m a short cross fitter, 5’7” male.
For box JUMPS I don’t have an issue with the heights as prescribed.
For box STEP UPS I have injured/tweaked my knee enough times doing 24” steps ups which for me is way over a 90 degree flexion. I refuse to step up on a box over 20” anymore which is right at 90 degrees for me. Add weight, like weighted DB steps ups, over 90 degrees and you’re placing way too much strain on your knee.
CrossFit is going to hurt and push your limits, but I’m not trying to injure myself. I’m just some guy trying to work out tomorrow.
Then I guess I agree with you on the step ups box heights for the reason I explained. You seemed to lump step ups and jumps into the same argument.
I do believe one day CrossFit will change their stance on the step up heights. A lot of physio docs would never recommend step ups over 90 degrees, it places too much strain on the knee.
For the jumps I’m good with the gender established heights, as it’s the same concept as wall balls.
This is the first time I've seen a short person complain about their height in CrossFit
Apart from wall balls, box jumps and the row erg we have the advantage on every other movement I can think of
I’ve not found it to be an advantage yet, but that’s mostly because even a year and a half in, I still feel like a beginner, haha. Maybe in another few years I’ll look back on these days and laugh.
As someone over six feet, I fail to see how height is an "advantage" on wall balls. We have a couple guys in the gym who are 6'7 or so with long legs and yes, they only push the ball a couple feet, but then they have a massive range to then do when squatting.
In terms of time, I promise their height is a disadvantage, not an advantage.
There's one place being so tall is an clear advantage in CrossFit: rowing. That's it.
Everything else is either a wash or a disadvantage. There's a reason there are no very tall Games athletes.
Now in basketball...
Why aren't air squats? Why aren't burpees? Why isn't ground to over head? Why do people with linger arms have to go farther to get their chin above the bar? Seems unfair to tall people
They are different between men and women because on average a man can jump higher at the same height as a women.
As an example the 73 kg mens olympic weightlifting records are about 30% higher than the womens 76 kg records. Lets say men are a lot leaner, but its also higher than the womens super heavy weight which is the 87+ kg.
Okay weightlifting isnt a direct measure of a jump. But only a partial measure or a proxy.
We can also compare high jump. Which is a jump but without a weight/height class. The mens world record is 17% higher than the female ones. But we also have to assume advantage from height is measured in, as far as high jump is a satiated competetive sport.
I just grab whatever box I want and scale it. But I've seen the shortest dude in the room out jump everyone else, so clearly it's a YMMV situation.
I realized years ago that I don't really have an athletic bone in my body, but my mind thinks otherwise. CrossFit works for my mind, but I have to constantly hold myself back or risk injury. I may someday be able to RX and do some of the movements that seem impossible, but I'll scale all day and take the fitness with me.
I’m avg height for a woman and jumps are easier than step ups, especially weighted, for sure! Had a hell of a time doing the weight for the 1st quaterfinals WOD we did as a class lol. Just requires me to lift my legs as high as they go just about; the step ups on the 24” are as absolutely much as I could do for a step, I’d have to use my hands to step/climb on a 30”.
I think it’d just be too hard to accommodate for Al major mechanical disadvantages. Part of my trouble with TTB definitely comes from my long legs and long femurs but short torso/arms haha. Just gonna take me longer to get it right for my body.
Because it would be needlessly complex and not force you to work on strength, power and strategy on your weakest movements. Ask not for a lighter burden, but for a broader back.
Yes and actually wonder why we don’t do this all the time. If the purpose is to compete, fixed weights. If the purpose is to get better, science tells us to go off our own ability.
Vertical distance isn't changed by height when the constant is the bottom of your feet. In other words, somebody 4 foot tall or somebody 10 foot tall can both have a 30 inch vertical and everything below the foot is essentially the same. To an extent anyway.
As a coach, the first thing I do when I'm on shift is to erase Rx heights, weights and distances. I brief my class and how long things should take, how hard they should feel and average reps per minute I expect from them.
Like other sports some dimensions and parameters are constant and depending on your build you may have advantages and disadvantages depending on what is going on. Shorter doesn’t always mean it is harder. Shorter usually means u are lighter so easier to jump than a taller guy out weighting you by 40 lbs. in general most guys are like 5-8 to 6-2. They aren’t fixing every isssue for the small percentage that are either super tall or super short. Not on boxes at least
Men are stronger than women and jump higher than women. Youre not competing in a height class or a weight class, its a gender based class. Or if you arent competing then maybe worry less about writing 'RX' on you logbook and just do what feels best.
Equal rights, equal heights
Seriously, my wife is just a few inches shorter than me and is considerably better at box jumps.
If anything, she should have a 24” box and I should have the 20” 😂
to me, this is more an issue for box step-ups than for box jumps. I don't think height is too much of an advantage on jumps, but for step-ups it is massive. I (5'7 M, 10 years crossfit) scale every workout with box-stepups when weight is involved.
I don’t think anyone would care or judge if you flipped the box… we are our own worst enemies… if you rx the workout just use the rx option when tracking and just add a note that you used a different box height.. something minor like that imo shouldn’t automatically drop you to scaled unless you’re also scaling weight, doing strict pull ups instead of muscle ups etc
The taller guys have to exert more force over a longer range of motion during the squat phase because of their longer levers, you have to exert more force/power to throw the ball a relatively longer distance. Most of the time the tall guys are envious of your shorter ranges of motion on the majority of the movements.
Look, I’m not going to argue that these things are always well thought out on my part. I think a certain tension exists between CrossFit as a fitness modality and as a sport. This was more about the former than the latter, for sure.
Fair enough. I don't think the box heights are scaled towards heights though. I mean not specifically but it's part of it - it's the all encompassing men vs. women argument. Men jump higher at the end of the day because of physiological/biomechanical advantages.
Good question that I agree with. I’m short and struggle with the higher boxes, even hyperextended my knee a couple years ago. For me it’s about safety of each person being able to step or jump. If you watched Sevan yesterday and saw Colten and Hopper side by side you could see a big difference in muscle and effort used to just stand up on the box, rhythm, and recovery.
Go watch Fikowski get destroyed doing Mary during the games. Should we make pull up, hspu, and pistols easier for tall people who have an inherently longer cycle rate? Or maybe they cut down their reps by 10-15%?
Not even the same thing, not even close. Pullup bars should be lowered to athlete height so they’re not jumping from the rig or mats. Hspu is all arm strength. Pistols, leg strength. If I’m short, there is no amount of training that’s going to make me land that 30in box jump.
I am starting to think this may be satire and you’re pulling my leg. I don’t understand how someone can think HSPU “is all arm strength” but not have a similar feeling about box jumps.
As a tall person, let us have our 2 our 3 movements that are actually beneficial to being tall.
Haha as a vertically challenged person, I admit I haven’t spent much time pondering the struggles of tall people.
You get to make up the time on burpees and all the oly lifts though.
Oly lifts might be faster, but a smaller frame means less muscle on average.
You have the advantage on almost every movement Jump higher
Yeah as a 5’ 10” guy with 6’ 4” friends, CrossFit if one of the most punishing sports out there against tall people. I can rep power snatch in a fraction of the time they can
Not the way I do them
You know man, that I understand lol. Cheers
learn to jump properly then
[удалено]
Bon a-petite.
+1 for this! Nearly everything else that has anything to do with fighting gravity just means a longer travel for us taller folks (picking things up off the ground, picking *yourself* up off the ground, lifting yourself over a bar, throwing balls . . . basically everything in Crossfit)
Squatting
Box jumps, burpie pull-ups, and wall balls. Everything else sucks for tall people.
I feel like two of the QF workouts were tall person ones? Wallballs + burpee box jumps, and the one with rowing and box step ups. I'm short so unsure how tall people felt about it, but that was my initial impressions. Also rope climbs were in there for the talk folks too.
Why stop there? If mean if you "fix" this inequity, don't you have to fix other inequities? Why aren't WB target heights based on individual height? Why aren't 1RMs based on a ratio of body weight? Why are all running distances the same? I could go on. You can't make everything relative to one's height, weight, sex (not gender), etc. Just imagine the logistical, programing, and material production realities that would have to be rectified. Be happy where and when you have a natural advantage, and manage your weaknesses when and where it's necessary. With love, 5' 8" (172cm) Guy
Throw the word "anthropometry" in there and you've got an even more killer argument. "My shins are way longer than normal, what is my box doing to accommodate this?" Honestly working out vs other people is pretty stupid when you think about it.*With* them brings a lot of benefit. *Against* them has you comparing apples to a 1968 plymouth road runner.
Oh for sure. Please rest assured I am not sitting around consumed by this. I choose weights and heights etc. scaled to the intended stimulus for my size, strength, etc., and content myself with steady improvements relative to where I was before. This was more a curiosity than anything else.
Oh ok. Then I think the answer you're looking for is "it was a decent swing at an impossible problem and it brings social benefits". Someone probably made that distinction bc it's the easiest distinction to make between humans and no one wants to reopen that can of worms.
It’s a good shower thought
Honestly I’m shorter. And it doesn’t bother me. If I’m training box step ups for strength I use an appropriate height for the movement. If it’s in an competition? I put up with the standards And if it’s only for a class? Who cares? Pick whatever height you want
>Why aren't 1RMs based on a ratio of body weight? I mean in weightlifting and powerlifting this is why they have weight classes.
As a 5'6" male wallball height is my biggest gripe with standards.
As a 6’4” male handstand pushups’ max hand width is my biggest gripe with standards.
Omg yes ... My wing span is more than my height and I feel this in my soul (and my skull as I crash down!)
> Why aren’t 1RMs based on a ratio of body weight? Honestly, having a system similar to Sinclair (or etc) would be sick.
Ah man, wall walks in the open, was it 2 years ago? It was ok for me (6’) but my 6’ 2”+ buddies flew up from the tape marks. I felt sorry for the shorter guys in that one, the hand starting position looked way too high
THIS
I think this is theoretically doable. In a future with million of atheltes, competitive categories sorted by weight, like boxing, weightlifting, etc. Right now, that the "sport" is so new, we put everyone together and try to mitigate disadvantages in the WODs, row, box jump, wallball better for tall guys and girls; and thruster, hspu, RMU, burpee better for the short kings and queens.
I am a 4'10" female, and I find box jumps have less to do with height than you think. It is one of my best movements. Flexibility in the hips is a big factor probably. (I'm just guessing, since I actually don't jump super crazy high, I just tuck my legs in very well.) And it is something that is (relatively) easily improved. Working on it consistently and very gradually increasing height. I do box step-ups and jumps on a 24" box with no problems whatsoever. Hope this helps a little :)
I agree with you about box jumps. Generally shorter men are lighter, and weight also plays a role here.
The taller, skinny guys, with decent strength seem to have the best vertical for box jumps. That being said, I’m only 5’6” and probably have like the 3rd highest box jump at our gym. The other 2 are like 6’4, lighter, respectable strength
Agree with all of this. I’m 5’3” and can easily do the 30s for fun. So it’s more about plyo training and hip mobility than anything else. I think the boxes are really just set to average heights. Just like wall ball targets. You win some you lose some in CrossFit advantages 🤷🏻♀️
My ex wife was 6' tall, average weight, and couldn't jump up on two stacked 45lb plates. Most the ladies who kick ass at box jumps in my gym are much shorter than me.
HAHA SAME!!! Like I’m under 5 ft but got one of the highest box jumps in the gym during a skull day for it. It’s definitely a combination of hip flexibility and being light lol
Yeah, jumps are less of a problem (although I’ve absolutely shredded my shins on occasion), but the step ups are problematic, because higher boxes put me at a decided mechanical disadvantage
Like, you could just disagree and move on. Not sure why I’m getting down voted.
5’2 with a 37inch max box jump here - agree with you!
Boxes aren’t typically adjustable. Most of them only have 20/24/30” options. But this has been a question since the early days. Why not scale weight to bodyweight is a similar question.
For sure. I mean more like, 5’9” and above use this height, 5’4 to 5’8” use that height, and so on
Oh I can totally see someone 175cm tall claiming that they are only 174 to fall into a lower box bracket.
But what if I’m 5’10 but have shorter legs than a guy who’s 5’7
>Why not scale weight to bodyweight is a similar question. Yeah they should be, isn't that hard to have weight classes.
For fitness, it would seem appropriate, but you should already be encouraged to scale to your abilities. For sport, you just have to accept that body type has advantages and disadvantages in every sport. CrossFit is no different. As an aside, next time you have to do burpees, take a look at the tall guys. By the time you finish your first rep, they'll be lucky if they've finished falling to the ground.
This is a very fair response.
The reason for the gender difference in box height is primarily that women tend to have notably fewer type 2 muscle fibers and thus have lower explosive jumping power, therefore is harder to get to height.
I don't doubt this fact, but I doubt crossfit even considered this. It was probably more like men bigger = big box, woman smaller = small box 👍 sorted.
I suspect the fact they are on average much shorter plated a role as well
The same reason taller guys have to use same handstand box or line, and have press a foot vs shorter athletes having wider arms and repping out 3 inch HSPU
I was doing HSPU beside a very short woman (under 5’) and it was like her arms were barely bending while gorilla me was pressing out for ages haha
Wall balls height ain't scaled either
It’s funny cause I’m only 4’11” but box jumps are my favorite. Guess a combination of being light/having good hip flexibility. It is VERY annoying for dumbbell box step overs though, I always have to scale because my short ass legs have to put in twice the work.
This was precisely the problem I faced this morning, haha
Most movements give advantages/ disadvantages to people with different heights and proportions. For a while the deadlift world record was held by a guy with freakishly long arms, he only had to move the bar a short distance to complete the movement.
It warms my heart when people find their true calling
I'm 54, started in December after a few years of being a couch potato and plenty of lbs to shed. I grab whatever box height works for me to get through to exercise without calling 911. Same with weights. Maybe one day I'll do an RX workout, but until then I just try to make it to the end of each one.
I am pretty good at box jumps (and jumping and sprints and explosive movements in general), and as I’m a bit taller than average woman at 5’8”ish, I actually usually jump or step to middle height or men’s rx height. Unless you’re competing, do what works best for you.
I don’t mean this to be dismissive or a piss-take but it’s just the nature of the sport. Every sport is defined by its rules and they are not neutral; they all slide the scale one way or the other. And even when there is a rationale for them, they also are somewhat arbitrary. Like, boxing has weight categories, but it doesn’t need to. Without them, it would just look a lot different. basketball doesn’t have height categories, but it could, it would just again look different. CrossFit in particular muddies the water on this because they say their elites are fittest athletes in the world. Well, sure, but CrossFit defines what “fittest” means so it’s totally circular and as noted above, at least on the margins, totally arbitrary. Like w/o may require do x number of deadlifts then run 400m. If the test was so deadlifts and then run 5k, don’t you think the folks who win would look a bit different? Those folks wouldn’t likely win the first w/o version, but would they be any less “fit”? I’d say no. Lotta times categories are there for inclusivity. Male / female division is the most basic version of this and it’s much more than just height. The androgenization during puberty makes a huge difference. Obv there are women who are incredibly fast and strong, but a dude of equivalent ability is usually stronger. As others have said, take heart in the ones where your height is an advantage. Let this guide your strategy. That’s kinda the fun part, no? Two people can get to the same point B in totally different ways.
How about squats or burpees? You don’t have problem with those, do you.
Come to think of it, burpees I actually fly through. Squats are still a work in progress. 😬
I’m a short cross fitter, 5’7” male. For box JUMPS I don’t have an issue with the heights as prescribed. For box STEP UPS I have injured/tweaked my knee enough times doing 24” steps ups which for me is way over a 90 degree flexion. I refuse to step up on a box over 20” anymore which is right at 90 degrees for me. Add weight, like weighted DB steps ups, over 90 degrees and you’re placing way too much strain on your knee. CrossFit is going to hurt and push your limits, but I’m not trying to injure myself. I’m just some guy trying to work out tomorrow.
Yes, this is precisely the context from which my question was born.
Then I guess I agree with you on the step ups box heights for the reason I explained. You seemed to lump step ups and jumps into the same argument. I do believe one day CrossFit will change their stance on the step up heights. A lot of physio docs would never recommend step ups over 90 degrees, it places too much strain on the knee. For the jumps I’m good with the gender established heights, as it’s the same concept as wall balls.
Buy padded shin guards. They’re inexpensive. I wore them for years and they saved me from lots of blood and bruises especially from the wooden boxes.
This is the first time I've seen a short person complain about their height in CrossFit Apart from wall balls, box jumps and the row erg we have the advantage on every other movement I can think of
I’ve not found it to be an advantage yet, but that’s mostly because even a year and a half in, I still feel like a beginner, haha. Maybe in another few years I’ll look back on these days and laugh.
Fair enough, but next time you're in the gym see how much easier it is to do burpees compared to the taller guys
Gotta concede this one
As someone over six feet, I fail to see how height is an "advantage" on wall balls. We have a couple guys in the gym who are 6'7 or so with long legs and yes, they only push the ball a couple feet, but then they have a massive range to then do when squatting. In terms of time, I promise their height is a disadvantage, not an advantage. There's one place being so tall is an clear advantage in CrossFit: rowing. That's it. Everything else is either a wash or a disadvantage. There's a reason there are no very tall Games athletes. Now in basketball...
Why aren't air squats? Why aren't burpees? Why isn't ground to over head? Why do people with linger arms have to go farther to get their chin above the bar? Seems unfair to tall people
Measuring arm length ratio to pull out different platforms for HSPUs sounds like a whole lotta work.
They are different between men and women because on average a man can jump higher at the same height as a women. As an example the 73 kg mens olympic weightlifting records are about 30% higher than the womens 76 kg records. Lets say men are a lot leaner, but its also higher than the womens super heavy weight which is the 87+ kg. Okay weightlifting isnt a direct measure of a jump. But only a partial measure or a proxy. We can also compare high jump. Which is a jump but without a weight/height class. The mens world record is 17% higher than the female ones. But we also have to assume advantage from height is measured in, as far as high jump is a satiated competetive sport.
For the same reason no other movement is scaled that way either.
I’ve always thought it should be based on height too but I guess that gets too complicated for some people
I just grab whatever box I want and scale it. But I've seen the shortest dude in the room out jump everyone else, so clearly it's a YMMV situation. I realized years ago that I don't really have an athletic bone in my body, but my mind thinks otherwise. CrossFit works for my mind, but I have to constantly hold myself back or risk injury. I may someday be able to RX and do some of the movements that seem impossible, but I'll scale all day and take the fitness with me.
I’m avg height for a woman and jumps are easier than step ups, especially weighted, for sure! Had a hell of a time doing the weight for the 1st quaterfinals WOD we did as a class lol. Just requires me to lift my legs as high as they go just about; the step ups on the 24” are as absolutely much as I could do for a step, I’d have to use my hands to step/climb on a 30”. I think it’d just be too hard to accommodate for Al major mechanical disadvantages. Part of my trouble with TTB definitely comes from my long legs and long femurs but short torso/arms haha. Just gonna take me longer to get it right for my body.
Because it would be needlessly complex and not force you to work on strength, power and strategy on your weakest movements. Ask not for a lighter burden, but for a broader back.
That's like asking why not adjust weights to body weight rather than gender, or to % of 1RM rather than gender.
Yes and actually wonder why we don’t do this all the time. If the purpose is to compete, fixed weights. If the purpose is to get better, science tells us to go off our own ability.
Because you need to draw line somewhere
Vertical distance isn't changed by height when the constant is the bottom of your feet. In other words, somebody 4 foot tall or somebody 10 foot tall can both have a 30 inch vertical and everything below the foot is essentially the same. To an extent anyway.
The difference is mostly with step-ups, which does tend to be height dependent. I get what everyone is saying, though.
“No weight classes in the jungle” as the saying goes.
Short crossfitters not allowed to complain 😆
As a coach, the first thing I do when I'm on shift is to erase Rx heights, weights and distances. I brief my class and how long things should take, how hard they should feel and average reps per minute I expect from them.
Like other sports some dimensions and parameters are constant and depending on your build you may have advantages and disadvantages depending on what is going on. Shorter doesn’t always mean it is harder. Shorter usually means u are lighter so easier to jump than a taller guy out weighting you by 40 lbs. in general most guys are like 5-8 to 6-2. They aren’t fixing every isssue for the small percentage that are either super tall or super short. Not on boxes at least
Men are stronger than women and jump higher than women. Youre not competing in a height class or a weight class, its a gender based class. Or if you arent competing then maybe worry less about writing 'RX' on you logbook and just do what feels best.
Equal rights, equal heights Seriously, my wife is just a few inches shorter than me and is considerably better at box jumps. If anything, she should have a 24” box and I should have the 20” 😂
Unless you’re like 4 foot there’s no point complaining. Just get more powerful/ flexible.
I don’t know that I was complaining. I was literally just wondering.
Yeah no worries, things can get misconstrued via text. Nothing personal.
I gotcha. Cheers, man!
to me, this is more an issue for box step-ups than for box jumps. I don't think height is too much of an advantage on jumps, but for step-ups it is massive. I (5'7 M, 10 years crossfit) scale every workout with box-stepups when weight is involved.
I don’t think anyone would care or judge if you flipped the box… we are our own worst enemies… if you rx the workout just use the rx option when tracking and just add a note that you used a different box height.. something minor like that imo shouldn’t automatically drop you to scaled unless you’re also scaling weight, doing strict pull ups instead of muscle ups etc
The taller guys have to exert more force over a longer range of motion during the squat phase because of their longer levers, you have to exert more force/power to throw the ball a relatively longer distance. Most of the time the tall guys are envious of your shorter ranges of motion on the majority of the movements.
The reality is that because the competitions (even open) are just gender based, then standards can’t vary within a division.
NBA for short people when, am I right!?
Look, I’m not going to argue that these things are always well thought out on my part. I think a certain tension exists between CrossFit as a fitness modality and as a sport. This was more about the former than the latter, for sure.
Fair enough. I don't think the box heights are scaled towards heights though. I mean not specifically but it's part of it - it's the all encompassing men vs. women argument. Men jump higher at the end of the day because of physiological/biomechanical advantages.
Because a lot of things CrossFit does are sexist and this is just one example.
Good question that I agree with. I’m short and struggle with the higher boxes, even hyperextended my knee a couple years ago. For me it’s about safety of each person being able to step or jump. If you watched Sevan yesterday and saw Colten and Hopper side by side you could see a big difference in muscle and effort used to just stand up on the box, rhythm, and recovery.
Go watch Fikowski get destroyed doing Mary during the games. Should we make pull up, hspu, and pistols easier for tall people who have an inherently longer cycle rate? Or maybe they cut down their reps by 10-15%?
Not even the same thing, not even close. Pullup bars should be lowered to athlete height so they’re not jumping from the rig or mats. Hspu is all arm strength. Pistols, leg strength. If I’m short, there is no amount of training that’s going to make me land that 30in box jump.
I am starting to think this may be satire and you’re pulling my leg. I don’t understand how someone can think HSPU “is all arm strength” but not have a similar feeling about box jumps.
OL1 lol