What does Form over Intensity mean?

You’ve probably heard your coach say this in a few different ways, many different times.

The basis is we WANT to include intensity in our training. It’s a large stepping stone in our fitness. Crossfit is a perfect balance of increasing intensity while perfecting form.

If I’m learning the technique of a push up and a workout calls for 50 of them, I May start to move too quickly through the reps and sacrifice getting my chest to the floor every rep. This would mean I’ve started moving too fast for my form to keep up with.

On the other side of this- as we build our fitness, you’ll want to test your speed which could ultimately lead to form failing due to intensity. This is the game we play.

Test and retest.

As long as form is a priority and you’re aware of when movements are falling apart, then you’ll be able to continue to increase intensity slowly over time.