Smashby's Training Blog

Labor Day was Monday, so a lot of people took the day off from working out. I was looking to make up for that time spent out of the gym by making the Wednesday night workout a good one!

The athlete needed to complete ALL of the exercises below as fast as possible, but there was a catch! The tasks to complete were:

500m Row / 400m Run / 100 Bicycles (ab ex.) / 30 Overhead Squats / 30 Knees to Elbows / 30 Push-Ups / 30 Thrusters / 30 Knuckles to Toes / 30 Burpees / 3 Laps up the stairs and around the punching bag holding to Kettlebells

Push-Ups and Burpees!

Yeah, they had to do all of that! Here’s what the catch was, though. Tonight we had CrossFit newcomers Nichole and “The Ashleys” come back for another class!!! They’re still very new at this, so I let them pick any three exercises they wanted to skip to shorten the length of the workout for them.
Since Sarah, Dave and Kristin are all regulars, they were only able to skip one of the exercises. But they got to pick whichever one they wanted.  The best part for me, was that every single person (except for Kristin!) chose to skip the burpees.  Probably because they’re too easy, huh?

The Ashleys dominating on Knees to Elbows

Athlete Results:

Ashley Guy -18:32

Ashley Boomer – 16:54

Nichole Potter – 14:30

Sarah – 14:45

Kristin – 15:43

Dave – 18:15

You guys did a great job, and I hope to see you all again soon!

Saturday morning rolled around, and this time we had 4 people come to class!

Tabata Push-Ups to start the weekend

Kristin and Carolyn were the “regulars”, but Carolyn had two friends visiting from out of town.  I was super impressed to see them actually come to class, but even more impressed at how well they did!  Arielle and Katie did an amazing job learning and performing the movements with proper form!  Here’s a shirt video of some of the burpees.  It was a beautiful day for CrossFit!

We did some pretty crazy workouts (3 total workouts in the hour-long session), but everyone did an amazing job!

What a great group of ladies! 9/4/10 Wash Park Team

Workout of the Day- (6:30pm Class)

100 Single Jumps

30 Wall Balls

80 Single Jumps

25 Wall Balls

60 Single Jumps

20 Wall Balls

40 Single Jumps

15 Wall Balls

20 Single Jumps

10 Wall Balls

Athlete Results:

Sarah (8lb Med Ball)- 8:08

Dave (10lb Med Ball)- 13:12

What a night it was tonight.  It seems I have identified one of Sarah’s best exercises… the single jump!  She is amazing at jumping rope, light on her toes, and keeps her hands super close to her body.  It’s great when you can walk by someone jumping rope, quickly, and can barely hear them!

Dave used a med ball that weighed a few more pounds, and even when he got tired, his range of motion was perfect on every single rep.  The best part of the workout for Dave, was when he got tired doing wall balls, he rested standing up against the wall!  Most people want to rest sitting down when they get tired, but that can lead to your lower back tightening up even faster.  Well done, sir!

Workout of the Day- (7pm Class)

3 Rounds of:

400m Run

15 Overhead Squats with PVC Pipe

10 Wall Balls

5 Burpees

Full hip extension at the top every time!

Athlete Results:

Carolyn (12lb ball)- 10:47

Nichole (10lb ball)- 16:24

Ashley (8lb ball)- 16:26

Tonight we had two newcomers to CIA CrossFit, Nichole and Ashley!  After a few minutes of a basic overview of my style of training, we were off for a brief warm-up, and then the workout.  Ashley had never done CrossFit before, but Nichole was familiar with the training, so that made it a lot easier.

Carolyn, who forgot her ankle brace, decided she still wanted to run, do squats, and burpees.  Crazy if you ask me, but she crushed the workout.  I guess through her rehab and CrossFit, her broken foot a few months ago is turning into a mega-foot!  I’ll let her comment and see what she thinks!

Either way, the group did an amazing job, and we can’t wait to see Nichole and Ashley again!

Nothing like doing burpees on your first day of CrossFit!

Cash-Out Exercise:

60 seconds – As many single jumps as possible

Sarah- 120

Carolyn- 167

(I bet done at the same time, you two would have each completed even more!)

Workout of the Day:

Run 800 meters

30 Push-Ups

Run 400 meters

30 Burpees

Run 150 meters

30 KB Swings

Sprint 25 meters

30 Jumping Jacks

Sprint 25 meters

The 6:30 class thinking, "Yay, Burpees!" Right, guys?

Athlete Results:

Sarah- 14:43

Bari- 17:05

Jan- 17:07

Dave- 18:58

That was the workout that my 6:30 class completed.  My favorite quote from this class was Sarah saying, “Wow, Tom… Thanks so much for putting the burpees right after the push-ups!”  I sense a bit of sarcasm, but she did an amazing job of grouping the 30 reps into smaller, more manageable sets, and sticking to the numbers she picked!  When she finished, she stayed around and cheered everone else on, too.  That is the teamwork that I love to see you guys show every day.  Thank you for making this place feel more like a family than a gym!

We cut the burpee reps in half for Jan and Bari, but they really made up for it by pushing each other through the runs.  It was very cool to see Bari come back and pass her mom on that last round of jumping jacks.  She proved that she will never give up!  Dave powered through the burpees like a champion and looked like the 400 and 800 meter runs are starting to look even easier.  It’s really fun to see that kind of progress, too.

Workout of the Day:

5 Rounds of-

10 Deadlifts

10 Ring Push-Ups

10 Sit-ups

Perfect form on Caro's first day of doing Ring Push-Ups

After a warm-up for my 7:00pm class, we spent about 10 minutes working on form on Carolyn’s deadlifts since she had only done them with my once before.  By the end, her form looked great, and we ended up using a weight heavier than she had ever done before!  First was FORM, then CONSISTENCY, then INTENSITY!  She had the first two, so we upped the ante a bit.

If you haven’t tried ring push-ups, you should.  They are such a challenging movement, requiring strength, coordination, stability, and more!  For a first time, she also maintained great form with these.  The sit-ups were done with a plate held overhead while the athlete lays on their back.  They reach up and towards their knees in order to complete one rep.

Athlete Results:

Carolyn (85lb Deadlift, rings at waist height, 10lb plate)- 10:46

Workout of the Day:
Two Rounds for
Run 200 Meters
25 KB Swings
10 Tire Flips
25 Double Unders (50 Single Jumps)
15 Overhead Squats w/ Med Ball (16# / 10#)

These guys always work so hard. I'm so proud!

Athlete Results:
(6:30 class)
John- 9:14
Sarah- 9:15
Dave- 12:31
Jan- 13:46

(7:00 class)

Timbers (single jumps, 8kg kettlebell)- 9:26

Carolyn (single jumps, 8kg kettlebell)- 9:29

Kristin crushing the tire flips and making them look easy!

Caro doing KB swings with great range of motion!

The first class did an amazing job of pushing each other to the end of the workout.  It’s very cool to be working with a group of people who have trained together for a while.  The dynamics between you guys, and how you encourage each other even in the middle of the workout, is very cool!

This was the first time I had done tire flips with the 7pm class, and while they were a little nervous about doing them, their technique was amazing!

After the workout was over for the 7:00 class, the two girls hung out for a few minutes to work on their double-under technique.  The outcome:

BOTH of them got double-unders down!  The next workout we do, they’ll be doing doubles instead of single jumps.  Great job, girls!

Workout of the Day-

FIGHT GONE BAD!

This is one of the classic CrossFit workouts that once you complete, you will never forget!  I will use the description that CrossFit.com uses so know can see exactly what the workout entails.

“This is a five-minute round from which a one-minute break is allowed before repeating. The event is in the 3 round format. The stations are:

• Wall-ball: 20 pound ball, 10 ft target. (Reps)
• Sumo deadlift high-pull: 75 pounds (Reps)
• Box Jump: 20″ box (Reps)
• Push-press: 75 pounds (Reps)
• Row: calories (Calories)

The clock does not reset or stop between exercises. On call of “rotate,” the

athlete/s must move to next station immediately for good score. One point is given for each rep, except on the rower where each calorie is one point. (http://www.crossfit.com)”

There were three people in my first class, and we decided to start everyone at a different station.  Sarah started with the Wall Balls, Brandon at the Sumo Deadlift High-Pull, and David at the Box Jumps.  It was great to have Brandon back with us, too!

The only thing we did differently in this workout, since it was the first time I had taken the group through it, I gave everyone two minutes rest after round 2, not just one.  Next time we’ll do it as prescribed, but I wanted to make FGB a good workout today, not a soul crusher!  Carolyn came to the later class, so that’s why she’s not in the picture below.

What impressed me most about you guys tonight, is that ALL of you put up some of your highest numbers in the LAST round!  That’s just amazing on a workout like this.

Sarah, Dave and Brandon starting their final round of Fight Gone Bad!

Athlete Results-

The pictures show each round by exercise.  Caro is on the left of the first picture, Brandon on the right.  In the second picture, Sarah is on the left and Dave on the right.

Carolyn's scores to the left, Brandon's to the right. Great first FGB!

Sarah's results on the left, Dave's on the right. Way to push, guys!

Total Scores-

Carolyn: 236

Sarah: 200

Dave: 173

Brandon: 172

Workout of the Day-

“Helen”

Three rounds for time of:

400 Meter Run

21 Kettlebell Swings

12 Pull-Ups

Athlete Results-

Carolyn (8kg KB, Red Band for Pull-Ups): 12:54

Kristin (8kg KB, Green Band for Pull-Ups): 14:00

Tonight was the first night that we got the girls over to the pull-up bars to work on some assisted pull-ups!  It certainly takes a bit of getting used to, but they’re going to pick it up in no time.  This workout pretty much went like this:

Carolyn would finish the swings just before Kristin, then she’d pull away and complete the pull-ups first to start on the next run.  Kristin (who is training for a marathon!) would then catch Carolyn (who, again, is rebuilding her foot after breaking it a few months ago) on the run, and the sequence would repeat.  These two really push each other well, it’s fun to watch!

Great job ladies!

Usually I start the “Numbers” posts with what the workout of the day was, but today was a unique day so I’m going to change it up a bit.  Tonight was the largest class I’ve had to date, and it was awesome!  There were a total of 7 people in the class, and had the weather not turned really bad late in the afternoon, there may have been 3-5 more people show up.  It was so awesome to see that many people there and excited for CrossFit!

The way I decided to break it down, given who was there, was to do a “Girls v/s Boys” competition.  There were 4 girls and 3 guys, and depending on the event it may have given an advantage to either team.  What I did tonight was present the first workout, have the teams complete it, and only then would I share what the second workout was going to be.  Yeah, I ran these guys through three workouts.

Girls Team- Kristin, Carolyn, Betty, Jenna

Boys Team- Brandon, David, Mike

Workout of the Day-

“Welcome to the Jungle”

Part 1-

“As a Team, Row 2000 Meters for time”

The only rule here was that each athlete needed to row AT LEAST 500 meters.  Obviously that meant the girls had to each do that distance, and the guys had a bit more wiggle room.

Part 2-

Twice through:

“20 Wall Ball Passes

50 Sit-Ups

100 Air Squats”

The Wall Ball Passes were cool because you had to throw the ball up to your target, and quickly get out of the way so your partner could catch it, and do the same for the person behind them.  The boys used a 20lb ball, and the girls used a 12lb ball.  The sit-ups were done on a mat, and your partners were able to hold your feet for you.  Air Squats are self-explanatory.  The only catch was that only one teammate was able to complete reps at a time.

Part 3-

“While one partner runs 400 meters, the remaining team members complete Jumping Pull-Ups

While the next partner runs, the remaining team members complete Burpees

Next partner runs, remaining folks to Box Jumps

Final runner takes off, remaining team completes Push-Ups”

Scoring for this was unique.  Each rep completed would count as a one second deduction from the total TIME it took the 4 runners to complete their 400 meter runs.  That means if it took the team 60 seconds to complete the workout, and their team completed 30 reps, that team’s score would be 30 seconds.  The goal of this workout…. have the fastest end time possible.

The group getting ready for their third and final workout!

Athlete Results-

Part 1- The guys won the first event:

Boys – 6:57 / GIrls – 7:57

Part 2 – This workout came down to the last exercise and was super excited to watch.  Winner was the guys by a tiny margin:

Boys – 7:28 / Girls – 7:42

Part 3 – Girls ended this workout with a bang and took home the win

Girls – 433 total seconds for the 4 run laps – 301 total reps = 2:12 for the workout

Guys – 408 total seconds for the 4 run laps – 215 total resp = 3:13 for the workout

So here’s my take on why I think this 3-part workout was good.  The guys had less transitions to worry about on the row if they went straight through, so they probably had a bit of an advantage in this one.  Plus, David had a MONSTER pull on that rower.  The 2nd part of the workout I think was very evenly matched.  The 20lb medicine balls can get heavy really fast, but both teams need to worry about the throwing and catching portion of that, which is new to most people.  In the last workout, I need to give the advantage to the ladies.  They only each had to run one time, whereas for the guys, Mike had to run twice.  Not only must that have been tough on him, but while one guy is out running, there are only two guys left to do reps.  That can leave you tired pretty quickly!

Bottom line, though, the group did an amazing job, and really pushed through the pain to turn in some impressive numbers.  Hope to see some of you guys again!

The Largest class to date. Great job, guys!

Workout of the Day-

Row 1000 Meters for time

THEN go right into

4 Rounds for Time of:

10 Ball Slams (20lb ball)

10 Sumo Deadlift High Pulls (12kg Kettlebell)

10 Burpee Jumps (at top jump HIGHER than a regular burpee)

Athlete Results-

Carolyn: 4:08 on 1000m row, 14:08 Total Time

Melissa: 4:16 on 1000m row, 14:31 Total Time

Kristin: 4:20 on 1000m row, 14:25 Total Time

This workout allowed for form to break down pretty fast if you let it, but the girls did a great job of keeping it together.  The ball slams get really hard because the last thing you want to do after throwing a 20lb ball to the ground is to drop with it and catch it on one hop, but you guys did a great job.  On those burpee jumps, though… be careful!  The point is to jump higher than usual.  I’ll let you guys get away with it this time!  Great job pushing through.

Award of the day goes to Timbers, though!  At the end of both the row and the 4 round workout, she really turned it on and finished fast.  We’ll assume since it was the first time I’ve seen it, that she wasn’t sandbagging and just had a rush of adrenaline to catch the other girls.  Right, Kristin?

Great job, and fun pictures below!

Powering through 1000 meters for time!

See? All smiles again after the workout!

Workout of the Day-

Tabata Something Else:

To explain this one, I’ll reference CrossFit when they post this classic workout on their website.  They go through it the best-

“Complete 32 intervals of 20 seconds of work followed by ten seconds of rest where the first 8 intervals are pull-ups, the second 8 are push-ups, the third 8 intervals are sit-ups, and finally, the last 8 intervals are squats. There is no rest between exercises.  Post total reps from all 32 intervals to comments.” (www.crossfit.com)

Now most athletes, especially those new to CrossFit, can’t complete non-stop pull-ups for the majority of a 4-minute period.  I almost always have my athletes who can’t sub in jumping pull-ups.  May sound easy, or at least easier, but I assure you that you are taxing plenty of other muscles in the time that you’re moving, don’t worry!  This workout is no joke, yet most people underestimate it due to the fact that it’s comprised completely of body-weight movements.  However, by the third of fourth round of push-ups roll around, most people are gasping for air and shocked at how tired they are already.

Tonight was Dave DeHart’s first CrossFit class, and I was so glad he came down to give it a shot!  Dave just finished the entire P90X program, and I can tell you with complete honesty, it worked really well for him!  He lost a ton of weight, is noticeably more fit and active, and just seems happier with life in general.  I was so proud that he stuck to that program almost to a “T” for the full 90 days.  He kept telling me that once he completed it, then he would come down and give my gym a shot.  He is a man of his word, so thanks for coming down, Dave!

Athlete Results:

Jumping Pull-Ups- 21-21-21-21-18-18-18-18= 156

Push-Ups- 10-10-6-6-4-3-4-3= 46

Sit-Ups- 10-10-10-10-10-10-10-10= 80

Air Squats- 12-11-12-10-10-12-10-15= 92

Total Score: 374

Not bad at ALL, Dave!  Those last few sets of Air Squats were inspiring, too.  He pushed through a TON of pain to round out the workout with his highest round of that exercise.  So cool to see!!

Dave powering through one of the last sets of push-ups like a champ!

Now I just need to pressure him to come down and give the gym 30 days to see how he thinks it compares to his last routine.  See you next week, Dave?