Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Workouts double as sport in ‘fitness athletics’ mode
In recent years, fitness has attracted a new type of participant, the “fitness athlete.”
This term describes people who do sporting events that test overall fitness — against other competitors.
This week, I’ll present some tips to help an ordinary fitness enthusiast transition into fitness athletics. And I will introduce an exercise that typifies the movements often performed by this ambitious group of people.
Before the last decade, there were really two types of fitness competitors: the racers (5K, marathon, triathlon, etc.) and those engaged in appearance-based activities (bodybuilding, figure reshaping, etc.). These days, an entirely new group of athletes has taken the fitness industry by storm.
They treat fitness as a sport, and seek out competitions that allow participants to lift, sprint, row and pull against one another to accumulate points. At the highest level, these competitors are sponsored by multimillion dollar companies and are awarded handsome prize checks on ESPN.
Naturally, the massive exposure associated with televising these competitions has resulted in the proliferation of such contests in local communities — obstacle races vie with ninja gyms and the CrossFit leaderboard and whatever goes on in a parkour pit.
Budding fitness competitors are leaping into these sports venues every day, and it has left many of us “oldschool” exercisers wondering if the trend is right for us.
Having been exposed to some of the activities required in today’s fitness competition, let me first say that this is a young person’s pursuit (in large part). Older adults simply will not, in most cases, be able to do dozens of pullups and then sprint to a barbell for a set of hang cleans.
Even younger individuals need to have a fair amount of traditional workout experience before engaging in any type of fitness competition. There are facilities and personal trainers whose specialty is preparing people for fitness athletics, but before they so much as walk through the door, people should have a fundamental understanding of their own body’s limitations and at least a year of strength training under their belt.
Assuming these elements are in place and the individual has no significant injury or health conditions, I think it’s fine to wade into the waters of fitness comps — as long as participants go in with eyes wide open to the potential risks.
This week’s exercise is an example of an activity that challenges the exerciser in a more “athletic” way. While this movement is not specifically performed in fitness competitions, the quick change of direction rehearses some movements that are.
The Plyo Smith Row should only be done by those with extensive strength-training experience and an above average strength-to-weight ratio.
1. Position a Smith machine bar 3 to 5 feet above the floor. Grasp the bar with your hands shoulder-width apart and position yourself facing upward underneath the bar (palms down grip).
2. Your feet should be on the floor with your knees bent to 90 degrees, and the bar should be at chest level with your arms fully extended.
3. Quickly row your chest toward the bar by pulling with both hands. As your chest is about to touch the bar, let go of the bar with both hands and then “catch” it as your body starts to fall back down.
4. Slowly lower back to the starting position.
5. Row up again and repeat the cycle for two sets of 12 quick repetitions.
Again, this movement won’t be appropriate for all fitness levels. But for those considering participation in fitness competitions, this will provide a very brief preview of the cadence and type of activities that are performed. Enjoy!