How Will Crossfit Help Me?

Last month, I happened upon a Living Social deal for a month of unlimited Crossfit + 4 fundamental classes for the relatively reasonable price of $59. I’ve mentioned before that I’m curious about Crossfit but was not so curious about the astronomical prices. However, for $59 I was willing to give it a shot and I purchased the deal. I had planned on sitting on it for a few months until I finished marathon training, but we all know how that failure of a race won’t be turning out…

Anyway, I’m thinking that the coming weeks are perfect to give this whole double under-snatch-box world a try. I mean, any environment that advocates the use of these words in day-to-day speech is okay in my book! I’m planning on giving Big Horn Crossfit a jingle tomorrow and getting things sorted.

Tals and I will never give up the outdoors!

Let’s face it: I will never become a full-time weight lifter/cross fit chick. Granted, I don’t usually love saying “never” but I’m pretty confident using it in this instance. I love running and cycling. I adore being outside, and I could literally never imagine my life without all of my mountain sports. I enjoy the long, slow burn of a 5-hour cardio session. However, I do need to strength train. Not only does osteoporosis run in my family, but I’m also getting to that age where bone strength is key (your 30s are vicious, aren’t they?!) But aside from the reasons why I should do it, I’m more curious as to how it will help me in other areas!

I know there is a big ol’ battle between long distance runners and die-hard Crossfitters. The Crossfit stereotype dictates that long distance running is a waste of time while endurance runners tend to think of the Crossfit group as a “cult” that causes injuries. Now, I don’t really care about any of that…because I want to try both.

I’m convinced that the anaerobic nature of 2-3 Crossfit workouts/week will improve my running and high altitude hiking. I mean, doesn’t that just make sense?

So, here is the big question for me: how will Crossfit help my running and outdoor activities?

I’m thinking I need to conduct some type of experiment; you know, a way to determine whether or not it makes me a stronger runner, hiker, and cyclist. Any suggestions on how to do that?