Smolov Jr week 3 day 1
Back squat
6 x 6 @ 70 % of 1 rep max + 5 – 10 # of last week

Then:

As many rounds as possible in 8:00 of:
5 Kettlebell swings 53#(35#)
7 Toes to bar
100′ Shuttle sprint

Post loads and reps to comments and BTWB

We are excited to be hosting “Functional Yoga for Athletics”, presented by Mobility WOD. This is a one day seminar being held at Verve on Sunday January 6th.

Here are the learning objectives for the course:

• How to practice and coach physical yoga sequences for warm up, cool down, and active recover.
• Yoga breathing techniques to increase physical capacity, endurance and performance.
• How to properly incorporate effective yoga routines into training and programming for all levels of athletes.
• Basic meditation techniques to calm the body and focus the mind.
• How to appropriately scale yoga movements in a Fitness setting.
• Set up for restorative (supported) yoga poses using gym equipment to help aid physical recovery, sleep, and stress reduction.
• Breakdown of specific yoga poses and when to use them in conjunction with common strength and conditioning movements.
• How to use yoga techniques for mental and physical recovery from workouts.
• Basic history, philosophy, and methodology of yoga.
• How to structure a yoga class for athletes and implement yoga practices into your regular strength and conditioning programming.

The structure of the day is a mix between practical application and lecture material on how to program yoga–in its most accessible–form to athletes. Course participants learn to apply yoga principles in training themselves and other athletes to increase flexibility, stability, strength, and balance; which will improve athletic performance.

The Functional Yoga Course is not your average yoga training. The material is designed by Coach Debbie Steingesser specifically for athletes and coaches to enhance your overall experience in the gym. There will be no chanting (unless Debbie gets carried away), vegans, or spirituality – just meat and sweet potatoes yoga for coaches and athletes.

You can read more about the course and get registered by clicking here. The cost for this one day course is $349. There is early bird discount offer, 30% off through December 6th. Just use the code “crossfitverveyoga30” when you register. 

5 Rounds for time of:
10 Push press, 135#(95#)
20 Box jumps, 20″
Rest 2:00 between each round

*Score is total time including rest

Post times to comments and BTWB

Smolov Jr week 2 day 4
Back squat
10 x 3 @ 85 % of 1 rep max + 5 – 10 # of last week

Then:

Every minute on the minute for 12:00
Minute 1 = 8 – 12 Knees to elbows
Minute 2 = 10 Double kettlebell cleans 35#(26#)
Minute 3 = 15(12) Calories on the rower

Post to BTWB

SHEET PAN EGGPLANT PARMESAN from TheTwoBiteClub.com

INGREDIENTS

• 1 medium eggplant, cut into 1/4-inch slices
• 2 eggs
• 1 tablespoon water
• 1 cup panko breadcrumbs
• 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 (25 ounce) jar marinara sauce
• 8 ounces mozzarella cheese, shredded

INSTRUCTIONS

• Spread the sliced eggplant in a single layer onto paper towels. Generously salt the eggplant and let it sit for 15 minutes. Flip the eggplant, salt the other side, and let sit for another 15 minutes. Rince the eggplant with water and pat dry with clean paper towels. (This process will draw out the excess moisture and bitterness from the eggplant. I have seen some skip this step entirely.)
• Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Combine the panko breadcrumbs, parmesan cheese, dried basil, dried oregano, and garlic powder in a shallow dish. In a separate dish, lightly beat the eggs with the water.
• Dip the eggplant slices in the egg and then the breadcrumb mixture, pressing the breadcrumbs onto the eggplant to evenly coat both sides.
• Drizzle a foil-lined sheet pan with the olive oil and spread it around to cover the whole pan. Place the breaded eggplant in a single layer on the baking sheet.
• Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes, flip the slices, then bake for an additional 10 minutes on the other side. Spoon sauce onto each slice and top with shredded cheese. Return to the oven and continue baking for an additional 10 minutes, or until the cheese is melted. Top with fresh basil right before serving.

NOTES

Depending on the size of your eggplant, you may need to use more or less egg and/or breadcrumb mixture.

Complete the following for time:
20 Rope climbs
100 Box jump overs, 24″(20″)
10 x 200 meter runs
100 Alternating dumbbell snatch, 40#(25#)
20 Wall walks
10 x 20 Calories on assault bike

*You can break up the above in any order you choose

Post times to comments and BTWB

As I  have gotten older and wiser, a few things have changed in my life. I found the group of people I call good friends has become smaller but the strength of these friendships is stronger and the support greater. I found I work harder to maintain these relationships. I would imagine, there are several of you in a similar boat as me. It’s not the number of people you call friends but the quality of their friendship that matters most. While you are thankful for these people in your life all year long, Thanksgiving is a day that we put emphasis on our thanks. I would like to thank the people in my life for simply being my people. I am thankful they get my sense of humor and forgive my bluntness. I am thankful for the laughs we share (especially those that make me snort) and I am thankful for the tears they let me shed without judgement. I am thankful I met them and I am thankful they consider me their friend. As it turns out, many of my people I met because of CrossFit Verve. And I would wager a bet that the same goes for many of you. Because of relationships built in the gym I’ve seen people vacation together, get married, be each other’s bride’s maids, be roommates, and become best friends. So today here’s a thank you to something as simple as a place we all came to, to get a workout in, and left with an extended family. 

Happy Thanksgiving Verve!

“Nate”
Complete as many rounds as possible in 20 minutes of:
2 Muscle-ups
4 Handstand push-ups
8 Kettlebell swings 70#(53#)

Post to BTWB

CHIEF PETTY OFFICER NATE HARDY
Born: December 28th, 1978, Cape Cod/Massachusetts
Died: February 4th, 2008, Iraq.
United States Naval Special Warfare Development Group

From and article in BoxRox Magazine

Nate Hardy was born December 28th, 1978 in Cape Cod, Massachusetts. He grew up in Washington and Pennsylvania and his family settled in New Hampshire in 1988. It was in high school where Nate, a star soccer and lacrosse player, made the decision to join the Navy and become a SEAL immediately after graduation.

THE NAVY, A FAMILY TRADITION
Nate joined the Navy in 1997, following in the footsteps of his two grandfathers, both Navy veterans. After graduating from BUD/s (Basic Underwater Demolition) in May of 1998 with class 221, he was subsequently assigned to SEAL Team 8 out of Virginia Beach where he served from 1998 until attending DEVGRUs Green Team (United States Naval Special Warfare Development Group) selection course in 2007.

During Nate’s first deployment with DEVGRU, as an assaulter during a typical nighttime direct action raid in Iraq against an Al-Qaeda cell, Nate was the second man on the stack to enter the enemy-held building. Upon breaching, Nate and the lead man, Mike Koch, were engaged by enemy small arms fire.

Mike and Nate were immediately hit. Mortally wounded, Nate engaged and killed the enemy fighters while dragging his wounded teammate to safety. In his final moments, Nate held on to life long enough to pull Koch to safety. He died that night of February 4th, 2008 with his brother-in-arms Chief Petty Officer Michael E. Koch at his side. As they fought and died side-by-side, Mike and Nate are buried side-by-side to each other at Arlington National Cemetery.

Smolov Jr week 2 day 1
Back squat
6 x 6 @ 70 % of 1 rep max + 5 – 10 # of last week

Then:

As many rounds as possible in 10:00 of:

Row 250(200) meters
10 Burpees over the rower
15 Ab mat sit ups

Post loads and scores to comments and BTWB

Folks, this Thursday is Thanksgiving. We will have an abbreviated schedule on Thursday and Friday. Please be sure to check out MBO for class times and get yourself signed up for class. Classes on Thanksgiving tend to get rather large, we don’t plan on turning anyone away but it always helps to know how many of you will be attending. Thank you. 

Traditionally over the years I have sent out an email to the trainers asking them what they are thankful for. I then share this information with the Verve community on Thursday’s blog post. This year I would like to know what you are thankful for. And I would love to be able to share it with the Verve community. 

If you are interested in sharing, please email me at courtney@crossfitverve.com. Please try to get it to me by 6pm on Wednesday night so I can have time to put it in Thursday’s blog. It can be serious, it can be funny, it can be both. We love to hear what you thankful for this time of year. 

As many rounds as possible in 18 minutes of:
21 Deadlifts, 135#(95#)
15 Calories on the rower or bike
9 Handstand push ups

Post times to comments and BTWB

Smolov Jr week 1 day 4
Back squat
10 x 3 @ 85 % of 1 rep max

Then:

As many rounds as possible in 10:00 of
10 Dumbbell hang power cleans 40#(25#)
8 Dumbbell push press 40#(25#)
6 Strict pull ups

Post scores to BTWB

Week one is coming to a close off the squat program.  Great job to everyone that came in and knocked out all 4 days or as many as you could.  We have 2 more weeks to go and then we’ll all have to buy new pants to fit our huge legs and show off our nice butts!

COFFEE CRUSTED PORK TENDERLOIN – see full recipe and blog here

Macros for whole recipe: Protein 190g/Fat 45g/Carbs 8g/ Fiber 0g/ Calories 1236

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon very finely ground coffee (or espresso powder)
• 2 teaspoons packed light brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 pounds pork tenderloin, fat trimmed off

Directions

• Combine the coffee, brown sugar, spices and salt in a small bowl. Add the olive oil and mix until combined. Rub the pork coat completely with the spices. Let it marinade for at least 30 minutes in the fridge.
• Heat oven to 400 F (204 C). Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil and spray with non stick cooking spray. Place the tenderloin on the prepared baking sheet, then roast for 25- 30 minutes, or until they reach 145 F (62 C) at the center. Remove from the oven and let the pork rest for 5 minutes.

For time:
Row 1000 Meters
20 Pull ups
25 Box jumps 24″(20″)
30 Shoulder to overhead 95#(65)
40 Bar facing burpees
30 Shoulder to overhead 95#(65#)
25 Box jumps 24″(20″)
20 Pull ups
Run 800 Meters

Post times to comments and BTWB

Keep your eye on the prize By Courtney Shepherd

The snatch has quite a bit of technique to it. . . so many things to think about. Feet, grip, shoulders, pull the bar close, shrug and pull under. . . all the things. I want to talk about just one thing. One piece amongst all the others. While it may seem small, it can have a big effect on the set up, the execution, and the receiving position of the snatch. 

Where do you look in the snatch? 

Ideally we would want to find a point on the horizon (roughly straight ahead) and maintain visual contact with that same point in the set up, throughout the execution, and in the receiving position. A fault in where we look is in looking in multiple places. It starts with looking down and as the movement is executed our gaze changes as the position of our torso changes. In the receiving position, we finish looking straight ahead. 

In the video Jared does a great job of showing a snatch with maintained visual contact and another snatch with a change in gaze with change in position. Keep in mind Jared is demoing with an empty barbell. But in the video, if you watch his feet, you can see when his visual contact stays in the same place, so do his feet. When his visual contact changes, he jumps back in the landing. 

Keeping visual contact with the same spot throughout helps keep us balanced and moving in the same plane. Changing where we look changes the plane our body moves in, for Jared this created a hop backwards to finish the lift. Hopping backwards is not the worst thing and as you can see, Jared was still successful in the lift. But just imagine adding more weight. The greater the load makes small inefficiencies become more pronounced and punishing. 

When you get set up, find something to look at keep your eye on that prize for the whole movement. 

As many rounds as possible in 25:00 of:
10 Power cleans 135#(95#)
Run 400 meters

Post scores to BTWB

Yesterday was the first day of a Smolov Jr. back squat cycle we will be doing for the next 3 weeks.  I’m going to give you the outline of the cycle and the days we will be squatting so you can plan ahead if you intend to follow the cycle strictly.

The cycle calls for squatting 4 days a week; Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday.  So for the next 3 weeks we will squat 4x a week on the days listed above.  Below are the sets, reps, and percentages we will use. 

You can see from the above chart that the percentages are the same from week to week, but you add weight based on how you did or felt from the previous week.  If you were very sore from any of the days, then it would be wise to not add weight and just do the same weights you did the previous week.  If you felt like you had more in the tank and you didn’t have any issues walking, then add 5 – 10#.  If you get sore over the weekends and it interrupts your weekend fun, then scale the sets, reps and weight.  

If you miss a day don’t worry about making it up in class the next squatting day.  Just stick to what the class has programmed.  You will get the opportunity to squat plenty and don’t need to worry about making up days you missed.  Consistency is the way to see the best results from the cycle and now that you know the schedule, hopefully you’ll be able to come in as often as you want.

This program calls for 4 days a week of squatting over 70% of your one rep max.  You do not need to do additional squatting or below parallel work during the 3 week cycle.  This means no extra below parallel during open gym.  At the end of the day, you are all adults and can make your own choices, but you will be squatting enough in class for the next 3 weeks, that any additional snatching, wall balls, or any other below parallel work, could lead to over-training or worse, injury. 

After each lifting session, we will also have a workout programmed similar to what we did yesterday.  The focus is the squatting, but I’m also adding in the workouts to get your heart rates up and give you a little burner after squatting.  Some of the workouts will be EMOM style and some AMRAP style.  

If you have any questions or comments, please email me at eric@crossfitverve.com