CrossFit Verve will be starting the second kids session starting July 21st. We will be building on the movements that the kids learned in the first session. Also, movements from the first session will be reviewed and perfected as they are the basis to safe and effective movements. The first session was met with great success with eleven kids participating for six weeks. Kids and parents alike enjoyed the fun. Here is some of the feedback from the first session: “The kids demo the movements they learned that day and make up their own workouts at home” “____ has lost weight and gained more self-confidence.”
Session 2 will run for six weeks on Saturdays at 1:30pm starting July 21st and ending August 25th. Kids will range from 5 to 12 years old. We have made a few minor tweaks and adjustments, including class time will be 45 minutes long. The class set up will consist of a warm up, skillz, the “main event”, and of course a game!
The Kids program is not just a “scaled” down version of CrossFit for adults. It combines, gymnastics, bodyweight calisthenics, and weightlifting elements without weight. If you are interested, you can purchase your Kids pass here. We also offer a two kiddo pass at a discounted rate.
Sunday was a whirlwind of the unknown for the 2012 Reebok CrossFit Games athletes. The individual competitors faced “The Double Banger” which involved a series of sled weights to advance between double under stations, in which Matt excelled. Then the afternoon finale actually consisted of three workouts all back to back–>”Elizabeth,” Isabel,” and the classic “Fran.” Matt finishes the 2012 CrossFit Games in 2nd place overall!
Matt has worked incredibly hard, competing in the Games for 5 years running. His continued dedication to perfection and commitment to the Sport of Fitness never fails to inspire those around him. He is a humble, down to earth, goofy guy who loves the community of CrossFit and has sacrificed so much in his pursuit of the Games podium.
Well, all we can say is thank you Matt for being the genuine, 2nd Fittest Man on Earth and sharing that with each and everyone you meet! We are so proud of you Matt!
Addie will be competing in her last event at 11am MST in the Master’s arena, and is doing great!
Jim had a strong showing in the Master’s 50-54 division. After five events, Jim found himself in 16th place and looked awesome. We are very proud of him.
Matt on a tight rope
Matt is continuing to shine at the CrossFit World Games. After a first place finish in the Rope climb/sled push event, he finished the day with a third place in the chipper. Matt has secured himself into second place overall! No one knows what Sunday will bring, but Matt will be ready.
The final two men’s events will be at 1:00pm and 3:45pm MST
After another day of competition, Matt sits in 4th place overall! With a solid performance in the triathlon, obstacle course, and four events today; Matt finds himself in the hunt for a podium finish. Lets keep the momentum going. You can follow updates on Twitter and Facebook @CrossFitVerve. We are trying to update any news as soon as it happens, but sometimes technology fails us. We will keep trying… Promise!
Jim will be going at 10:20am and 4:45pm MST
Matt will be going at 2:20pm, 5:40pm and 8:20pm MST
Last week we left off with the bar having just passed the knees, and the lift-off completed. Let’s review our body positioning at this point: Weight should be on the heels. Shins should be at vertical. Shoulders should be out over, in front of the bar. In this position, you should feel hamstring tension. If you don’t, check your shins. Are they at vertical? Or are your knees too bent?
From here, it’s all about the hips. Your hips begin to straighten in accelerated fashion until we reach what is sometimes referred to as the point of explosion. When we explode, the knees come forward, or re-bend, as it were (this is the double knee-bend), and the chest rises to vertical. This motion of the knees coming forward in the Olympic lifts is also referred to as the scoop. However, when we teach this movement, we tell you to jump. Why? Because when we jump, we complete the entire motion I just described, naturally, without having to think about it (not having to think hard makes my life much more enjoyable, btw). In any case, the knees scoop forward, changing the direction that the hips will move. How so, and why is this important?
Just before the jump
Well, let’s think about the position of the hips before the scoop. They are back. To simply extend the hips would mean that we would thrust them forward, just like we would with a kettlebell swing. What effect would that have on the bar? As you can imagine, this would send the momentum of the bar far forward, making it swing away from the body, and making it more difficult to catch over the head. So, by “jumping”, the hips drop under the shoulders and drive vertically. This will positively affect bar trajectory. As you extend, the glutes and quads should contract, and this contraction should be punctuated with an aggressive shrug. The second pull ends with the shrug. Important note: the arms are still straight when the shoulders shrug.
Let’s review. We have a solid starting snatch deadlift position, weight centered on the middle of the foot, shoulders over the bar, hips down. We keep this torso angle as we pull our knees back, and extend our hamstrings. After the bar passes the knees, we accelerate, jump powerfully (knees coming forward, chest rising to vertical), and shrug violently. The heavy lifting has now been completed. Whatever upward momentum we could muster on the bar has been given. Now… we must get under the bar. This is third pull, to be discussed next week….
The World Games will start up again today. Jim, Addie, and Matt will be competing through the weekend.
There will be a spectator cast all day, click here
There will be video from ESPN 3 starting at 3pm. Click here
Fernanda participating in the "WOD for Celena" the fallen DPD officer.
Summer is the time for hiking, trips and big competitions in California! Here are some easy treats to travel with when good food is hard to come by.
I made nine snacks of varying blocks per snack from 3 blocks to 2 blocks and 1 blocks. I measured them out and put them in zip locks to make for easy travel. The total cost per baggie was $2.70 for the 3 block snacks, $1.80 for the 2 blockers and $0.90 for the 1 blockers. Pretty cheap when compared to store bought varieties, so well worth the 10 minutes it takes to measure everything out.
You’ll need a sharpie, a scale and some sandwich bags
Ingredients:
Jerky
Dried Mango (no sugar added)
Pistachios
You can put a variety of things in these snack packs. I actually bought a container of dried peaches as well to make more, so be creative and use ingredients you love.
Block counts for each of the ingredients:
Jerky: On this particular brand the back said 12g of P for 1 oz of product. There is also some carbs and some fat in the Jerky. I considered this negligible and moved on as there are carbs and fat in meat as well. Here is how I figured out the blocks. If you buy the same jerky (World Kitchen’s Old Fashion at Sunflower market) you can just use my math and be done with it.
12g of Protein for 1 oz of jerky,
1 oz weight on the scale is 28 grams
I need 3 different portion sizes, 3blocks, 2 blocks and 1block.
Those come out to:
3blocks is 21gm of P
2blocks is 14gm of P
1block is 7gm of P
To figure this out I continue to cut the portion size until I have a manageable number. I find this is the easiest way. A manageable number would be one that divides into 7 or close to as 1block of P = 7gms. So half of a serving size from this jerky is 6 gms of protein (that’s pretty close, but I’m a lunatic so I break it down twice more to get 3.5gms (we’re talking weight here) is 1.5gms of P). Now I do the math to get to 21, 14 and 7 grams of P. Please be aware we are using grams in two ways here. One as a physical weight on the scale and one as how much protein is contained in that weight on the scale.
To get 3 blocks of protein put 49gms of P on the scale, to get 2 blocks you put 35gms on the scale and to get 1 block you put 17.5gms on the scale. Confused yet?
Next the mangos, I’ll need:
3blocks is 27gm of C
2blocks is 18gm of C
1block is 9gm of C
The packages states 24gms of C in 1oz. I do as I did for the protein and break it in halves until the number is manageable and divisible by 9. That ends up being 3gms of C in 1/8 of an oz (If you are using grams on your scale it’s 3.5gms weight).
To get 3 blocks of carbohydrates put 31gms of C on the scale, to get 2 blocks you put 23gms on the scale and to get 1 block you put 11.5gms on the scale.
Next the Pistachios: I found this conversion on the web 3 nuts = 1Block of Fat so…
To get 3 blocks of fat = 9 nuts, to get 2 blocks = 6 nuts and to get 1 block = 3 nuts.
Put them in baggies, label them and you’re ready to go.
Here is a quick reference as the above may be confusing.
3Block snack equals 49grams(weight on scale) of Jerky, 31 grams (weight on scale) of mango and 9 nuts
2Block snack equals 35grams(weight on scale) of Jerky, 23 grams (weight on scale) of mango and 6 nuts
1Block snack equals 17.5grams(weight on scale) of Jerky, 11.5 grams (weight on scale) of mango and 3 nuts
Leslie and Liz, doing their part to represent at the Celena Hollis WOD on a beautiful afternoon.
Introducing Sara Weisbart and the All New Nutrition Program
Starting the beginning of August, Verve will be kicking off a brand new Nutrition Program! The program goal is to assist our members and community in choosing a diet of the correct quantity of real foods in order to achieve optimal health and happiness. In the coming weeks I will be announcing detailed information and there will be a one-hour information session following the July Nutrition Workshop. However, I would first like to formally introduce myself as I will be developing and running this program as well as providing members with personalized nutrition coaching.
My first Crossfit workout was Fight Gone Bad on New Years day of 2009. Verve hosted a “Dress to Impress” version of Fight Gone Bad to ring in the New Year and I remember rowing for the first time in a floor length gown… It was awesome! Then in May 2009 I became an official member of Verve. At that time, when there was only a small group of us, when you were ready to dial in on your nutrition, you got a one on one “Nutrition Talk” with Cherie. During this hour meeting Cherie outlined the Zone diet and other nutritional rules to follow. How lucky we were to get Cherie all to ourselves! But there was a kicker…following the talk, Cherie expected a 30-day strict Zone commitment. Yikes! I got through it though and saw amazing results. Then about a week after my 30 days were up, Verve announced its first ever Paleo Challenge. So I stuck with it and continued to Zone this time sticking to only Paleo foods. I continued to see amazing changes in my body and performance in the gym. Since then I have continued to follow a Paleo/Zone diet. I have also participated in several competitions throughout the past 3 years and last summer I received my Crossfit Level One Certificate.
Outside of the gym, I am a Registered Nurse and got my BSN at University of Northern Colorado. I am currently working at University of Colorado Hospital on the Inpatient Research floor. It is here that I have come to realize how important nutrition really is. About 30-50% of the patients we admit come in as participants in various research studies. A majority of the research that we see are metabolic-related. With access to new and cutting edge research involving nutrition and its effects on the human body, I will be able to bring helpful tips and knowledge to our community. The rest of our beds are filled with overflow hospital patients, mostly consisting of chronically ill cardiac and internal medicine patients. An overwhelming majority of these patients suffer primarily from obesity-related diseases. After taking care of so many patients that are chronically ill due to poor dietary and lifestyle habits, I have truly seen the impact that food has on our bodies. The food choices that we make can have just as much negative impact on our bodies over time as heavy alcohol consumption and cigarette smoking. However, even with the knowledge that diseases, such as insulin resistant diabetes, are caused by dietary choices, the medical community still has a lack of focus on diet and nutritional education. It is with this knowledge that I have truly embraced Paleo/Zone as a permanent lifestyle and want to dedicate my time to bringing this knowledge to others. I realize now that I choose to eat Paleo/Zone not just to look good naked or PR in the gym. I eat Paleo/Zone to live a life free of disease. I eat Paleo/Zone to nurture my “terrain” and treat my body with care. So that I may live a long life filled with good health, fitness, and joy.
It is also with this knowledge that I have created the Nutrition Program. My passion and goal is to assist our members and community in choosing Paleo/Zone as a lifestyle so that you may also live a life filled with good health, fitness, and joy. I am very excited and can’t wait to get started, it’s going to be awesome! The program in it’s entirety will be introduced over the next couple of weeks and sign-up will open on July 25th, following the Nutrition Workshop.
Stay tuned for more information… let’s be the catalyst for change in Denver!
For this workout, there are 4 stations; prowler, deadlift, push press, and box jump. The pace for rotation is set by the time it takes to complete a prowler push. When that’s completed, all stations rotate. The sum of all the reps completed by team members is the team’s score.
From one family pic yesterday, to another today. Great job Verve teams!
This Sunday July 8 at noon, CrossFit gyms from across Colorado, along with cops from police departments and firefighters from the metro Denver area will be grouping up to do a brutal work out to benefit the family of slain Denver Police Officer Celena Hollis. Cash donations will be accepted. The WOD will be at the soccer fields south of the pavilion at City Park. Parking is at East High School or the Esplanade farmer’s market.
For this workout, you must pass through a squat clean before reaching the overhead position. A clean & jerk or a clean & thruster would achieve this task.
