CrossFit's Theoretical Hierarchy of the Development of an Athlete was first introduced in “What Is Fitness?” in 2002. This hierarchy underscores the foundational role of nutrition in enhancing health and performance.
CrossFit’s Theoretical Hierarchy of the Development of an Athlete was first introduced in “What Is Fitness?” in 2002. This hierarchy underscores the foundational role of nutrition in enhancing health and performance. Sound nutrition is the foundation of health and performance because the food we consume acts as the vital fuel for all our activities. Unhealthy eating habits invariably lead to suboptimal performance and well-being. Conversely, making the right dietary choices in appropriate proportions can profoundly improve both our physical state and performance levels.
A prevalent misconception is that overhauling your nutrition must occur all at once, which can be mentally overwhelming and deter behavior change. In reality, these changes can be accomplished incrementally. Even a simple shift in breakfast choices — opting for eggs, fruit, and avocado over cereal — yields tangible health and performance improvements. These ongoing, gradual adjustments have a cumulative, transformative impact on your overall quality of life.
CrossFit simplifies the concept of nutrition. Our recommendation is straightforward: Prioritize the consumption of meats, vegetables, nuts and seeds, some fruit, little starch, and no added sugar. To optimize your health and performance, keep intake to levels that support exercise and not body fat. Essentially, it boils down to adopting a diet rich in whole, unprocessed foods while minimizing sugar as much as possible.
Achieving this recommendation might appear uncomplicated in theory but can be challenging to implement, especially with an abrupt shift. For optimal outcomes, establish manageable habits that can be swiftly integrated, sustained, and compounded over time.
The foundation of a healthy diet revolves around the transformation of dietary choices, shifting away from processed foods, and embracing whole, unadulterated alternatives. This forms the initial pillar of CrossFit’s dietary guidelines. To embark on this journey, it’s crucial to grasp the concept of processed foods and their exceptions. We champion the consumption of unprocessed or minimally processed foods, recognizing that certain food preparation methods — like cooking, chopping, heating, blending, preserving, or fermenting — are entirely acceptable.
For a clearer understanding of processed foods, it’s helpful to distinguish what they are not. High-quality food comprises unprocessed or minimally processed options that:
Whole, natural foods can be categorized based on their predominant macronutrient content, even though they often contain a blend of macronutrients. Proteins, fats, and carbohydrates constitute these macronutrients, each playing vital roles in physiological processes such as energy generation, hormone synthesis, micronutrient absorption, and cellular growth, maintenance, and repair. The primary macronutrient composition of our recommended foods is outlined below.
Meat encompasses a wide range of protein sources, including animal proteins like beef, poultry, pork, and seafood, as well as alternatives such as tofu, tempeh, legumes, and eggs. Besides meeting your protein needs, these options deliver a rich array of essential vitamins and minerals. Notably, many animal proteins come with varying fat content, whereas non-animal sources may introduce carbohydrates into your diet.
Vegetables denote an array of plants like leafy greens, carrots, peppers, and more. While they fall under the carbohydrate category, their digestible carb content is relatively low. Instead, vegetables shine as excellent sources of fiber, essential vitamins, minerals, and occasionally protein.
Nuts and seeds serve as the primary source of healthy fats. This category includes almonds, walnuts, coconuts, avocados, and oils like olive oil and avocado oil. Though nuts and seeds do contain some protein and carbohydrates, their main contribution lies in the substantial healthy fats they offer. Vegetable oils are not included due to their potential adverse effects on health.
Some fruit means fruits with moderate carbohydrate content, such as apples, berries, bananas, and melons. Beyond sugars like glucose and fructose, fruits bring fiber, vitamins, minerals, and even a modest protein content. The term “some” underscores the importance of moderating your carbohydrate intake.
Little starch addresses carbohydrate sources with high digestibility, typically found in grains like wheat, rice, and potatoes, as well as legumes. The word “little” emphasizes the need for moderation in your carbohydrate consumption.
No sugar unequivocally excludes all forms of added sugars, including natural sweeteners like honey or maple syrup and artificial sweeteners like sucralose. Whole foods contain naturally occurring sugars, so it’s important to note that this guideline refers to added sugars. This strict parameter promotes optimal gut health and hormonal balance.
Excess sugar consumption has been linked to conditions such as insulin resistance, hyperinsulinemia, and a host of chronic diseases such as cardiovascular disease and Type 2 diabetes. Sugar comes in the form of many names in order to hide the ingredient in the ingredient list. Examples include agave nectar, barley malt, evaporated cane juice, carob syrup, corn syrup solids, dextrin, fruit-juice concentrate, maltodextrin, rice syrup, and sweet sorghum, to name a few.
A lot of processed foods are now replacing sugar with artificial sweeteners, which seems, on the surface, like a good idea to reduce the risk of metabolic disease. But most of these foods still include industrialized seed oils, and recent research indicates non-caloric sweeteners may impact our metabolism — directly or indirectly. Sucralose and acesulfame potassium can raise insulin levels directly, while sweeteners like aspartame may negatively alter gut bacteria, potentially increasing insulin resistance. Artificial sweeteners, being highly processed chemicals, don’t align with a whole, unprocessed food diet.
Even “natural” sweeteners like stevia have their drawbacks. Emerging research links stevia to potential disruptions in gut health, possibly leading to issues such as irritable bowel syndrome, which is associated with metabolic disorders like obesity and Type 2 diabetes.
When prioritizing wellness through dietary choices, it’s crucial to steer clear of not only added sugars but also industrialized seed oils. Typically found as additives in processed foods, these oils include canola, corn, cottonseed, soy, sunflower, safflower, and grapeseed oils. Despite their reputation as heart-healthy options, industrialized seed oils come with notable health concerns. They are high in omega-6 fatty acids, which can disrupt the omega-6 to omega-3 balance in the body. Because these oils are so prevalent in our food supply, an imbalance occurs and chronic inflammation ensues.
Simply, omega-6 fatty acids tend to be pro-inflammatory, while omega-3 fatty acids are anti-inflammatory. Some inflammation is essential for normal bodily functions, such as recovery from exercise or illness. However, chronic inflammation is linked to serious conditions like cardiovascular disease, cancer, Type 2 diabetes, arthritis, and digestive disorders.
Healthy alternatives to these industrialized seed oils are healthier oils such as olive oil, coconut oil, avocado oil, or fats such as butter and lard. For years, we have been told these saturated fats have a detrimental effect on our heart health. This theory has been debunked over and over again, but the misconception has remained common. The real risk with saturated fats is when they are eaten in conjunction with high amounts of sugar, a combination common in processed foods.
The second facet of the CrossFit nutrition recommendation revolves around precise portion control. CrossFit recommends maintaining intake at levels that support exercise and not body fat, and emphasizes the importance of measuring our food intake to meet the energy requirements of our daily lives, workouts, and recovery.
There are myriad options when it comes to measuring food intake. Many in the CrossFit community utilize a block-based system known as the Zone Diet, featuring a 40% carbohydrate, 30% protein, and 30% fat ratio. Athletes determine their starting point through a straightforward calculation and adjust over time to align with their health and performance objectives.
As technology has advanced, smartphone apps have gained popularity, enabling a macro-counting approach known as Macros. In this method, athletes establish a baseline, typically following the same 40/30/30 guideline, then track gram intake rather than blocks, allowing for personalized adjustments as they progress.
Quantity of food will depend on each individual’s lifestyle, phase of life, and activity levels. When quantifying food intake, CrossFit recommends eating three to five meals within a 12-hour window. That means if you wake up at 6 a.m. and start eating at 7 a.m., you would consume all your food before 7 p.m. that same day.
This approach reduces the body’s need to burn sugar as fuel, leading to improved insulin sensitivity. Limiting your eating time to a 12-hour window also ensures a steady caloric intake throughout the day, helping maintain consistent energy levels and minimizing cravings.
The CrossFit Nutrition I online course offers a streamlined method for determining your macronutrient requirements.
The realm of dietary choices can often be a maze of conflicting information. High-carb, low-carb, vegan, or carnivore — each diet claims its unique benefits. However, despite the range of advice out there, a common thread that unites all healthy eating patterns is the recommendation to avoid processed foods. Processed foods, largely characterized by their high sugar content and unhealthy fats, pose a substantial risk to metabolic health.
Processed foods are often categorized as carbohydrates due to their prevalence in the form of high-sugar indulgences like donuts, potato chips, fries, pizza, cookies, cake, and soda. These foods offer little to no nutritional value. Notably, they lack the essential protein required for muscle development, repair, and maintenance while also impacting blood-sugar regulation, bone health, hormone production, immune function, and tissue repair. Furthermore, they contribute to chronic inflammation, elevating the risk of conditions like Type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease.
These calorie-dense yet nutrient-scarce options epitomize the notion of “empty calories,” providing little nutritional return for the energy consumed. What’s truly intriguing — and concerning — about processed foods is their engineered appeal, designed to trigger overconsumption.
Lasting behavior change often doesn’t hinge on the all-or-nothing approach. While it may work for a select few, most of us benefit from making gradual adjustments that accumulate over time. Creating small changes can increase motivation and the ability to develop new behaviors, and over time these changes add up to establish lasting habits.
This approach applies regardless of which aspect of the recommendation you are implementing. For instance, instead of attempting to eliminate processed foods from every meal and snack all at once, you can start by focusing on breakfast. Swap out cereals, toast, muffins, or scones for a breakfast featuring eggs, bacon, fruit, and a side of spinach. After you’ve gained confidence in mastering this new behavior, progress to incorporating it into your snack or lunch routine.
The same can be said for measuring intake — start small. Instead of meticulously weighing and measuring every meal daily, begin with precision for one meal, like breakfast or a snack, carefully measuring carbohydrates, proteins, and fats, before extending it to other meals.
A frequent obstacle to adopting a healthy eating regimen is the perceived inconvenience of cooking. However, preparing meals at home need not be a cumbersome or costly endeavor. Buying items in bulk and freezing them, or preparing larger batches of each meal to enjoy multiple times through the week, can both save you time and money.
For inspiration, here are some straightforward and delicious recipes suitable for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
Egg Cups
(Makes 12 cups)
Ingredients
3-4 c. shredded potato (russet, Yukon Gold, or sweet potato)
Olive or avocado oil
1 tsp. sea salt
½ tsp. pepper
¼ tsp. onion powder
10 eggs
1 oz. ham, diced
Splash of hot sauce
Instructions
Chef’s Salad
(Serves 1)
Ingredients
2 c. romaine lettuce
¼ c. garbanzo beans
3-4 oz. ham, cubed
1-2 oz. cheddar cheese, cubed
¼ c. cherry tomatoes, halved
1-2 tbsp. red onion, diced
Salad dressing of your choice (check the ingredients — added sugars and industrialized seed oils are common culprits in commercial salad dressings)
Instructions
Buffalo Chicken Stuffed Sweet Potatoes
(Serves 4)
Ingredients
4 medium sweet potatoes
1 lb. shredded chicken (rotisserie chicken from the store, or cooked in the crockpot and shredded)
6-8 oz. Buffalo sauce
Sea salt
Olive oil
Optional Toppings
Instructions
Nutrition forms the foundation of our overall health and performance, serving as a pivotal lever within our control to improve our lifestyle. While there’s no one-size-fits-all recommendation, a few fundamental principles lay the groundwork for individual success.
CrossFit advocates a dietary approach centered on eating meat, vegetables, nuts and seeds, some fruit, little starch, and no sugar. When striving to optimize health and performance, keep your intake to levels that support exercise and not excess body fat.
Welcome to your first CrossFit class! You might be nervous, and that's normal. You will see movements you have never done before, people doing many different variations of a workout, and lots of cheering and fist bumps at the end.
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