KC Strongman would like to return in June.  Let us know if you want to do this again.

Scott

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Strongman is a perfect compliment to CrossFit training workouts and trainings.  Strongman fits because we move large loads over long distances.  Anyone who is a reader of the CrossFit Journal has heard this many times.

If you are unfamiliar with Strongman it will appear very similar to CrossFit except the loads are larger and the time domains are usually no longer than 60-75 seconds.  Short burst metabolic demand is extreme.  Strongman also presents a unique challenge over competitive weightlifting because the loads are usually very awkward and the events call for maximum number of reps for time instead of a single one time effort.

In that spirit we are really excited to host a strongman throwdown with CrossFit NKC this Friday April 6th at 7pm.  We would love to get as many people to participate as possible.

Here are the events:

Atlas Stone over the bar

Athlete will perform as many rounds as possible in 60 seconds lifting the stone over a 40″ bar.  Weight is 110lbs for women and 220 for men.

Yolk Walk

Athlete will carry the yoke for 50 feet for time with a 60 second time limit.  Weight for women is 300 and 500 for men.

Farmers Walk

Athlete will carry farmers walk implements for maximum distance with a 60 second time limit.  Weight is 100 per hand for women and 175 for men.

Tire Flip

Athlete will flip tire maximum number of repetitions in 60 seconds.  Women will flip our 200 pound tire and men will flip a 500lb tire courtesy of KC Strongman.

Keg Medley

Men and Women both will carry four progressively heavier kegs for 50 feet with a 60 second time limit.  If all four kegs are carried the score will be the time if time expires the score will be either the heaviest keg lifted or the heaviest keg hauled the longest.  Weights will be 125, 150, 200 and 250 pounds.

If time and energy permits we will have even heavier stones and kegs as well as the log lift for those who want to try.

We encourage everyone to give this a shot.  If you like CrossFit you will really enjoy Strongman competition.  If your still not sure if you want to lift remember this is still an open house with plenty of beer.  Bring your friends and cheer athletes from both CrossFit on 18th and CrossFit NKC.

See you Friday.

Scott

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I had the privilege to be in the gym yesterday counting Coach John’s reps and discussing the WOD with both John and Brett.

From what they share in these videos I think a better privilege would be having it over and them discussing it with me.

Like many CrossFit WOD’s it appears this one looks far easier on paper than it is to do.

For those of you who are either under a rock or simply choosing not to know until its time here is 12.3

Complete as many rounds and reps as possible in 18 minutes of:

15 Box jumps (M 24″ box / F 20″ box)
12 Push press (M 115 lb / F 75 lb)
9 Toes-to-bar

Since I’m a weightlifter and shot putter first the big scare for me is the 18 minute time domain.

I have two videos for you.  The first is John discussing the WOD with Brett and the second is John reflecting on the WOD shortly after getting off the floor in a pool of his bodily fluids.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Be efficient in the movements with great technique and you should rock it.

See you tomorrow.

Scott

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Just in case you havent heard yet her is the WOD exactly as printed on the games site:

Proceed through the sequence below completing as many reps as possible in 10 minutes of:

30 Snatch (M 75 / F 45 lbs)
30 Snatch (M 135 / F 75 lbs)
30 Snatch (M 165 / F 100 lbs)
Max Rep Snatch (M 210 / F 120 lbs)

This workout begins from the standing position. The athlete will complete all reps at the first weight before advancing to the next weight. Score is total reps completed in 10min.

I was originally excited to see that Masters athletes get a smaller weight but you have to be over 55 to get the lighter weight.  (soon but not too soon for me)

Anyway as I break this down what we really have a half Randy, followed by Isabel, followed by a heavy Isabel followed by a weight that only the strongest CrossFit athletes can do fresh.

So how do we prepare for such an insane demand.  First step is to make sure we are doing most things right in the snatch.  After I saw the announcement John and I thought it important to shoot a little video outlining some important tips.  Thanks Brett Pruitt for being a great sport and great model.  We took Brett through a few progressions before the shoot and his snatch was vastly improved.  For many of us its just a few of the right distinctions.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Also I know many of you are fans of Kelly Starrett and Mobility WOD so here is his video about mobility as it applies to the snatch.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Remember that the main Games time at CrossFit on 18th is 10am Saturday.  You can make up at open gym noon Saturday or our special games makeup time noon Sundays.  Also all results must be posted by 7 each Sunday or your out.

Let’s crush this one.

Scott

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Our Strongman Coach Dave Craft

Event #1

Stone Over The Bar For Reps.

Athlete will have 75 seconds to lift a stone over a 3″6″ bar as many times as possible
165lbs for Women and 220lbs for Men

Event #2

Keg Carry

Athlete will carry beer kegs the length of the gym 3 times for time with a 75 second time limit.
125lbs for women.  Men will carry progressively heavier kegs each trip.  125/150/200lbs

Event #3

Farmers Walk for distance.

Athletes will carry farmers walk implements as far as possible in 75 seconds
100lbs per hand women and 150 pounds per hand men

Event #4

Log Clean and Press.

Maximum number of reps in 75 seconds.
75lbs women and 140lbs men.

See you at 2pm this Saturday.

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The Open is the first step in qualification for the North Central Regional.

According to the official rules of the Games your results must be posted before each Sunday at 5pm PT.  We will start at 10am every Saturday for the next five weeks with a short WOD specific warmup and get right into it.  What’s different from a regular CrossFit workout is that we will split into pairs and your partner will count your reps AND fearlessly call NO REP for any movement that’s not adherent to CrossFit games standards.  This of course means full squat depth on all lifts, wall balls with hips fully open at the top.  It also means chin to bar, chest to deck…well you get the idea.  This shouldn’t frighten anyone because if you are claiming Rx you are doing all the above anyway.  If you aren’t you know who you are.  (Remember there is a big difference between scaling a wod and claiming a scaled wod to be Rx)

After you enter your results into the CrossFit Games site an email will be sent to the affiliate owner and team captain (ME) with a request to approve your result as legit.  Therefore your partner will record your result on a special form with a signature.  The form says the following, “At penalty of 1000 burpees I certify that the Rx number of reps were counted and all counted reps are full ROM”.  We all felt that signing your name to such a statement will keep you honest unless you just want to do 1000 burpees while I’m counting.

While we prefer everyone to do the games WOD during the regular 10am Saturday time we understand that some of you won’t be able to make it at that time.  So we will allow a make up the same day during the noon open gym and we have added a special open gym on  Sunday at noon that will be only for games make up and only during the actual games.  If the alternate times won’t work just ask your trainer and something should be able to be worked out.

Again we can’t wait to tear this one up and see you Saturday February 25 at 10am.

If you haven’t signed up there is still time go the CrossFit Games website and register with CrossFit on 18th as your team.  http://Games.CrossFit.com

Scott

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Crossroads Bootcamp opened October of 2009.  CrossFit on 18th became an official CrossFit affiliate in January of 2010.  I remember back on those days not a single woman could do a pull up and most of those women thought a 95 pound deadlift was a huge weight that would make them “bulk up”.  At the same time we didn’t have any men who could do a muscle up or deadlift over 400lbs.

For those of you who remember those days you will totally agree that we have come a long way.  Now in February of 2012 we have a gym full of amazing CrossFit athletes that attack every WOD with an intensity seldom seen outside of the Navy Seals.

Because we have come so far as a gym it’s time to step up and put a team together for this years Open CrossFit games.  If you aren’t sure what the CrossFit games are you have been living under a rock or are just a casual reader of this blog who hasn’t ever stepped inside of a CrossFit gym.  If you are one of those people you can read the official CrossFit games site here.  http://games.crossfit.com/

In 2012 CrossFit on 18th is an official hosting site for the Open and CrossFit on 18t has an official team.

Every Saturday starting February 25 for 5 weeks at 10am we will do the Open WOD for the week.  Our format will be with a partner where the partner counts reps (and calls no rep as well) for the athlete and certify that persons time and reps.  If one can’t make to Saturday WOD there will be opportunities to make up the WOD throughout the week but the results will still need to be certified.

Even if you don’t think that you have a chance of qualifying for the regional (I don’t) I still urge you to enter the competition and enjoy the atmosphere in the gym.  We are going to rock this and I know that this year we will send athletes to the regional games in May.

Sign up here NOW.   http://games.crossfit.com/

See you in the gym.

Scott

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• Fructose raises triglycerides, decreases blood levels of vitamin E, and is more inflammatory when compared to honey.
• Honey resulted in smaller blood glucose spikes, improved other blood lipids, and lowered inflammatory markers compared to sham-honey, dextrose, and sucrose.
• Another important note is that darker honeys typically have higher bioactive compounds and show greater antioxidant activity, so they should be chose over lighter honeys.

So, yes, honey would be the better choice over refined sugars; however, just like many other foods (fruits and nuts), honey should be used only in moderation. Honey is good for a treat or making treats, but they are treats and should be minimized. I like adding a very small amount of natural honey to my smoothies, pancakes, and cookies, but again these are things that I do not have every day.
Read more: http://www.marksdailyapple.com/is-honey-a-safer-sweetener/#ixzz1loMGrKgr

Also, here’s a great cookie recipe that is paleo friendly and passed the test at a recent super bowl party that uses a bit of honey. ENJOY!

Ingredients

• 1 ½ cups coconut flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• ¼ tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp sea salt
• 2 ripe bananas
• ¼ ripe avocado
• 1 cup coconut milk
• 2 tbsp honey
• 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 eggs
• ¼ cup shredded coconut
• ¼ cup dark chocolate chips

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Mix all dry ingredients together (except coconut flakes and chocolate). Mix wet ingredients together, then slowly blend together until batter consistency forms. Fold in coconut and chocolate. Use a ice cream scoop, place ¼ cup of batter on greased baking sheet, spreading evenly. Bake for approximately 20 minutes, or until browned.

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Congratulations Joe and let’s get some more of you in the muscle up club.

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I just completed the 21 Day Sugar Detox put together by Diane Sanfilippo of Balanced Bites. When I set out to do this at the beginning of the year, I got a lot of puzzled looks, questions of my sanity, and even someone who told me I couldn’t do it. No fake sugar and not much natural sugar…DONE! I decided to do it because for me, sticking to a definite plan is something I need in order to stay on track. Following Paleo and the occasional cheating gets me in trouble, because when I cheat, I really cheat, and then cheat some more and then go on a downward spiral with my diet and then feel like crap. I needed a reset, a way to start over and cleanse myself. I really needed those cravings to stop and this detox just did that! How did I do it? Great question, I have lots of answers!

First, I made sure that everyone knew I was doing it loud and clear! Why? So people could hopefully help me through it, keep me accountable, and hopefully not tempt me with bad things. I did not set out to do it to lose weight, but after 21 days lost around 5-7 pounds and had almost everyone comment on how much I leaned out…and I FELT GREAT. If that’s not positive reinforcement, I don’t know what is!!!

I made sure I was prepared. I cooked about 4 different meats and veggies on Sundays and mixed them up during the week. I had 4 pans going on the stove, one or two crockpots going, and never had to worry the rest of the week what I was going to eat, plus I had variety. If I had plans with friends, I either ate dinner at home before meeting up or checked out the menu ahead of time and picked out what I could eat. Was it hard, yes, was it worth it, definitely! I even chose an omelet during happy hour, that’s dedication!

I also cleaned out my pantry and fridge. I got rid of EVERYTHING non-compliant with the detox…and donated it all to a local food pantry. I knew I had to do that, there was there was NO way I could possibly be tempted at home. Work, I stocked my drawer/fridge with healthy snacks. Almonds, hard boiled eggs, nitrate and sugar free turkey, and carrots and guacamole were my go-to foods when I had a craving. I found out if you are having a craving you need to acknowledge it, eat something good, and move on. If you don’t acknowledge the craving, it will literally eat at you until you break.

Now, I don’t really want anything artificial, it kinda makes me sick to my stomach thinking about it. I weighed in at a CrossFit competition this weekend and was the lowest weight I’ve been in several years. I’m sleeping better, look better, and feel better. If that isn’t enough proof for you, I don’t know what is. Whether you are doing a detox, a paleo challenge, or just trying to eat clean, follow some of these tips so you can be successful!

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