With a partner

3 Rounds for time:
Run 400 meters together
21 Synchronized chest to bar pull-ups
12 Synchronized thrusters 135#(95#)

*Synchro for the pull-ups is chest hitting the bar at the same time. Synchro for the thrusters is getting below parallel at the same time and locked out overhead at the same time.

Post to BTWB

It’s never too early to start planning your Thanksgiving!

BACON WRAPPED TURKEY 

Ingredients

• 12 to 14 pound turkey
• 1 onion, coarsely chopped
• 2 medium carrots, sliced
• 1 head garlic, halved horizontally
• Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
• 1 pound sliced bacon
• 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 4 cups turkey stock, preferably homemade

Instructions

• Place a large sheet of parchment paper on a work surface. Arrange half of the bacon in strips, side to side to form a square. To form a lattice, working from the left side of the square, fold back every other strip of bacon the width of a slice. Lay a new slice of bacon over the unfolded strips and return the folded bacon to the original position.
• Continue weaving the remaining bacon in the same manner, until you have a woven square. Slide the parchment onto a baking sheet and transfer to the freezer for 10 minutes, until the bacon is firm.
• Place the turkey on a cutting board and tie the legs together.
• Remove the bacon from the freezer and working quickly, carefully lift it from the parchment. Arrange the bacon square so that the 4 corners are at the neck, the cavity and both wings. Tuck the bacon around the bird, covering the breast and legs. Season with pepper.
• Place the turkey onto a roasting rack set in a roasting pan and scatter the vegetables, neck and giblets all around. Add 3 cups of water to the pan. Loosely cover the turkey with foil and roast for 1 ½ hours, adding water to keep the vegetables moist. Remove the foil and roast until in instant-read thermometer inserted in the thigh registers 165°, about 1 ½ hours longer.
• Carefully transfer the turkey to a cutting board while you make the gravy. Strain the pan juices into a heat-proof cup and spoon 4 tablespoons of the fat into a large saucepan. Discard the remaining fat.
• Whisk the flour into the fat and cook over moderately high heat until bubbling and nutty, about 4 minutes. Add the turkey stock and defatted pan juices and bring to a boil. Simmer over moderate heat until thickened, about 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
• Carve the turkey and serve with the gravy.

3 Rounds for time:
25 Sumo deadlift high pull, 75#(55#)
50 Sit-ups
100′ Single arm kettlebell front rack walk, left, 53#(35#)
100′ Single arm kettlebell front rack walk, right, 53#(35#)
100 Double unders

Post times to comments and BTWB

Nobody Cares What You’re Good At. . . By Jason Fernandez of CrossFit Rife

When I played high school basketball I was a scorer. I put a lot of time into my shot and it was what most people worried about the most when they played me.

“Just don’t leave him open!”

Going into my junior and senior year colleges began to recruit me pretty heavily and playing in college was becoming a reality.

This meant more tournaments and camps during the summers to showcase my skills.

One day I was sitting down with a coach I had known for a long time who was now at the college level.

He was very direct. He said “Nobody cares if you can score, every kid at these camps can score or else they wouldn’t be there”.

He then went on to explain to me how college coaches scout at these camps when they go and watch 150 kids play.

“They will watch everything you do for about two full series, and then they move on to the next kid. Don’t ever take a play off and do ALL OF THE LITTLE THINGS that no-one else wants to do.”

I took his advice very seriously.

I went on to be the MVP of that camp and win virtually every award they gave out that year. (It was the best week of basketball I have ever played in my life)

But here’s the interesting part:

None of the coaches that called me after that camp said anything about how many points I scored. NOT ONE.

One coach told me he wanted me because in five days and dozens of games (3 on 3 and 5 on 5) I never lost a face off.

At this camp they didn’t do jump balls to determine who got the first possession, or any possession. They faced off two guys and gave a count, when the ball bounced on that count it was fair game.

I never lost.

I got recruited because I was good at something that isn’t even a part of an actual basketball game!!!

Ever since then I’ve always judged myself by how I do things that I don’t like to do or that I’m not good at.

My peers, my subordinates and bosses have all always judged me by they way I did the little things, my weaknesses.

Why? Because doing what you are good at is easy!! Hell you are supposed to be good at that stuff.

I’ve had a lot of accurate criticism of my performance as an athlete and a professional over the years.

They almost always revolve around things that I avoided doing because I didn’t like them.

It’s how I evaluate people, It’s how you evaluate people. It’s how everyone evaluates people.

What event were people most impressed by when Mat Fraser won the Games two years ago? THIS ONE. Because nobody expected him to. He wasn’t good at sprinting in the past.

We don’t have to spend all of our time shoring up our weaknesses and making them strengths.

But we do need to become competent at the things we are bad at.

Not good at nutrition, work at it.

Not good at gymnastics, work at it.

Not good at receiving criticism, or giving it, work at it.

Not good at showing up on time, work at it.

It’s how people judge you, whether you like it or not.

Because nobody cares what we are good at, they already know that about us.

Fern

For time:
20 L-pull-ups
30 Ring dips
40 Toes to bar
50 Burpees
60 Kettlebell swings 53#(35#)
70(50) Calorie row

Post time to BTWB

I have a couple of ideas for blog posts that will require help from Verve members.  

First, we’d like to showcase some of our members businesses like we’ve done in the past.  If you have a business that you’d like to introduce and promote to Verve members, we’d love to feature your business on the Verve blog.  All you have to do is a send an email to eric@crossfitverve.com with a short write up about your business and a picture you’d like to use.  We have a lot of members that work out a certain times each day and therefore may not have a chance to interact with members that work out a different times, so the blog will be a way for members to learn about you and your business.

The second idea is to feature stories about Verve members on the blog.  The blog wouldn’t say who the story is about, but rather Verve members would guess who the story is about by posting in the comments section.  The members who guess correctly, will be entered into a drawing for gift cards or products we sell in the retail room.

The stories can be about anything that happened to you, whether funny or amazing.  Try and leave out details that would give away who you are so that our members can try and piece together who the blog is about and then guess.  If you have a story that you’d like to have featured, you can email Eric at the address above.

If you are interested in either of the two blog post ideas, send them my way and I’ll post them on upcoming Tuesday blogs.

On a clock that runs for 25:00:

0:00-10:00
Run 1 mile
with time remaining
Attempt “Grace” – 30 clean and jerks, 135#(95#)

10:00-12:00 Rest

12:00-19:00
Run 800 meters
Max rep cluster, 135#(95#)

19:00-21:00 Rest

21:00-25:00
Run 400 meters
Max rep power clean, 135#(95#)

Post times to comments and BTWB

It’s almost party time!!!

We are getting ready to celebrate Verve being in business for 10 years. This is not an accomplishment that happens without you!! You have kept Verve in business for 10 years and we want to celebrate, say thank you, and enjoy each other’s company not drenched in sweat.

This Saturday, October 6th it’s party time. The celebration will be going down at Verve from 7pm-11pm. This is a FANCY event – so get dressed up!! We see each other in our sweaty workout clothes all the time; let’s enjoy adulting in our finest attire! Bring your significant other – but, please, leave the kids at home.

We will have music and dancing. We will have corn hole. We will have drinks (alcoholic and non) and snacks. We will have an awesome photo wall complete with balloon arch to relive some amazing prom style poses. We will have raffle prizes and giveaways. AND. . . we are working on getting you folks some karaoke.

Please let us know you are coming, you can RSVP in the comments of this post or here is the link to the FB event page. Please help us celebrate such a big landmark in Verve’s history.

For time:
400m Farmer Carry

Then, 5 rounds:
12 Deadlift, 185#(125#)
10 Bar facing burpees

400m Farmer Carry

Post times to comments and BTWB

Take 12 minutes to find 5 rep max bench press

Rest 3 minutes

Then, in teams of 2, as many rounds and reps as possible in 12 minutes of:
2 Rope climbs
15(12) Calorie assault bike

*Partner 1 does the 2 rope climbs and bikes 15(12) calories, then partner 2 does 2 rope climbs and 15(12) calories. Continue in this fashion for 12:00.

Post scores to BTWB

LOW CARB SUGAR FREE KETO BLUEBERRY MUFFINS WITH ALMOND FLOUR by Food Faith Fitness

Ingredients

• 3 Cups Almond flour (300g) 
• 4 Tbsp Coconut flour, packed (32g)
• 1 Tbsp Baking powder
• 1 tsp Sea salt
• 1 tsp Baking soda
• 3/4 Cup Monkfruit (or granulated sweetener of choice)
• 7 Tbsp Coconut oil, melted
• 3 Large Eggs, at room temperature (this is key)
• 1/2 Cup Unsweetened applesauce
• 2 tsp Vanilla extract
• 2/3 Cup Fresh blueberries, (105g) 

Instructions

• Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and spray a muffin pan with oil spray. ***READ NOTES
• In a medium bowl, mix together the almond flour, coconut flour, baking powder, salt and baking soda. Set aside.
• In a large bowl, using an electric hand mixer, beat together the monkfruit, coconut oil, eggs, applesauce and vanilla until well blended.
• Stir in the almond flour mixture, along with the blueberries until well combined. Let the batter stand for 5 minutes so the coconut flour can begin to absorb the moisture.
• Divide by 12 muffin cavities (I like using a big ice cream scoop so that the muffins cook up with really domed tops!) and bake until very golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 24-25 minutes.
• Let cool for 15 minutes. Then, gently run a knife around the edges of each muffin to loosen them. Then, let cool COMPLETELY in the pan before trying to take them out.
• DEVOUR!

5 Rounds for time:
50 Double Unders
200m Run
20(15) Calorie assault bike or row
Rest 3 minutes between rounds

Post times to comments and BTWB

During warm-ups I am a fan of using the good ole’ bear crawl. I feel like my usage of the bear crawl is sometimes met with moans or groans. . . and this feeling that I am torturing Verve members in attendance. So I want to take a moment and share some info about the bear crawl in hopes that I can convince you that I make you bear crawl because I care. 

The following info can be found by clicking here, taking you to an article titled “Why Bear Crawls Are All the Rage Right Now”. Seriously, that’s the title of the article. 

Bear Crawls Build Strength

Think of the Bear Crawl as a moving Plank. It works your core muscles just like the Plank, but since you’re moving, it engages more muscles and forces your core to work harder to keep you stable. “The Bear Crawl strengthens your core and works your entire body, especially your shoulders, arms and glutes,” DeCillis says.

Bear Crawls Increase Mobility

DeCillis adds that the Bear Crawl improves hip mobility. When you crawl, your hips go from fully flexed to fully extended, taking the joint through its entire range of motion. This makes it a perfect warm-up drill—plus it gets your heart pumping and wakes up your central nervous system.

Bear Crawls Improve Conditioning

The Bear Crawl is a full-body movement, so it’s a no-brainer to use as a conditioning tool. It increases your muscular endurance and improves your overall conditioning base.

Bear Crawls are Versatile

“I often use the Bear Crawl especially with youth athletes and people who are not yet ready to be loaded with resistance exercises,” DeCillis says. Once you have sufficient strength, you can try more challenging variations, like moving laterally or backward. To further increase the challenge, perform the move wearing a weight vest or crawl as fast as possible over a set distance.

So, what’s the moral of the story here? Bear crawls are used for fitness, not torture. . . even if it feels the other way around. 

Every 4:00 x 5 rounds:
4 Back squats

Post weights to BTWB

Many of use have been using Beyond the Whiteboard to track our workouts, give each other virtual high fives for a job well done or talk smack, and to see how our friends did on a workout.  Besides being an easy way to track our workouts BTWB also has some great content on it’s site.  

Pat Sherwood, a well known CrossFit personality, former Navy SEAL, and Level 4 coach wrote an article in 2015 for BTWB about his experiences with CrossFit and some of the lessons he has learned over his many years of doing CrossFit.  Below are a few of the highlights from the article.  For the full read, click HERE.

Take training seriously, but don’t take yourself too seriously. Have more fun. When you are new, every day seems like it’s raining PRs. That will eventually slow down. Always strive to improve, but learn to enjoy going to the gym, working hard and going home … regardless of how the workout went.

When it comes to getting fit, you can’t beat the classics: couplets, triplets, chippers, EMOMs, heavy lifting, gymnastics, running, etc. I’ve been very lucky to interview and spend a lot of time with the fittest people in our community. I will let the cat out of the bag: There is no secret training. Don’t cherry-pick workouts. Work your weaknesses. Train with variance. You will improve.

Crawl. Walk. Run. Master the basics. These days people see the CrossFit Games and they want top-level lifts and times immediately. That’s not the way it works. Those men and women have put in years of work to be able to do what they do. You will have to do the same. Don’t be in a rush to advance. Do not blow off the fundamentals only to develop bad habits you will one day need to break.

Help others on their journey. Remember when you first picked up a barbell or tried a muscle-up? Remember when you could not kip or even do a single pull-up? Remember when proper nutrition seemed overwhelming and confusing? Do you remember the person who did not look down on you for being inexperienced, but rather genuinely cared and helped you? Be that person.

For Time:
50(40) Calorie row
50 Ring dips
50 GHD sit-ups
50 Ring push-ups
50(40) Calorie row

Post times to comments and BTWB

Who is ready to celebrate?!?!?!

Verve has been in business for 10 years. This is not an accomplishment that happens without you!! You have kept Verve in business for 10 years and we want to celebrate, say thank you, and enjoy each other’s company not drenched in sweat. 

Saturday October 6th it’s party time. The celebration will be going down at Verve from 7pm-11pm. This is a FANCY event – so get dressed up!! We see each other in our sweaty workout clothes all the time; let’s enjoy adulting in our finest attire! Bring your significant other – but, please, leave the kids at home.

We will have music and dancing. We will have corn hole. We will have drinks (alcoholic and non) and snacks. We will have an awesome photo wall complete with balloon arch to relive some amazing prom style poses. We will have raffle prizes and giveaways. AND. . . we are working on getting you folks some karaoke. 

Please let us know you are coming, you can RSVP in the comments of this post or here is the link to the FB event page. Please help us celebrate such a big landmark in Verve’s history.

“Johnson”

Complete as many rounds and reps as possible in 20 minutes of:
9 Deadlifts, 245#(165#)
8 Muscle-ups
9 Squat cleans, 155#(105#)

Post rounds and reps to comments and BTWB