A Collegiate Study That Isn’t About How Dangerous CrossFit Is

The Department of Human Performance and Health at the University of South Carolina Upstate wants to know a little more about the CrossFit community, how it exercises, how often, diet and psychological effects of doing CrossFit. 

While CrossFit has a checkered past with collegiate studies (see below), this survey was not funded by an external organization and its purpose is to be able to compare CrossFit athletes to other types of exercises. 

• Fun reassuring fact: The study is being conducted by a CrossFit athlete who works out at a South Carolina affiliate. 
• Even more fun fact: There’s a CrossFit athlete who’s a professor of exercise science at a University. Not likely the only one out there but it’s nice to see CrossFit’s influence in upper academia. 

If you want to participate in this 23 question survey, give this a click. 

So why don’t CrossFitters like collegiate studies? Because in 2013, Ohio State University published a study erroneously concluding that CrossFit was dangerous. They went so far as to falsify the data. If you want to know more you can read this overview.

• Cliff Notes: The study was retracted for falsifying the data, the author of the study resigned from Ohio State University, a federal judge awarded CrossFit $4 million in legal fees alone. They eventually settled out of court for an unknown sum. 
• The judge’s conclusion: The NSCA (who published the study) “deceived and continue[s] to deceive the public and consumers regarding the safety and effectiveness of CrossFit training.”