Weighted Pull Up
1-1-1-1-1-1-1
Weighted Push Up
1-1-1-1-1-1-1

Post Weights to BTWB.

How often do you take rest days?  How about a rest/recovery week where you don’t do anything but rest and repair your body?  I know I’m guilty of not doing  this.  I’ve been making a more concerned effort to mobilize everyday but there are days when I forget or am simply consumed with other activities and don’t have the time.  We’ve been putting the post WOD mobility on the white board so if for some reason we run long and don’t have time to do it with you, you as a class will do it.  You guys have been great about this!

In order to make the most gains you have to put the maximum effort forward, right?  Well how can you put the maximum effort forward if you’re tired or sore?  The short answer is you can’t.  Even the top athletes in the world have to take a rest day now and again to allow their bodies adequate time to repair and recover.   

I read an article that had a few good points regarding recovery and things you can do to assist outside of actually taking rest days.  Here are the takeaways that I felt are relevant to use as CrossFit athletes:

Ensure adequate glycogen stores and take branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) pre-competition to decrease muscle damage and optimize energy stores.

Take BCAAs or at least 20 grams of whey protein and a high-quality carb supplement(coconut water) to support recovery.

Avoid alcohol and NSAID pain killers post-competition because both will significantly delay recovery and inhibit tissue healing in the long run.

Take a few grams of fish oil after competition because it has also been found to reduce muscle soreness after intense training.

As many rounds as possible in 15 Minutes: 

 

Lots of folks have been complaining of damaged hands lately, so here is a reminder of how to protect your digits:

Tearing your hands hurts and can take weeks to recover. So how the heck do you prevent hand tears? Our recommendation is to build up tissue tolerance and improve grip without the aid of tape. However, this takes time so here is our professional tip of the day: make reusable tape gloves that will save your hands during high rep pull-up WOD’s.

First, start with a piece of tape that is more than double the length of your hand. Fold it in half lengthwise. Then, make a bend in it and keep the two sides as close as possible.

     

Next, take the roll of tape and tape from the bend at the top (the finger hole) all the way to the bottom and continue halfway up the back side. You’ll want two strips for each hand, which you’ll secure with a section of tape around the wrist and a section around the palm.

     

There you have it – when you’re done with your 30 minutes of pull-ups you can unwrap the wrist and palm and save the two finger strips. These are nearly as good as gymnast straps and can be used in your next marathon pull-up WOD. Another good idea (though slightly more expensive) is to get yourself a dremel tool. A link to one on Amazon can be found here (for dogs and CrossFitters). Hope this helps. 

Deadlift
5-5-5-5-5

Then
Every minute on the minute for 5 minutes
5 deadlifts @ 75%

Post weights to BTWB.

Do you like creeps?  How about jerks?  Not the kind that involve getting weight overhead, I mean legit jerks?  Whenever you ask someone what they love most about CrossFit the most common answer is the community, right?  You know why?  It’s because we don’t have the normal creeps and jerks that most gyms might have.  We strive to create a caring and positive environment for our athletes.  We joke around and have fun but the end goal is make sure you get a great workout in a safe environment where you learn the proper ways to move.

The CrossFit Journal had an amazing article that I not only thought was a funny, entertaining read with great quotes from well known CrossFit personalities, but also the message was important.

Your trainers are always researching new ways to warm up, better ways to give you coaching tips, different tricks for mobility.  The goal is to make all our athletes better movers and more proficient at day to day activities.  We love that you are receptive to our coaching and scaling.  The athletes at Verve are all receptive to being trained, that’s why you’re here.  There was a great quote in the article that I’ll paraphrase, you can run 400 meters and deadlift anywhere, you come to Verve because you want to be better movers and you love the environment.  How many new friends have you made since you’ve been a member at Verve?  That’s my point, we have a sort of barrier that keeps the right people coming back and weeds out the wrong ones if they decide to come through the door.

I highly recommend clicking HERE and reading the article.  I like the title of the article too.  You’ll see when you click to read.  

“Nancy”

Five rounds for time:
400 Meter run
15 Overhead squats (95#/65#)

Post times to comments and BTWB.

What’s Your Impingement? ~ Luke Palmisano

If you have tight shoulders, raise your hand. Higher. Now lock out your elbow. Now wave furiously. Now hop on one foot. Kidding. Just wave passively. Tight shoulders are one of the most common problem areas we deal with in our gym. A lot of times, we call this “impingement.” This is a common, blanket term that just seems to make sense when we say it. But what does it really mean?

First of all, if you believe you have some kind of shoulder impingement going on, go see a physical therapist, or someone who truly knows what they’re talking about, and will give you an actual diagnosis, not some speculation. Minor impingement leads to major impingement, which leads to rehabilitation or surgery. Secondly, let’s consider our shoulder anatomy.

Let’s focus on the rotator cuff (attached to the supraspinatus) and the scapula. With impingement, the rotator cuff, along with the muscles surrounding the scapula, are not holding the top of humerus (the humeral head) into the shoulder joint. As a result, the humeral head gets pushed up, thereby pinching the subacromial space against the acromion, or the coracoid. We want the head of the humerus to sit firmly, safely, in the middle the joint. So, we can define impingement as being when the tendons and bones in and around the shoulder are restricted in their ability to move, by either compression forces or friction forces. We get impingement by either bad positioning because of laziness, or bad positioning because of inability to gain good positioning (you is a stiff person). Their are three basic kinds of impingement:

1. Coracoid Impingement
2. Acromial Impingement
3. Internal Impingement (Thrower’s Impingement)

Max Effort Skill Day
3 Min Max Double Unders
3 Min Max Pistols
3 Min Max Muscle Ups
3 Min Max Burpees
3 Min Max Rope Climbs

There will be 5 stations.  3 minutes of work at each station followed by 2 minutes of rest/recovery.

Post reps to BTWB.

So we’ve had a lot of request for a few of the dishes that were brought in and sampled during the most recent Paleo Pot Luck.  Here is the recipe and cooking instructions for the carnitas that Danni Brooks prepared and brought in.  She actually used a slow cooker instead of the stove top to cook the pork.  After about 8 hours in the slow cooker she carmelized the the pork on the stove top.  Any questions ask in the comments and we’ll respond.

Ingredients:

3-4 lbs. pork shoulder, boneless or bone-in
1/2 cup lime juice
1/2 cup lemon juice
1 heaping (!) tablespoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1/2 tablespoon salt
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Directions:

1. Cut the pork shoulder into a few large chunks. You don’t want them bite-sized; I make mine about 3-4 inches.

2. Mix cumin, garlic powder, salt, coriander, black pepper, and cayenne together in a small bowl. Place the pork chunks in a plastic container with a lid or a Ziploc bag. Pour in the spice blend, then toss the bag vigorously until the chunks are completely coated on all sides.

3. Place the pork in a large, deep pan. Pour the lime and lemon juice into the bottom, then add water to just cover the meat.

4. Turn heat to high and bring the water to a rip-roaring boil. You want big bubbles! When it’s rolling, turn the heat to a simmer. Keep the pan uncovered. You want it bubble a fair amount, but not be a roiling boil.  While it’s cooking, it will look like uninspired soup. Do not be discouraged!Essentially, you’re waiting for the water to evaporate from the pan, but while the water is evaporating, the powerful acidic qualities of the lime and lemon juice are tenderizing the meat. Yay, science!

5. At about the 2-hour mark, check the pot. The water should be much lower and maybe even almost gone. Now things get interesting… allow all the water to cook out of the pan and watch as the meat magically fries and carmelizes. It is a thing of beauty. But seriously, you need to watch it at this point.

6. Carefully turn the hunks of meat – without shredding them – to brown all sides, then remove the hunks  to a plate and let them rest for 5 minutes before eating. If you’re into this sort of thing, you can save the pork fat from the bottom of the pan in a glass jar and use it for other cooking projects.

Reminder that the first rowing clinic with Maddie is Thursday morning at 5:30 am.  Please sign up on MBO.   

For Time:
25 Pull ups
50 Deadlift 135#(95#)
50 Push ups
50 Box Jumps 24″(20″)
50 Floor Wipers (Hold PVC or Barbell and touch both opposite side with foot)
50 Clean and Press with KB 36#(24#) (25 on each side)
25 Pull ups

Post time to BTWB.

As if you needed more reasons to come into Verve and workout, did you know that working out at least 15 minutes a day leads to acting more enthusiastic and excited?  

Nearly 200 students at Penn State University kept journals logging any physical activity of over 15 minutes a day and how they responded emotionally.  The active students reported high energy emotions, better sleep, and overall better attitudes than their less active peers.  Think about days when things come up and you can’t make it in for a workout.  You feel significantly better on days when you are able to get in for a workout.  

Researches found that the mood enhancement following exercise leads to continually wanting to work out more often.  The subjects in the Penn State study showed significant mood enhancement on the days that they worked out and showed the workouts becoming habit forming due to the positive mental results the students experienced.  Seeing that most of us get into Verve almost everyday, we clearly experience similar results.

We have some new clinics starting up this week.  Thursday morning Maddie will be teaching a rowing clinic at 5:30 AM.  She will also be running another clinic at 12:00 PM on Sunday afternoon.  Please sign up on MBO and come and get your learn on.

20 Rep Back Squat @ 60% of 1 RM from 4/8/2013

then

As many rounds as possible in 12 minutes of:
5 Meter handstand walk
10 Wall balls 20#(14#)
10 Toes to bar

Ever try eating meat and nuts for breakfast?  The first thing you eat in the morning impacts how you feel all day long because the nutrients produce a variety of effects such as:

Neurotransmitter production for optimal brain function and energy production.
Hormone modulation to keep you energized but calm.
Blood sugar regulation so you feel satisfied and prevent food cravings.
Protein synthesis and tissue repair for best results in the gym.

The way to make this work is to switch up the type of meat you eat often so it doesn’t become too repetitive.  Some of the best and easiest choices are bison, venison, lean turkey burgers, lean ground beef patties, chicken breasts, and cold water fish.  These are also the  best sources of protein and nutrients.

Two centuries ago all meat was range fed and slaughtered between 4 and 5 years of age, whereas today 99 percent of beef is grain-fed and slaughtered at 14 months leading to a much greater total fat content and a skewed omega-6 to omega-3 ratio.  That being said choose lean, organic cuts whenever possible.

Eat a variety of nuts but don’t overdue it on the nuts.  A handful is plenty as they are very energy dense.  

If you’re looking for a way to change up the eggs and bacon going the meat and nuts for breakfast may be for you.  For more information about the results from the study and the article the above information is referenced from, click here.

In teams of 4 complete the following for time:

Row 250m 
50 Partner deadlifts, 315#(225#)
50 Squat cleans, 95# (65#)
100 Kettlebell swings, 53# (36#) 
100 Box jumps, 24″ (20″)
Run 400m with weight

Each teammate completes the row.  Two people on the deadlift bar together.  Other movements are completed one person working at a time.  The team will run 400m together carrying either a med ball or sandbag, each person must carry for some portion of the run.

Post time and team to BTWB.

Only 1 class at 7:15am, see you there sunshine!  Sunday Fun Run at 8am–meet at Commons Park, 18th & Little Raven to enjoy the spring day together in fine fashion.

All WODs at Glenarm Rec Center, see directions below.

As many rounds as possible in 10 minutes:

Swim 25m
5 Muscle-ups
Swim 25m 
10 Squats
Swim 25m
10 Dips
Swim 25m
10 V-ups

Post rounds to comments and BTWB.

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Classes at 9:30am and 10:30am at the pool.  Bring your suit, towel, and goggles.  Kids open swim at 11:30am.  See you there! 

As many rounds as possible in 15 minutes of:
8 Hang Power Cleans 135#(95#)
12 Burpees
24 Double Unders

Post rounds to BTWB.

Below are some details on a fun night out.  It’s a few weeks out but I wanted to give you all plenty of notice so you can plan.  There will be a few more blog reminders but the details are below.  Mark your calendars and start spreading the word.