Three rounds for time of:

20m Handstand walk

20 Front squat, 115#/75#

Scale the handstand walk by holding a handstand against a wall and lifting a hand off the ground.  Complete 20 steps before moving on to the front squats.

Post time to comments.

Mindy getting under the bar. 

Glycemic Impact

Not all carbohydrates are created equally.  Reflect for a moment, if you will, on the now classic first sentence of "World Class Fitness in 100 Words": Eat meat and vegetables, nuts and seeds, some fruit, little starch, and no sugar.  This line written by Greg Glassman not only offers specific recommendations of what types of foods to eat, but it also prioritizes the order in which those foods should be eaten.  

Of course you know to eat meat.  It's provides the building blocks that make up your body. You also know to eat fat (nuts and seeds) because it slows the absorption of carbohydrates into the bloodstream, in addition to helping with satiety.  But what about the carbs?

Notice that the first carbohydrate listed is veggies.  Why?  Because most veggies have a relatively low glycemic load.  That's why we make veggies the priority carb.  Next we have "some fruit".  Why some fruit and not all fruit?  Because many fruits contain a massive amount of sugar and can cause insulin spikes.  Also listed is "little starch".  Notice there is another quantifier on this statement – for good reason.  Starchy foods, even in low doses, are quick to enter the bloodstream, surely causing a spike in insulin.

So what is glycemic index and how do I figure out which carbs are better choices? Well, the glycemic index simply rates carbs on how quickly the body breaks down the carbohydrate into glucose and releases it into the bloodstream.  For instance, broccoli has a very low GI, where as sugar has a very high GI.  

Here's a trick we learned along the way: to evaluate a carbohydrate's glycemic index, think about what would happen if you put the food in a bucket of water and stirred it occasionally.  For example, a piece of bread or a peeled banana would break down pretty quickly.  Now consider what would happen to broccoli or a green pepper if you put it on the water.  It would break down eventually, but it would take so much longer than higher glycemic foods.

So even if you're Zoning, you can always improve your carb choices to see improvements in performance, body composition, or mental acumen.  Prioritize and choose wisely!

Four rounds on the 7:00 minute interval:

Row 1000m

Post times to comments.

Pat Burke, scaling the wall at the 2010 CrossFit games.

Ahh July… What a crazy month.  Who's ready to attack August?  I know I am.  After coming back from California and all of our recent travels, I couldn't be happier to look ahead at some time dedicated to Verve.  August, 100% Verve, 100% of the time. 

So what's in store? 

First we are ready to have another nutrition lecture.  This will be held Saturday August 14th at 11am at the gym (after pool WOD).  You guessed it, we're going to talk about; Lean meats, vegetables, nuts and seeds, some fruit, little starch and NO SUGAr – Zone style.  This lecture will be shorter then usual (45 minutes) but we will have a longer Q&A and additional supplements portion.  Matt and I will both be at this lecture, so if you need a little one-on-one time about nutrition, this is a great opportunity.  

Potluck BBQ at the Pryors on the Sunday the 8th after the pool WOD (4pm – 7pm).  This is bound to be a blast.  You'll get the opportunity to show off your favorite Zone/Paleo recipes.  So save the date and wait for more information to be posted soon.

Fun in the sun continues with two more swimming WOD's: August 8th and 14th. These swimming WOD's are open to all CrossFitter's in the Denver area.  We've met a whole bunch of new friends during the first two WOD's and we hope to meet more.
 
New T'shirts: Some of you have been asking about these cool new t's.  We have them in and they are $20 per shirt ($15 for the tanks).  I will get them inventoried and online for sale this week.  They will only be available for purchase online.  Once they are gone, they're gone.  

New location: It's coming, really it is.  We are so excited about the opportunity to expand what we offer you amazing athletes.  As we grow we will continue to dedicate ourselves to providing quality training, as well as some new programs.  This is so exciting….

New foundations: That's right, we're bringing on a few more members off the waitlist into a Foundations Class for August, to replace some friends that are leaving us.  

In conclusion, August is bringing great things to Verve.  Many of which are still in the planning stages.  It's an exciting time for our little community.

Three rounds, 21 – 15 – 9 reps for time of:

Burpee pull-ups

Dumbell thrusters, 40#/25#

Post time to comments.

Mark pressing from retrated scapula – a nice flat surface… 

Food is a Drug

This is common sense, so there's no reason to beat around the bush: food is a drug.  Food can lower or raise your blood pressure, eliminate or add excess body fat, raise or lower cholesterol (good and bad), and increase or decrease triglyceride counts.  It can be the cause of diabetes, obesity, heart disease, hypertension, coronary artery disease, stroke, and many other potentially lethal conditions.

So with this notion of food acting as a drug in mind, wouldn't it be appropriate to take the correct dosage?  Imagine taking a bunch of medication without knowing the right dosage, the right time to take it, and what effects it will have on your body.  Sounds scary right?

Weighing and measuring food gets a bad rap.  Instead of cooking your food and serving it onto a plate, we ask that you add one simple step: cook your food, move it to the scale, and then serve it on a plate.  Whoa… that's it?  Yup – that's it!  

Stay tuned for details about our next nutrition workshop…

Week 9: Back squat 5, 5, 5+ @ 65%, 75%, 85%
Please fill in & print out your worksheet.

Then, complete as many rounds as possible in 7:00 minutes:
7 Deadlifts, 315#/205#
20m Sprint
14 One legged squats
21 Double-unders
20m Sprint

Post rounds and additional reps to comments.

Delicious fish and a quick ready to go meal on the run!  It's paleo, it's zone, it's fast and it could make Wahoo's jealous!  This recipe is for 4 balanced 3 block meals. 

Ingredients: 

• 18oz of Cod or Halibut (12P)
• 2 Eggs (2P)
• .25 Cup of almond meal (9F) 
• 1 Bag of cabbage mix
• 1 Tb of olive oil (12F)
• Romaine lettuce 
• 1 Lime
• Pepper to taste, cajun seasoning

Mas’ perfecto pico

• 1.33 Cups red onion, chopped (2C)
• 2 Cup of tomatoes, chopped (2C)
• 2 Cloves of garlic, chopped ….freebies!
• Small bunch of fresh cilantro, chopped ….freebies!
• 2 Jalepenos ….freebies!
• 1 Lime

Preparation: 

Heat the olive oil in a pan.  Combine the almond meal, pepper, and Cajun seasoning.  In a separate bowl, mix the eggs.  Cut the fish into 2” pieces.  Dip the fish pieces in the egg, then into the meal mix, coating both sides.  Place the fish in the pan and brown both sides.

Place the cooked fish in the romaine leafs, top with the cabbage mix and pico de gallo. Squeeze a quarter of the lime over the taco and enjoy!

Five rounds for time:

Swim 25yds

Walking lunge 25yds

Swim 50yds

20 Pool muscle-ups

Post time to comments.

Nick learning the basic flutter kick. 

Swimming Workshop and Workout
Hosted by CrossFit Verve at Berkley Pool 
5031 W. 46th Ave. Denver, CO 80211

Today (Sunday) is another opportunity to vary your training.  Our swimming workshop is designed to improve your basic swimming technique through a series of skills and drills.  Our goal is to provide you with a skill set to build upon in future swimming WOD's by discussing the basics of the freestyle stroke, including body roll and recovery, breathing techniques, and the flutter kick.  Classes will be held at 8am and 9am and will run around an hour including a CrossFit swimming-based WOD.  Cost is $10 and class size will be limited each session.  This class is open to ALL CrossFitters, so sign up and come in! 

If you are unable to swim, are afraid of the water, or have not swam in years, we'd be glad to work with you during a one-on-one personal training session – but unfortunately, this event is not the time.  For this class, we assume that you are able to swim 25 yards (one lap) without stopping.  All aboard?

Register on MindBody.

For time:

65 Muscle snatches, 75#/55#

65 Snatch balances, 75#/55#

Post time to comments.

Mike Leet enjoying technique drills.  Sign up for tomorrow's swim WOD! 

Virtuosity – By Luke Palmisano

Virtuosity is a word that is unique to CrossFit methodology.  I had never heard it until I went to a Level 1 Cert.  In the realm of fitness, it has to do with concern of principles of right and wrong with movements.  For instance, the reason we do squat therapy so often is because we want to stay virtuous to the principles of that movement.  Done correctly, the benefits are enormous and well documented.  Done poorly or with short-cuts and the body suffers. We hope it's something that you, the athlete, thinks separates CrossFit Verve from lets say, the 24 Hour Fitness down the street.  We actually care that when you squat, your  hips initiate the squat movement, going back and then down. We care that your knees track over your feet, even with heavy weights.  

Virtuosity also involves scaling, meaning that if you can't squat weight X without your knees dipping inside of your feet, weight X will be changed to something lighter.  This is why we say that CrossFit is for everyone.  The program doesn't change, the intensity and weight can and do. 

The reason I'm bringing this word up is because sometimes Verve programs movements that are difficult to perform.  A lot of times it involves movements overhead.  So next time one-armed DB Snatches come and a trainer comes up and asks you to do wall squats with your WOD, it's not cause we're trying to embarrass you.  You pay hard-earned money for us to train you, so we're trying to help you improve. Sometimes to stay virtuous we have to back you up until we can let you go forward.  

We want you to do the common, uncommonly well.

Floor press 5, 5, 5 reps @ 40%, 50%, 60% 
Please download and print your worksheet!

Five rounds on the 5:00 minute interval, each for time:
Row 250m
5 Push press

The push press is for total load, so go heavy!  You may change weight each round.

Post total time and total load to comments.

Technique? 

Are you prepared? – Zac Pine

Everyday showing up with sambas, boardshorts, and most of the times a hoodie to complete my style, I've been ready to complete whatever is thrown at me.  You all saw the last WOD of the 2010 CrossFit Games (if you haven’t check it out and watch ‘The Matt Chan” go!!) that is what CrossFit allows us to do (anything).  CrossFit is a general preparedness program, which means that we are fit and ready to take on any task thrown our way.  In the last WOD the competitors had no time to prepare mentally for the tasks they were given, but as amazing CrossFit athletes they were able to rise to the challenge and give it their all.  As a coach I don’t expect you all to do Handstand Push-Ups, Muscle-Ups, Snatch your body weight, or like to do Double Unders (that would be nice), but I do expect you to give it your all towards good movement (functional) and effort (intensity). 
 
When I was a trainer in Santa Cruz with my CrossFit homies (trainers),we held back from allowing anyone to know what the WOD was until the last moment.  After a good warm-up my hoodie would end up in the corner, chalk dusted my boardshorts, and my legs with a slight burn.  Excitement would build with the explanation of the WOD, a couple ohhhh’s and awwww’s for every movement explained, our names were chisel tipped on the white board, and then READY……3-2-1-GO!  During the WOD is when you had to mentally prepare and push through what was coming up next.
 
At Verve we have the opportunity of knowing the WOD ahead of time, which allows us to prepare, understand our weaknesses, and try to improve upon them.  We all have things that we have trouble doing especially in CrossFit, but facing those weaknesses will give us the courage to face hard times in life and make those a little easier.

Three rounds for time:

30 Toes-to-bar

21 Ground to overhead anyhow, 95#/65#

Post time to comments.

Learning the ropes… swim WOD style. 

Constantly Varied, Functional Movements, Executed at High Intensity

These eight words are the conceptual framework on which CrossFit is built.  By following this framework, we prepare ourselves for any and everything that life has to offer. By training, we are creating a virtual ready state – ready for any task, for any duration, and in any environment.  Yet, we fail at the margins of our experience. Whether that means that you are unable to perform well because of the weather, altitude, or because our favorite lululemon shorts are dirty – we must experience everything.

This Sunday is another opportunity to vary your training.  Our swimming workshop is designed to improve your basic swimming technique through a series of skills and drills.  Our goal is to provide you with a skill set to build upon in future swimming WOD's by discussing the basics of the freestyle stroke, including body roll and recovery, breathing techniques, and the flutter kick.  Classes will be held at 8am and 9am and will run around an hour including a CrossFit swimming-based WOD.  Cost is $10 and class size will be limited each session. 

If you are unable to swim, are afraid of the water, or have not swam in years, we'd be glad to work with you during a one-on-one personal training session – but unfortunately, this event is not the time.  For this class, we assume that you are able to swim 25 yards (one lap) without stopping.  All aboard?

Register on MindBody.

The CrossFit Games: An Action Sports Investment Opportunity in the Making – Forbes.com

For time:

Run 1200m
63 Kettlebell swings, 24kg/16kg
36 Pull-ups

Run 800m
42 Kettlebell swings, 24kg/16kg
24 Pull-ups

Run 400m
21 Kettlebell swings, 24kg/16kg
12 Pull-ups

Compare to: women's results and men's results.

Post time to comments.

 
Courtney, Emmalee, Stef, Slaughter, Tiff, and Manda on Hermosa Beach.

Love, Pain, and the CrossFit Games

This weekend was one of the best of my life.  Cherie and I are on the airplane, heading back to Denver to rejoin our family, friends, and to celebrate the successes of the weekend with the people that helped make it happen. After competing in the 2008 and 2009 CrossFit Games, I decided to step it up a notch and see exactly what I am capable of.  Cherie and I decided that the next year would be devoted to winning the CrossFit Games in 2010. 

I put in the training hours, addressed weaknesses, developed my strengths, and refined my diet to reflect my focus on performance.  Some methods were adapted or abandoned all together along the way because they didn't provide desired results.  Other methods were used until progress slowed or until a point where additional gains would cause a deficiency in other areas.

One thing remained constant throughout this year – Cherie and my dedication to the goal.  Every decision we've made took my training into consideration.  For this, I cannot thank her enough.  She worked more, ate less, and dealt with more attitude than any other wife would have.  Love – plain and simple.  There is no other reason to do what she did.

This weekend the fruits of our labor were revealed.  Despite being sick and injured, I was able to lay it all on the line with 100% confidence in myself and my abilities.  I sat in the basement of the Home Depot Center by myself, awaiting my heat of the first workout.  Calmly, I walked out of the tunnel to faced by a barbell and a pair of rings.  I'm not sure if I remember hearing Dave Castro say "3-2-1 go!" But I certainly remember dropping the bar after the final rep and feeling like I had driven out of a tunnel into sunlight.

The next day I decided that I would need help and officially designated Mas as my coach.  Cherie could not do it because she had already committed to being a judge for the event.  Mas chased after things for me, gave me insight into what strategies other athletes were using in workouts and always sent me to the wolves saying one thing – "go to that deep, dark place".  He knew that these workouts hurt – bad!  Physically I was prepared, but each workout required a mental commitment as well.  Mas – can't thank you enough.

So I stood in line, awaiting the most heinous version of "Helen" that you could ever imagine.  Last year running any distance at all scared the shit out of me.  But this year I got comfortable with my weakness by facing it.  I ran track drills with Pat Burke and on my own for 2 months.  I got comfortable with running hard and fast.  He and I stood together on the track with less than a minute to go.  We were behind Mikko, Speal, Rob Orlando, Graham, and so on.  I looked at him and said "We don't want to start back here" and we quickly moved to the front on the outside of the track.  "3-2-1 Go!" and we started out in first and second.  I couldn't be happier about how I finished that workout – the training paid off.

A few events passed and I found myself in third place going into the last workout of day 2 – the sandbag/wheelbarrow WOD.  I was confident that this one could put me in the lead.  But after loading 600# of sandbags into a weak little wheelbarrow, the unthinkable happened – it tipped… not once, but twice.  The second time I was nearly to the unload point and I had to reload all 600#.  I was frustrated, but I knew that one year of training and eating right hinged on how I handled the rest of this workout.  I yelled F#CK!!! and loaded it up and after finishing that WOD in 21st, I was still in 3rd place overall.

But it all came down to Sunday.  The first event was a moderately heavy power clean and a movement I have never done before – ring handstand push-ups.  Anyone that knows me, knows that I struggle with handstand push-ups.  Imagine my thoughts of doing them on rings.  But again, I knew that one year of hard work depended on me doing these HSPU's.  Mas spotted me in the warm-up area as I figured them out.  I visualized myself doing them and doing them fast.  The only reason I would not be able to do these ring HSPU's would be because I prevent myself from doing them.  I convinced myself that I would complete this WOD with a positive attitude and try to win my heat.  I did just fine.

Lastly, myself and 31 other athletes were put in a room that had no ammenities other than a bunch of weights and some couches.  We were told that heat by heat we would lead to the stadium with no advance notice and would hear our workout for the first time and start seconds later – no questions.  Three and a half hours of sitting in a room with a bunch of nervous, tired athletes with nothing but the anticipation of the WOD and some water.  No food, no TV, no AC, nothing.  We talked, we warmed up, we laughed, and we wondered about the workouts.  It was unbearable. 

Finally, I was lead out to the stadium and it was blazing hot.  Dave described the first workout and explaimed "3-2-1 GO!" and off we went.  My chest and hands melted to the black rubber mats as I did push-ups.  My judge corrected my push-ups as I did them, as I had never done them like this before and the description was vague at best.  Over the wall to some light overhead squats.  The next workout was similar – light and fast.  But the last WOD was the real deal.  After three days of very taxing events in the hot sun, we were tasked with 15 burpees over a wall and 9 rope climbs that were 20' high. My brain said "no", but this was it.  It all came down to turning my brain off and allowing my body to recover enough to confidently climb the rope safely. 

In the end, I can call myself the 4th fittest man on earth.  I am lucky to come home to a wonderful gym full of wonderful people. I am happy to have each of you in my life, as each of you add something to our gym, our community, and our movement.  I want to sincerely thank each of you for your support and for being a part of CrossFit. 

For five minutes, complete as many rounds as possible of:

12 Overhead squats, 95#/65#

20 Lateral jump burpees

Rest 1:00 minute and repeat for a total of five rounds. 

Lateral jumps (and clap) will be completed over the barbell.  Start the next round exactly where you left off.

Matt during event #2: Bizarro-Helen.