What I see at CrossFit

I have been a certified personal trainer for almost 2 decades. I have worked in physical therapy offices, sport performance gyms, big box gyms, private studios, home gyms and spin studios. I have done CrossFit and am a CrossFit Endurance Coach. I have been around long enough to know when I see a bad coach, a mediocre coach and a great coach. Sadly what I see most often in any gym, fitness center or CrossFit Box is people looking for an answer to their weight problem, sedentary lifestyle or bad diet. A few rare gyms, coaches and personal trainers actually have been able to make the connection that community and relationships are what will help any person to become stronger, change their eating paradigm and become more physically active. This community is where CrossFit gets it right but if you go to a CroddFit box keep your ego in check or you may end up in the physical therapists office.

Good coaches give you a well structured warm up and workout that is challenging but not debilitating for your fitness level. A mediocre coach gives the same warm up regardless of the workout and pushes you to more than you should be doing for your fitness level and exercise experience but you still finish the workout. A bad coach will put you into positions that you are not structurally prepared to get in to or that coach may not know how to modify for your limitations.

CrossFit has stepped up their game in the last 2 or 3 years with what they require for coaching education. However many of the movements in CrossFit require a level of muscle coordination that some people are not able to coach. Young coaches who think they are unbreakable will go for the Olympic Lifting or Kettlebell Certs while more seasoned coaches go for the Mobility Cert to help their members move better. CrossFit has proven that when you move better you then you will feel better and you will get stronger and lose weight as a side effect. If you have some good coaching you will probably stay at it longer.

CrossFit is NOT individualized by an outside source like a personal trainer or private coach. It is not "periodized" or developed with a scientifically tested and replicated method. Everyone gets the same WOD (CrossFit speak for Workout Of the Day) at each box (what CrossFit affiliates call their gyms). Some coaches program better than others. Some program for competition while others program for weight loss and others program a mix. Most boxes offer a free class, a free week or sometimes even 2 free weeks to see if you like it. CrossFit IS NOT FOR EVERYONE. Not all boxes are the same. Not all coaches are the same. Chances are there is a box near you that programs in a way that you like near you, just don't go looking for air conditioning and saunas.

Can CrossFit be "cultish?" Sure, in some boxes, but usually where the head coach is highly opinionated, sometimes narrowly educated and has followers in his gym who are looking to believe in his methodology. Many who do CrosFit can be "all or nothing" types who only eat Paleo and do CrossFit workouts and hang out with other CrossFitters. The same thing happens with triathletes, bodybuilders and Group Exercisers (Remember Curves, Tae Bo and P90X?). CrossFit builds communities and sometimes those communities give rise to something that people realize they have in common and makes them feel better.

I have seen people come to CrossFit with low self esteem in January and leave for Spring Break with downright swagger. I have seen former college athletes come to CrossFit with swagger and leave injured the ssame day. I have seen triathletes come in thinking they are fit and be absolutely humbled by their lack of strength and coordination.

What I see often is fear.

And most importantly: Triumph over that Fear.

Our bodies are capable of adapting to whatever we give them. The adaptation to too many calories and too little movement is weight gain. The adaptation to daily doses of increased activity is a shedding of that extra weight and improvement in the cardiovascular system. Those who are new to CrossFit and those who are experienced at CrossFit all have the same thought when the see the WOD: "Can my body do this?"

With the right community behind them and some good coaching the answer should always be "Yes."

Now a few caveats: Anyone attempting to begin or even continue CrossFit should know that it is not personalized and they may not get the attention they would get from a training studio. If you have a history of any shoulder, neck, knee or back problems then get them checked and cleared by a doctor before you begin any fitness program. If you have heart, lung or metabolic disease you should get cleared by a doctor also.

It is possible to do CrossFit for life. It takes a tremendous amount of body awareness and testing when you are at your limit. You will cross the line sometimes and do too much. Hopefully by that time you have enough sense of your body to stop before you break. I also hope you have a coach who is smart enough to build a strong base for you, present enough to push you to do more than you think you can and courageous enough to stop you before you do something that will get you hurt.

Now go move something heavy! (for time)

15min video on Better Tri Performance

It is simple to me- Triathlon and the training necessary for it make you a healthier person. You cannot be so out of balanced from biking as to effect your run. You cannot be so out of balance from swimming to effect your biking. You cannot be so sore from time in the gym to destroy any one aspect of your tri workouts. So we must strike a balance in most aspects of our training, and in turn in our lives, to be a better and more efficient triathlete.

Here is I just a short video I did with my friend Jerry Yoo, a PT in New Jersey, about how I like to see the run trained for. I coach runners of all distances and fitness levels as well as triathletes. I love to see triathletes improve in all aspects but especially the run.

Give it watch. Comment and share.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9xLgfXvHf_g

Stay healthy out there. Encourage each other to do better. Help other athletes who are in need.
Andy

My Turkey (or grass fed beef) Chili recipe

I have made a few changes to this recipe but I have posted something similar before.

This is good food! It is healthy. High protein. High fiber. And most importantly: High flavor!

Enjoy!

 

This makes a very big pot of chili:

1 box Pomi Chopped tomatoes (no spices) (or can of 24oz Chopped)

1 box Pomi Strained (or 24oz canned or bagged strained)

1 lb of Ground turkey or Grass Fed Beef

1 med Yellow Onion - Chopped large

1or 2 can Black beans - rinsed

1 can Kidney Beans - rinsed

1 can Pinto Beans - rinsed

1 each - Red, yellow, orange and/or green pepper - cut into large chunks

1tbps Chili Powder

1/2 tsp Cayenne Pepper

1/2 tsp Fresh Black pepper (to taste)

1 tsp Paprika

1/2 tsp Sea Salt

1/2 tsp Cumin

2 tbsp Olive Oil

In pot brown meat with Olive Oil and half of spices. (if you ise beef that is 85/15 then you may want to drain some of the fat before you move you on). After a few min add chopped onions. When onions are brown add strained tomatoes, chopped tomatoes. Once tomatoes begin to bubble add beans and remainder of spices. Reduce to a simmer and cover. Mixture should be thick and hearty looking. Stir regularly to prevent sticking and ensure spices blend well. Taste and adjust spices to your liking.

I like to add tabasco or Trader Joe's Jalapeno Pepper Sauce to add some heat. Cut Jalapenos for greater flavor, remove seeds to keep heat down and flavor higher.

Sometimes I like to add Green Chiles. They add a nce flavor without cranking up the heat. I like this with a warm corn tortilla or corn bread. If carbs make you gain then stay away from flour tortillas.
Enjoy your food!

Eat Clean. Be lean! Be strong! Race Fast!

Today's Workout and Why

Today I did a workout commonly known as "Cold Start". This is when you do a workout without an adequate warm up. The more you race, the chances are greater you will over sleep you alarm one time in your race career. Or you may misread your start time(this happens all the time in the even the NYC tri, a very well run event). Or maybe you got stuck in traffic. Any way you can show up late for a race. This is training for it.

The workout is a little easier with biking than the other 2 sports. With Cold Start in swimming and running you really can only push so hard cold due to discomfort. You should only do this if you are comfortable with going hard even after a warm up. Some people have low pain tolerance and will probably be sore the next day ans during the workout. Everybody else just keeps their gripes to themselves.

I have a friend who took a wheel back to his hotel room to repair it before a National Level race. While in his room his coach called and said they had moved the start time. Without a warm up he won. He was able to do this because he can handle some discomfort in an effort to achieve a goal. He would train without warm up periodically just to train himself to handle the stress at race time, but he was very connected to his body.

So here is the workout:

From a "Cold Start" do a 20 min effort with one of the best hills around that you can find thrown in,
5 min rest,
20 mi effort rolling terrain,
5 min rest,
5min effort,
3+ min recovery.

It was a great effort and a fast 58 min ride. You can extend the final recovery and you can do any warm up you want besides biking for this bike workout.
I try to do a cold start swim here and there but rarely a cold start run.
Enjoy and be safe. You still cannot go all out until you are a little warm even if you try.