Crossfit is the go-to place if you want truly intense workouts. What I teach through this site is honestly a dumbed down version of Crossfit. The types of workouts I see them posting on the main Crossfit site are tough, and are certainly not for everyone.

Click here to learn over 100 Bodyweight Exercises, Plus Tips and Techniques you can use to Create Safe, Effective, High Intensity Workouts in the comfort of your Own Home

There’s a lot I love about Crossfit, but there’s also a lot that I don’t like. In this post, we’ll focus on methods that can help you create your own high intensity Crossfit-style bodyweight workouts.

Crossfit Tip #1: Start from the Basics

If you have not yet mastered the basic pushups, pullups, and squats, then you need to get cracking. Out of the three, the most important is the squat. You use the squat for almost every single action throughout the day.

One of the best ways to learn these movements is to watch videos. Go to youtube and find exercise descriptions of these movements. Watch as many of these videos of these as you can. Then take videos of yourself and review your form.

Crossfit Tip #2: Use your Surroundings

Bodyweight training is all about training without equipment. But I still here people complaining about a lack of equipment. Don’t have a pullup bar? Improvise. Find something to hang on. Go to the park.

If you can’t find things to jump on or jump over for plyometric movements, then you’re not searching hard enough. Start with your garage, basement, and attic. I always find little goodies I can implement into my training.

Crossfit Tip #3: True Fitness is Much More than Looking Good

Crossfit generally doesn’t care about looking good, and yet, a large majority of Crossfitters look REALLY good. This is a side effect of intense training and good nutrition. They don’t look like bodybuilders, nor do they look like skinny runners.

Click here to learn over 100 Bodyweight Exercises, Plus Tips and Techniques you can use to Create Safe, Effective, High Intensity Workouts in the comfort of your Own Home

They’re athletic, and they look like they can pose for some fitness magazine right then and there. But as I mentioned, Crossfit doesn’t care about aesthetics. The end goal with their workouts is to solely make you a better athlete.

Crossfit Tip #4: Measure, Measure, Measure

Keeping a training diary is important. But don’t just jot down your sets, reps, and exercises. Find a way to measure your progress. Each workout will be measured in a different manner.

For example, some workouts where you’re focusing on lifting maximal weight, you’ll be recording how much you lift. Other workouts you will have to time how long it took you to perform the workout.

Crossfit Tip #5: Understand your Potential – And Break through It

Crossfit is all about becoming better. It’s easy for bodyweight workouts to get stale. The most important thing you can do is for yourself is keep a training diary. A training diary will show you exactly what your potential is – what you’re capable of is what you’ve already done.

This doesn’t mean that your not capable of what you haven’t done, although most people approach training in this manner. Instead, take what you have, and add to it. Make it more intense by adding reps, sets, or using a different intensity technique.

Crossfit Tip #6: Try Something New

Click here to learn over 100 Bodyweight Exercises, Plus Tips and Techniques you can use to Create Safe, Effective, High Intensity Workouts in the comfort of your Own Home

I like to keep a list of training methods. In fact, I collect training methods and have around 15-20 in my “tool chest” right now. It’s easy to just stick to one method of training because it’s working for you, but the more you diversify, the less likely you’ll hit a plateau.

Strive to add at least one method to your tool chest each month, and program a workout into your training once a month. For example, lets say you do primarily superset training. Your new method of the month can be intervals.

So for most of the month, you’d stick to your regular supersets, but for just 1-2 workouts that month, try bodyweight intervals. The following month, stick to your regular superset training, but make sure you still have those 1-2 interval workouts, plus your new method of the month.

Over time, you’ll figure out how to create more variety amongst your programming.

Crossfit Tip #7: Step it up a Notch – Sometimes

As human beings, we love comfort. The more advanced you get, the easier it is for your workouts to get stale. So here’s something I learned from Crossfit – for a week out of a month, design workouts that you know you can’t finish.

Just muscle your way through them, no matter how long it takes you to finish the workouts. You’ll learn a lot about yourself.

Crossfit Tip #8: Don’t worry about Perfection

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Bad form is bad form, but no one has perfect form. Form can always be improved. But one thing I noticed is that as my body gets more tired during a workout, the exercises I perform are executed better.

I first started noticing this phenomenon when I started training my friend Dominic. Then I was reminded of a saying from my Sensei, “When you’re tired, that’s when it counts.”

Don’t over train technique. It will come. As long as you have the basics down, and you know you won’t hurt yourself, it’s ok to try a high intensity workout with sub-perfect form.

Crossfit Tip #9: Use a Ladder

No, I’m not talking about an actual ladder. I’m talking about a training ladder. The idea is to start off with low numbers of a particular exercise, and gradually progress with the repetitions as you get stronger.

For example, Crossfit states that you should be able to perform 1 Pullups, 2 Pushups, and 3 Squats. Once you’ve mastered this first level, move onto 2 Pullups, 4 Pushups, and 6 Squats. Keep getting stronger until you’re strong enough to start performing full Crossfit workouts.

Crossfit Tip #10: Create Mini Wods

Click here to learn over 100 Bodyweight Exercises, Plus Tips and Techniques you can use to Create Safe, Effective, High Intensity Workouts in the comfort of your Own Home

Using the ladder method, you can actually just create your own mini WODS (Workout of the Day). For example, if you can only do 1 Pullups, 2 Pushups, and 3 Squats, then just put them together into a high intensity circuit.

It may look something like this:

5 rounds of:

• 1 Pullup
• 2 Pushups
• 3 Squats

Use these workouts to build yourself up to the real thing.

Crossfit Tip #11: Stick to It

Sticking to it is two fold – not giving up during a workout, and not giving up working out. It’s easy to back out when you’re on round 3 of a 5 round workout and you’re dead tired. But it’s even easier to give up before you even start.

The most important lesson you can learn here is consistency. No intensity technique, workout, or exercise is going to help you if you can’t get your a** off the couch and start your workout.

Crossfit Tip #12: Everything Is Related…Somehow

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According to Crossfit, increasing your maximal strength, will help with running. Increasing your endurance will help with high intensity circuit workouts. And improving your work capacity will help your gynmastics.

Through my experimentations, there is some truth to that. Not everything is related to everything, but looking outside the box may just help you with your training. Don’t just diversify your training with methods and techniques, look at completely new activities you can perform.

Crossfit Tip #13: Research, Experiment, Analyze

Research by reading blogs, looking at YouTube Videos, posting on forums, and purchasing one of the eBooks featured on this site. Experiment with your own training. Record everything that you do and analayzie. This is the real secret to incredible progress.

Crossfit Tip #14: Tape your Workouts

If you go to YouTube and type in Crossfit, you’ll find hundreds and thousands of workout videos posted by both affiliates, and regular people doing Crossfit from their homes. You don’t need to post your videos anywhere.

But taping your workouts will allow you to be your own coach. You can see what your weaknesses are, whether or not you need to push yourself harder, or if you need to work on your form.

Crossfit Tip #15: Train with Someone

Click here to learn over 100 Bodyweight Exercises, Plus Tips and Techniques you can use to Create Safe, Effective, High Intensity Workouts in the comfort of your Own Home

Getting a training partner will help you push yourself. Most Crossfitters improve simply because they’re in a more competitive environment than a commercial gym. The few times I’ve actually gone to the gym, I’ve never seen training partners compete against each other.

Try it. Grab a friend, or even advertise for a training partner. Try to find someone who already engages in high intensity training. They don’t necessarily need to be doing Crossfit (and neither do you).

I hope these tips have helped you with your bodyweight training. Remember that there is no such thing as a perfect workout or methodology, not even Crossfit. I referenced Crossfit today because I have learned a lot from Crossfit itself.

However, at the end of the day it is you who will determine your progress. Not some crazy coach using big words.

I personally don’t recommend Crossfit bodyweight workouts, especially if you’re a complete beginner.

For some more practical, high intensity, and safe workouts, check out Workout Without Weights. Click here for more information.

Tags: Bodyweight Training, bodyweight workouts, crossfit, crossfit workouts, intense training