Nutrition – Page 24 – SNORIDGE CROSSFIT

"Helen + 1"

4 Rounds For Time:

400m Run
21 Kettlebell Swings (53#/35#)
12 Pull-ups

Results

Fran and Nan – Hard Work Pays Off:

Today was a tougher “Helen” primarily to kick off the week with a tough WOD and to train the mind to think about exceeding a benchmark standard every once in awhile. Everyone was able to call out their official Helen time if they desired and then finish up the 4th round. Several PR’d and two of you stuck with all of your pull-ups to complete this benchmark (plus) as prescribed with pull-ups. Congrats to Nan and Fran for not only this achievement but also for patiently practicing and working on your pull-ups day after day. It paid off! The leaderboard for Helen is re-written both for men and women after today!

Evidence Based Fitness: Graham commented this past weekend he placed 5th (Congrats!) in a downhill mountain bike race and was not gassed after his run for the first time ever. Jorge went flying (paragliding) this weekend and noted he hiked up Tiger Mountain and back down with his rig in record time and did not feel anywhere near as gassed as he has in the past. Both credited CrossFit with their improved conditioning. Good stuff!

In Graham’s own words:

“The downhill mountain biking race that I went in Port Angeles was in the NW Cup series. I placed 5th in my class (out of 15), but the part that I was so stoked about is that I haven’t trained at all for DH riding or racing in 8+ months due to baby #2.

I literally took my bike off the hook, dusted it off, pumped up the tires, and headed to Port Angeles. I wasn’t tired on my race run AT ALL, whereas in past years I have been anaerobic the entire second half of the race, gasping for air. Crossfit totally works, I haven’t been training specifically for cycling at all, and felt stronger on the bike more than ever.”

CF Games “Let the Games Begin” – video [wmv] [mov]

Great Swings:

Notes:

Whole 9 Workshop Update this Saturday from 1-5pm is open to all:

Several spots remain open so contact us for registering. Details over on the right hand side on what the workshop covers. Cost is $75 a head to come learn about nutrition and why this is the most important ingredient to being successful as a healthy and strong athlete.

BBQ is immediately after and will celebrate our 1 year anniversary as an affiliate as well as kick off our inaugural Fish Game Tournament. Be there!

Perseverance

For Time:

10 Thrusters (95#/65#)
Run 200m
9 Thrusters
Run 200m
8 Thrusters
Run 200m
7 Thrusters
Run 200m
6 Thrusters
Run 200m
5 Thrusters
Run 200m
4 Thrusters
Run 200m
3 Thrusters
Run 200m
2 Thrusters
Run 200m
1 Thrusters
Run 200m

* Advanced Goal: Go Unbroken or Go Heavy

Results

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“The difference between the impossible and the possible lies in a man’s determination” ~ Tommy Lasorda

Mary tackling the Thruster:

Tonight I watched perseverance in action. Imagine you are Mary: You have just completed elements and walked into a group WOD for your first time. You see a whiteboard that says “Thrusters and 200m Runs” in some weird combination of 10 reps down to 1 and running in between each round. The board is filled with names and numbers and times. People are warming up all around so you fall right into it. Warm-up run, box step-ups, pass throughs, no problem. You start practicing a thruster and instantly have a coach standing in front of you giving cues and tips that likely seem like driving directions to a strange place you’ve never been. After getting some adjustments, coaching, scaling and further practice on a thruster you feel more relaxed. “I can use this bar” you think and move to set up your spot outside with the rest of the crew. Before you know it though you literally have to thrust yourself into the workout at the count of 3-2-1 Go!

Bodies and barbells begin to fly around you, people dumping weights and zipping past, many screaming “Round” every once in awhile. Music is thumping, people are moving and you are just chipping away. You have that same coach giving cues and tips (wider stance, toes out, touch the ball!) and you just keep on lifting the barbell and then running. As people finish around you it must cross your mind “I’m barely halfway through and people are done!” You ask him if others have ever struggled and if others have ever felt sick. “Yes” he says. “People struggle, people have been sick. Breathe. You can do this.” You walk back to the bar, pushing one rep at a time. Round after agonizing round goes by. Everyone is almost done. Then something happens. The coach offers you the chance to call it a workout if you want, asking if you want to stop or if you think you can keep going, but your answer is instantly “No, I am finishing, I will do this!”. You move to walk/run, but someone says they will go with you. You finish the next round of thrusters, then another person runs with you, and then both of them. One is your friend, the other a stranger. Round after round, they run with you even though they are done. You think it is taking forever. But before you know it, you are done too. Done with the workout. All of it.

This is what I imagine Mary might have felt tonight. It’s partly what I saw and also what I thought might be her experience. Tonight I saw one of the things that makes CrossFit so cool, community built through shared struggle and determination. Mary didn’t want to quit. No backing down, no giving up. She set her mind on it, had some help along the way and just did it. High five’s and chest bumps all around to Mary for completing her first group WOD; and to Michelle D. and Jana for running with her!

Also speaking of perseverance, I want to give a huge congrats to Steve who dropped in from Level 4 Fitness tonight and after the warm-up got not only his first but also his second muscle-up! What a huge accomplishment, no doubt you’ve been working on this one. Be proud!

“Finding My Way” with Coach Greg Glassman (CF Founder), a CrossFit Journal Preview video [wmv] [mov]

Notes:

The Whole 9 Nutrition Workshop is “ON”. We are stoked and super excited! Michelle is emailing updated info to all. We took into account the Fall City 5k/10k race that morning as well as the Saturday WOD and are able to hold the workshop from 1pm until 5pm. Afterward we will have a Paleo BBQ for all at the box to celebrate our recent 1 year anniversary as an affiliate (May ’09). Oh and the C2 Rower Fish tournament too! Look for an email with further details on the Whole 9 workshop.

Whole 9 Nutrition Workshop Details:

Date: Saturday 6/19
Time: 1pm to 5pm (4 hour workshop – no kiddos)
Cost is $75 per person
RSVP via email or blog
Learn what you should eat, how you should eat, when you should eat, and why you should eat optimally for your health and fitness
Limited to 40 people

Paleo BBQ after open to all (Kids welcome, bring a Paleo friendly dish if you can)
C2 Rower Fish Tournament – Row like you hear banjoes!

Rona runs while Cathy lifts:

Recharge and Refuel

Kid-Vest Training is all the rage:

Do your double-unders to close out this week. Starting tomorrow you get to add to the total per set!

Pics from yesterday’s Benchmark Saturday:

Attention CrossFitters:

We are working to schedule a nutrition workshop at our box with Whole 9 founders Dallas Hartwig and Melissa Urban. Details below:

Date is Saturday June 19th (short notice we know but make it work people!)
Time is TBD but it will be a 4 hour workshop
Cost is $75 per person
What does it cover? Click here
Learn what you should eat, how you should eat, when you should eat, and why you should eat optimally for your health and fitness
Limited to 40 people

Before you come up with a reason to say no; I’d ask you to consider this:

In the time it takes to go to a movie, you can learn valuable information to literally change yours and your families eating habits.
$75 for this is far better than a month’s worth of latte’s; or a Mariners game ticket, food, drink and parking; or one lululemon top or CrossFit T-shirt plus shipping!
These people are experts, this is what they do, we are lucky enough to get them to our box while they are traveling to do workshops at CrossFit affiliates around the country, so you can’t just pick a future date.
If you have been struggling with diet and what to eat then it’s time to use this as a starting point.
Even if you haven’t been struggling use this to learn how to fine tune your nutrition and eat for an excellent fitness level.

Michelle is sending a mass email out today so stay tuned and the first 40 who commit get a seat!

Swing My Bell

With a continuously running clock perform 2 kettlebell swings (53#/35#) the first minute, 4 kettlebell swings the second minute, 6 kettlebell swings the third minute, and so on, continuing to add 2 swings each minute until you cannot complete the required number of reps in the given minute.

Score total rounds and partial reps in the last round completed.

Results

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Steph leading the gang in some KB Swings:

I guess it’s time to take advantage of Mom enjoying a night out with the SnoRidge Ladies and my little one fast asleep after having a monster coconut bliss sundae for dessert. So what do I do? Yep, I watch CrossFit videos, read the CrossFit Journal, program WOD’s and write the blog. How exciting is that?

Today was meant to mix it up a bit as we haven’t done KB swings in a little while and I wanted to make it a task dependent WOD. I love the every minute on the minute format. It always starts easy and prolongs the mental battle that is sure to come in a hurry. These types of WOD’s test your mind as much as they test your body. When will you succumb to the pain and let the clock tell you enough is enough and that you don’t really need to try to get that next round completed? When you finally barely complete that next to last round how many partial reps are you willing to try to get in that final 60 seconds?

Notes:

Saturday WOD Schedule:

10am so far is Curtis, Jeff, Mark N., Don. Post to comments if you plan to be there, next 6 people will fill that slot up.

11am is open so post to comments or show up.

Interesting reading: The Paleo Diet Report on LivingPaleo.com is a free PDF download with explanation from the author on Paleo eating, lifestyle and it’s benefits.

"Ocho Loco"

Strength WOD:

Overhead Squat
5/4/3/2/1/1/1/1/1

Checkout WOD:

As Many Rounds as Possible in 8 Minutes:

8 Overhead Squats (75#/55#)
8 Burpees

Results

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Amanda on her way to a PR:

Lots of PR’s today. The overhead squat is a technical lift. It requires flexibility, balance, coordination, and core, leg and shoulder strength. It can be a huge frustration and for us as coaches one of the easiest ways to identify poor flexibility or range of motion issues. With some simple cues though and the right load, it’s easier than you think to get down and up using decent form. Pushing the knees out to track towards the toes helped some, for others it was the cue of rotating the lats forward and pushing the shoulders up to the ears rather than pushing up and back behind the head. Breathing in and out at the top and holding your breath during the squat was vital to avoid becoming a weeble wobble and for many it was simply the cue to push the butt back first before squatting. Whichever cue it was, remember them, practice with PVC, and stretch all over. Be patient and the PR’s will keep coming.

Notes:

Getting ready for the Regionals this weekend; tandem 185# Clean and Jerk with Moe and Michelle:

More evidence that too much sugar sucks the life out of you. Read about this study from The Journal of the American Medical Association that concluded that in addition to sugar causing an increased waistline, it was a contributing factor in the development of cardiovascular disease. Just think about the statistic that the average daily added sugar consumption per person is 21.4 teaspoons! Cut back people.

What are the different types of sugar?

A Sugar By Any Other Name . . . exposing the added sugar in your food

Read ingredient labels—sugar has a number of different names. Food labels list ingredients in descending order by weight, so limit foods that have sugar listed within the first few ingredients or that have several sources of sugar listed. Here are a few of the terms that spell S-U-G-A-R:

Agave nectar

Cane crystals

Corn sweetener

Crystalline fructose

Evaporated cane juice

Fruit juice concentrates

High-fructose corn syrup

Invert sugar

Malt syrup

Sucrose

Maltose

Molasses

Brown sugar

Cane sugar

Corn syrup

Dextrose

Fructose

Glucose

Honey Lactose

Raw sugar Syrup

Source: Harvard School of Public Health and USDA Dietary Guidelines

Skinny Dip

Did cavemen eat real foods or did they eat this stuff?

“Paleo/Zone Diet: So easy even a caveman can do it.”

The “Skinny Dip” was yesterday and also marked the end of the Paleo/Zone Nutrition Challenge that we started 7 weeks ago in February (Skinny Dip was the Body Fat Truck Measurement Re-Test). Time flies when you are cutting refined and processed carbs! Click the link above for the rules as posted back in February for reference. The top male and female winner are based on biggest % change in body fat composition. After realizing the hand-held body fat analyzer we used in the gym (for those who didn’t take a dunk) has a wide range of variance (some people’s results were very inconsistent when compared with the dunk tank and some were right on); we decided we could not include the few who used it in the chance to win the pot. However, for the “runner-up” everyone was included since we stated the runner-up would be chosen by your coaches based on “who made the biggest physical change in appearance based on before and after photos”. It just so happens the runner-up not only made the biggest physical change but lost the most weight overall! She also used the hand-held which we think under-represented her change in % body fat composition.

Before we announce the winners, here are some stats from the past 7 weeks of our challenge.

23 started the challenge
12 saw it through to the end
Of the 12 who weighed in and measured at the start and end, the total weight lost was 105.8 lbs.
Average body fat % lost per person was 3.18% for those who used the Body Fat Truck
Average weight lost per person was 8.8 lbs
5 people lost more than 10 lbs. each in 7 weeks
Since the start of the challenge Jana has had to have her wedding dress altered twice to make it smaller
Bonnie has participated in both of our Nutrition Challenges and been a CrossFitter since September ’09 and has lost over 50 lbs!

And the winners are…

Top male % body fat change is a 2 way tie:
Rob S. at 3.7% (6 lbs. lost)
Jim M. at 3.7% (12.6 lbs. lost)

Top female % body fat change is:
Rona at 4.3% (10.6 lbs. lost)

Winners will split the pot and also get a paid 1 year CrossFit Journal Subscription from SRCF!

Runner-up:
Rachel who lost 14.7 lbs.

Rachel completed Elements in February with her husband Greg and both of them signed up for the Nutrition Challenge almost right away. They switched to a hardcore Paleo/Zone diet and have been fitting in CF 2-3 times a week. She has made drastic changes in only 7 weeks in both her physical fitness level and overall appearance and Greg has lost 10 lbs. during the challenge. Both have gotten stronger and significantly fitter. We are stoked for them both!

Rachel wins a SnoRidge CF T-Shirt and a paid visit by SRCF to the Body Fat Truck for your next test!

Congrats to our winners Rona, Rachel, Rob and Jim, as well as to everyone who entered and all who saw it through. We highly encourage you to stick with the changes you made and to think back to the Nutrition Discussion we held with Todd Widman to kick this thing off. As he said, “you train an average of 1 hour a day (or less). You have 23 hours to screw it all up!” So remember to eat right, train right, recover right and take care of yourself!

The next Box Challenge is to continue to make the nutrition changes a lifestyle habit. We will coordinate to have the Body Fat Test Truck come back in the summer.

Mad props to Fran and Kim who got their first rope climbs yesterday:

Congrats to Laura who earned her 100th WOD T Shirt this week:

"Jorge"

Happy Birthday Jorge (or Hee-hey)!

Pick your poison:

For Time:
5000m Row

Or:

“Fran”
21-15-9 reps for time of:
Thrusters (95#/65#)
Pull-ups

Results

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The choice today was simple; short vs. long, cardio respiratory endurance and stamina vs. speed and power. Both WOD’s are epic in scope and very effective. I programmed the choice of two because Jorge has long threatened or begged to be able to have the “opt-out” to do Fran or a 5k row over any particularly unpleasant WOD he didn’t want to do. Over time we granted him two “Get out of jail free” or “Ace” cards that he theoretically would be able to play if he chose to do so.

Jorge also has been sweating a little just what I would plan for his birthday workout, knowing I would include something he hates (running or burpees) with something he likes. So he kept saying if he didn’t like his birthday workout he would just pull one of his “cards”. In the spirit of April Fool’s yesterday I decided to post a fake WOD on Beyond the Whiteboard today consisting of his most hated exercises: 5 rounds of 400m runs and 15 burpees. I just knew he would check it today to preview the WOD before he came in. Knowing it was going to be storming and pouring down rain it could not have been a better set-up. I think I actually heard his screaming from his house when he checked the workout this morning. I know Jana sure did. The real workouts were actually his two “Ace” cards and the plan that everyone would get to choose what they wanted to do.

There were several PR’s today for Fran as well as 1st timers for both WOD’s. Congrats to all of you especially the personal bests. The energy at the 5pm class with Moe was intense and motivating as people were just going after it. Bridget and Pat were exceptionally impressive or insane depending on your point of view. They did both WOD’s! WTF!

Congrats Jorge on an excellent birthday and we are glad you liked your present! You now have one less “Get out of jail free” card. Use it wisely.

Jorge expressing his feelings about his choice of the 5k Row:

Notes:

Saturday classes (10am and 11am) will be indoors so have no fear about the weather conditions. Affiliate Team members meet at 9am. Next week we will begin testing for Team Squatch spots (3 women and 3 men) beginning Saturday.

We are going to have a sign-up sheet in the gym this Monday for the “Skinny Dip” Body Fat Re-test on Saturday 4/10 to complete the Paleo/Zone Nutrition Challenge (nice nickname of “Skinny Dip” to Rona BTW). Sign up for your spot and bring a towel and swimsuit for the water tank. If you didn’t test the 1st time and want to you are totally welcome. 1st time test is $49 and re-test is $35.

We are excited for everyone who participated as the progress has been significant. Many have kept up with the weigh-in’s, some with diet logs, and overall the eating habits have changed for quite a few. Make it last. Make it stick. We will crown the champs next week!

Why is it called the "Clean"?

Strength WOD:

Squat Clean
3/3/3/3/3
* Work up to 3RM (3 Rep Max)

Check Out WOD Immediately After:

As Many Rounds As Possible in 12 Minutes of:
3 Squat Cleans (95#/65#)
5 Push-ups
7 Knees-to-Elbows

Results

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Jorge in the 2nd pull of the squat clean:

Michelle working on flexibility with Bridget:

The clean and jerk is known as the “King of Lifts” because it allows for more weight to be lifted overhead than any other known weightlifting technique. Why is it called the clean? From Wikipedia the early 20th century technique for lifting weight in competitions was known as the “Continental”. This was a movement practiced by Germans over the British (from the continent) and involved pulling a barbell up to rest on a belt, then flipped and wrestled clumsily up to the rack position to press overhead. This became known as a slow, nonathletic, and inefficient method compared to the faster way to lift the bar “clean”. The Continental fell out of favor and the clean was adopted by weightlifting federations as the official movement. Thus the story behind the “clean”.

This week and last we have focused on the clean. The power clean, hang power clean, and today the hang squat clean and full squat clean. The key to the squat clean is the second and third pull. The second pull is where you reach triple extension of the hips, knees and ankles (as Jorge is doing above) and the third pull being the pull under the bar as it reaches it maximum height and the lifter pulls into a deep squat and receives the bar. It’s vital to limit the load and practice the full squat clean movement technique rather than piling on the weight and breaking it up to do a power clean and a front squat.

Wonder what the Olympic Weightlifting world records are for the clean and jerk (yes squat clean)? Men’s world record is 581 lbs.! Women’s is 412 lbs.! Think about all of that weight deadlifted, cleaned, squatted, and pressed overhead.

Notes:

CrossFit Seattle is hosting Robb Wolf for a Paleolithic Solution Nutrition Seminar on Sunday, May 2nd from 9am to 5pm. Cost is $195. If you are interested you can find out more and register here. Robb is the one who ran our CrossFit Nutrition Cert back in 2008 and literally changed our lives. His seminar educated us to what eating healthy really is and opened our eyes to the meaning of “real food”.

"Box Jump Annie"

50/40/30/20/10 of each of the following for time:

Box Jumps (24″/20″)
AbMat Sit-ups

Results

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Jeremy and the GHD:

Weak Sauce: Defined by Urban Dictionary as “an event or object that lacks intensity and/or fails to fully accomplish its purpose”. I would add to this definition to include: “whining, complaining, or generally approaching the CrossFit Warm Up with a lackadaisical attitude; going through the motions or trying to shortcut it.”

The warm up has a purpose. It is movement preparation and injury prevention. It warms the muscles and overall body temperature, which increases muscle elasticity and reduces stiffness. It dilates your blood vessels and allows more oxygen to travel through the blood in your muscles enhancing endurance and performance. It induces the body to cool itself more efficiently. The warm up improves range of motion around your joints and triggers the release of hormones in the body that drives your body to release carbohydrates and fatty acids to be used for energy production. Finally, the warm-up signals the mind to get ready to get work done.

When you come in, leave the weak sauce at the door and approach the warm up as a chance to focus on movement prep as well as a chance to improve technique with a PVC and perfect your range of motion. It will pay dividends in the WOD and in your overall fitness.

If you want the exact opposite of weak sauce, then go watch two of the top CrossFitters in the world in “Speal vs. Khalipa” on the CrossFit Journal [wmv] [mov]

Notes:

Congrats to Zach for getting his 1st Muscle Up today after the WOD! Also congrats to Lucy, Pat and Jeremy for running the Mercer Island 1/2 Marathon this weekend. Warriors all of you!

Lorri’s going away gig is this Friday night! If you didn’t receive the Evite let Lucy know or drop us an email. We don’t want her to move so this is our last chance to change her mind!

Beyond the Whiteboard posted some major changes recently. Go read the link for some in-depth explanations around some of those new features.

Paleo/Zone Challenge Update: The Body Fat Truck will be back April 10th at the conclusion of the challenge to conduct a follow up test. Stick with the diet changes and make them lifestyle changes. For those who have been weighing in weekly we have seen weight dropping, and for many performance and recovery improving. Rachel has lost 13 pounds so far!

Schedule change: Starting this Friday we will have a 5pm class each week with Moe! Whoo hoo!

"Cindy"

AMRAP (As Many Rounds As Possible) in 20 Minutes of:

5 Pull-ups

10 Push-ups

15 Squats

Results

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Pull, Push, Squat…Repeat:

34 of you completed “Cindy” today and crushed it! The atmosphere was all business and getting work done class after class. For those who have done this before congrats to every single one of you that PR’d it. The progress was remarkable as so many blasted past the previous number of rounds or moved up in range of motion or used less help to get more rounds. There are a few WOD’s such as this one on the horizon we will be doing that are repeats so that we can measure progress directly. There are also plenty of new ones that will test recently acquired skills and improved fitness levels. Either way be ready.

Laura knocking out push-ups:

Notes:

Welcome to Cathy who started Elements today and also Amanda who is back after a short stint away from the gym!

Fourth week of the Paleo/Zone Challenge is upon us. Keep strict, NO CHEATING! Not yet! Stay with it through the 7 full weeks. Get your weigh-in done this week, keep your frequency in the gym consistent, and watch what you eat. Keep that food log or note what you are eating. Only you know if you have been dialing it in.

Ever wonder what “Tabata” is and who invented it? Read more about it on CrossFit Football here.