Monday 071001

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REMINDER: The October Elements Workshop begins tonight. There are a couple of spaces for the Monday/Friday session beginning tonight. $300. Tuesdays/Thursdays are filled.

Fight Age With Muscle

"Compared with sarcopenia [loss of muscle mass], other sneaky scourges of the middle years, such as arterial plaque buildup and prostate enlargement, announce their presence with a fanfare of symptoms. But sarcopenia creeps by in imperceptible increments, stealing a fifth of a pound of muscle a year, from ages 25 to 50, and then it picks up a dreadful, yet still mostly silent, velocity. The condition subsequently bleeds a man of up to a pound of muscle a year, a loss he is unlikely to notice until it's too late. "'You haven't gotten any thinner, because the pounds of muscle are typically replaced by pounds of fat,' explains Maddalozzo. 'But sarcopenia is progressing all the time. One day you trip and fall and suffer a fracture of your hip. Then, when you try to rehab after hip-replacement surgery, you discover that you have virtually no muscle mass to build on.'"

Saturday 070929

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Cubans' weight loss in 1990s good for health - study

Read an excerpt: Gary Taubes' "Good Calories, Bad Calories"

Fake acupuncture works nearly as well as the real thing for low back pain, and either kind performs much better than stardard medical care

I've finally posted a bunch of September photos to my Flickr page, which you can find here. I've picked out a few favorites for the blog:

Beginners' Class

You really don't want to know...

Squat this.

One big happy CFNYC family

Turkish Get Up Friday! 070928

NOTICE: The Olympic Lifting Class will be canceled this Sunday. We apologize for the inconvenience.

Women Lifting Heavy Video...Impressive!

Sixty eight and friggin' jacked!!!

That's how we roll.

Who's yo' daddy?

Elements workshop. This is Mike.

This is Elijah.

The lunchtime crew

Coming to get you!

Loving life.

Behold! I give you The Baconator!

Thursday 070927

"Nicole"

Compare to 070809.

I was thinking of doing "Keith" complete as many Baconators as you can in 20 minutes.

Beginner's class having fun

Josh leading by example

Hari redeems himself


Josh has his first date with Fran

Who let these guys in to the party?

Wednesday 070926

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On the subway ride this morning, I decided that today's indoor WOD instead of running will be "Angie": 100 pullups, 100 pushups, 100 situps, 100 squats. For time. Those that missed yesterdays WOD can feel free to make that up instead.

Dissolve fat with a shot

Then you can eat more Twinkies

Specialization is for insects

American Indian Nikes?

REMINDER!!! Sign up for October Elements Workshop Series this week. $200 if you sign up before noon on Saturday. After that the price goes up to $300.

Tuesday 070925

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The Scientist and The Stairmaster

CrossFit San Diego on Fox 6

Rob loves working out at The Black Box!

Sarah looks fresh as a daisy after her date with Pukie The Clown today. Way to go!

Court scrambled to finish today's WOD in 19:27. It almost killed him. His last words were, "Avenge me, Keith! Avenge me...!"

And the winner is...Tyler Durden, 14:42, as rx'd:

Monday 070924

Post total rounds and partial rounds completed to comments.
"People ask me, 'What do I do for abs?'... I tell them, 'stabilize the mid-line like a motherf@#!er, that's what you do!'"- Greg Glassman

He's jumping up and down because he loves CrossFit (and his fate)!

Dammit Interview - video [wmv]

Sunday 070923

If you cannot do the muscle-ups do 120 pull-ups and 120 dips.

Elizabeth Workout Demo, CrossFit Santa Cruz - video [wmv]

Saturday 070922

Compare to 070707.

Check out some of the new stuff on the website. Look down the left hand side. The schedule, FAQs and BIOs have been updated. Thanks to Allison for doing all the work.

Equal Rights. But seriously, folks. "You Are Beautiful" by Jon Gilson

Q. What are the Seals doing?
A. CrossFit.

"Do Your Customers Love You?"

ACT FAST!

Due to the popularity of our Elements Workshops, we are bringing on additional coaches to assist with the workshops so that you can get more attention. Also we are raising the prices because we feel that we are giving away the farm. If you sign up for October Elements Workshop this week you can get the early bird discount price of $200. After September 28, the price will go up to $300. We will cap each workshop at 8 people so act fast and secure your spot.

Yes, you must attend an Elements Workshop before being admitted into the WOD classes. No, we will not make an exception for you.

Payment must be made in person by check or cash. And you must choose between T/Th 6pm or M/F 7pm.

October Elements begin on Monday, October 1 at 7pm.

Friday 070921

Use 95 pounds, 65 pounds or broomstick as needed and post time and load to comments.

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Elements Class had an amazing week playing with Fran and Fight Gone Bad.

"My Outsourced Life" by A.J. Jacobs.

"It’s funny, but the world is made up of two groups: those who know or think they know Dan Gable. And those who wish they did." The House of Seven Gables

During his prep and college careers, Gable compiled an unbelievable record of 182-1. He was undefeated in 64 prep matches, and was 118-1 at Iowa State. His only defeat came in the NCAA finals his senior year. Gable was a three-time all-American and three-time Big Eight champion. He set NCAA records in winning and pin streaks.

After college, Gable added titles at the 1971 Pan American Games, the 1972 Tbilisi Tournament and the 1971 World Championships. He won an unprecedented six Midlands Open championships and was that meet's outstanding wrestler five times. In 1972, in Munich, Germany, he won a gold medal at the Summer Olympics without surrendering a point to any of his opponents. The Soviets came to the Olympics with only one goal in mind: to defeat Gable. They were unsuccessful.

In Gable's final 21 Olympic qualification and Olympic matches, he scored 12 falls and outscored his nine other opponents, 130-1. The single point being scored by Larry Owings, who defeated Gable in his final collegiate match.

Gable joined the Iowa coaching staff in 1972, assisting head coach and Hall of Famer Gary Kurdelmeier until taking over the program in 1976.

As the University of Iowa's all-time winningest wrestling coach from 1977 to 1997, Gable compiled a career record of 355-21-5, all at Iowa. He coached 152 All-Americans, 45 National Champions, 106 Big Ten Champions and 12 Olympians, including four gold, one silver and three bronze medalists. The Hawkeyes won 25 consecutive Big Ten championships, 21 under Gable as head coach and four while he was an assistant coach and administrator. He had a winning percentage of .932 and captured nine consecutive (1978-86) NCAA Championships. At the time that equaled the longest streak of national titles won by any school in any sport, and is also held by Yale golf (1905-13) and Southern Cal track (1935-43).

On only five occasions did a Gable-coached team lose more than one dual meet in a year. In fact, Gable's teams averaged over 17 wins and just one loss per season. The 1996-97 season added the final chapter to Gable's storied career. In late January, he underwent hip replacement surgery, missing four dual meets while recuperating. He reappeared in the Hawkeyes' corner just in time to lead the team to their 24th consecutive Big Ten title and 17th NCAA title. Iowa shattered its own NCAA team points record, scoring 170 points during the three-day tournament in Cedar Falls.

Gable has coached many United States teams in international freestyle competition. He is a three-time Olympic head coach (1980, 1984 and 2000). The 1984 Olympic team, which featured four Hawkeyes, won seven gold medals. He was an assistant freestyle coach at the 1976 and 1988 Olympics. Gable also served as head coach of the World Team in 1977, 1978, 1979, 1983, 1994 and 1999, as well as 10 World Cup teams winning three team golds in World Cup competition. Gable also coached the U.S. team to a bronze medal at the 1986 Goodwill Games, and has led several all-star teams to Europe and the Soviet Union.

Gable was named to the U.S.A. Wrestling Hall of Fame in 1980, and to the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame in 1985. He was selected the nation's outstanding wrestler by the AAU in 1970, and the U.S. Wrestling Federation in 1971. Gable was the Amateur Wrestling News Man of the Year in 1970.

Some of his most recent accolades include being named the top wrestler of the 20th Century by Gannett News Service, listed as one of the top coaches in the 20th Century by ESPN and named Iowa's top "sports figure" in the past 100 years. In 1996, Gable was named one of the "100 Golden Olympians", an honor bestowed to the top 100 U.S. Olympians of all time.

In June 2002, he was appointed to the President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports. Several networks, including ESPN and HBO have aired documentaries on Gable's life and accomplishments.

Currently, Gable serves as Assistant to the Director of Athletics in charge of performance enhancement at the University of Iowa. He has also rejoined the coaching staff at Iowa as an assistant to Head Coach Tom Brands. He resides in Iowa City with his wife Kathy and has four daughters, Jenni Mitchell, Annie Gavin, Molly and Mackenzie and four grandchildren, Gable, Danny, Jake and Elsie.

"Gold medals aren't really made of gold. They're made of sweat, determination, and a hard-to-find alloy called guts." Dan Gable

Thursday 070920
For time
5 KB cleans Left arm
5 KB split jerks Left arm
5 KB cleans Right arm
5 KB split jerks Right arm
5 KB snatches Left arm
5 KB overhead squats Left arm
5 KB snatches Right arm
5 KB overhead squats Right arm
20 burpees
5 rounds:
KB clean, split jerk, snatch, overhead squat left arm
KB clean, split jerk, snatch, overhead squat right arm

Tip of the Hat to our main man, Hari!

Wednesday 070919

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"Milk: It Does a Body Good?" by Lori Lipinski

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Tuesday 070918

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It seems unlikely that we will be doing this particular WOD at the box since we only have one rower and no 20lb medicine balls. However, I am certain we can come up with something fun to do instead. I'm sensing kettlebells.

Our man with the big bells is coming back to the NY area. Steve Cotter will be doing seminars in Brooklyn and New Jersey in October. Check out FullKontact.com for more info. We are looking into getting a CrossFit discount.

An article from St. Louis Today about another unsuspecting reporter trying CrossFit. Always entertaining.

Elements classes this week will be working on Fran and Fight Gone Bad! Wish them luck.

We also welcome back Hari, Dammit, Rob & Juan. Thanks for representing The Black Box at the Certification Seminar at CrossFit H.E.L. We are looking forward to some pictures and stories.

Monday 070917

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Saturday 070915

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You might notice that The Box smells a little better, looks a little brighter and is generally tidier. Please help keep it that way.

Again I would have to say, that this falls into the category of things that look easy but is probably really hard.

Friday 070914

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For some people, this is porn:

It is hard to resist this treat that has on average about 2.5 blocks of carbs, 0.5 blocks of protein and 5 blocks of fat per serving. Most people eat four servings at one time.

Tip of the day: To rationalize your Ben & Jerry's craving and make it Zone "friendly", eat about 4 blocks of protein (28g), preferably in the form of a 4 oz. steak. Then split a pint with a friend. That will give you 5 blocks of carbs, 5 blocks of protein, 10 blocks of fat and many blocks of sweet satisfaction.

Read this article on Intermittent Fasting (IF) and read some of the interesting comments as well, then post your thoughts to comments.

Get the June 2007 issue of the CrossFit Journal for this article:
Lon Kilgore, "Physics, Physiology, and Food" - A practical look at the ins and outs of nutrition and the realities and requirements of dietary composition in the light of common-sense principles of physics and physiology. "Diet" is not just about weight or appearance; it's the foundation of physical training. As Prof. Kilgore puts it, "Exercise is about adaptation. Nutrition is about the support of that adaptation."

Thursday 070913

Since we do not have any 45lb dumbbells or enough weightvests, I recommend 16kg kettlebells for the weighted pullups.

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When I say arch your back, I mean this:

Unfortunately what I see is this:

I wanted to name this workout the Super Renegade Pistol Party, but my girlfriend asked me why all my workouts have names like the Beast and KettleHell. She asked why I didn't name them something nice like the Fluffy Cloud Dance? So I present you with "The Fluffy Cloud Dance!"

Wednesday 070912

As Many Rounds as You Can in 20 minutes of:
Squat
Pistol Right Leg
Squat
Pistol Left Leg
Pushup
Renegade Row Right Arm
Pushup
Renegade Row Left Arm
7 Superman Back Extensions

The pushups and renegade rows are done with the hands on kettlebells. Men should use 24kg and women 16kg. Smaller KBs are less stable, so if you can't row 16kg, then do the pushups with hands on the floor and pick up the KB each time you row. Squats and pistols can be done with or without holding one of the kettlebells. The supermans are done with the belly on the floor and the arms reaching forward alongside the ears and the legs and feet are squeezed together and do not come apart. Lift the entire chest and the legs off the floor.

Post total rounds and partial rounds completed to comments.

Tuesday 070911

Three rounds for time of:
50 Pull-ups
185 pound Deadlift, 21 reps

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Main Entry: excessive
Part of Speech: adjective
Definition: too much
Synonyms: boundless, disproportionate, dissipated, dizzying, enormous, exaggerated, exorbitant, extra, extravagant, extreme, immoderate, indulgent, inordinate, intemperate, limitless, more, needless, over, overboard, overkill, overmuch, plethoric, prodigal, profligate, recrementitious, redundant, self-indulgent, sky-high*, steep, stiff, stratospheric*, super, superabundant, superfluous, supernatural, too many, towering, unbounded, unconscionable, undue, unmeasurable, unreasonable, way out*
Antonyms: deficient, insufficient, meager, moderate, reasonable, skimpy, underdone

Take a moment to remember.

The Joy of Box Jumps

Don't Fight the Physics:
"Elements of Muted Hip Function (MHF)
The elements of MHF include but are not limited to structurally disadvantaged spinal posture, low/no glute recruitment, low/no hamstring recruitment, pelvis abandons the spine and chases the legs, center of gravity shifts dramatically backward, center of balance shifts toward toes, knee experiences unsound sheer force, leg extension only productive effort, hip extension not possible with low hip angle, pelvis rotates wrong way, and most importantly stability, balance, and power diminish with lowered center of mass.
The Damage
The degree of MHP varies from mild to severe. In severe cases everything the athlete attempts is rocked by instability and low power. In mild cases power loss and instability occur only while under great physical stress. In combat and elite performance even mild MHF can lose the day.
For physical performance what could be worse than low power and instability?
The Solution
Deliberate and focused training and practice of demanding hip extension movements is the only way to eliminate the effects of MHF. Again, it will typically take three years or more to eliminate all tendencies toward MHF.
No exercise offers as much opportunity to correct MHF tendencies than perfect form, high rep push-press. MHF is evident within the first .01 of a second of a bad push press." Coach Greg Glassman

Muted Hip Function - Notice the hips and knees way forward on this attempted push jerk. Also notice the arms are not locked out which technically disqualifies this as a jerk. Keeping the eyes open during your lifts is generally a good idea.

Muted Hip Function - Notice the hips and knees way forward on landing of this push jerk. Again the arm's failure to lockout disqualifies this from being a technically correct jerk and would earn an F at competition. You can't see but her eyes are closed too.

Good Hip Function - Notice the hips and knees back and the arms locked out. This is a technically sound jerk. Eyes open.

"If it is important, do it every day. If it's not important, don't do it at all." Dan John

Warmup: 30 clean & jerks with an empty barbell. Use full squat cleans starting below the knees and alternate legs on the split jerks.

Monday 070910

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Elements classes this week will be focusing on the slow lifts: squat, press and deadlift. Remember Monday and Friday Elements classes are at 7pm. The Tuesday and Thursday WODs are at 7pm. Wednesday beginner's class is at 6pm.

Breathing? Seems easy...or does it? Read this article and post your thoughts to comments.

Thanks to Caroline from CrossFit One World for visiting.

It's Scott's Mom!

Pick up a 65# barbell and do as many reps as you can of Overhead squats, then front squats then back squats without putting the barbell down! Then rest. Then pick up the barbell and do as many reps as you can of shoulder presses, then push presses, then push jerks without putting the barbell down!

Post reps and your favorite momma jokes to comments.

Friday 070907

For time:
50 Box jump, 24 inch box
50 Jumping pull-ups
50 Kettlebell swings, 1 pood
Walking Lunge, 50 steps
50 Knees to elbows
50 Push press, 45 pounds
50 Back extensions
50 Wall ball shots, 20 pound ball
50 Burpees
50 Double unders

Post time to comments.

"It is also understandable that endurance sports coaches might not have an appreciation of the contribution that strength training can make to training for long-slow-distance sports. The easiest way to understand how this works is to look at the example of cycling, where each pedal stroke represents the use of a percentage of absolute strength. If your absolute strength goes up (as it necessarily will when I take your narrow little cyclist ass into the gym and double your squat strength in six weeks), then the percentage of your absolute strength used on each pedal stroke at the same speed goes down (by about half). Or, the force you can apply to each stroke over your three-hour ride can go up. Either way, strength has contributed to pedaling endurance. And if you get your pull-up strength up too, you can more efficiently control the frame while you pedal: your pull on the bars decreases uncontrolled frame “rocking” and maximizes force directed to the pedals. That should be enough evidence for cycling coaches to appreciate the contribution of strength training to the sport, but somehow I don’t think they will. Cycling coaches are among the most resistant human beings on earth when it comes to ideas involving things other than bicycles." Mark Rippetoe

Thursday 070906

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Inspiration!

Sooner or later everybody gets some--especially the coaches!!!

Coach Keith

Coach Mike

Coach Maximus

Wednesday 070905

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We are off to a strong start with September Elements. Last night the Elements class worked on the CrossFit Warmup, False grip bodyrows, tabata ring dips and tabata squats. Strong work!

Here's a video of The Beast!

WOD 070904
THE BEAST!

That's ONE rep.

Post completed and partial reps to comments. Compare to 070717.

"Strong people are harder to kill than weak people, and more useful in general." Mark Rippetoe

Once again Max from CrossFit Oakland was at The Box to kick our butts. We did "Nancy."
5 rounds for time of:
400m Run
15 Overhead Squats, 95lbs/65lbs women

It was painful. Hopefully there will be some good pics posted soon. Tomorrow we'll be back on track with some more fun rest day workouts. Tomorrow night at 6pm is the first Elements Workshop of September. If you haven't taken the Elements Workshop, please show up tomorrow and sign up.

Our brother Maximus from CrossFit Oakland paid us a visit today. He put us through a serious workout!

Warmup: 100 rope skips, 50 OHS, 2 x 10 (Pushups, Situps).
Skill: 50 Double Unders
Workout:
5 rounds for time:
10 Push Press, 115#/75#
10 KB Swing, 24kg
10 Pullups

Thanks, Max for the great class. Please come back tomorrow and give us some more of that California Love!