How 4 Brands Are Changing the Game of CrossFit

LIKE A GYM big bang, CrossFit trans-formed the landscape in 2000, popularizing functional training, group classes, and burpees and changing the vocabulary of exercise (WOD, AMRAP, HIIT). Now a quartet of brands—Hyrox, Deka, Life Time, and Spartan—are aiming to evolve some of its concepts, namely intensity, competition, functional strength, and community. We rate how they’re doing.

Get Your Hyrox On

Think of Hyrox as an indoor “race” of functional moves. Each event has you take on eight1,000-meter runs. Between runs, you complete one of eight challenges. Like CrossFit, Hyrox delivers accessible strength moves. And gradually, gyms and trainers have started building training plans specifically for Hyrox.

DIRECTIONS: Do 4 rounds of this circuit. Rest 60 seconds between rounds.

1. Ski Erg: 500 meters.
2. Farmer’s carry: 50 meters. Aim to use 70-pound weights.
3. Walking lunge: 20 reps per leg.Aim to use 25-pound weights.
4. Wall ball: 25 reps.

Get Your Alpha On

Imagine CrossFit with consistency over chaos. That’s Alpha, an hour-long class available at LifeTime’s more than 160 locations. Each Alpha class consists of a dynamic warmup, strength work (think CrossFit moves, like dead-lifts), and a metabolic conditioning circuit. And yes, you can do it seven days a week.

DIRECTIONS: End your next workout with this finisher. Set a clock for 7 minutes. Then complete as many rounds as possible. Aim to finish at least 4.

1. Cardio row: Burn 10 calories.
2. Pushup: 10 reps.
3. Goblet squat: 10 reps. Use a 25-pound dumbbell.

Get Your Deka On

Known as the “Decathlon of Functional Fitness,” Deka takes aim at intensity and competition in a beginner-friendly atmosphere. You can enter (and survive) a Deka race on a whim, but you will be challenged, especially by the final event, which requires you to do 20 burpees with a 44-pound weight.

DIRECTIONS: Do 4 rounds of this circuit. Rest 40 seconds between rounds.

1. Reverse lunge: 10 reps per leg, holding 25-pound weights.
2. Fan bike: Burn 18 calories.
3. Box step over: Use a 24-inch box or step. Do 10 reps per leg.
4. Weighted sit up: 20 reps.

Get Your Spartan On

Founded in 2007, Spartan has been reimagined into a less rugged race focused more on community. It remains challenging, but you can take it on with gym buddies. If you fail on any obstacle, in most races you’ll draw a 30-burpee penalty. Like CrossFit, Spartan has online content to make you a better competitor.

DIRECTIONS: Find an outdoor park and tackle this speedy 1-round circuit. Do a 2-minute jog between movements.

1. Monkey bar traverse: 40 seconds.
2. Burpee: 10 reps.
3. Bear crawl: 1 minute.
4. Box jump: 10 reps.

This story appears in the March 2023 issue of Men’s Health.

Andrew Heffernan, CSCS is a health, fitness, and Feldenkrais coach, and an award-winning health and fitness writer. His writing has been featured in Men’s Health, Experience Life, Onnit.com, and Openfit, among other outlets. An omnivorous athlete, Andrew is black belt in karate, a devoted weight lifter, and a frequent high finisher in triathlon and Spartan races. He lives in Los Angeles with his wife and their two children.