Workout of the Day
Calling All Arena Ready Alumni
Calling all Arena Ready Alumni!
You know who you are. You used to train here and we all loved you very dearly - and then at some point you broke my heart and VIOLATED THE ARENA READY MORATORIUM for some silly high paying job, or pretentious grad school, or to make a new life whatever the heck that means - so now you (presumably) live happily ever after in some strange land where Chinese food means a trip to Panda Express, and your coffee is served to you by smiley people and not mustached art students who are silently judging you through their non-prescription Warby Parkers.
WELL GOOD FOR YOU. I'M HAPPY FOR YOU, REALLY I AM.
Anyhow, we'd love to see you this Saturday, December 3rd, at Arena Ready for our annual Holiday Party (click for the details). So please, if it's possible, come on by your old stomping grounds and hang out with some of your old AR swolemates - you can tell us over a drink and some bites how amazing it is that you now have 5 bedrooms and a pool, or that your cohort is so smart that they're developing the Uber of marijuana. You can even tease me about how you think I wouldn't be able to swim in the deep end of your pool - it's OK, I deserve it.
Oh, and I'm kidding about the "pretentious" part above, I hope you all know that. I kid because I care. Now get your butts over here this Saturday and say hello to everyone who misses you.
WOD for 11-30-16:
Back Squat:
12 Minutes to Establish a Moderately Heavy Triple (NOT a 3RM)
We suggest squatting in the same shoes you're going to use below for the AMRAP (i.e. not weightlifting shoes).
-then-
AMRAP 12 Minutes:
400m Run
20 AbMat Sit-ups
10 Back Squats @ 225/155 lbs
Use a rack for the back squats. If you can't safely do the first set of 10 unbroken then scale as needed.
Weightlifting Shoe Cabinet: Holiday Season Purge
REMINDER: Our annual Holiday Party is this Saturday, December 3rd (click for more info)!
The gym's shoe cabinets intended to house weightlifting shoes (and only weightlifting shoes) for our members has become overrun with other items, to the point where it's getting hard to actually get your shoes out without pulling a bunch of random stuff off the shelf with them. Non-weightlifting shoes, sad looking jump ropes, funky-smelling knee sleeves, abandoned weight belts, tattered shoe boxes (what tha?), un-paired wrist wraps, and water bottles are just some of the random items currently in the cabinets that don't belong. Please check next time you're in the gym as we will be cleaning the cabinets out at the start of next week and donating any items that don't have homes, or that look like they haven't been moved or used in the last year.
Thanks for your attention!
WOD for 11-29-16:
"Cyber Monday Leftovers"
3 Rounds For Max Reps (0:40 Work / 0:20 Rest & Transition):
Push Jerks @ 115/80 (no rack)
Chest-to-Bar Pull-ups
Kettlebell Swings @ 70/53 lbs
Burpee Box Jumps @ 24/20 in
Row for Calories
(Rest 1:20)
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 three rounds.
Holiday Party This Saturday, Dec 3rd!
We hope everyone had a wonderful holiday weekend. A friendly reminder for all of you...
Holiday Party: Saturday, Dec 3rd
Our annual Arena Ready Holiday Party will be held this Saturday, Dec 3rd. We plan on getting started around 4:00pm, hopefully allowing those who have other parties or obligations that evening to attend. We'll probably wind things down around 8:00pm.
Potluck: Paleo or Not!
By popular demand we will continue the tradition of making the party a potluck-style shindig, so feel free to bring a dish/treat/drinks to share. Healthy options are of course appreciated but by no means required. We'll have a potluck sheet at the gym starting Monday evening, so please use it if you plan on attending so that folks can see what others are bringing.
Bring The Fam!
Our holiday parties, like many of our events, are generally family friendly - so bring your loved ones (including little ones) if so desired. That said, we may or may not be revisiting some popular games to test our functional fitness...
Wear a sturdy belt and choose your partner wisely, my friends.
WOD for 11-28-16:
3-Position Squat Clean (Floor, Knee, High Hang):
5 Sets of (1+1+1)
Climbing
-then-
"Elizabeth"
For Time:
21-15-9
Squat Cleans @ 135/95 lbs
Ring Dips
To us, the classic workout "Elizabeth" is (and always was) squat cleans, NOT power cleans.
(Compare to 07-02-15 and 04-24-14)
Arena Ready Representing For The Holiday
While many of you were at Arena Ready for our Thanksgiving Day and Black Friday WODs, several of our members were dropping-in to local CrossFit affiliates during their travels to see family and friends for the holiday.
Brian C (far left) with a big group at CrossFit Broadway in Denver.
Nevada (front and center) at CrossFit Loft in Seattle.
Charles (back left) at Fort Ben CrossFit in Indianapolis.
Like always, we LOVE seeing our athletes taking their fitness on the road and hitting a workout wherever their travels take them. Keep the pictures coming, and keep on representing AR!
Well, we did it on Black Friday so let's do it again - how about a Sweaty Saturday full of partner strength work and a good old fashioned AMRAP?!
WOD for 11-26-16:
With a Partner on a Running Clock...
A) From 0:00 - 15:00
Deadlift:
3x8
Across
Both athletes complete three working sets of eight reps. If possible, add to your working weight from 11-18-16.
B) From 15:00 - 18:00
Rest 3 Minutes & Re-Set For AMRAP
C) From 18:00 - 33:00
AMRAP 15 Minutes:
150 Wall Balls @ 20/14 lbs to 10/9 ft
100 Box Jumps @ 24/20 in
50 Calorie Row
Partners share the reps with only one working at a time. Reps do not have to be split evenly.
Turkey Day WOD a Success!
REMINDER: Please note our Thanksgiving holiday schedule (click here).
Thanks to everyone who came in for our Thanksgiving Day WOD! It was such a fun time with a ton of great energy - and we hope everyone enjoyed their post-workout recovery meal of Thanksgiving dinner (sans rosemary LOL). We're so thankful for all of you!
WOD for 11-25-16:
With a Partner on a Running Clock...
A) From 0:00 - 15:00
Hang Power Clean:
Both partners establish a heavy double
B) From 15:00 - 18:00
Rest 3 Minutes
C) From 18:00 - 30:00
AMRAP 12 Minutes:
Partner A Completes the 8-8-8 Triplet of...
8 AbMat Sit-ups
8 Hang Power Cleans @ 135/95 lbs
8 Lateral Bar Burpees
While Partner B Completes...
2 Rounds of "Cindy"
1 Round of "Cindy" = 5 Pull-ups, 10 Push-ups, 15 Air Squats
Partners switch after every 2 rounds of "Cindy" are completed. Complete the 8-8-8 triplet continuously, with one partner picking up exactly where the other left off. The team's cumulative score is the total number of rounds + reps completed of the 8-8-8 triplet PLUS "Cindy."
Thankful For All of You
REMINDER: Please note our Thanksgiving holiday schedule (click here).
Thanksgiving Day WOD
First and foremost, a HUGE CONGRATS to the dozens of you who hit new strict press 1-rep max PRs on Wednesday! With over 80% of the athletes who came in achieving new max lifts it was a fun day in the gym.
If you've been at Arena Ready for a few years you know our Thanksgiving WOD tradition - the hero workout known as the "Lumberjack 20." The holiday classes are a fun time to see gym friends, hit a tough workout together in big groups, and do the WOD to honor the fallen soldiers from Lumberjack CrossFit.
Please be sure to sign-up for class, and if you know you can't make it please cancel ASAP so someone else can take your spot. We kindly ask that you don't double-book, and try your best not to late cancel or no-show (yes, we can see who does all of these things) - if you're on the waitlist then we consider you in, so get yourself signed-up either way! Help us make it possible for everyone to get their workout in, and for everyone to have a great experience.
Thank you in advance for your cooperation.
We're all set up and ready for you Turkey Day exercisers!
With that out of the way, what are we thankful for? Hopefully that's obvious.....
Thankful For You
In our world it seems much is taken for granted, many people don't have enough, families are frequently torn apart, and fitness and health become afterthoughts.
We are so thankful that this is our job, that you are our friends, and that CrossFit has become a part of our lives.
We hope that this workout makes you hungry enough to thoroughly enjoy Thanksgiving dinner. We hope that the people you work out with make you happy. And most of all we hope that there are things you can be thankful for today.
WOD for 11-24-16:
For Time:
20 Deadlifts @ 275/185 lbs
400m Run
20 Kettlebell Swings @ 70/53 lbs
400m Run
20 Overhead Squats @ 115/75 lbs
400m Run
20 Burpees
400m Run
20 Chest-to-Bar Pull-ups
400m Run
20 Box Jumps @ 24/20 in
400m Run
20 Dumbbell Squat Cleans @ 45/35 lbs (per side)
400m Run
(Compare to 11-26-15, 11-27-14, 11-28-13, and 11-22-12)
The 2017 CrossFit Games Move to Madison!
WOD for 11-23-16:
Strict Press:
Find your new 1RM
-then-
"100m Partner Penalty Race to 2K"
In Teams of Two For Time:
Partner A attempts to row EXACTLY 100m.
For every meter over or under 100, Partner A immediately performs a "penalty" of 1 burpee box jump (24/20 in).
Once the penalty reps are completed (or if there is no penalty) Partner A tags Partner B who then attempts to row EXACTLY 100m.
Time is called when the rower reaches 2000m (or over), and the final penalty reps are completed (if applicable).
21 Thanksgiving (and Other) Food-Related Musings
REMINDER: Please note our Thanksgiving holiday schedule (click here).
Several people have asked me about this blog post from last year, given the recent discussions surrounding Thanksgiving foods. So here it is in its original & un-changed form, complete with "2015 domoic acid crab season crisis" reference and all... Bon Appétit!
The views and opinions expressed herein are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Arena Ready.
That's code for "my wife is going to kill me for posting this many negative opinions." Enjoy!
Last week at the gym many of us talked about some Thanksgiving meal likes and dislikes, and it got me to thinking... eh, who are we kidding, I think (and talk) about food all the time, as you all know. Growing up in San Francisco, and being from a multi-cultural family, Thanksgiving at our house usually meant (among other things, including the standard Turkey Day fare) Dungeness crab. Like, almost literally, a ton of Dungeness crab - as in my Filipino mother wheels-in two coolers full, like we're prepping to hibernate for the winter and have to stuff ourselves like Mr. Creosote (don't click on that bad boy unless you like Monty Python, lest you be offended... or worse, lose your own lunch).
Sadly this year, due to the toxic algae bloom that has made Bay Area headlines for weeks, there will be no Dungeness on the table for me to fatten-up on before Jon Snow comes back to life and Winter arrives. The absence of my favorite seasonal food prompted me to jot down some current thoughts on culinary opinions (i.e. realities) in the "world according to moi."
Some may read this and think, man this guy is a jackass. In some cases I would not disagree. But as many of you at Arena Ready know, I state these with tongue firmly in cheek and will happily debate any or all of them with you, particularly if it's during our holiday party on December 3rd over some drinks and delicious bites, and while we laugh at it all in good humor.
Funny thing is, I'm not a picky eater whatsoever. My dear wife will tell you that I'd eat (or at least try) just about anything - she likes to say that if we were on Survivor, The Amazing Race, or Fear Factor together she'd want me there specifically to clean house on the challenges that involve eating bugs and cow brains, etc. I enjoy haute cuisine and street food, healthy fare and crappy processed garbage (not that I eat much of the latter), and everything in-between.
"So why so many strong opinions?" you may ask. I don't know exactly. Maybe I just like the heated & humorous conversation it starts with you all in the gym. I like spending my time coaching and hanging out with you guys and gals, and I really like when you argue with me over asinine stuff that I ramble on about. So, without further ado (like my eggcorn avoidance there, Margaret?), here you go...
1) If you're from the East Coast and want to argue with me about how much better Blue crab tastes than Dungeness crab, but you eat said Blue crab caked in Old Bay Seasoning, then how in the world do you even know what that Blue crab tastes like?
[I'll admit, that was an aggressive start.]
2) Non-dairy ice cream and sweet potato fries are to real ice cream and white potato fries in the same way that regular athletic shoes are to weightlifting shoes. The former are just fine and get the job done fairly well, but then you have the latter and think to yourself OMG WHAT THE HELL HAVE I BEEN DOING WITH MY LIFE?!
3a) Goat cheese is on the list of what I like to call "societal pressure edibles." By my approximation, nearly half of the people that claim to like/love goat cheese are simply faking it. But the risk of falling out of favor with a set of strategic acquaintances or aspirational friends is far too high to play the honesty card. It's cool, I get it.
3b) Goat cheese tastes like cellophane dipped in someone's post-workout B.O. (side note: this is why I have no friends).
4) Persimmons taste like soap.
5) I know grass-fed beef is supposed to be better for me, but holy crap sometimes it tastes like it's rancid.
6a) If we're at Patxi's together eating pizza, and you ask the server for a side of ranch dressing, I will not judge you. In fact, I will likely tell him/her to make it two, please.
6b) I order the gluten-free crust at Patxi's because it actually tastes better, not because I'm trying to be a hipster with self-diagnosed celiac disease.
7) If you're an adult male working in the Financial District, and you find yourself lining up to get a FroYo at one of those trendy, high-end yogurt places, be aware that when you hand the cashier your frequent customer punchcard an invisible little fairy simultaneously (and very gently) removes your man card from the back pocket of your dress slacks.
8) If you eat Skittles fast enough they get spicy.
9) Enough with the Scriracha already.
10) I like every single ingredient in a Bloody Mary but I don't like Bloody Marys.
11) Excessive and/or creative use of rosemary can render a perfectly delicious dish completely inedible.
12) People like to state, "If you order a steak well done it's like saying 'please give me the worst piece of meat you have, my good man.'" Similarly, if you order "spicy tuna" anything it's like asking for the leftover bits of crappy maguro drenched in Sriracha (see also #9 above).
13) If you're super aggressive about telling people how spicy you like your food (usually accompanied by antagonizing others at the table about how lame/bland/weak they are because they're not also floating their chicken in Frank's RedHot), I'd like you to know ,"We got it, Hoss. Message received. Loud and clear." Just like your MMA t-shirts and your kick-ass lifted truck... trust me, we all noticed. Please stop yelling at the table, I'm right here next to you and you can speak in a normal inside voice. I'm pretty sure everyone in the restaurant knows you're here and no one's gonna mess with you.
14) Pickles are the edible universal bond that unites us all. Every cuisine has their version and applications. If someone doesn't like pickles they're like someone who doesn't like dogs (or deadlifts)... not to be trusted.
15) If you like catfish then you like the taste of mud in your mouth. Unless you only like it when it's fried. Then, yes, of course it's delicious.
16) I'm happy that many folks have recently pledged their love for bacon and doughnuts. Like, REALLY pledged their love. Incessantly. On social media. On t-shirts. At their gym. Hey, I'm not arguing with you, both of those things are delicious... but man, they've been around forever, so let's chill out a little on the daily dramatic professions of Instagram adoration, as if these are new discoveries in culinary science. Many of us have been eating both of these items all our lives and were quite aware of how good they were the entire time... so welcome to the party, I guess.
16) I don't know a single person who doesn't like a refreshing slice of watermelon on a hot summer day. Scratch that, Coach Alyssa hates watermelon (WTF?).
17) If you're at an ethnic restaurant (and it's not of your own ethnicity) and you insist on speaking to the servers in their native language, but they continue to speak back to you in English, then let's never hang out.
18) If you order anything "Benedict" at a restaurant then I consider you either a very trusting person or a really big risk taker - both are qualities that I aspire to myself, so either is a compliment really (a compliment rooted in jealousy that I cannot do the same). Because while I agree that Hollandaise sauce is delicious, I have no faith whatsoever that any restaurant can keep Hollandaise at the correct temperature and ensure that it's not a petri dish of hectic kitchen bacteria.
19) I can't accept food or snacks if you hand it to me with your bare hands. Don't take it personally. I know, I have problems. But I've been too traumatized by the overwhelming majority of humanity that seems to think the soap and water in a restroom are just there for interior design, like a vase and nonfunctioning fireplace of sorts.
20) When someone tells me they've never been on a vacation cruise before and they're wondering what it's like, I ask them if they've ever eaten at The Olive Garden. If they say yes, I tell them "Imagine eating at The Olive Garden every day for seven days in a row. With complete strangers. And they're all dressed up in weirdly fancy suits like the handlers on the Westminster National Dog Show. And you have to smile and pretend like you're enjoying the Chef's previously frozen sodium cheesy Chicken Alfredo like the guy next to you who's asking for thirds. Yeah, it's pretty much like that."
[And finally, let's end on a positive note to tie it all back to fitness.]
21) Think of fitness as food.
WOD for 11-22-16:
Front Squat:
4x8
Across
If possible, add to your working weight from last week 11-14-16.
-then-
Four 2-Minute Cycles For MAX REPS:
15/12 Calorie Row
200m Sprint
MAX REPS Wall Balls @ 20/14 lbs to 10/9 ft
(REST 2 Minutes)
This is two minutes of work followed by two minutes of rest, repeated four times. Your score is the total number of wall ball reps completed.
Thanksgiving Holiday Schedule
Please note that we will be open every day during the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, with a specific holiday schedule of classes for Thursday and Friday (and mostly business as usual for Saturday and Sunday):
Thanksgiving Holiday Class Schedule
Wednesday, Nov. 23rd:
Normal Class Schedule
Thursday, Nov. 24th (Thanksgiving Day):
Holiday WOD Classes at 8:00am, 9:00am, and 10:00am
Gladiators Class at 11:00am (in place of Saturday's Gladiators Class)
Friday, Nov. 25th (Black Friday):
CrossFit Classes at 8:00am, 9:00am, and 10:00am
Saturday & Sunday, Nov. 26th & 27th:
Normal Class Schedule (except for Gladiators Class moved to Thanksgiving Day)
Please let us know if you have any questions. To those of you traveling for the holiday week we wish you safe travels and a Happy Thanksgiving!
WOD for 11-21-15:
Alternating Every 90 Seconds For 5 Rounds (15 Minutes):
MINUTE 1: 2 Power Snatches + 2 Overhead Squats
MINUTE 2: 200m Run OR Row
Climb in weight to a top set for the barbell complex, with no misses.
Climb in pace on the run/row during each round.
-then-
"Isabel"
For Time:
30 Power Snatches @ 135/95 lbs
Keep in mind that loading should produce a finish time somewhere in the 2 to 5 minute range for most (but not all) athletes - scale accordingly if needed. If you tell me your Isabel time is 10 minutes then congratulations you didn't do Isabel.
(Compare to 04-13-15, 03-13-15, 10-30-14, and 06-12-13)
Letting Beauty Speak For Itself
"To recognize and accept the body's gifts and shortcomings, and impose discipline over them, is for many where beauty begins. And then beauty is no longer fleeting, but becoming."
Has becoming fitter, stronger, and more capable of demanding physical (and mental) tasks influenced your idea of beauty?
WOD for 11-19-16:
IN TEAMS OF THREE ATHLETES...
AMRAP 20 Minutes:
Athlete A and B Complete the Triplet (reps are shared, with only one working at a time):
15 Toes-to-Bar
12 Hang Squat Cleans @ 135/95 lbs
9 Push Jerks
Athlete C Completes:
500m Row
One athlete must always be rowing and must always switch after 500m. The team's score is rounds & reps completed of the triplet.
Arena Ready Representing Drop-In Style
We love seeing our athletes dropping-in to local CrossFit affiliates during their travels for business or pleasure. Recently Jyot visited CF Hell's Kitchen in NYC, #Infarkle went to see the good folks at CrossFit Inferno (obviously) in San Luis Obispo, and Charles got his workout on at CrossFit TT in Burlington, VT, while helping his brother's campaign (his brother is now the Lieutenant Governor of Vermont!).
Keep the pictures coming, and great job keeping your fitness a priority while on the road!
WOD for 11-18-16:
Deadlift:
3x8
Across
Add to your working weight from last week 11-10-16.
-then-
3 Rounds For Time:
200m Run w/Medicine Ball @ 20/14 lbs
25m Burpee Broad Jumps
200m Run w/Medicine Ball @ 20/14 lbs
25m Walking Lunges w/Medicine Ball
Any support position for the medicine ball is allowed on the run and walking lunges EXCEPT for resting it on top of your head.
#TBT to Burpees & Spear Throwing
Throwback Thursday (aka "TBT") to that time almost three years ago when Arena Ready sent teams up to Sacramento to compete in both the Rx and Scaled divisions of the SacTown Throwdown competition, which (believe it or not) had an event that included burpees and spear throwing.
Check out how little Elodie is!
Tyler and and Handsome Mike have moved away from the city (and Tyler & Katie were recently married - hooray!), but otherwise this team could be fit for a reunion pic on a Sweaty Saturday. Maybe when Tyler and/or Mike drop-in?
WOD For 11-17-16:
2 Power Snatches + 1 Squat Snatch:
4 Sets of (2+1)
Climbing
-then-
AMRAP 17 Minutes:
17 Wall Balls @ 20/14 lbs to 10/9 ft
17 Power Snatches @ 75/55 lbs
17 Box Jumps @ 24/20 in
17 Push Presses @ 75/55 lbs
17 Calorie Row