CrossFit & barefoot: connecting natural movement

CrossFit & barefoot: connecting natural movement CrossFit & barefoot: connecting natural movement

Walking, Movement and Health

Heard of CrossFit but not sure whether it’s for you? If you want to dive into practising natural movement, now is the perfect time to get started.

The first steps took me to the intro classes, where I learnt all the movements first – and then came the wow moment. After years in the gym, suddenly someone actually cared how I was doing the exercises, whether my technique was good, and I was training my whole body in a truly well-rounded way. I experienced everything from cardio, where we ran, rowed or rode the air bike, to the strength part, where I lifted barbells overhead – and nobody minded when I dropped them on the floor. The perfect mix of a raised heart rate and muscles full of blood brought an intense dopamine rush, and I knew it wouldn’t be my last session. It all started 3 years ago and turned into regular training sessions and a friendship between Jirka from naBOSo and Jakub Hanzlík, coach and owner of CrossFit Home Town.

Not many people know that up to the age of 18 I did sprint canoeing at national-team level. I had to stop because of an injury and moved on to triathlon, which became my hobby.

When, 3 years ago, Andy (the founder of naBOSo and Jirka’s wife) suggested I go to CrossFit with her, I thought it would be a nice add-on. Throwing some iron around and working up a sweat has never hurt anyone. I assumed I was heading to a shiny gym for a circuit session and then I’d go home after an hour of hard work. I was in for a shock. Suddenly there was a relentless coach standing over me, watching every move to make sure I did it properly. After a series of 12 sessions, I’d learnt the basics of technique and understood what CrossFit actually is. 

It’s practice of natural movements we do in everyday life. Do you lift heavy things off the floor, carry them in your hands, put them up high? CrossFit teaches you how to do it correctly. It’s essentially comprehensive preparation for real, natural life. And that’s barefoot too. Footwear for people who think about how they live and want to prepare well for it – to step into it. Barefoot and CrossFit connected.

I quizzed Jakub Hanzlík, who owns the above-mentioned CrossFit HomeTown . If you appreciate advice from a pro that you can use every day, definitely book an introductory meeting. Want to carry your shopping properly, pick up your child from the play corner and pop them on your shoulders, or are you thinking that a lockdown belly isn’t what you want to be carrying around? Then you’re in the right place. And I also tested him to see what it looks like when he takes off his shoes and puts on a proper pair from us.

CrossFit HomeTown is in Podbaba, about 5 minutes from the shop in Dejvice.

Interview with Jakub Hanzlík, owner of CrossFit HomeTown

Jakub, first question: what actually is CrossFit?

Hi, and thanks for the chance to share a few thoughts here and test your shoes. CrossFit is a training system that combines elements of strength and conditioning. The goal is all-round physical preparedness. In a CrossFit gym you’ll come across barbell lifting, gymnastics, Olympic weightlifting, bodyweight work, and athletics too. 

What’s your definition of CrossFit, and what does a CrossFit session look like?

What’s great about CrossFit is the variety and how comprehensive it is – everyone can find their thing. Some people want to be fit for life, others want to improve their conditioning or strength for their main sport. For some, the goal is to look good, or simply to balance out a sedentary job. When I started 12 years ago, I fell in love with how much it carries over into everyday life. 

You can think of a typical session as 60 minutes of fun and hard work rolled into one. We train in smaller groups and always under the guidance and supervision of an experienced coach. The training plan is carefully put together to achieve optimal results and include all aspects of fitness – whether that’s strength, speed, power, endurance, conditioning. 

That’s why our sessions are very varied. We always start with a warm-up plus mobility and muscle activation work, and we finish with a cool-down. The main part is a bit different every time. One day we lift heavy, next time we cycle through more exercises. We work on technique and skills, and sometimes we’re literally racing the clock. The best way to get a feel for it is to come and try it.

CrossFit is very versatile and complex – do you think it’s suitable for everyone? 

Generally speaking, it’s suitable for anyone who wants to move at least a little. That said, someone may have serious health limitations, and then it might be necessary to work one-to-one with a coach, for example. In CrossFit we work with all performance groups – from pro athletes to complete beginners. Someone can come in overweight and with zero fitness, and equally an Olympic athlete can walk through the door. 

We adapt each session and each exercise individually so that everyone gets the most out of it. We don’t use the same yardstick for everyone, and that’s reflected in the diverse mix of our members. It’s extremely important to us how people feel here, what their goals and motivation are, what they’re worried about and what they enjoy. We find all of that out in a short, no-obligation consultation before the prep course itself, where you’ll see whether this kind of training is the right fit for you.

People most often come because they want to train and they enjoy movement – or because they need to address a health issue whose prevention they’ve neglected. We can work with both groups. The main thing is that people progress and enjoy their results. That’s how they stick with it. 

What would you advise a complete beginner who wants to start CrossFit?

Most importantly: stop putting it off and start. Ideally, start straight away with experienced coaches and a certified CrossFit gym. That way you’ll avoid bad habits – or even injuries. If you’re in Prague or the surrounding area, we run month-long intro courses for beginners. Email us at info@crossfithometown.cz and we’ll arrange a consultation where we’ll talk everything through. 

Since at naBOSo we focus mainly on health, I’m curious: is CrossFit actually healthy?

CrossFit is specific because of its intensity and complex multi-joint exercises. That’s why it’s important to learn the technique first and start gradually, step by step. Let your body adapt, and only then increase the intensity. If someone trains just by following YouTube, it can of course be dangerous. But our job in class is to create a safe environment. Health is our absolute priority and the reason we do this.

I’m not a fan of the idea that you shouldn’t use your body so nothing happens to it. It will obviously waste away. The body needs training and movement so it can function for many years and cope with the challenges of everyday life. That applies to the heart and the whole cardiovascular system too. Exercise also has significant benefits for our brain, mood and overall wellbeing. Natural, healthy movement is also a very effective ‘medicine’ and can help with many issues that have already developed. Many of our members could tell you about that. 

Let’s talk shoes: what do you wear, and why? 

Training shoes are a big topic. For me, freedom for the foot is crucial. I hate feeling cramped, and I’ve basically stopped wearing any narrow trainers in everyday life too – the kind where your foot suffers. I also need plenty of breathability so my feet can breathe, both during training because of sweat and in day-to-day wear. I used to love flip-flops, which are of course completely unsuitable for wearing because they overload the muscles of the foot – your toes have to grip the sole with every step so the flip-flop doesn’t fly off. 

After switching to minimalist Bosky sandals, the heel strap is an absolute game-changer and I can’t praise them enough. When the surface allows it at least a bit, I also like walking barefoot. Some exercises practically invite you to train barefoot, and the execution is on another level. Other times we need to protect the foot a little. For training I most often use Nike Metcon or Reebok Nano – shoes made specifically for CrossFit. 

Ideal CrossFit shoes should have decent stability for working with heavier weights (so your foot can brace in all directions), high durability and reinforcement in critical areas, because the shoes take a beating from all sorts of movements. They should also have minimal sole height and cushioning, so you keep foot awareness, contact with the ground and easy bending at the toe joints – but at the same time offer a certain level of protection for the sole during take-offs and landings. And they should look good to the owner, too. Compared to function that’s just a detail, but it definitely plays a role. 

So you could say the ideal CrossFit shoe doesn’t really exist. You’ll always need to make some kind of compromise – or rather choose based on what you personally prefer. Some people will like more stability and want the foot to feel more ‘contained’; others will feel better in a shoe they barely notice and will create stability through the foot itself. I believe it also relates to what shoes someone wears day to day. 

Personally, I’d definitely recommend trying shoes on before buying, doing a few exercises in them, a few hops, a short run and then deciding based on how they feel. Or get advice from specialists. Your foot should never suffer in a shoe. In the future it will show up massively in function, mobility, sensitivity and overall foot health. 

What was your first experience training in barefoot shoes? And do you have experience with them in everyday life?

I already own one pair of training barefoot shoes, and I also wear barefoot sandals. So it wasn’t my first experience. For the test I was given shoes from the brand XERO SHOES SPEED FORCE and they basically met my expectations. 

Results of the ‘stress test’ for XERO SHOES SPEED FORCE:

  • From the first time I put them on, the shoes were very comfortable, light and nicely flexible in all directions. 
  • During exercises, you could feel the surface well, I immediately knew what I was standing on. 
  • I tested them on deadlifts, where the minimal sole is a big advantage. 
  • The difference might come with heavy squats or Olympic lifting, precisely because of bracing into the outer edge of the foot on the little-toe side. 
  • Bodyweight exercises felt completely natural in the shoes – I barely noticed them. 
  • I tried rope climbs, where with pros I’d be a bit worried about abrasion when sliding down quickly. But they did the job well. 
  • I tried them for box jumps. When the landing was controlled, the minimal sole wasn’t a problem. 
  • Pulling and pushing sleds with plates was a pleasant surprise. I could brace into the shoe without any issues, and even at an angle it supported the foot.

All in all, if you’re more of a beginner or recreational athlete, try several models and see what suits you. Think about the health of your feet and comfort during training. If you’re a competitor or a pro, you probably already know what you need and you’ll choose your training shoes accordingly. 

For me, minimalist shoes are definitely one good option. And if I may add something: as the dad of a two-year-old daughter and a coach in one, I’d especially like to appeal to parents of small children. Give their feet a bit of freedom. The two most critical moments in a child’s development and musculoskeletal system come when we put shoes on them, and when we sit them at desks for half the day. 

Jakub, thank you – it looks like you and Jirka have really got to the heart of CrossFit. In the introduction, though, you noted that it wasn’t Jirka who initiated the training, but Andy. So the final questions go to her.

Andy, in your opinion, is CrossFit for women too?

I definitely don’t see a difference between women’s and men’s health. CrossFit is for everyone. Women can look forward to great curves, and they really don’t need to be afraid of getting bulky. Personally, I love comparing myself with the other women during a workout. Everyone is friendly. CrossFit is one big community/family – people support each other and push each other towards better performance. The men are gentlemen and are happy to help you with the bar, weights, etc. 

If you’re single, there’s a good chance you’ll meet someone there. I’d even say that without CrossFit I wouldn’t be married. We didn’t meet directly in training, but thanks to CrossFit we got to know each other better. Jirka saw that I’m competitive and can push myself to better performance. Step by step I’m working towards better results, and he liked my determination.

Which barefoot shoes would you recommend for training in gyms and for CrossFit?

Now you know the most important things – it’s just up to you when you start. Who will we see at CrossFit HomeTown in Podbaba?

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