Jillian Michaels’ Responds With Rebuttal Article After Criticism of CrossFit

Michaels' biased statements are being heavily scrutinized by CrossFit community.

Aiman Zubair
By
Aiman Zubair
Zubair is a professional writer, researcher and fitness instructor/consultant. He had helped hundreds of people find ways to become more fit and healthy through a balanced...
4 Min Read
Jillian Michaels Crossfit Controversy
Jillian Michaels Crossfit Controversy

Jillian Michaels CrossFit Controversy

Jillian Micheals’ is a big name in fitness because of her contributions to the industry and she’s admired by many. However, status doesn’t necessarily equate to being able to speak your mind without opposition. Especially because of the recent one-sided statements about her issues with CrossFit.

Well, some athletes have spoken in response to nullify her statements with their own input and now we have some serious questions being raised about Michaels’ credibility.

Last she wrote an author titled “Why Jillian Michaels’ Wants You to Stop Kipping in CrossFit” and last month she ticked off a lot of people by expressing her opinion on the “lack of variety” in CrossFit. Well, it turns out most disagree with Jillian Michaels’ and the opposing arguments made have much more information to back up the Effectiveness and range of workouts in CrossFit.

“I have a few issues with CrossFit which is not a secret,” said Michaels before delving into her reasons for criticizing the sport.

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Just a few days ago Michael’s came back with a rebuttal regarding her statements explaining how she wasn’t slamming CrossFit but rather she was concerned about people becoming injured through poor coaching and technique during the exercises along with having poor conditioning.

Well, she explained 5 concerns she has with CrossFit…

The Exercises Can Be Too Complicated for the Average Person

Michaels’ explains in her article that the exercises are too difficult for regular people because of the intensity, complexity, and fatigue while performing the movements of which she believes is not safe.

Instructor Certification Isn’t Rigorous Enough

Brooke Ence Crossfit
Brooke Ence Crossfit

Michaels’ doesn’t agree with instructors only needing a weekend certification to teach CrossFit. She says injuries and “CrossFit” fails are likely the result of a lack of credentialed instructors. However, Michael’s does mention that there are highly qualified instructors who can teach very well.

CrossFit Training Logic Doesn’t Make Sense

“I admit, I have never understood CrossFit training logic — and have never gotten any clear answers on it,” Michaels writes.

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The issue she has with the logic is, why do exercises for as many reps as possible? But the biggest reason is she thinks there are no individually tailored workouts for each athlete.

“Why are prescribed WODs (workout of the day) often uniform when it comes what weights each gender should lift — and why is this not ALWAYS prescribed on an individual basis?”

There Is No Prioritizing Of Recovery

According to Jillian Michaels’ there is not enough focus on recovery days. She’s concerned about the ability to recover from stressful and high-intensity workouts. Saying “CrossFit workouts several days in a row, let alone 5 days a week, doesn’t allow the body much time to heal from the workout. This not only slows your progress but it can cause stress fractures, strains, or even rhabdomyolysis from overtraining / under recovery”.

Not Enough Variety

So, Jillian Michaels’ video explained how there are not enough angles, variety, and balance in CrossFit training. She believes there are too many exercises focused on power/explosiveness and not enough agility, endurance type movements. The point she was trying to make was that CrossFit needs more balance where several top CrossFit athletes negated her claims.

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If you have any questions or need further clarification about this news, please leave a comment below, and Aiman will get back to you as soon as possible.

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Zubair is a professional writer, researcher and fitness instructor/consultant. He had helped hundreds of people find ways to become more fit and healthy through a balanced life focusing on an individualized approach to their nutrition and fitness. In addition, Zubair has written extensively in the fitness and health and sports industries, including writing for companies such as Vice, SB Nation.
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