Archive for the ‘Media’ Category

The Numbers: 2/28/11

Posted: March 1, 2011 in CrossFit, Media, Training
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Today’s Strength segment was Back Squat, 5 sets of 3 reps. Something I’ve been noticing is that people are not only improving form significantly, they’re also putting up more weight.

So let me get this straight:
We’re getting faster, leaner, more efficient AND stronger?

Feel free to post how you think that’s possible in the comments section. 🙂

Great job, everyone!

Workout of the Day:
Strength
Back Squat 5 x 3

WOD
3 Rounds for Time-
400m Run / 15 Pull-Ups / 50 Air Squats / 15 Pull-Ups

Athlete Results:
Back Squat 5 x 3
Jamie- 185lbs x 8 reps!

WOD
Jamie (2-Banded Pull-Ups)- 23:39

Moment of Awesomeness: 2/26/11

Posted: February 26, 2011 in CrossFit, Media
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Short and sweet. Just like the little kid in it. Happy Weekend, from Whistler!!

CrossFit Blog Central: 2/25/11

Posted: February 25, 2011 in CrossFit, Media, Training
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Many people think that they’re not ready for CrossFit. They’re not in shape enough, they’re not intense enough, they wouldn’t be able to make it.

Check out this awesome video called “No Limitations”…

Anja Staten – No Limitations from Windy City CrossFit on Vimeo.

CrossFit Blog Central: 2/22/11

Posted: February 22, 2011 in CrossFit, Media, Training
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CrossFit Lisbeth posted something today (from the CrossFit Affiliate Cruise Ship?) and it has to be shared.
The title of Lisbeth’s article is
10 Ways To Be a Better CrossFitter

Sometimes when I share blog posts from other CrossFitters I just post summaries or select quotes. This one gets a full paste. While it may seem like she is talking directly at you, she cautions at the beginning of the article:

“Warning: I wrote this post to myself. But if the lifting shoe fits . . .”

10 Ways To Be a Better CrossFitter

10. Hold the bar straight.

9. Pay attention to your breathing.

8. Use less chalk. Really.

7. Read the CrossFit Journal articles and watch the videos. What’s this going to take? Like 15 min a day? Worth the time and worth the $25 per year. Stop whining and commit.

6. Stop whining and commit. Yeah, that was so good and simple, it needed to be said again and for like all of life.

5. Put sh** away where it belongs. You might call it housekeeping but, really, it’s a form of discipline. You don’t want bumpers or collars or KBs or whatever all over the place. Pick your item, use it, and put it away. Mental discipline is as important as physical discipline, maybe even more so.

4. Get to class 15 minutes early, all the time. Use that extra time not to chat or work on stuff you’re good at — use it to suck. Suck at L-sits, suck at deadhang pull-ups, suck at KB snatches. All the stuff you and your ego have been avoiding. Put on your big girl panties and do the stuff you don’t want to do. It’s called being a grown-up. And a CrossFitter. Go do it.

3. Shut up about programming. Nobody’s ever happy with programming unless they’re the ones doing the programming. Do the workouts. If you’re getting stronger and quicker and feel better, guess what? The programming is working. And if you’re not getting stronger or quicker and you don’t feel better, grab a coach and address your concerns privately.

2. Pay attention. Stop chatting and daydreaming and goofing off. Focus.

1. Stop praying at the bar. Gather yourself, address the bar, breathe, and lift. Don’t make it more complex — in movement or thought — than it needs to be. Lift the flippin’ bar.

The Numbers: 2/21/11

Posted: February 22, 2011 in CrossFit, Media, Training
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Happy Presidents’ Day, everyone! Many of you had the day off… I hope you spent it… celebrating President’s.?.?

CrossFit, Smashby Training, CrossFit Lakewood, CrossFit in Denver, Group Stretching

Coach Orion getting the group warmed up

Tonight’s workout started off with some Overhead Squats (OHS). The OHS is a lift that rewards those with hamstring and shoulder flexibility, and really tight cores. If you lack even one of those, you will be able to tell pretty quickly! With the risk of sounding like a broken record, there were even more breakthroughs tonight. Most notably (since I was working closest with them) Wes and Pete absolutely crushed their sets. For the first time I saw FULL range of motion from both of these guys, and it seemed like something just “clicked” in their heads to wear form looked awesome. GREAT JOB, gentlemen!

The main workout included a nice combination of simpler movements and more complex ones. Knees to Elbows are a full-body movement that require coordination and strength, but thankfully there are many modifications that can be made to sub for this. Tonight, one of the more common mods we made were “Leg Raises”. Remember, in CrossFit it’s about constantly varying what we do, so if you subbed with Leg Raises today, try something else next time! Our goal is to build up the capacity to eventually get to do Knees to Elbows!

After those it was onto the Push-Ups. We’re getting a lot stronger with these, and it’s great to watch so many people go all the from their chest to the decks to locking their arms out at full extension at the top! Finally, we did some Pistols. These are definitely a more complex gymnastics movement, and as you can see CFHQ Trainer Adrian Bozman demonstrate, the key is to keep your weight back on those heels the entire time, and not let yourself rock forwards. The modifications we used for these were either squatting back onto a box, using rings to support ourselves, or simply hanging onto the pull-up rig to support our getting out of the “bottom” position.

Throughout the workout form really improved after folks heard some “key words”, so great job, team!

CrossFit, Smashby Training, CrossFit Lakewood, CrossFit in Denver, GW Pistol

Greg is so good at these, cameras can't even see him!

Workout of the Day:
3 Rounds for Time
10 Knees to Elbows / 20 Push-Ups / 30 Pistols (15 each leg)

2011 CrossFit Games: 2010 Video Recap

Posted: February 21, 2011 in CrossFit, Media, Training
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Many of you may be new to CrossFit and may not know what exactly the CrossFit Games are, and what they represent in this community of ours.

In two phrases, the Games are the “world’s proving grounds for elite fitness. The men and women competing (there) have legitimate claim to the title Fittest Men and Women on Earth.” ~Greg Glassman, CrossFit Founder. Yeah, they’re a big deal!

Check out this incredible video that recaps last year’s event, and explains what exactly “The Games” are all about.

Click Here To Watch

The Numbers: 2/20/11

Posted: February 21, 2011 in CrossFit, Media, Training
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Sunday Funday was more like Sunday Full House tonight and I loved it! I can’t think of the last time we had 7 people in for a Sunday class. It was a lot of fun!

After warming up, I explained the workout to the group. I wish I could say everyone was excited, but there were definitely some groans when I announced that Med Ball Tosses and Box Jumps would be a part of it! What we did was a workout similar in structure to Fight Gone Bad. We had 4 stations set up where the athletes spent 1:00 at each one. After all 4, there was a 90 second rest period. The cycle is completed 3 times, leading to “only” 12 minutes of actual work. I’d like to think the athletes there tonight would still say it was a challenging one, though!

Finally, we ended the day with a 3-minute test. How many Slam Balls could you complete in 3 minutes? Instead of having everyone work alone, we paired most people up with a partner, and only one person could work at a time. It was incredible to watch, because nobody stopped for the entire three minutes. Great job, everyone!

Athlete Results:
WOD
Ben (6lb Med Ball / 16″ Box)- 61+76+68= 205 Reps
Lesley (10lb Med Ball / 20″ Box)- 81+85+88= 254 Reps
Mel (10lb Med Ball / 20″ Box)- 82+79+73= 234 Reps
Andy (14lb Med Ball / 20″ Box)- 101 (missed a station)+107+92= 300 Reps
Casey (14lb Med Ball / 20″ Box)- 73+77+70= 220 Reps
Jamie (20lb Med Ball / 24″ Box)- 66+74+64= 204 Reps
Wes (20lb Med Ball / 24″ Box)- 73+64+23= 190 Reps

3 Minute Slam Ball
Ben (6lb Med Ball / No Partner!)- 53 reps
Lesley and Mel (20lb Slam Ball)- 60 reps
Andy and Casey (30lb Slam Ball)- 59 reps
Wes and Jamie (50lb Slam Ball)- 50 reps

Talk about a close one! Can’t wait to see you guys next time!

Smashby Training, CrossFit Lakewood, CrossFit in Denver, Group Picture, CrossFit, Sunday Funday

The best crew in the land!

Moment of Awesomeness: 2/20/11

Posted: February 20, 2011 in CrossFit, Media
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When people ask me what kind of music I like, I always say “pretty much everything”. That’s not a cop-out answer, either, it’s the absolute truth. Hip Hop, Heavy Metal, Jazz, Salsa, Classical, Folk… the list goes on and on. One of my favorite artists out there, however, is RJD2. He was a prominent DJ in Columbus, Ohio (near where I went to College), and after I heard some of his instrumental hip hop beats, I was instantly hooked.

One of his songs, entitled “Work It Out”, features one of the more unique music videos I have ever seen! At first glance, one might think that this video is just a dancer performing amazing acrobatics with crutches, but the story is much cooler than that!

The star of the video Bill Shannon, aka “Crutch”, was born with a bilateral hip deformity. Because of this condition, he has Legg-Calve-Perthes Disease, which is “when the ball of the thighbone in the hip doesn’t get enough blood, causing the bone to die.” Bill relies on crutches to help him get around. It doesn’t stop there, though… he has learned to use a skateboard to facilitate getting from place to place more efficiently! Check out this short video that shows more or him and his art.

The balance, strength and creativity he displays on a day to day basis is nothing short of inspiring to me.

You know what? I take back what I said before. This IS just a video about a dancer performing amazing acrobatics with crutches! Well done, Mr. Shannon. You are incredible!

CrossFit WOD Tips: 2/20/11

Posted: February 20, 2011 in CrossFit, Media, Training
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The three ways to move weight from our shoulders to above our heads are the:

  • Shoulder Press
  • Push Press
  • Push Jerk

This is old news for most experienced CrossFitters, but for those who are not as familiar with those movements, it can be hard to conceptualize the difference in your mind. CrossFit Headquarters often times puts together instructional videos on how to perform movements properly, and this is certainly one of them.

Watch how “Original Firebreather” Greg Amundson (who also runs CrossFit Amundson with his wife) shows the difference between the three exercises listed above. As you move to the right of the video, the movements become less based on purely strength, and more about producing a powerful and efficient force to get that weight up and locked out over your head.

If you have any questions on this video or these movements, feel free to leave them in the Comments for this post!

CrossFit in the Community: Intro

Posted: February 20, 2011 in CrossFit, Media, Training
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For the last year or so, I’ve wanted to start an event here in Denver that gives CrossFit Trainers the opportunity to get together once a month and just talk. The idea stemmed from seeing other cities host similar events, and it really seemed to strengthen the community!

What’s working for you at your business? What isn’t? What makes your gym special? There is no right or wrong question to ask, but instead of just asking your co-workers or clients, now you can ask things to other CrossFit Trainers in Denver doing the same thing.

After talking to a few trainers I knew in the area and letting the word spread from there, we had our first meeting today (or technically yesterday, I suppose). The turnout was amazing (12 trainers from 7 different gyms ranging from Wheat Ridge to Colorado Springs!), the conversation was friendly and productive, and getting the chance to work out together was a blast! (Relax, I didn’t say THE workout was a blast…. I blame myself for writing it!)

There will be more posts on this meeting (along with a cool video) soon, but I just had to post the group picture of the folks who were able to stay and work out. THANK YOU to everyone who came today, and I’m really looking forward to our next meeting!

DACTOFGroup, CrossFit, CrossFit Lakewood, CrossFit in Denver, Smashby Training, CrossFit Trainers

Such an awesome day with other CrossFit Trainers!

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