Monday

WOD:
Front Squat
1-10-1-20-1-30

High-rep squats cure everything.

75 wall ball shots is no problem, right?

Get your kip on.

Make sure to post your meals to comments for the Paleo Challenge!   Remember, you get up to four points a day for good food (meals plus snack) and a point for recovery.  Plus, we've gotten some really good recipes in there so even if you are not officially in, you can learn something cool.  I've posted my recipe for technically Paleo chocolate pudding/mousse.  VP

Weekend

Sunday

Lifting at 5pm
WOD at 6pm sharp

Enjoy your Halloween!

Classes as usual on Monday

W.H. Frank Lin, Montreal, Quebec. from CrossFit.com

Friday

WOD
3 rounds for time
100 m dumbbell waiter walk right hand
 30 GHD sit-ups
100 m dumbbell waiter walk left hand
 30 back extensions

We are now opening up the Monday WOD class at 5:30 pm!  So now we have a new WOD class Monday at 5:30 pm and a new class Wednesday at 6:30 pm.  Reserve your spot today.

The whole story on grains - why is gluten so bad?  From a registered and licensed Dietitian. 

From San Francisco, some really good news coverage on Paleo eating.  A doctor tries to NOT lose weight on the Paleo diet for 10 days to test food quality's effect on blood pressure and other markers of health.  She then continues, this time eating to satiety, and loses 30 pounds.

Please post your meals to comments - keep it up!  Anyone not officially in Paleo challenge can still support us with recipes and encouragement.

Thursday

WOD:
Colorado Master's Open WOD #4
10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1
Power Snatch 95/65
Side-to-Side Hops 12"

Margaret 7:58
James 7:54

During the Open, WOD #4 terrified me more so than any of the others.  In addition to my jumpphobia, I was fatigued, suffering significant DOMS, and I was getting cramps in my calves and feet.  When my heat was called, I ran out, smiled and pretended I was ready to go, but I had no idea if I'd finish slowly or end up on the floor knocked out by cramps or perhaps a pulled hip flexor that felt like it could give out at any second.  I faked it, and this turned out to be my best performance of the weekend.  Have fun with this one and see what you can do.

Yes, this does mean you're probably going to see the brutal WOD #1 chipper soon.

This is one of my favorite photos from the Master's.  I'm deep in pre-WOD #4 terror, but before we're done here Vanessa is somehow going to find Himilayan salt water for my cramps, and Dave is going to produce so much high quality comedy that I ultimately won't care what happens.  It all worked out with some help from my friends.

Given that it's not possible to have an intelligent argument over the Paleoicity of coffee before having coffee, I'm recommending drinking coffee, and if you're confronted by a zealot, just lie about it, "coffee, are you kidding? I haven't had that $h1t in years."

Wednesday

We are now adding a 6:30 pm evening class on Wednesday! 
Skill: Butterfly Pull-Up, or Pull-Up Progression
WOD:
21,18,15,12,9,6,3
Pull-Ups
Hand Stand Push Ups

DFM - Diesel Fuel Marine

DFM is not just for diesels.  I was on a Spruance class destroyer whose four gas turbines burned DFM, and as of today my training is focused on being a gas turbine instead of a diesel.  Marine fuels are required to have a flash point of at least 140 Fahrenheit, so even if I crash the erg a fireball is unlikely.  Two things to note: I just did a 3 x 1000 and failed to find the top of the can, and I'm not afraid of drinking 600 calories although admittedly I'm currently directing my focus on rowing fast, not losing weight.

I am firmly in the one gram of protein per pound of body weight camp, but no, I doubt Robb Wolf would approve of this sugar protein concoction.  I had to train myself to eat solid food within minutes of finishing a WOD, and having done that, there is no way I'm going back to any kind of shake, sugar-laden or not.

I wonder if perhaps when Paleo man was hungry, he ate until he was full.  The great thing about caloric restriction is that the body adapts by building subcutaneous fat deposits, and you still get to be hungry the whole time that's happening.

Tomorrow, 10/26, is be nice to James Day.  You see, I haven't firmly decided yet on Thursday's WOD.

Tuesday

hero WOD Morrison

LIFT
heavy snatch

WOD
snatch on the minute every minute, 15 minutes

A few minutes with our rowing coach

  Last week James offered us some tips and drills for our rowing technique.  Those in attendance have improved their rowing, and several have remarked that they can row faster with less fatigue!  James is going to offer two rowing seminars in November.  They will be after the Saturday WOD from 10:30-11:30 on Nov 4th and Nov 19th.  They will count as a regular class on your membership, or you can drop-in for $15.  (This class needs a minimum of 4 athletes, and a maximum of 8, so sign up now!)  The sign-up sheet is by the stereo.

  A reminder that we are changing to a reserved-class system in the evenings to serve you better.  Please go to the membership portal here (also found to the right on the blog) and sign in with your password.  You may reserve classes weeks in advance, but the online system will not let you cancel less than 24 hours before class.  Classes are capped at 12 people.

Monday

WOD:
5 Rounds for Time
400 meter Run
20 Deads Lifts 145/105
20 Push-Ups
10 Dead Lifts
10 Push Ups

Weekend

Saturday at 9 am
Free work out open to the public:
"Morrison"
50-40-30-20-10
Wall Ball
Box Jump
Kettlebell Swing

There will be a Paleo potluck and talk on Saturday after the WOD.  Bring something to share and your own utensils.  It would be appreciated if you register here.

Sunday at 6pm
Before the Master's Open I didn't know which I hated worse: box jumps or wall ball shots.  After the Master's Open I know I hate wall ball worse, so:

"Karen"
150 Wall Ball Shots for time.

One hundred and fifty wall ball shots to ten feet.

Friday

LIFT
Weighted Pull-ups
1-1-1-1-1-1-1

Finisher
5 rounds for time
9 thrusters 45/65
9 pull-ups

Skip explains Event 3 - kettlebell thrusters!

Remember the Paleo Challenge Check-In on Saturday!  Make sure to bring your own utensils and plates.   Everybody is welcome, not just the people who are signed up for the Challenge.  Bring your friends and share the yumminess.   More in yesterday's post.

 All of you who are doing the Paleo challenge, remember to eat enough so that you are not hungry.  It is important to eat plenty of fat, too: fat is necessary for the fat-soluble vitamins, to maintain healthy skin and hair, and to provide satiety.  Eat until you are full: you are eating good quality food, maybe for the first time, and your body may really need the nutrients in that food.  Plus, being hungry is just going to tempt you to cheat.  Be prepared with good snacks.  If you find yourself tempted by the bagels at work or that bake sale or that tamale, you can at least eat those emergency nuts or coconut oil or jerky.

  I really don't want you to starve yourself for a month and then go completely nuts with a whole pizza, a pan of brownies, and a gallon of ice cream! VP

Check out Everyday Paleo with Sarah Fragoso.  Good recipes and tips on living Paleo with kids and staying sane.

Another good blog to check out is Paleo Diet Lifestyle - it has recipes, too!  Here is an article about different fats to eat.

Thursday

WOD:
"DT"
Five rounds for time of: 
155 pound Deadlift, 12 reps 
155 pound Hang power clean, 9 reps 
155 pound Push jerk, 6 reps

Kids like to throw themselves on the ground after a WOD, too.

I'm going to be at the CrossFit Kids certification this weekend.  Soon I will be able to sub for Margaret in class.  Please tell everyone you know with kids that we have a CrossFit Kids class!  They can start anytime - they don't need an On-Ramp.  Ages 7 - 12, currently.

There will be a Paleo Check-in potluck and party after the WOD on Saturday.  You may register here at the bottom of the page.  Chelsea Jowell from Back to Basics Kitchen will be there again to demo some delicious food.  We encourage you to bring something yummy to share, but please, no sugar or honey or alcohol this time.  We will have an End-of-Paleo Celebration with some adult refreshments later!

Wednesday

WOD:
5 Rounds for Time
15 foot Rope Climb
5 Parallette Hand Stand Push-Ups
10 One-Legged OHS 45/33

I had an acceptable performance and a great time at last weekend's Master's Open.  I gave a heartfelt thank you speech to the 5:30 am crew last week, but I'd like to thank all the Freaks.  I mostly trained alongside the 5:30 and 7:30 am crews with occasional appearances elsewhere, but I derived motivation from everyone.  Usually the first thing I do in the morning is study the whiteboard and find out who did what after I left the previous day.  Remember that while your hard work benefits you, it is quite likely helping motivate someone else in the gym.


What can you expect from the Paleo Challenge?  It depends on your compliance but here is what happened to me.  I'd like everyone to post their menus to the blog comments as some have started doing.  It takes time, but I'll give you all direct feedback.  As soon as possible I'll put up a blog on Paleo pitfalls, but for now here is a short list: eat a ton of food, do not fear carbohydrates, do not fear fat, eat and do not be hungry.

Vanessa weighs in with more helpful Paleo links.

One year ago today it may have been warmer, or someone was seriously busting a$$.

Tuesday

BTW, Margaret actually won 1st place in her age group at the Master's Open!   Good job Margaret!

SKILL
Rowing technique

WOD
Helen
3 rounds for time
Run 400m
21 kettlebell swings 24/16 kg
12 pull-ups

Watch OPT crush this in under 7 minutes.  And here is an old school Helen with CrossFit headquarter's trainers Annie Sakamoto and Nicole Carroll.  Check out the variety of kipping pull-ups!

Post your meals to comments right here!  Extra credit for recovery work like yoga class or Mobility WOD!

Margaret winning the Ground to Overhead with a bum hip

This is 165!

What Would Eric Do?

Monday

LIFT
work on your fast box jump and kipping pull-ups

WOD
benchmark WOD for the Paleo Challenge
Christine
500m row
12 Bodyweight Deadlifts
21 Box jumps 20/16


Tomorrow is another chance to do a benchmark WOD for the Paleo challenge - Helen: run, kettlebell swings, and pull-ups.  There will be a chance to do a benchmark WOD of your choice if you come in during the Open Lifting class.  You must do at least one of: 1000 meter row, Helen, Christine, Filthy Fifty, or Murph.

Monday at midnight is the last second to sign-up for the Paleo challenge.  By that time you must have signed-up on the sheet or by email and sent me your front, side, and back swimsuit before photos.  You must also give me your $20 cash for the prize pot.  So far the five people who signed-up have a pretty good chance of winning cool stuff from Back to Basics Kitchen, a free month of CrossFit, or gift certificates to the new Main Street Outfitters outdoor-wear shop, etc.  The winners will be decided totally subjectively (joke, right?) by your trainers and one from a gym-wide vote.  You will get points for improvements bodycomp, posting your Paleo meals to comments, posting your recovery work to comments, and getting faster on your benchmark WODs.

This weekend I was at the Colorado Master's Open at Front Range CrossFit.  It was a blast.  I'll probably be hoarse from shouting encouragement to every competitor, especially James and Margaret.  It's always a fun scene at CrossFit competitions, but this one was a little smaller so we could wander around in the warm-up area and the athlete's resting area, and then back to watch the heats.  One could meet all the athletes and chat them up.  There were t-shirts to buy, equipment to test out, and a Paleo food truck!  Let's all make sure to get registered for the next local competition!  The older age groups are wide open with only one competitor in the women's 60 and up group (and she got to use lighter weights!)

Read more at James' blog here.   Videos available soon on Vimeo at TwinFreaks Crossfit. VP

Weekend

Saturday WOD
Murph
run 1 mile
100 pull-ups
200 push-ups
300 air squats
run 1 mile

In memory of Navy Lieutenant Michael Murphy, 29, of Patchogue, N.Y., who was killed in Afghanistan June 28th, 2005.


This workout was one of Mike's favorites and he'd named it "Body Armor". From here on it will be referred to as "Murph" in honor of the focused warrior and great American who wanted nothing more in life than to serve this great country and the beautiful people who make it what it is.

Partition the pull-ups, push-ups, and squats as needed. Start and finish with a mile run. If you've got a twenty pound vest or body armor, wear it. - CF.com




If you are new, this will be adjusted to suit your level of fitness.  The reps can be cut by half or more, with a shorter run.  We don't want this to take more than 40 minutes.

This WOD is a good benchmark for the Paleo challenge.  You may find that it just sucks less after you CUT your alcohol, sugar, and flour for a month.  (Yes, I know the thought of not drinking for a month kills some of you, but I sure bet you could cut down, and when you do drink, have "Paleo" stuff like tequila with fizzy water or wine instead of beer and sugar-bombs.)  Try and it see!  How do you look, feel, and perform after a month of treating yourself well and pampering your body instead of just using it?


By the way, a quick search on vegetarian Paleo brought up this site which looked promising and a bunch of others.  There is a good treatment here at NoMeatAthlete.  I think you might have to eat a lot of eggs, which would be fine unless you developed a sensitivity to them from overuse.  There is a rice protein powder which is just dreadful to get down, but should be pretty safe. VP

Sunday
no class

One scaling for the handstand push-up

Functional fitness. Thursday I had to go to work immediately after my final pinch test. I hadn't eaten since 3 am, and I hadn't had water for 24 hours. I could go home as soon as I got this several hundred pound pallet to the loading dock. My choices were to 1) move thousands of pounds of boxes to access this one, or 2) use this full-body push-pull to drag the target pallet far enough out to pick it up with the pallet jack. I chose 2 because I could and because I was in no mood to stay at work for hours.

I feel so much better today. JD

Friday

Taster's choice

An experiment from the CrossFit journal - free.

LIFT
Press 5-5-5-5-5

WOD
AMRAP 12
6 Push Press 155/105
9 Deadlift 155/105
12 Burpees

Our Paleo challenge officially starts Monday.  There is a $20 fee to enter and all money will go into the pot for prizes.  We will also offer a month of free CrossFit for the first prize winner!  Gift certificates for workout/outdoor gear from Old Town Outfitters on Main street will be offered!

Points will be given for improvements in performance and for posting your Paleo meals to comments.

Get in and do your benchmark WOD.  This Saturday will be Murph, and we will let you do Christine, Cindy, or Helen during the week.  If you would like to use a pure strength lift as a personal benchmark, come in and do your lift during the open lifting class.

Remember, get your before photos in to us and take measurements - waist and hip.  If fat loss is one of your goals, you may also find a great pair of jeans that you would love to fit into.  Your scale weight may remain the same but the jeans may suddenly zip up!

Sunday's class is canceled just for this week as all trainers will be in Denver for the Colorado Master's Open.  I'm going over there after class on Saturday, too, to cheer on Margaret and James.  Darla, Belinda, and Dave are going to be there to cheer on our coaches, are you?

"Your best defense against seasonal fatty pants disorder is a good offense which begins now.  Just think, every strict day of paleo now leads to one slightly less guilty  egg nog filled night in the future.  Keep it clean, stay focused.  Soon enough fall will be gone and the cookies will arrive… the delicious cookies…"  CF Balboa

Clayton wonders where all the other guys are.

Thursday

Lift: Front Squat
5-5-5-3-3-3-1-1-1
Work up to a heavy single and get a sense of your WOD weight

WOD:
3 Rounds for Time
12 Front Squats 135/95
12 Burpee Pull-Ups

CrossFit because running half and full marathons is not a sin, but looking like a marathon runner is.  Jennifer is working on a posterior chain that will look good and function like a useful Human's, not a distance runner who might be great at running 26 miles but can't vertical jump over an earthworm.

This Sunday, 10/16, only there will be no Sunday Suicide Squad.

Wednesday

WOD
With two partners, or otherwise with a 1:2 work rest ratio:
1000 meter row
2x500 meter row
4x250 meter row

Don't fear the rower, you can make this as bad as you want.  I'm doing the whole thing at 1:45/500, my 2,000m pace, but I'm resting up for the weekend.  Some of you may want to push the 1,000 and see how you line up for the rowing team and the possibility of two free months.  Drew, our on-ramper and high school rower, got on the board with a 3:32.7, very impressive for a lightweight who is weeks away from his top conditioning still.  On the women's side, Chelsea turned a 4:06 and Darla a 4:11.

How about this, you push the 1,000 and I don't whip you for slowing down on the 500's and 250's?

Vanessa has proposed a generous pay-off for the Paleo challenge, and though I broke into a sweat, I approved it.  But screw that.  Do this because you deserve to function at your highest possible level.

Sorry the pay-off is exactly zero for guessing if today's WOD came from mainsite or if it's one I put in to cover a mainsite rest day.

You did get this one right, didn't you?

It is indeed time to build out the pull-up rig!



Tuesday



Looks like something fun is about to happen!

WOD Filthy Fifty!
50 box jumps
50 jumping pull-ups
50 kettlebell swings with 24 or 16 kilograms depending on if you are male or female
50 walking lunges
50 knees to elbows
50 push press with 45 or 33 pounds
50 back extensions
50 wall balls with 20 or 14 pounds
50 burpees
50 double unders

 This WOD is a perfect benchmark WOD for the Paleo challenge.  Avoiding flour, sugar, and alcohol will make it suck much less. 

You may still do the Paleo challenge if you cannot or will not go 100% Paleo.  Improve your diet and recovery 80% and you still may see big improvements in how you look, feel, and perform.  Two Paleo meals a week for 30 days, or three Paleo meals during the week with the same old crap on the weekends, may be a big change for you - try it!



Just a bit of a warm-up



Monday

Lift: Overhead Squat
5-5-5-3-3-3-1-1-1

WOD:
AMRAP 20
7 Handstand Push-Ups
12 L-Pull-Ups

The Paleo challenge starts next Monday the 17th.  There will be a fee of $20 to join and all money will go into the pot for the prizes!  There will be a sign-up sheet in the gym with the guidelines.  You must send us a before photo in a swimsuit or something similar (and then an after photo, of course!) which we will not share unless you give us permission.   You must do at least one benchmark WOD before and after the challenge.  (We have a good one coming up this Tuesday!)  You will get points for posting your Paleo meals to comments, and please, share your recipes there, too.  There will be bonus points for other things, like class attendance. 

We will have a kick-off party on this Friday after the 5:30 pm class - bring a dish to share and Paleo drinks.  Sorry, beer is not Paleo.  :(  At the party Chelsea will demonstrate how easy it is to make almond milk.

Another take on Paleo:  Paleo 2.0.  "I coined the term “evolutionary metabolic milieu” or EM2, to signify that we cannot hope to duplicate the exact diet that was eaten, for all of these reasons. Instead, we can strive to use science and our reasoning to emulate the important elements of the evolutionary metabolic environment - the internal environment of our bodies."  This is very long, but in essence Dr. Kurt Harris says, don't eat gluten and don't eat processed foods. VP

The kettle bell swing.

Friday

21-15-9
Wall ball 20/14
Kettlebell swings 24/16
Pull-ups
 

What is this Paleo thing anyway and why should I care? An overview plus details.  Robb Wolf says, "In simple terms the paleo diet is built from modern foods that (to the best of our ability) emulate the foods available to our pre-agricultural ancestors: Meat, fish, fowl, vegetables, fruits, roots, tubers and nuts. On the flip-side we see an omission of grains, legumes and dairy. As this is directed to folks new to the paleo diet idea we need to address the “What Abouts.” This is the seemingly endless list of ingredients that folks ask: “What about artificial sweeteners, agave nectar, red wine…” In simple terms, if it’s not meat, fish, fowl, vegetables, fruits, roots tubers or nuts…it’s a “no-go.” At least initially. I like to see people go after paleo strictly in the beginning so we get the best possible results, then folks can tinker from there. I’ve detailed all of this information in my FAQ shopping and food guide, and quick start guides. These are all available for free (you do not need to buy the book to get any of the information) and it details all of the special considerations of autoimmunity, fat loss, athletic performance and muscle gain."

A good recipe for Paleo Shepherd's pie with cauliflower from the authors of Paleo Comfort Foods.  "My family grew up eating a version of shepherd’s pie. Yes, the mashed potato topping might have included instant mashed potatoes, but that’s okay. My mom meant well.  As we may or may not always have a bunch of lamb on hand, this is an easy recipe to make with ground meat or even a combination of meat and lamb…which is exactly what we did with the goodies US Wellness Meats shipped us!"

   

Thursday, really

WOD
800m Run
30 Snatches
800m Run

The randomization of CrossFit is a wonderful thing.  We've been served a relatively high volume of running this week.  If you haven't seen Margaret yet for a form tune-up, you probably should.

The Paleo Challenge starts in under two weeks.  While I strongly believe in the Paleo diet, I try to remain mellow about proselytizing.  If you're interested and approach me first though, I'll talk about it all day.  Been there, doing that if you have any questions.

What would you do for Two Free Months of Crossfit?

Okay, I did my first serious 1,000 meter row Wednesday and finished in 3:17.4.  Two hours later I have that horrible metallic tasting cough going.  So if you're into this challenge, perhaps think of the pay off as one week of recovery and seven free weeks of CrossFit.

Saturday, February 4th 2012, the Denver Indoor Rowing Championships will include a four person - two men, two women - 4,000 meter relay race with the winning team taking home a brand new C2 erg, which fits in my truck bed and would look great against our purple wall.  These guys cost about $1,000 or $250 per team member.  You buy me a rower, I buy you two months here.

We're looking for two men who can row a 3:15/1,000 and two women who can row a 3:45/1,000.  I'd prefer to seek individual glory in the 2k and the 500 meter sprint, but if in the end it makes sense that I'm on team, I'm on the team.

We decided we will pay the team entry fee, so you're only out something less than four minutes of pain.

What  it takes to row a 3:15 or 3:45/1,000:
nice to have - height
really, really good to have - explosive lower body strength
you'll hate your life if don't have - intelligence and discipline
absolutely must have - pain tolerance and aggression
we could win this thing with - a preference for death before second place

If we get four people, you get to watch me do a full out 500.  If we get three people, we're in this together.

Who is in?

Tuesday

WOD
800 meter run
30 Clean and Jerk
800 meter run

In unison

Today was a good day for deadlifts.  We spent a little time working on our handstands and our double unders, then got to the bars for some heavy deadlifts.  Several women are knocking on bodyweight deadlifts and will soon get them.  Scott had to top Andrew's 325 deadlift and managed it by 5 pounds.  You all were looking good today!

We are going to kick off our Paleo challenge with a little party on Friday October 14th.  We will then have a recipe sharing/Paleo Q&A with our own Chelsea Jowell, a personal chef and caterer.  She will have some good strategies for satisfying your food cravings and making timely meals.

A big part of your success with cleaning up your diet will depend on your initiative in shopping and preparing meals ahead.  If you find yourself with an empty fridge in the morning and then hungry, with no lunch, next to the vending machine...  it's a recipe for failure!  However, if you made stew in the crockpot overnight, if you have hard-boiled eggs ready to go, if you have a refrigerator full of farmer's market vegies all cut up and meat ready to go... it's a different story.  More strategies here.  Read more about what to eat according to Chuck Norris here.

Jumping

Monday

WOD
Dead Lift 3-3-3-3-3

Registration is now open for the MBS Turkey Challenge November 19th, 8 am - 7 pm.  Space is limited, and this will fill up quickly, so if you want in register early.

It's only 500 meters.  The Saturday crew gave me a lot to study.