Why CrossFit Members Benefit from Regular Physiotherapy

Physiotherapy has been shown to be beneficial to athletes in every sport and CrossFit is no exception.

CrossFit athletes can benefit greatly from treatment through a physiotherapist, regardless of whether they have suffered an injury. Plenty of Physiotherapists these days are also familiar with CrossFit and functional fitness, making it easier for them to treat athletes effectively.

Why CrossFit is Great

To begin with, let’s review why people choose to do CrossFit in the first place. Unlike contact sports like football and rugby, CrossFit athletes don’t sustain the same amount or level of injuries. While there are a few injuries here and there, most of them are avoidable with the right coaching and executed technique by the athlete. CrossFit itself is a great training regime that can help build your strength and resilience. Some of the benefits that you can get from CrossFit include the following:

• Variety: To begin with, doing the same type of workout routinely will not see you body develop as fast. CrossFit is great, because it has differing workouts all of the time and avoids routine as much as possible.
• New Exercise: You not only get variety with your workouts, but you also get to learn new exercises all of the time. These can engage muscles that you might not have been paying quite as much attention to. It forces your body to change and adapt, increasing your strength and versatility as an athlete.
• Builds Community: Working together with other CrossFit athletes can build a sense of community. Everyone there is there to work hard. You will meet people with the same workout goals. Having a sense of community is good for your mental health as well as helping you to be a better athlete in general. Workouts always go smoother if you have someone to push through with.
• Pushing Yourself: Giving yourself a challenge that might seem insurmountable makes it all the sweeter when you achieve it. CrossFit workouts might seem daunting at first, but once you tackle one, you’ll know just how much you can handle.

Benefits of Physiotherapy

1. CrossFit Athletes Can Get Injured Often: CrossFit consists of high intensity workouts with weightlifting and gymnastics movements. As a result, injuries can happen. Seeing a physiotherapist can help mitigate these injuries, speeding up the healing process and get you back moving again.
2. Physiotherapy can be Preventative: Physiotherapy is not restricted to athletes who are already injured. It can also be used to prevent the injuries from happening in the first place. This is because your CrossFit coach might be helping you get stronger and in shape, but it is less likely that your coach has been totally trained in the right movements for your body. A physiotherapist will be able to review how you move and identify any potential issues before they become injuries. It can help strengthen your muscles and increase your range of motion to eliminate the risk.
3. Physiotherapy Keeps you Mobile Longer: Once you have learned all of the skills that you really need to be safe while doing CrossFit, you will likely be able to continue to do CrossFit for much longer than you would have otherwise. This is because you will be able to move your body with much more ease, taking care of what muscles to stretch and strengthen. With better exercise practices and improved range of motion, you will find that you will not be as inclined to stop doing CrossFit as you get older. Instead, you will feel younger for much longer.

All in all, the benefits of CrossFit are extraordinary. It will make you stronger with more endurance, provided that you are seeking the help from a physiotherapist at the same time that you are doing the workouts. While pushing yourself will allow for advancement, pushing yourself too far can mean injury. So, continue your CrossFit workouts, but do so with the help of a professional.