ABSTRACT
In this chapter James reflects on his experiences of ‘doing’ CrossFit, an interdisciplinary approach to fitness undertaken in specialist ‘boxes’ which combines elements of multiple sports including Olympic weightlifting, gymnastics and athletics. Wanting to drip sweat, spill blood and tear skin alongside others, James’s analysis centres on corporal immersion in the activity itself. First, CrossFit’s fitness is defined and conceptual context provided. Subsequently, a sensorial analysis of ‘Grace’, a notorious workout of the day (WOD), is provided. This is followed by reflections on key themes that emerged from these embodied experiences including: competition, immersion, ‘pains’ and ‘pleasures’, pushing to the ‘edge’, carnal metamorphosis and reinvention. In doing so, CrossFit is revealed as a powerfully addictive corporeal activity, influencing the subjectivities, identities and social relations of those who participate in it in a number of ways. The chapter concludes by positioning CrossFit as an important but contested phenomenon in contemporary fitness cultures.
