Movable Type – Page 167 – SNORIDGE CROSSFIT

"Damn You, Burpees!"

~ Quote from Amanda today regarding her favorite exercise.

AMRAP for 20 Minutes (As Many Rounds As Possible):
25 Burpees
15 Front Squats (115#/75#)

Results

Improved elbow and wrist flexibility was readily on display today. It’s taken time but those elbows are coming up and that is helping to support that bar in the rack position and force the weight back on the heels while keeping the chest up. Inflexible wrists and arms keeps you from finding and supporting that maximum load. It also undermines and limits increased strength and power in the barbell lifts. It can be uncomfortable at first, but stick with it. It will get better one rep at a time.

Notes:

Several of you have thrown their names in the ring to begin training for an Affiliate Cup team. Regardless of who makes the team it will benefit all of us through better training, new skills and all around camaraderie. It will be tough but worth it!

Congrats to Rona and Jodi who finished Elements today. Welcome!

I’ll conclude with a topic near and dear to all of us. We all are aware of the tragic murders and shootings that recently occurred at Ft. Hood by a terrorist on November 5th. 13 people were killed and 43 were wounded. Four of the soldiers who were slain and eleven of the wounded were CrossFitters from Lumberjack CrossFit. We mourn their loss and want to help in raising funds for the families of the victims. In tribute to them and all the fallen we will participate in Fort Hood Massacre Memorial WOD that is being created by CrossFit HQ to be done on December 5th (Saturday). All CF’ers are not only invited but we ask that you donate anything to help. This is a WOD where we will soldier on no matter how many burpees, reps or runs that are asked of us. It’s certainly not least we can do, it’s the least we should do.

Burpees or rest?

Anyone besides Pat and I do any burpees today? Or was it a rest day? Either way it’s all good. Look forward to seeing everyone this week.

The kids playing after a WOD and loving burpees and… OVERHEAD Squats!

Notes:

Thursday we will have a “Trim the Turkey” WOD at 10 am for everyone. We will close the rest of the day so that we can all go gobble up some Turkey, veggies and my favorite this time of year: Pumpkin Pie. I am begging Michelle to make me a Paleo version so I have less guilt. Other days this week will be normal class times.

Do you buy your fruit or nuts at Costco? What about berries like: strawberries, blueberries, blackberries etc.? How about their almonds, walnuts, pine nuts, pecans and others? For the amount we eat and use in our daily nutrition we couldn’t afford to buy them from Whole Paycheck Market, Safeway, IGA or even our local farmer’s market. We buy them from Costco and love them.They are always great, fresh, taste better than the supermarket, last longer and are cheaper.

I started wondering if the berries were genetically enhanced or “bred”, if they were artificially colored or modified somehow with a spray to look brighter in color, or if they generously used pesticides and other chemicals. Well after checking the labels and looking into the websites of a couple suppliers (Well-Pict and Naturipefarms) I am breathing easier. While not entirely organic, the suppliers have provided answers to many of my questions and they don’t use or do any of the above. No steroids or gene enhancement, sprays, or artificial colors. While not pesticide free, they state they use organic and non-synthetic fertilizers in their soil, avoid pesticides as much as possible and stay below federal guidelines, and use biological and non-pesticide controls for fighting bugs and disease. The nuts also are selected from some of the best growers in the best regions known for their highest quality and food safety. They use responsible growing practices and don’t bleach or dye the nuts. For more info on the types of nuts sold at Costco read about it here.

Laura had a great idea, we need a place to share our Paleo or Zone recipes. I created a Face book “Discussion” under the SnoRidge CF group page to post recipes. If this is helpful or you have other suggestions let us know. Post those recipes and start cooking!

Community

Today was a day well spent. We got to connect with friends, fellow CrossFitters and also affiliate owners from around the region all while getting the opportunity to listen to Coach Glassman (CF Founder) at the CF 101 session at CrossFit Bellevue. I have been lucky enough to hear him speak twice and both times came away more than impressed at his ability to engage an audience, communicate his beliefs and principles with conviction and passion, and inject it with humor. We learned a lot today in terms of his views on defining CrossFit and its history, where it’s headed, the role and mission of HQ, and several different topics that have come up in discussion boards or the Journal.

We also were solidly reminded of one of the most important reasons for why we love CrossFit so much, which is the community. This community is unique. Outside of the military I haven’t come across such a large group that despite its differences in people from all walks of life will instantly bond, come together and accept one another. We come from different locations, jobs, beliefs, backgrounds, ability, and even philosophy on CrossFit but in the end all recognize one another as peers and family who strive for helping others achieve the highest level of fitness possible. We have somewhat differing methods, styles or emphasis on types of training but we are all a part of a massive support arm that is willing to help one another or share best practices. We talked briefly with Coach during a break and thanked him for coming out here and one thing he said that stuck with us is “CrossFit is a family and sometimes you need a family reunion”. We will be sure to take advantage of it and pledge to grow ourselves to continually try to be the best coaches and trainers we can be while fostering this sense of community in our own box.

AM crew:

Gym is closed Saturday!

We are attending the CF 101 seminar (the founder and creator of CrossFit) Coach Glassman at CF Bellevue today. Need a WOD? Do 100 Burpees!

Tabata These

Perform 8 intervals of 20 seconds of work with 10 seconds of rest for each exercise. Rest 1 minute between exercises:

Wall Balls (20#/14#)
Push-ups
AbMat sit-ups
Double-Unders

Results

View this photo

RX’d push-up demonstrated by Pat and Moe (full depth range of motion):

Gym is closed tomorrow!

We will be attending the CF 101 seminar (the founder and creator of CrossFit) Coach Glassman at CF Bellevue.

Notes:

Thanksgiving hours: We will adjust our schedule for Thanksgiving Day and have only one class at 10am for anyone wanting to feel less guilty about the inevitable gorging at dinner! THe rest of the day will be closed. Other class times that week will be as usual.

Future events:

We are going to have a “Bad Christmas Sweater” WOD on Saturday 12/19 as well as a “Paleo potluck” post workout. Everyone wear the worst Christmas sweater you can find. We will all vote on the winner who will get a surprise. (It’s not burpees!) Also bring a dish that is paleo-friendly (gluten free is a bonus since we have some who follow that dietary lifestyle) to share with everyone.

Other ideas for events we would like to host:

CrossFit Movie Day. No workout, just good times watching the CrossFit movie “Every Second Counts” (which is about the 2008 Games) and having some drinks. We definitely will have a 2009 CF Games movie night as soon as that is released (hopefully soon).
Skills Day: One Saturday morning class will be devoted to developing and coaching some of the more advanced movements. Rather than a typical WOD we will cycle through learning and practicing things like kipping, handstands, rings, and other skills.
“Pick Your Poison”: Similar to the Veterans Day where you chose a Hero WOD, this will be a workout where you get to pick your benchmark from a few options.
CrossFit Total: This will require getting another rack but the plan is (post Holidays) to have a day devoted to establishing your Total. The Total is 3 attempts at your 1 rep max (1RM) for each of the following lifts: Press, Deadlift, Back Squat. There are rules and guidelines around this. The CF Total is a good strength indicator of the basic barbell lifts.
Trail Run WOD: This will be a WOD (weather cooperating) that would be an optional class on a weekend. It would consist of some type of barbell movement followed by a distance trail for time.
Another local 5k/10k/Kids race TBD. (Cinco De Mayo 1/2 in Snoqualmie is on the radar)
A follow-up Nutrition Challenge after the New Year.
WOD with another affiliate where we welcome their athletes in our box and they would return the favor. (CF Redmond and I talked about this the other day).
Overhead Squat Challenge with Curtis and Travis. First one to properly perform an overhead squat wins! (just kidding…)

Any thoughts or ideas post to comments!

"The Bear Complex"

Perform 5 rounds of 7 sets (complexes) of the following sequence:

Power Clean

Front Squat

Push Press

Back Squat

Push Press

Rules:

Bar must touch the ground each sequence but cannot rest on the ground or it terminates the set.
Goal is to increase loads each round to complete “The Bear” with max load.
Rest as needed between sets.
No re-grip allowed.
You must power clean the bar to full standing position before squatting the weight. (Deadlift to Hang Power Clean) is allowed.

Results

View this photo

Going back and looking at the post of the time that six of you did this back in July was cool. Seeing everyone’s pic and reading about Amanda made me nostalgic for training in the garage. Almost. Today was the Bear re-match for Sherry and Amanda and they both PR’d it. Too bad the others didn’t make it in today. Sherry went from 60# max in July to 73# today. Amanda went from 35# to 50#. That’s improvement in strength, technique and conditioning. The “Bear” tests you mentally as well as physically. Even though you rest between the rounds, the sets of 7 sequences make you doubt you can finish without dropping the bar and keep adding weight. It’s uncomfortable and grueling. Getting through it is truly a “bear”. What did you think?

Video demo of “The Bear Complex”: [mov] [wmv]

The pictures tell the story:

Sumo Style

For Time:
400m Run
21/18/15/12/9/6/3 of the following:
Kettlebell Sumo Deadlift High Pull (SDHP: 53#/35#)
Knees to Elbows (K2E)
400m Run

Results

View this photo

True Sumo Style:

Pat demonstrating a true to form, 100%, no doubt Knees-to-Elbows rep:

Great Fran video from the main site showing the drastic “before and after” difference CrossFit made in one person at Motor City CrossFit. Note when watching this that a sub 6 minute Fran time for a male as RX’d is pretty darn outstanding.

[mov] [wmv]

Notes:

Some administrative stuff today. Friday we will have a 6pm WOD to make up for not being open Saturday as we will be at CrossFit 101 with Coach Glassman at CF Bellevue.

Shirt re-order hasn’t gone in yet so you have a little time left if you want one.

Nutrition help! We have two announcements that may be of interest.

For anyone struggling with meeting weight or diet goals we are here to help you. Write down what you eat and drink (everything) for an entire week (all 7 days). Also write down your activity level and hours of sleep per night. Then bring it in. We’ll go over it and give you feedback.
Want to get more info around either Zone or Paleo diets? Rainier CrossFit is offering a nutrition discussion on Tuesday next week at 7pm for $10. It will feature Todd Widman (from CrossFit HQ and the CF Journal “Boz and Todd Show”) and will focus on the role nutrition plays on performance. Let us know if you are wanting to go as I will be heading down to Puyallup and Michelle will run the 7pm class.

CF GAMES:

Are you interested in the Games in 2010? Here’s the deal. It is my most sincere hope that we can put together a SRCF Team of Squatches to travel and compete in the Affiliate Cup in July. What are the events? How many to a team? What’s the date? Are there qualifiers? Is there an entry fee? Will the field be capped to a certain number of teams? Don’t know to all of the above.

I do know this (if the last two years are an indication):

Teams will be co-ed and require both male and female (I want to field 3 men and 3 women)
We will have try-outs for those interested (that includes Michelle and I, we are competing for the team).
Training will be HARD. It will be constantly varied, high intensity, functional movements over BROAD time and modal domains. (i.e. CrossFit). We will have “practice” together.
The plan is that anyone making the team must be comfortably able to be RX’d in as many movements, loads and lifts as possible. This means everything from pull-ups, handstand push-ups, overhead squats, ring work to double-unders, running, deadlifts, med balls, etc.
The Games will be at least a 2-4 day affair if you stay and watch the individual competition.
It will be FUN! We have time to get there but it requires planning, training and consistency which starts now! If you are interested talk to one of us. Details to come…

Penalty Box

Strength WOD:

Overhead Squat

3/3/3/3/3

Then complete the following:

Every minute on the minute complete 10 Box Jumps then perform max reps of overhead squats for the remainder of the minute. Continue with this rep scheme each minute repeating box jumps and max OH Squats until you total 100 reps of overhead squats.

EMOM:

10 Box Jumps (24″/20″)
Max Rep Overhead Squat (75#/55#)

Results

View this photo

View this photo Cont.

Quote of the day: “This was the toughest WOD yet.” ~ Pat, Sherry and about 4 or 5 others.

This WOD was tough. First a strength WOD followed by “the Big Suck” as Bonnie named it. I named it the “Penalty Box”. It was tougher than I expected but it was what I wanted when programming this week. Starting with “Helen” yesterday, I wanted a short but intense benchmark that uses little equipment and would be good to start the week on a typically crowded day. I wanted to also get pull-ups in a WOD to benefit everyone including those who recently got their kip. Today was intended to be a mid to long time duration workout after a brief strength building session to work on a barbell movement we haven’t done much before. The overhead squat is one of the best barbell movements that works strength, balance, coordination, flexibility, power, and in today’s case I would argue speed. It was basically a chipper but one that encouraged you to get through it as fast as possible or continue to endure the box jump “penalty”. Each round that you had to gut out another set of box jumps (or steps as your legs stopped cooperating) became a penalty. Maintaining your core to rep out the squats while your legs were on fire and your heart was pounding was a nice mental hurdle when you know you don’t have many seconds left to get more than a handful of OH Squats.

What’s in store for tomorrow? Come in and see.

Notes:

Welcome Jodi, Ed, Ken, and Rona who started Elements with us this past week. We look forward to you all joining classes with us!

Chef By Request came by today and brought a bunch of delicious sample Paleo meals and snacks for all of you that came in. We have a few left so those who didn’t get them today grab one tomorrow when you come in. We are working with them to offer a discount to all of you that are interested in ordering either Paleo or Zone meals or snacks that would be delivered daily to our gym at a good discount to you. If you are someone who has little time or know how to prepare a good tasting, correctly portioned, Paleo or Zone friendly meal with variety and taste then consider taking advantage of this. Meals are gluten free, can be tailored for food allergies, primarily organic, and balanced typically to a 40/30/30 ratio for protein/carbs/fat. These meals are prepared by a chef (who was featured in Seattle Magazine) and taste great.

Let us know if you want to do it and how many meals or snacks a day then we can let them know and get things rolling. Our goal is to be a convenient delivery place for you to pick up your meals. You would purchase from them through them. We would help to get you a discount so that you can see the benefits that diet can play in your overall health and fitness.

Let us know if you are interested either here in the comments or in the gym. If we have a few of you sign up for delivery with them then you all will get a discount. We have two so far. Bon Apetit!

"Helen"

3 Rounds For Time:

400m Run

21 Kettlebell Swings (53#/35#)

12 Pull-ups

Results

View this photo

Progress Part 1:

Sherry got her first dead hang pull-up tonight (actually she got two)! Congrats to our first woman who learned pull-ups in the box! We are stoked!

Progress Part 2:

Travis’s first time with “Helen” in May was 20 minutes and change. Each round he ran 400m, scaled the KB to 44 lbs. and used a blue band for pull-ups. His second time with “Helen” in July was again with the 44 lb. kettlebell and a blue band for pull-ups. He shaved off 5 minutes and finished at 15 minutes plus.

Tonight was his third encounter. This re-match was fully prescribed. A 53 pound kettlebell, and kipping pull-ups. His time as RX’d? 12:50. That’s progress.

Progress Part 3:

Amanda, Bonnie, and Paul all moved to using bands tonight. Dan also went from band assisted pull-ups back in July to RX’d tonight with a top 3 Leaderboard time while Justin rocked this WOD RX’d after recently moving off the bands and learning kipping pull-ups to a number 2 on the leaderboard!

Look around and in the mirror. You can find examples of progress being made in our box everyday.

Notes:

Saturday class is cancelled as we will be listening to Coach Greg Glassman (founder of CrossFit) speak at CF Bellevue. We will have a Friday 6pm class for anyone interested in starting their weekend with a WOD. Post to comments or let us know if you are planning to make it.

Habit Forming

Today was back to basics day rather than a rest day for us, running followed by an overhead squat strength WOD. Both MIchelle and I noted that we have neglected our strength training and running consistency as we have grown busier. Sometimes the short time period between classes makes it difficult to get that strength WOD or long run in. Other commitments can get in the way. It especially makes it easier to not train your weaknesses or to take your strengths for granted. That’s not a good excuse but more of a habit to break. With the gym closed today it allowed us to get back on track. It’s our new “Sunday” habit, strength WOD’s and trail running.

Which brings me to the point of this post. There are always reasons you can find to skip a workout or skip a day to get in the gym. It’s life, it gets in the way sometimes. When it does, be creative, be consistent and get something in. Start a new habit. One that sticks. Make an effort if you can’t get in here to take 8 minutes at least and do two Tabata intervals! Hit a few 400m runs with squats for time or run sprints. Try some planks, practice handstands on a wall or do max push-ups and sit-ups at home, whatever your weaknesses. Don’t skip a WOD because it’s a strength day, and try your best on that off day to get that run or ride in even if it’s raining.

This applies not only to training but also to diet. Which reminds me, how’s the Paleo Challenge going for those that are in it? Some are definitely sticking with it and it shows on several of you. Marc has reported 20 pounds lost so far since starting CrossFit and then adding Paleo and I know both he and Laura are pretty consistent!