Normal Class Schedule Today (8, 9, and 10 am WODs)
We’re going to lift some heavy weight today! Bring a friend in today this morning and let us teach them how to deadlift. Also, we are having Molly Metz and the JumpNrope crew at MBS at 10-12pm today for jumprope clinic. I’ve done this clinic twice before and I’m always amazed at what a good workout jumping rope can be. If you have your double unders already, that is fine because the crew will teach you how to make them faster and how to work on triple unders. All skill levels welcome. You can still sign up HERE.

WORKOUT OF THE DAY

Deadlift, 1-1-1-1-1-1-1

In-House Weightlifting Meet
We are moving the date of the FUN weightlifting meet to next Sunday, Feb 9th. Details are posted to the left. This will be a great way to practice your snatch and clean and jerk and cheer on some other folks.

WORKOUT OF THE DAY

Back squat
65%x6, 75%x6, 80%x6x2 sets

With a partner for time:
P1. 30 Wall ball 30/20 lb.
P2. OH bar hold 135/95 lb.
P1. 30 Pullups
P2. Front rack hold 185/135 lb.
P1. 30 Box jumps 32/24″
P2. Deadlift hold 275/185 lb.

L3 - Rx
L2-L1 - Do 20 reps and/or modify weight as needed.

WORKOUT OF THE DAY

“Goat day”
Pick one or two gymnastic or weightlifting movements and work on them for the hour.

OLYMPIC (class held every Tuesday and Thursday at 11am and 5:30pm in the weight room)

1x push press + 1x push jerk + 1x split jerk: Spend 15 minutes working up to a max for the day. Once you have hit failure at the push press, eliminate it and move on to 1x push jerk + 1x split jerk. Once you hit failure at push jerk, eliminate it and continue on to a 1 RM split jerk.

Assistance work posted on the board.

WORKOUT OF THE DAY

Hang power snatch, 3-3-3-3-3 up to to a heavy 3

For time:
20 Bar-facing burpees
10 Hang power snatch (heavy)
15 Bar-facing burpees
15 Power snatch (medium)
10 Bar-facing burpees
20 Squat snatch (light)

All levels - do full reps, but set snatch to skill level.

WORKOUT OF THE DAY

AMRAP 20:
5 Strict HSPU
10 Strict ring dips
20 Strict push-ups
30 Strict pull-ups

L3 - Rx
L2 - 3/5/10/15 reps of each Rx movement
L1 - 3/5/10/15 reps of each band-assisted movement/s

*Quality of movement should be highly stressed during this workout. Break each set into multiple sets as needed until completion. Keep full range of motion!!!

OLYMPIC (class held every Tuesday and Thursday at 11am and 5:30pm in the weight room)

Build up to heavy Power snatch + OHS, then
EMOM for 10 minutes: 1 Power snatch + 3 OHS, at 60-70% 1RM snatch

Assistance work posted on the board.

WORKOUT OF THE DAY

Back squat
65%x8, 75%x6, 85%x4, 90%x4

4 rounds for time:
15 Thrusters 95/65 lb.
15 Chest to bar pullups

Reminder, you are welcome to bring a friend to our 10 AM class every Saturday to let them check out CrossFit. We will ask them to fill out a waiver and check in with Amanda for a tour of the gym and a WOD modified to their skill level. Thanks!

WORKOUT OF THE DAY

“Christine”
3 Rounds for time:
Row 500 meters
12 Deadlift at bodyweight
21 Box jumps 24/20″

I’ve told this story a few times before, but I think it’s worth repeating. When I first started CrossFitting, one of my biggest joys was coming to the gym to work on a new skill, and then leaving the gym knowing I made some progress. Back then, I pretty much sucked at everything, so I was able to come in 4-5 times a week and have that feeling of accomplishment. Also, when I started CrossFit, there wasn’t a very big group of people doing it, so the fact that I could get just 1 muscle up, or barely string together 10 unbroken double-unders, or get 135 lbs. over my head by way of something that resembled a snatch, was pretty impressive. I didn’t have the pressure of having 10 other people in class that “could do it”, when I could not. I didn’t feel hurried in my practice, and didn’t have expectations set by myself, my coach, or my peers. I was lucky to have started CrossFit in its infancy.

One of the biggest problems I see with beginners is they are afraid to practice skills because they are afraid to fail…likely because they don’t want to stand in the corner, repeatedly missing attempts of a snatch, a double under, a muscle up, or a handstand pushup. Or, they don’t want to wait out the number of failures that it will actually take before they get it…in many cases, it takes a lot longer than expected.

Here are some tricks I’ve used to develop my CrossFit skills.

1. Do it everyday. I love Dan Gable’s quote, “if it’s important, do it everyday.” I’ve told this to many of our athletes trying to learn a new skill. It just makes sense that if it’s important to you, use everyday as an opportunity to get better.

2. Think of it as “practice.“ So, whenever I tell someone to do it daily, they will respond with “well I did dips yesterday”, or “I did snatch yesterday”. What they are saying is that because they did the movement yesterday, they will not be executing the skill under optimal conditions…they are tired. Think of CrossFit as a sport, just like baseball or football. Athletes practice their sport daily, regardless of being tired or not.

3. Give yourself a limit. Whether you show up 15 minutes before the start of class, or set a timer and practice for 15 minutes after class, it’s best to have a limit to the practice session. Its easy to let your ego get control of the session and before you know it you’ve been grinding for 45 minutes and can start getting pissed off. **However, you are the one that knows yourself best and if you feel like your finding your flow, you don’t have to cut yourself short. On the same note, if you are considering quitting Crossfit after 2 minutes of practice, maybe you can just call it a day instead of grinding another 13 minutes.

4. Attack from different angles. Growing up, I had a friend that trained horses and she told me that teaching horses was about “opening doors”. I use that same mindset when I train myself. If, every time I go to train the snatch, I use the same shoes, the same grip, the same stance, the same belt, the same bar, and the same set up, that will offer me some consistency and will help me see some results in a session or two. But, what happens when I hit a wall?? OPEN ANOTHER DOOR!! Change up your shoes (snatch in Nanos), use a different grip (clean grip snatch), a different bar (axle bar snatch), or a new stance (wide or narrow), or do the movement at different speeds and with varied resistances (bands, chains, weighted, etc.). Even the slightest changes will give you a “new look” on the movement and could open the door to new results.

5. Expect to fail, a lot. If it were easy, everyone would be doing it, everyone would have it, and we likely wouldn’t be having this post at all. Good things don’t come easy, so don’t expect it to. Here is the cool thing though…HARD WORK DOES PAY OFF! I’ve seen it hundreds of times in the gym. If you put in the sweat, make the sacrifice of time, it will pay off.

WORKOUT OF THE DAY

Back squat
65%x8, 70%x8, 75%x8, 80%x8

13.4
AMRAP in 7 minutes:
3 Clean and jerk 135/95 lb.
3 Toes to bar
6 Clean and jerk
6 Toes to bar
9 Clean and jerk
9 Toes to bar
…continue as far as possible.

Masters (55+) weights - 115/65 lb.

The 2014 CrossFit Open starts in just over a month. CrossFitters around the world will compete against each other in boxes, garages, basements, and globo gyms. We will be hosting the workouts weekly, likely to be the Friday workout of the day, whether you are signed up or not. We’ve had a ton of fun with it every year and it generates a lot of momentum because everyone is so excited about working out hard and getting PR’s. You can sign up for $20 and we will help you do your best in the competition. Sign up HERE.

WORKOUT OF THE DAY

7 minutes (Not For Score):
Choose 1,2, or 3 reps and do that same # for each of:
- regular pullup
- Reverse right
- Reverse left
- Chin (both reverse)
- Regular
- Wide grip
- Narrow grip
- Chin

AMRAP 20 minutes:
Row 500/400
Run 400

OLYMPIC (class held every Tuesday and Thursday at 11am and 5:30pm in the weight room)
Find a heavy split jerk, then EMOM 10 minutes of 1 SJ @ 80%

Assistance work posted on the board.

Firefighters Against Cancer Fundraiser WOD
This Saturday CrossFit Verve and North Metro Firefighters will be holding a fundraiser workout to benefit Craig Moilanen. Craig was diagnosed with an aggressive form of Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma in November of last year. Craig has used all of his allotted time off at work and needs assistance with medical bills. They will be hosting the benefit WOD every half hour from 8am to 2pm on January 25th.

I know there were at least a few MBS’ers heading down there for the workout. Post to comments or the MBS facebook group page if you are and can carpool. Sign up for the fundraiser WOD on Verve’s schedule HERE.

WORKOUT OF THE DAY

Front squat
70%x5, 75%x5, 80%x5, 85%x5

13.3
AMRAP in 12:
150 Wall balls
90 Double unders
30 Muscle ups

Men - 20 lb. ball to 10′ target
Women - 14 lb. ball to 9′ target
Masters (55+) men - 20 lb. ball to 9′ target
Masters (55+) women - 10 lb. ball to 9′ target

WORKOUT OF THE DAY

20 minutes of shoulder mobility

13.2
AMRAP in 10 minutes:
5 Shoulder to overhead 115/75 lb.
10 Deadlifts
15 Box jumps 24/20″

Masters (55+) - 95/55 lb. and 20″ box.

Step downs are allowed.

OLYMPIC (class held every Tuesday and Thursday at 11am and 5:30pm in the weight room)
Hang power clean, hang squat clean, push jerk x 2 up to a heavy

Assistance work posted on the board.

Thanks again for everyone that came out and invited a friend for our Kevin Ogar fundraiser workout. We were able to raise just over $1400 that will help Kevin through his rehab. We will continue to post updates on his recovery as they are available.

Please send your prayers
One of our own athletes, Sherown Campbell, seriously injured his back last week while out in San Diego. He was wrestling with a friend when he lost his balance and fell onto his neck. He was undergoing surgery over the weekend and will be continuing his recovery in San Diego until the doctors clear him to return home. His wife Sue, who is also an MBS athlete, is taking care of him now and is keeping us updated. Please pray for a speedy recovery! Thanks.

WORKOUT OF THE DAY

Back squat
65%x8, 70%x8, 80%x6, 85%x6

13.1
Proceed through the sequence below completing as many reps as possible in 17 minutes of:
40 Burpees
30 Snatch 75/45 lb.
30 Burpees
30 Snatch 135/75 lb.
20 Burpees
30 Snatch 165/100 lb.
10 Burpees
AMRAP Snatch 210/120 lb.

Masters (55+) weights - 45/35 lb., 75/55 lb., 100/75 lb., 120/90 lb.

Coach’s note on Open workouts:

We will be doing last year’s Open workouts this week. There are two ways to approach this:

Option 2. Don’t go all out. This doesn’t mean to totally slack off. Instead, just hold the throttle back a little. Understand that the Open is still 7 weeks away, the holidays have just passed, and you are still building your stamina up for this year’s Open. So, use these workouts as “training” instead of competing. All of these Open workouts are very good workouts. Meaning, they are excellent tests of fitness. Going at 90% intensity doesn’t always mean you are slacking on the workout…it gives you the ability to ‘think’ and focus on form and movement efficiency…you should be concerned with those two things, as they will help you keep safe and build better movement mechanics. Using this method, you are probably going to score lower and if you were to compare your scores against last year, you are going to have to accept having that. However, don’t let lower scores get in your head. Understand the difference between using a workout to “train” to get better, and “competing”. There is a difference. I’ll leave it up to you to approach the workout how you like. Have fun!!

Reminder: Gymnastics is every Sunday from 10-11. It is open to any MBS member with an unlimited membership. All skill levels are welcome. If you ever see anything listed in the WOD that you are not comfortable with, like always, we can mod it for your skill level. This class will be bodyweight movements and traditional gymnastics skills aimed to help you get more comfortable in your own skin and with moving your own body through time and space. Check it out! Please direct any questions or concerns to coach Amy: amy@mbscrossfit.com

SKILL: Handstands

WORKOUT OF THE DAY

12 minute AMRAP:

1 burpee
1 pushup
1 jumping jack
1 candlestick
1 handstand