Well, Happy Birthday again.

I'm kinda stoked for Lynne tomorrow...

Happy Birthday, AllisonNYC!

i know in our case, its pretty much you get on the bench when its your turn. but is there a standard for alloted rest time, in between rounds?

Happy Birthday A2. From that pic, we may have to start calling you Buffy.

Michelle - I think it should be cocktail arms for everyone in 08!!!

Happy birthday Allie!

Maybe one day I can get guns like yours.

Happy Birthday again Allison!

Moon: Do you have a thing for Buffy? That's the second time you've referenced that show in a week.

If you do, well, great minds think alike! :)

How do you go follow-up a guy doing an unbalancedS handstand on three cylindars with break dancing? Really? Did he really think he had a chance of winning?

happy bday allison- for u bday run far far away from the zone and eat the entire cake !

Moon-I expect to c that updated on ur profile by tomorrow.

Dear god Keith, you are psychic.
Back seized up midway through yesterday's WOD, will redo tomorrow. Instead of that I did the pull up ladder: 18 rounds; PR by 2 rounds.

Anyone have advice for before bed/ upon waking exercises to increase general leg and back strength? When I noticed I couldn't get a muscle up I started 4x50 push up sets before bed and that helped alot through the transition. I'm looking for something similar to help finally get pistols down, as well as help with my weakness at thrusters.

Michelle- check! I'm in bed covered in chocolate. Actually I didn't eat the whole cake - I licked all the frosting off. Slipping into a sugar coma. When I wake up I'll be 23!

Thanks for the compliments on the guns. They're coming along aren't they?

Tababta Shots anyone?! ;)

Dan L. - I don't know if this counts as strength exercises but everyone should be doing joint mobitity moves in the morning (with the exception of Brian since he's still a teenager)

Jeff Martone taught me first but now I'm reading Super Joints by Pavel and it's all the same things.

Mike usually does some before his workouts.

happy birthday A2

I love it when Keith shares his home videos!

allison- i ate some frosting in ur honor. i generally skip the cake anyway and go for the frosting right out of the tub. the whole point of the cake is the frosting anyway isnt it? when i wake up i wont be 23. i will just feel gross.

happy birthday screech!!

hey, would someone provide with a guesstimate of the black box's dimensions/ square footage?

Actually, in regards to JM (joint mobility), most of the RKC Senior cadre are now doing Dr. Cobb's Z-Health DJM (dynamic joint mobility) program with some pretty profound results, including Pavel himself (who has been open about his various rehabs). Even though he previously advocated Amosov's "Morning 100" he now is following Z's recommendation to stick to low reps, using it's "perfect rep" principle.
Jeff probably uses a higher volume due to his notoriously bad shoulders but you'd never be able to tell in person. When I first met him over two years ago, he was knocking off 100+ lb pullups while maintaining a conversation. Now he TGUs his wife.

(in my best Frosty the Snowman voice) Happy Birthday, A2!!

Anyways, I need to really start looking at that joint mobility information and learning more about it because between my shoulders, elbows, and wrists and the inflexibility in my hamstrings and hips, its a wonder I can even get out of bed anymore.

Pavel suggested matching the number of reps with a persons age. If the joints are damaged already then the goal should be 200-300 for those joints and 100 for the healthy joints.

I don't know how many Jeff or Pavel do personally but the movements were very similar and it was the movements that I was suggesting everyone should do. I would never have the patience to do 100 reps for so many exercises.

Jeff had us doing 20 reps as a group but also suggested, like Pavel doing as many reps as a persons age (I shoud do 23). He also did more exercises than were in Pavels book.

Looks like you guys have a few options on the rep scheme but I'll stick to what I said - we should all be doing Joint Mobility Exercises.

Court- Do you think they should be done before bed, in the morning, before a workout or all of the above?
I do them in the morning. Helps me get moving in the morning. It's more of a workout than most would expect and it makes me feel awake.

AllisonNYC and Court,

Joint Mobility is a topic near and dear to my heart, as I've had trouble with both my knees (from basketball) and shoulders (from years of volleyball and tennis). I've been working on flexibility lately, but I cannot even do the basic moves or poses (e.g. I cannot touch my toes). So my question is: what is the difference between joint mobility and flexibility? Aren't they basically the same thing?

happy birthday A2. Abs are starting to show

Massy, et al.

Flexibility and Joint Mobility are two different animals entirely. Flexibility deals with length of muscles. You stretch and try to lengthen the belly of the muscle in order to increase flexibility. The joint is where bones connect and connective tissues such as tendons and ligaments cross. Mobility of a joint has partially to do with flexibility but also has to do with motor control (i.e. getting the proper signal from the brain) and structural issues (e.g. the shape of your bones).

While there are purists from both camps, I think that both flexibility and mobility are important and should both be addressed. I am a yoga instructor and advocate of proper stretching, but I also am a big fan of Z-Health. The active control of the individual joints is necessary to proper function of the body.

The best program, however, is the one that you actually do. CrossFit only works for those people that do it. Same with yoga and joint mobility. If you wait around trying to find the best program out there, you'll die old and fat. Better to start moving your ass and then fine tune your program, than debating on the internet whether you should do super joints or z-health.

The gym is open right now. :)

Joe - since we didn't get together after yesterday's enduro WOD as planned, I have gone ahead and created your wiki page based off of Tom's design variant. If you need me to help you fill things in, just send info/goals/stats to moonster[at]gmail[dot]com.

BW = 125 lbs
Scaled to 55 lbs

Round 1: 15 BP / 2 PL
Round 2: 11 BP / 3 PL
Round 3: 8 BP / 4 PL
Round 4: 8 BP / 4 PL
Round 5: 6 BP / 3 PL

Post-WOD:
Cleans
65x3, 65x3, 75x3, 85x3, 90x3

Ewen and Ethan were rocking today! Good job guys!
(And, thanks for the kipping tips, Ewen.)

Happy B-day Allison.

bwt 200lbs

Bench @195lbs

10-22
6-20
5-13
3-10
5-13

Total 29-88, last time 28-77

I am going to San Diego this weekend - anyone been to any of the CFs out there? There are three or so - any of them friends of the Box? Any better than others?

Tom
Say hi to Eddie and Lisa Lugo @ CrossFit San Diego. I'm sure about the other two. I'll look them up now and see if I know them.

Tyler,

I hear you loud and clear. However, I still maintain that for those of us with serious flexibility/joint issues, many of the exercises are difficult, if not impossible, to even perform, let alone performed with heavy weights or with speed.

There are some exercises that just involve greater strength and neuromuscular ability, like pullups, pushups, dips, back extensions, etc. When I first started, I could not do a legit pullup, but by applying GTG and repeatedly doing it, i can do 10 dead hang pullups now (alas, i can't kip yet). However, success there resulted from the fact that I could at least perform the motion without joint impingement or flexiblity impairing my motion. In the case of back squats, my general lack of flexibility results in my back angled parallel to the floor far more than is suitable when my hip crease is below my knees. Moreover, my inability to externally rotate my shoulders makes it impossible for me to hold the bars with any degree of stability slightly below the back of my neck. So forget using any weight, I cannot even get the basic motion with a wooden dowel. Hence, I've focusing on flexibility in my hammies and my shoulders, unfortunately, to little avail.

Since so much of Crossfit exercises seem to require at least an average degree of flexibility to them properly, especially the squats since you guys emphasize going below parallel and trying to keep the back flexed at an angle parallel to the shins. It seemed to be that this would be a prerequisite BEFORE coming to the gym.

massy,

it's something you can work on AT the gym. it is almost impossible to do the things you need to do correctly on your own. one always wants to look in the mirror, which can distort the body. and if not it is hard to tell if you are doing movements correctly. always good to have a trained professional help you along eyeing your form and ability.

Oh yeah, CrossFit SoCal is cool too. Ahmik is a monster. I vaguely remember him from my first Cert and Coach asked him about how many pullups he got after zoning. Ahmik's answer was 60. I also vaguely remember when we did Helen, he took off on the run and I was like, "oh, that's what running looks like. Now what the hell am I doing?!?!?" He looked like he was flying.

massy - the best stretch for a squat is a squat.

...with proper form

Tom- If you stop by CrossFit San Diego and see Eddie tell him I said thanks for the e-mail but where was he in Pittsburgh!?

Massy, send me an email to my CFNYC address and we will see what we can do for your particular issues. Also buttonhole me the next time you are at the gym and I will show you some specific movements.
Many of you already have learned some JM from me in a few of my classes and we have already been planning a 1-day Z-Health workshop for the Black Box as well as a possible certification with Dr. Eric Cobb in the new year. But this looks like as good a time as any to offer a 1-hour Joint Mobility introductory class next week. Look for day and time on the front page.

Wait Keith-this dude did 60 straight pullups? And he flies too? What version of the Zone was he on-The Zeus edition?!

Moon, thanks for adding me to Wiki. I will send you the info.

Lynne (aka Cocktail Arms in a Can)

Bodyweight 185, scaled BP to 175

5/21
4/25
3/21
4/19
5/18
Total 21/104

Impressive bench press sets from Ethan this morning (as Rx'd 200lbs x 10-15+ each time). And he had the same pull-up numbers as me. So needless to say this was one of those humbling workouts.

No problem Xuan Mai. You just have to get that first one going!

Massy, I have to agree with the birthday girl (Happy Bday Allison, btw). I, for one, have mediocre flexibility. I can't touch my toes either, and I can't even sit cross-legged on the floor (it's more like cross-ankled with my knees in my face). It was even worse 11 months ago when I first stepped into the Box.

What little progress I've made this year in that department has mainly come from the active stretching one gets from just doing the exercises with the best possible form, in particular deep squats (back, front, OH).

Of course, more flexibility and JM work would surely help, but my advice is to also keep trying to do things right, and your body will loosen up on its own.

Btw Tyler, Eddie and Lisa Lugo are awesome ppl. But they moved b4 thanksgiving to Prescott AZ near Coach and family! Eddie is still in SD til he gets out of SEALs in May! Lisa is in AZ w kids already!! Both Raj and Susan @CFSD are awesome as well!
Ahmik is truly a monster and a super nice person as well. But he is back in med school advancing his career so dont know how much time he is in his gym! His wife is also amazing.

Oh for all who are interested, I too am seeing awesome results with IFing and am only a week in.

With everyone (Allisons, Paul, Robzilla) abbing up and certainly passing me by, I am going to have to go "Mariah" and take special measures to show off my CF-based bod this beach season. http://www.homestarrunner.com/sbemail77.html

Hopefully they will have a arm enhancement system available soon.

I would seriously love to learn more about joint mobility and flexibility. Especially any exercises I can do to help my shoulders.

As for stretches, I dont generally bother with doing anything other than the samson stretch, mainly because I don't know what to do.

I can hardly walk today my hamstrings are so tight. And back is feeling absurdly sore from the dls

WTF!! GloboGyms!! My rant for the day:

I think all the globo gym is interested in is raking in the $$. This notice was posted all over the gym this morning (where I am on staff as a yoga teacher):

December Nutri Facts
Thin Through The Holidays
Cranberries
What would a holiday feast be with Cranberry sauce gracing your table? For many people, the holidays are the only time you might partake in this bitter fruit. Did you know that in order to pallet this astringent ruby red morsel, it needs to be sweetened with High Fructose Corn Syrup (which is deadly-italics mine)? Yep, that's right, 22 grams of sugar per serving of Cranberry sauce...ouch! That goes for juice too; 75% of Cranberry juice cocktail is sugar water.

The Benefits
Well, the benefits of the Cranberry may outweigh the extra calories, especially if you are susceptible to Urinary Tract Infections or UTI. There is no evidence that Cranberries will cure an existing UTI problem but if you have recurring problems the evidence is overwhelming that Cranberries can prevent UTI. Recent research has concluded that Cranberries contain a group of chemicals called proanthocyanidins. This naturally occurring chemical binds to the hairy tips of E coli called P fimbria and flushes them out of your system before they ever have a chance to attach themselves to the bladder wall. That's good news for some women and guys too.

No Worries
If you are worried about an insulin spike from the excess sugar, be sure to combine Cranberries with some (italics mine) Protein and Fat. This will help to slow digestion. You shouldn't have too much difficulty finding those two macronutrients on your holiday table. Or, eat them raw and in a salad; when combined with Sun-dried Tomatoes, Walnuts and Balsamic Vinaigrette (where's the protein here--my comment); their bitter flavor works in harmony with everything else.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ok, so what have I learned from this article. Cranberries are good for my urinary tract but also have far too much sugar to eat on their own. And when processed are full of HFCS which I personally know to be as bad as or worse than trans-fats!But, if I want I can eat as much of them as I want as long as I include some protein and fat in the meal.

To me this article continues to point at the fact that the Globo Gym is only interested in keeping their revenues high. Eat all you want from the normal holiday meals/food. If the insulin spike you get is high, just come pay us money to keep you doing this yo-yo thing!!

massy when ever u come to the box I'll show u how to stretch for the squat.
yesterdays wod was a killer.I'd rather do the filthy fifty. but if it ever comes again I'll do it with gusto.
(the elderly)

Happy Birthday, Allison. Many happy returns.

Interesting article for everyone: (and if it has already been posted, then it must be good, read it)

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/06/health/nutrition/06Best.html?em&ex=1197176400&en=ca0897ba66f87fcf&ei=5087%0A

Here is something to consider. If you are having trouble doing full range of motion in some particular exercise, then those movements will actually stretch you. Best to do the movements without weight and work them SLOWLY. For example, if you cannot squat, then you should practice the squat movement really slowly with attention to your form. The problem is that people practice the wrong movements. Our bodies are subject to the S.A.I.D. principle: Specific Adaptations to Imposed Demands. The addage "practice makes perfect" is a lie. "PERFECT PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT!" You need to practice the movements perfectly in order to get better at them.

Every time you hear someone telling you to put your heels down on the floor and you ignore it, then you are practicing improperly. You must practice doing squats with your heels down and your back arched or you will never be able to do it. EVERY wod and EVERY warmup is an opportunity for you to practice perfect form. Those of you that choose to simply reinforce bad habits get better at doing things wrong. Those people that come in every day and try to improve their form get better.

As for stretching there is a yoga class near you right now. There are passes here at the gym. Your toes are right there waiting to be touched. There is no reason you can't be stretching right now. You could stand up right now and do some shoulder circles and ankle rotations. Get moving, people.

This is quite scary --espec with things we thought were healthy (from performance menu boards):
http://www.performancemenu.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1865

That's an interesting article Mike. I can see how people would disassociate themselves from the task at hand and drift off somewhere else, but I personally don't see the appeal. When working out I like to stay attentive to my environment and be there in both body & mind. There are a couple of reasons for this:

1) (I'm going to try and put this in the least masochistic way possible) I like the pain (Hmm, guess not). The pain reminds me that I'm pushing myself hard. It teaches me to not give up when things get tough. It also makes me feel alive. Sure, it sucks when the workout is going on, but it's also one of the reasons I feel so good after a WOD. I feel accomplished and my self-esteem shoots up cause I just pushed myself through a tough WOD, knowing that it hurt along the way

2) I can't really zone out or drift away from the workout, because if I think about anything else I'm lible to slip on a box, fall on my head, or mess up my knees. A lot of the technical skills that we do need to be given that extra attention (for me at least) lest I mess up and hurt myself.

Now I just have to figure out a way to get passed my mental barrier with something other than disassociation.

Court/Rick,

I'm sorry but I couldn't find your Crossfit email address anywhere, could you post it here?

keith@crossfitnyc.com
court@crossfitnyc.com

Hope this helps!

Did me a wee WOD at home in keeping with this week's theme of watching my shoulder

1min alt hand KBC (8kg)
rest 30sec
1min r side KBC and press 8kg
rest 30sec
1min l side KBC and press 8kg
rest 60 sec
1min 16kg KBS
rest 60 sec
x3

Then rest 30sec
3 pistols r/l x 3 (total 9 each leg) to the rower seat

"I teach study skills to university students. In one exercise I ask the students to put everything aside at their tables, and then hold two pieces of paper. I say, “OK, now, throw the paper.” Very little happens. A few giggles, a few questions, eventually a few limp tosses.

Then I ask them to again hold two pieces of paper, and I position two or three boxes around the room. I say, “Try to get the papers into one of the boxes, but without getting out of your chairs. OK, throw the paper.” This time there is immediate activity, often with creativity (e.g. paper airplanes; or someone walking to a box, holding their chair on their bum, to drop a paper in). The energy level is clearly higher. There are hoots of “yes!” when someone sinks a ball of paper in a box.

The point is that their willpower is somehow tied to the activity having a clear, achievable and measurable target, or goal.

I continue the debriefing by pointing out that the self assignment “now I’ll study” is as simple as “throw paper,” but the lethargy, inactivity and self-consciousness may be the same as the first throw-paper exercise if the studying does not have some clear, definable, measurable goal for every few minutes. I finish by suggesting that working on improving their “task definition” is superior to traditional “time management” strategies, if their problem is trying to actually use time well, rather than to find more time to devote to studies."

Mark Hoffmann
University College of the Fraser Valley
Abbotsford, British Columbia

guys go take a yoga class. u will be touching your toes by the end of the class. it has helped me tremendously with flexibility and the mix of crossfit and yoga is great .

and when keith teaches his yoga class he does not scream at anyone or roll his eyes about their form. i think its bc he cant play metallica. though he does sometimes mutter under his breath about how certain people can't seem to remember the difference b/w their right and left legs - but only a limited number of us can hear it. :)

oh and greg-keith loaded a picture for me on my wiki page- i dare say my cocktail arms are slowly catching up to urs. watch out....

michelle, if I went to a yoga class the dude would have to be some sort of miracle worker to get me anywhere near my toes!

I'm just glad I can touch my knees :)

Come on, if someone said to throw paper, just ball it up and throw it... Was this a "special" school? ;)

See the thing about Keith and Yoga, I can see it already... Ill be in some weird pretzel position, and he will come behind me and push me down, and Ill be stuck there. Forever!

Keith not yelling during a yoga class? I can't believe it.

Happy Birthday A2!!

ok well I said he didnt yell. I DID NOT say he didn't play mean playground tricks. he still does that.

the key is to stand near someone who is in a lot worse shape than you are. and thinks they are really really good at yoga. u can spot them bc they are usually wearing shorts that are waayy too short and are doing some heavy breathing nonsense 15 minutes before keith meanders into the room 5 minutes late wondering where his ipod is.

so if you see one of those people, stand behind them. you will inevitably looklike u r doing a good job.

sam- knees is good. better than hips right?

Happy birthday A2! Yowza, you look great.

As Rx'd (bench 175#)

16 bp - 12 pu
15-12
10-10
6-7
6-7

Total 54bp-48pu

I got myself a pullup bar at Modell's the other day! Technically a multi-bar that fits over the door without needing to be screwed in. $30.

(5,23), (5,22), (5,17), (3,12), (2,13) = (20,87)

Subbed ring push ups with feet elevated on a plyo box.

ring push ups-8,8,7,6,7
pull ups-10,7,6,6,7.

Total - 73

Hey women-

Start filling in the wiki! I'm the only one posting.

This was my first week back at the box after vacation. Good to be back, and good to see so many people knocking out kipping pull ups.

Following Ewen's lead, I thought I'd be more diligent about posting my scores.

3 workouts this week for me:

5x5 Front Squats
135,155,165,185,195 (PR) Second time doing this workout, so pretty happy with the results.

5 Rds, 400m 21, SDHP, 21 Thrusters w / 75#
33:05 The stairs and the cold made this hell, as I'm sure all of my fellow crossfitters would agree

Lynne as Rx'ed
BWT: 175
14/32, 11/26, 10/27, 9/15, 7/14
51 Bench & 114 PUs for 165

It was a good day to do Lynne, as post Costa Rica I am as light as ever. Eating fish and fresh fruit and surfing can do that. It will be interesting to see where my weight stabalizes if I can keep up with zoning. I was 178ish pre Costa, so I was on my way to 175, I think.

I think I know what's missing at the Box. Keith in a little red blazer with a white hat judging our form.