Nick, age 10, warming up the overhead squat - Nick recently tried out, and made competitive soccer for Walnut Creek Soccer Club (WCSC) - Congratulations Nick!

As anyone who has visited the Sweat Shop knows, there is 1x/week membership available.  And although working out once a week is definitely better than zero times per week, the 1x per week membership isn’t meant to be a stand alone fitness program.  This membership is for those, that whether it be for schedule, financial, or other reasons, workout either at commercial gyms or on their own at home a couple of times per week.  Attending CrossFit Sweat Shop in addition to this is an excellent way to:

• Learn and practice CrossFit exercises under proper supervision
• Understand the components of an effective CrossFit workout, thus developing the ability to create your own workouts at other gyms, home or while traveling
• Perform exercises and use equipment that isn’t available, allowed, or easily accessible at commercial gyms (ie. gymnastics rings, Concept 2 Rowers, throwing medicine balls, lifting and dropping weight from overhead, the Iron Horse running trail literally at your doorstep to incorporate into workouts, tire flips, kettlebells, rope climbs, bow and arrows, sledge hammers, sand bags, etc.)
• Perform workouts in a group environment thus elevating intensity

However, as with most physiological adaptations, frequency plays a large role.  Even though you can still see results by only working out once a week, the adaptation process will be slower, and post workout you will likely feel physically and mentally drained, much like your first CrossFit workout ever.  Bottom line:  You definitely don’t have to train at the Sweat Shop 4 or 5 times per week, but if you are only on a once a week membership, be sure to get in at least one, ideally two more workouts each week, remember these workouts should also be relatively high intensity.

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Monday’s WOD:

4 Rounds
4 minutes each:

403m Run
20 Knees to Elbow
Wall Balls for REPS

REST 2 minutes between rounds

results:

Photo courtesy of Tom Campitelli

Plenty of people do CrossFit 2-3x per week, they see awesome results in the way they look, feel, and perform, in and out of the gym.  There are also those, both young and old, male and female, that enjoy the competitive CrossFit events that are held throughout the year.  Some have cash prizes, most do not, some are team events, others individual competitions, some are comprised of multiple workouts in a day, others are just one workout, most are local, some are regional, others national and international.  The common denominator is that just like CrossFit workouts, each one has a different format, and scaling the difficulty is always an option.  Here is a great highlight video of one that was held in Sacramento earlier this month. (Windows / Apple)

The next Throwdown will be held on Saturday March 6th, 11:00am at CrossFit East Bay in Berkeley.  Check out their website for more details.  Stay tuned for even more taking place in and around Walnut Creek.

If you’ve done any CrossFit competitions, post to comments your experience.

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Wednesday’s WOD:

Alternating Tabata

20 Seconds of work, followed by 10 seconds of REST
Alternate between the first two exercises until completing a total of 16 sets, REST 3 minutes, then complete the second two exercises in the same format.

Wall Balls
Deadlifts (or Power Snatch)

Ring Dips
Squats

results:

Here is February’s Challenge of the Month

2 minutes to complete:

Burpees (25 men/20 women)

5 shots at the target with the bow & arrow

Rules:

You may only attempt the challenge one time each day
Each participant gets 2 practice shots only before the very first time attempting the challenge
Target distance is approximately 15 meters
1 point for hitting the target
3 points outer ring
5 points middle ring
7 points inner ring
10 points Bullseye
-1 point for missing the target

Legitness of the Week:

John & Aaron 106lb. x 3 weighted pullup
Eric T. 18lb. weighted pullups
Donna 18lb. weighted pullups
Rob P. 5:01 Fran (Rx’d)
John M. 3:17 Fran (chest to bar) Sweat Shop Record
CJ finishes off January Challenge with 1:18 L-Sit
Nathan completes his 5th workout of 2010…. LEGIT!

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Thursday’s WOD:

“Nancy”
5 Rounds
403m Run
15 Overhead Squats

results:

 Here is a short video that gives some insight into the competition aspect of CrossFit, in particular, the CrossFit Games. (in my opinion the OPT is a bit cheesy)  Like I have said before, the great thing about CrossFit is that for the top level folks there are competitive events such as the Games.  However, for the majority of the people that do CrossFit, it’s simply an extremely fun and effective training method, along with an amazingly supportive community.

NorCal Sectionals Update:  The date for the NorCal Sectionals has been moved to March 27-28 and will be held at a high school stadium in San Jose.  Registration will likely open up on Monday December 21st.  If you want to compete be sure to register as soon as it opens, it will sell out.  You can check the current post on the CrossFit Games site, here.

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Tuesday’s WOD:

Row 350m

4 Rounds
15 Wall Balls
15 Summo Deadlift High Pull
10 Box Jumps
15 Knees to Elbow

finish with (1) 403m run

results:

Congratulations to everyone who competed in the CrossFit Sweat Shop 5K Plus this past Saturday.  Big thanks to Tom Campitelli for coming out and taking pics! Check out the highlight video here.

Here is the race format:

1K Run
Pullups
Pushups
Squats

REPEATED for 4 Rounds

Finish with 1K Run

Women performed 5 pullups, 10 pushups and 20 squats, while the men performed 8 pullups, 16 pushups, and 32 squats during each round.

Winners of each division recieved a $60 cash prize! 

Women Under 40 - Carrie Nash (also OVERALL winner)
Men Under 40 - Don Barks
Women 40 & up - Jennifer Behm
Men 40 & up - Charlie Hadsell

Complete Results:

Women:

Carrie Nash - CrossFit Excel - 24:48
Journey Meadows - CrossFit Oakland - 25:25
Nicole Barnes - Novato - 26:24
Carolyn Scalia - CrossFit Sweat Shop - 27:40
Lydia Encinas - CrossFit Oakland - 29:04
Jennifer Behm - CrossFit Sweat Shop - 29:19
Candace Hamilton - CrossFit Oakland - 31:07

Men:

Don Barks - CrossFit Sweat Shop - 25:39
Brandon Banks - CrossFit Oakland - 25:47
Myles Lewis - CrossFit Avalanche - 25:47
Charlie Hadsell - CrossFit Sweat Shop - 27:05
John Moffat - CrossFit Sweat Shop - 27:53
Raphael Dozzi - CrossFit East Bay - 28:00
Robert Parrish - CrossFit Sweat Shop - 28:03
Freddy Peralta - CrossFit Oakland - 29:01
David Sally - CrossFit Oakland - 30:05
Doug Scalia - CrossFit Sweat Shop - 30:12
Jim Dick - CrossFit Sweat Shop - 31:21
Christian Amsberry - Walnut Creek - 31:36
Mike Banks - CrossFit Sweat Shop - 33:28
Brian Hersh - Martinez - 33:39
Andrew Ambro - Castro Valley - 36:10

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Friday’s WOD:

10 Thrusters
25 KB Swings

9 Thrusters
25 Situps

8 Thrusters
2 Rope Ascents or 20 Ring Rows

7 Thrusters
25 Box Jumps

6 Thrusters
403m Run

results:

 ___________________

Saturday’s WOD:

A.) Front Squats
5-5-5-5-5

B.) 21-15-9
Wall Balls
Knees to Elbow
Box Jumps

results:

This month we are going to start something called, Challenge of the Month.  (big thanks to the guys at Diablo CrossFit for this idea)  Aside from our daily workouts, there will be a different challenge each month that everyone is encouraged to participate in.  The challenges will be relatively short, and can be performed as many times as you’d like during the given month.  To make things even more interesting, we’ll have a board to keep track of everyone’s results.  At the end of 6 months, the winners will recieve half off one month membership dues!

Divisions:

There will be 4 divisions.  Men under 40, Women under 40, Men 40 & up, Women 40 & up

Monthly Scoring:

1st place - 3 points
2nd place - 2 points
3rd place - 1 point

Person in each division with the most points at the end of 6 months is the winner.

December Challenge of the Month:  Most consecutive double unders

Start practicing.

**REMINDER**  Due to CrossFit Sweat Shop hosting the 5K Plus, there will be only ONE regular class this Saturday morning.  It will be held at 8:30am.  NO 9:00am or 10:00am class will be held this Saturday.

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Wednesday’s WOD:

“Tabata Something Else”

20 seconds of work, followed by
10 seconds of rest

Perform as many reps as possible.  8 sets of EACH exercise before moving on to the next exercise.

Pullups
Pushups
Situps
Squats

results:

CrossFit Sweat Shop in Walnut Creek will be hosting a 5K Plus this Saturday, December 5th at 9:30am (athlete briefing) 9:45am (race start). 

**PLEASE NOTE**  There will be only ONE regular class this Saturday morning.  It will be held at 8:30am.  NO 9:00am or 10:00am class will be held this Saturday.

Here are the details:

 Divisions:   

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.

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Monday’s WOD:

6 Rounds

6 Clean & Jerks
9 Knees to Elbow
12 Box Jumps

results:

Walnut Creek 5K Turkey Trot Thanksgiving

A few weeks ago I got the opportunity to go through some training exercises put on by some former Navy SEALs.  After we completed a few hours of training, the SEALs spent nearly an hour explaining to the group about how the BUD/S training (the six month training that members of the Navy must complete in order to become a SEAL) has changed quite a bit over the last few years.   The training, which previously had a high emphasis on extremely long duration endurance work, is now being shaped largely by a new, more effective and efficient training method called CrossFit.  The SEALs that helped organize this event have also opened a CrossFit affiliate, CrossFit Forged, in the San Diego area.

Big thanks to Cameron for inviting me, and San Francisco Entrepernueur Organization (EO) for putting on the event. 

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Wednesday’s WOD:

Every 5 minutes perform:
10 Deadlifts
15 Ring Dips
20 Burpees

complete a total of 4 Rounds

results:

Kristyn from CrossFit RedPoint Virgina hitting a PR on overhead squats at CrossFit Sweat Shop

The first thing CrossFitters usually do before they leave town is check their destination and locate the nearest CrossFit gym.  If there isn’t one nearby they will usually try to find a park or some other outdoor venue that they can workout in.  A traditional gym usually has little to offer someone who does CrossFit.  Small spaces crowded with machines and cardio equipment offer little room and even fewer options to perform functional movements.  Couple that with gym patrons that lounge around on equipment or use the entire squat rack just to rest their curl bar on and you’ve got a recipe for frustration.  That’s one of the great things about doing CrossFit at home or on the road.  So much can be done with little to no equipment and all you need is some open space.  After all, were we really meant to be confined to a room full of televisions while we workout?

Post to comments what you enjoy most about CrossFit Sweat Shop that you can’t get in a traditional gym or health club, whether it be in Walnut Creek, or anywhere else for that matter.

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Friday’s WOD:

As many rounds as possible in 20 minutes:

12 KB Swings
6ea. Single Arm KB Squats
12 KB Summo Deadlift High Pulls
6 Burpees

*complete (1)403m run before time expires (run should be done last, you may not return to KB exercises after run)

results:

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Saurday’s WOD:

compare to 7/18/09

4 Rounds

12 Squat Cleans
15 Box Jumps
403m Run

results:

Some of the morning class during their workout, “Walking Grace”,  this past weekend.  30 Clean & Jerks performed at some point along the 403 meter run loop.

Statistical Fact of the Day:  147 people who just read this post are wishing their 24 hour fitness gym would trade in some of their mirrors for an outdoor running loop.

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Tuesday’s WOD:

10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1
Thrusters
KB Swings
Pullups

results:

CrossFit Sweat Shop Masters Event:  Walnut Creek, CA.  October 24th 2009

The two videos below are a hilarious take on the Masters Event as seen and produced by some spectators from CFO (CrossFit Oakland)

Part 2

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Friday’s WOD:

5 Rounds

400m Row
403m Run

REST 4 minutes between rounds

results:

_______________________

Sunday’s WOD:

“Walking Grace”

-Barbell must be carried (anyway) one lap on the 403m loop
-Must perform 30 Clean & Jerks w/ barbell

you may break the C&J’s anyway you like and do them before, after, and/or during the 403m walk.

results:

The CrossFit Sweat Shop Masters Event is ONLY open to men and women ages 40 and up. Here are the details:

Date: Saturday October 24th

Time: Registration 9am
Athletes Briefing 9:30am
Workouts begin 10:00am

Location: CrossFit Sweat Shop - 1401 Autocenter Dr., Walnut Creek, CA 94597

Entry Fee: $35 (online registration closes Thursday 10/22/09 at midnight)

Late Registration: $50 (day of competition)

Field Limit: 45 participants TOTAL

Prize: 1st Place Male $300
1st Place Female $300
*Prize money WILL increase if field reaches capacity.

Workout #1 Run:  Distance will be between 800 meters and 4 miles

Workout #2  Squat Clean 1RM (3 attempts.  Only the single best successful lift counts.  Order that athletes begin workout #2 will be determined by their run placement.  Those that finish last on the run will start first on the Squat Cleans.)

Workout #3  (12 minute limit)

3 Rounds

9 Deadlifts (women 135#/men 225#)
12 Burpees
15 Wall Balls (women 14#/men 20#)

Scoring:

Max Load from Workout #2 divided by the sum times of Workout #1 & Workout #3 
This method was chosen over awarding points for what place an athlete finishes each workout to encourage max effort on each and every workout.

*Registration is filling up and therefore “day of” registration may not be available by Saturday*

CrossFit truly is for everyone.  However, due to it’s recent explosion in popularity, the competitions have become quite exclusive.  And rightfully so, competitions to determine the fittest humans will absolutely exclude the majority of the population.  However, there is an ever growing  population of extraordinarily fit individuals that should still be able to enjoy the excitement of c0mpetitions.

The CrossFit Sweat Shop Masters Event is ONLY open to men and women ages 40 and up.  Here are the details:

Date:  Saturday October 24th

Time:  Registration 9am
                Athletes Briefing 9:30am
                Workouts begin 10:00am

Location:  CrossFit Sweat Shop - 1401 Autocenter Dr., Walnut Creek, CA 94597

Entry Fee:  $35 (online registration closes Thursday 10/22/09 at midnight)

Late Registration:  $50 (day of competition)

Field Limit:  45 participants TOTAL

Prize:  1st Place Male $300
               1st Place Female $300
*Prize money WILL increase if field reaches capacity.

Workout #1 Run
Workout #2 Strength Event
Workout #3Metcon

Complete details of each of the workouts, as well as the scoring system, will be released soon.

 ________________________

Monday’s WOD:

A.) Front Squats
5-5-5-5-5

B.) 2 Rounds
8 Squat Cleans
10 Pushups

then (1) 403m run

results:

CrossFit Sweat Shop’s members don’t just drag themselves into the gym two to three times per week.  Many of them get out there an take advantage of their increasing fitness levels by competing in various events.  Pictured above are Doug, Carolyn, and Nathan, just before finishing an 8 hour adventure race in Tahoe a few weeks back.

Congratulations to the following Sweat Shop members and friends who just completed the San Jose Rock & Roll 1/2 Marathon:

• Jon
• Krista
• Ollie
• Lisa
• Carolyn
• Darcy

I apologize if I missed anyone else.

______________________

Friday’s WOD:

A.) Overhead Squats
5-5-5-5-5

B.) 2 Rounds

15 Overhead Squats
403m Run

results:
_______________________

Saturday’s WOD:

A.) Broad jump from the gym to the fence in as few a jumps as possible

B.) # of broad jumps determines how many reps you do of each of the following exercises:

3 Rounds

Deadlifts
KB Swings
Box Jumps
Wall Balls
Knees to Elbow
Burpees

results:

______________________

Sunday’s Challenge Workout:

Lake Anza Workout

followed by,

“Elizabeth”

Since the workouts were of different lengths, Aaron developed an formula to measure the results, and declare an overall winner.  Basically, least amount of corn wins.

I took a quick picture at the top of the ridge, the turn around point for the run.  As you can see Aaron is on his way back down, and Nathan is already half down.  I was in last.

results:

First things first.  If you are new to CrossFit, understand that this is not one of our group classes, this is not a typical workout, and CJ is not your typical CrossFitter.  This was a voluntary workout that CJ asked for to help keep him from drinking too much while on vacation. 

_______________________

Wednesday’s WOD:

As many rounds as possible in 20 minutes:

5 Hang Cleans
7 Thrusters
9 Summo Deadlift High Pulls

results:

Aaron, circa 2007.  Clearly before he started CrossFit.

Have you ever had a trainer give you exercises or workouts that you question whether or not he/she could even complete.  And if they could complete it, how well would they even do?  Here is your chance to:

1. Challenge your Sweat Shop trainer in a workout.
2. Do a Sunday morning workout at the Sweat Shop.
3. Have purpose in life.

Anyone is welcome, regardless of your strength/fitness level.  And there will be scaling options for the deadlift and the pullups.  Here is the workout:

1 Mile Run
30 Deadlifts @ 275lbs. (men)   155lbs. (women)
30 Pushups
30 Pullups (chest to bar)

Post to comments if you are interested.  Warmup will begin at 9:30am.

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Tuesday’s WOD:

“Running Cindy”

As many rounds as possible in 20 minutes:

5 Pullups
10 Pushups
15 Squats

*20 minutes begin with (1) 403m run, then perform AMRAP of pullups, pushups, squats.  complete another 403m run before time expires.  If you return from your final run w/ extra time, you may NOT resume rounds.

Big performance props again to Denise for doing all the pullups as Rx’d.  At 14 rounds + 5 pullups, that’s a total of 75 unassisted pullups!  Sick!

results:

This Saturday there will be a 5K run at CrossFit Sweat Shop in Walnut Creek.  Entry is FREE and open to anyone.  1st place male and female finishers will recieve a iSweat t-shirt.  Warmup and registration will begin at 10:00am, with the run starting soon after.  **PLEASE NOE** the 5K run will also be the workout of the day for the 10:00am class, if you are a Sweat Shop member that normally comes on Saturday, and you are not interested in doing the 5K run, you should come at 9:00am.  Members and non-members are welcome to do the WOD at 9am, as well as the 5K run that follows.  This is a CrossFit 5K, that means there will not be police officers holding traffic, nor will there be volunteers pointing you in the right direction every slight curve of the Canal Trail.  The route is really simple, and there will be some markings on the ground.  Here’s the course:

-Start will be on the Canal Trail at the Sweat Shop crosswalk.
-Racers will run along the trail towards Heather Farm Park.
-Turn right and cross over the small bridge that leads into Heather Farm.
-Follow the trail around the pond, then back onto the Canal Trail
-Head back to the Sweat Shop along the same route, ending with the Sweat Shop 403 meter run

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Monday’s WOD:

Front Squat
5-5-5-5-5

Pullup (strict, weighted, tuck, L-Pullup)
5-5-5-5-5

results:

 We’ll be doing a workout at the Lyon St. stairs in San Francisco this Sunday morning.  We’ll combine some barbell and kettlebell exercises with the stairs for a lovely start to your Sunday morning.  Leaving the Sweat Shop around 9am, starting the warmup at the stairs around 9:30am.  Click here for a map and directions to the stairs.

RSVP if you want to come!

***REMINDER***  I’ve added a class on Saturday, let’s review what this means:

1. The new Saturday schedule is 9:00am & 10:00am
2. One class at 9am and another class at 10am
3. There is no longer the sole 9:30am class
4. If you come on a Saturday at 9:30am you’ll be 30 minutes early for the 10:00am class.

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Thursday’s WOD:

750m Row

then 4 Rounds of:

15 KB Swings
15 Knees to Elbow
15 Box Jumps

complete (1) 250m row at some point during workout

results:

Here’s a quick video for those of you that missed the Fran-Off Tournament, held at CrossFit Sweat Shop last weekend.

Check out Manwell and Angel’s transition on the barbell.  Pretty sweet.

Please note:  soundtrack contains explict lyrics.

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Friday’s WOD:

403m Run

you then have 3 minutes to complete as many Deadlifts and Burpees as possible.

REST 2 minutes
REPEAT for 4 ROUNDS

Score = Run time in minutes, divided by total reps for each round

results:

Props to Rob M., only his third workout at the Sweat Shop and he had the top performance of the day!

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Saturday’s WOD:

15 Single Arm Hang Squat Cleans (right)
15 Single Arm Thrusters (left)
15 Knees to Elbow
15 Box Jumps

15 Single Arm Hang Squat Cleans (left)
15 Single Arm Thrusters (right)
15 Knees to Elbow
15 Box Jumps

9 Single Arm Hang Squat Cleans (right)
9 Single Arm Thrusters (left)
9 Knees to Elbow
9 Box Jumps

9 Single Arm Hang Squat Cleans (left)
9 Single Arm Thrusters (right)
9 Knees to Elbow
9 Box Jumps

results:

Big thanks to everyone who came out to the Fran-Off Tournament this Saturday.  An especially big thanks to Mike “MJ” Jenkins for developing and coordinating the entire event.  Athletes from as far as Sacramento came to compete in the two person, randomly drawn team event, with $1000 prize money!  I was lucky enough to draw Tamara Holmes (CrossFit Oakland) as my partner, and together we took 1st place!  Thanks for carrying me in the finals T!

Also big thanks to Tom Campitelli for coming out to photograph the event.  Check out all the photos here.

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Friday’s WOD:

Complete as many rounds as possible in 20 minutes of the following:

12 KB Swings
6 Burpees
6 Ring Dips
12 Box Jumps

*leave enough time at the end to complete (1) 403 meter run without going over the 20 minute time limit

results:

_______________________

Saturday’s WOD:

“Fran”

21-15-9
Thrusters
Pullups

For those unfamiliar with Fran, the workout format goes as such:

21 Thrusters
21 Pullups

15 Thrusters
15 Pullups

9 Thrusters
9 Pullups

results: