Bodybuilders sparked fitness revolution that has shaped our sense of aesthetics and made "fitness" a marketing product. However, with "bodybuilding" becoming about everything BUT health and "well-being" it became totally unattractive to people aged 30+. Fact that F&H industry age target is 15-25 limited market growth - this is the age where people don't have much money to spend. For years many have tried to fill the void that F&H left by pushing useless "do it at home" products, fad diets and so on. Crossfit eventually combined everything that was important for this age group and created one, ultimate product designed for adults.
- Rich Froning and other Crossfit champions are "proud fathers", "christians", family and faith is most important to them (allegedly) as opposed to bodybuilding's bad boys.
- Crossfiters are encouraged to bring whole families and work out together.
- Older people aren't easily self-motivated, thus working out in groups.
- Older people are lazy/have other important things to do and don't want to do research on their own, thus every class has its trainer.
This and many other factors made Crossfit bigger than whole BB&Fitness industry over the past few years. When you think about it, it was pretty ingenious.
Do you think that we stand a chance or are we doomed to extinction?
Crossfit and bodybuilding aren't even in the same catagory BUT I will say as much as I can't stand crossfit, they have great marketing and do get people in their facilities. The more I look into crossfit, as much as they try to bring families in to workout (I don't use Xfit and train in the same sentence) they have a VERY high turnover rate with members because of injury.
If someone joins, it usually lasts a year maybe two years at best until they realize they have awesome conditioning with a fucked up shoulder, back or knees then go find other trainers (that actually know what they're doing) after they get released from an Ortho or physical therapy.
