“Stephen“
30-25-20-15-10-5 rep rounds of:
GHD sit-up (Abmat sit-up)
Back extension (Superman)
Knees to elbow (Hanging knee raises)
95/65 pound Stiff legged deadlift (lighter weight)
(Scaled version in parentheses)
“Sophia”
Squat like mommy and daddy
Chase a tennis ball all over the place
Do a bunch of kettlebell deadlifts
Slide down the stairs and look cute for time!
Comments: Favorite Super Bowl moment/commercial?
Saturday Open Gym 9:00 – 11:00
We’ll load up and leave for Hood River at 3:30. All are welcome to participate.
CrossFit class is not all hard work. Sometimes friends just get together to hang out.
Have a super weekend everyone! Enjoy the game, the commercials, the food, and especially the great company of family and good friends. Americans will consume 12 million pounds of potato chips on Sunday. Most of them have never completed “Kelly” or “Fran.” Respect yourself and your hard work by passing on the Pepsi and Doritos this weekend. You’ll be glad you did, and besides, there might not be enough to go around!
21-18-15-12-9-6-3 rep rounds of:
135/95 pound Sumo deadlift high-pull
Pull to inverted hang and lower as slowly as possible
On the SDHP’s, pull the bar to make contact under the chin. On the pulls to inverted hang, keep arms, trunk, hips, and legs as straight as possible, both up and down. This is not for time.
In the inverted hang pull demonstrated above, arms, trunk and legs remain relatively straight. Hips pike considerably, especially on the way up. Additional scaling is provided by bending the knees, trunk and/or arms. It can be done on rings or a bar. The way down should be a battle!
The evening Academy is picking up and getting into the swing of things.
Comments: The SDHP is a “pull” that is really a “push.” Can you elaborate?
Rest or make-up day:
Rest, choose a workout from earlier in the week that you missed, or come in and target a weakness or an area that you’d like to improve.
Michael leaves no doubt about opening his hips, while Jermaine sets his sights on another 400 meters. Solid benchmark all the way around yesterday.
Lynne gets some mid-morning air!
1) Gymnastic Skills Practice
2)“Griff”
For time:
Run 800 meters
Run 400 meters backwards
Run 800 meters
Run 400 meters backwards
Keep flyin’ high Trevor!
Ask Karen: “How many crunches for a six-pack?”
Comments: Who’s in for the CrossFit Hood River Grand Opening on Saturday? We’ll leave the gym at 3:30 PM and be back later.
Five rounds for time of:
155 pound Thruster, 5 reps
5 Muscle-ups
Run 400m
Personal records and peak performances happen daily around here. Constant improvements and achievements in fitness make it next to impossible to recognize just one athlete each month. January was no exception. During the last couple weeks though, one person in particular has found a new gear. Congratulations Margaret!
Margaret has made significant gains recently in all ten of the physical skills:
If you’ve seen her complete anything for time in the last month, you know that her cardiovascular and respiratory endurance have risen to new heights. Last week’s deadlift-pullup workout in less than 11 minutes is evidence of Margaret’s level of work capacity.
Along the same lines, she has developed the stamina to sustain a high level of performance from start to finish.
Margaret’s strength has increased across the board. In January, she PR’d her deadlift at 250.
Improved flexibility has helped as well. While a parallel squat was out of the question a couple months ago, she squatted 145 in January.
Power is a measurement of work per unit time. Recently, Margaret has consistently finished workouts near the top of the class, a testament to the power that she’s developed. Her top end power output has increased as well, setting multiple personal bests in the clean last month.
In the workout a couple of weeks ago that involved alternating sets of 60 seconds of squats, pullups, and pushups, Margaret demonstrated her improvement in speed by minimizing the cycle time of repeated movements.
Measuring gains in coordination, agility, and balance are not always as obvious as some of the other skills. That’s not the case for Margaret. The difference in her Olympic lifts in January compared to a month ago are as clear as the difference between night and day. She has turned complex, segmented movements into much more coordinated, fluid motion. Agility and balance are a big part of that, and are reflected by quickly receiving the bar in a steady and stable base. Dialing in double-unders last month were also a big step in coordination and agility.
Margaret’s accuracy continues to improve in everything that she does. She manages her workouts in such a way that she is constantly in control of her body and external objects. She’s even
Margaret’s improvements in each of the ten physical skills are no accident. She’s always given 110%, but the busy combination of work and class have often made fitting in exercise a challenge. This semester though, simply adding consistency to the effort has taken Margaret to the top of her game and reaching for more. Way to go Margaret, keep on keepin’ on!
10 minutes Handstand push-ups
5 minutes Squats
2 minutes Pull-ups
1 minute Push-ups
Score is given by total reps.
When Trevor decided to join the U.S. Army, he knew it would be a battle just to get in. He was overweight, out of shape, and a long way from meeting the minimum physical standards required to enlist. Since then, he’s lost 80 pounds, 11 inches around the waist, and gained a tremendous amount of strength and stamina across the board. Months ago, a single pull-up seemed miles away for Trevor. Now he needs a piece of chalk to keep track of them during workouts. Consistent exercise and CrossFit have undoubtedly been a huge part of Trevor’s transformation, but that’s only part of the story. He has also taken the time and effort to learn about improving nutrition, and has adopted a balanced, healthy, and effective lifestyle. We can all take a lesson from Trevor’s mental fortitude and his desire to affect positive change. Instead of wishing he was lighter, stronger, faster, and feeling better, Trevor has done what it takes to make it happen. Overcoming setbacks, he remains focused on the goal. Rather than simply satisfying the Army’s minimum physical standards, Trevor is poised to excel in Boot Camp. He is well on his way to the place he wants to be. Who says we can’t learn something from a 19-year-old? Trevor ships out to Fort Jackson next week. Go get ‘em Trevor! More photos here.
Don’t Forget: Open Gym 9:00-11:00 Saturday, and M/W/F early class at 6:00 AM instead of 6:30 AM beginning next week.
Comments: Who is 2010’s first Athlete of the Month?
Back Squat 1-1-1-1-1-1-1 reps
In other words, add weight! If you missed a WOD from earlier in the week that you’d like to make up, today might be a good opportunity to do so. But beware… you never know what life will throw your way tomorrow!
Ridiculous 5:30 class yesterday. Way to win the battle on the bars!
Tomorrow (Friday) marks the end of an era. It is the last 6:30 AM class. Enjoy sleeping in, because beginning Monday, the Breakfast Club will meet at 6:00.
Comments: What is your prediction for tomorrow’s WOD? (Off limits Dot Com!)
For time:
Deadlift, 15 reps
50 Pull-ups
Deadift, 12 reps
40 Pull-ups
Deadlift, 9 reps
30 Pull-ups
Deadlift, 6 reps
20 Pull-ups
Deadlift, 3 reps
10 Pull-ups
Rx’d weight for men is 225, women is 135. Eat your spinach and hold on tight!
Welcome to the team Cindy!
Words like intensity, thruster, burpee, clean & jerk, handstand push up, and ”for time” are enough to make a even CrossFit veteran a little anxious, but they are downright threatening to a newcomer. There’s no doubt about it: CrossFit is intimidating. It’s scary. It’s uncomfortable. It can even be a little painful from time to time. But it’s also incredibly rewarding. Who wouldn’t love to be in the best shape of their life?
Getting out of your comfort zone is a daily expectation around here. Comfortable is on the couch with a TV dinner and a bag of Doritos. Comfortable is a casual stroll on the elliptical with a Gatorade and a magazine. Comfortable is the very reason we become uncomfortable with our physical state. Stepping outside what is comfortable is where progress happens, where goals are met, and where the impossible becomes real.
It’s true that wall balls, pushups and kettlebell swings can be uncomfortable. Sometimes very uncomfortable. The reality though, is that the scariest, most intimidating, most uncomfortable part of CrossFit is walking in the door for the first time. It is leaving your ego at home and stepping into the unknown. Once you’re here, the environment is inspiring. Peggy is doing 100 pull-ups. Mary is lifting a barbell above her head for the first time in her life. Pete is picking up heavy stuff. Rachel is working toward her first push-up after class. George is upside-down. And everyone else is in their own unique pursuit of better fitness as well. It’s a journey that in here, we are all in together.
There is a common misconception that one must first get into better shape before participating in CrossFit. Getting into better shape is the point of CrossFit! It doesn’t matter where you start. You might be an elite athlete or you might get winded on the way upstairs. Either way, there is plenty for you to gain through what we do. If you’re comfortable with your fitness and health in general, keep doing what you’re doing. Hold onto it. You have something to be proud of. If you’re not sure, or maybe just a little uncomfortable with the person in the mirror staring back at you, maybe it’s time to capture that feeling and step outside your comfort zone. After all, what have you got to lose?
Comments: What inspired you to give CrossFit a 3,2,1… go?
