You’ve all probably heard Nabil and I give you the cue of “Active Hips” in our movements that involve squatting. In Olympic lifts, having “active” hips is crucial. When performing cleans and snatches, catching the weight, for most of us, is the hardest part. What makes them extra tough is that while you are concentrating so hard on giving a maximal effort upwards with the weight, you have to give the same, if not more, on the way down for the catch. In this process, it’s really easy to just drop under the weight without being “active” at our most important muscles: the glutes, hamstring, and low back. This limits us when we try to go heavy and it can also cause injury to the hip and low back. When we say active we mean actively pushing your knees out, firing the glutes and hamstrings, and maintaining a strong arch in your low back.

Check out this short video clip which gives an example of what we mean by “active hips” at the bottom of a clean.

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Legitness of the Week

Clean PR’s
Tammy 150×1 (Sweat Shop Record)
Sarah 85×1
Bryan K. 165×1
Patrick 243×1

Snatch PR’s
Josh 183×1
Melaney 60×1
Jessica 85×1
Criselda 45×1

Overhead Squat PR’s
Nancy 55×1
Katie 80×1
Valerie 60×1

-Helen dropkicks “Fran” in the face and takes 18 seconds of her best time (4:41 Sweat Shop Record).
-Patrick goes double day on “Fran” with chest to bar pullups both times.
-Joe W. decides to use the 80# Cannonball for Thursday’s finisher with 40 KB swings… and gets the fastest time.
-Josh turns the “Dirty” 30 years old.
-Jeff surpasses consecutive pullup goal!
-Despite separating his shoulder while taking a heroic fall on his heated cycle race through the treacherous roads of the Napa Wine Valley, Joe S. makes it back to the Sweat Shop for a workout.
-After weeks of being away for work in Bolivia, Ron P. returns to the Sweat Shop wearing the freshest new pair of Nike Free Run+2 shoes!

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Friday’s WOD:

4 Rounds

7 Squat Clean to Overheads (135#/95#)
18 KB Swings
200m Run

results

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Thursday’s WOD:

A.) Push Jerk or Press Press
3-2-2-1-1
* Score is total work across 5 sets*

B.)
200m Double Medball/Sandbag Carry
30 Box Jumps
40 KB Swings
50 Double Unders
200m Double Medball/Sandbag Carry

results

Below is an excerpt of a great post from CrossFit South Bay.

One of the most difficult things to fight as a coach is the thought that “Lifting weights is going to make me ‘bulk up’” from girls.  My first response is to shake my head and contemplate shoving my hand in a toaster to cure the frustration… Yet, when I stop and think about it, I honestly like the way CrossFit makes my body look.  And I know there are many of us in the gym that wouldn’t be as enamored with CrossFit if we didn’t see aesthetic results in combination with fitness results, so I do think it is a valuable question that needs to be answered.  The first thing you need to do is look around the gym at girls that have been CrossFitting for a long time. If we created “bulky bodies”, you would see them at CFSB.

Read full post here.

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Tuesday’s WOD:

A.) Bench Press
5-5-5-5-5

B.) 3 Minutes Max Row Calories
2 Minutes Max Reps KB Swings (53/35)
1 Minute Max Reps Wall Ball

results:

Steve always does a great job maintaining flexibility and range of motion with self myofascial release and stretching

Since JB and I attended Kelly Starrett’s Mobility seminar in March, we’ve been trying to implement more myofascial release and stretching into our warm ups.  Many, including myself, have seen what a HUGE difference something like the foam roller, or lacrosse ball can do to increasing range of motion.  And although there are things you can do during your hour long workout session, it’s also very important to be diligent about doing some of these things on your own, on a regular basis.  Big thanks to Mike from CrossFit Oakland for the heads up on this post.

It’s not how often or how hard you can train. The real question is, how well can you recover between sessions?

While many are focused on training harder or more frequently, they’re only looking at half the equation.

If you want to crank up your training, the first thing you need to consider are ways to crank up your recovery.

Luckily for you, I have a few ideas that can help!

Here are just a few quick-hit ideas that you can use to either improve how quickly you recover, or at the very least, the quality of your recovery/regeneration between training sessions.

Read full post here.

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Tuesday’s WOD:

“The Stubborn Fire“

10-9-8 /200m Run /  7-6-5 / 200m Run / 4-3-2-1 / 200m Run

Thruster (95/65)
Summo Deadlift High Pull
Box Jump

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:

Get ready for more mobility! This weekend, Nabil and I will be attending a Mobility Seminar, held by Kelly Starrett, Physical Therapist, CrossFit Coach, creator of the Mobility WOD, and the very chipper fellow in the video above. We are excited at the opportunity to explore new and more effective mobilility exercises for all you Sweat Shoppers to perform. I know that most of us, including myself, have a love-hate relationship with mobility. Although mobility exercises can be a drag because they can be uncomfortable and boring, it is essential that you perform them every day, whether you are in the Sweat Shop, at home, or finding some time at work. Whether you like it or not, taking a short part of your day to increase mobility of your joints will significantly improve ALL of your CrossFit exercises and heavy lifts. So what does a mobility workout look like? Check out this video of a K-Starr demonstrating the 10-minute squat. I challenge you all to perform this one this weekend to see how long you can go.

Post your thoughts, experiences, complaints, and whining to comments once you’ve done it.

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Legitness of the Week

Bench Press PR’s
Jin 195×5
Valerie 70×5
Nancy 60×5

Push Press PR’s
Amy G. 80×3

-Jin receives the “Beast Mode” award for his top performance on Wednesday’s WOD, “Jen”, a performance which he dedicated to a close friend that is ill.
-15 Sweat Shoppers make it into the Sweat Shop on Wednesday to do the CrossFit Games Sectional WOD in the middle of the day.
-Nik achieves goal of 155# Snatch.
-Dustin finally hits the floor after a workout (Wednesday’s “Jen” WOD).
-Josh crushes his previous “Air Force” WOD performance by 3 minutes!
-Al Shaprton cries “FOUL” on KFC and renames the company “Kentucky Fried Cruelty”.

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Friday’s WOD:

“Tomahawk Tabata”

Wall Balls
Pullups
Single Arm KB Squat
Burpees

*20 seconds of work 10 seconds of rest
*8 sets of each exercise BEFORE moving on to next exercise

results

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Thursday’s WOD:

A.) Bench Press
5-5-5-5-5

B.) As many rounds as possible in 5 minutes:
10 Box Jumps
8 Pushups
6 Single Arm KB Squat

REST 1-Minute, then perform:

As many rounds as possible in 4 minutes:
10 KB Swings
8 Knees to Elbows
6 Burpees

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:

Jacque and Freddy at the 2010 Fran Off

It’s the most important movement we do.  It’s the foundation of so many other exercises.  Yet so many people, including some Sweat Shop members, refuse to use lighter loads on their squats so that they can perform the movement correctly.  Freddy, of CrossFit One World recently did a post, How CrossFit is Ruinning Your Knees, check it out below:

It’s an epidemic across the entire CrossFit community. There are too many people out there that can’t squat for shit. There are a myriad of reasons why you don’t squat well, but the first and foremost reason is you aren’t strong enough to do it right. You have weak hamstrings, glutes, abductors and adductors. Everyone relies on the strength of their quads. What you get is a stance that is too wide, feet that are toed too far out, and the real killer: knees that track in rather than track over the feet. The lack of strength also causes many to relax at the bottom of the squat. The butt practically touches the heels and then the person tries to bounce out of the bottom of the squat. What’s makes all of this even worse is you take a weak squat, and then you try and load it up. Thrusters, front squats, overhead squats, wall balls….they all load up the squat movement. Squat poorly and your knees are taking a brutal beating.
The thing I see the most in a squat is the knees tracking inside the feet. It’s easy to spot because it usually leads to the heels rising off the floor. Next time you are at the gym, watch for it. You will see it all around you. You need to learn to keep the knees tracking over the feet. There are some simple drills to work on this technique. Squatting to a box is one of my favorites in getting people to squat more efficiently. Its a simple drill and with some good tactical coaching, works quite well in getting people to realize just how weak their lower body is and how poor their squat mechanics are. Just set up a box to squat height or even a little higher. Practice squating to a completely relaxed seated position. Keep the heels on the floor and the knees tracking over the feet during the entire movement. After you relax in the seated position for a second or two, try and stand up out of the squat without rocking forward. Eventually, you can do this with a bar on your shoulders or even a medicine ball in your hands. It is a drill, not a CrossFit workout. Do the movement slow and concentrate on moving well. I’ll try and get a video demo up ASAP.
The second thing you can do to protect your knees if you squat poorly is to stop trying to do workouts “as RX’d.” Learn to take some baby steps and check your damn ego at the door. I keep telling you that no one in the entire gym but you gives a shit if you do a workout as prescribed or not. What really matters is that you move well. Wouldn’t you much rather have people talking about you saying, “watch this guy/gal’s movement, its beautiful!” rather than “wow, he finished that workout fast”?? You come to the gym to get healthier. If ten years from now your knees ache all the time and it hurts to walk up the stairs, how is that healthy??? If you can learn to move well with a lighter load, you will get much stronger and much faster much sooner.

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Monday’s WOD:

4 Rounds

Bench Press Max REPS
Front Squat Max REPS
Pullups Max REPS

*1 minute of each exercise
*constantly running clock
*REST 3 minutes after completing entire round

Rx’d Bench Press & Front Squat (Men 100% Bodyweight, Women 65% Bodyweight)

results:

Practicing functional movements is one of the staples of the CrossFit training model. You may have noticed that we spend most of our time focusing on movements that strengthen the muscles of our backside, also known as the posterior chain. Many people avoid these exercises strictly because the front side (chest, biceps, and abs) is more asthetically pleasing. For some time, many conventional trainers have carried the belief that each and every muscle should be worked evenly and equally. When looking at our basic anatomy, you will see that our “back side” needs more attention. We’ve talked about how important the care of the spine is. It is our vital structure of support. Without stabilization of it, no movement can be performed efficiently. The natural “pre-flexed” design of our thoracic (middle) spine makes extending it limited. This natural limitation along with assistance from gravity causes us to naturally deviate forward in most of our day to day activities. I bet 20$ you are reading this post on your computer hunched over. Therefore exercises that actively strengthen the spinal extensors should be performed consistently to help maintain a healthy spine. Along with the importance of the spine comes our hip. Considering that these two structures are connected, it is just as important to incorporate exercises that involve hip extension along with the keeping the spine stabilized. You’d be happy to know that squats, cleans, snatches, deadlifts, kettlebell swings, thrusters, and rowing all do this. Stop feeling so bad about missing chest and bicep days.

**Prather Ranch Meat Delivery** If your name is on the wall, you’ve got a box coming Wed. Jan 12th.  It will arrive by 6pm and must be picked up no later than 7:15pm!

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Wednesday’s WOD:

Perform as many rounds as possible in 7 minutes of:
8 Push-ups
10 Box Jumps
12 Kettlebell Swings

9 minute:
Back Squat – 5 REPS
*score SUM of BEST 3 SETS

7 minute AMRAP (same as above)

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:

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:

We’ve known for some time that high-intensity weight training elicits a profound hormonal response. A previous post by Nabil here, highlights how important this response is in controlling our diet. It also points out the benefits of specific hormones that are secreted in response to exercise. This is a very important, and commonly overlooked adaptation. Hormones that are secreted during these exercise bouts, such as testosterone and human growth hormone do wonders for maintaining ideal body composition and metabolic function. This is especially important for women in that women are predisposed to a number of complications when deficient in these hormones. Check out this study from Science Daily, which examined various weight training intensities and their effect on increasing growth hormone responses in women.

From the article:

Growth hormone, produced in the pituitary, plays an important role in bone and muscle development, particularly in women. Men, on the other hand, rely to a greater extent on muscle-building testosterone. Since women rely on growth hormone to increase muscle and bone strength, the more growth hormone stimulated by a type of exercise, the better its outcome. Growth hormone also plays a role in fighting tissue breakdown, staving off stress fractures and improving metabolic function.

Researchers concluded that:

• Women who undertake a long-term weight training program produce a more biologically active growth hormone than those who do so for short periods of time or none at all.
• The presence of growth hormone varied with the training regimen.
• The body can adapt and produce more or less of certain sizes of growth hormone with weight training. In this study, the larger sized growth hormone variants appear to increase with heavy resistance training.

Keep crushing it and keep lifting heavy ladies!!!!!

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Friday’s WOD:

403m run, 200m run, 70m run
24-18-12 REPS of:

KB Swings
Pushups
Toes to Bar
KB Squat

results:

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Thursday’s WOD:

As many rounds as possible in 18 minutes:

4 Back Squats (245/135)
6 Burpees
8 Pullups

results:

J.B. with the old heating unit, a “multi-use” item that is now for sale

By now many of you have probably experienced the joy of walking into the Sweat Shop on a cold day and being welcomed by the tropical warmth of the new heating unit.  Although some of you may think we heat the gym to what may feel like Tanzanian climate, simply because we have a new heater, there is actually a logical reason for attempted contribution to global warming.  Check out this excerpt from a Bill Starr article on warming up, and don’t forget to thank us when you hit a new PR while basking in the warmth of the Sweat Shop…..get your Bermuda shorts and Hawaiian shirts, it’s gonna be a warm winter!

Warming up is just what the name implies: doing an exercise that helps to elevate your body’s core temper- ature. This needs to be done before anyone proceeds to more strenuous physical activities. An effective warm-up routine need not be complicated. Just the opposite, in fact: the simpler the better.
Warming up activates the enzymes responsible for the many chemical reactions that occur during physical exercise. The body’s energy system depends on those enzymes and, until they’re released, the energy system will not function properly. This is why an athlete feels sluggish at the beginning of a workout if he’s failed to warm up properly. In addition, a warm-up routine helps the body deliver more oxygen to the muscles. Hemoglobin is responsible for transporting oxygen to the working muscles, and it’s able to do the job more effectively when the muscle fibers are warm. The slightly higher temper- ature creates a positive pressure between the muscles and bloodstream, allowing more oxygen to go where it’s needed. An elevated body temperature enhances the entire cardiovascular system by helping the arteries, veins and capillaries deliver nutrients and carry away waste products more expeditiously.  One of the real pluses of warming up that is frequently overlooked is that it also benefits the nervous system. Research has shown that a higher core temperature clears the way for the body to be able to read and receive nerve impulses. This is of particular importance to anyone doing high-skill exercises in his or her program, such as Olympic lifters and those who include power cleans, power snatches, high pulls or any other dynamic exercises in their weekly routines.

Read full article here.

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Wednesday’s WOD:

A.) 2 minutes Max REPS Box Jumps

B.) Squat Clean
1-1-1-1-1

C.) 3 minutes Max Row for CALORIES
2 minutes Max REPS Pullups
1 minute Max REPS Wall Balls

results:

Pinch grip pumpkin deadlifts to build grip strength

Once your grip fatigues or fails it doesn’t matter how much more “juice” you have in your legs or elsewhere, if you can’t hold onto the bar, rope, kettlebell or dumbbell, you’re done.  Ever try to do pullups on a fat bar, like those found at playgrounds, and you are stumped when you are only able to do half the number of pullups?  Or perhaps you’ve used one of the 15KG bars at the Sweat Shop, and noticed how the same amount of weight feels lighter because the diameter of the bar is smaller and you are able to get a better grip.  A strong grip is not only important in the gym, but is used everyday, regardless of gender, occupation, or any other factors.  Expect a greater emphasis on grip strengthening exercises and workouts at the Sweat Shop.  Check out this article from the CrossFit Journal.

“Although we CrossFitters do our share of both heavy slow lifts and Olympic lifts, where grip plays an important role, grip is probably not something many of us actively focus on training. But grip strength is no less important to us than to full-time powerlifters, Olympic lifters, strongmen, or grapplers. In fact, the nature of our broad training approach means that we have a greater need for healthy hands and multi-dimensional hand strength than most sport-specific athletes. We are also exposed to more potential hand and forearm injuries. Those CrossFitters in law enforcement and combat duties and sports are already aware of the importance of a strong grip and may want to give this training area even more emphasis. This article is an overview of grip strength and will suggest ways to add hand and forearm strength and conditioning work to your training, complete with a sample weekly workout plan at the end.
There are three broad categories of grip strength: crushing, pinching, and supporting….”

Read full article here.

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Saturday’s WOD:

9:00am

5 Rounds

40 Double Unders
30 Box Jumps
20 KB Swings
10 Toes to Bar

__________

10:00am

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

B.) 400m Row
10 Deadlifts @ 70% 3 rep max
30 Pullups
10 Deadlifts @ 70% 3 rep max
30 Burpees

results: