Mercola.com recently posted an excellent interview with Loren Cordain, PhD, author of The Paleo Diet.

Robert Crayhon: What happened to our health when we switched from a hunter-gatherer diet to a grain-based one?

Loren Cordain: The fossil record indicates that early farmers, compared to their hunter-gatherer predecessors had a characteristic reduction in stature, an increase in infant mortality, a reduction in life span, an increased incidence of infectious diseases, an increase in iron deficiency anemia, an increased incidence of osteomalacia, porotic hyperostosis and other bone mineral disorders and an increase in the number of dental caries and enamel defects.

Early agriculture did not bring about increases in health, but rather the opposite. It has only been in the past 100 years or so with the advent of high tech, mechanized farming and animal husbandry that the trend has changed.

Read full interview here.

________________________

Monday’s WOD:

A.) Back Squats
5-5-5-5-5

B.) 25 Pushups
20 Pullups
15 Burpees
403m Run

results:

Check out this article that examines the possible risks associated with sitting for extended periods of time.

“As an example, consider lipoprotein lipase. This is a molecule that plays a central role in how the body processes fats; it’s produced by many tissues, including muscles. Low levels of lipoprotein lipase are associated with a variety of health problems, including heart disease. Studies in rats show that leg muscles only produce this molecule when they are actively being flexed (for example, when the animal is standing up and ambling about). The implication is that when you sit, a crucial part of your metabolism slows down.”

Read full article here.

_______________________

Friday’s WOD:

Every 2 minutes for 20 minutes perform:

70m Sprint
7 Power Cleans
7 Burpees

results:

_______________________

Saturday’s WOD:

4 Rounds

403m Run
15 Toes to Bar
15 Box Jumps
10 Ring Dips

results:

Photo by Bob Rosato

 CrossFit is not only reaching the mainstream general public, it is now infiltrating mainstream athletics.  Thanks to Nik B. for sending me this article about the Florida Marlins using CrossFit to train their athletes.

“A general physical preparedness type of program will equip the player for whatever he may in encounter on the field of play, and if a baseball player is adequate in all three of CrossFit’s fitness standards, he will have a better chance to be injury-free and perform to his best ability throughout the long 162-game regular season—plus playoffs, hopefully!”

Read full article here.

_______________________

Thursday’s WOD:

As many rounds as possible in 18 minutes:

7 Summo Deadlift High Pull
7 Pushups
7 Box Jumps
*the workout begins with (1) 403m run, and ends with (1) 403m run before the 18 minutes expires

results:

John M. - interval training with deadlifts and burpees 

Published last week in the Contra Costa Times, this article briefly explains the benefits that high intensity, interval training, has over traditional, long duration, low intensity workouts.  Although the article airs on the conservative side in regards to who should do interval training, it’s clear with the publication of this and other similar articles, awareness of CrossFit style training is becoming very popular for it’s effectiveness and functionality.  Big thanks to Mike S. for bringing the article to my attention.

A lot of the (benefits) from exercise are due to a stress response,” said Stephen Bailey, a sports sciences expert at the University of Exeter. “If you disturb your muscles, there’s an imbalance created and your body will start signaling pathways that result in adjustments.”

Bailey said intense bursts of exercise help the body to convert one type of muscle fiber into another type that uses oxygen more efficiently and is capable of exercising a lot longer. Even though interval training only takes a few minutes, its effects last for hours.

“You’ve exercised at such a high intensity that you’re going to create a massive disturbance in your muscles,” Bailey said.

That creates a higher metabolism for several hours afterward, which the body will bring down by burning fat and carbohydrates.

“This is definitely the way forward to save time on your exercise,” Nicholls said. “The results are worth it.”

Read full article here.

_______________________

Wednesday’s WOD:

As many rounds as possible in 18 minutes:

12 KB Swings
12 Box Jumps
4ea. Single Arm KB Thruster
8 Pullups

results:

Not only does strength training help women look great, but below are three studies that show:

Exercise: In Women, Training for a Sharper Mind

Exercising to the End of Pregancy is Healthy for Baby and Mother

Weight Lifting May Help to Avert Lymph Problem

_______________________

Friday’s WOD:

A.) Front Squat
5-5-5-5-5

B.) 50 KB Swings
2 Rope Ascents or 15 Pullups
50 KB Swings

results:

_______________________

Saturday’s WOD:

5 Rounds
2 1/2 minutes per round

15 Thrusters
10 Pullups
Burpees for REPS

REST 1 minute between rounds

results:

 Jogging has become quite popular over the years.  Many people consider jogging to be the ideal exercise for losing weight, and/or to get fit.  This is primarily fueled by the easy to misinterpret information, that long duration, and low intensity exercise is necessary to burn fat.  However, exercise as it relates to fat loss, has far less to do with calories in vs. calories out, virtually nothing to do with “fat burning zones”, and more to do with what the overall effect of the workout has on the body.  This is because balancing our hormone levels (insulin in particular) is far more important than our caloric expenditure vs. caloric intake.   Higher intensity workouts have a positive hormonal response on the body, much greater to that of a long duration, low intensity workout.  So how do you ratchet up the intensity of your workouts?  Functional movements, performed with little or no rest, is one way.  This could be in the form of pushups, pullups, squats, jumps, deadlifts, or sprints, just to name a few.

High intensity work isn’t just good for changes in body composition.  For those of you that insist that only distance running will get you better at distance running, check this out. 

ScienceDaily (Nov. 15, 2009) — “In a recent scientific study just published in the Journal of Applied Physiology, Bangsbo and co-workers demonstrate that by reducing the volume of training by 25% and introducing the so-called speed endurance training (6-12 30-s sprint runs 3-4 times a week), endurance trained runners can improve not only short-term but also long-term performance.”

Read full article here.

_______________________

Friday’s WOD:

Every 2 minutes, for 20 minutes, perform:

70m Sprint
11 Summo Deadlift High Pull
7 Burpees

results:

________________________

Saturday’s WOD:

Deadlift
5-5-5-5-5

Press
3-3-3-3-3

*after warming up both exercises, alternate between the two, resting as needed to achieve maximal load

results:

Lones, faithful 6am regular, looking strong, and reducing her risk of breast cancer as she goes through this morning’s workout on her 56th birthday.

“With an estimated 182,460 new cases diagnosed in the United States in 2008, breast cancer is recognized as the most common cancer affecting U.S. women,” says Dr. Tricia M Peters from the U.S. National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, Maryland, who headed up an international team of researchers. Vigorous exercise has been hypothesized to reduce cancer risk for some time.”

Read full article here.

In case you were wondering, walking on the treadmill does not constitute vigorous activity.

_______________________

Tuesday’s WOD:

4 Rounds

20 Summo Deadlift High Pull
15 Wall Balls
15 Knees to Elbow
*perform (4) 250m rows throughout workout

results:

Yet another great article that goes into more detail about why running shoes are bad for us.  Big thanks to Chris G. for sending me this article.

“Scientists have found that those who run barefoot, or in minimal footwear, tend to avoid “heel-striking,” and instead land on the ball of the foot or the middle of the foot. In so doing, these runners use the architecture of the foot and leg and some clever Newtonian physics to avoid hurtful and potentially damaging impacts, equivalent to two to three times body weight, that shod heel-strikers repeatedly experience.”

Read full article here.

_______________________

Friday’s WOD:

“Cindy”
As many rounds as possible in 20 minutes:

5 Pullups
10 Pushups
15 Squats

results:

_______________________

Saturday’s WOD:

5 Rounds

2 1/2  minutes to complete:

7 Power Cleans
21 Wall Balls
Burpees for REPS

REST 1 minutes between rounds

Allison Belger, who placed 1st in the CrossFit Sweat Shop Masters Event in October 2009, recently wrote an article that was published in the CrossFit Journal.  It’s a great article that talks about what CrossFit is like for the 40 and up crowd.  It also includes her account of the three events she competed in at the Sweat Shop Masters Event.

“But CrossFit changes everything. It taps into those parts

of our psyches that house competitive instincts and fuel

our physical pursuits. It calls upon dormant hormones

and startles to awareness the athlete in all of us. With

each WOD, we are forced to decide how hard we will

push, how fast we will go, how much we will lift, how well

we will move. Unlike our contemporaries gliding on the

elliptical machines with magazines in hand, we cannot

go through the motions of our exercises while thinking

about something entirely unrelated.”

Read full article here.

_______________________

Wednesday’s WOD:

A.) Deadlift
3-3-3-3-3

B.) 3 Rounds
21 Box Jumps
15 Knees to Elbow
9 Handstand Pushups

results:

De La Salle Varsity Soccer getting in some core work

A cool article was recently posted in the Monterey County Weekly.  Not only does it give some history about CrossFit Monterey, it also gives an interesting history overview of CrossFit, how it started, how its grown, and a possible look to the future.

excerpt from article:

“A website launch in 2001 allowed individuals to share CrossFit WODs and compare results, and helped colonize affiliates who were free to deploy whatever training translated to top performance. But only in the last few years has the expansion gotten explosive. In 2007, there were around 100 affiliates. Today, despite a less-than-ideal atmosphere for starting small businesses, there are more than 1,500.”

The article also quoted one CrossFit Monterey diehard as saying, “the only time I don’t love CrossFit, is the 20 minutes I’m doing.”

Read full article here.

______________________

Tuesday’s WOD:

“Fran”
21-15-9
Thrusters
Pullups

results:

Recently the New York Times featured an article on Paleo nutrition, and CrossFit even gets a mention.  Thanks to Connie from CrossFit Oakland for tipping me off to this article.  In true New York city fashion, it almost seems like the subjects of this article are to some degree drawn to the Paleo “lifestyle” to be part of a sub-culture.  But I suppose it’s not a terrible thing, if it’s healthy habits they are pursuing.  Whether we live on a farm or in a big city, we will never truly experience paleolithic life, but towards the end of the article, it does a good job of putting things in perspective.

Read full article here.

_______________________

Wednesday’s WOD:

As many rounds as possible in 20 minutes:

5 Hang Cleans
7 Thrusters
9 Summo Deadlift High Pulls

results:

I’m going keep this one short and sweet.  Running shoes are less than ideal shoes for doing things like squats (front, back, overhead, body weight), deadlifts, cleans, jumps, walking, and running.  They have an elevated heel which changes the way your foot strikes the ground and it automatically puts you in a forward lean.  Most are also squishy which makes for a pretty unstable platform for your feet.  Less is more.  Get some shoes that are flat and have minimal cushioning.  If you are still convinced you need running shoes for running, so be it; at the very least keep a pair of flat bottom shoes in your car for strength workouts, or those that don’t involve running. 

From the article What Ruins Running:

It wasn’t a miracle, as Lieberman would explain; it was simple mechanics. He’s convinced our problems began the day we tried to out think nature and encased our feet in motion-controlling sneakers. Others agree. Gerard Hartmann, a physical therapist in Ireland who works with world record holder Paula Radcliffe and who is himself a Nike consultant, conceded years ago that deconditioned foot muscles were the biggest factor in injuries. He likened running shoes to a plaster cast that causes our feet to atrophy.

Read full article here.

371 people who just read this post are currently digging through their closet in search of NBA Jam for Sega Genesis.

______________________

Wednesday’s WOD:

“Fight Gone Bad”

3 Rounds
As many total reps as possible
1 minute at each station, with 1 minute rest between rounds

Wall Balls
Summo Deadlift High Pull
Box Jumps
Push Press
Row (calories)

results:

Hopefully all of you are making adjustments in your daily nutrition and have long since stopped drinking soft drinks (this includes diet and sugar free soft drinks).  For anyone who is still in denial about soft drinks being bad for you, check out this article.  Check soda off your list and start moving on other areas:  eliminating processed foods, reducing/eliminating grains and gluten, having a protein source with each meal, selecting organic, free-range meats, including grass fed beef.

______________________

Monday’s WOD:

“Fran”
21-15-9

Thrusters
Pullups

results:

Lones participating in a CrossFit Sweat Shop workout at Civic Park in Walnut Creek

Best case scenario for me would be a “gym”, 1,500-2000 sq. ft. that is just an overhead shelter (25-30 feet high) with no walls.  Placed in a field, near a lake, at the foothills of some mountains.  The wall-less shelter would offer 360 degree views of nature, and the nearby lake could be used for combining swimming with barbell exercises.  Unfortunately this isn’t possible within the city limits of Walnut Creek, and lugging barbells, bumper plates, dumbbells, kettlebells, a Concept 2 Rower, and a pullup bar structure out to Briones or Shell Ridge on a daily basis could be a bit cumbersome.  However, with the location of CrossFit Sweat Shop being directly on the Contra Costa Canal trail, and a large roll up door that opens the gym to the outdoor world, workouts here feel nothing like those at an ordinary gym… and thank God for that!  Televisions everywhere you look, stationary bikes, treadmills, and rooms packed with exercise machines make most traditional gyms a depressing place to be even for a brief period of time.  California, and especially the East Bay, has some of the best weather in the United States… take advantage of it people!

Even across the pond, where the weather isn’t nearly as nice as it is here, people are feeling the same way.  Check out this article titled, “How I broke out of the gym”

Post to comments your feelings and/or experiences with exercising outdoors.

______________________

Monday’s WOD:

6 Rounds

6 Clean & Jerks
9 Knees to Elbow
12 Box Jumps

results:

Walnut Creek 5K Turkey Trot Thanksgiving

This is awesome.  The corn industry is obviously concerned about people educating themselves on the health risks of high fructose corn syrup.  They developed an ad campaign and a site to try and tame people’s concerns about the dangers of high fructose corn syrup.  The campaign trys to exploit the fact that people are hearing that HFCS is bad, but most average americans can’t explain why it’s bad.  A repeated theme in the campaign is that it, (HFCS) is natural because it comes from corn… so it is fine.  Corn may be natural, however, the processes that creates HFCS is by no means natural or happens in “nature”.  Add to that the fact that corn is in so many food products, is a genetically modified crop, and gets hit with lots of pesticides and you’ve got a product you may want to reconsider ingesting.

Check out the ad campaign here.

Don’t be one of the uneducated idiots played by the actors in the ad campaign.  A study published earlier this year from the University of California Berkeley showed that compared to glucose, fructose had the following effects.

1) Four-fold greater intra-abdominal fat accumulation

2) 13.9% increase in LDL cholesterol, doubled Apoprotein B

3) 44.9% increase in small LDL, 3-fold more than glucose

4) Increased postprandial triglycerides 99.2%.

Other studies have shown that fructose:

–Increases uric acid–No longer is red meat the cause for increased uric acid; fructose has taken its place. Uric acid may act as an independent coronary risk factor and increases high blood pressure and kidney disease.

–Induces insulin resistance, the situation that creates diabetes

–Increases glycation (fructose linked to proteins) and protein cross-linking, processes that underlie atherosclerosis, liver disease, and cataracts.
http://heartscanblog.blogspot.com

If you want to learn more, the study is published in it’s entirety here.

________________________

Thursday’s WOD:

A.) Overhead Squats
7-7-7

B.) 100 Burpees
*every minute perform 3 strict pullups (or most challenging pullup variation you are capable of)

results:

If you are still having trouble modifying your nutrition, perhaps this article will help.  And by sugar, they don’t just mean the packets of white stuff you add to your coffee.  All high glycemic index foods, such as bread, pasta, white rice, potatoes, etc. are quickly converted to sugar in the bloodstream.  Check out the article here.

_______________________

Monday’s WOD:

start with 400m Row, then

5 Rounds

12 Knees to Elbow
6 Ring Dips
12 Burpees

finish with (1) 403m Run

results:

The painful truth about trainers: Are running shoes a waste of money?

Thrust enhancers, roll bars, microchips…the $20 billion running - shoe industry wants us to believe that the latest technologies will cushion every stride. Yet in this extract from his controversial new book, Christopher McDougall claims that injury rates for runners are actually on the rise, that everything we’ve been told about running shoes is wrong - and that it might even be better to go barefoot…

Read full article from Mail Online here.

Thanks to J.B., CrossFit Sweat Shop’s Media Specialist, for locating this article.

***CrossFit Sweat Shop will be closed on Monday, September 7th, in honor of Labor Day*** 

Regular Saturday schedule on September 5th.

_______________________

Wednesday’s WOD:

Perform as many rounds as possible in 20 minutes:

6ea. Single Arm DB Snatch
6ea. Single Arm DB Overhead Walking Lunge
12 Knees to Elbow

results:

CrossFit Sweat Shop: Walnut Creek, CA