PEOPLE ARE ASKING ABOUT THIS: Man severs spine during lifting competition. The story makes it sound like his spine just broke in half, but it seems as if what really happened is he dropped the weight and it fell on him. It’s a freak accident, but when you lift heavy weights there’s always a chance one will fall on you. I see people on Facebook blaming Crossfit, but as I say, it’s a freak accident. And it’s nice to see the Crossfit community rallying behind him.

Related: Mark Rippetoe on what he likes and doesn’t about Crossfit. “CrossFit is also about the concept of ‘community’ — the reinforcement of behavior through group participation and group approval. I understand this quite intimately, because I have met some of the best people I have ever known through CrossFit, the vast majority of whom are still friends even though I’m no longer associated with CrossFit formally. A better-than-average group of people that likes you and helps you be better is a very powerful motivator for improvement, and CrossFit: The Community provides this in abundance.”