Everyone excitedly running to get to the gym for the WOD:
Short week this week. That said the WOD’s will pack a punch!
One week down on the Whole 30 Challenge! Also Group #2 starts tomorrow (Moe, Jenna, Marc, Laura, Amanda, Bridget, Mark N.). Keep it up!
Next Sunday is the Warrior Dash and 7 of us are representing SnoRidge in Oregon. Click the link to check out the 3.15 mile – 10 obstacle course. How can you not want to run through the hills and woods and stop to rappel down ravines, wade through bogs, navigate a maze, tromp through tires, climb over cargo nets, haul ass over hay bales, jump over junk, dive into darkness, run through fire, and crawl through mud ?! Okay maybe not the dive into darkness part.
These tips are important. Especially rule #5 (another pet peeve rant is about to commence)
Stuff goes back where it started!
There is a bucket that holds the PVC pipes. There is a shelf that holds the med balls (by color on each shelf). The kettlebells are in a neat row by weight and in order. The dumbbells are stacked orderly upon one another almost as if it’s Christmas waiting under the tree. The bars are aligned according to men’s, women’s, and training weight by row. The bumpers are stacked neatly in piles of matching plates. I know it’s a gym but that doesn’t mean we just throw stuff in a corner or leave it out all day for the next class or your coaches to pick up. You just killed yourself in the WOD; but please take the few seconds to do the minimal amount of work required to put stuff back where it started. This includes the Squatch Cave if your little ones have terrorized the toys. That makes it easier for the next group and it also helps the sanity of your two anal retentive owners!
Labor Day weekend: take a rest (if you are driving or otherwise) and stay safe.
Thanks again to Andrew and Christy of District CrossFit for letting me and my brother drop in for a WOD on Saturday. Great box, great coaching, and really great people! They are growing a really good community there. If you are ever in the DC area be sure to drop in for a WOD with them.
Me and Andrew from District CF (Christy was training a client):
Pistol at Andrews AFB Tactical Fitness Center, MD (i.e. CrossFit gym) after a drop-in for a WOD:
Sitting on the plane the other day as my daughter was crashed out on my lap and keeping me pinned in a semi-torturous position that almost sent me into the “pain cave” I had two options: 1) Wake her up and move her or 2) use the time to myself to self reflect and jot down some blog topics on my iPhone. I picked #2. Having just finished my Outside magazine earlier I had read an article in which the author laid out his “plan or formula for life”. It was simple yet striking at the same time. I thought it was a good read and I dog eared the page to come back to it at some point. Little did I know that the pretzel like position my frame was forced into on the airplane by my seat-hog 5 year old would be a good time to come back to it. I started pecking away on my notepad app and thinking about what it is that I think is a solid formula and one I want to both practice and pass onto my daughter.
My Formula for life:
Engage in intense and hard-ass daily exercise. Intense and hard are relative terms. Your intense and hard may be different than mine, but you alone know when it isn’t either. I do it 6 days a week. Sometimes 5 or even 7 days. It’s important to me because when I have a good workout I usually have a good day.
Fuel and feed yourself with real, quality food.Avoid the crap; the junk food. The stuff that a cartoon character says is healthy or a diet program tells you is worth “points”. I don’t eat for “points”. Simply put, when I eat right I feel right and I have enough energy to stay alert and ready for whatever may come. When I fuel my body this way I can also allow the occasional cheat which makes it all the more an epic experience or memory. I also can take comfort knowing I will live longer and healthier for my loved ones. That alone is worth it.
Choose a good partner and surround yourself with good people and friends. This keeps your heart big, your attitude right and your course correct. (I’m beyond blessed here)
Have goals and dreams. Set goals regularly and don’t be afraid to dream big. Then chase after them. Big goals or small goals do not matter. What matters is the habit you create that will breed success more often than failure. At a minimum it will make you focus on your successes.Whether they are here in the gym, at work, or at home try to achieve them one at a time. Me? I have more goals than I have time to tackle them all. I make lists. I have gym goals and life goals. In fact I need to complete my goal of documenting the 100 things I want to do before I die (I have 67 written down so far).
Work hard and Seize the day.Carpe Diem! Give 100% but don’t forget to have fun. Work hard, give it your best effort but don’t forget to enjoy it and make memories. Balance is key. I struggle here. 😉
Notes:
Gym is closed on Monday for Labor Day! If you need a WOD to do check out the “Travel WOD” list over on the left side of the site under “Resources”.
Want to learn to climb a rope? Practice. Learn technique. Don’t ignore it. Even the best showed that neglecting those hard skill movements can bite you down the road. Plus rope climbing is just fun! Learn a style and practice in the box.
Squatting: Stay on those heels, get deep, knees out, chest up, eyes level and fight for that lumbar curve!
Day 2 of the Whole 30 Challenge! Post comments on how wonderful, peppy, and generally happy you all feel! In all seriousness, you guys can do it. At least for for another day. One at a time. Write down what you eat. If you are starving then eat more of the stuff you are supposed to eat.
Pet Peeves, “Tom-trum” Rant of the Day, or things I hate: Spammers. Specifically blog spammers. Seeing bogus comments on our site from spammers trying to get you to buy stuff like Viagra pisses me off. If I want everyone to buy Viagra I’ll simply put a link to it and say something like “take Viagra and PR all of your WOD’s!” May blog spammers all burn for eternity!
Notes:
Gym is closed on Monday for Labor Day! If you need a WOD to do check out the “Travel WOD” list over on the left side of the site under “Resources”.
Welcome to Terry and Riche who started Elements yesterday with us!
Again Faster is sponsoring an Again Faster WOD Series that is a open to anyone who wants to compete with their Again Faster Competition Teammade up of top CF athletes. They will post a WOD for the week with their top times for men/women. If you want to try to beat the top time you must film and then upload it for judging. Simply put if you post the winning time you can win some gear. If you are interested click the link above to see how the competition works and to get more info.
Here’s a cool compilation video of their team of Beasts:
Sumo Deadlift High Pull (75#/55#) Push Jerk (75#/55#)
* Sumo must end with clear pull under chin and elbows above bar ** Push Jerks must be a jerk then fully stand; no press or push press or it’s a no rep!
This WOD specifically calls for Push Jerks to train the jerk. Thus the reason we enforced the rule of no pressing it up, even if it’s light. Training correctly at a lighter load should lead to a better technique when going heavier. The key to the jerk is not jumping up; it’s jumping under the bar and locking out in one distinct motion.
Click on the linkto the picture of the day on CrossFit.com and the explanation beneath it for how you should finish overhead in a fully locked out position. Minimize that tendency to over exaggerate the lumbar curve when finishing and pushing the head “through”.
Watch this video of a good split jerk at heavy weight. James Hobart at 305 pounds split jerk [wmv] [mov]
Notes:
Congrats and good luck to the group of you who officially started the Whole 30 Challenge today! It takes guts to make the commitment and discipline to see it through. Read here for what it is if you are unfamiliar with Whole9and their approach to clean eating and healthy nutrition. If you want to jump in it’s never too late to start now!
Pet Peeves, “Tom-trum” Rant of the Day or things I hate: Airlines that suck. Specifically airlines that suck at the following: a) Flying b) Flying you to your destination when they say they will c) Flying all of your belongings that you checked at the counter along with you to your destination. d) After losing your belongings showing that they care and will get off their personal cell phone call to explain why your bag is getting a nice tour of the bowels of DFW airport all night
Have a happy Thursday everyone! Be fast, be strong, and be epic!
Chalk this up to the first of a couple WOD’s slotted to help train for Fight Gone Bad V which we are hosting on 9/18. If you are planning to participate (along with CrossFit Redmond, CrossFit Belltown, CrossFit Basic, and Compound Fitness who will be joining us here) you will need to either raise some donations via a donation page, or bring a donation equivalent to our drop in fee ($15) in order to jump in the fight. If you show up that day and haven’t yet raised funds then we will ask that you leave $15 which 100% of it we will send in. While the original rules stated $150 in donations we are changing the requirement for our box to ensure a good participation while requiring less of a minimum. This does not mean that we don’t want to raise the most possible for the worthy causes we are fighting for; it’s just a realization that setting a high number likely would keep some of you home.
Constantly varied? Check our previous post to compare the below pic to see how Moe trains different rest positions. While you’re there look up your last results.
Notes:
Next Monday is Labor Day and the gym will be closed!
How often do we complete a WOD that goes backwards? I’m not talking about running backwards either (which by the way you have to see Kim’s crazy backwards running jump rope 200m run). Most WOD’s count down. Or the rep count stays the same each round or interval. Some are ladders where one exercise decreases while something else increases. For WOD’s that add a rep each minute on the minute those present a unique challenge in counting up but aren’t the same as going backwards. So in programming the week I thought we should try it. Make up a WOD (I wanted to test core and grip strength while using the run to spike the heart rate), then reverse the typical rep count order and see what it does.
My two cents? It works. It’s tough, it’s different. By starting with smaller reps early the ability to move through exercises either quicker or even unbroken drives up the intensity and pushes you harder. Being fresher allows you to complete the early rounds fast and turn it into somewhat of a sprint. For me the thought process changes from the typical “soldier on” to “don’t stop or drop it”. Judging by how gassed people felt, we will try this format again.
Want to work on your flexibility? Improve your range of motion? Rehab those pesky tight or painful muscles? Check out MobilityWod by Kelly Starrett and get your mobility on!
Laura working the Knees-to-Elbow:
Notes:
In case you missed yesterday’s post, we have updated our pricing. Check it out!
Our troops and sailors use CrossFit. Other armies should try it. I’m not quite sure that the Iraqi army is ready yet…
After careful deliberation and review of our business we are happy to announce that we will implement a reduced monthly pricing structure as of September 1st (if we decide to raise rates in the future we will keep existing members at the lower rate). We feel this is fair yet takes into account the broader economic picture while also allowing us to effectively offer a CF Kids program soon for our members.
The new rates will be as follows:
Monthly Unlimited Classes: $135 / month plus 9% tax (reduction of $15 per month)
Unlimited Couples Discount rate: $240 / month plus 9% tax (reduction of $30 per month)
Limited Monthly Classes 2 x /week: $90 / month plus 9% tax (reduction of $10 per month)
– Both members must be unlimited to receive couples discount – Works out to ~ $8/class for unlimited rate – Works out to ~ $11/class for limited rate
Military/LEO/Fire/Student discount of 20% available
Drop-in rate will remain $15 (for experienced CrossFitters) or just buy a shirt
Elements will remain $150 for new members and include the first month unlimited classes
Mish and Lena high five the new pricing while Don simply shakes his head in disbelief:
A Commitment to Value:
Add up what you pay for a gym membership plus a trainer and it simply doesn’t compare. We base our pricing on what we feel is a fair value. In our box, we value a safe and supportive training environment, good coaching, solid programming, and community. We provide an atmosphere that challenges the athlete in each of us while focusing on technique and safety first. We don’t want to just make you a number, we care about you. If you haven’t been in then we will email, call, and generally just harrass you! We will hold you accountable until you tell us otherwise. We get to know each of our clients and their strengths and weaknesses to know appropriate scaling of movements and loads. We monitor your progress and celebrate your milestones. Our workouts are thought out, tested and structured to fit into a bigger picture. We provide various outlets to share information, offer training guidance and education, and interact among members through our active website and social media page. We work to consistently offer, organize and participate in monthly events, races, challenges, clinics, workshops, and other competitions both within our gym and the broader CrossFit community. We value being active within the CrossFit community because we solidly believe that much of the great part of what it offers is just that, a community of like minded fitness enthusiasts that know that hard ass fitness is earned through intensity, sweat and work. We seek out gyms with core values such as ours and look for ways to share best practices, implement new training ideas and forge lasting friendships.
Most of all, Michelle and I (as well as all who coach at SnoRidge) live CrossFit. We have a pure passion for what it is and how it can benefit us and want to share that with others. We compete, we learn, and we teach. It’s not just about writing something on a whiteboard and starting a timer; it’s about seeking out and tackling a physical and mental challenge head on everyday and learning something about yourself in the process. It’s about high fiving, chest bumping, and having fun while doing it. When you join our box, you join our family. Each and every one of us brings something to the mix that motivates, inspires and benefits all of us. That makes us better CrossFitters and better people! We feel that is value. I personally haven’t found that many gyms out there that offer the same.
Remember: Anyone can be cool, but awesome takes practice. Keep practicing daily, we sure will!
Short video clip of our Fit 5 Fashion/CrossFit demo this past week:
We are hoping to get a more official video of the event soon that is being put together to show all of the performance highlights. If you want to see some pics then go to www.brickhousephotos.com; click on order prints and then select the lululemon event.
