Posts Tagged ‘Training’

Once the group was warmed up, we started today off with Shoulder Presses. The goal was 5 sets of 5, and it was great to see the drills we did before with just PVc pipes, translate into the weighted bar bells! Backs were tight and locked in, weight was driving through the heels and heads were poked through “the window” during the lock-out at the top. Watch Jamie fight to get that last one! That was 105 pounds for 7 reps…. with a fight like that, I’ll count that last rep 🙂

The workout consisted of two movements in ladder form, one decreasing, one increasing in totals. Kettlebell Swings would start at 10 and work down to 1, and Burpees started at 1 and went up to 10. Here’s how the workout looked completely written out.

Workout of the Day:
Strength
Shoulder Press 5×5

WOD
10 KB Swings / 1 Burpee / 9 KB Swings / 2 Burpees / 8 KB Swings / 3 Burpees / 7 KB Swings / 4 Burpees / 6 KB Swings / 5 Burpees / 5 KB Swings / Burpees / 4 KB Swings / 7 Burpees / 3 KB Swings / 8 Burpees / 2 KB Swings / 9 Burpees / 1 KB Swing / 10 Burpees

Athlete Results:
Shoulder Press 5 x 5
Jamie- 105lbs x 7 reps

WOD
Jamie (16kg KB)- 11:08

Once the 6pm class was done, it was my turn to try the workout myself. Special Shout-Out to Ms. Polk for her awesome coaching! 🙂

Today was one of the first BEAUTIFUL days we’ve seen in Denver in some time! That meant we got to go outside and run during our workout!! Today’s workout was a simple triplet (three movement), with running, pull-ups and balls slams. The rep scheme was that of Helen, where you ran and then did 21-12, respectively.

Workout of the Day:
3 Rounds for Time
400m Run / 21 Pull-Ups / 12 Ball Slams

Casey did Ball Slams for the second or third time ever tonight, and her form is improving more and more each time! Way to use those hips, instead of just your arms, to get that ball off the ground and in the air!

Happy Valentine’s Day, everyone! Now meet Karen.

Karen is one of the classic CrossFit “Girl” Workouts, that consists of 150 Wall Ball Tosses. You read that right. To do it at the prescribed weight, you throw a 20 pound ball to a 10 foot target… 150 times! It’s a pretty brutal workout since you’re just doing one full-body movement that many times. Personally, my shoulders get fried from supporting that weight at those speed, but maybe that’s just me. I’ll let you tell me what hurts the most during “Karen” in the comments section!

Just to show you what Karen SHOULD look like.. check out B-Boy (one of CrossFit’s original monsters!) absolutely destroy this workout!

The day started off with Back Squats, where everyone completed 5 sets of 5 reps each. Jamie absolutely crushed the sets, and we know next time he can go way up in weight. Chest was held high, weight back on his heels, knees were pushed out… it was a thing of beauty!! Great job, Jamie.

Workout of the Day:
Strength – Back Squat 5 x 5

WOD
Karen
150 Wall Balls for time

Jamie did a great job during the workout of keeping his weight back on his heels during the wall balls as well. Many times when we start to fatigue that’s one of the first things to happen, but it really stops us from being able to drive our weight down and produce the most force out of the hole when we stand to throw that ball!

Athlete Results:
Back Squat 5 x 5
Jamie- 155 x 10 (made it look EASY!)

WOD
Jamie (14# Wall Ball)- 10:14

Jamie and Andy rocked the workout tonight! It was a pretty simple 3-rounder, but we added in a new movement for these guys with walking lunges. Another main focus for the workout tonight was stretching and mobility work. We normally spend a good amount of time before the workout getting nice and loose. But then tonight, we also spent 15 minutes AFTER the workout getting our stretch on. I’d like to say I made friends showing them some of the methods that a baseball can loosen up your hamstrings and hip flexors, but all I got was, “And I get to throw this at your after, right?” through grimacing faces! 🙂

Workout of the Day:
3 Rounds for time
10 Kettlebell Swings / 20 Ab-Mat Sit-Ups / 30 Air Squats / 100ft. Walking Lunges

This workout was particularly fun to watch because these two were neck and neck the ENTIRE time. At the very end Jamie pulled away a little bit and had the fastest time, but it was really close. Great job pushing each other!!

Then on Tuesday, Mel came in for a Skills Class, and did this same workout!

Athlete Results:
Andy (12kg)- 9:53
Jamie (16kg)- 10:00
Mel (8kg)- 11:14

Walking in the door today, I knew it was going to be one of those workouts where people are laid out on the ground afterwards. Squat Cleans are one of the most full-body movements out there, and can be very taxing. At the prescribed weights for today (135 and 95 pounds), that is no easy task for a workout with “As many rounds as possible” in the name!

Workout of the Day:
As many rounds as possible in 15 min of-
5 Squat Cleans (135lb/95lb) / 10 Ball Slams (50lb/30lb) / 15 Sit-ups (Ab-Mat)

Tonight was a big night for the athletes in the gym, as far as I was concerned. I know I mentioned in a recent post about how great form was looking lately, but today mid-workout I was blown away. You can see in the video the form folks were using. It’s one thing to do a Squat Clean when you’re rested, but to do them (and do them right) when you’re fatigued was AWESOME to see!

Athlete Results:
Jamie (85lb Squat Clean / 50lb Slam Ball)- 4 Rounds + 8 Ball Slams

Who’s ready for a new series of posts on the blog?!?!?


GIFSoup

Calm down… you’re going to hurt yourself. I know, though… I’m excited, too!!

As most of you know, I LOVE visiting other CrossFit gyms and training with other athletes. So the new series of posts will be called “Smashby Drops In”.

The first stop was CrossFit Lodo here in Denver, CO. Grayson Strange, one of their trainers is an awesome dude, and we had a blast. Next time, Georgia (the other trainer) will join us, too!

Enjoy the video, and let me know what you think of this series!

Today’s workout was simple. Quick and dirty. Get in, WOD, get out. You get the drill.

After some stretching/mobility work and warming up with the deadlift, we got right to the workout.

Workout of the Day:
3 Rounds for time-
10 Deadlifts (275#/185#) / 50 Double-Unders (150 Single Jumps)

I feel like the form across the board on this workout was more solid for every single person than I’ve seen in a while. We spent a bit more time going over technique before/during/after the workout than usual, and I think it’s really starting to pay off. Great job, team!

Video of the group to come soon, but for now, here’s me doing it!

**WOD NOTE**
My grip was shot for final round! I could barely hang onto the jump rope. Next time, the deads will be unbroken, too!

Athlete Results:
Jamie (135# / 150 Single Jumps)- 9:01

Many of you know that Lisbeth Darsh has one of my favorite CrossFit Blogs out there at CrossFit Lisbeth.com.

Her posts are generally shorter, but from the heart and effective. The one today made me stop and think more than usual, and I wanted to share it with you guys. Click here for the direct link to her blog, or just check it out below.

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Pay Attention

Good times tell you nothing. Adversity reveals.

Think about it — in CrossFit and life. Think about your last PR in the gym: what do you remember?

It felt great! Awesome! I’m so strong/fast/quick/tough/etc.

How about your last failure?

Confusion, hurt, and maybe: I wasn’t quick with my elbows. I didn’t jump with the bar. I shouldn’t have stopped so much during those pull-ups. Got to fix my feet.

Which experience taught you more?

Don’t fear the tough times. Let them come. Life must unfold. Be smart, bear down, and ride it out. And learn so you can do better next time.

Full house again tonight! I know the gym gets crowded, but I LOVE having this many people in class at once. The energy is through the roof, and even mid-workout the support is loud and nonstop. Thank you guys for that! Added bonus tonight, Coach Orion joined in for the workout, too!

For strength, we spent time working on a 5-rep max for the Overhead Squat. Check out CrossFit Rockwall’s awesome post on the Overhead Squat. It’s great to hear your coaches say certain things to drive home some points, but sometimes watching someone else say it helps drive the point home even more!

Today’s workout came to us from the CrossFit Main Site back on January 25th, and was a good one! A simple couplet (two movement workout) with one not-so-simple exercise (the Muscle-Up). For those of you who are not familiar with what a Muscle-Up is, it’s a movement that CrossFitters generally perform on the gymnastics rings. The athlete starts at a dead hang with arms fully locked out, goes into a pull-up, and the shoots their shoulders forwards on top of the rings, before finally performing a dip above them. Here’s an example of Ricky and Joe, two of CrossFit Omaha’s monsters, performing 100 of these things for time. It’s super cool to watch these awesome athletes!

If an athlete doesn’t have this complex movement, the sub will generally be pull-ups and dips separately until strength is developed to put the together! You end up doing more reps, but it should definitely make you stronger!

Workout of the Day:
3 Rounds for time of-
12 Muscle Ups / 75 Air Squats

Athlete Results:
5×5 Overhead Squat
Jamie- 100lbs x 5

WOD
Jamie (25 3-Banded Pull-Ups / 25 Box Dips / 25 Air Squats)- 19:33

Moment of Awesomeness? This post is more like… Moment of Panic!!

The Super Bowl was yesterday, so that meant the year’s biggest commercials being broadcast for the world to see.

Well, with what should have been an opportunity to relax, laugh and forget about life’s problems for a few hours, one commercial in particular left me incredibly uneasy. Is Kim Kardashian trying to single-handedly ruin the fitness industry?! I mean, could this commercial lead to millions of people around the world saying goodbye to CrossFit Gyms and hello to Skechers for their obviously truthful advertising? Why would I want to CrossFit for a few hours per week to get in the best shape of my life, when all I need to do is wear amazing shoes?

What do you guys think? Are we… is CrossFit in trouble forever?!?! Post your thoughts to the comments section.