At age 10, Nick still has great flexibility in his hamstrings, which allows him to get into a proper deep squat

Lots of Sweat Shop members, and adults in general, have tight hamstrings that make proper squatting more difficult than it should be.  Check out this great article from Kelly Starrett on the consequences of tight hamstrings, and what you should be doing about it!

Excerpt

Stretching sucks. It does. There, it’s been said. You can’t brag about your best stretching time, you don’t get to write your stretch PR on the wall, and there is no immediate “Fran”-like gratification that you are really tough. And despite the fact that flexibility is one of the ten CrossFit pillars of complete, well-balanced fitness, increasing flexibility potential remains the ungreased squeaky wheel of most athletes’ training programming. According to the ten general physical skills list, flexibility is allegedly as important as power or strength. So why don’t we take it more seriously? Because, typically, we simply fail to frame flexibility in terms that are important to us: increasing performance.
Stop kidding yourself. Lacking flexibility in crucial areas has a crushing impact on your athletic abilities; to say nothing of the host of pains and problems that inflexibility predisposes you to. If you know you have tight hips, calves, hamstrings, quads, thoracic spine, or shoulders and aren’t actively, aggressively striving to fix them, then you must be afraid of having a bigger squat, faster rowing splits, or a more explosive second pull. Or, you must be very lazy. Because if you are tight and a CrossFitter, you are missing a huge opportunity to get better, stronger and faster. Simply put, not stretching is like not flossing, and the results are not pretty. There are many areas of restriction in the typical athlete, but it makes sense to begin a discussion about flexibility and performance at perhaps the most commonly neglected and profoundly underaddressed area of the body, the hamstrings.

Read full article here.

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Saturday’s WOD:

9am

Tag Team
2 Person Teams complete the following:

5 Burpees
403m Run
30 Clean & Jerk (135/95)
30 Pullups
40 Box Jumps
40 Single Arm KB Squat (53/35)
40 KB Swings (53/35)
40 Burpees
50 Deadlifts (135/95)
403m Run

*only 1 person can be working at a time unless the other person is running

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10am

A.) Clean & Jerk
1-1-1-1-1

B.) 4 Rounds
9 Burpees
9 Pullups
100m DB Farmer’s Walk (45/25)

results:

Photo by Carlos of 3/GO Magazine

CrossFit was recently featured in 3/GO Magazine, and CrossFit Sweat Shop, along with our very own, Helen, were used for the photo shoot.  And while the article illustrates how CrossFit is growing in popularity with mainstream exercsie and fitness, it also shows how there is still a misconception that CrossFit can only be an “extreme” form of exercise.  This is really unfortunate because while many of the popular CrossFit videos show challenging workouts performed by extremely fit individuals, the very foundation of CrossFit is that it can, and as it often is at the Sweat Shop, scaled to ANY, fitness, experience level, age or gender.  It’s a little disappointing to see fitness experts recommending a progression that starts with machine chest press, and works up to dumbbell press on a Bosu ball in order to get you fit and ready for CrossFit, or anything for that matter.  Also, rather than a recommendation of light weight and high reps for beginners, I would recommend light weight and low reps for beginners, adding more weight as their neuromuscular efficiency improves.

All in all I guess it’s nice to see that triathletes may be considering the idea that increases in training intensity, decreases in training volume, strength training, and intervals, like those found in CrossFit, can be of benefit to them.  Or maybe they just like the idea of putting in countless hours of slow endurance work.

Excerpt:

“Start now, but start slow:’ he says. “To execute ‘anatomical adaptation’ safely, begin with light weight, high reps, moving slowly for the first thee weeks. It’s the antithesis of CrossFit:’ After three weeks, Murray has his athletes speed up, add weight, and play with imbalances, such as exercises atop a Bosu ball. A typical progression: weeks 1,2, and 3 do a machine chest press; weeks 4,5, and 6 do a bench-press with a barbell (for less stability); weeks 7, 8, and 9 switch to dumbbells; and weeks 10, 11, and 12 do dumbbell benches with your back on a Bosu ball.  “This way, you get a safe, progressive challenge that you r body can safely adapt to;’ he says. “Only then are you ready for CrossFit. Remember, CrossFit is extreme. So is triathlon. Put two extreme things together and it might not be good.”

Read full article here.

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Saturday’s WOD:

9am

5 Rounds

7 Overhead Squats (135/95)
9 Burpees
12 Knees to Elbow
200m Run

________

10am

A.) 2 minutes Max Reps Double Unders

B.) Deadlift w/ pause
2-2-2-2-2

C.) 400m Run (flat)
20 Pushups w/ release
60 KB Swings (70/44)
403m Run (hill)

*3 Burpee penalty each time the KB is put down

results:

Check out this recently published article in the Wall Street Journal about an Olympic Lifting coach that has recently begun training out of a gym in Danville.  Ivan Abadjiev employs what “the Bulgarian Method”, which has it’s students training for several hours a day, every day of the week.  Check out the full article here.   Thanks to Katherine for the heads up on this article.

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Wednesday’s WOD:

Alternating TABATA
Ring Dips
Box Jumps

Wall Balls
Burpees

20 seconds of work
10 seconds of rest
Alternate b/t first two exercises until completing 8 sets of EACH
Immediately move on to next two exercises

Score TOTAL reps

results:

Turns out the the prediction of the “Rapture” was a bit off. Forget tumbling earthquakes or explosive volcanoes, new science forewarns a “Sitting Rapture” on the way.

from Medical Billing And Coding

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Wednesday’s WOD:

A.) Front Squat
3-3-3-3-3

B.) As many rounds as possible in 10 minutes:
5 Burpees
8 Handstand Pushups
200m Run

results:

James and I believe that the squat is hands down the best exercise for developing lower body strength and power, as well as the absolute foundation for building an overall strong and fit individual.  When training our teams of young athletes, the squat is the first movement that we teach, and for many teams, back squats are the only movement they perform for strength, and they perform them EVERY TIME they attend the Sweat Shop.  With the squat being such an important part of our program (as it should be for anyone trying to improve functional strength) it is important that you perform your squats correctly, even if this means using far less weight than others in the class.  With our youth athletes we rarely have issues with poor squat depth.  This is due in part, because we have trained them that the only correct way to do a squat is to full depth.  But mainly because our youth athletes respect us, listen to us, use the feedback we give them, and trust that what we tell them, will in fact help them to improve their strength and on-the-field performance….even though what we are telling them makes their squats MORE difficult! It also helps that our youth athletes rarely have their results written on the whiteboard, never get their name highlighted for best performance of the day, don’t care about the Legitness of the Week, and aren’t comparing their squat numbers to their peers from other CrossFit gyms in the area or around the country.

The excerpt below is from an article written by Mark Rippetoe, I highly recommend everyone read the full article.

Squatting high is easier, but easier doesn’t work. You actually know this already, even if you keep the secret buried down below your brain stem. Easier has never worked, and you figured this out in about the fifth grade, provided you weren’t in some remedial program mandated by your state.

Read full article here.

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Monday’s WOD:

9 Overhead Squats (135/95)
12 Pullups
800m Run

9 Thrusters (135/95)
12 Pullups
403m Run

9 Power Cleans (135/95)
12 Pullups
200m Run

results:

Helen and I during a trail run last year in Tahoe where the altitude made a noticeable difference on our run pace.

Several Sweat Shop members will be competing this weekend in South Lake Tahoe’s Fittest of the Sierra’s competition.  It should be fun and interesting to see the role that higher altitude plays into our performances.  And by fun I mean horrible.

According to High Altitude Living, “people may feel effects from higher altitudes as low at 4000 ft above sea level. Usually by 6000 ft, they will experience more fatigue, and a greater potential for dehydration.” These effects occur because the air is thinner at higher altitudes, which creates an oxygen deficit that can inhibit regular physical activities-until one’s body adapts to the higher altitude.

Read full article here.

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Wednesday’s WOD:

4 Rounds
1 minute of each exercise:

MAX REPS Bench Press
MAX REPS Front Squat
MAX REPS Pullup

REST 3 minutes after completing entire round
Rx’d Bench Press & Front Squat:  Men 100% Bodyweight, Women 65% Bodyweight

results:

Jin performing CrossFit Open Workout #2 at CFO, maintaining a neutral spine, as he always does during deadlifts

Excerpt from article:

I propose that the rehabilitation and prevention of non-specific lower-back pain is dependent on the mechanically correct patterning of fundamental human movement. Though not immediately apparent, elements of Olympic weightlifting and powerlifting neatly fulfill this required motor patterning.

Controversial? Perhaps, but there is no place for contrived and invented movements in creating a buffer from injury. Fundamental movements are natural and are “no more contrived than a sneeze,”to quote Greg Glassman.
Let me first outline my empirically based philosophies on the matter, then review the literature supporting these concepts.

Activating the Right Muscles
Let us not think of exercises in terms of their anatomical recruitments but in terms of their movements. A deadlift becomes a lift to the waist. A clean becomes a lift to shoulder height. A press becomes a lift to overhead. A squat becomes a stand from a chair.

To detractors of the squat, the question must be posed as to how a patient is to stand from a chair. Detractors of the deadlift should consider the best method of picking up an object from the floor. The answers, respectively, are squat and deadlift. It is guaranteed that a patient will at some stage perform these movements as part of activities of daily living. Surely it is a professional obligation to teach them how to execute these movements correctly in a clinical setting so they may move safely when these movements inevitably rear themselves in life.

The common thread between the proposed movements is the ability to maintain neutral spine with the addition of external perturbations and complex motor patterning. Here lies the immediate red flag. Should neutral spine be lost, the body is prone to damage and deformity. As with any exercise with the potential to elicit any degree of favorable response from the body, risk is present. The key lies in minimizing this risk through gradual and progressive repetition of the basics of movement without load.

Read full article here.

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Monday’s WOD:

A.) Back Squat
2-2-2-2-2

B.) As many rounds as possible in 8 minutes:
10 KB Swings (53/35)
10 Pushups

results:

J.B. Summer 2010. Overlooking Rochina Favela.

With over 2,000 affiliates world-wide, and still growing, it is clear that the world is taking notice that CrossFit can offer much more than getting you in shape. We’ve posted some awesome success stories on how CrossFit has changed lives in several ways. We all have our story in what it means to us and we like to share it with everyone. Since it has changed our lives and so many others, wouldn’t if be great if CrossFit was available everyone? What about people in dire environmental settings? Check out this article by Chris Clark who started CrossFit Rochina, in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil. With over 300,000 people, Rochina is the largest favela (slum) in Latin America.

From the article:

My first year in Rio de Janeiro, I tried to capture the essence of the city: what is good, what is bad, and why it is so. I failed. By conceptualizing Rio, the truth constantlyevaded me. Rio is everything and nothing at the same time. It is death: the threat of violence producing a thin cloud of fear, the stark contrast of rich and poor, the socioeconomic conditions, the thin margin between life and death. Rio is also life: the sun and the bustle and heat and sweat that melt into the soft sex electricity of the night. Rio de Janeiro is the city of this decade, rich in culture and tremendously complex, yet only human. The world watches as the city exposes itself and at the same time exposes man’s true nature to the world.

Rocinha CrossFit is raw and human, and the story represents everything that is good and everything that is bad. With some help and a few resources, the story can be glorious.

Read full story here.

I recently visited the Rochina Favela this past summer. Although I did not know about the CrossFit at the time, it feels good knowing that there is a little something that keeps people together in a community surrounded by a ton of negative. For more pictures and videos on my trip there click here.

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Legitness of the Week

Front Squat PR’s
Jim D. 185×3
Rob K. 155×3
Joe S. 185×3
Jeff 165×5
Mike S. 155×5
Chris G. 225×3
Cassie 100×3
Melaney 105×3
Kasi 115×3
Josh 265×3
Jake 195×3

Deadlift PR’s
Katie 195×3

-After only doing Deadlifts for strength twice, Katie gets a PR of 195×3!
-Avoiding an 0-3 start, Ron P picks up his Prather Ranch Beef.
-With another stellar weekly performance, Jin crushes the 3 minute max effort double unders WOD with 230 reps!
-Steve and Elisa achieve their double under goal!
-Helen makes the CrossFit mainsite!

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Friday’s WOD:

“Emancipation of Nancy”

800m Run
18 DB Squat Clean to Overhead
50 Double Unders
50 Situps
800m Run
18 DB Squat Clean to Overhead

results

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Thursday’s WOD:

“Breakfast At Val’s”

7 Rounds

5 Power Cleans (165#/105#)
7 Burpees
9 Box Jumps
200m Run

results:

Connor B, Brandon B, Aaron, Nabil, and JB, circa 2008 celebrating the 1 year anniversary of Connor’s medic sled ride.

We’ve known for some time that obesity often runs in the family. But what about friends and other social networks? Newer research suggest that friends have more of an impact in determining a person’s risk of obesity than genes do. Here’s an excerpt from CrossFit Vancover:

In a study from the New England Journal of Medicine, researchers reconstructed a social network showing the ties between friends, neighbors, spouses, and family members among participants in their risk for becoming obese. The authors observed that when two persons perceived each other as friends, if one friend became obese during a given time interval, the other friend’s chances of following suit increased by 171%. This was staggeringly higher than spouses, neighbors, and family.

Read full article here.

It seems obvious that if you surround yourself with people who are fit, you will most likely be fit. But these findings make for an interesting idea. Should fit people separate themselves from people who are obese in order to stay fit? Or do you think society is too busy ridiculing obese people making it harder for them to fit in with the “fit” crowd? Or is there is a clear difference between separating yourself from people who are simply obese, versus people who genuinely do not care about their health?

Post thoughts to comments.

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Wednesday’s WOD:

A.) Overhead Squat
3-3-3-3-3

B.) “Annie”
50-40-30-20-10 reps of:
Double Unders
Situps

results

Most of you are aware now that excessive carbohydrates, or any carbohydrates from refined sources, are bad for you.  This article does a great job explaining why.  However, when it explains to benefits of “high fat”, don’t mistake this for hot dogs and ice cream.  Plant source fats are ideal, as are those from high quality, organic, free-range meats and wild caught fish.  Below is an excerpt from a Los Angeles Times article, be sure to read the whole thing.

“Fat is not the problem,” says Dr. Walter Willett, chairman of the department of nutrition at the Harvard School of Public Health. “If Americans could eliminate sugary beverages, potatoes, white bread, pasta, white rice and sugary snacks, we would wipe out almost all the problems we have with weight and diabetes and other metabolic diseases.”

It’s a confusing message. For years we’ve been fed the line that eating fat would make us fat and lead to chronic illnesses. “Dietary fat used to be public enemy No. 1,” says Dr. Edward Saltzman, associate professor of nutrition and medicine at Tufts University. “Now a growing and convincing body of science is pointing the finger at carbs, especially those containing refined flour and sugar.”

Read full article here.

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Monday’s WOD:

5 Rounds

15 Back Squats (~55-60% 3RM)
20 KB Swings (53/35)
MAX REPS Pullups

REST 3 minutes
*rest begins as soon as you drop from pullup bar

results:

Stacy M. during Femme Fit 2011 at CrossFit Sweat Shop – Photo by Tom Campitelli

Oftentimes orthopedic surgeons, athletic trainers, physical therapists, and nurses are administering bad advice when the conversation turns towards squatting. Most people have absolutely no idea what a full squat even is, much less how they affect the knees, unless they have had additional training beyond their specialties.

The squat referred to here is the full, below- parallel squat where the top of the patella and the iliac fold (the crease in the shorts that defines the position of the hip joint) form a plane below which the hips must drop.

When one of these professionals explains why you will die if you perform full squats, he will demonstrate with squat technique so incorrect that it hurts to watch. And then he’ll say: “See, there! Squats are bad for your knees. “

The problem is that one profession does not recognize that the other has something to offer. Strength and conditioning professionals, with decades of experience in getting people strong, might know more about squatting than people whose training has been in the treatment of injuries and disease.

Read full article here.

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Tuesday’s WOD:

15 Burpees, then:

21-15-9
DB Thrusters (45/25)
KB Swings (70/44)

finish with 50 Double Unders

results:

Squats are good.

All too often runners neglect strength training because they only think about improving their endurance by running.  Many even believe that strength training 2 or 3 times per week will lead to large gains in muscle mass that they fear will slow them down on their runs.  Little do they know that the repetitive effects of running, coupled with little or no strength training, will almost always result in running related injuries or ailments.  Most of these injuries require taking time off from running in order to heal; thus by having a program that only involves running, runners will likely sustain overuse related injuries that require extended rest periods, resulting in setbacks for their fitness.  Full depth squats, done with good form, will go a long way for developing the necessary strength in the glutes to help reduce the risks associated with running.  It will also give a much nicer shaped butt to runners who are notorious for having flat ones!

Excerpt from NY Times.com

The technical name of the condition I have is gluteus medius tendinosis — an inflammation of the tendons in the gluteus medius, one of three large muscles that make up the butt. It’s a very isolated and painful injury that knocked me out of marathon training in January with stabbing pains in my hip. It’s a symptom related to what running experts hammer at: the need for cross-training and strength training. I was running so much that I told myself I didn’t have time for the exercise machines or weights, so I have no one to blame but myself.“A new thought in running medicine is that almost all lower extremity injuries, whether they involve your calf, your plantar fascia or your iliotibial band, are linked to the gluteus medius,” said Dr. Darrin Bright, a sports medicine physician with Riverside Methodist Hospital in Columbus, Ohio, and medical director of that city’s marathon. “In the last five to 10 years, we’ve just realized how much of an important role the gluteus medius plays in stabilizing the hips and the pelvis in running.”

Read full article here.

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Tuesday’s WOD:

“Helen”

3 Rounds

403m Run
21 KB Swings (53/35)
12 Pullups

results:

Jin, feeling “Jin and Tonic’d” 30-minutes post “Barbara”on 8/5/10. While contemplating why in the world he showed up to the Sweat Shop that day, he also regrets not having a recovery meal on hand before heading to work.

Whether you are training for CrossFit competitions, or to simply stay in shape, your recovery must be done right nutritionally and timely in order to accomplish your desired results. Many of you still inquire about when and what you should eat right after a workout. For the average CrossFitter, the simple rule of thumb is to replenish immediately after the workout and to eat “real” food as opposed to other sources. For the competitive athlete, the guidelines are slightly different in catering for longer, and more intense training sessions. Here’s an excerpt from Paleo-Creator, Loren Cordain’s book “The Paleo-Diet for Athletes” with a more in-depth explanation on the goals of each stage of recovery.

On eating 30-minutes post exercise:
At no other time in your entire day is your body as receptive as it is now to nutrient intake. Research shows that the restocking of the muscles’ carbohydrate stores is 2-3 times as rapid immediately after exercise as it is a few hours later. In the same way, other research reveals that the repair of muscles damaged is more effective if protein is consumed immediately after exercise. Don’t delay. Being refueling as soon as possible after you cool down.

Read full excerpt here.

Be advised: Many people mistake this 30-minute “warning” as some sort of alert to eat as much sugar and carbs as they can. Yes, missing the “window” all together can be detrimental, but so is using this window to eat 3 glazed donuts, frozen yogurt, and a happy meal.

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Legitness of the Week

Josh joins Bill’s “Double Day” club and crushes Wednesday’s “Pistols” WOD twice! His one day pistol total = 132!
Nabil raises the Sweat Shop “Consecutive Double Unders” record to 110!!

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Friday’s WOD:

WOD #1
4 Rounds:
9 Front Squats (155#/105#)
21 Box Jumps
2 Rope Climbs
9 Handstand Pushups

WOD #2

4 Rounds:
18 Thrusters
18 Box Jumps
12 Pullups

results:

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Thursday’s WOD:

3 Rounds

500m Row
40 KB Swings
30 Pushups
20 Pullups
10 Burpees

*3-minute rest between rounds*

results:

______________________

Don’t forget to check out the spoiler for tomorrow’s workouts here.
Be ready to work!!!

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Aaron is a good example of someone that began CrossFit with an excellent foundation of strength.  This post also marks Day 2 of “Shirtless Dudes Featured on the Sweat Shop Blog”

In April of 2009, when Aaron started CrossFit, his cardio-respiratory endurance, as well as muscular endurance and stamina were all low, really low.  However, within a few short months he was crushing workouts that he had previously had trouble even finishing.  Aside from his excellent work ethic, this was due mainly to the foundation of strength he had developed over many years leading up to when he began CrossFit.  A great deal of Aaron’s workouts consisted of squats, deadlifts, pullups and presses.  He didn’t workout to “tone up”, or to “get cut”, or to “bulk up”, he lifted heavy weights to get strong.  In the beginning, even CrossFit workouts that included light weights would be quite challenging for Aaron.  However, as his muscular endurance and stamina improved, he was able to fully express the strong foundation of strength that he had developed over many years of training.  He is now able to push his body at extremely high work and power output levels, and because of this, his body has transformed in a positive way.  As for the guys that are scared they will lose all their strength when they start doing CrossFit, or to the girls that think they are going to get big from lifting heavy weights, Aaron is proof positive that this is not the case… last week he deadlifted 543lbs. at a body weight of 178!

My main point for all of this is that in order to improve your health and fitness, strength is a key component.  If it’s a struggle for you to do a few pushups, or you find yourself limited to 35lb. thrusters because the bar feels heavy, it’s not your endurance you need to work on.  Increasing your strength will allow you to move more weight during the workouts and thus make the workouts exponentially more effective.  Lastly, most people don’t come into CrossFit with years of strength training like Aaron, fortunately that is exactly what our strength workouts are for.  Therefore, if you come in and see workouts like Front Squats 3-3-3-3-3, or Strict Press 1-1-1-1-1, know that these workouts are an essential component to improving your overall fitness, as well as improving your Fran, Helen, or Nancy time.

Check out a great article from Bill Starr, Building the Base of the Strength Pyramid.

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Monday’s WOD:

A.) 2 minute Box Jump Challenge

B.) Strict Press
3-3-3-3-3

C.) 30 KB Swings (70/44)
5 Rounds of Cindy (5 Pullups, 10 Pushups, 15 Squats)
80 Double Unders

results: