Do P90x and CrossFit qualify as good fitness programs?

I've been thinking about this subject for awhile; P90X & CrossFit are they Healthy?
Many assume if you workout more often that you become healthier or that all forms of activity produce health & fitness. True you may become stronger, faster,increase endurance and lose weight but that does not guarantee that you have improved your health.

The sheer volume of both P90X and CrossFit, in time will cause injury and illness. Most cannot sustain the level of intensity and and the time commitments. I believe if the activity is actually healthy than anyone can partake and can do so over their entire life. If not than I wholeheartedly believe it should not even be started.

My rationale stems from a more scientific approach. I want to do what I need to do ,exercise wise, to stimulate my body. Not any more or any less.

To determine if your exercise routine is increasing your overall health you have to define all the players; HEALTH, FITNESS, EXERCISE.

As ofter as we use these terms there really isn't a standard definition utilized by Medical researchers & fitness experts. I like the definitions laid out by John Little & Doug McGuff, MD in their bookk Body by Science They used multiple sources to come up with workable definitions.

Without quoting verbatim, health is when you are w/out dis-ease or pathology and your body is in a state of homeostasis. Homeostasis being the balance of catabolism (breaking down) and Anabolism (building up).

Our body is constantly building up and tearing down in order to maintain some type of balance. The complex process of blood clotting is an example. The blood is constantly clotting and breaking down clots in it's attempt to maintain a viscosity thin enough to insure smooth flow thru the arteries but capable of stemming any bleeding with out clogging the artery. This process is just one of many that when working efficiently displays the balance of catabolism/anabolism.

Fitness is the body's ability to withstand challenges, both internal and external, above a resting metabolism.

Example, one may be considered fit if he or she is capable of climbing 5 flights of stairs in a row. But another individual would be more fit if they were capable of climbing all the stairs in the Empire State Building. The least fit individual can hardly get out of bed.

Exercise in the end is any activity undergone that stimulates a positive physiological adaptation that maximizes fitness without minimizing Health.

I personally have reduced my training from 1 hr 30 min 4-5 days per week to 30 minutes once every 7 days. Now can every reduce their exercise to this level; absolutely. Will everyone mentally be capable of working out 1x a week; probably not. The issue is that many use exercise as a mechanism to cover up a poor diet or at least poor choices. Eventually, the bad diet overtakes the most avid exerciser.


Mark Sisson, a former workout-aholic, who now preaches intense exercise followed by adequate rest recently blogged about both P90X & CrossFit. His "Pros & Cons" type discussion is very balanced and his assesment factually based. Give it a READ!

Work Smarter Not Harder!
Dr David Marcon
Cincinnati, Ohio
drdavidmarcon.com