- High intensity all the time
- No periodization
- No strength bias
Affiliate starts @fit within the original definition. People get hurt and become weaker, so the affiliate evolves and adapts, reducing intensity in some wods, adding a strength bias, etc. However, they still want to tap into the marketing that is @fit so they retain their affiliation. People attend this crossfit gym that isn't doing @fit. However, they don't know any better so if you ask them what crossfit means they'll tell you based on their experience that it is oly lifting with short circuits afterward because that's what they do at their "crossfit" gym. To them, that is crossfit. And as this happens more and more, the definition to the general population will expand more and more, much like how any copy machine is commonly refereed to a Xerox machine, or how Pilates can now be used by unofficial studios.
This may mean that there may become a time where crossfit will become so synonymous with cross training that Glassman will lose the right to exclusivity on the trademark, and anyone could use it, even if they aren't affiliated and aren't doing @fit.
Pilates is a great example of what I'm foreseeing here, as this article here states:
YOU CAN’T CALL IT “PILATES”There may be a time where crossfit will refer to any cross training program, and Glassman may lose his grip on the brand. Whether this is a good thing or not depends on your point of view, but it will be interesting to see what actually does happen.
In 1991, the management of a now-defunct studio and training company called Pilates, Inc. announced that it had acquired and owned trademarks in the Pilates name for a method of exercise, studios and equipment. The company began issuing cease-and desist letters, many to small studios that were struggling along and could ill afford to engage in a legal battle over what they were legitimately teaching. Many continued in business by avoiding the use of the word “Pilates” in their advertising, flyers and on business cards. If people called to ask whether they taught Pilates, they’d respond that they were teaching exercises “based on the teachings of Joseph Pilates.” In the face of threat from Pilates, Inc., studios and instructors actually began referring to “Pilates” as “the P word.”
There were other studios, however, as well as trainees at Pilates, Inc., who bought licenses to use the “Pilates” name in their advertising. Some did so reluctantly, while others acted as informers, turning in unlicensed teachers and studios so that Pilates, Inc. could take legal action. Sadly, these people thought it was in their economic best interest to keep Pilates restricted to one school.
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COMMON SENSE PREVAILS
Finally in 2000, the United States District Court in Manhattan declared that “Pilates” could not be a trademark because it was the generic name for a method of exercise. Pilates, Inc.’s trademark for equipment was also invalidated, on the grounds that Pilates, Inc. had committed fraud on the Patent & Trademark Office. Now the word was free to be used by all.
At that point, the Pilates dam burst. The publicity from the trial gave the community a much needed push. The Internet was moving into high gear, which really helped spread the word about the method. Mari Winsor began to appear on infomercials. What started as a method known primarily among dancers became huge. Even better, the invalidation of the trademarks unifi ed a large segment of the community and was a major factor in creating the large but close-knit group we have become.
