It is understandable that walking into a CrossFit gym full of muscular fitness fantastic may intimidate you. The mere thought of tossing around huge weights which in CrossFit is part of your lifestyle may send shrills down your spine. However, this should not be it because, with the right tips, you don’t have to start with the bigger weights, you can start small and still make it. The first step for rookie weightlifters is to set up a session with their coaches or better still find a workout program that will help them learn proper training. Do not walk into the CrossFit gym without a plan because this won’t get you anywhere. Secondly, you should master the technique of picking the right weight so that your workout can be moderate and always on the uptrend. The following are tips on how you should go about this. Test Your Strength You may have properly warmed up with mobility exercises and foam rolling; the next step should be deciding between dumbbells and barbells. Whichever you pick entirely depends on the lifts you are doing. In your workouts, try to include both pieces of equipment. However, if you have had incidents of shoulder injuries, the general recommendation is to use dumbbells more for your chest and shoulders. For deadlifts or squats, CrossFit exercises use a barbell. During your workouts in the CrossFit gym, you should alternate between the heavier and lighter set of dumbbells. The heavier weights will enable you to build muscle mass while the lighter ones will help in stabilizing the muscle supporting tendons and joints. To help you to figure out the right size of dumbbells, you can do the dumbbell test. For this test, men should start with a set of 2 weights measuring anything between 10 and 20 pounds. For women, they can still go for the 2 sets of weights but measure 5 to 10 pounds. Doing it is simple, stand with a weight in both of your hands, palms forward. Your elbows and shoulders should be pinned up against the wall and gradually curl weights up until the dumbbells are shoulder level without moving your upper arms. After that, lower to the beginning position. Target between 14 and 22 reps while maintaining good form. This test fatigues the muscles, and you will get to a point where the biceps are really straining. If your muscles fail before the 14 reps, try again, but this time with a weight about 5 pounds lighter. If you find yourself doing the 22 reps easily, add another set of 5 pounds and see how it goes. Master Your Moves The secret to safely and efficiently building muscle is always a proper and a solid form. When you find yourself getting out of form in your CrossFit workouts, make the necessary adjustments which could be either stopping or dropping weight. The four fundamental movements that will help you in lifting include: Squat Glute bridge chest press Dumbbell triceps extension Single arm dumbbell row As you continue working out, you will gradually feel that some of the weights which seemed heavier at the beginning, will start becoming lighter as you build muscle and master your lifts. Go for progressive overload instead of abrupt addition of weights.  

If there is one exercise you cannot ignore, it is the deadlift. This is because it stands tall among the mass-gaining CrossFit workouts. Any athlete who wants to add muscles to their upper and lower body as well as create stronger and more appealing physique, the deadlift is the exercise to concentrate on. If performed correctly, the deadlift can help you build unparalleled mass while at the same time strengthening the major muscle groups. To add to this, deadlifting helps in strengthening the back and all the surrounding muscles. For this reason, it is excellent for rehabilitative as well as preventive processes. Experts in the CrossFit industry consider deadlift as the most effective CrossFit workouts in building core strength which supports all other muscle groups. The advantages of core strength cannot be underestimated because of their role in supporting virtually every movement and position performed by the body. You may be wondering why other exceptional compound exercises such as bench press and squat are not given much airtime when discussing a deadlift. The reason behind this is that deadlift is special for a variety of reasons. It’s recommended that it should be added to every CrossFit training schedule. If you want to find out more about this exercise, then read along. Core Stability This benefit has been mentioned above, but to build more on it, I will discuss it in detail. The deadlift workout targets all the muscle groups considered major, and it is responsible for core strength and correct posture. If you are doing deadlifting correctly, you will be able to hold your back straight when doing your day-to-day activities. This is because the workout emphasizes on maintaining a relatively straighter back throughout its performance. In addition, the deadlift strengthens the surrounding supporting muscles of the backside, waist, hips, and the lower back. Core strength is critical in helping you maintain balance as well as weight transference. Minimum Equipment The beauty of deadlift is that it requires little in preparation and equipment. So, all you need is a bar and your willingness to lift. Even though athletes may include wraps, it is not mandatory and in many cases optional. Safety Compared to other workouts, the deadlift is relatively safe and risk-free to perform. Unlike the bench press and squat, the deadlift doesn’t put you at risk of getting pinned under maximum lifts. As long as it is performed in the right form, it doesn’t stress any of your joints. More Muscles Exercised Deadlift is a real compound exercise. It works more muscles than any other movement. Back muscles, leg muscles, gluteus maximus, shoulder muscles, and arms are among those heavily exercised. With the deadlift, your whole body can grow. Gripping Strength If you do deadlift without traps, it will strengthen your grip because of the weight involved. You can easily work over 300 pounds for repetitions. In addition to the above, adding deadlifting to your CrossFit gym exercise repertoire, you will experience amazing cardiorespiratory fitness, the true measure of strength, and lots of real-life applications.