Crossfitting without all equipment?

[Christopher Fernandez]

Hey guys, I'm very interested in CrossFit. I've always been strictly bodybuilding. I hold a certification from ISSA but when stumbling across CrossFit I reall liked what I saw. Elite fitness, seems like something I'd want to be a part of. My only problem is, a lot of the exercises performed I don't have access to because of equipment. My gym is a fitness gym so it doesn't have a big open area where I could be doing all of these circuits. I do have a home gym though where I did 'Barbara' yesterday. Threw up 2nd day of CrossFit woohoo.

Anyway, is there ways of getting around certain exercises I can't do? Or can I just follow something CrossFit like that will have me working the same way.

The first day at my gym I did this:
Row 1000 Meters
Clean and Press 65 lbs x 30 Reps
Row 1000 Meters
Clean and Press 65 lbs x 30 Reps
25 Decline Sit Ups, 15 Stablility Strap Push Ups x 3 Sets Total
50 Dips
4 Mile Bike Ride

Thanks for your help and I'm sorry that I have so many questions!

[John N Harris]

You can defiently do a lot without equipment; i.e. body weight exercises. push ups, pulls ups, plyos, and more. But, you will be limited of course. The most essential equipment you need is bumper plates w/ a bar. With this you can work on the Olympic Lifts which I'm sure you have not done very much coming from Body Building. You can find bumpers at this website and also look under the blog to see some Olympic Weightlifitng: boardspammer.com
Good Luck!

[Dan Schwickrath]

There is also the Bodyweight Workout Resource v2.0 that has a very good list of CrossFit workouts that can be done with minimal equipment:

http://board.crossfit.com/showthread.php?t=50739

[Andrew N. Casey]

you can do alot. many of the WOD's you can do as prescribed. you can get creative with alot of stuff too. dumbbells works great for KB stuff. asking questions is a great way to learn so don't worry about that. check out the FAQ's link on the main page and also watch the exercise and demo vids. you will find lots of great info and ideas there. have fun.

[David Vessey]

The only advice I can offer is be hard on yourself. I've bought some of my own equipment and try to work out in the backyard or in the park when possible, which usually involves subbing other movements in. It's usually human nature to sub in things that you know you can do, or are already good at. I find I get a much wider variety of movements when following the WOD's as RX'd.

[Preston Sprimont]

Originally Posted by Christopher Fernandez

Hey guys, I'm very interested in CrossFit. I've always been strictly bodybuilding. I hold a certification from ISSA but when stumbling across CrossFit I reall liked what I saw. Elite fitness, seems like something I'd want to be a part of. My only problem is, a lot of the exercises performed I don't have access to because of equipment. My gym is a fitness gym so it doesn't have a big open area where I could be doing all of these circuits. I do have a home gym though where I did 'Barbara' yesterday. Threw up 2nd day of CrossFit woohoo.

Anyway, is there ways of getting around certain exercises I can't do? Or can I just follow something CrossFit like that will have me working the same way.

The first day at my gym I did this:
Row 1000 Meters
Clean and Press 65 lbs x 30 Reps
Row 1000 Meters
Clean and Press 65 lbs x 30 Reps
25 Decline Sit Ups, 15 Stablility Strap Push Ups x 3 Sets Total
50 Dips
4 Mile Bike Ride

Thanks for your help and I'm sorry that I have so many questions!

While a fully equipped Crossfit gym is of course ideal, you can get away with pretty minimal equipment. And if you are already a member of a decently stocked gym, you should be able to manage with most workouts. As long as there are barbells and plates (bumper plates are a big plus), dumbbells, a squat rack, a pullup bar, and a little bit of space, you can get decently close to most Crossfit workouts. For things like rope climbs, wall balls, prowler pushes, muscle-ups/ring work, etc, you will need to sub.

I would advise against doing your own programming, at least for now. It's too easy to allow yourself to avoid your weaknesses or to get sucked into the glamour of the metcon and overtrain yourself. Follow the programming on one of the Crossfit sites (mainpage, Crossfit Football, etc) as closely as you can with the equipment available and stick with it.

Good luck! And questions are a good thing!