Blog Archive

Sean makes a huge difference with the Mad Lab Youth Warriors.  It’s been awesome watching him grow into an exceptional junior apprentice.  Here is a little piece Sean put together a few weeks back -CFP

I think we can all agree that diet is sometimes a touchy subject.  We all have a pretty strong opinion and are quick to defend Mama’s cookin’!   As far as CrossFitters are concerned, it’s all about efficiency.  Your food is your fuel.  So wouldn’t you want to run on the premium stuff?   But what is that premium stuff?

Well I’m no nutritionist but everyone has different needs, we’re all special and different, just like Mom said!  Everything from weight, age, training regimen, environment to ethnicity can effect what you should be eating.  I find the differences for what works for people from one place compared to some from others really interesting.  Such as most Polynesian people carry a “starvation” gene that enabled them to take in enough calories and make them last so they could survive the incredibly long journeys at sea.  Nowadays, with plentiful amounts of food those with the gene can just keep growing and growing.  Have you ever seen the New Zealand All Blacks? They’re GIANTS!

Find out what dietary plan works for you.  Do some research and experiment on yourself!  There are plenty of resources around the gym to help you so be sure to ask around. But most importantly have fun with it because eating is like sex, if you’re enjoying yourself you’re not doing it right!

-Sean

Lesson Plan for Friday, August 30th and Saturday, August 31st:

Friday:

Warm-up: 2 rounds

250m run
16 russian twist
16 reverse lunge (goblet hold on bell)

Tech: Review technique for 1 arm swing and thruster.

WoD:  Kettle Bell Complex

X reps two handed swing
X reps one handed swing (each arm)
X reps one arm thruster (each arm)

All swings go to arms parallel with ground.  Start the complex with X=2 then try it for higher reps.  Jump no more than 3 reps per attempt at the complex and rest no more than 3 minutes between rounds.  So in round 2 you could go for X=3,4 or 5 but not 6.  24kg for the boys and 16kg for the girls.

Saturday:

Warm-up: 2 rounds

20 mountain climbers (emphasize opening hip rather than speed)
10 ring rows
30s plank hold

Tech:  Pick a partner and get set-up.

WoD:  Partner Work Out

40 burpees
80 pull-ups
100 push-ups
120 sit-ups
140 squats
40 burpees

One person working at a time.

Moving from LOVE to EDUCATION tonight

Food for thought: Do we over promote education ultimately to our detriment?

This article – albeit slightly obnoxious – makes some valid and humourous, points. It suggests that we’re forcing people into colleges and universities who simply don’t belong there. And in the end, it hurts them as individuals, and hurts our economy as a whole. The author of the article basically suggests that we would be better off letting the smart be smart and the less smart be, well, less smart.

Here’s an excerpt to tease you to read the whole article:

“What’s the matter with not being smart? As Hemingway put it, “Happiness in intelligent people is the rarest thing I know.” Have you ever seen a genius at a water park? He’s miserable. The only time people with an IQ over 120 are really happy is when they’re at work. They’re basically our slaves. Dumb people ride ATVs with their sons, go bungee jumping, and laugh their heads off when somebody farts. Many of them are also rich.”

READ THE WHOLE ARTICLE HERE: A NATION OF WORKING CLASS DROPOUTS

Here are a couple more excerpts if you don’t want to read the whole thing:

“When my dad was a kid in Scotland, Britain was practicing a very successful exam system called 11-plus. Dad came from a huge working-class family and as is often the case, one of them had an IQ much higher than the others. They all took their 11-plus test at age 11. His brothers did fairly poorly and he did incredibly well. The brothers were then diverted from academia and put into trade schools, whereas my father got scholarships for private school and eventually got a degree in physics from Glasgow University. The brothers did very well working at a printing press and now lead fulfilled lives as proud tradesmen. My father went on to develop sonar equipment that called the Russians’ nuclear-submarine bluff and helped lead to the fall of communism. This was all thanks to the 11-plus system and it worked beautifully for over 30 years until 1976 when the egalitarians decided it was cruel to admit that some kids are simply not as smart as others.”

“The controversy that destroyed 11-plus is long and complex, but the CliffsNotes version is that some clueless politician saw educated siblings do better than uneducated siblings and thought, “They should all have the opportunity to do as well as their brother.” But the educated sibling didn’t thrive because he was educated. He was educated because he thrived. If you think his brothers got ripped off, tell it to God. He was the one who doled out the lower IQs. 11-plus recognized that some people are smarter than others. Getting kids out of school early also means less government, which is another big reason it was abolished. Only an idiot could truly believe we’re all equally smart.”

This might be my favourite:

“When I see young people wandering around in a daze with $60K of student debt on their backs, I see a welder who never was. Forcing everyone to become smart is like a countrywide affirmative-action plan. It doesn’t work.”

Thursday’s Lesson Plan:

Warm-up:  Start with a couple of lengths of the gym mobilizing the hips and shoulders then go for 3 rounds of this partner warm up

10 med-ball sprawl ball 1 footed chest pass
10 med-ball sit-up

WoD: 2 parts

1. EMOM for 10 minutes- wall balls- choose your own number

2 minutes rest

2. EMOM for 1o minutes- ball slams- choose your own number

Finisher:  Guided stretching or rolling.  Give some love to the shoulders as they’ve worked hard this week.

p.s. Complex coming tomorrow. 

Bill

Cory ‘Bieber’ Jenkins, one of this place’s most eligible bachelors as well as a successful RMT, recently asked one of his clients a question about love.

His 92-year-old client had been married for 70 years before his wife passed away. Assuming this old man had gained some knowledge and wisdom about love over the years, Cory asked him what the secret to a long lasting marriage was.

The old man thought for a moment before replying: “The secret was that neither one of us fell out of love at the same time.”

Sounds kind of disappointing and unromantic, but it makes sense. As long as one person is always trying, staying together might be more likely.

It also kind of brings up a contrasting view of love: Unconditional Love! Does it really exist?

Another wise man, albeit not as wise as the 92-year-old massage patient – Lars ‘Drywall Aristotle ‘Konge – once said, “There’s no such thing as unconditional love. If you believe in unconditional love, you’re doomed to fail.”

What do you believe? Is it possible to have a totally equal partnership, where you’re always 100% altruistic toward your partner? Or does that make you a fool? Is it more realistic that relationships are about subtle or even tumultuous power shifts between partners, where one of the two is in control at any given time in the relationship?

I think I dig what the 92-year-old (and Lars) said.

Lesson Plan for Wednesday, August 28th:

Warm-up:  Hip and Shoulder Dynamic Warm-up Lengths + Girard Warm-up

Strength:  Snatch Dead Lifts (3,3,3,3,3)

I was tempted to call these snatch grip dead lifts but that would be a bit misleading as it’s not just your grip I want you to make like a snatch for today but rather the whole pull.

WoD:  Snatching Elizabeth

21, 15, 9

Power Snatch (95/65lbs)

Ring Dip

For this work out the weight on the snatch should be light!  No more than 70% of your 1 RM so don’t be afraid to scale it down.

Please note about the long weekend hours for this coming weekend.

Saturday 31st and Sunday 1st – NORMAL

Monday 2nd – 10am and 5pm (Run by Tom & Audrey)

Some of you may have noticed Charlie Palmer’s absence.

After an eventful summer that included getting engaged, last week he had a run-in with his appendix (maybe too much fun at Nutts Cup?). A day later, he was in surgery getting his appendix removed.

He’s out of the hospital now, but apparently he’s on an all liquid diet and is likely bored out of his mind. So let’s give him some kind words to read while he rests up. Post to comments what you love about Charlie Palmer.

I love that he has time for everyone! He’s never in a rush to pursue his own selfish interests. Instead, he takes the time to really listen to people, to really give people the time we all deserve. Heal up, Charlie!!

Lesson Plan for Tuesday, August 27th:

Warm-up: 2 rounds

20 second handstand hold
20 second samson lunge hold (10s/leg)
12 burpees

Strength/Technique: Push Press (5,3,3,3,1,1)

For the sets of 3 and 5 reps pay particular attention to the form and rebound to string your push presses together.  This will pay off when the load is lightened and your efficiently string them together in the WoD.

WoD: Open Workout 12.3 (kinda)

AMRAP in 18 minutes of:
15 Box jumps (24/20)
12 Shoulder to Overhead (115/75)
9 Toes-to-bar