--- title: CrossFit: Why Are So Many Addicted to It? description: Psychologists explain the appeal of extreme health behaviors canonical: https://time.com/3083506/you-asked-why-are-people-addicted-to-crossfit-and-other-brutal-workouts/ author: Markham Heid article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2014-08-06T10:00:30.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-19T07:44:14.374Z article:section: Health og:title: Why Are People Addicted to CrossFit and Other Brutal Workouts? og:description: Psychologists explain the appeal of extreme health behaviors og:url: https://time.com/3083506/you-asked-why-are-people-addicted-to-crossfit-and-other-brutal-workouts/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt049e151816b3bf31/69869e7cf983e75f2e04f1da/why-do-people-like-crossfit.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1500 og:image:height: 844 og:image:alt: Why are people addicted to Crossfit? og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Why Are People Addicted to CrossFit and Other Brutal Workouts? twitter:description: Psychologists explain the appeal of extreme health behaviors twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt049e151816b3bf31/69869e7cf983e75f2e04f1da/why-do-people-like-crossfit.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # You Asked: Why Are People Addicted to CrossFit and Other Brutal Workouts? > Sponsored content. 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He is the author of The Habit Trap, due out in early 2027. Aug 6, 2014 10:00 AM UTC CrossFit. [Bikram](http://time.com/2967716/you-asked-is-hot-yoga-good-for-you-and-for-weight-loss/). Ultra-marathons. When it comes to the latest exercise trends, nearly all have one thing in common: They take relatively anodyne workouts—lifting weights, yoga, running—and crank the intensity up to 11\. If previous generations stuck to the health motto “everything in moderation,” modern America has shifted emphatically toward “go big or go home”—even if some doctors and scientists believe those behaviors approach (and sometimes cross) the line into dangerous territory. So what gives? The obvious answer is that these programs tend to produce big results in a hurry, says Dr. Juliana Breines, who researches health psychology at Brandeis University. Looked at that way, you could chalk up these workout trends to a Netflix-ified, want-it-now ethos within American culture. But plenty of research suggests the appeal of intense workouts goes far beyond impatience or a desire for quick results. A new study appearing in the _Journal of Consumer Research_ concludes feeling as though parts of your life have slipped out of your control spurs a craving for effortful activity. “What we’re finding is that when people are feeling a loss of control, they’re particularly likely to go for these high-effort things like very intense workouts because it makes them feel empowered,” says study co-author Dr. Keisha Cutright, an assistant professor of marketing at the University of Pennsylvania. Along with the demands of work and family, your income, age, and even the economy could be contributing to the sense that you’re losing control of your world, Cutright explains. When it comes to an activity like CrossFit, “You feel like you’re in charge of the desired outcome,” she explains. “You find a certain amount of control over your life, and that feels good.” Dr. Brock Bastian, a psychologist at the University of Queensland in Australia, has conducted dozens of experiments examining the psychological interconnectedness of pain and pleasure. He says extreme exercise may be a form of “functional” self-punishment—a way of beating yourself up to alleviate some sense of guilt or shame you derive from another part of your life. One of his experiments asked people to recall a time when they’d acted immorally. Following those thoughts, these study participants held their hands in icy water longer than did people who had not been primed to recall a moral transgression. Similarly, “Going on a hard run is perhaps a convenient way to make ourselves feel better after we’ve behaved badly,” Bastian explains. “It makes us feel like the scales of justice have been rebalanced.” His research also demonstrates that if you feel good about yourself, enduring physical pain can enhance your enjoyment of—and sense of entitlement to—guilty pleasures. Not only that, but inflicting pain on yourself raises your stature in the eyes of others, he adds. Suffering through a grueling endurance race or difficult workout can make you seem tolerant, persistent, and strong in the minds of your friends and colleagues. ### You Asked: Your Top 10 Health Questions Answered  You Asked: Are Cleanses Healthy? Potions that claim to clear your body of toxins might sound alluring, but do they deliver? Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME  You Asked: Is Eating Dessert Really That Bad For Me? Bad news for sweet-eaters—except if you end your meals with this kind of treat. Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME  You Asked: What’s the Best Way to Whiten My Teeth? Yes, teeth whitening actually works—but here's why you have to dish out major bucks to see results. Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME  You Asked: Is Meditation Really Worth It? From easing stress to lowering heart disease risk, focusing your mind can do some amazing things for your body. Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME  You Asked: What’s the Healthiest Sweetener? Take a taste of the unsettled science of sweeteners. Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME  You Asked: Should I Go Paleo? The pros and cons of eating like a caveman. Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME  You Asked: Is Cracking Your Knuckles Bad? Here's what really happens to your joints when you snap, crackle and pop. Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME  You Asked: Is Running on a Treadmill as Good as Running Outside? You'll fool your body into thinking it's outside with this one small treadmill tweak. Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME  You Asked: Does Laughing Have Real Health Benefits? Here's proof that everybody could use a belly laugh. Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME  You Asked: What Is My Poo Telling Me? If you listen hard enough, you'll hear all kinds of health stories from #2. Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME On a darker note, there’s also some research that suggests low self-esteem may drive some people to punish themselves though harsh diets or physically demanding exercise, says Breines, the Brandeis health psychologist. “People who are lower in self-esteem may be more likely to choose to suffer based on the belief that they deserve to suffer, and because suffering is more consistent with their negative self-views,” she says, adding that this belief may explain some people’s attraction to extreme diet and exercise regimens. Of course, there is also the possibility that a healthy appetite for challenge and the physical release of a tough workout is all that’s at play for some people. In the end, a complicated mix of some or all of these factors may explain the drive to push workout routines to the limits. “I’ve met many people who fashion their daily life, work, and relationships completely around their extremely rigorous exercise routines, and who persist exercising despite injuries,” says Dr. Anna Keski-Rahkonen, who researches public health issues at the University of Helsinki in Finland. But Keski-Rahkonen says it’s difficult to draw a line between a compulsive behavior and something more nefarious. “Currently, it’s still quite unclear where normal behaviors end and problematic behaviors begin.” Consider all of this food for thought the next time you double down on your boot-camp class pack. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3083506/you-asked-why-are-people-addicted-to-crossfit-and-other-brutal-workouts/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3083506/you-asked-why-are-people-addicted-to-crossfit-and-other-brutal-workouts/"},"headline":"You Asked: Why Are People Addicted to CrossFit and Other Brutal Workouts?","datePublished":"2014-08-06T10:00:30.000Z","dateModified":"2026-08-19T07:44:14.374Z","description":"Psychologists explain the appeal of extreme health behaviors","url":"https://time.com/3083506/you-asked-why-are-people-addicted-to-crossfit-and-other-brutal-workouts/","keywords":["You Asked","Living","Weight loss","Workout","Exercise & Fitness","You Asked"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt049e151816b3bf31/69869e7cf983e75f2e04f1da/why-do-people-like-crossfit.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Markham Heid","jobTitle":"","url":"https://time.com/author/markham-heid/"}],"articleSection":"Health","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt049e151816b3bf31/69869e7cf983e75f2e04f1da/why-do-people-like-crossfit.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Why are people addicted to Crossfit?","caption":"Why are people addicted to Crossfit?","creditText":"Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/section/health/","name":"Health"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/tag/you-asked/","name":"You Asked"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3083506/you-asked-why-are-people-addicted-to-crossfit-and-other-brutal-workouts/","name":"You Asked: Why Are People Addicted to CrossFit and Other Brutal Workouts?"}}]}] ```