This Saturday July 3rd, the 10:00am class time will be designated for a 5K run.  This run is open for both Sweat
Shop members and non-members, all ages, and it’s free.  The route will be the same one we did last summer, starting from the Sweat Shop, going down the Contra Costa Canal Trail, around the pond at Heather Farm Park, and then back to the Sweat Shop.  

There will be a 9am class as usual, so feel free to do the class at 9am, and the 5K run at 10am.  Refreshments will be on hand for participants and spectators. 

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Friday’s WOD:

A.) Work up to 2 Rep Max on Overhead Squat

B.) “Nancy”
5 Rounds
403m Run
15 Overhead Squats

results:

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Saturday’s WOD:

3 Rounds
403m Run
13 Deadlifts
13 Toes to Bar

*at some point complete (1) set of 20 DB Thrusters

results:

 Soccer athletes Julia, Kaitlin & Shoshana, 2 of which will be playing soccer in college this fall, prepare for their upcoming season at CrossFit Sweat Shop (above)  De La Salle strength and conditioning with CrossFit Sweat Shop 2009/2010 (below)

Soccer, like most sports, is comprised of a series of sprints, explosive changes in direction, jumping, recovering from a fall by getting up from the ground quickly, etc.  And although the game itself may go on for 90 minutes, the physical demand on the body is nothing like a 90 minute jog.  If you want to get better at jogging for 90 minutes, then your training should be 90 minutes of jogging.  If you want to get in better shape to play sports or other activities, then your training should resemble that. 

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Legitness of the Week

Jin 265×3 Deadlift (PR)
Michelle & Tina 135×3 Deadlift (PR)
Joe 230×3 Deadlift (PR)
Matt M. 260×3 Deadlift (PR)
Jessica 165×3 Deadlift (PR)
Tammy 200×3 Deadlift (PR)
Katherine 110×3 Deadlift (PR)
Don 335×3 Back Squat (PR)
Nathan 108 Consecuetive Double Unders (Sweat Shop Record)
Kristin 16:00 “Nancy” Rx’d (Sweat Shop Record)

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Thursday’s WOD:

5 Rounds

2 1/2 minutes to complete:
8 Burpees
15 KB Swings
Wall Balls for REPS

results:

Post workout breakfast at the Sweat Shop

Great post from Practice CrossFit… check it out.

When your questioned about where you workout at, what do you say to explain CrossFit? Try some of these the next time someone asks.

-I train in a box. It has walls…sometimes. Sometimes we go outside. Sometimes we meet elsewhere. Its not the location I value, its the people.

-I train in an open space, because bars and my training partners fly everywhere. There is not equipment in the way, only my friends near me as we all struggle together, and are rewarded all the same.

-I train in a warehouse with no air conditioning and big garage doors. If you didn’t know where it was, you would never find it. There is no sign outside. The signs of training are all inside, working, or helping one another.

-I train where advertising is sacrilege. I train where I am a walking advertisement.

-I train with people I truly enjoy, and would do anything for, not where I need to put ear phones in to block out all the annoying banter. When we go, we hear yells, trainers instructing, or loud ass music making us go even harder…not elevator bullshit. Real music.

-I train in a place where if I am negative, I will be addressed by at least one person about my stupid ass attitude, and if I am unlucky enough on that day, I may be asked to leave, and come back when Im better, because I am effecting the core by my stupid ass baggage that is meant to be burned at the door.

-I train where if I want to keep my shirt on I can….but there are no rules saying I have to. Where I train if someone disrobes to any level, wears short ass shorts, or is quasi naked after a WOD thats fine…no attention will be paid, because its all about the training, not about meat markets. If you want a pick up joint, look elsewhere.

-I train where Im valued and truly appreciate for showing up and putting forth true, real, demanding effort.

-I train where I am judged on my movements and attitude everyday. Not because my friends are assholes, because they truly want to make me better at life, and want success for me not injury. A piss poor performance means someone will care enough to help me make it better, and find out why it happened to begin with.

-I train in a place void of gossip. Rumors are unwelcome at all times and if I was stupid enough to ever spout anything negative, or even just not positive about one of my training partners, or any other training location for that matter, I would be crucified on the spot, by any and all in ear shot. Drama queens are eaten alive where I train.

-I train where everyone applauds when I do well, and I applaud for them.

-I train where justification is lucifer, and honesty is gospel. For if I lie, I only fail myself.

-I train where I am confronted everyday by food Nazis who wont allow me to eat shit and call it gold. Where I train we call bad, bad, quality, quality and everything in between sub-par. Where I train life happens, the difference is, here I have to confront my downfalls and improve not hide them away for tomorrow.

-I train to be better at life. The unknown and unknowable. To one day be able to help someone less fortunate than I. To be able to be moving on my own when I’m old and gray, not being moved.

-I train because I want the mirror to be an outward reflection of how I feel inside, which is pretty damn good, and I want it to stay that way.

-I train because laziness sickens me, and preventable disease is exactly that…preventable through effort, not medication.

-I train to be different than those before me. To go out swinging, not resting. To live valiantly, not cowardly.

-I train where the floor could double as a pool at times because people actually work hard. I don’t care, that’s how it should be.

-I train with football players, grandmas, kids, housewives, doctors.

 -I train with people of every walk of life, and if I cared about status…someone would make me leave.

-I train where education daily is paramount, and if I’m not a constant student, I will fail quickly.

-I train where we are all equal, because we truly are. The only thing that separates people is the attitude to believe this is true or not. The ones who believe they are better than others, are so much better….they aren’t allowed to train with me.

-I train with people that make my day better.

-I train in a place where I want to be, not a place I feel I have to be.

-I train under expectations. Expectations to be better than yesterday. 

-I train in a community dedicated to the whole. The success of the many. this is the reason we all change and progress so fast. Where I train its not about “I”….its about “us” 

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Wednesday’s WOD:

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

B.) 3 minutes:
25 Box Jumps
Row for max meters

results:

For those of you that have begun to remove grains from your diet, you may have become aware of the bloated and/or lethargic feeling you get if you now consume grains (bread, pasta, etc).  The stricter you are at removing these items, and the longer you go without them, the greater the effects you’ll experience when you re-introduce them into your body.  Personally, I have experienced a “hang-over” type feeling the day after consuming an average portion of pasta.  Check out The Heart Scan Blog, it’s an informative blog written by a cardiologist.  In this post, he writes about the effects he experienced when he re-introduced wheat in his diet while attempting to see if  ancient wheat affects the blood sugar the same way modern wheat does.  I find his account interesting because although his experience is severe, these are all symptoms everyone likely feels from time to time.  I believe that if we pay much closer attention to what we eat and how we feel afterwards (not just bloated and/or tired), we may learn a lot about which types of foods are good for our body, and which ones are not.

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Monday’s WOD:

As many rounds in 15 minutes:

5 Thrusters (135#/85#)
10 Toes to Bar
70m Run

results:

Let’s hear what you guys and girls have to say about what kind of events you want to see at CrossFit Sweat Shop.  Workout at the stairs in SF, Heather Farm 5K route from the Sweat Shop, Saturday morning workout and breakfast by Chef Nabil, Fran Off, Masters Competition, track workout at Las Lomas track, Saturday AM workout binge + San Francisco Creamery, or even just meeting to have dinner in Walnut Creek… no exercise involved, or anything else you can come up with.  Post to comments your suggestions, otherwise I’ll just think everyone wants to do Murph on a twice weekly basis!

Don’t forget the upcoming event at Diablo CrossFit this Saturday.  Check their site for details.

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Friday’s WOD:

A.) Push Press  5-5-5-5-5 & Max Reps Strict Pullups

*Perform 1 set of push press immediately followed by 1 set max reps strict pullups.  Then rest as needed before repeating for 5 sets of each.

B.) 20 Toes to Bar
40 Situps
403m Run

results:

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Saturday’s WOD:

“Murph”

1 Mile Run
100 Pullups
200 Pushups
300 Squats
1 Mile Run

*partition pullups, pushups, and squats as needed

results:

Brandon during NorCal Sectionals.  Photo courtsey Tom Campitelli

Awesome post that everyone can relate to.  Check it out.

The voice in your head that has always been with you, right from the early days. It tells you that you can’t do this, that you’re not strong enough, fast enough, smart enough, skinny enough, pretty enough, or sexy enough. It tells you to stop, to wait, to slow down, to quit.  Kill that f*****.  I mean it. Kill it. Today, in your WOD, stomp that voice. Stomp it good and hard so it never wants to come back. 

Read full post here.

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Thursday’s WOD:

4 Rounds
7 Squat Clean & Jerk
18 KB Swings
200m Run

results:

One of the coolest displays of strength, coordination, power and agility, I’ve seen in a while.  Definitely worth watching the whole video.  Thanks to Brother Daun for sending it to me!

**9:00am class only this Saturday June 19th**

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Wednesday’s WOD:

5 Rounds

2:15 each to complete:
200m Run
20 Wall Balls
Box Jumps for REPS

REST 1:45 between rounds

results:

CJ hitting some summo deadlift high pulls during the 5:30pm class

Congratulations to the winners of the 6 month series of Challenge of the Month.  These winners will recieve 1/2 off one month membership dues!

Women Under 40 Vanessa
Women 40+ Lones
Men Under 40 CJ
Men 40+ Rob P.

Click here to see finishing scores for May (left), and total points for the 6 month series (right).

Here is a recap of the monthly challenges:

Double Unders
L-Sit for time
Burpees + Archery
Towel Hang for time
Culinary Challenge
Double Unders 

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Tuesday’s WOD:

1 Mile Run
30 Deadlifts
3 Rounds of:
12 Ring Dips
12 Pullups

results:

Mark Rippetoe (as in Rippetoe Squat Stretch), going over the basics of positioning, and hip drive for the back squat.  Check it out, learn something.

 **PLEASE NOTE** This Saturday, June 19th 9:00am class only

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Monday’s WOD:

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

B.) As many rounds as possible in 10 minutes:
30 Double Unders
20 Pushups
10 Power Cleans

results:

Cameron bowing down to the exercise gods.  Depressed?  Not a chance!

Even though the workouts are tough, most people can testify that they feel much better, both mentally and physically after a challenging workout.  A Chicago CrossFit was recently featured in an article about the effects of exercise on depression symptoms.

Kevin said he generally works out five days a week, alternating between aerobic activity and strength training. He stays dedicated, even exercising during vacation in order to avoid feeling “vulnerable to depression.”

Check out the article and video, here.

 **PLEASE NOTE** This Saturday, June 19th 9:00am class only

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Friday’ sWOD:

5 Rounds

4oom Row
403m Run

REST 4 minutes between rounds

results:

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Saturday’s  WOD:

“Helen”
3 Rounds
403m Run
21 KB Swings
12 Pullups

results:

 10 year old Nick, gets after it on the rower!  Unlike the kids shown in the video below, Nick also does deadlifts, back squats, pullups and double unders!  WHAT!

CrossFit Scottsdale on a local news morning show demonstrating some of the stuff they do with the kids at their gym.

See video here.

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Legitness of the Week

Kristin 5:03 “Fran” Rx’d (first time ever doing the workout!)
Charlie 5:26  “Fran” Rx’d (PR by 2 1/2 minutes!)
CJ 4:36  “Fran” Rx’d (PR by 6 minutes!)
Liz 115×1 Overhead Squat (PR)
Vanessa 3:25 “4×4″ (Sweat Shop Record)
Brandon less than 2 months of CrossFit gets best performance of day on Wednesday’s WOD
Key Lime Air Therapy now available in bathroom!

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Thursday’s WOD:

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

B.) 500m Row
25 KB Swings
25 Box Jumps

results:

Our friends over at Diablo CrossFit in Pleasant Hill are hosting an upcoming event.  Looks like a good one!  Check out their site for details.

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Wednesday’s WOD:

4 Rounds

Every 7 minutes:
403m Run
(1) Set Max REPS Body Weight Bench Press
(1) Set Max REPS Pullups

results:

The Sweat Shop got lots of new equipment in May, here is the run down:

• Dynamax Medballs
• Dumbbells
• Kettlebells
• Brand new Concept 2 rower
• Sandbags
• Bumper Plates
• Gymnastics rings
• Bands
• Training Bars
• Flat Bench
• Buddy Lee jump ropes
• Jablum Coffee (thanks Tammy!)

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Tuesday’s WOD:

“Fran”

21-15-9
Thruster
Pullup

results:

Check out these awesome before and after shots of Marc from CrossFit Oakland. 

 How difficult was it to make these changes?

It was not such a dramatic change for me.  It was a matter of simply tweaking what I was eating normally.  I was already eating a lot of meat, loved fruits and veggies.  Most of the adjustment was in the carbs.  I loved bread, rice and noodles, as well as beans, corn and potatoes.

The hardest part for me as far as carbs were concerned was getting off rice and noodles.  It just seemed such an un-Asian thing to do.  It was very much a mental and emotional thing, as are most issues related to food.  I made a commitment to eliminate those from my diet and it has been surprisingly easy.  And who hasn’t had trouble cutting back on sweets - my big weakness?  Ice cream, cheesecake and chocolate.  Mmmmmm.

As far as beverages were concerned,  I never drank much soda, so eliminating that was easy.  Same with alcohol.

In general, it’s been hard finding quality meals, especially since I spend half my time away from home, in airports and hotels.  Protein is the hardest to find, so I’m always thrilled when the hotel has eggs for breakfast, especially when they’re free.  But as insurance I travel with enough protein to last me 4 days and a pound of almonds.  The other difficulty is finding the time in the day to squeeze 5 meals in my waking hours with a reasonable amount of time in between.

Read full post here.

Here is a great video demo of some snatch balance.  Keep in mind, the little guy only weighes 140lbs! ( Windows / Mac ) 

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Monday’s WOD:

A.) Snatch Balance / Overhead Squat
1/2 - 1/2 - 1/2 - 1/2 - 1/2
(Perform 1 Snatch Balance, then 2 Overhead Squats per work set)

B.) 500m Row
30 Burpees
10 Shoulder to Overhead

results:

Big thanks to Alex for sending me this video.

Not all organic is equal.  Your best bet is to grow it yourself.  If that is not an option you should try to get your food from local farmer’s markets.  There are several local markets in our area that not only sell produce, but also meat. 

Post to comments which farmer’s markets you’ve been to, if you liked them, and if so why.

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Friday’s WOD:

10 Thrusters
25 KB Swings

9 Thrusters
25 Situps

8 Thrusters
2 Rope Ascents

7 Thrusters
25 Box Jumps

6 Thrusters
403m Run

results:

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Saturday’s WOD:

A.) Squat Clean
3-3-3-3-3

B.) 8 Minutes:
Run flat course 400m
As many Front Squats as possible
Run flat course 400m

*2 Burpee penalty for every second over 8 minutes

results:

 CrossFit NorCal Sectionals - photo by Tom Campitelli

More and more college athletes are using CrossFit to not only stay in shape, but to break records!  Here’s an article about a track athlete named Hallie Kuhlman who is breaking records as a freshman at Sharon Springs in Kansas.

Kuhlman fought shin splints nearly all spring, but her work in the weight room kept her fit. Ayers, who has won three state football titles, latched onto the CrossFit program several years ago. The program features intense workouts with little rest periods. It starts with heavy Olympic lifts and then ends with what Ayers calls a “finisher,” about 10 minutes of dumbbell swings, pull-ups, squats, lunges, hops and other exercises done as quickly as possible.

Read full article here.

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Thursday’s WOD:

As many rounds as possible in 18 minutes:

7 Deadlifts
7 Box Jumps
7 Pullups
7 Burpees

results:

 Check out the list of foods, here.

Thanks to Don B. for the heads up on this article.

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Wednesday’s WOD:

4 Minutes to complete:

403m Run, then:
As many Push Press & Knees to Elbow in the remaining time.

REPEAT for 4 Rounds
No rest between rounds
Score TOTAL reps

results:

This Saturday, June 5th, I’ll be treating those of you that come to either the 9am or 10am classes.  There will be a guest trainer leading both classes which will allow me to workout with the 9am class, then prepare “breakfast” items on the grill for participants of the 9am, as well as those of the 10am class.  Open house format, so feel free to grab your omlet and go, or stick around and watch the 10am class go through their workout while you enjoy food and drink.

*16 out of the 25 people that did Back Squats yesterday got a personal record*  AWESOME JOB PEOPLE!!

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Tuesday’s WOD:

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

B.) 40 KB Swings
30 Pushups
20 Box Jumps
10 Burpees

results:

Nik currently vacationing in Stockholm, represents the Sweat Shop

A good post from CrossFit Delray about endurance athletes cutting training time and seeing improvements on their races by using CrossFit.

Then I talked to two wonderful people, Crossfit Delray Beach co-owner Sarah Bowling and my friend, the one and only Joey D from South Florida Runs, my favorite running group in Palm Beach County with their own line of T-shirts and gelatin deserts. Joey D swore this crazy crossfit thing would make me faster. Bowling told me how her gym or “box” was filling up more and more with endurance athletes that are not only losing pounds, they are losing minutes off their race times.

Read full post here.

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Friday’s WOD:

4 Rounds
10 Deadlifts
15 Wall Balls
403m Run

results:

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Saturday’s WOD:

A.) 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1
Front Squats
Pullups

B.) 2 Minutes to complete:
403m Run
Burpees for REPS

REST 3 minutes, REPEAT.  Score total burpees for 2 rounds.

results:

**REGULAR CLASS SCHEDULE ON SATURDAY.  SWEAT SHOP WILL BE CLOSED ON MONDAY IN OBSERVANCE OF MEMORIAL DAY**

Stay safe this weekend, keep the drinking in check.

5 Reasons Why Alcohol Will Destroy Your Muscle Gains

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Legitness of the Week

Alex 285×3 Overhead Squat (Sweat Shop Record)
Tyler… MUSCLE UP!!!!
Terin is involved in an alcohol related segway tour accident, yet still shows up for class the next day to do deadlifts… LEGIT! 

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Thursday’s WOD:

500m Row
20 Wall Balls
20 Pullups
40 Double Unders
20 Toes to Bar
20 DB Thrusters
70m Farmer’s Walk
7 Wall Balls
7 Pullups
15 Double Unders
7 Toes to Bar
7 DB Thrusters

results:

Here’s an interesting article from the NY Times the guys at Diablo CrossFit recently posted on their site.   

People who eat and drink high amounts of added sugars have lower blood levels of so-called good cholesterol and higher levels of harmful triglycerides than those with diets lower in such sweeteners, a new study reports.

Read full article here.

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Wednesday’s WOD:

A.) Work up to 3 Rep Max on:
Overhead Squat
Front Squat
Back Squat

B.) 1 Mile Run

Score SUM of the 3 squats, divided by run time

results: