Movement library
Every CrossFit movement, taught for beginners
32 movements you will meet in a CrossFit class, each with points of performance, the faults coaches see most, a four-step scaling ladder and real footage from class in San Clemente.
The O-SEA CrossFit movement library explains every movement used in a CrossFit class for a beginner: what a good rep looks like, the common faults and their fixes, and how each movement scales from a first class to the full version. Each page shows the movement filmed in real classes at O-SEA CrossFit in San Clemente.
New to all of it? Start with the air squat, the deadlift and the ring row. Most of the library is built on those three.
Squat
Sitting down and standing up, loaded and unloaded. The base of almost everything else.
Air squatThe air squat is a bodyweight squat: you stand with feet about shoulder width, sit your hips back and down until your hip crease drops below the top of your knee, then stand all the way up.Back squatThe back squat is a barbell squat with the bar resting across the upper back, on the muscle of the shoulders just below the neck.1 clip from classFront squatThe front squat is a barbell squat with the bar resting in the front rack position, on the front of the shoulders with the elbows pointed forward and high.2 clips from classOverhead squatThe overhead squat is a full squat performed while holding a barbell or PVC pipe locked out overhead with a wide grip.3 clips from classLungeThe lunge is a single leg squat pattern: you step forward or back, lower until the back knee lightly touches or nears the floor, then return to standing.
Hinge
Picking things up off the floor with your hips, not your back.
DeadliftThe deadlift is a lift in which you pick a loaded barbell up from the floor to standing by hinging at the hips, keeping your back neutral and the bar close to your legs.2 clips from classKettlebell swingThe kettlebell swing is a hip hinge movement where you swing a kettlebell from between your legs to chest height or overhead by snapping your hips forward, not by lifting with your arms.Sumo deadlift high pullThe sumo deadlift high pull, or SDHP, is a wide stance deadlift that flows straight into a fast upright pull, bringing a barbell or kettlebell up to just under the chin.
Press
Moving weight overhead and away from you, from strict to explosive.
Strict pressThe strict press is a barbell lift that moves weight from the front of the shoulders to straight arms overhead using only the arms and shoulders, with no help from the legs.Push pressThe push press is an overhead lift where you bend the knees slightly, drive hard with the legs to launch the bar off the shoulders, and finish pressing it to straight arms overhead.Push jerkThe push jerk is an overhead lift where you dip and drive the bar off the shoulders with the legs, then push yourself down under it to catch it on locked arms in a quarter squat before standing up.Bench pressThe bench press is a lift where you lie on your back on a flat bench, lower a barbell or dumbbells to your chest and press them back up to straight arms.1 clip from classLandmine pressThe landmine press is a pressing movement where one end of a barbell is anchored to the floor and you press the other end up and forward from your shoulder.1 clip from class
Olympic lift
Fast barbell lifts that teach power, timing and position.
Power cleanThe power clean is an Olympic weightlifting movement that takes a barbell from the floor to the front of the shoulders in one fast motion, catching it in a partial squat.Power snatchThe power snatch is an Olympic weightlifting movement that takes a barbell from the floor to locked arms overhead in one fast motion, using a wide grip and catching the bar in a partial squat.
Combination
Two movements fused into one, and two of the most famous in CrossFit.
ThrusterThe thruster is a combination movement that joins a front squat and a push press into one continuous motion: you squat with the weight on your shoulders and use the drive out of the bottom to press it overhead.Wall ballThe wall ball is a combination movement where you hold a medicine ball at your chest, squat to full depth, then drive up and throw the ball to a target on a wall, catching it to start the next rep.3 clips from class
Gymnastics
Moving and controlling your own bodyweight.
Pull-upA pull-up is a gymnastics movement where you hang from a bar with straight arms and pull your body up until your chin clears the bar, then lower under control.3 clips from classRing rowA ring row is a bodyweight pulling movement where you hold a pair of gymnastics rings, lean back with a straight body and pull your chest up to your hands.Push-upA push-up is a bodyweight pressing movement where you hold a straight plank on your hands and toes, lower your chest to the floor and press back up to locked arms.HandstandA handstand is a gymnastics position where you balance upside down on your hands with the arms locked overhead and the body stacked in a straight line.1 clip from classToes-to-barToes-to-bar is a gymnastics movement where you hang from a pull-up bar and lift both feet until they touch the bar between your hands.Ring dipA ring dip is a gymnastics pressing movement where you support yourself on a pair of rings with straight arms, lower until your shoulders drop below your elbows and press back to lockout.
Core
Bracing, holding and bending through the middle.
GHD sit-upA GHD sit-up is a core movement performed on a glute ham developer, where you sit with the feet locked in, lean back past parallel and then sit up powerfully using the abs, hip flexors and a drive from the legs.PlankA plank is a hold where you support your body in a straight line from head to heels on your forearms or hands and your toes.
Conditioning
The engine work: rowing, riding, jumping and getting up off the floor.
BurpeeA burpee is a full body conditioning movement where you drop your chest to the floor, push back up, get your feet under you and stand with a small jump and a clap overhead.1 clip from classRowingRowing in CrossFit is done on an indoor rowing machine, where you drive with your legs, swing your body back, then pull the handle to your ribs in one connected stroke.6 clips from classAir bikeThe air bike is a stationary bike with a large fan wheel and moving handles, so your arms push and pull while your legs pedal.2 clips from classDouble-underA double-under is a jump rope skill where the rope passes under your feet twice in a single jump.Box jumpA box jump is a two-foot jump from the floor onto a sturdy box, finished by standing tall on top with hips and knees fully open.
Kettlebell
Slow, controlled strength with a single bell.
Carry
Picking it up and walking. Grip, posture and grit.
Ready when you are
Nobody learns these from a web page alone
Read it here, then let a coach put it in your body. Every class at O-SEA CrossFit is coached and every movement scales.