Trunk, Mass Grasp, Knee, and Hip Muscle Performance in CrossFit Participants: Reference Values According to Participants' Sex and Limb Dominance.
Ana Luiza R Rodrigues, Renan A Resende, Livia S Pogetti and 4 others
PMID 37425118WHAT IT FOUND
CrossFit athletes show lower hamstring strength relative to quadriceps, with a ratio below 60%.
This imbalance suggests a potential injury risk. Males have greater strength than females. Dominant limbs are slightly stronger, but the difference is too small to be clinically relevant.
Key findings
01CrossFit participants have a hamstring to quadriceps strength ratio below 60%, indicating a potential muscle imbalance.
02Males demonstrate greater trunk, grip, knee, and hip strength, work, and power than females, even after adjusting for body mass.
03While the dominant limb is statistically stronger for grip and some knee measures, the differences are less than 10% and not clinically relevant.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTs
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What it does not show
The study only assessed isometric and concentric contractions, not eccentric strength, which is also required in CrossFit. Specific training details and experience levels were not analyzed in relation to the strength profiles. The sample included only healthy, injury-free participants, so results may not apply to injured athletes.
Declared interests
The authors declared no conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not interpret the statistically significant limb asymmetries as clinically meaningful. The paper states these differences were less than 10%, which is below the threshold typically associated with increased injury risk.