Happy Birthday Mercy!!!

Similar to yesterday, today’s post is inspired by Big Jon, who offered up a topic when he saw me muddling through websites Tuesday night prepping for Wednesday’s post.  During your evening and weekend veg time in front of the television, instead of mindlessly suffering through the repetitive, somewhat annoying, and sometimes mildly inappropriate commericals, why don’t do something productive for yourself like some stretching.  Leave it to the father of 2 year old triplets to find ways to be more efficient with time, but if you think about it Jon’s definitely on to something.  Commercial breaks are roughly what, 45, 60, 90 seconds, perhaps even longer depending on the network you’re watching?  That sounds like the perfect amount of time needed to get some extra stretching and soft tissue work time in that you’re probably shrugging off otherwise.  Need ideas?  Funny you should ask, but if you haven’t heard us mention mobilitywod.com in about 50+ posts we’ve written to date, I’ll provide some suggestions straight from Kelly Starrett himself.

~PR Saturday~

Monday’s workout saw us Back Squatting heavy followed by a vicious variation of “Jackie” doing the 1Km Row, 50 Thrusters, and instead of the pullups we finished with 10 Bear Crawls.

• Tyler PR’d his 1Km Row with an impressive 3:28

On Tuesday we performed weighted pullups up to our heaviest single rep for the day.  After we did a reverse ladder workout of running, kettlebell swings, and toes to bar.  Lots of pullup PRs from Tuesday highlighted by:

• Paul K. got his first strict pullup
• Amanda and Avelyne pulled their bodyweight+25# and BW+27.5 resepctively
• Tom D. did his pullup with BW+70#
• Josh was able to pull his weight+80#
• Finally the best pulls of the day go to James and Tyler who both pulled their BW+90#!

Wednesday’s workout had us Bench Press heavy then an AMRAP 7 of Ring Dips, Overhead Squats, and Double Unders.

• Holley scored a new Bench Press 1RM by getting 125#!

Thursday’s skill day yielded several PRs and firsts highlighted by:

• MJ’s Back Squat PR of 220# x 5reps
• Laura’s first double under
• Cody’s first muscle up
• Mike S.’s first kipping toes to bar

On Friday we Deadlifted then the met-con included wallball shots, power cleans, and burpees.

• Mark (aka M^2) Deadlifted 340# x 3 reps
• Bryant continued his linear progression by lifting 325# x 5reps in his Deadlift
• Big Jon pulled 440# for an impressive 5reps!

Finally, today’s workout is a CrossFit benchmark workout called “Nicole” consisting of running and pullups.  Try to set PRs in 400m splits, number of consecutive pullups, or a new “Nicole” PR on rounds or reps.

WOD 6.16.12

“Nicole”
AMRAP 20
Run 400m
Max Rep Pullups
*Score Rounds & Reps*

Yesterday, after numerous comments about the workout being a “grip killer”, I thought some might appreciate ideas on recovery techniques for your wrists, forearms, and elbows other than stretching. Don’t get me wrong, stretching has its place and stretching your forearms is an easy one to check off. I often use the steering wheel at stop lights to assist in my forearm and wrist mobility, especially after grip taxing workouts like yesterday’s. Another option is to simply use your favorite internet search engine to search for forearm stretch ideas. I like videos and came across this one from our friends at Paradiso CrossFit just a short drive north in Marina Del Rey.

My quest for knowledge on how to unglue overworked forearms then brought me to mobility Sensei Kelly Starrett’s mobilitywod.com website.  He posted some ideas in video below to help with the recovery of overworked forearms.

For those interested in the learning more about the Armaid that he discusses in the video visit their site here.  Just another tool for the mobility warrior to consider.  I’ve also had success using the arm rest of my office chair when I lacked a lacrosse ball.  I’ve also found that racquetballs works very well as well on the smaller muscles of your forearms.  Be diligent with your recovery and if you get to class early use the time to your advantage by trying some of the forearm mobility drills.

WOD 6.13.12

Bench Press 3×5/Wendler

AMRAP 7

• 6 Ring Dips
• 8 Overhead Squats
• 36 Double Unders

CrossFit, the sport of the generalist, has 10 fitness domains that all its athletes should strive for:

1. Cardiovascular and Respiratory endurance
2. Stamina
3. Strength
4. Flexibility
5. Power
6. Speed
7. Coordination
8. Agility
9. Balance
10. Accuracy

Most people walk though our doors with a tendency towards a few of the above qualities, and lacking in others.  Any specialist will usually find himself at one extreme end of the spectrum.  For example, a marathon runner may excel in the cardio and stamina end, while greatly lacking in strength, power, and flexibility.  An power lifter will have strength and power, but usually lack in cardio and stamina.

Many specialists will use the CrossFit methodology as their strength and conditioning to achieve that balance.  For those who don’t play a particular sport or train for certain races, however, CrossFit is their sport.  The pursuit of the ultimate balance in the above domains can take a lifetime!

Take the time today to evaluate yourself as an athlete.  Give yourself a number between 1-10 beside each domain.  Where is your weak link?  Sometimes identifying your weakness relative to your strengths can open your eyes to what you should be working on before and after class.

Do you hate runs longer than 400m?  Do you shy away from double lift days?  Have you avoided skill days because you abhor stretching and mobility?  Do you get the jitters when we pull out the agility ladder?   Be honest with yourself.

Another way to look at the above domains is to shorten the list and rate from 1-10 just on the below domains:

1. Strength (power lifts)
2. Speed (100m sprints)
3. Endurance (5k)
4. Power (think Oly lifts)

Recognize that any number above a 7 in one category will inevitably lower the number in another column.  Example:  if you are a 10 in endurance, chances are your strength and power will score low and vice versa.   This is just another way to assess where your weaknesses are.

Post your ratings to comments!

WOD 06.12.12

Weighted Pull Ups 3-2-1-1-1

800m Run
9 Kettlebell Swings
9 Toes to Bar
Rest 1 Min
400m Run
15 Kettlebell Swings
15 Toes to Bar
Rest 1 Min
240m Run
21 Kettlebell Swings
21 Toes to Bar

Photo courtesy of Bandha Yoga

Our backs, and specifically the psoas, is a topic that the trainers have posted about many times. They’ve described how it’s used in our body, how we can lessen the tightness with good posture and mobility tips to keep it from tightening up on us.

At one point last year, I had my psoas tighten up on me pretty badly and it took a good amount of time to get it back in order. Since that has happened I spend a lot more time on the stretches that our trainers have posted about or shown us in class for stretching our backs, glutes, hips and hamstrings. Even so, on days when I spend a lot of time at my desk or when I’m working out or lifting with poor glute activation, I notice some tightness in my psoas. Because of this, I’m constantly looking for new ways to take care of my back.

This weekend I noticed some tightness in my psoas, so I did some research and came across a yoga page about awakening the psoas. They awaken the muscle by using a technique called isometric contraction which isolates and therefore “awakens” the dormant muscle. Here’s how they describe how it works:

“The Psoas Awakening Series sequentially activates different parts of the psoas—incrementally and synergistically. When the brain sees a conscious combination of actions like this, it will then automatically use the psoas in unrelated actions.”

If you’re interested in trying out the movements, check out the site here. You’ll recognize many of the movements because they are a part of the mobility work we do in class. Be careful with some of the movements, they’re not simple, so don’t get deeper into a position than you should and don’t do a movement if it hurts in a bad way. Today was my first time trying it, so I’m going to keep it up at least once a week and see if I notice a change. If any of you have found movements that you do consistently that you like to use for improving mobility in that region, please post to comments.

REST DAY 05.20.12

A big thanks goes out to Marcus for directing me to Tim Henriques’ article on T-Nation entitled “My Favorite Upper Body Warm-Up”. Tim is the Director of the National Personal Training Institute of Virginia and a regular powerlifting, strongman, and arm wrestling competitor. In his T-Nation article linked above he has refined a basic shoulder girdle warm-up that is simple, effective and efficient taking only 10-15 minutes to accomplish. His warm-up consists of 5 parts, but I’ll only touch on a few of my favorites here.

1.)  Thoracic Spine (T-Spine) Extension-This mobility drill, typically done with a foam roller, is very effective at restoring range of motion to our upper backs.  Think about your posture throughout the course of a day and for most of us our T-Spine spends a good amount of time in flexion (think slumping or slouching, probably what you’re doing right now reading this!).  If you feel challenged in overhead positions this drill can really help you feel more open and your overhead position more solid.  Here’s Tim’s demonstration on T-Spine Extensions using a foam roller:

2 & 3.)  Pullovers & Lying Military Press-Really this one combines Tim’s second and third segments.  I like the way Tim offers ways to scale these drills to make them less challenging or more difficult.  Give his video a watch:

4.)  Band Assisted Stretches-Some of the stretches he shows are ones we may be familiar with from previous posts or mobilitywod.com, but he offers up a couple of new stretch variations that might intrigue you.  Check out his full article  to read more about his stretching protocol and see his video demonstration.

5.)  Standing Military Press+Overhead Shrug-Tim says this is a great way to wake up the shoulder girdle and it’s one of his tried and true warmup movements.  Again, check out his full article to read more detail about the movement and see his video demonstration.

WOD 5.02.12

Deadlift 1×5/Wendler

3 Rounds for Time:
6 Pullups
12 Kettlebell Swings
Rest 1 min
Repeat for 3 total sets

Happy Birthday Alice!!

For those of you who have attended our Skills Day on Thursdays or had the [mis]fortune to ask Marcus a seemingly innocuous mobility question, you may have experienced his expertise on stretching. You most likely had the pleasure of experiencing a particularly effective hamstring stretch involving a contract and relax cycle. This type of stretch is also called Propioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation (PNF) stretching.

We’ve mentioned before the goal of stretching a muscle is lengthening it. However, each muscle has an optimum length for maximizing tension. Dan Williams, of Range of Motion, posted a great series of articles (Part 1 and Part 2) about PNF stretching and why it’s effective.  In Part 1, he talks about the difference between the lengthening of a muscle and useful lengthening of a muscle.  For strength building purposes, we’re concerned with getting our muscles to the optimal length at which they can exert maximal tension (ie lift more weight).  A muscle that is too long will have difficulty firing; a muscle too short is already tight and can’t produce much tension.

Dan Williams gives an example of an Athlete A who can just barely get to an overhead position with his arms.  Athlete B is much more flexible and can hold his arms overhead with ease.  Because Athlete A is so tight already, Williams likens him to a Ferrari with it’s hand brake on.  The potential is there, but he’s unable to reach it until he gains enough flexibility.

In Part 2, he goes into detail about how to apply this stretch.  Read more about it here.

WOD 04.27.12

Deadlift 1×5 or Wendler

AMRAP 7
2 Muscle Ups
4 Power Cleans
8 V Ups

OR

4 Power Cleans
6 Toes 2 Bar
8 Push Ups

Happy Birthday Kimberly!

Last Thursday many of you had your eyes opened by a simple movement test called the Active Straight Leg Raise. About 75% of Intrepids who attended this past Thursday found themselves seriously lacking range of motion and falling short of “passing” this test. I pulled the test from Gray Cook’s Functional Movement Systems website and his book Athletic Body in Balance where he has created a small battery of easy tests to assess the quality of your movement, and the Active Straight Leg Raise is his highest priority test. Here’s a video he put together to assess yourself and to simplify it all you’ll need is keep an objective unbiased perspective or ask another set of eyes like a friend or significant other to provide an unbiased perspective, a PVC pipe or dowel (a broom or mop handle works well too), and some masking tape. Perform these tests when you aren’t overly sore from a workout as the soreness can alter your results, and if at any time you feel pain during a test please stop, make a note on your scoresheet and let us know. Depending on the severity we may refer you to seek medical attention.

If you are like me, my results were, well how do I say this…humbling. I found that I fell short on more tests than I’d like to admit publicly, and needless to say I have a lot of work ahead of me to improve my movement. Don’t wait until injury sets you back and forces you to address your issues, be proactive and stay ahead of it as much as possible. Gray puts it best, “First move well, and then move often.”

Please score yourself and bring your scores in to me. If moving better is important to you then I can help you but your homework will depend on which tests you fail. When we talk about breaking through barriers in your performance, Gray’s simple tests might reveal your weak link (or links in my case) that have been preventing you from your full potential. Take some time and do the tests and see what areas you can improve on.

WOD 4.25.12

3 Rounds for Time:
Row 30 calories
30 Box Jumps
20 Pullups
30 KB Snatches
30 Ball Slams

I don’t know if any of you are feeling the same way, but my quads, hips and glutes are feeling a bit sore after the last couple of workouts this week. After the last competition, I couldn’t be happier to have workouts programmed with more squats so that I could work on my weakness. However, soreness and tightness after good squat and deadlift work requires some extra effort on our end outside of the gym. Our trainers do a great job providing us with stretches to work on our quads, hamstrings, glutes and hips, but how often do you put them to work outside of the gym? Quads, hamstrings and glutes are pretty easy muscles to stretch, and if you’ve had good stretching habits outside of the gym, then hopefully you hit these muscles on a regular basis. The area that I inadvertently end up neglecting most of the time are my hips. They’re a bit more of a challenge to stretch and most people don’t think to work on hip mobility in their spare time. So this Sunday, I challenge you all to take a rest day + hip mobility. Kelly Starrett offers a great hip mobility exercise video that I encourage everyone to follow along with. As you’re following along with his movements, continually go back to a good squat position (no deeper than you can hold properly) and pay attention to the movements that improve your squat position the most. Hopefully these exercises will help you all to come in on Monday refreshed and limber, prepared for another week of hard work.

Hip Prep Video

04.22.12 REST DAY/Hip Mobility Day

Today we’ll be performing the box squat for our strength work and for those of you familiar with the box squat know that the positions can be difficult to master, especially for those of us with mobility issues around our hips.  Although Ruth posted some tips on the execution of the lift, today I’ll reference K-Star and one of his MWOD videos for some tips to improve control and promote more efficient positioning in the box squat.

As always, the gym doors open 15mins prior to the 6:30am, 12:00pm, and 4:00pm workouts leaving you plenty of time to perform this or any mobility prep. As soon as the class time hits you’ll be moving pretty steadily between the warm-up, the lift, and the met-con but you might be able to squeeze in some mobility work between sets.  Make it a priority to get here early, when you arrive try not to get sucked into anything other your mobility prep, and use what time you do have before the workout wisely.

WOD 4.4.12

Box Squat 5×3
Good Mornings 3×5

1 Set Max Strict Pull Ups
500m Row for Time

For those of you doing this month’s challenge, the number of reps per day is getting fairly high and you may be noticing some shoulder tightness. If you have been doing the CrossFit Open workouts as well, you are probably even more likely to be feeling some shoulder tightness. Nick and I have been doing both and for the first time, I’m actually feeling some shoulder tightness and Nick has been experiencing a lot of pain from shoulder impingement. In light of the recent pain, I did some digging into the CF journal to find some articles by Kelly Starrett (mobility guru). I came across two great videos titled Impingement Checklist and Shoulder Impingement which help to identify shoulder mobility issues.

The first video goes through a two point checklist for identifying impingement issues and cues for correcting it. The first point is to check your posture with your arms hanging at your side. Here are the primary things that you should see:

• thumbs should be facing forward
• muscles slightly activated between your shoulder blades
• lats and traps should be relaxed
• pectoral muscles should be flat
• shoulders should be “on the shelf”
• ab notch should be visible

When you don’t see those things with your arms hanging at your side, here are the likely issues:

• thumbs are facing in toward your body – likely have tight lats and/or pectoral muscles
• muscles slightly activated between your shoulder blades – laziness
• lats and traps are tense and activated- if you have to activate these muscles to get into the correct position, you likely have inflammation in the shoulders/tight lats/tight pectoral muscles
• pectoral muscles are concave – if your shoulders are rounded your pecs will be concave indicating tight pectoral muscles
• shoulders are forward – if your shoulders are rounded and forward, they are no longer sitting on the shelf where they are supported by the architecture of the shoulder and instead are only supported by the capsule
• rib cage and stomach are sticking out - if you let your rib cage fly out, the ab notch will not be visible which means your abs are not engaged and tied to the obliques which means you don’t have a solid midline

The second point of his lecture was about clearing the path to get the shoulders up overhead. Kelly suggests that the key to getting your arms overhead in the right position is to get the shoulder blades down and back and out of the way. If you don’t have good thoracic extension, then it’s important to use a foam roller and lacross ball to loosen up the thoracic region so you can get in the appropriate position overhead.

While this video was primarily about identifying your shoulder impingement issues, he mentioned that reducing inflammation in the shoulder region is key. His primary suggested method for reducing inflammation was icing.

Kelly’s second video covers how your shoulder joint moves when you put your shoulders up overhead or in the front rack position. He discusses how when you have good shoulder mobility, your shoulder joint should roll, slide and glide. However, if you have tight triceps, lats or pectoral muscles, and/or inflammation in the shoulder region, your shoulder joint will roll, but maybe not slide or glide…which results in impingement. He does a much better job of describing this in the video. Also, he again he discusses that lat, tricep and pectoral mobility work and most importantly, inflammation reduction through icing is very important for reducing shoulder impingement. One of the great quotes I took away from this video goes back to form: “Best fit mechanics (perfect form) optimizes joint space and joint mobility.”

Sorry for the long-winded post, but hopefully this will help you all diagnose your shoulder mobility issues. Be sure to refer back to other posts, posts, posts, posts, posts for shoulder mobility drills and icing instructions.

REST DAY 3.25.12