Sweat is in love with your face. The thighs burn while holding their own weight and that of the bar in the squat position. Then the song lines "bring sally up" drone out from the loudspeakers of the warehouse in the kulmbach industrial area. The signal for twelve people to push their legs through until they stand upright. Shortly afterwards, the song "flower" is followed by from moby the lines "bring sally down" and the course participants of crossfit kulmbach agonize back into their squats.
"The great thing about crossfit is that it uses all the muscle groups", says trainer ralf muller. He leads the kulmbach "box, like the training hall at crossfit heibt, for four years. The training was varied, with a wide range of exercises for endurance, strength, dexterity and coordination. Crossfitters row, climb ropes and move rough loads. They used weightlifting and deadlift techniques, using bars and kettlebells. Days after the first training session, pretty much all the muscles ached as if small daggers were stuck in them. That's another thing that fascinated muller about the sport: "in the gym, I trained for hours to make progress. The first time i did crossfit i was exhausted after ten minutes."
Previously, muller had trained in studios and practiced professional bodybuilding for more than 20 years. After a timeout because of an injury he tested a crossfit box in nurnberg and was immediately enthusiastic. The training method comes from the USA and spread among police officers and soldiers at the end of the 1990s. The sport has experienced a boom since 2010. In germany, around 25,000 athletes now train in about 200 boxes crossfit. A US company of the same name sells the licenses. Muller paid about 1000 dollars for his. He has to pay $3,000 a year to be allowed to call himself a crossfit coach. "Skillfully done", the part-time financial advisor sums up the business model. But it was a good deal for him: "I was able to turn my hobby into my profession."
Like a small family
In the meantime about 100 participants train in his box, in the first year there were 18. "It has grown in a healthy way, that's all I need. Unlike a gym that wants as many people as possible who come as infrequently as possible, we are a small group of active members who stick together." – "like a small family, adds participant nina riedel. The 28-year-old from kulmbach has been coming to muller's class for two years, three to five times a week. "It's fun, you feel exhausted and good." The fascination seems to be independent of gender. At least as many women as men are exercising today. They cheer each other on, congratulate each other on a job well done, and talk about their progress.
