Integrate Yourself

Annie finishing the High Pull.

Are you and integrated athlete? Do you know what an integrated athlete is? Being able to generate power with the big strong muscles of the core, and passing that power to the weaker extremities is one example of getting integrated. All athletic activity starts in the "core" and radiates out to the extremities. The Sumo Deadlift High Pull is a simple expression of this concept. An athlete must create momentum and elevation on the bar, to quote Coach Burgener, with the legs and hips, then the arms can finish the movement. Not until the legs and hips have extended fully to we want to engage the arms. Pulling early with the arms a the common fault. Don't be that guy/girl.

Workout:
 5 rounds for time:
250 meter row
15 Dips

Perspective

Christmas Eve Crew

With the Holidays come travel, family events, and more travel. The people we choose to spend the holidays with speaks to the things we hold to be important and the people that we are. The people we spend everyday with speaks to the type of person we will become. We are lucky to have such a great community of people that choose come together day after day to train, and we hope year after year.

Happy Holidays!!!

Tough

Tyler making it look easy.

CrossFit is filled with slogans and catch phrases. Some seem to resonate more on different days than other do. For example the photo above seem to deserve the quote below.

"No, it doesn't ever get any easier. You wouldn't want it to either." Greg Glassman

What is your favorite CrossFit tag? Post thoughts to comments.

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The Holiday and New Year's Schedules has been revised.  We will be running a 6am Class

Bonding

Annabelle getting strong.

This Holiday Season has been a time for us as s community to really come together. Thanks to Pat's Holiday Party we all seem to be a little more chatty at class, and a little more supportive in the workouts, it has been great to see. The other thing most of us went through was "The 12 Days" WOD. One of those workouts that looks easy on the board, but turns out to be nothing but.

Check the WOD Videos Link to see it and all our other videos.
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The Holiday and New Year's Schedules are up. We will be running a limited schedule over the Holidays. Make sure to check to see if your class is available.
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NEW YEARS WORKOUT ANYONE??? If you are interested in doing a midnight workout on New Year's eve post to comments.

Evidence

Diana looking strong.

We are an Evidenced Based Fitness program. We want results. Measurable, repeatable, results. Improved performance, improved body composition, etc. Tracking an athletes progress provides accurate data points. These data points demonstrate an athletes progress, good bad, or otherwise. Watching Diana over the last few months we didn't need to look at the data, it was obvious to all. She had clearly been eating well and consistent with her workouts. Back on August 26th we took her measurements, we pointed her in the direction of the Zone. Now nearing December 26th we measured her again. Her results were inspiring.

               Pre-Zone/CrosFit            Post Zone/CrossFit
Waiste:              30.5"                                 26"
Hips:                   39"                                  36"
Weight              134.6 lb                          125.4 lb
Pull Ups               0                                     10

CONGRATULATION DIANA!!! You are a joy to have around, and a great athlete to coach. Keep up the fantastic work.

Workout:

21-15-9
135 pound Sumo Deadlift High Pull
135 pound Split Jerk

Finished

The final touches.

It official, the custom made field engineered p-bars are finished. In honor of the new equipment, we will be holding a max dip competition in class today.  Anyone who makes it to 50 unbroken gets a free shirt. One of our foundational movements is the press. We love to press. Anyway, anyhow anywhere. Check out our new video on the press. You can find it on our WOD Video link. 

Workout: Tabata Press
Shoulder Press; 20 seconds
Rest 10 seconds
Push Up; 20 seconds
Rest 10 seconds
Dip; 20 seconds
Rest 30 seconds
Handstand Push up; 20 seconds
Rest 10 seconds
Bench Press; 20 seconds
Rest 10 seconds
Ring Dip; 20 seconds
Rest 30 seconds

Repeat once.

Long and Strong

Kai learning the back squat

We want range of motion before strength. Lifting heavy weights makes a strong, lifting heavy weights with full range of motion makes us long and strong. Getting strong is only good if we have the range to use it. We use the ball as a minimum. We need to learn were the bottom is so when we go for our heavy stimulus we don't need the ball. Developing the kinesthetic awareness to find the bottom is critical to our success as we develop. Athletes often miss full range of motion when the weights get heavy, and this is a mistake. When doing a heavy set of back squats for example, make sure to get the hip below the knee. Remember, how heavy was the weight, how far did you move it, how long did it take.

NOW GO GET STRONG.

Workout:
1 mile run
135 pound back squat, 75 reps
1 mile run

Well Done

Olivia determined to stick it.

Every so often an athlete will dial in their nutrition, work hard during their WOD, and pull away from the pack. We see it in their bodies, their attitude and most obviously in their performance. Olivia is one of these athletes. She was lucky to start CrossFit with natural talent, agility, and determination. Her hard wok and diligence to eating well earns her a spot on the Athlete Achievements link. The video is of her near body weight push press. Its a little wobbly but notice the beautiful triple extension and the fight to the finish.

Great Work Olivia, your improvements have been impressive. Keep up the strong work.

Workout: 3 rounds for time of
2 pood Kettlebell swing, 25 reps
15 Pull ups

Homemade Dips

Coach D testing out the new p-bars.

Before the new year we should have a functioning set of parallel bars. They are not fancy like the kind of bars that a gymnast may use and they are not quite like what you may find in a playground. They are however ours and on site. We should have them finished by the end of the week ready for everyone.

Our capacity to press must be tested in all planes. The dip, the push up and the handstand push up are body weight exercises that should be part of an elite athletes training. 

Workout:
10 rounds of:
7 weighted Dips
5 Kipping Dips
3 Strict Dips

AIR

Leif using his air.

We often talk about quality movement. The better the movement the better performance. When it come to our breathing the same theories apply. Our body needs the exchange of gases to continue to operate so the better we move our air the better we operate. There are varied strategies for varied efforts, we hold our breath during a max dead, or we time our breathing with the rythm of our kip. What ever temporary strategy we employ, the aim is move as much air as possible. Good air in. Bad air out.

Workout:
95 pound Shoulder press, 21 reps
400 meter run
135 pound Push Press, 15 reps
400 meter run
185 pound Push Jerk, 9 Reps
400 meter run