Snatch & Push Up Ladders...

Today was my first day training since last friday (12/24). I took 6 days off while on vacation in Mexico with my family. It was a nice break but I was looking forward to getting back at it.

I did snatch and push up ladders with the 16kg bell . I did 5 ladders with 5 rungs on each ladder.

Snatch - L &R then Push Up
1 x 3 3 reps
1 x 3 3 reps
1 x 4 4 reps
1 x 5 5 reps
I did the above 5 times.
There were 15 reps each ladder for a total of:
75 Snatch reps left
75 Snatch reps right
150 total snatch reps
75 total Push Ups
It took me 11:12 for 5 rounds compared to 11:38 last week. 
 
I finished with 50 Gama Cast with the 25# Clubbell.

Thanks...

As Christmas Eve approched I just wanted to say thank you to everyone that has motivated me to become better in my training and with my nutrition. I started this blog 4 years ago as a training log to be able to go back and track my progress. Although I still use it mainly for that purpose it has become much more.


The subtitle of the blog has always been - "The main purpose which is to share ideas and provide motivation for myself and others" and still still holds true to today. I will admit I am amazed how the strength & conditioning and nutrition "online community" has helped shape my thoughts and philosophy about ..."What is Fitness"? but in a good way.

Crossfit has been a great way to get a sense of "community" . It helps push me during my training but when "life happens" and my ability to make it to the box becomes more and more difficult the ability to still connect with like minded individuals helps me keep on track.

I truly appreciate the interactions I have had with each of you.

Merry Christmas,
Rob

Double Kettlebell Complexes...

In addition to my Crossfit Training two to three days a week I am getting back to more regular kettlebell training. I am starting Geoff Neupert's Kettlebell Muscle Program. It is all double kettlebell work and is challenging and fun. Check it out!

My training looked like this:

Four rounds of:
5 Double High Pulls
5 Double Snatches
5 Double Military Presses
5 Front Squats

I used the 20kg (44#) bells for all exercises
120 second rest in between rounds

I finished with: Gama Cast - 25lb clubbell - 50 reps

Holiday Eating Survival Guide...

As Christmas and New Years approach I have been thinking about my diet during the holidays. (My wife and I are taking the kids to Mexico for a five to days to an all-inclusive resort so my year end nutritional issues are even bigger than they normally would be). I wanted to wrote a post about surviving the holidays without sabotaging all of your hard work. I found this article from Crossfit Athens and decided to share it.

"Many of you have heard me talk about the 80/20 rule before. For those that haven't, it states that 80% of our rewards come from 20% of our actions. For example, in business, 80% of sales are derived from 20% of the customer base. Conversely, 80% of your headaches come from 20% of your customers"

"An even more CrossFit-esque example: 80% of our gains in strength, flexibility, stamina, cardio endurance, speed, power, accuracy, agility, coordination and balance come from about 20% of the exercises we utilize. Ever wonder why squats, deadlifts, push ups, and pull ups (or some variation of these, ie. wall ball) show up so often? Now you know"

"Taking this principle of 80/20, we can infer that 80% of our gains in the nutritional realm of health come from about 20% of our habbits. Getting rid of sugar and junk food, drinking more water, and eatting more fruits and vegetables is powerful medicine. It will increase the average persons health more so than deciding to take fish oil supplements (or any supplements), worrying about macro-nutrient timing, or getting your Zone block portions correct"

"So how can we put this info to use over the holidays? I'm glad you asked".

"When you're at the office Christmas party this year, hold back on the sugar laiden snacks. Go for a handful of peanuts instead, or even better hit up the meat and cheese tray along with a handful off of the veggie platter. (Yes you can have the Ranch too. Just remember you should still be able to taste your veggies. You're not adding crunch to the Ranch!)"

"As much as possible, drink water. Even if it's as simple as throwing it in every other drink. (Plus an eggnog hangover is just not worth it)".

"When socializing, do so away from the food. We are all mindless eaters. Ever notice how you go through 3 baskets of chips at the Mexican resteraunt? Out of site, out of mind. It works, I promise"!

"There you have it. Remember, 80% of results come from 20% of the effort. Make the simple things work for you!"

From Crossfit Athens

“Pink Bunny”...

“Pink Bunny”
4 Rounds for time of:
25 Back Squats (95)
25 Double Under Attempts

13:11 not Rx
Rx was 50 DU's per round

It was more skill practice for me than a Met-Con, Worked on squat depth and double unders

Muscle Ups & Training Changes...

I went back to CFNE last night with Jared for Crossfit Kids and decided to screw around. I decided to so some Muscle Ups. Another goal down...5 consecutive Muscle Ups. Third PR of the day. "It was a good day"!

Loving CF lately but I realize I need to keep a strength training component in my training. In January I plan on adding two days a week of just strength related training. Maybe "Enter ther Kettlebell" or "Kettlebell Muscle". Also considereing some "German Volume Training" or "Escalating Density Training". Plus I need to make sure that I am working in some Clubbell Training as well to mix it up.

Power Snatch & “Randy”

1. Power Snatch
3 rep Max - 135# (40# PR)

2. “Randy”
75 Power Snatches for time (75)
7:22 (1:25 PR)

Snatch & Push Up Ladders...

I did not make it to Crossfit New England this morning because of lack of sleep last night.....so I did the following in the basement (just like last week).

Today I did snatch and push up ladders with the 16kg bell . I did 5 ladders with 5 rungs on each ladder.

Snatch - L &R then Push Up
1 x 3 3 reps
1 x 3 3 reps
1 x 4 4 reps
1 x 5 5 reps

I did the above 5 times.

There were 15 reps each ladder for a total of:
75 Snatch reps left
75 Snatch reps right
150 total snatch reps

75 total Push Ups

It took me 11:38 for 5 rounds compared to 26:58 last week for 10 rounds. On pace for a sub-25 minute 10 round ladder!

SEALFIT - "CP Smith"...

I did my first "Sealfit" workout this morning.

According to http://www.sealfit.com/

SEALFIT is an integral training program developed by retired Navy Commander, competetive athlete and martial artist Mark Divine. SEALFIT combines training for elite fitness, mental toughness, and "kokoro spirit" into a single program delivered through daily workouts, an immersion academy, a renowned 50 hour "Kokoro" camp, and a growing number of certified coaches delivering SEALFIT at CrossFit gyms around the country.

SEALFIT picks up where other elite training programs leave off. Focusing on the whole person, we train to a set of powerful values, and focus as much training on the "inner" emotional and spiritual person as we do the "outer" physical person. Our innovative system integrates best practices from CrossFit programming, strength development, austere environmental training, team and leadership development, cutting edge sports psychology and ancient warrior development techniques.

SEALFIT is a graduate level program scalable to beginners and intermediate trainees via our Online Training program, our Academies and through our expert Physical Training Coaches at Partner Gyms. Our clients include Professionals, CrossFit and serious athletes, special operations candidates and others who seek serious mental toughness training and to learn to operate at peak capacity for long periods of time

"CP Smith" - 49.:57

6 Rounds for Time:

15 x Bench Press (175#)

15 x Clapping Push-up

15 x Knees to Elbow

Run 400M

I strength-scaled to 10 reps per exercises for 6 rounds - 60 total
The Bench Presses and Clapping Push-ups got hard early on!

49:57

“Hairy Tounge”...

AMRAP 20 of:

5 C2B Pull ups

10 Ring Dips

15 Overhead Squats (95)

7 Rounds plus 5/10/3

“Shipyard”...

3 Rounds for time of:

10 Weighted Pull ups – no kipping/Strict - 25#

30 Good Mornings, 45#

6:57

“Press - Push Press - Push Jerk”

“Press – Push Press -Push Jerk"

Press 5 sets of 1 - worked up to 145# x 1

Push Press 5 sets of 3 - worked up to 160# x 3

Push Jerk 5 sets of 5 - worked up to 165# x 5

45 total reps - My legs and shoulders are smoked!

“Sizzurp”...

“Sizzurp”
3 Rounds for time of:
15 Deadlifts (225)
50 Abmat Sit ups

7:17 Rx
All Reps Unbroken!

"Black Ice"...

"Black Ice"

3 Rounds for Time of:
10 Double Kettlebell Snatches (35)
10 Double Clubbell Swipes (25)
10 Clubbell Gama Cast (25)
10 Kettlebell Swings (53)

10:37 Rx

I finished with 50 consecutive Figure 8/Hold (35)

“Lynne”...

“Lynne”
5 Rounds:
Max Bench Press (bodyweight) - 155#
Max Pull ups (bodyweight)

21/25
12/15
8/15
7/12
8/14
My total was 56/81
137 reps Rx

There are a number of different ways to do “Lynne.” Today we will be doing a max rep bench immediately followed by a max rep set of Pull ups. Once you come off the Pull up Bar, rest 2 minutes and repeat for a total of 5 rounds.

“Filthy Fifty”...

For time:

50 Box jump, 24 inch box

50 Jumping pull-ups

50 Kettlebell swings (35)

Walking Lunge, 50 steps

50 Knees to elbows

50 Push press (45)

50 Back extensions

50 Wall ball shots (20)

50 Burpees

50 Double unders

33:46 Rx

PR by 8:13 from last time. (used 14# ball last time)

Spent over 8 minutes on Wall Balls. Uuuuuuggggggghhhhh!

I hate Wall Balls!

The Importance of Rest...

Go into your gym and look around some time. What I want you to look for is the people with the knee braces, wrist wraps, elbow braces, etc. continuing to train intensely (or at least trying). Or the ones just going through the motions, who are only there out of some confused sense of obligation or what have you. Perhaps, if you think about it, you’re one of those people.

Rest Days

I want you to ask yourself how many days off you take each week. And when I say off I mean off. Not “I do an hour of aerobics but that doesn’t count.” I mean off. One, maybe two. Probably not that many. How many people (the ones wearing the various braces) are in there every day, sometimes more than once? Either they are doing weights multiple times per week and cardio on the off days or they are doing both each day.

Trust me, I’ve been there too, trying to train 6 days/week (I at least conceded one day off per week, although I didn’t do that consistently until my late 20’s) and wondering why I was burnt out, tired all the time, not performing well, etc.

But you argue, Lance trains 6 days/week, so do most road cyclists. Well, elite road cyclists are genetic freaks, train full time (they don’t have job and such cutting into their time) and the majority of the peleton is using drugs so you really shouldn’t derive very many conclusions about how you, who has a job, has real life stress and isn’t preparing for the Tour De France.

Most runners run 6 days/week. Yeah, and most runners are overtrained and chronically injured. And Arnold and his ilk lifted 6 days/week. Genetics and drugs. Same with the Bulgarians, the Soviets, you name it. These are the genetic elite, training full time with no job or life stress, and juiced to the gills. Unless you have all those things going for you, you shouldn’t try to emulate their training. And given that a massive percentage of elite athletes report being overtrained, perhaps even they should be training less frequently.

Which is simply a long winded way of suggesting that, if you are anything like the normal trainee, you’re doing too much. You probably train too many days per week and take too few days off. You’re lifting 3-4 days/week and trying to do cardio another 3-4 days/week (this is especially true if you are a fat/weight obsessed female). And you wonder why your joints are always kind of sore, you don’t really look forwards to your workouts anymore and everything that signals, if not true overtraining, at least overreaching (the distinction is another topic for another day).

So, I want you to look at your current training schedule, how many days are you training, how many days do you have off? I recommend that everyone, and this is true from the beginning exerciser to the elite athlete have at least one day completely off from training. That’s the minimum.

This is called passive rest, I want you to sit around all day. I’m not a religious person but this is best summed up by a quote from Charlie Francis’s book Speed Trap. Francis had asked his coach if they could afford to take Sunday’s off. His coach told him “The Lord made the world in six days, and on the seventh he rested. Do you think you could do better than that?” Most elite athletes take at least one day off from training each week and the ones who don’t usually pay for it in the long run. Why do you think you need more training than they do? If you simply can’t stay still and not do something, go for a brisk walk outdoors. But stay out of the gym. See if you aren’t refreshed when you go back to the gym the next day.

At least one (and probably two) other days per week, you should be doing active rest. This is light activity done to improve recovery. An endurance cyclist who typically trains for 2 hours might spin very easily (at a heart rate of 130-140 or lower) for 30-40 minutes. And I mean light spinning, almost no pressure on the pedals. It pumps some blood, burns a few calories, and helps recovery. Sipping a protein/carb drink during active recovery may help shuttle nutrients to the worked muscles. A runner should do some sort of cross training to give their connective tissues a rest. Try the EFX/elliptical or something non-impact.

People involved in heavy weight training can do something similar for passive rest, just very light cardio activity (brisk walking, spin on the bike) but, again, the intensity should be pretty low. If your trying to bodybuild, your focus should be on lifting anyhow and 3-4 days/week should be plenty for everyone. Most powerlifters only lift 4 days/week (on average) although many are starting to do extra stuff of late. Again, these are typically full time athletes and there is always the steroid factor to consider. Why do you think you need more time in the weight room than they do? If you want to do a little aerobic conditioning, either double it up on one of your training days or keep it very low intensity on the off days.

Even for general fitness exercisers, I think taking extra days off (or performing active rest) is beneficial. Find places to cut your weight training down (most people’s workouts are absurdly long) and put some of your cardiovascular work after your weights (on upper body days). I think you get the idea. Find a way to get your training down to 3-4 days/week total with 1 day completely off and a couple of days of active recovery.

Try this for the next 2 weeks, cutting back your training days and increasing how many days you rest and recover. See if you don’t freshen up and start to get more enthusiastic about the days you are in the gym. In the follow up to this article, in 2 weeks, I’ll talk about taking longer breaks from training and why it’s such a good idea.

More Rest Considerations

Now, I want you to ask yourself when the last extended break from training you took was. By extended I mean more than a day or two off from training, more like a 5-14 day span where you stayed out of the gym, where you either did nothing or did something completely different than your normal training program. If you can’t think of one, try to think about the last time that you got sick or injured and were forced to take an extended period of time off from your training. What did you notice when you came back?

Unless it was a very extended time off (more than 2 weeks), I bet you were far more enthusiastic about your training, some of those little twinges or aches had gone away. Perhaps you busted through your previous plateaus after a short break in period.

And then, if you’re like everyone else out there, you went right back to training the way you had done before. Hammering for weeks, months, even years on end without a break. Or until you got sick or injured again. Repeat the cycle until you wise up. If you ever do.

Odds are, if you’re like most out there, the mere idea of taking 5 days (or more) off from training fills you with fear. All your strength, muscle and fitness will just disappear. And, oh my god, you’ll just get fat.

Except that the detraining studies, and real-world experience, show something different. You lose very little fitness in a 5-14 day span, depending on what you’re looking at. I mean think about it this way: if you spend 11.5 months out of the year getting in-shape, how much fitness can you honestly lose in 5-14 days? Not very much is the answer.

Given how overtrained many people are, many come back stronger or fitter than before. Even in terms of fat loss, I’ve seen people who were training at insane levels and watching their diet get leaner when they took a break from all that training and ate more (this magic trick usually lasts about a week maximum).

Almost all athletes take easy periods in their training (some call this unloading or deloading) although this depends significantly on how they are training. And the ones that don’t should. The average scheme is to train intensely for 3 weeks and then take an easy week where volume, intensity, frequency or all three are reduced. Others will go 5-6 weeks and then take an easy week. My generic bulking routine, alternates 2 weeks of easy training with 4-6 weeks pushing the weights up I’d probably suggest, on average, taking a full week off from training after every 3 cycles (18-24 weeks) of continuous training.

Longer cycles of 16-18 weeks are often followed by periods of 5-10 days completely off from training. Charlie Francis, sprint coach extraordinaire, often gave his athletes 5 days completely off from training between every 12-16 week block. So they’d work up to a new peak over 12 weeks (on a 3 week hard/1 week easy schedule) including their final taper, take 5 days off to recharge and then do it again. Yet most people training recreationally think they can go all out year round (bodybuilders are notorious for this).

Additionally, at the end of every training season, most athletes will take anywhere from 2-4 weeks away from their sport during what is called the transition phase (where you transition from the previous season of training to the next). This used to be called the off-season, athletes would sit around for a month or two but, with periods that extended, they would detrain and lose a lot of fitness. Now it’s closer to 2-4 weeks but with some amount of activity to prevent too much fitness loss.

So, I want you to look at your last year’s training, when’s the last time you took an extended break from training, or took a week or two to do something completely different. Stay out of the weight room, go do bodyweight circuits in the park. Hike in the hills for some leg training, just go do something different. And don’t be afraid to take 5 days of easy training every 3-4 months to give your body and mind a break, you won’t lose anything and you may find that you gain a lot when you come back to the gym. Both physically and psychologically. Because, let’s face it, if training is a chore and you’re not pushing yourself, you’re not making gains anyhow. Taking some time away from your training can refresh the mind as well as the body and get you more excited about your training.

(From http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/)

Snatch & Push Up Ladders...

I had could not make it to Crossfit New England this morning because I had an early morning appointment 150 miles away. I got home early enough to make it to the night class but thought that 315 miles was enough driving for the day.....so I did the following in the basement (just like last week).

Today I did snatch and push up ladders with the 16kg bell . I did 10 ladders with 5 rungs on each ladder.

Snatch - L &R then Push Up
1 x 3 3 reps
1 x 3 3 reps
1 x 4 4 reps
1 x 5 5 reps

I did the above 10 times.
There were 15 reps each ladder for a total of:

150 Snatch reps left
150 Snatch reps right
300 total snatch reps

150 total Push Ups

It took me 26:58 at a fast pace compared to 37:24 last week which translates into a 10:26 PR.
Next time - sub 25:00!

“Deadlift OTM” & “AMRAP 7 Goat”...

1. “Deadlift OTM”
10 rounds of:
Every Minute on the Minute Complete 2 Deadlifts.
275, 295, 305, 315, 325, 330, 335, 345, 350, 355

2. “AMRAP 7 Goat”
10 OH Squats (95)
10 Double Unders

4 Rounds - Got 7 rounds in the “AMRAP 15″ last time


“Goats” are weaknesses or movements that give you trouble. Next to training with Intensity, there is no faster way to improve your overall fitness (GPP) than fixing chinks in your armour. For the past 4 weeks we have been working AMRAP 15 Goat WODs. This week we are doing an AMRAP 7, and attempting to beat 1/2 your PR from the “AMRAP 15″

Death By Kettlebell Thrusters...

On the first minute complete 1 Thruster. On the second minute complete 2 Thrusters. Continue to add one Thruster every minute for as long as you are able to complete the prescribed reps within the minute.

Death By KB Thrusters - 20kg bells (88#) - 8 rounds (36 reps)

I finished with: KB Figure 8/Hold - 24kg bell - 50 reps

Clubbell Barbarian Squats & Push Ups...

One of my favorite Clubbell exercises is the heavy Clubbell Barbarian Squat. Simply stated, it’s a full body complex which addresses the legs and glutes like a squat, the traps and back like a deadlift, the shoulders like a pull over and front raise, the arms like a curl and extension, and the core like a medball floor routine. Few things hit everything like the Barbarian Squat.

My training looked like this today:
20 sets of 5 for time: 18:27
Clubbell Barbarian Squat - 25lb Clubbell - 100 reps
Push Ups - 100 reps

I finished with 50 Hammer Swings with the 25lb Clubbell

“The Other Total”

“The Other Total”

Max reps of Clean and Jerk (bodyweight) - 3 @ 155# (PR)
Max reps of Bench Press (bodyweight) - 24 @ 155#(PR)
Max reps of Overhead Squat (bodyweight) - 2  @ 155# (PR)

Warm up as needed. Then load the bar equal to your bodyweight and complete as many reps as possible in one unbroken set. If you can not complete one rep at bodyweight work up to a 1 rep max.

Clean and Jerks are touch and go. You may rest at the hang, the rack or overhead, but not the ground.

Bench must touch chest.

OHS can be from the rack.

Clubbell & Bodyweight Training...

My training looked like this:

Double Swipes - 15lb clubbells - 50 reps
Hammer Swings - 15lb clubbell - 100 reps
One-handed Mills - 15lb clubbell - 100 reps
Gama Cast - 25lb clubbell - 100 reps
Dips - 50 reps
Toes to Bar - 50 reps

Snatch & Push Up Ladders...

I had could not make it to Crossfit New England this morning because I had an 8am appointment 70 miles away. I got home early enough to make it to the night class but thought thatr 240 miles was enough driving for the day.....so I did the following in the basement.

Today I did snatch and push up ladders with the 16kg bell . I did 10 ladders with 5 rungs on each ladder.

Snatch - L &R then Push Up
1 x 1 1 rep
1 x 2 2 reps
1 x 3 3 reps
1 x 4 4 reps
1 x 5 5 reps
I did the above 10 times.

There were 15 reps each ladder for a total of:

150 Snatch reps left
150 Snatch reps right
300 total snatch reps

150 total Push Ups

It took me 37:24 at a moderate pace. I will keep doing this once a week and see how much faster I can complete it. Is under 25 minutesc possible? We shall see!

Kettlebell Triples...

My training looked like this today:

Goblet Squats - 40kg - 3x3 - 9 reps
One Arm Rows - 48kg bell - 3x3 each arm
Double Deadlifts - 40kg bells - 3x3 - 9 reps
One Arm Incline Press - 40kg bell - 3x3 - 9 reps
Upright Row - 40kg bell - 3x3 - 9 reps
Pullovers - 36kg bell - 3x3 - 9 reps

Alcohol vs. Muscle...

*Given that we’re just coming off of a lengthy holiday period where alcohol consumption is a part of the tradition, the timing of this information couldn’t be better. Please forgive me!*

In general, fitness enthusiasts are more health conscious about the foods we put into our bodies than the average person. But what about alcohol? There is evidence out there suggesting that alcohol has many negative effects on muscle building. Weall know that the worthless calories from each drink can add up, especially if your mission is to increase lean body mass. Let’s examine what alcohol does to the body in relation to the athlete who’s trying to build muscle.

The REAL Effects of Alcohol on Your Body

Many of us associate the effects of alcohol on the body with the heart, lungs, liver, brain, memory, etc. Furthermore, if asked about effects of drinking alcohol in terms of our fitness goals, most people will talk about the infamous beer belly. We’ve all seen it, right? If you drink too much you end up storing too many calories as fat. To avoid this, many people will choose low calorie or low carb alcoholic drinks in an attempt to avoid the fat storage issue. They feel that by making this choice the only bad effects of alcohol (increased fat storage) will be minimized. But what you may not know know is that only about 5% of the calories from alcohol are stored as fat! Yikes.

The effects of alcohol on the body are far more damaging than can be predicted by the number of empty calories in some alcoholic beverage. The truth is…

Alcohol really affects the amount of fat your body can and will burn for energy!

In a study done by the American Journal of Clinical Research they concluded that a mere 24g of alcohol consumption showed whole-body lipid oxidation (this is the rate at which your body burns fat) decreased by a whopping 73%! Personally, that’s a number that I can’t ignore. When alcohol travels through the liver, it creates a by-product called Acetate. It is this acetate that puts the brakes on the fat burning process.

We talk all the time in our nutrition consults about how your body uses protein, carbohydrates and fat as fuel. In many cases, the fuel used by the body is dictated by its availability. Trouble is, your body tends to use whatever you feed it for fuel right? As your acetate levels increase, your body burns more acetate as fuel. Are you still following me? This means that fat burning takes a back seat!

What it all boils down to is this… a) You consume a few alcoholic drinks. b) Your liver metabolizes that into acetate. c) Your body uses the acetate instead of fat as fuel.

Decrease in Testosterone and an Increase in Cortisol

A study of 8 healthy male volunteers observed that after drinking alcohol, the effects of a significant decrease in testosterone and an increase in cortisol (a muscle destroying hormone) lasted up to 24 hours! If you are serious about building muscle and burning fat, you want all the free testosterone levels you can get and you want to reduce cortisol in any way you can. That means go light on the drinking because it does affect your hormones. What’s more is that the effects were even worse if you exercise before drinking. This means that if you are going out and will be drinking more than a small amount of alcohol, you might as well skip the gym. Uh Oh!

Decrease in vitamin and mineral absorption

When you consume large quantities of alcohol, your liver is busy converting the alcohol to acetate and any vitamins and minerals that it might process are taken up by the detoxification process. Alcohol interferes with the metabolism of most vitamins, and with the absorption of many nutrients. Food in the stomach will compete with ethanol for absorption into the blood stream. It has been well proven by research that alcohol competes and influences the processing of nutrients in the body.

Decrease in protein synthesis of type II fibers

Short story. This means the actual building of muscle is slowed down by 20%+ or more.

Dehydration

A common side effect of alcohol is dehydration. Alcohol is a diuretic. Considering how important water is to muscle building and general health, it’s clear that dehydration can put a damper on your progress.

Sleep

Alcohol consumption, especially at the times when you would normally sleep, can have effects on the quality of sleep. Clearly high quality sleep is extremely important to the rebuilding and growth process of muscle. Without proper rest and recovery, your gains will be affected.

The next day

This may seem like a rather obvious statement, but if you plan on drinking on a Friday nightto excess, the workout you thought of doing on Saturday morning probably won’t be top notch. It takes awhile to recover, for your body to detoxify, and for you to be mentally prepared to workout. Not to mention you need energy for the WOD ahead!

At this point you might be totally discouraged to ever drink any alcohol again. (Then again, probably not.) And of course, The best option is always abstinence, as you already know. But there’s some good news. It’s simple: Moderation is the key! 1-2 drinks per day is considered moderation for the general population. As a fitness enthusiast looking for the best possible muscle gains, maybe 1 drink per day or even 1 drink per week would fit into your goals. However, 6-7 drinks would be detrimental to your muscle building efforts.

The bottom line? The effects of alcohol on your body when it comes to building muscle and burning fat are quite clear. It is a lot more than just some extra calories stored as fat. If you consume too much, it can derail your goals a lot longer than after your head has hit the pillow and you’ve gone to sleep.

by Crossfit Zone

"Helen no Running with 40lb Vest"

1. "Helen no Running with 40lb Vest"
3 Rounds for time of:
21 KB Swings (53)
12 Pull ups

5:47 - BRUTAL!

Finished with 50 Walking Lunges

Kettlebells & Clubbells...

After Murph yesterday I wanted to keep my training on the short side

I did 3 rounds of:
10 Kettlebell Swings (53)
10 Hammer Throws (25)
10 Hammer Swings (25)
10 Push Ups
10 KB Deadlifts (106)

I finished with: 25 Knees to Elbows

"Murph"...

"Murph"
For time:
1 mile Run
100 Pull ups
200 Push ups
300 Squats
1 mile Run

Break up the Pull ups, Push ups, and Squats as needed. You must start and end with the 1-mile Runs.

47:39 Rx. Every rep was perfect!! Sweet.

"Goat Day" ...

"Goat Day"

Goats are weaknesses, and you are only as fit as your weakest link. On "Goat Days" we create individual workouts for each athlete to improve their weakest link. The easiest way to decide what your goats are is to figure out what you would hate to see programmed in a competition. Think about two movements that give you trouble and we'll help you create a WOD. Most will be in the form of an "AMRAP 15"

For example, If you have trouble with Handstand Push ups and Double unders your WOD may be AMRAP 15 of: 4 HSPU and 12 Double Unders.

What are your goats?

AMRAP 15
10 Overhead Squats (95)
10 Double Unders

6 rounds.....with Ben no repping me on the OHS if I did not touch the ball at the bottom.

"Try to be better than yourself"...

"Do not bother just to be better than your contemporaries or predecessors. Try to be better than yourself". - Dale Carnegie


The above quote resonates with me because recently I have realized that I have become caught up in my performance (or lack of performance) in my training. I have been training with kettlebells for over 7 years and recently started mixing in Crossfit. I am a very competitive person and find Crossfit be very motivating as opposed to training on my own.
 
But lately have been beating myself up not just for my performance compared against my previous workouts but for my performance COMPARED to my peers. As I go back to the preceeding statement I realize that although it is a good indication of my overall progress in my training to compare myself to my peers the reality is as long as I am making progress on a personal basis against my OWN set of numbers then I am going in the right direction.
 
This concept works in all parts of out life: fat loss, muscle gain, etc. Sometimes we get caught up in other people's performance and results and focus on our short-comings relative to theirs. All this negative thinking does is undermine our efforts and mentally deminish our accomplishments. When in reality.....Who cares?
 
In the end it is important to remember to ....:"Try to be better than yourself".

"CrossFit Total"...

CrossFit Total

Back Squat, 1-rep max - 295# (40# PR)

Shoulder Press, 1-rep max - 155# (tied PR)

Deadlift, 1-rep max - 365# (40# less than PR...ouch!)

Total: 815# @ 160lbs BW

Pumped about the Back Squat PR. It actually felt light but it was my 3rd attempt. Pissed about the Deadlift but I just wasn't feeling it today. I got the 365# on the first attempt and failed at 405# twice. Should have backed off but my ego would not let me. Lesson learned! I will take a 40# PR and not dwell on the negative.

Clean & Press/Push Up Ladders...

Today I did ladders with the 24kg bell on the C & P. I did 5 ladders with 3 rungs on each ladder. I also did 15 push ups as part of each ladder and 10 double unders as part of each ladder.

The ladders looked like this:

C & P - L & R - then 5 Push Ups
1 x 1 1 rep
1 x 2 2 reps
1 x 3 3 reps

10 Double Unders after each ladder

I did the above 5 times.

There were 12 reps each ladder for a total of:
30 C & P reps left
30 C & P reps right

90 total C & P reps

75 total Push Ups

50 total Double Unders
I finished with: 250 "running" single unders

"Nancy"...

"Nancy"
5 Rounds for time of:
400 meter Run
15 Overhead Squats (95)

16:59 Rx
PR by 56 seconds

It was my first WOD in 7 days and I could feel my lack of endurance in the runs. It didn't help that I went out too fast (1st 400 - 1:19).

You’re addicted to CrossFit...

It should look like this. Wreckage. Destruction. Annihilation. After “Power Cindy” you should look like somebody just pistol-whipped you or shoved a needle in your vein.

You should be wrecked.

And if you’re not? Then your pacing was off, your intensity level was too low, your plan was too measured.

CrossFit, done right, is like taking drugs. Your brain gets scrambled and your hands shake, but you feel flippin’ FANTASTIC. Yet your health improves and you look better. The fact that it costs less than drugs and you get to keep all your teeth is just a bonus. But don’t try to fool yourself. You’re an addict. A CrossFit addict. Maybe you don’t have track marks on your arms, but look at your hands. Touch your traps. Check out the marks on your shins, or your collarbone. The signs are there, aren’t they?

You’re addicted to CrossFit but you don’t have to cruise bad neighborhoods for your fix and the cops aren’t going to bust you. In fact, the cops are working out next to you and they’re addicts too. Both of you will go home and find yourself thinking about your next hit — reading CrossFit Journal articles, haunting the blog, watching videos again and again, hitting Facebook for some CrossFit talk, jonesing for your next hit.

And the next day, when you get to the box and you’re lacing up your sneakers and the warm-up is about to start, you’ll feel that pit in your stomach and you’ll be scared and you’ll think, “Holy crap, why do I do this? It’s going to hurt.” You’ll almost want to run away, back to your couch, back to the food and television oblivion that used to dull your pain of living, back before you had your first CrossFit hit.

But then you remember the high you’re going to feel at the end. And you swallow hard and walk onto the floor.

The coach yells “3 . . . 2 . . . 1. Go!” The needle slips in. It pinches a bit . . . but then . . . ahhhh . . .

(Words by Lisbeth Darsh/CrossFit Watertown.)

Quotes from Vince Lombardi...

Quotes from Vince Lombardi

In 1959, the Packers announced the signing of New York Giants assistant Vince Lombardi as head coach and general manager.

In his first season, Lombardi lifted the Packers to a 7-5 record and unanimously was voted Coach of the Year. Then in 1960, the Packers captured the Western Division title and went on to win World Championships in 1961, 1962, 1965, 1966 and 1967. Never finishing lower than second since 1960, his teams became the standard of football excellence and the Packer franchise one of the most successful.

Over a nine-year span as head coach, Lombardi's teams racked up 98 victories against 30 losses and 4 ties for a remarkable .758 winning percentage. Even more noteworthy, however, is the record of Lombardi coached teams in postseason play. In 10 division playoffs and World Championship games, the Packers emerged victorious nine times.

Certainly not noted as a man of few words, following are some gems from the great man himself.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

INTENSITY

"There's only one way to succeed in anything, and that is to give it everything. I do, and I demand that my players do."

"If you aren't fired with enthusiasm, you'll be fired with enthusiasm."

"Mental toughness is essential to success."

"You never win a game unless you beat the guy in front of you. The score on the board doesn't mean a thing. That's for the fans. You've got to win the war with the man in front of you. You've got to get your man."

SACRIFICE

"To achieve success, whatever the job we have, we must pay a price."

"Success is like anything worthwhile. It has a price. You have to pay the price to win and you have to pay the price to get to the point where success is possible. Most important, you must pay the price to stay there."

"Football is a great deal like life in that it teaches that work, sacrifice, perseverance, competitive drive, selflessness and respect for authority is the price each and every one of us must pay to achieve any goal that is worthwhile."

"Once you agree upon the price you and your family must pay for success, it enables you to ignore the minor hurts, the opponent's pressure, and the temporary failures."

BELIEF

"Confidence is contagious and so is lack of confidence, and a customer will recognize both."

"If you believe in yourself and have the courage, the determination, the dedication, the competitive drive and if you are willing to sacrifice the little things in life and pay the price for the things that are worthwhile, it can be done."

"Unless a man believes in himself and makes a total commitment to his career and puts everything he has into it-his mind, his body and his heart-what is life worth to him? If I were a salesman, I would make this commitment to my company, to the product and most of all, to myself."

COMMITMENT

"The quality of a person's life is in direct proportion to their commitment to excellence, regardless of their chosen field of endeavor."

"Once a man has made a commitment to a way of life, he puts the greatest strength in the world behind him. It's something we call heart power. Once a man has made this commitment, nothing will stop him short of success."

"Unless a man believes in himself and makes a total commitment to his career and puts everything he has into it-his mind, his body, his heart-what's life worth to him.

CHARACTER

"It is essential to understand that battles are primarily won in the hearts of men."

"In great attempts, it is glorious even to fail."

"They may not love you at the time, but they will later."

LEADERSHIP

" Leadership rests not only upon ability, not only upon capacity; having the capacity to lead is not enough. The leader must be willing to use it. His leadership is then based on truth and character. There must be truth in the purpose and will power in the character."
"Leadership is based on a spiritual quality; the power to inspire, the power to inspire others to follow."

"Having the capacity to lead is not enough. The leader must be willing to use it."

"A leader must identify himself with the group, must back up the group, even at the risk of displeasing superiors. He must believe that the group wants from him a sense of approval. If this feeling prevails, production, discipline, morale will be high, and in return, you can demand the cooperation to promote the goals of the company."

"Leaders are made, they are not born. They are made by hard effort, which is the price which all of us must pay to achieve any goal that is worthwhile."

PREPARATION

"They call it coaching but it is teaching. You do not just tell them…you show them the reasons."

"The harder you work, the harder it is to surrender."

DESIRE

"The difference between a successful person and others is not a lack of strength, not a lack of knowledge, but rather in a lack of will."

"The spirit, the will to win and the will to excel-these are the things that endure and these are the qualities that are so much more important than any of the events that occasion them."

"It is essential to understand that battles are primarily won in the hearts of men. Men respond to leadership in a most remarkable way and once you have won his heart, he will follow you anywhere."

"A man can be as great as he wants to be. If you believe in yourself and have the courage, the determination, the dedication, the competitive drive and if you are willing to sacrifice the little things in life and pay the price for the things that are worthwhile, it can be done."

"If you'll not settle for anything less than your best, you will be amazed at what you can accomplish in your lives.

"It's not whether you get knocked down, it's whether you get up."

DISCIPLINE

"I've never known a man worth his salt who in the long run, deep down in his heart, didn't appreciate the grind, the discipline. There is something good in men that really yearns for discipline."

"The good Lord gave you a body that can stand most anything. It's your mind you have to convince."

"Mental toughness is many things and rather difficult to explain. Its qualities are sacrifice and self-denial. Also, most importantly, it is combined with a perfectly disciplined will that refuses to give in. It's a state of mind-you could call it character in action."

"Once you learn to quit, it becomes a habit."

TEAMWORK

"Individual commitment to a group effort-that is what makes a team work, a company work, a society work, a civilization work."

"Teams do not go physically flat, they go mentally stale."

"Teamwork is what the Green Bay Packers were all about. They didn't do it for individual glory. They did it because they loved one another."

"People who work together will win, whether it be against complex football defenses, or the problems of modern society."

"The achievements of an organization are the results of the combined effort of each individual."

WINNING

"Success demands singleness of purpose."

"Some of us will do our jobs well and some will not, but we will be judged by only one thing-the result."

"Winning is not a sometime thing: it's an all the time thing. You don't win once in a while; you don't do the right thing once in a while; you do them right all the time. Winning is a habit. Unfortunately, so is losing."

"Winning is not everything--but making effort to win is."

"It's easy to have faith in yourself and have discipline when you're a winner, when you're number one. What you've got to have is faith and discipline when you're not yet a winner."

"I firmly believe that any man's finest hour, the greatest fulfillment of all that he holds dear, is the moment when he has worked his heart out in a good cause and lies exhausted on the field of battle-victorious."

QUOTES ON LOMBARDI

"When Lombardi said 'sit down' we didn't look for a chair."-Forrest Gregg

"It was a helluva performance to listen to when he'd go out there and get his troops around him. He laughed. He cried. He motivated. I think he could motivate almost anybody to do almost anything. He communicated with human emotions."-Chuck Lane

"He made us realize that if the mind was willing, the body can go." Forrest Gregg

"He made you a believer. He told you what the other team was going to do, and he told you what you had to do to beat them, and invariably he was right."-Willie Davis

"He made us all better than we thought we could be."-Jerry Kramer

"He pushed you to the end of your endurance and then beyond it. And if there was reserve there, well he found that too."-Henry Jordan

All he wanted from you was perfection."-Jim Taylor

"Coach Lombardi showed me that by working hard and using my mind, I could overcome my weakness to the point where I could be one of the best."-Bart Starr

"He prepared us so well, and he motivated us so well, I felt he was a part of me on the field."-Fuzzy Thurston

"His enthusiasm, his spirit, was infectious."-Frank Gifford

"Respect wasn't a one way street with him. He demanded it of others but he also gave it."-Pete Rozelle

"The fear in my mind was not him but that for some reason I would not be a part of this team and be with this man."-Forrest Gregg

"He was very much interested in the total man as far as his players were concerned. I know that he was very interested in the fact that guys be total citizens. In other words, that we may be the type of people, citizens the town would be proud of."-Carrol Duke

"You might reduce Lombardi's coaching philosophy to a single sentence: In any game, you do the things you do best and you do them over and over and over."-George Halas



"When is the last time you took a FULL week off"?

"When is the last time you took a FULL week off? By a full week, I mean seven full days of NO training or anything even remotely related to working out. If it's been more than 6 months, or you can't remember the last time, then guess what... it's time! It's only during your time off that your body gets a chance to rest, recuperate, repair, and rejuvenate so that it's ready for the next time you go into battle"

 Other telltale signs that you need time off:

• You've plateaued in your performance
• You've been sick more than two times this year
• You keep getting injured
• You have a hard time sleeping more than 4-5 hrs and you're exhausted.

These are some... what are some others you might have noticed... and when are YOU going to be taking some time off? - http://www.crossfitla.com/cms/index.php/home/taking_time_off// 5/27/09

The above paragraph hit home with me. I have not taken more than 2 days in a row off in ....I don't know how long. The thing I do know is that I have plateaued in performance lately AND have had a hard time getting more than 4-5 hours of sleep lately.  Also, I have been waking up exhausted!

It seems to me that most of us have no problem tweaking our diet or changing our workout but taking time off is the last thing we would ever consider. It does seem counter-intuitive to me but I know it is what my body needs. So that is what I am going to do.

"When is the last time you took a FULL week off"?

Crossfit Synergistics @ Ruckus Boston 2010

Yesterday I competed in the Ruckus 2010 @ the Marshfield Fairgrounds as part of a team for Crossfit Synergistics. Below is a map of the course and a video/pictures of the event.



"What It Takes To Be Number One"...

What It Takes To Be Number One

by Vince Lombardi

Winning is not a sometimes thing; it's an all the time thing. You don't win once in a while; you don't do things right once in a while; you do them right all the time. Winning is a habit. Unfortunately, so is losing.

There is no room for second place. There is only one place in my game, and that's first place. I have finished second twice in my time at Green Bay, and I don't ever want to finish second again. There is a second place bowl game, but it is a game for losers played by losers. It is and always has been an American zeal to be first in anything we do, and to win, and to win, and to win.

Every time a football player goes to ply his trade he's got to play from the ground up - from the soles of his feet right up to his head. Every inch of him has to play. Some guys play with their heads. That's O.K. you've got to be smart to be number one in any business. But more importantly, you've got to play with your heart, with every fiber of your body. If you're lucky enough to find a guy with a lot of head and a lot of heart, he's never going to come off the field second.

Running a football team is no different than running any other kind of organization - an army, a political party or a business. The principles are the same. The object is to win - to beat the other guy. Maybe that sounds hard or cruel. I don't think it is.

It is a reality of life that men are competitive and the most competitive games draw the most competitive men. That's why they are there - to compete. To know the rules and objectives when they get in the game. The object is to win fairly, squarely, by the rules - but to win.

And in truth, I've never known a man worth his salt who in the long run, deep down in his heart didn't appreciate the grind, the discipline. There is something in good men that really yearns for discipline and the harsh reality of head to head combat.

I don't say these things because I believe in the "brute" nature of man or that men must be brutalized to be combative. I believe in God, and I believe in human decency. But I firmly believe that any man's finest hour - his greatest fulfillment to all he holds dear - is that moment when he has to work his heart out in a good cause and he's exhausted on the field of battle - victorious.

Vince Lombardi

Kettlebells & Clubbells = Fun!

I mixed it up this morning and decided it do a quick kettlebell/bodyweight metcon followed by some clubbell work. It has been a while since I have done that and it was a great change of pace.

"Push & Pull"
5 rounds for time: 7:15
10 snatches per arm (35#)
10 push ups

Then I did:
5 rounds not for time:
10 Clubbell Swipes (15#)
10 Hammer Swings (15#)
10 Hammer Throws (15#)

I finished with: 50 Kettlebell Swings (53#)

"Beast of the East WOD #4"...

"Beast of the East WOD #4"
1 Round for time of:
700 meter Hill Run
30 Pull ups
200 meter Run
60 Box Jumps (24, 20" - heels on box)
200 meter Run
30 Pull ups
700 meter Hill Run

‎17:36 Rx.
First Hill Run & Box Jumps too slow. Can do MUCH better!

"Goat Day"

"Goat Day"

Goats are weaknesses, and you are only as fit as your weakest link. On "Goat Days" we create individual workouts for each athlete to improve their weakest link. The easiest way to decide what your goats are is to figure out what you would hate to see programmed in a competition. Think about two movements that give you trouble and we'll help you create a WOD. Most will be in the form of an "AMRAP 15"

For example, If you have trouble with Handstand Push ups and Double unders your WOD may be AMRAP 15 of: 4 HSPU and 12 Double Unders.

What are your goats?

AMRAP 15
10 Overhead Squats (95)
10 Double Unders

7 rounds + 4 OHS
All OHS  Unbroken!
got 5 consecutive DUs (up from 3)

"Satan's Whiskers"...

"Satan's Whiskers"
3 Rounds for time of:
10 C2B Pull ups
10 Front Squats (115)
10 Burpees

5:31 - (Rx was 165#)

"Lifting Heavy Shit"...

I felt strong today do I decided to skip the met-con and lift some heavy weights!

Deadlifts:
 345x5 (30# PR)
 405x1 (30# PR)
At 160lbs bodyweight!

Finished with kettlebell swings:
97# for 5x5.

 "It was a good day"!

Max Pull Ups & "The High Life"...

1. Pull ups
1 set of max reps
33 PR (23 on September 2, 2010)

2. "The High Life"
21-15-9 reps for time of: 7:21 Rx Unbroken
Overhead Squat (115)
Box Jumps (30")

Still need to work on OHS depth

Goals...Everyone Needs Them!

"Murph" - Sub 40 Minutes
"Nicole" - 100+ Pull Ups
21 Consecutive HSPUs
300lb Back Squat
40+ Consecutive Pull Ups
400 Meter Run - 1 Minute Flat
5 Consecutive Muscle Ups
50 Burpees - Under 2 Minutes
50 Consecutive Double Unders
Helen - Under 10 Minutes
OH Squat - 155lbs (Bodyweight)
Sub 6 Minute Mile

Paleo Benchmark 1 ...

1. Paleo Benchmark 1
10.9.8.7.6.5.4.3.2.1 reps for time of:
Power Clean (1/2 bodyweight - 80#)
Burpees

5:51 Rx - PR by 1:18 (75#)

Back Squat - 1 Rep Max & "Cabo Wabo"...

1. Back Squat
1 Rep Max - 255#
Pr @ full depth! Next stop 300#.

2. "Cabo Wabo"
AMRAP 6 of:
8 Front Squats (95)
8 C2B Pull ups
5 rounds (Rx was 155)

Team Relay...

Team Relay
AMRAP 20 of:
15 KBS (53)
200 meter Run
One athlete per team completes 1 round while the other athlete rest. Complete as many rounds as possible in 20 minutes.

I got 7 rounds - (105 KBS & 1400m run)
Warren almost got 8. That was fun!

Clean Complex...

Clean Complex


6 sets of:
3 Position Clean + Push Press
3 Position Clean + Push Jerk
3 Position Clean + Split Jerk

Start at 50% of your 1RM Clean, and work up from there.

Got: 75#,85#,95#,105#,115# & 125#

The three positions are from the top down; 1 - High Hang, 2 - Above Knee, 3 - The Floor. After the clean from the floor do a push press. Then repeat the 3 pos clean and do a push jerk and then another 3 position clean plus a split jerk. This equals 1 set. Rest as needed and complete 5 more sets, climbing up in weight every set.

Also did 2 strict Muscle Ups before class.....sweet!

"Row Burp 30"...

Row Burp 30
5 rounds of:
:30 Rowing, record avg 500/split time.
1:30 rest
:30 Burpees, record reps
1:30 rest

Each of these intervals are All Out Efforts. Don't pace or game this wod, each one should be a max effort. The work/rest ratio is 1:3 to allow for sufficient recovery. Record your scores for every round.

Round One:     18/1:30
Round Two:    17/1:36
Round Three:  15/1:36
Round Four:    15/1:36
Round Five      15/1:37

Round Average: 16/1:35.2

My 500m Row PR is 1:54 so I was pumped about my times!

Snatch Balance & "Overhead Squat-athon"...

1. Snatch Balance
3 sets of 3 reps. - 95#

2. "Overhead Squat-athon"
100 Overhead Squats for time (65)

10 rep Knee to Elbow penalty anytime the bar comes down from overhead

11:59 Not Rx (95) .....50 Knee to Elbows

"Triple Helen"...

"Triple Helen"
Run 1200
63 KB Swings (53)
36 Pull ups
Run 800
42 KB Swings
24 Pull ups
Run 400
21 KB Swings
12 Pull ups

26:56 Rx.
First set of KBS unbroken.
Round one was a 45 second PR on "Regular Helen".
That was brutal!

Max Height Box Jump & 2K Row...

1. Box Jump - 41.75 Inches (PR)
1-Rep Max for max Height.

2. "2K Row" - 8:12.3 (PR)
Row 2,000 meters for time.

I need to work on my rowing efficiency and get it under 8 minutes for 2K!

Back Squat - 20 Rep Max & Clean Complex

1. Back Squat
20 rep max - 165# (should have tried 185#(

2. Clean Complex
6 sets of:  65#, 75#, 85#, 95# (ran out of time for sets 5 & 6)
3 Position Clean + Push Press
3 Position Clean + Push Jerk
3 Position Clean + Split Jerk

Start at 50% of your 1RM Clean, and work up from there.

The three positions are from the top down; 1 - High Hang, 2 - Above Knee, 3 - The Floor. After the clean from the floor do a push press. Then repeat the 3 pos clean and do a push jerk and then another 3 position clean plus a split jerk. This equals 1 set. Rest as needed and complete 5 more sets, climbing up in weight every set.

"Zipperhead"...

"Zipperhead"

1 Round for time of:
20 Burpees
30 Power Cleans (115#)
40 Double Unders
500 Meter Row
 
11:44 (not Rx - Rx is 135#)
 
Cleans were a mess and I need to work on double unders. That is where I lost most of the time.

Snatch - Ladder, Front Squats & 100 Reverse Lunges For time...

1. Snatch - Ladder - 45# thru 95#
Every minute on the minute complete 1 Snatch for 8 minutes.
Start at 40% of 1RM and try to add 10% every minute. 

After the 8th minute, Immediately start...

2. Front Squats - On The Minute - 95#
Every minute on the minute complete 3 Front Squats for 8 minutes.
Start with the same weight that you ended the Snatch Ladder with. Do not increase weight each round.
After the 8th minute, You have one minute to strip your bar and begin...

3. Lunges For time - 3:37
Complete 100 Reverse Lunges for time, 45# bar.

With the bar in the back rack position step back with one leg so the knee kisses the ground. Return to a standing position, and that is one rep - continue to 100 reps as fast as possible.

Press - "Tabata This" & 5 Rep Max...

1. Press

5 rep max - 115#

Failed on 4th rep with 135#

2. "Tabata This"

Tabata Row - 5
Rest 1 minute

Tabata Squat - 14

Rest 1 minute

Tabata Pull-up - 8

Rest 1 minute

Tabata Push-up - 6 (stared with 10s - bad move)

Rest 1 minute

Tabata Sit-up - 8

Score - 41

The Tabata interval is 20 seconds of work followed by 10 seconds of rest for 8 intervals.

Tabata score is the least number of reps performed in any of the eight intervals. Unit for the row is "calories".

Clubbell Training...

I am still dealing with arm pain from my pinched nerve and decided to do a short and light clubbell workout today.

My training looked like this:
Gama Cast - 15lb clubbell - 50 reps

Hammer Swings - 15lb clubbell - 50 reps

Hammer Throws - 15lb clubbell - 50 reps

Kettlebells + Crossfit = Awesomeness!



Enough Said!



Crossfit Olympic Weightlifting Certification - Day Two

Notes from day two - Clean & Jerk:

Stance-Grip-Position

1) Jump/Pull Land/Receive

2)Hook Thumb +1/2 knuckle from knurling line

3) Positions: High hang/Mid-thigh/Below Knees/Floor (3 pulls)

4) Burgener Warmup:

a)Down and Up—for speed

b)Elbows high and outside—for keeping bar close

c)Muscle Clean—for strength and 3rd pull

d)Clean Land—for footwork (power)

e)Clean Drop—for footwork (full)

Skill Transfer Exercises:

a)PP Behind Neck

b)PJ Behind neck

c)Push Press

d)Push Jerk

e)Jerk behind neck

f) Jerk

PROGRESSION FOR TEACHING THE JERK:

1. FEET IN THE JUMPING POSITION

2. WALK FEET TO THE LANDING POSITION WHICH IS:

a. TAKING A LONG LUNGE WITH THE BACK KNEE ON THE DECK.

b. TORSO PERPENDICULAR TO THE GROUND

c. KNEE STACKED OVER THE ANKLE

d. BACK FOOT ON THE BALL OF THE FOOT.

e. FRONT FOOT IS FLAT

3. STAND 6-8” WITHOUT MOVING FEET.

a. ENSURE THE TORSO REMAINS ERECT. IF TORSO IS TILTED FORWARD CHECK BACK LEG BEING TOO STRAIGHT AND OR HIPS NOT ROTATED FORWARD.

b. BACK FOOT PUSHING FORWARD

c. FRONT FOOT FLAT WITH MOST WT. ON HEELS.

d. BOTH FEET CAN BE SLIGHTLY MOVED IN.

e. Q=STACK THE BONES

4. RECOVER

a. STEP BACK OFF FRONT FOOT ABOUT 6” OR SO.

b. MAINTAIN A VERY ERECT TORSO WHILE RECOVERING

c. STEP FORWARD WITH BACK FOOT WHILE MAINTAINING A VERY ERECT TORSO.

d. KEEP BAR OVERHEAD AND LOCKED OUT WITH ARMPITS FACING FORWARD UNTIL REFEREE GIVES DOWN SIGNAL OR UNTIL, IF NO REFEREE IS AVAILABLE, YOU HAVE COMPLETE CONTROL OVER THE BAR.

5. USING PVC PIPE:

a. DO STEPS 1-4 WITH PVC PIPE ON HIGH BACK. IN STEP 3 WITH PVC PIPE ON BACK USING STEP E NOW PUSH BAR OVER HEAD, STACKING THE BONES. WITH THE TORSO AND PVC PIPE. THE PIPE SHOULD BE OVER THE VERTEBRE AS WELL AS THE HIPS.

b. JERK PVC PIPE BEHIND THE NECK USING ALL Q’S AND FOOTWORK FROM ABOVE.

c. JERK PVC PIPE FROM FRONT, USING ALL Q’S AND FOOTWORK FROM ABOVE. BAR SHOULD BE PLACED ON THE DELTOIDS IN THE SAME PLACE AS THE FRONT SQUAT. ADJUST GRIP AND STANCE.

6. USING BAR:

a. JERK BAR FROM BEHIND NECK

b. JERK BAR FROM FRONT.

c. CLEAN BAR AND JERK BAR.

i. MAKE SURE YOU BREATH, ADJUST GRIP, ADJUST STANCE

ii. RECOVER

CrossFit Olympic Weightlifting Certification - Day One...

Notes from today's OLY Cert. - The Snatch

Fundamentals of Teaching:

Stance-Grip-Position
1) Jump/Pull Land/Receive
2)Hook 8”-12”
3) Positions: High hang/Mid-thigh/Below Knees/Floor

4) Burgener Warmup:
a)Down and Up—for speed
b)Elbows high and outside—for keeping bar close
c)Muscle Snatch—for strength and 3rd pull
d)Snatch Land—for footwork (power)
e)Snatch Drop—for footwork (full)

Skill Transfer Exercises:
a)SN PP-overhead strength (100% of SN)
b)OHS—core strength
c)Pressing SN Balance—pressing under the bar
d)Heaving SN Balance—
e)SN balance—fastest, 100%+ of SN

3 Pulls of weightlifting: first, second, third

“When the arms bend, the power ends”

“Jump hard, not high”

“Shoulders lead arms follow”

“Finish!”

“Pull yourself under the bar”

“Speed through the middle”

“Pockets”

Pinched Nerve in Neck...

Yesterday I pinched a nerve in my neck during the rope climbs. I herniated C5/C6 three years ago and dealt with major arm pain ...also from  pinched nerve. This is serious business and I plan to take it easy and deal with it accordingly. Hopefully a visit to the chiropractor will give me some relief.

I was planning on training today but when my triceps started twiching and I could sense a noticeable loss of strength I pulled the plug and spent the time on mobility and stretching.

"Tarzan"...

"Tarzan"
50 Back Squats (95)
5 Rope Climbs
40 Back Squats
4 Rope Climbs
30 Back Squats
3 Rope Climbs
20 Back Squats
2 Rope Climbs
10 Back Squats
1 Rope Climb

26:33 Rx
One word..."Brutal"

My shins are fried from rope burns and my arms are totally smoked. That sucked!

CrossFit Olympic Weightlifting Certification. - Natick, MA - October 9-10, 2010

Today will be my second rest day in a row after doing "Helton" and "Running Nate" back to back. I am still banged up especially after only getting about 4 hours of sleep last night. I am looking forward to this weekend's CrossFit Olympic Weightlifting Certification at Crossfit New England.

The class description is: "Spend two full days with CrossFit Coach Mike Burgener OR one of his tier one coaches staff learning, studying and practicing the Olympic lifts. The Snatch and Clean and Jerk bring speed, power, coordination, agility, accuracy and balance to your strength training. These lifts are indispensable to CrossFit programming and expert coaching is a powerful advantage".

The course outline can be found here:

https://www.regonline.com/custImages/250021/OLYCourseOutline.doc

"Running Nate"...

"Running Nate"
Complete As Many Rounds As Possible in 20 minutes of:
2 Muscle ups
4 Handstand Push ups
8 KB Swings(70)
200 meter Run
Rx - 5 rounds + 140 meter run
(muscle ups were more jumping than kipping - they need work)

"Helton"...

"Helton"
3 rounds for time of:
800 meter Run
30 DB Squat Cleans (35)
30 Burpees

39:40
Rx is 45# DBs - Legs were smoked from yesterday's Squat Snatches

Hero WODs are done in memory of America's Finest...

U.S. Air Force Security Forces 1st Lt. Joseph D. Helton, 24, of Monroe, Ga., assigned to the 6th Security Forces Squadron at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Fla., was killed September 8th, 2009, while on a mission near Baghdad, Iraq, when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle. Helton is survived by his mother, Jiffy Helton.

Power Snatch/OH Squat Complex & Squat Snatches...

1. Complex
3 sets of:
3 Power Snatch + 3 Overhead Squats - 95#

2. Squat Snatch
5 sets of 2 reps - 95#

Built up to a heavy double, not a max effort. Focus on foot positioning and no press outs.

"Sept. AF3"...

"Sept. AF3"
AMRAP 16 of:
8 C2B Pull ups
8 Pistols (4/side)
8 Deadlifts (185)

7 rounds - (Rx C2B & DL but used pole for pistols)

400 Meter Sprint, 3 Position Snatch & Back Squat

1. 400 meter Sprint - 1:09...Sweet!
Working towards a sub 6 minute mile!

2. 3 Position Snatch
3 sets of each - 85#

The three positions are working from the top down; 1 - High Hang (Pockets), 2 - Above Knee, 3 - The Floor.

3. Back Squat
3 sets of 5 reps - 185#

Death By Kettlebell Clean & Press...

On the first minute complete 1 Clean and Press. On the second minute complete 2 Clean and Presses. Continue to add one C&P every minute for as long as you are able to complete the prescribed reps within the minute.

Death By KB Clean & Press - 24kg bells - 7 rounds (28 reps)

I finished with: Swings - 24kg bell - 50 reps

"Big Running Cindy"

"Big Running Cindy"
AMRAP 30 of:
3 rounds of Cindy
200 meter Run
Complete as many rounds as possible in 30 minutes of 3 "Cindys" and 200 meter Run. 1 round of "Cindy" is 5 Pull ups, 10 Push ups, 15 Squats
 
I got 6 rounds plus 5 pull ups and 5 push ups.

Clubbell Training...

Clubbell Training...




After the last week of training @ CFNE my shoulders, back and forearms are wrecked. I did a very short and light clubbell workout today as an active recovery.

My training looked like this:

Gama Cast - 15lb clubbell - 100 reps

Hammer Swings - 15lb clubbell - 100 reps

Hammer Throws - 15lb clubbell - 100 reps

How Do Kettlebells And Clubbells Differ?

As I have begun to train with clubbells in addition to my kettlebell training I have been getting questions about the difference between the two and how they compliment each other. I found a series of articles that deals with that very question.



"Kettlebells and ClubbellsTM do tend to emphasize different parts of the body as you use them. The kettlebell, as used in exercises advocated by the party, works the body in more of a "ground up" fashion. The clubbell works more from the hands down. When you pick them up, they are very clumsy to handle, you constantly try to balance them ".

Read the entire article here - Kettlebells & Clubbells



Jerk - 1-Rep Max & "Arrogant Bastard"

1. Jerk
1 rep Max - a questionable 185# (up from 165#)

2. "Arrogant Bastard"
5 Rounds for time of:
3 Presses (115)
5 Push Presses (115)
7 Push Jerks (115)
9 Box Jumps, 30"
14:31 Rx
Brutal - just happy to do it Rx!

Rack Pulls & "East Canada"...

1. Tabata Squats
8 sets of: max reps in 20 seconds, 10 seconds rest.
Score is the low score for any of the eight intervals. - 17 reps

2. Rack Pulls
5 x 5, bar set at knee level. - 315#

3. "East Canada"
21-15-9 Reps for time of:
KB Swings (53)
Burpees
4:09 Rx

"What is Fitness?" by Greg Glassman....Interview with Girevik Magazine

Interview with Greg Glassman

by Tyler Hass

Greg Glassman is the founder of CrossFit, an exciting training protocol and way of life that is rapidly gaining popularity in a wide variety of sports. He also publishes the CrossFit Journal. I am excited to offer a free issue to all of the readers of Girevik Magazine, entitled "What is fitness?". It is an incredible read and will surely change and challenge your views on the topic.

Greg, thanks for agreeing to do the interview.
First of all, what is unique about your Crossfit approach to training?

I think we are unique in both the efficacy of our regimen and our methodology. In terms of approach, I don't know of another program utilizing gymnastics skills and drills, Olympic Weightlifting/powerlifting, and multi-mode sprint work. Our hallmark of combining these elements in single workouts may be globally unique - we're still searching.

In terms of efficacy, of course our results are due to our methods - this is true of every program, but more to the point we have spent literally thousands of hours honing our definition of fitness. It is our definition of fitness that has refined our approach, and, in turn, forged our results. For CrossFit the specter of championing a fitness program without clearly defining what it is that the program delivers combines elements of fraud and farce. The October 2002 issue ("What is Fitness?") of our magazine, CrossFit Journal, is an eleven-page manifesto of our view and standards of fitness.

So Girevik readers can get some sense of our method, here from that issue of the CrossFit Journal is "World-Class Fitness in 100 Words":

"Eat meat and vegetables, nuts and seeds, some fruit, little starch and no sugar. Keep intake levels that will support exercise but not body fat. Practice and train major lifts: deadlift, clean, squat, presses, C&J, snatch. Similarly, master the basics of gymnastics: pull-ups, dips, rope climb, push-ups, sit-ups, presses to handstand, pirouettes, flips, splits, and holds. Bike, run, swim, row, etc, hard and fast. Five or six days per week mix these elements in as many combinations and patterns as creativity will allow. Routine is the enemy. Keep workouts short and intense. Regularly learn and play new sports."

I'm curious about your background. How did you get started in fitness and how did your experiences gradually evolve into the Crossfit methodology?

My first training job was in 1974 as a gymnastics coach at the Pasadena, California Y.W.C.A. I wan an 18-year-old college student. Over the next fifteen years I trained in dozens of great Southern California gyms finding success with a highly efficient, high intensity workout and a celebrity/athlete clientele. It was my work with cops, though, that was so formative of my training. It was easy to see what was lacking in both body builders and endurance athletes when it came to the demands of arrest and control. Over the years it became abundantly clear that combining elements of traditional body building (curls, leg extensions, lateral raises, etc.) with extended aerobic efforts while producing results paled to mixing heavy fundamental movements with high intensity "cardio" efforts. Trainers, athletes, coaches, and gym goers watched in stunned disbelief as my athletes alternated heavy deadlifts with 400-meter sprints - that is, until they tried it. To this day you are about as likely to win the lottery as you are to find someone mixing heavy fundamental resistance movements with sprints in single workouts in a commercial facility. This won't be the case if strength and conditioning are going to advance.

By 1995 CrossFit had been featured on TV and radio, and in print for its contributions to police fitness and our athletes achievements and dominance. But it was the launching of our website in February of 2001 with a daily workout that gave us regular interaction with thousands of athletes worldwide. We have had the honor and challenge of putting our beliefs to worldwide test with thousands of athletes from every walk of life. It would be rough to overstate the value of this feedback, experimentation, and exposure with a global audience.

Today, we are a leading force in elite physical conditioning with a growing influence in military, police, and martial arts communities and a growing roster of national, world, and Olympic champions from more than a dozen sports.

You have established a solid reputation in the mixed martial arts community. Do you practice any martial arts yourself?

No, I've no formal martial arts training. The martial arts community found us; we've made no direct overtures to that community. A few of our martial artists elevated themselves from regionally significant to world dominance and had the grace and good nature to publicly thank us - one after an eleven second UFC rout.


If you know martial arts, especially MMA/NHB, and understand CrossFit, it is fairly obvious that I would hold these athletes in the highest regard.

What kinds of people have you been working with?

Literally, all kinds. I wouldn't know how to begin to characterize our typical client. We've got a 70-year-old author of a standard reference in cardiology, the only American black belt BJJ world champion, and terrorist hunters.

It is our work with military special op's teams and police that has won our hearts and for which we are most proud. To get emailed testimonials from soldiers returning from Afghanistan who've been awarded Silver Stars Nominations, Bronze Stars with "V" devices, Bronze Stars, Joint Service Commendations Medals with "V" devices, ARCOMS, Air Force Commendation Medals, and CIB's and Overseas Bars due to their "high levels of physical fitness in preparation for the conduct of combat" is, for me, an honor I will never forget. The U.S. Department of Justice's National Police Corps Training Specialists became our first certification clients this year, and helping these fine men and women create a new standard for police training is the culmination of my nearly thirty years of studying human performance.

The most amazing thing about your program is that it is designed as a one-size-fits-all workout, regardless of the needs of the individual. I was shocked to hear so many success stories from such a variety of people. What makes this possible? How does Crossfit work for so many different types of people?

It has long been our contention, our observation, that people's needs differ by degree not kind. Olympic athletes and our grandparents both need to fulfill their potentials for cardiorespiratory endurance, stamina, strength, flexibility, speed, power, coordination, accuracy, balance, and agility. One is looking for functional dominance the other for functional competence. Competence and dominance manifest and optimize through identical physiological mechanisms. We scale our program by altering rest, load, intensity, etc. while utilizing the same tools (exercises) for everyone whenever possible.

We get requests from athletes from every sport looking for a strength and conditioning program for their sport. Firemen, soccer players, triathletes, boxers, and surfers all want programs that conform to their perceived specific needs. While admitting that there are surely needs specific to any sport, the bulk of sport specific training has been ridiculously ineffective. The need for specificity is nearly completely met by regular practice and training within the sport not in the strength and conditioning environment. Our terrorist hunters, skiers, mountain bikers, and housewives have found their best fitness form the same regimen - CrossFit.

What type of planning goes into the routine? What is your method for selecting the exercises each week?

Our view of what fitness is and isn't creates, in effect, a theoretical template that guides the selection of exercises, their rep range, frequency of occurrence, length of workout, etc. Come to know our standards and aims and the rationale behind our workouts' architecture becomes somewhat self-evident. The workouts themselves are a near perfect expression of our vast experience building the world's toughest athletes. This question is great but somewhat like asking Tiger Woods, "How do you do it?"

That being said, the process is without a doubt part art. In fact, the National Strength and Conditioning Association, that august non-profit arbiter of exercise science admits in its Essentials of Strength and Conditioning that exercise programming is still more art than science. At CrossFit we call it the choreography of exertion. Our routines display balance, symmetry, theme, composition, and an aesthetic cultivated over decades of experience - including successes, and failures. The workouts are designed to maximize human physical capacity, period. That being the case, they are universally regarded as being the toughest workouts in every athlete's experience.

Finally, I cannot discount the utility of posting workouts to the site and getting feedback from hundreds of elite athletes around the world. This would prove invaluable to any strength and conditioning coach or program.

What is the best way for a person to get started in Crossfit?

It is imperative that someone new to CrossFit takes the first month to learn the movements, if they're not already intimate with them, and establish consistency before increasing intensity. If you can get through the workouts for one month straight without falling apart, then we recommend that you up the intensity a little the following month. If you throw yourself at this task 100% from day one, these workouts will chew you up and swallow you whole. I promise it. Don't be misled by the workouts' brevity. The tougher you are the harder you'll go down, guaranteed.

Based on the experience of friends doing the Crossfit program, I have heardmany reports of new PR's and other feats of strength in specific lifts.

This happens despite the fact that the particular lift only comes up on an occasional basis. This completely flies in the face of conventional training wisdom, so I must ask: how is this possible?!

If you come to us with a 4-minute mile, six months into it you are going to be 30 seconds slower but a whole hell of a lot fitter. Similarly, if you come to us with a 900-pound squat, in six months it's going to be 750 pounds, but you, too, will be much fitter. A 4-minute mile and a 900-pound squat are both clear and compelling evidence of a lack of balance in your program. This doesn't reflect the limitations of our program but the inherent nature of flesh and blood.

But here's the fascinating part. We can take you from a 200 pound max deadlift to a 500-750 pound max deadlift in two years while only pulling max singles four or five times a year. We will though work the deadlift, like most lifts, approximately once per week at higher reps and under grueling conditions. It may intuit well that if you can pull a 250 pound deadlift 21 times coming to the lift at a heart rate of 180 beats per minute, then 500 pounds for a single at a resting heart rate is perhaps manageable.

Now, I know there have been studies done that seem to demonstrate that regimens that combine resistance training and endurance training in a single workout do not develop strength or endurance as well as regimens that develop them separately. It is true that if I train for the deadlift on some days and the mile on others, I will when tested for the deadlift on one day and the mile on another show better results for both than if I had trained with the deadlift and run combined - I'm sure of that. But what if I tested both protocols by running 400 meters then immediately deadlifting and repeating this four times without rest? Promise yourself that the mixed protocol will beat out the separated. The real point, though, is that running 400 meters followed immediately by deadlifting, repeated four times has dramatically greater application to sport, combat, and survival than superior performance for both performed on separate occasions.

Also operative in the phenomenon you mentioned is the nature of our exercises. We work with a cast of about thirty exercises where about fifteen account for 80% of the workouts. The cast of characters that comprise are routines are so potent in increasing strength from head to toe that regular exposure to any of them nearly guarantees improvements in the others. Improve your deadlift, bench, and pull-ups and your squat, dips, and rope climb will come up. The neuroendocrine response of the major lifts is so potent that they alone will increase your strength measured by any other exercise so that seemingly infrequent exposures to some exercises is not a certain disadvantage.

At CrossFit we endeavor to blur the lines between "cardio" and strength training simply because nature frequently does not recognize the distinction and will on average punish those who cannot see past the distinction. We've often noted that the demands of survival, combat, and life look more like running up five flights of stairs with a keg of beer on your shoulder for time than running a mile on Tuesday and deadlifting on Friday.

Conventional training wisdom is - like most popular notions - frequently at odds with reality. That is the nature of things.

Outside of the gym, what other recommendations do you make for your athletes in order to maximize benefits from the Crossfit program?

We could never have accomplished what we have without keen insights into nutrition. We allied ourselves with Barry Sears, author of the Zone books, long before he published his first book. Much of our athlete's results have been greatly magnified by realizing the deficiencies of the low-fat, high-carb, fad diet that characterizes conventional training wisdom. Here again following the masses is to miss the truth.

hWat is the Neuroendocrine response and what kind of exercises stimulate it the most?
Neuroendocrine response is a change in the body that affects you either neurologically or hormonally. Most important adaptations to exercise are in part or completely a result of a hormonal or neurological shift. Current research, much of it done by Dr. William Kraemer, Penn State University, has shown which exercise protocols maximize neuroendocrine responses. Deadlift, squat, presses, and cleans all have a demonstrated potent neuroendocrine response.

Among the hormonal responses vital to athletic development are substantial increases in testosterone, insulin-like growth factor, and human growth hormone. Exercising with protocols known to elevate these hormones eerily mimics the hormonal changes sought in exogenous hormonal therapy (steroid use) with none of the deleterious effect. Exercise regimens that induce a high neuroendocrine response produce champions! Increased muscle mass and bone density are just two of many adaptive responses to exercises capable of producing a significant neuroendocrine response.

It is impossible to overstate the importance of the neuroendocrine response to exercise protocols. This is why it is one of the defining themes of the CrossFit program. Heavy load weight training, short rest between sets, high heart rates, high intensity training, and short rest intervals, though not entirely distinct components, are all associated with a high neuroendocrine response.

Lastly, we should discuss your magazine, the Crossfit Journal? How did the magazine come about and what types of material you cover?

We've long puzzled over the fact that there are dozens and dozens of commercial fitness magazines available and none contain any material that would be of use to the serious or professional athlete. The peer reviewed exercise science journals hold even less value for the hard-core athlete. (We've repeatedly and publicly challenged the exercise science community to name a single major contribution to sport coming from their ranks - steroids don't count!)

We decided in September of this year to launch "CrossFit Journal" a monthly electronically distributed fitness magazine chronicling the methods of the CrossFit program. The response has been overwhelming!

Thanks a lot for doing the interview. Be sure to check out the Crossfit website where you can read more about the program, see the daily workout and find out more about the Crossfit Journal.