3 Surprising Reasons CrossFit is GOOD for Weight Loss

I am not here to tell you that stepping into a box will make weight magically slide off.

Fact: CrossFit, by itself, will NOT make you lose weight. No Exercise is that powerful.

Nevertheless, if your desired goal is to lose weight, here are 3 novel ways CrossFit can give you the assists you need.

1. Positive Peer Pressure

You heard it from your parents growing up. The company that you keep says a lot about who you are.

If you are like me, your parents discouraged hanging with the “wrong crowd”.

There is logic in this.

The company you keep influences you via peer pressure. Even adults are swayed by the thoughts, beliefs and encouragement of others – for good or for bad.

CrossFit is an excellent way to ante up and add more fit, positive, motivating people to you peer pressure data set.

In any Given Box you will find:

These people have drive and motivation in common and want to be a better version of themselves.

What most of these people also share is a spirit of community, a ”Support Group” that will encourage you, and each and every member, to do their best.

You will make friends with some of these people, and they will be a source of encouragement and accountability for you-whether your goal is to lose weight, stay fit or get more muscular.

There will be people there you can learn from and get motivation from, and eventually, people can learn from you and find encouragement from your story.

Want to see how this works?

310 lb 42year old CrossFitter finds Truth and Encouragement from Positive Peer Pressure

One Obese woman told her story of how a fellow gym member helped spur her weight loss after two years of doing CrossFit.

This obese woman struggled with her weight but saw so many positive changes in those two years she stayed with CrossFit despite not losing all the weight she wanted.

She logged her food and realized she had to set her calorie intake lower than she wanted in order to lose weight, and, the calorie intake needed to be a permanent change, not just a change made while on a “diet”.

She shared her struggle with a fellow CrossFit member she admired.

This lady was super fit – a competitor and was about the same age as the obese woman. The obese woman asked the lady what she ate and how much. The obese woman was sad when the lady gave her a calorie intake figure that was close to what she should be eating.

She knew at that point she would never be able to “eat whatever” and stay lean and mean.

No one can. But that realization helped her go on to lose 80 lbs and accept that diet needed to be a lifestyle, and she may not have come to that acceptance on her own.

2. Self Confidence – Self Love

CrossFit can potentially give a person more than weight loss.

People come to a CrossFit Gym unable to do many things on the WOD (Workout of the Day). But with practice and encouragement, they eventually make it.

Some people can not jump up on a 2-inch box.

Others cannot do “Double Unders” – passing a jump rope under your feet twice per jump.

Many can not do Pull ups or Muscle ups.

But just about everyone who stays the course sees improvements in performance and physique.

Improvement Builds self confidence and self love.

It’s exactly like the famous Motivational Speaker said:

What does this mean for weight loss?

When you see your non-scale victories, you will want to eat better because that progress feels so good you want MORE.

Losing weight naturally improves your fitness, especially in any bar or jumping exercise, and the improved performance encourages you to stay on track.

It is a positive loop.

Every week you will get better, feel better, look better and see the progress that reinforces your effort.

Exercise benefits reach beyond weight loss

Exercise benefits both mind and body. It relieves stress. It is a form of self care and love.

It is an hour of time that you spend on yourself, no kids, spouse and other responsibilities, the hour belongs to you.

These benefits help curb bad eating habits that stem from lack of self care and stress.

3. Runner’s High and CrossFit Goals

Most people do not expect to feel great after a workout.

To be honest, the first few times, you may not feel fantastic, but eventually – YOU WILL.

Runner’s High is a real phenomenon. You can get that same feeling from just about any intense endorphin producing workout, including CrossFit

For me personally, I am a grump if I miss my workout.

If your goal is to lose weight, feeling great helps a lot when you need to summon the willpower to resist your trigger foods.

CrossFit Goals can Motivate you to lose the weight

When you get into CrossFit you discover that you want to start setting goals for yourself.

Maybe you want to do your first pull up, but you know it is the weight that is holding you down.

Your goal, a pull up, can be your encouragement to lose weight and eat right.

The truth is, 80 percent of weight loss success happens based on what you eat. Only about 20 percent of weight loss is because of exercise.

Since weight loss is largely nutrition, many CrossFit Gyms sponsor weight loss or nutrition challenges or give nutritional advice to those who want it. They know many people joined CrossFit looking to shed a few lbs.

In Fact, my CrossFit box is where I learned about the CICO diet from a few other members.

What is the CICO Diet?

The CICO Diet stands for Calories In, Calories Out is a basic diet that includes logging food and making sure you burn more calories than you eat in a day.

The CICO diet is not the only eating plan that helps. I have seen people follow a Paleo program, a Keto plan, join Weight Watchers, become High Carb Vegans and they all lost weight.

My point is this, your CrossFit Gym can be a great place to learn about and find support for whichever eating style you choose.

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