Coach’s Orders

Affiliate owners and trainers weigh in on how and when they have their athletes do workouts as prescribed.

There’s the guy who went out on his third 800-m run never to return, another who insisted on doing 135-lb. push presses only to walk out forever, and, of course, the one who considered himself an elite-level athlete but took an hour to finish a workout on which his peers spent less than 15 minutes.

The three athletes were at different affiliates, but they all ignored coaching advice, determined to do the workout as prescribed even though their skills were not up to par.

“I don’t really feel like going Rx should be encouraged regardless of how long it’s going to take the athlete,” said James McDermott, head coach at Albany CrossFit in New York.

The 8-year-old affiliate often imposes a time cap on workouts.

“We’re looking to preserve the stimulus of the workout.”

The focus on Rx is sometimes distorted, said Josh Corley, owner of CrossFit 719 in Colorado.

“I pride myself more on movement than Rx capabilities.”

Rx, said affiliate owners and coaches, is a starting point from which to modify for the individual. The road to reach it—and beyond—has no shortcuts.