18.Zero

Lots of folks talking about the "burpee jumping over the dumbbell" as a new-ish movement and how to approach it efficiently.  If you're used to doing burpee variations then it's not rocket science haha, although stepping over the dumbbell is considered scaling by the standards of the upcoming Open.  Check out this video of a couple of athletes attacking the CrossFit.com workout "18.Zero" that was posted last week after Dave Castro's teaser-like announcement.

WOD For 01-22-18:

Back Squat:

2-4-8-4-2

Work up fairly quickly to a heavy set of 2, then climb in weight on the 4 and the 8. When going back down the ladder to 4 and 2 see if you're able to use a slightly heavier load than the previous 4 and 2. 

-then-

"18.Zero"

For Time:

21-15-9

Dumbbell Snatches @ 50/35 lbs (alternating sides)

Burpees (jumping over the dumbbell)

(Workout courtesy of CrossFit.com)

Coach Kim's Sunday Track Session: Rain or Shine!

Rain or shine on Sunday (Jan 21st), Kim will lead her weekly track workout at 1:00PM for any and all who want to join in on the aerobic capacity fun.  Check her post here for meet-up/location details and to organize carpooling with other AR friends. 

Sarah and I will be at a baby class (I think that's the official name for it) on Saturday so enjoy this Sweaty Saturday Special without us.  I'm sad to miss it as it will definitely be SPICY!  

Happy weekend, friends!

WOD For 01-20-18:

In Teams of Three Athletes...

AMRAP 30 Minutes:

100m Sprint

12 Ground-to-Overhead @ 115/80 lbs

12 Wall Balls @ 20/14 lbs to 10/9 ft

12 Toes-to-Bar

Only one athlete working at a time.  Each athlete completes ONE FULL ROUND then switches to the next teammate. The next athlete may start on the run/sprint as soon as their teammate completes her last toes-to-bar (tagging is not required).

If you cannot complete one full round of this workout unbroken when fresh (and at a sprint-like pace) then you're scaling incorrectly.

The KB Snatch

Last week we hit some dumbbell snatches and this week we tackle (once again) the kettlebell snatch:

WOD For 01-19-18:

Deadlift (Cycle 2, Week 4 "Deload Week"):

***If your "Base" weight from Cycle 1 was UNDER 200 lbs then add 5 lbs for your Cycle 2 "Base"

***If your "Base" weight from Cycle 1 was OVER 200 lbs then add 10 lbs for your Cycle 2 "Base"

40% x 5 

50% x 5

60% x 5 

Easy peasy. The weights go up again next week for Cycle 3.

-then-

AMRAP 12 Minutes:

20 Kettlebell Snatches @ 53/35 lbs (switch sides after 10 reps)

20 Box Jump Overs @ 24/20 in

40 Walking Lunges

Progress: Every Rep Is An Opportunity To Get Better

"Everything you do is either going to raise your average or lower it. The next rep. Tomorrow's warm-up. The quality of your next meal. Each action is a choice. A choice to raise your average or lower it. Progress is almost always series of choices, an inexorable move toward mediocrity, or its opposite." 

-Ben Bergeron

WOD For 01-18-18:

"Gym's Closed"

FIVE 3-Minute Rounds For:

500m Row

Max Reps Burpees 

(Rest 3 Minutes)

This is 3 minutes of work followed by 3 minutes of rest, repeated 5 times.  

In the gym (yes, it's actually open) we will score this by:

1) Your SLOWEST 500m row (i.e. dog it and you'll end up scored by your first round and a whole lot of regret).

2) Your LOWEST number of burpees for any given round (see above regarding dogging it).

-then-

FIVE 30-Second Rounds For Max Reps:

Medicine Ball Russian Twists @ pick load

(Rest 30 Seconds)

This is 30 seconds of work followed by 30 minutes of rest, repeated 5 times. 

Keep one running count for total reps - we will score it by your grand total.

One rep = tap med ball (on floor) left + tap med ball (on floor) right. 

Think of Fitness As Food

Brian Watts, owner and head coach at CrossFit Zenith (Wallingford, Connecticut), once wrote a blog post comparing fitness to food.  It's a good read and a great analogy, so I wanted to re-share it with our AR community. 

Here is his original post in its entirety:

Think of fitness as food. The globogym [Rob's Note: "globogym" = commercial gym] is your major fast food chain. You walk in a McDonald’s anywhere in the world, you know what you’re going to get. Same goes for Planet Fitness, The Edge Fitness and most of those other 24 hour gyms you see everywhere.

CrossFit is like a locally owned Italian restaurant. While all Italian restaurants have the same general goal (“Eat this Italian food here.”), each one has a different menu and cooks things slightly differently. Sometimes the globogyms try to do CrossFit as well, the same way fast food joints will throw in a meatball here and there or create an Olive Garden.

The analogy goes even deeper. If you frequent the local Italian restaurant, they’ll get to know your name, they’ll tell you about little specials they have for the good customers or make special request dishes for you. They’ll take extra care in making your order because your patronage is important to them. They started their business because they not only love to cook, they want to share that love of cooking with others. Behind every CrossFit gym is a CrossFitter. We try to learn everything we can about our gym’s members and do everything we can to bring our love of CrossFit to new people and watch it change their lives the way it has changed ours.

The globogym’s similarity to fast food works the same way. You’ll get a one-size-fits all situation with someone who may or may not know what they’re doing and who has seen so many people come in the door he can’t get them all straight. The only place that comparison falls apart is that fast food places want you to keep showing up, whereas the globogym does not. They would actually lose money if more of their members showed up. Instead, they put a super-low price on their membership and hope you’ll forget that you’re being charged $20 a month for something you never use.

Here’s something else to think about. If you try a new Italian restaurant and get food poisoning, was it the food that kept you hovering over the toilet hating life, or was it the chef who didn’t cook things properly? You might never go to a particular restaurant after your bad experience, but you do eventually go to another Italian restaurant. Substitute “Italian restaurant” with “CrossFit” and “chef” with “coach.” You can leave in the toilet part, ’cause that might still apply. People at bad CrossFit gyms get hurt. People at bad Italian restaurants get food poisoning. Italian food doesn’t inherently make you sick, CrossFit doesn’t inherently make you injured.

Like food, you can also create fitness all on your own. In this analogy, CrossFit becomes a cookbook. You can find all sorts of information on workouts and movements and CrossFit related awesomeness and go right out to your garage and start doing CrossFit, just like you can grab a cookbook from the shelf, go to the grocery store and start making your own food. Sometimes, you’ll be able to make food that’s just as good as what you get at your local restaurant. When you’re cooking, there’s always the chance you’ll read something wrong or get one of the ingredients mixed up and make everyone sick. Sort of like not reading all there is to know about an exercise movement and then going out and getting yourself hurt. Again, the former people will typically say they messed up the recipe while the latter will say CrossFit hurt them.

You have a wide variety of choices to get yourself fit, just like you have a wide variety of choices to put food in your mouth. Think long about the choices you make and if those choices were bad, think long about why they went bad. Test and retest. Taste and re-taste.

-Brian Watts (CrossFit Zenith)

WOD For 01-17-18:

A) Against an 8-Minute Clock (From 0:00 - 8:00):

800m Run

Then, in the remaining time, AMRAP of...

8 Hang Power Snatches @ 135/95 lbs 

8 Bar Muscle-ups

-REST 3 Minutes-

B) Against a 6-Minute Clock (From 11:00 - 17:00):

600m Run

Then, in the remaining time, AMRAP of...

8 Hang Power Snatches @ 115/75 lbs 

8 Chest-to-Bar Pull-ups

-REST 3 Minutes-

C) Against a 4-Minute Clock (From 20:00 - 24:00):

400m Run

Then, in the remaining time, AMRAP of...

8 Hang Power Snatches @ 95/65 lbs 

8 Pull-ups

Athletes must change their own weights during the rest periods.

Lost & Found: Final Call

Reminder to check the Lost & Found for your stuff this week, as we'll be donating the remaining contents to charity after the weekend.

Thanks for your attention!

WOD For 01-16-18:

With a Partner on a Running Clock...

A) From 0:00 - 18:00

For Time (BOTH Athletes Complete 10-to-1):

10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1

Squat Cleans @ 135/95 lbs

Box Jumps @ 24/20 in

One athlete working at a time. An athlete completes one FULL round (e.g. 10 SqCl and 10 BJ) before TAGGING their partner to start their full round.

For example:
Partner A does 10 & 10
Partner B does 10 & 10
Partner A does 9 & 9
Partner B does 9 & 9
...etc...

B) From 18:00 - 30:00

Strict Press (Cycle 2, Week 3):

***Add 5 lbs to your Cycle 1 "Base" weight for your Cycle 2 "Base" weight, then...

75% x 5
85% x 3
95% x 1+ (AKA "Max Effort" or "as many reps as you can safely perform")

MLK Day: Full Class Schedule

We're running a full/normal class schedule on Martin Luther King Jr. Day (Monday, Jan 15th), so come on in and get your skill-intensive workout in -- either during your normal class time, or at any other class time! 

WOD For 01-15-18:

AMRAP 20 Minutes:

20 Calorie Row

40 AbMat Sit-ups

80 Double Unders

3 Rounds of "Nate"

1 Round of "Nate" is...

2 Muscle-ups

4 Handstand Push-ups

8 Kettlebell Swings @ 70/53 lbs

(Compare to 03-14-17)

Sunday Track WOD With Coach Amy!

Coach Kim will be handing over the reigns to Coach Amy for this Sunday's track session.  Come down to the track at 1:00PM on Sunday for a great workout that builds on the prior weeks' training. 

Didn't make any of the prior weeks?  Not to worry, you can jump in this week and have a great session regardless - so don't let that stop you!

Check Kim's weekly message in the private Arena Ready Facebook group (click here) for meet-up instructions and workout details.

Happy Weekend, all! 

WOD for 01-13-18:

In Teams of THREE Athletes, On a Running Clock...

A) From 0:00 - 18:00

AMRAP 18 Minutes:

9 Power Snatches @ 115/80 lbs

12 Overhead Squats

15 Lateral Bar Burpees

(400m Run)

Athletes A & B complete the triplet with only one person working at a time (reps do not have to be split evenly) while Athlete C runs 400m.  One athlete must always be running and must always switch after 400m.  The team's score is rounds + reps completed of the triplet.

B) From 18:00 - 21:00

Rest 3 Minutes

B) From 21:00 - 33:00

Back Squat:

12 Minutes to Establish a 2, 4, and 6-Rep Back Squat 

Each athlete establishes EITHER the team's 2, 4, or 6-rep back squat - and the team's score is the sum of the successful sets completed.  For example:

Athlete A successfully completes a 2-rep back squat of 200 lbs.

Athlete B successfully completes a 4-rep back squat of 185 lbs.

Athlete C successfully completes a 6-rep back squat of 150 lbs.

The Team's score is 535 lbs (200 + 185 + 150 lbs)

In other words, the team must choose who is assigned to which rep scheme (2, 4, or 6 reps), and must load the bar accordingly for warm-up sets and attempts (the team shares one squat rack and one barbell).  Be smart and choose wisely.

(Compare to 01-14-17)

The Open is Open for Registration!

Perhaps in honor of AR doing the first repeat Open workout in 2018, CrossFit opened registration for the CrossFit Open today! CrossFit HQ's Rory McKernan does a great job explaining the Open in the video below, and for those unfamiliar with the Open this is a great way to get some of those big questions answered.

In short, the Open is the first step in qualifying for the CrossFit Games. It is also a fun opportunity to measure your fitness across a test of five workouts over five weeks. You can then see how you stack up against others at Arena Ready, others in California, and others in the world! Plus, it's a chance to be in the photos Rob will use in the blog for the rest of the year :)

Also, speaking of Rob, he's scheduled to be back tomorrow, so you can look forward to the blog returning to it's usual quality shortly!

WOD for 01-12-18:

Wendler 5-3-1

Deadlift Cycle 2, Week 3 (Percentages Based on Cycle 2 Base)
5 @ 75%
3 @ 85%
1+ @ 95%

- then -

Against a 15 Minute Clock:
Run 1,000m
100 Walking Lunge
Then, in remaining time, AMRAP of:
15 Russian KB Swing @ 70/53 lbs
15 Box Jump Over 24/20"
15/11 Cal Row

Open Workout 15.3 Revisited

WOD for 01-12-18:

CrossFit Open Workout 15.3

14 Minute AMRAP:

7 Muscle Up

50 Wall Ball 20/14 lbs to 10/9 ft

100 Double Under

Turkish Get-Up: A Refresher

WOD for 01-10-18:

Turkish KB or DB Get-up

1-1-1-1-1 (Each set = 1R + 1L)

-then-

4 Rounds for Max Reps (:40 on/:20 off)

1) Alternating DB Snatch (50/35 lbs)

2) Hang Power Clean (135/95 lbs)

3) Calories on Rower or Assault Bike

4) Rest

FRAN

We frequently do named workouts at the gym, and I think most people are familiar with the concept of "girl" workouts, "hero" workouts, and other named workouts in CrossFit, but on the day of Fran, it also seems worth reviewing how cool these workouts really are in the context of the CrossFit training methodology over time.

Girl workouts serve to establish a benchmark of fitness and proficiency in the movements tested by that particular workout. I remember the first time I did Fran in particular - I figured it'd be a good plan to go really fast on the thrusters since I wasn't very good at pull-ups yet (oh how quickly I regretted that strategy). I was taking my Level 1 Seminar in Novato back in March of 2010, back when Fran was still tested at the Level 1.

I remember needing to break my reps into 3 decreasing sets per round for the thrusters: 8-7-6, 6-5-4, and 4-3-2 (the plan was to break the set of 9 into 5 and 4 if I was feeling ok). I did most of my pull-ups in singles, ripped both of my hands, and took over eight and a half minutes to finish. I thought Fran was so hard, and couldn't for the life of me understand how it was humanly possible to do that workout in less than five minutes, much less the 2 and 3 minute scores recorded by the elites back then.

Since then, I've performed Fran quite a few times, and each time I've approached it with the same level of fear and anticipation. In each case I know that it's a test of movements which don't tend to favor my strengths. I know that it feels hard, and tests my willpower. I also know that if I've managed to get better at it then my efforts to improve those movements have paid off in ways that will benefit not only my Fran time, but most of my other weaknesses as well.

My goals for the workout have progressed over time - at first I tried to just do the thrusters unbroken (and was crushed time and again when I caved and put the bar down midway through the set of 15). Then I could eventually do the thrusters unbroken, but needed to do the pull-ups in 6-5-5-5, 5-4-3-3 and 3-3-3. At some point my pull-ups started getting better, and I started to dream of actually completing the workout unbroken. I finally managed to do so in Tahoe right before our very own Molly's wedding. My elation with a huge PR, and finally completing Fran unbroken, quickly faded as I realized that it's remarkably difficult (and painful!) to recover from an anaerobic workout in high altitude.

In reflecting on this evolution, I also see ways in which my desire to improve at Fran (or, let's be honest, in my own words: "to not suck at Fran") directed my training throughout the years. I saw Fran as a test of my legitimacy as a CrossFitter, a valid measure of my fitness, and even more so a microscope on two areas of weakness. As I worked to improve my pull-ups, I developed an understanding of the importance of grip strength, lat engagement, midline control, and even pacing within the movement. As I worked to improve my thrusters, I developed substantially better glute activation, hip flexibility, front rack mobility, overhead stability, and again, pacing within the movement.

Improvement in this workout, and getting to a point that I felt like I had finally gone "fast enough" to be respectable feels so remarkable, particularly in hindsight, and especially considering how far from that feat I started, and am physically at this specific moment in time. It feels like a dream, and an honor, but at the same time almost totally ridiculous that a workout involving 90 reps of anything could have attracted so much of my focus and attention for such a long time. Yet, I see the ways that caring about my performance in this workout (and focusing on so many ways in which I could improve upon my time) helped me to develop into a better, healthier athlete, a more thoughtful, understanding coach, and even a more patient, persistent human, and I wouldn't change it for the world.

As you approach this workout, my hope for you is that whether you are attempting Fran for the first time, the second time, the fifth time, or even the tenth time, that you use it as an opportunity to develop a better understanding of your current capacity and the factors that contribute to where you are today. I hope that you grow from the experience, and that you can simultaneously be awed by the progress that you've made even if you're not yet where you hope to someday be. I also hope that you take a moment to be grateful that we have the luxury to focus on 90 reps of a silly workout - for better health, better fitness, better mindset, and a momentary escape from all the other concerns of this world.

And, as always, make sure you keep a stable grip on the bar!

WOD FOR 01-02-18:

Strict Press (Cycle 2, Week 2):

***Add 5 lbs to your Cycle 1 "Base" weight for your Cycle 2 "Base" weight, then...

70% x 3
80% x 3
90% x 3+ (AKA "Max Effort" or "as many reps as you can safely perform")

-then-

"Fran"

21-15-9
Thrusters @ 95/65 lbs
Pull-ups

(Compare to 02-12-16, 04-26-14, and 12-15-13)