A Recipe for Safe CrossFit They say that successful businesses fill a gap that was missing at the time of opening. When I opened Industrial Athletics in 2013, I was trying to fill the gap of a safe CrossFit in the city of Pittsburgh. I wanted to show the Pittsburgh community, and the CrossFit Pittsburgh community, that there was a smart and safe way to do CrossFit that would actually make you stronger and able to handle harder challenges for a longer period of time. Through Industrial Athletics, I was able to carry out the purpose of trying to make better Pittsburghers. At the time I opened, there was a gap in the rest of the CrossFit Pittsburgh community following the proper progression to teach CrossFit to the general public. It was frustrating for me because when one attends the basic CrossFit Trainer course, CrossFit actually teaches you the proper progression. It’s like coaches came back from the Level 1 Seminar, forgot what they were taught, and throw new members into CrossFit classes without bothering to teach anything from a basic air squat to a complex clean and jerk.
Proper mechanics are exactly what they sound like, the proper way to do something like an air squat. Getting your feet in the correct position, shifting your weight to the correct area of your feet, driving back first with your hips, squatting to below parallel (or your end range), and standing to full extension. Even a basic air squat can become detrimental to your joints if it is done improperly. We start you with basic movements that almost anyone can do (without physical limitations). We require proficiency with those basic movements before moving onto more complex movements. Once you are able to perform a movement with consistent good mechanics, only then should you start to add intensity. Intensity is the secret sauce to CrossFit and comes in many different