RX or Scaled? Sometimes I Jump on a Stack of Plates
Published on HivePostify by @elianaicgomes · Thu Sep 03 2026
Decoding CrossFit #4 — Scaling isn’t failing. It’s finding the version that lets you keep moving.
Welcome back to Decoding CrossFit, where I try to make sense of the language that comes with the workout!
We’ve already talked about WOD, AMRAP, and the alphabet soup of BB, DB and DU. Today, it’s time for two more words: RX and scaled.
And this one comes with a little story about push-ups, box jumps, and what I call my “stack of cookies”.
Yes, cookies... Stay with me!
What does RX mean?
RX means doing the workout as prescribed: the movements, weights, repetitions and any other standards set for that workout.
Scaled means adapting something — maybe the weight, the movement, the repetitions or the height — to suit your current ability while keeping the intended challenge of the session.
That’s where the coach helps: choosing an adaptation that makes sense for you and for the workout.
It also means a movement isn’t automatically “scaled” just because it looks simpler. If step-ups are what the workout prescribes, doing step-ups is following the workout. It depends on what was asked in the first place.
My push-ups depend on the day
Some days, I do push-ups on my knees. Lately, though, I’ve been doing regular push-ups more often.
And both are okay.
I like being able to say that... I can notice the progress without making the days when I use my knees into something negative. The version I do can change. I’m still there, doing the work!
Then there are box jumps…ugh!
I still can’t do box jumps onto the box. I’m scared! So sometimes they make me a little “stack of cookies” out of weight plates, and I jump onto that lower height. Other times, I do step-ups.
That’s what adapting a workout looks like for me in practice - A lower jump, or a different way of getting up there.
On this board, you can see box jumps listed in the WOD. It’s a useful example of the kind of movement I currently adapt. The board tells you the workout; it doesn’t tell you every person’s version of it.
One label doesn’t tell the whole story
Right now, I’m doing more regular push-ups. I’m also still using alternatives for box jumps. Those two things can be true at the same time.
That’s probably the most personal part of this little CrossFit translation: understanding the words is useful, but so is understanding what they mean for your own training.
RX describes how a workout was completed. Scaled tells you that something was adapted. Neither word gives you the whole story of the person doing it.
For now, my story includes regular push-ups, knee push-ups, step-ups, and the occasional stack of cookies!
And I’m okay with that :)
What’s a movement you currently adapt — or one you’ve gradually become more comfortable with?
Tags: #bbh#crossfit#decodingcrossfit#wod#fitness#actifit#personalgrowth#sport