Workout of the Day
Arena Ready Around The Globe: Summer Edition 3.0
The snapshots of Arena Ready athletes traveling around the world and getting their fitness on at a local CrossFit affiliate continues! We can't get enough of these summertime travel updates, and love that our people are representing AR wherever they go. Keep sharing, friends, and safe travels to all of our Arena Ready family!
Jess & Mayra getting their WOD in at S2S CrossFit Bali in Indonesia!
Charles dropping-in at Champlain Valley CrossFit in Vermont, home gym of Mat Fraser AKA the 2016 CrossFit Games Champion! That's Dani Horan, co-owner of the gym, who is also a former CrossFit Games competitor, and was part of the demo team at this year's Games.
WOD for 07-26-16:
Front Squat:
5-5-5-5-5
Climbing
Add to your top set of 5 from Tuesday 07-12-16.
-then-
For Time:
5-4-3-2-1
Front Squats @ 225/155 lbs
50-40-30-20-10
Double Unders
Take the front squats from a rack. Yes, the squats should be unbroken in order to achieve the intended stimulus.
Coach Hillary & The Squirrel LIFT ALL THE WEIGHTS!
A big congrats to Coach Hillary and Kate "The Flying Squirrel" for their terrific performances at "The Alameda Weightlifting Comp" in San Jose on Sunday! With the loudest cheering section in the building, both athletes put up some impressive numbers on the competition platform. Hillary went 5/6 in her lifts, highlighted by a PR total of 170kg/375lbs and HUGE PR clean & jerk of 100kg/220lbs which tied the PWA Masters Record! This was a longtime goal for Hillary and we're thrilled that she was able to check it off of her already impressive list of lifetime athletic achievements.
Kate went 3/3 on her snatches, ending with a huge PR of 65kg/143lbs - a MONSTER lift at a bodyweight of 52kg. On her final clean & jerk attempt she easily stood up with 75kg/165lbs but just couldn't quite lock out the jerk - the lift would have given her the qualifying total for the 2016 American Open Championships. We're confident she'll smoke that lift the next time around, just as she's done in training - and we're so proud of her gutsy performance!
A big thank you to all the supporters in the Arena Ready cheering section who came out to watch our athletes compete - a few of them are not in the picture below (including myself, as I was apparently taking Bo out for a stroll, heh), but we were grateful for your shouts of support and good vibes!
WOD for 07-25-16:
4 Rounds For Max Reps:
Row for Calories
Box Jumps Overs @ 24/20 in
Chest-to-Bar Pull-ups
Wall Balls @ 20/14 lbs to 10/9 ft
This is 0:40 (forty seconds) of work per movement, with 0:20 of rest/transition time between movements. There is 1:20 rest between rounds. Score is total repetitions across all four rounds.
-then-
Tabata:
Hollow Rocks
The Tabata interval is 20 seconds of work followed by 10 seconds of rest, repeated for 8 rounds (4 total minutes). Score by your lowest round.
Reminder: Arena Ready Weekend Events!
Saturday: CrossFit Games Viewing Party
Join us at Arena Ready on Saturday (starting at 12:30pm) to watch the 2016 Reebok CrossFit Games. We'll be snacking, and drinking, and watching some of the finest competitive exercise in the world - so bring something to share if you like, and hang out with your AR buddies as we watch "The Fittest on Earth" throw down against each other.
If you're attending an early morning Saturday class and want to head upstairs earlier than 12:30pm you're more than welcome to get the viewing started - just expect most of the others to join-in after noon or so. Bring a camp chair to sit on if you prefer that over our chairs/sofa/floor. Kiddos can come too, just as long as parents bring whatever snacks & food they might specifically need, as I'm sure most will have the adult beverages and snacks covered, haha.
Sunday: The Alameda Weightlifting Comp
Coach Hillary and Kate "The Flying Squirrel" will be representing Arena Ready Weightlifting on Sunday at "The Alameda Weightlifting Comp" in San Jose. Join some of our barbell club lifters, Arena Ready members, and coaches to watch Hillary and Squirrel lift some big weights on the competition platform. Location details and session start times for the meet are included below - come out and support our athletes!
As is AR tradition we'll be heading out to grub on some delicious BBQ following the meet (meat?) - so if you're planning on coming down to spectate, plan on eating and drinking with your AR buddies afterward as well!
"The Alameda Weightlifting Comp" Meet Location:
Donny Shankle Weightlifting (access via CrossFit Silicon Valley)
1345 The Alameda
San Jose, CA 95126
Session Start Times:
Hillary - 10:00am
Squirrel - 1:00pm
Happy weekend, all!
WOD for 07-23-16:
Five 4-Minute Cycles For Max Reps:
400m Run
13-11-9-7-5 Ground-to-Overhead @ 135/95 lbs
Max Rep Lateral Bar Burpees
Rest 2 minutes between cycles. Ground-to-overhead reps decrease by 2 each cycle. Score is total number of lateral bar burpees completed.
CrossFit Games Viewing Party: Saturday 12:30pm
As mentioned previously we'll be hosting our annual CrossFit Games Viewing Party at Arena Ready on Saturday (July 23rd), and will start the official festivities at 12:30pm following the Gladiators class. Come by and join us to watch the top CrossFitters in the world compete for the title of "Fittest On Earth" - we'll view/steam the live events and will play some of the archived events as well, so as not to miss anyone's favorite athlete, team, or workout from the week's competition! If you're attending an early morning Saturday class and want to head upstairs earlier than 12:30pm you're more than welcome to get the viewing started - just expect most of the others to join-in after noon or so.
Please feel free to bring snacks/drinks/food to share if you like (bringing treats or eats is appreciated but not required), and we'll have some refreshments on hand as well. You're also welcome to bring a camp chair to sit on if you prefer that over our chairs/sofa/floor. Kiddos can come too, just as long as parents bring whatever snacks & food they might specifically need, as I'm sure most will have the adult beverages and snacks covered, haha.
WOD for 07-22-16:
Back Squat:
5-5-5-5-5
Climbing
-then-
Weighted Box Step-ups:
8-8-8 (per side)
For Quality
Use dumbbells or kettlebells, a box just above knee height, and do NOT alternate - the lead leg should stay on top of the box and the descent must be controlled.
-then-
Weighted Plank Hold:
3 x 0:45
Rest 1:00 between sets
Add to last week (07-12-16) if possible.
Lost & Found Summer Purge
The gym's Lost & Found has reached a near overflow, and quite random (haha), status. Gym clothes, shoes, wrist wraps, lifting straps, Tupperware, baby clothes, opened but apparently undesired FedEx packages, bags of donated (adult) clothes, water & shaker bottles, and kitchen utensils are some of the items that are currently looking for owners. We will consolidate the items in the Lost & Found bin (or next to it) on Thursday so that potential owners can claim their stuff- anything left over at the end of next week will be donated to charity.
Thanks for your attention!
WOD for 07-21-16:
Skills & Drills:
Handstand Push-up
-then-
On a Running Clock...
A) At 0:00 For Time:
20 Calorie Row
20 Deficit Handstand Push-ups @ 4/2 in
100 Double Unders
10 Muscle-ups
B) At 12:00 For Time:
20 Calorie Row
20 Deficit Handstand Push-ups @ 4/2 in
100 Double Unders
10 Muscle-ups
The CrossFit Games Are Underway!
The 2016 Reebok CrossFit Games are officially underway, and competition started on Tuesday with the various Teens and Masters divisions. You can stream all of the divisions and events online via the CrossFit Games website (click here), and archived events are posted so that you can go back and watch the events you wanted to see but may have missed live. The Individual (men & women) and Teams divisions start Wednesday and Thursday, respectively (with a couple of "mystery" events slated for the individuals on Wednesday). A full schedule of events can be found here on the CFG site.
Don't forget that we're hosting an Arena Ready CrossFit Games Viewing Party on Saturday afternoon (July 23rd) just like we do every year. Come by and join us to watch the top CrossFitters in the world compete for the title of "Fittest On Earth" - we'll view/steam the live events and will play some of the archived events as well, so as not to miss anyone's favorite athlete, team, or workout from the week's competition!
Please feel free to come by with snacks/drinks/food to share if you like (bringing treats or eats is appreciated but not required), and we'll also have some refreshments on hand. We'll post the party's start time here on the blog later this week once the full team & individual event schedule is announced.
WOD for 07-20-16:
7 Rounds, Start Every 3 Minutes:
7 Deadlifts, pick load (same weight across)
7 Box Jumps @ 30/24 in
200m Sprint
(Compare to 07-29-15)
The Alameda Weightlifting Comp: Sunday, July 24
Coach Hillary and Kate "The Flying Squirrel" will be representing Arena Ready Weightlifting this Sunday, July 24th, at "The Alameda Weightlifting Comp" in San Jose. Join some of our barbell club lifters, Arena Ready members, and coaches to watch Hillary and Squirrel lift some big weights on the competition platform. Location details and session start times for the meet are included below - come out and support our athletes!
As is AR tradition we'll be heading out to grub on some delicious BBQ following the meet (meat?) - so if you're planning on coming down to spectate, plan on eating and drinking with your AR buddies afterward as well!
"The Alameda Weightlifting Comp" Meet Location:
Donny Shankle Weightlifting (access via CrossFit Silicon Valley)
1345 The Alameda
San Jose, CA 95126
Session Start Times:
Hillary - 10:00am
Squirrel - 1:00pm
WOD for 07-19-16:
Power Clean + 2 Front Squats + 2 Push Jerks:
5 Sets of (1+2+2)
Climbing
-then-
"Mini Macho Man"
EMOM For as Long as Possible:
3 Power Cleans @ 155/105 lbs
3 Front Squats
3 Push Jerks
(Compare to 07-24-15)
Motivation Monday: Lisa G
A couple of days ago Lisa G wrote a great post on her blog regarding motivation. You can find her original post here, and we've shared a good portion of it below for today's Monday Motivation:
After yesterday’s workout, I was talking to my fellow classmate, Darrell. We got into talking about what’s going on with life, and got to talking about motivation. Darrell checks into our gym on Facebook every time he visits at 6AM. At first, it seems like Darrell is just a fitness enthusiast at early hours. But digging a little further, Darrell told me that he checks in on Facebook to motivate his friends to go to the gym. By showing up early in the morning, when his friends are going through the internal debate of going to the gym or not, they’ll see his check-in as motivation.
Darrell’s story really resonated with me, so for today’s Fitness Friday, I had to think about what motivates me. I could write a blog post every week about what motivates me. I realized that I’m fortunate to have so many motivators. I have an amazing group of coaches who push me to work harder, move safer, and unleash my athletic potential. My husband motivates me to continue to pursue my fitness goals on a daily basis. I have a whole closet full of workout gear and shoes that tell me that I need to make that investment worthwhile. My sister tells me to not give up, despite the mental strain this sport and CrossFit causes. And finally, there’s my gym.
My gym is my motivation. It’s my new arrival friends who come with the willingness and eagerness to try something new like CrossFit. It’s my seasoned veteran friends who define the meaning of hard work and never settle for second best. It’s my friends who juggle having a job and a family, who show up at 6AM because they want to. It’s the friends who use the gym as a way to get away from the stress the workplace brings, and it’s the friends who show up despite fighting nagging and stressful injuries.
My gym is my motivation, and serves as a good reminder how much I want to keep showing up to make them proud. For this weekend, I hope you go to your source of motivation, whoever or wherever they may be. Keep on keeping on friends!
-Lisa G
WOD for 07-18-16:
Hang Squat Snatch:
2-2-2-2-2
Climbing
-then-
For Time:
10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1
Unbroken Pull-ups
Unbroken Wall Balls @ 2014 lbs to 10/9 ft
Burpees
"Unbroken" means the athlete does not break the set, on purpose or accidentally. A missed wall ball target, inadvertently dropped med ball, or accidental chin not going above the plane of the bar are all examples of breaking a set, albeit not on purpose. Accuracy is key. The athlete is welcome to start a set over if he/she breaks, but really... who wants to do that?!
(Compare to 07-06-15)
Arena Ready Travels Continue!
The summertime travels for our members continue and the snapshots of dropping-in at other CrossFit affiliates for a workout are rolling in! We're loving the shots of our athletes representing Arena Ready and getting their fitness on all over the world.
Safe travels to all of you who are planning summertime adventures this season. Go out and get a WOD in wherever you're staying!
Gary and Desiree dropping-in while in Japan
Chef Bob throwing up the Westside at GSR CrossFit in upstate New York
Quick reminder that Monday 7pm Yoga is back on for July 18th - Dani is back from her travels and is looking forward to seeing you all for some restorative movement. Keep your strong bodies moving well and recovering properly for your workouts, and for your everyday life!
WOD for 07-16-16:
With a Partner For Time:
400m Run
42 Thrusters @ 115/80 lbs
42 Toes-to-Bar
400m Run
30 Thrusters
30 Toes-to-Bar
400m Run
18 Thrusters
18 Toes-to-Bar
400m Run
Partners both run together, and then split/share the thruster and toes-to-bar reps in any fashion (with only one partner working at a time). The thrusters cannot start until both partners have completed the preceding run, and the next run cannot start until the preceding toes-to-bar reps are completed.
The Sumo Deadlift High Pull
The Sumo Deadlift High Pull (SDHP) is an exercise we don't utilize that often, but it is one of CrossFit's 9 foundational movements. Sometimes the target of criticism, the SDHP done properly teaches forceful hip extension as a means to move an external load a long distance quickly - i.e. taking a loaded barbell from the floor and moving it to shoulder-level via explosive hip and leg drive. Sound familiar?
Yes, all those cleans and snatches we do EVERY SINGLE WEEK in our programming accomplish essentially the same goal: move a large load a long distance, and do it quickly. These complex, compound movements give us the ability to apply large amounts of force - and often the SDHP is used to teach this concept without the necessity of receiving the load in a position of support (either in the front rack in the case of the clean, or overhead in the case of the snatch).
At Arena Ready we snatch and clean quite a bit, so the SDHP only occasionally makes an appearance - and it's generally as a tool within the context of a conditioning WOD, loaded at a fairly light weight. Regardless, athletes must maintain proper positioning throughout the movement to maximize safety and ensure skill transfer over to our other exercises - cleans, snatches, kettlebell swings, etc.
Shoulder retraction throughout the movement, and the ability to keep the elbows above the level of the barbell, are paramount for the SDHP - and the failure to do either results in poor shoulder positioning and possible impingement of the shoulder joint. Even though the SDHP is but a small portion of Friday's WOD, we thought it important to post some videos of proper movement (courtesy of the folks at Rogue Fitness and Reebok CrossFit One) to help guide you through exercise.
WOD for 07-15-16:
For Time:
30 Calorie Row
30 Box Jump Overs @ 24/20 in
30 Power Snatches @ 95/65 lbs
30 Front Rack Lunges (total, alternating)
30 Sumo Deadlift High Pulls
30 Lateral Bar Burpees
300m Run
Missoula Marathon: Congratulations Molly!
Congratulations to Molly F for completing the Missoula Marathon in Montana this past weekend in a blazing fast time of 3:41:27. The time was good for a 4th place finish in her age group!
We've been amazed now for nearly 7 years watching Molly build & maintain so much speed and endurance, all while staying incredibly strong. Not to mention that her mental game may be the toughest of any athlete we've ever had the pleasure of working with... you are a rockstar and an inspiration, Molly!
WOD for 07-14-16:
5-5-5
For Quality
-then-
3-3-3
For Quality
-then-
EMOM 14 Minutes:
MINUTES 1-4:
3 Clean & Jerks, Moderate (~65-70% of 1RM)
MINUTE 5:
REST
MINUTES 6-9:
2 Clean & Jerks, Moderately Heavy (~75-80%)
MINUTE 10:
REST
MINUTES 11-14:
1 Clean & Jerk, Heavy (~85-90%)
Use the same weight across for all four triples, then all four doubles, and then all four singles, changing the weight only during the rest minutes. The goal is make all 12 sets with no misses, so remember that "heavy" does not mean "max." Percentages shown are of a 1-rep max, and are simply rough guidelines. Power or full clean is allowed and push/power or split jerk is allowed (athlete's choice today). Touch-and-go for the triples and doubles is not required.
CrossFit Games Viewing Party: Saturday, July 23rd
As is our yearly tradition, we'll be hosting a 2016 CrossFit Games viewing party at Arena Ready on Saturday afternoon, July 23rd. Come by and join us to watch the top CrossFitters in the world compete for the title of "Fittest On Earth." We'll view/steam the live events on ESPN and will play some of the archived events as well, so as not to miss anyone's favorite athlete, team, or workout from the week's competition.
Please feel free to come by with snacks/drinks/food to share if you like (bringing treats or eats is appreciated but not required), and we'll also have some refreshments on hand. We'll post the party's start time here on the blog in the coming week once the full event schedule is announced. Get excited for some competitive exercise!
Oh, and speaking of professional competitive exercise - the 2016 NPGL season is quickly approaching and Coach Sarah has started preparations prior to her departure for training camp in August. Here's a cool video the GRID League put together as a teaser for the upcoming season (Sarah with a cameo at the 0:14 mark):
WOD for 07-13-16:
With a Partner For Time:
800m Run (Together)
1500m Row (Split)
100 Double Unders (Together)
600m Run (Together)
1000m Row (Split)
75 Double Unders (Together)
400m Run (Together)
500m Row (Split)
50 Double Unders (Together)
The row is split but the runs and double unders are performed together, meaning partners will complete all runs and double under sets simultaneously (i.e. each person must complete the entire run and the entire set of double unders). Teams cannot move on to the next movement until both members have completed the current movement. The rows may be segmented/partitioned/split in any fashion.
(Compare to 12-16-15 and 08-19-14)