CrossFit Glossary: 71 Terms
You Should Know

This section aims to answer some of the most press questions an amateur CrossFit athlethe might have. Some of these questions are repeated in other sections, but we decided to include them for your ease of use.

What is the definition of CrossFit?

The textbook definition is "CrossFit is constantly varied functional movements performed at high intensity."

In layman terms, CrossFit is a workout methodology that incorporates functional movements from different disciplines like strength training, gymnastics and sports, performed at different intensities and for varied time domains.

What is a WOD?

WOD, or Workout Of the Day, is the main body of work to be completed at the box during a CrossFit class.

When you arrive at your box, the Workout of the day is usually written down in a whiteboard for everyone to see, along with any warm up, mobility, core or skill work.

What is RX?

RX means as prescribed. Doing a workout "RX" means the athlete did the prescribed number of reps at the prescribed weight, inside the time cap (if any).

Unless you are an experienced athlete, doing a workout RX is extremely challenging.

What does Scaled mean?

Scaling a workout means the athlete adjusted the movements, weights or repetitions to accommodate his skills, abilities and strength.

The magic of CrossFit is that it is challenging, but infinitely scalable. Most new athletes can't RX most of the workouts, but "scaling" is not only acceptable, but preferred.

Let's look at the following workout.

If you can't do a T2B yet, and 115 lbs is too heavy, an athlete could lower the weights and replace the T2B with knees-to-elbows, to perform the following.

Scaling gives athletes the opportunity to build the required strength or skills in a safe environment.

No one is expected to do a workout RX. Almost everyone scales workouts and nobody in the box will think less of you if you scale a workout. Safety first.

What is AMRAP?

AMRAP, or As Many Repetitions as Possible, is a workout structure where you have a set amount of time to do as many repetitions of the prescribed exercises as you can.

A good example of an AMRAP is Cindy, a benchmark workout. Cindy is As Many Repetitions as Possible in 20" of 5 pull ups, 10 push ups and 15 air squats, performed at high intensity.

Most AMRAP routines are around twenty minutes long, but you will come across some set at 10, 15, 30 minutes or other variations of length for the workout.

What is EMOM?

EMOM, or Every Minute on Minute, is a workout structure where you have to perform a set of prescribed exercises every minute, while the clock is running.

In other words, you have to perform a specific task every time the clock hits :00. A good example can be:

An EMOM can also be programmed with more than one movement, like below.

This means that when the clock starts at 00:00 (evens), you perform 7 chest-to-bar pull ups. When the clock hits 01:00, you perform 10 unbroken wall balls (odds). When the clock hits 02:00 (even again) you perform 7 chest-to-bar pull ups and so on so forth.

An EMOM is rarely programmed as the single, standalone piece of a training session but rather as part of a class. It's commonly used for strength and skills training.

What is Rounds for Time?

Rounds for Time, or RFT, is a workout structure where you have to complete X rounds of a prescribed set of exercises as fast as you can.

In this case, the athlete does the prescribed reps/rounds/movements until they have finished or the cap time runs out and the workout stops.

What are the CrossFit Games?

The CrossFit games is an athletic competition in which the top 40 men and women from around the world compete across three days to become The Fittest Man and Fittest Woman on Earth.

The first CrossFit Games were performed in Aromas, California on a small ranch owned by the family of Games director Dave Castro and it was open to anyone who assisted. When it started gaining traction, they introduced a qualifier and moved the Home Depot Center (later called the StubHub Center) in Carson, California. After seven years in California, the CrossFit games moved to the Alliant Energy Center in Madison, Wisconsin.

To compete in the Games, you first need to qualify in the Open, which takes you to Regionals. Then, the top athletes from each regional event advance to the CrossFit Games, which are held over three days in July or August.

What's a box?

A CrossFit box is simply, a CrossFit gym. It's a dedicated, affiliated box that has all the appropriate equipment necessary to perform WODs.

As an outsider, it might look like an "empty" gym because it doesn't have all the bells, whistles and bicep curls machine you'd expect from a gym.

What is a 21 15 9 workout?

21 15 9 is a popular repetition scheme in CrossFit. The athlete needs to perform 21 reps of the prescribed workout, then 15 reps and finally, 9 reps, for a total of 45 reps of each exercise. The score is the time it took you to complete the workout.

The structure is based on the "decay rate" – as you get tired, you can do less work as the load remains the same.

What is Fran?

Fran is a short, intense couplet of Thrusters and Pull ups in a 21-15-9 format. For men, the weight is 95 lbs, while for women is 65 lbs.

To break it down:

• 21 thrusters with 95 lbs for men and 65 lbs for women.
• 21 pull ups.
• 15 thrusters with 95 lbs for men and 65 lbs for women.
• 15 pull ups.
• 9 thrusters with 95 lbs for men and 65 lbs for women.
• 9 pull ups.

It's one of CrossFit most famous benchmark workouts, and part of The Girls. Professional athletes can do Fran as prescribed in around 2 minutes, while an everyday athlete should be able to perform Fran in around 5 or 6 minutes.

• 10:00+ Beginner
• 10:00-4:30 Intermediate
• 4:30 – 3:00 Advanced
• 3:00 or less Elite

Fran was one of the first workouts created by Greg Glassman. You can learn about the story in the video below.

21 15 9

21 15 9 is a popular repetition scheme in CrossFit. The athlete needs to perform 21 reps of the prescribed workout, then 15 reps and finally, 9 reps, for a total of 45 reps of each exercise. The score is the time it took you to complete the workout.

The structure is based on the "decay rate" – as you get tired, you can do less work as the load remains the same.

AMRAP or As Many Repetitions as Possible

AMRAP, or As Many Repetitions as Possible, is a workout structure where you have a set amount of time to do as many repetitions of the prescribed exercises as you can.

A good example of an AMRAP is Cindy, a benchmark workout. Cindy is As Many Repetitions as Possible in 20" of 5 pull ups, 10 push ups and 15 air squats, performed at high intensity.

Most AMRAP routines are around twenty minutes long, but you will come across some set at 10, 15, 30 minutes or other variations of length for the workout.

EMOM, or Every Minute on Minute

EMOM, or Every Minute on Minute, is a workout structure where you have to perform a set of prescribed exercises every minute, while the clock is running.

In other words, you have to perform a specific task every time the clock hits :00. A good example can be:

An EMOM can also be programmed with more than one movement, like below.

This means that when the clock starts at 00:00 (evens), you perform 7 chest-to-bar pull ups. When the clock hits 01:00, you perform 10 unbroken wall balls (odds). When the clock hits 02:00 (even again) you perform 7 chest-to-bar pull ups and so on so forth.

An EMOM is rarely programmed as the single, standalone piece of a training session but rather as part of a class. It's commonly used for strength and skills training.

RFT or Rounds for Time

Rounds for Time, or RFT, is a workout structure where you have to complete X rounds of a prescribed set of exercises as fast as you can.

In this case, the athlete does the prescribed reps/rounds/movements until they have finished or the cap time runs out and the workout stops.

Reps or Repetitions

The number times a movement is to be performed/repeated at a time.

Sets

The number of times you will perform the indicated number of reps.

Tabata

Tabata is a High Intensity Interval Training methodology that consists in working out at maximum intensity for twenty seconds, resting for ten and repeating that for a total of eight rounds.

• Work out hard for 20 seconds
• Rest for 10 seconds
• Complete 8 rounds

Tabata was was discovered by a team of Japanese researchers from the National Institute of Fitness and Sports in Tokyo, who demonstrated that this style of training has a fantastic impact in aerobic and anaerobic capacity.

In CrossFIt, Tabata is often used as a warmup, but it can also be programmed as the main WOD.

Cap time or CT

Cap time is the maximum time you have to perform a prescribed set of exercises. It's usually related to a Rounds for Time workout.

In this case, the workout finishes when you complete five rounds, or the clock hits 16 minutes.

Chipper

A workout format that must be completed in linear fashion from start to finish. Chippers are usually for time, but there are no "rounds". Simply start at the top, and stop once everything is completed.

Bear Complex

According to Muscle and Strength, the Bear Complex consists of 5 barbell exercises performed back to back without resting. Each exercise flows naturally into the next.

• 1 Power clean
• 1 Front squat
• 1 Push press
• 1 Back squat
• 1 Push press

Perform that seven times, and that's one round. The Bear Complex workout consists of five rounds. This workout can be used in off-days, as a warm up or to build strength.

DT

DT, originally a Hero Wod, is barbell complex that consists of the following.

• 12 deadlifts
• 9 hang power cleans
• 6 push jerks

This Hero WOD was first posted on the main site as the workout of the day for Tuesday, April 14, 2009, and now it's a popular workout structure.

Below you can see Annie Thorisdottir completing DT like a beast.

Couplet

A couplet is a workout structure that pairs two functional movements—in most cases, belonging to different modalities like weightlifting, gymnastics or cardio, and training different muscle groups.

By targeting different modalities and muscle groups, a couplet allows one area to "rest" for the while the other movement is performed.

Triplet

A triplet is a workout structure that pairs three functional movements. As in a couplet, these exercises should be complementary.

A common triplet might consist of one weightlifting exercise, one gymnastics movement and one cardio movement.

KB or Kettlebell

According to Wikipedia, the kettlebell is a cast-iron or cast steel weight (resembling a cannonball with a handle) used to perform all types of exercises.

In CrossFit, kettlebells can be used in multiple ways – russian swings, american swings, goblet squats, ab twists and more.

Pood

Pood is a unit of mass equal to 16.38 kilograms, or 36.11 pounds. It was used in Russia, Belarus, and Ukraine, and it's still used when referring to kettlebell weights. For instance, a 32 kilogram kettlebell is "two pood kettlebell".

Barbell

A barbell is a long metal bar built to hold discs of varying weights attached to each end, used in olympic lifting, weightlifting, powerlifting and CrossFit.

The men's olympic barbell weights 20kg, or 43 pounds, while the women's olympic barbell weight 15kg or X pounds.

Most gyms also have lighter bars for training.

RM

RM, rep max, or repetition maximum refers to the maximum weight you can lift in a certain movement, for the prescribed number of repetitions.

For instance, a 1RM Snatch, or one repetition maximum of snatch is the maximum weight you can snatch one time. In CrossFit, it's common to see 3RM, or three repetition maximums as well, which means the maximum weight you could lift three times, unbroken.

PR

In Crossfit, PR stands for Personal Record. This can refer to a maximum weight you've been able to lift, a benchmark workout you've finished faster than ever before or a maximum number of unbroken repetitions of a specific movement.

DOMS

DOMS, or Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness, is a distinctive muscle pains that start around a day or two after someone performs intense or unfamiliar exercise.

Usually, there's a 24 hour delay between a workout and the start of the pain, or "muscle fever". It peaks 48 hours after said exercise, and can last for a couple more days.

It's not something strictly related to Crossfit. You can get DOMS by doing almsot anything – biking, rowing, playing soccer. But due to the intensity with which Crossfit is performed, you'll get familiar with it pretty soon.

Box

A box, also referred as an affiliate, is a CrossFit-affiliate gym that contains all the necessary material to perform a CrossFit workout.

BW

BW stands for bodyweight, and in CrossFit, it's often used to prescribe weights in a workout. For example, Otis, a hero WOD, calls for the weight to be measured in body weight.

Pukie The Clown

Pukie The Clown, CrossFit's mascot, is a cartoon of a CrossFit athlete who has vomited after a workout.

The cartoon suggests that CrossFit should be performed at maximum intensity, past the point of no return, for it to be effective. This "motto" is slowly being discontinued in the CrossFit community.

Uncle Rhabdo

Uncle Rhabdo is Pukie's even more stupid cousin – a clown who has contracted rhabdomyolysis, and is hooked up to a dialysis machine.

Don't confuse rhabdomyolysis with DOMS. Rhabdomyolysis is an extremely serious condition resulting from over-exhaustion of the muscles, and should be treated in a hospital.

Ass to grass

Ass to grass refers to getting your butt as low as possible (to grass) when performing any kind of squat. The goal is to obtain strength through the whole range of motion.