Today is the day that Lucas, Lindsay and Adrianna are throwing some heavy weights over head at the North Van Olympic Lifting competition!  Best of luck to all three of you.  Hit some PRs and kick some ass.  We are all sending lots of strength your way.

Show some love in the comments!

Reminder: Cave month has come to an end, come in at 11am to get your final measurements

Today’s Workout:

Buy In – Coach led dynamic warm up

• Then pair up with someone that uses the same wall ball weight as you
• Team theme – “What will your legs feel like at the end of the wod”?

WOD - “Lactic Acid”

For Time:

1000m row,
50 burpee wall ball (14/20)
100 double unders
200 squats

*Both partners will complete the 1000m row, then work together to complete the
rest of the movements and reps together. Break up as needed completing all the wb, then du’s, then squats

* If there is not enough wall balls for the partners, then start at one of the other exercises (double unders or squats)

Zone 2 – scale wall ball to 10/14lbs, scale doubles to singles 3:1

Zone 1 – scale as needed

Cash Out – Coach led rolling with foam roller/lacrosse ball, followed by couch stretch and psoas stretch

Are you going to compete in the CrossFit Open?

Who should compete in the Open?

• Anyone and everyone that can RX some of the WOD
• Athletes that feel like they have an advantage that came help out the Team.  For example: amazing at double unders, has a lot of strength, or is a Pistol pro!
• Any athlete that wants to see how they rank in the gym, in Canada West or in the world of the CrossFit Community

How do I compete in the Open?

Congratulations, you have almost completed your 30 days of your Paleo experience. I will be in the gym from 11:00am to 11:30am on Saturday, February 4th to retest your measurements.  The Christine benchmark workout and max weighted chinups will be retested within the next week.  Please contact Deanna@crossfitzone.ca to set up a time.

If you did the workout on Tuesday, you can use your score for the weighted pullups, but we will be using the body weight that we record on Saturday.

What did you learn in the month of January?

Will you be continuing the Paleo diet/ the zone you chose?  Explain

What results did you notice from the lifestyle changes?

What did you find was the hardest?  Easiest?

Today’s Workout:

Buy In - 20 double unders, 15 jump squats, 10 burpees

WOD -

A – “Burning Ring of Fire”

21-15-9  reps for time:

• ring dips
• box jumps 20″/24″

Rest 5 minutes between workouts.  If done in heats, stagger start times
B) “BJ Heaven”

On the minute for 7 minutes:

20 box jumps 20″/24″

*** Score each part separately, part 2 = total reps***

Zone 3 – RX dips scaled to 12-9-6 reps

Zone 2 – Scale to assisted dips

Zone 1 – Scale dips to pushups and box height as needeed

Cash Out - MWOD

• Calf stretch against wall (straight leg and bent)
• Roll out triceps with lacrosse ball while extending your forearm
• Stretch shoulders with rubber band

“What We Do For Abs:  In CrossFit, we don’t do abs. Why?  Because we do not do abs.  Don’t freaking ask about it again.  I’ve been doing CrossFit for years and have never done abs.  Not once.  Call it midline stabilization or call it a cash-out if you must, but just remember: We. Don’t. Do. Abs.”

Today’s Workout:

Buy In – Max pushups.  Time to retest your max pushups to compare to the beginning of the month:

• Requirements: chest (not belly button) and thighs to deck and full extension at the top
• Keep a solid plank, no worming
• Keep a consistant cadence, no resting on the top
• No hand release

WOD – “Grace” or “Isabel”

It is Dub’s Birthday, so we are throwing this one in for him cause it is his fav. Enjoy!

Compare to June 15, 2011

30 reps of Clean and Jerk or Snatches for time 95/135lbs

Zone 4 – 15 reps at 95/135 (option of another 15 at 75/115)

Zone 3 – scale to 75/115

Zone 2 – scale to 65/95

Zone 1 – scale as needed

Games Prep – 115/155lbs

Cash Out - Tabata Row – lowest metres travelled is your score. Then throw in a mobility goat!  Ask your Coach for what to do!

And the votes are tallied up and the winning movement is…… RING DIPS!

Make sure to get a Coach to watch you do your max set of Ring Dips sometime this week before class or during the Buy-In.

A Bit About Ring Dips
Contrary to using a stationary item like the parallel bars, rings are extremely unstable. This means that in Ring Dips you are utilizing numerous stabilizer muscles in your core and shoulders. This goes a long way in building core strength and preventing injury!

How can I improve my Ring Dip this month?

• Work on your ring support every chance you get – the better your support, the easier it will be to get a Ring Dip! Try completing 3 rounds of the full CrossFit Warmup before class each day, including the Pushups and Ring Dips.
• Challenge yourself with a smaller rubber band, no band, or weighted Dips.
• Try to focus on keeping the rings close to your body throughout the movement.
• Push your chest forward and your elbows back as you lower into the Dip. This will put your body into the optimal position.

Requirements for Ring Dips: shoulder must dip below the top of the elbow at the bottom of the Dip (elbows should be at least at a 90 degree angle); elbows must be fully extended at the top of each Dip with rings pulled in close.

Also, just a reminder that we will also be re-testing our Pushups later on this week!  Get ready to break that January PR, folks!

Today’s Workout:

Buy In – 3 rounds of : 100 skips, 10 goblet squats, 15 double crunch

WOD – “Gorilla Total”

You have 10 minutes at each station which includes warmup and finding your max.  Coaches will demo the movement requirements before each 10 minutes.

1 rep max of:

• Overhead Squat
• Push Jerk
• Weighted pullup (BW + external weight)

Zone 3 – strict pullups with a rubber band (green – 75lbs, blue – 50lbs, red – 25lbs, mini purple/red – 10lbs). Take off rubber band resistance amount from body weight.

Zone 2 – work on technique with moderate to light weight,  sets of 5 reps

Zone 1 – scale as needed

Cash Out – Coach led MWOD classics

• Couch stretch
• Roll out shoulders with a Lacrosse ball
• Band stretch your Lats

At CrossFit Zone we are striving to be a School of Fitness; not just somewhere you come to take classes.  We measure your success in years, not months, and take the position of Coaching our students rather than “training” them.  It is our intention that every Zone Student gets full value for their monthly memberships.  That is why we are implementing a new Class Level System.

This new Class System will help students to develop their skills in a class setting where the Coach is able to devote more time to each student.  We hope that this new Class System will help students feel confident enough in the CrossFit movements to challenge themselves to move on to the next Class Level.  Sometimes our Students feel uncomfortable or intimidated by some of the Zone athletes.  This may lead them to not continue with their CrossFit Training as they feel that they cannot compete at the same skill level. Our new Class System is designed to take away that feeling of intimidation, and let each Student develop at their own pace.

We look forward to helping you achieve your goals by working with you in our new Level 1 Classes!  Beginning Feb. 1st ’12, our Level 1 Classes will be held on Mondays at 7:00 a.m., Wednesdays at 5:30 p.m., and Thursdays at 12:15 p.m.  These class times will be held on a trial basis.  The class times may change in the future months, and more class availability will be added.  If you have any feedback on this new Class System, please contact admin@crossfitzone.ca

How do I know if I am a Level 1?

Until we get all the specific Level 1 requirements ironed out, ask yourself these 3 questions:

1. Do you often see the workout of the day and not know what the exercises are?
2. Are there often movements that come up in the workout that you have never done before, or do you often feel like you need more attention from the Coach?
3. Do you normally utilize Zone 1 or Zone 2 scaling in your workout?

Who can come to the Level 1 classes?

The Level 1 classes will be focused on learning the technique at a beginner level.   If you attend the Level 1 classes, remember that you are there to focus on your technique, and on getting feedback from the Coach, rather than going for a PR.

If I am a Level 1, what classes can I attend?

You can attend any of the classes that are Level 1 or All Levels only.  At this point, this encompasses all of our classes.  There may be circumstances where athletes are not ready for the All Level classes yet, and may only be invited to attend the Level 1 classes.

If you have any other questions please contact admin@crossfitzone.ca, or talk to your Coach in the gym.

Stay tuned for Level 2, Level 3 and Advanced schedule times in the future months!

See you in the gym,

The CrossFit Zone Team

Today’s Workout:

Buy In - 5 x 5 Front Squat

• Increase weight each set
• Warmup the shoulders, forearms and wrists  to get into the front rack position

WOD – “Ninja”

5 Rounds for individual time:

• 3 Muscle Ups
• 10 Push Press 95/135lbs
• 250m Row

*2 min rest in between rounds. Score is your fastest round added to your slowest round time

Zone 4 – Scale Muscle ups with a rubber band

Zone 3 – Scale MU’s to 9 pullups and 9 ring dips, scale push press to 75/105lbs

Zone 2 – Scale MU’s to 9 assisted pullups and 9 pushups, scale push press as needed

Zone 1 – Scale as needed

Cash Out – MWOD 

Test: Overhead Squat/Snatch Receiving Position
Mwod: Two minuets opening up the hip and groin against the wall.
Two minutes each leg doing sweeping/roaming Pigeon Pose
Two minutes Foam Roller/keg drill with barbell if possible
Two minutes each side bully shoulder drill

The plan for after lifting is to head on over to Esquimalt rec to hang out in the pool. ” Public Swim” is from 12-4, grab your speedo and lets do some laps! (or chill in the hot tub)

Sean

Today’s Workout:

Buy In – Dodgeball (10 minutes), then choose a Badass partner and make a cool name themed after the movie “Dodgeball”

WOD – “Two ten”

In teams of two break up as needed

• 60 toes to bar
• 50 box jumps (20″/24″)
• 40 pistols (single leg counts as one rep)
• 30 push ups
• 20 burpees
• 10 rings dips

Zone 3 – Scale toes to bar to double crunch and ring dips with a rubber band

Zone 2 -  Pistols with a rubber and or to a box

Zone 1 – scale ring dips to jumping ring dips

Cash Out – MWOD – Couch stretch, calf stretch, rubber band stretching for lats, and chest

QOD: What nutrition-focused literature have you read lately?  What were the take home messages?  Has it changed the way you eat?

The reason I have largely avoided looking into nutrition is it is something people get passionate and defensive about.  People like saying that you are wrong and I am right, but that is not the reason for the discussion here.  It is to share information so that people can research more and decided what they believe and why.

To that end, I also wanted to promote the Zone Library.  We currently have a limited supply of books, but they have been well received and been taken out frequently.  If you have something you would like to share, bring it down, label it and put it in the library.  This is a great way for people to be able share knowledge with each other!

b

Today`s Workout:

Buy In - 5×5 shoulder press

• Increase weight each set
• If you are feeling fresh, go for a 1RM if time allows

WOD – “Dumbbell Bear”

15 min AMRAP

one round =

• 5 deadlifts
• 5 hang power cleans
• 5 thrusters

* use approx 45% bodyweight for dumbbell weight (combined)

Zone 3: scale to weight to 35%

Zone 2: Scale rounds to 4 reps each

Zone 1: scale weight as needed

Cash Out – MWOD

During the move we were a little slow on the draw with updating the leaderboard.  Our apologies!  I know that you all wanted to see your names up there, and they are now.

I know that there is a lot of things that have been missed, so take a look next time that you are in the gym to make sure that any PRs that you have hit since we have been at the new box are on the leaderboard.

Today`s Workout:

Buy In - Coach Led dynamic Warm up

WOD -  “Jackie”

• 1000m row
• 50 thrusters (45lb bar)
• 30 pull -ups

Zone 3 – scale reps to 25 thrusters and 15 pullups

Zone 2 – 750m row, scale weight of thrusters as needed, assisted pullups

Zone 1 – scale reps as needed

Games Prep – chest to bar pullups, & 65lb thrusters

Then:

As a group, accumulate a total of 3 minutes in various plank holds or a hollow rock hold

Cash Out – MWOD – Free up the scapula