News Flash: Your Workout Program is Not Better Than Theirs

Since the middle of January, I have been going to CrossFit four times a week as my main exercise. I'm having a lot of fun with it and getting stronger each week, but despite my excitement, I have been hesitant to tell lots of people about it. Why? To explain, let me tell you about some imaginary people's workout routines:

Alice goes to an hour-long yoga class every day before work (5 mornings per week). On the weekends she enjoys spending time with her kids playing in the backyard and going for family bike rides.

Nick plays on a competitive soccer team in the city league. His team practices four evenings a week and has at least one game most weekends.

Christina is a busy full-time mom who spends the first part of every morning getting her older kids off to school. Several days a week during her toddler's nap time, she puts him in the stroller and goes for a two-mile walk.

Joseph is into powerlifting and has won several local competitions. He trains five days a week with other serious lifters perfecting his form and increasing his lifts.

Mark goes to the gym three days a week and spends thirty minutes on an elliptical machine followed by thirty minutes of weight lifting on strength training machines.

Lynn runs fifty miles per week, including a long 15-20 mile run on Saturdays.

So the question is, who has the best workout routine? And the answer is... it depends on the person! Is her workout program helping her keep her objective health numbers in check, such as blood pressure, cholesterol, bone density, and body fat percentage? Does he enjoy his workout routine rather than viewing it as an unfortunate chore? If the individual can answer yes to these questions then it's a GOOD program! Everyone has different starting points, from morbid obesity to already quite fit, different goals, from winning national tournaments to reducing or maintaining body fat percentage, and everyone has different amounts of time to devote to their program.

So yes, I do CrossFit. Does that make me better than any other exerciser out there? No. Do I enjoy doing CrossFit? Yes. Is CrossFit the right program for everyone? No.

Let's worry about our own workout programs and stop demeaning others who have chosen different routes to staying fit and healthy than we have. Calling CrossFitters "crazy", serious lifters "meatheads", people who primarily do cardiovascular exercises "cardio bunnies", etc., has no place in the fitness community.