Day 174 of 365:If You Can't Laugh At Yourself...

You wouldn't know it by the amazing video I posted yesterday, but it took a couple tries....

just a couple.

Hey...Ya can't take yourself too seriously!

Day 173 of 365: 12.5 TIPS

With the recent increase of "coaches" giving advice on the OPEN wods, Michael Winchester and I thought that we would throw in our two cents on how to best approach WOD 12.5!

Hope it helps!

Day 132 of 365: 3 Bills For 20 Reps!!!

Hey Guys!!!

I am super stoked to share these videos with you!  

Today was an OUTSTANDING day of growth - physically, emotionally, and spiritually.  

It's truly been one of those days that will stay with me for a long time.  

Let me show you why...

Day 125 of 365: Facta Non Verba

Winchester about to BEAST 295

 Today marked the 6th week of the Super Squat program that I and some of the other CrossFit Central coaches have been hitting.  Michael Winchester and I both started this program at 265, and now I am sitting pretty at 295 and Michael is about to enter the realm of 3 bills!!!

 When we started this program, we knew that it would be difficult, but we really underestimated how much it would test our resolve and our character.  I will tell you this...as Friday approaches, my mind goes into *that* mode of operation...of complete focus...of tunnel-vision.  I find it hard to fall asleep on Thursday nights and the anticipation on Friday mornings is almost unbearable.

As a result, though, we have all seen increased gains in all of our other lifts.  The carry-over from the massive workload is pretty damn obvious in regards to how we are moving weight and attacking new PRs.  But I have to say that the most distinct and valuable pay-off has been in the mental toughness that this program requires and creates each week.

Every week, we step under more weight knowing how difficult it was the week before.  

This alone takes a massive dose of "SACK THE F*CK UP!"

The Aftermath

In addition to that, not every week is considered an "On-Week".  We've all been there.  Things just are flowing the way that you would like, but what we've learned is the invaluable lesson of being able to flip the switch.  To turn your mind off and focus on one thing for a specific purpose, knowing full well that it will be the hardest f*cking thing you do until next Friday.  This ability to focus your mind, body, spirit and the combined energy from all three has been a truly spiritual experience for me.

The gym is where I connect with myself.  The gym is where I connect with others.  The gym is where I grow, where I learn from my mistakes and build upon them to become stronger on all levels of being human.

Facta Non Verba

I only hope that you all have something this special in your life that gives you all of these gifts...and moreover, 

I hope that you appreciate every moment you get to be in that space.  

If you don't...Find it.  

Growing(on any and all levels) is Living. 

Days 105 and 106 of 365: The Race To 300

Hey guys...I have to apologize for not getting a post up yesterday.  I had a ton of trouble uploading the video below yesterday and ran out of time and resources to get it done before bedtime.

In any case, it's ready to share.  This is from Friday's Super Squats session.  Winchester and I have now thrown down the challenge to each other that whoever is the first to hit 315 for 20 reps owes the other a dinner at the restaurante of the winner's choice.  Just something to make it a bit more exciting!  I will keep you all posted on the progress we make, but this will probably be the last Super Squats video for a while.  I want to get back to more informational and instructional stuff for a while.  So, look forward to that.

Anyway, here's the video of us both hitting 285 for 20.

Day 101 of 365: Super Squats_Video#3

Here's the final video from last week's session.  

Check it out!!!

Days 86 of 365: Squats For Christmas...Of Course!

On Christmas morning, Michael Winchester and I met at Red Black Gym to knock out some Christmas squats.  

We warmed up with a quick body-weight AMRAP and some light box squats.  Once we felt ready to rock, we loaded up the bar to our new challenge weight of 275.  

For those of you just joining the conversation, we have begun a new squat program inspired by the book Super Squats.  Here's the program details if you're interested...

Anyway, here is the footage...or at least some of it....

I had just enough space on my phone for you guys to see me fail miserably at my 20-rep attempt and then for Winchester to get started...BUT not enough space to see him finish.  

PERFECT!!!

You guys will just have to take my word that Winchester smashed his 20 reps!!! 

The dude is gettin' SILLYSTRONG!!!  

As for me...I did not.  It's not always a PR day.  

But, I will get it the next time we hit this up...

I guarantee it!

Day 62 of 365: Don't Be Afraid To Grind.

Alright.  Alright.  Get your mind out of the gutter, people!

  

We are not going to be discussing that type of grind, but rather the grind you find yourself in when you're pulling a huge deadlift.  Not quite as enticing, but stay with me here.  

I promise it's worth it.

My good friend and training partner, Michael Winchester sent a link to me today to a article on T-Nation that is worth a read!  Check it out HERE. 

As I read it, it got me thinking...

"Do people even know what it is to fight through a deadlift repitition?"

I found it scary and a little sad to think that there are those of you out there that have never actually fought for every inch of something so seemingly meaningless as a deadlift.

I hope that you all have had the experience of a 10 second deadlift.  For those that haven't yet, these "grinding" reps are the longest, toughest, and most humbling experiences you can imagine.  I remember the most epic pull I've ever had - at the time, it was a PR lift of 385lbs.  I got myself jacked up and went right for it.  I started the pull, the bar slowly broke from the floor, and where most deadlift become easier as the momentum builds, on this occassion, it did NOT.  It seemed as though the bar was slowing down with every inch.  Although the speed was painfully slow, I was not going to give up!  What felt like 30 minutes passed and I was now at the top of my knees with a long-ass way still to go! I hit several sticking points along my thighs that resulted in what I like to call, the "jack-hammer effect".  This, as you can imagine, is when your body begins to quiver and bounce around uncontrollably under the shear load and stress of the movement.  Pretty hilarious stuff when you see someone start convulsing like they've just stuck there finger in an electrical socket.  But, again, I was not going to be stopped.  I finally reached the top of the lift, where I quickly dropped the bar to the floor so that I would be able to catch myself if I were to pass out.  I saw my own personal light show with all of the stars I was seeing when it was all said and done.

Almost

Now, you may be asking yourself, 

"Why would anyone want to keep lifting at that point?"

"Why does this crazy bastard want ME to have this experience?  It sounds horrible!"

Let me be straight with you...It is absolutely horrible!  It really is.  But, it is also one of the most rewarding and most symbolic experiences you can have.  You see, you just fought through hell to lift a silly-ass bar off the floor.  That has to be one of the dumbest things to fight for, right?   

NO!!! 

It would have been so easy to just say, 

"This is too heavy!"  

"I can't do this!"  

"Today's a bad day."  

"I'll try it tomorrow."

BULLSHIT!  

If you don't fight for yourself and your strength, you will never fight, and you will never have the strength required to live an OUTSTANDING life. 

So next time that bar doesn't break off the floor as easy as you had hoped - 

DO NOT STOP!  

You are fighting for something bigger than a PR.  

Remember that!

LOW-BAR SQUAT = FREAKISH STRENGTH

Many of you have just finished the CrossFit Total.  How was it?  From what I can tell, nearly everyone that participates in indoor programs PR'd(Personal Record) the deadlift....But how was the squat?!

The back squat is a different kind of animal.  It is far more intimidating than say, the deadlift, because of one obivous reason:  You are under the weight.  When performing the deadlift, there is no risk of being crushed by the weight.  If you are unable to successfully perform the movement, you simply drop the bar - no harm done.  IF the back squat is unsuccessful, it can be a scary and dangerous thing.  But, here's the deal...

The thing that makes the squat intimidating is the same thing that makes it such a powerful and potent tool in the quest to get strong!  The fact that your entire body is loaded with the weight of the barbell initiates an extreme hormonal response that causes positive adaptation in the body - strength and hypertrophy(muscle growth).  Add to that the fact that we are moving a relatively large load through a large range of motion, and the results of training the back squat properly are crazy!!!

So now we have briefly( I emphasize "briefly" because the list is too long to blog about..more to come though.) gone into what makes the back squat such an effective exercise...Let's talk about the additional benefits of learning how to Low-Bar Back Squat. 

The majority of crossfitters squat using a "High-Bar" postition - that is the barbell is racked on top of the traps and shoulders.  The "Low-Bar" position is, as it sounds, loaded lower on the back, below the spine of the scapulae(shoulderblade).  This positioning allows for several very important things to occur during the actual squat movement:

 

1.  Allows for a greater forward lean without the consequence of rolling into the toes, or losing the lift entirely.

2.  This increased forward tilt at the hip allows us to engage the posterior chain muscles(hamstrings, butt, and low back), which is equivalent to calling in your "heavy-hitters".  These are the muscles that get work done!!!

3.  Because we are engaging the big posterior chain muscles, it stops us from using the small, weak anterior muscles that are usually accompanied by heels coming of the floor, drifting into the toes, 

and losing the ability to "drive" out of a stable, strong foundation.

All of this means BIG WEIGHTS!!!  In fact, Coach Mike Winchester used the low-bar squat early last week and PR'd his back squat by 60#!!!  Ridiculous, right?!  I have been transitioning my STRICTLY STRENGTH people from the typical high-bar to low-bar, and their numbers are going through the roof as well!

I'm sure that I have you hooked by now, and you're ready to go try it out, right?  Not so fast!!!  

Take the time and any other means necessary to correctly learn how to perform a Low-Bar Squat.  This blogpost is only a small view of a much bigger picture.  It was not my goal to try to teach you how to LB Squat via blog.  This is something that must be done with supervision and training, and I would not recommend just "giving it a whirl".