Last night during the 5:30 pm class, we all got to see Matt Crossley gut out a brutal workout and show the kind of heart that is truly inspiring to us all.  Unlike other non-CrossFit gyms that we have come from in the past, we here at CrossFit Pacific Coast are a team.  From the coaching staff on down – we train together, we suffer together, we play together and we grow together.  If you happen to come in early and see someone working out, cheer him or her on, in fact make as much noise as you can.  If you see that someone is hurting and needs a lift, pick them up.  If there’s one thing that’s guaranteed about the type of training that we do, it’s that no one is immune from getting their ass handed to them.  It may not happen today or tomorrow, but it’s out there and it has you in its sights.  The person that you lift up today may be the one person that gives you that extra little something that you need to get through your workout tomorrow.   Great job Matt, welcome to the team.

Today’s Workout:
Requiem for a Squat – Squat Ladder
With a 45# bar perform 1 squat in the first minute and rest for the remainder of the minute.
Perform 2 squats in the second minute and rest for the remainder of the minute.
Perform 3 squats in the third minute and so on until you are no longer able to make the number of squats that the minute calls for.

Why do we spend so much time talking about and drilling form?  At his Chasing Performance seminar, Kelly Starrett spent a good amount of time on the concept of Functional Tolerance.  Functional Tolerance is your body’s ability to deviate from perfect form and still get the job done.  We all have functional tolerance to a certain degree with each and every Olympic lift.  However, functional tolerance only lasts so long – and then there is a day of reckoning!  That’s the day when you are doing your normal weight on a lift and something goes – your low back tightens up, your knee starts to hurt or the lift simply doesn’t get completed, your body has tolerated enough. Form is the foundation upon which we build extraordinary strength and without it we are stunting the potential of our performance.   Here at CPC we don’t want to stunt anything, so make perfect form your obsession!

Today’s Workout:
“100 Up”
Men – 95# and 45# Dumbells
Women – 55# and 25# Dumbells
The weight has to go from the ground to overhead 100 times any way possible.  Every time the weight gets put on the ground, it’s time to run a 400 and then switch from the barbell to the dumbbells.

Why don’t we program rest breaks into the workouts?  This is a question that we get from time to time.  Sometimes we do program rest into the workouts, but mostly, we want you, our athletes to know your own bodies and the best way to manage your workouts.  It is always better to take a minute to catch your breath and end up with a 25:00 than to go out without being in control and end up with a 27:00 or 28:00.  However the onus here is on the athlete.  You are the CEO of your own life, you know how much you drank last night, how well you’re sleeping, and what your diet is like on any given day.  Manage your energy well and it will be there when you need it, both in the gym and outside of it.

Today’s Workout:
3-3-3-3-3 Push Press
Followed by AMRAP 8 minutes
10 Box Jumps
10 Burpees

It was the morning of January 1^st, 2007 – I woke up early after skipping all festivities the night before and was ready to rock and roll.  It was a new year and I had one main resolution – to go the entire year without dropping an F – bomb.   Cities have been built on less determination!  I think I made it until about 9:30 that morning before knocking over a glass of water, having my internet go down and scrapping the whole f-ing resolution.  Reading this article yesterday let me know that the problem lay not in the execution of my resolution, but in it’s inception.  Swearing it seems, is actually GOOD for you!!  Caitlan Hagan, you are welcome here at CrossFit Pacific Coast any time!

http://pagingdrgupta.blogs.cnn.com/2009/07/13/bleep-that-hurts/ 

Today’s Workout:
“Nancy”
5 Rounds for Time of:
400 M Run
15 Overhead Squats (#95 / #65)

Wow, what a weekend!! For those of you who regularly follow this blog, you know that we were up in Aromas this weekend watching the CrossFit games.  I am still completely in awe of the display of athleticism, skill and heart from all of the competitors – people literally pushed themselves to the point of collapse and then got up and did it over and over again.  5 crushing workouts on Saturday, 3 more on Sunday before winners were crowned.  Congratulations to CrossFit HQ for putting on an amazingly well run event, to all of the competitors for raising the bar ever higher and to all of the fans and spectators for just being so amazingly friendly and cool. 

Today’s Workout:
40-30-20-10
Pull-ups
KB – Sumo Deadlift High Pulls (1.5/1 pood)

Today is the affiliate challenge day at and the first day of he CrossFit games in Aromas! Eric, Su, Miguel and I are all up supporting our brothers and sisters (and sister in-law) from CFLA, CF Ventura, CF Culver City, Lalanne Fitness and all of the other amazing people that we’ve met over the years at CrossFit events. Keep an eye on our CrossFit Pacific Coast Facebook Fan page today and this weekend for photos and updates of the awesomeness. Of course we wouldn’t go out of town without leaving you all with a kick ass workout that can be done anywhere anytime!

Today’s Workout:
“Almost Murph”
Run 800 M
75 Push-ups
100 Sit-ups
150 Squats
Run 800 M

Who did you want to be when you were little? For me the answer was clear – Bruce Lee, no questions asked. For Eric it was Joe Montana all the way (until Steve Young showed up). Are we too old now to have heroes? I sure as heck don’t think so! This coming weekend at the games, we’re going to get to see a lot of our CrossFit heroes competing against each other. These are people from all walks of life that have made the conscious decision to put their butts on the line and go for it! We’d love to hear who your heroes are, past and present – post to comments.

TODAY’S WORKOUT
DEADLIFTS
3-2-2-1-1-1
FOLLOWED BY 2 MIN MAX SIT-UPS

Do you have trouble waking up for our 6 a.m class?! It took me about a year and a half of waking up before 6 a.m for a workout or to meditate before my internal clock shifted allowing me to wake at that hour naturally. Sleep is one of the big 4 when it comes to health (diet, exercise and stress are the others) – and is probably the factor that will affect the quality of your day in the most significant way. Chinese Medicine believes that between the hours of 11pm –1am, your body does the majority of its energetic replenishing, so if possible, be asleep before 11pm! Below is a list of tips for getting a better night’s sleep. Have a tip of your own? We’d love to hear it, post to comments!

• Keep regular hours. Try to go to bed at the same time and get up at the same time every day. Getting up at the same time is most important.
• Stay away from stimulants like caffeine and the CrossFit Journal. This will help you get deep sleep, which is most refreshing. If you take any caffeine, take it in the morning. Avoid all stimulants in the evening, including chocolate, caffeinated sodas, and caffeinated teas. They will delay sleep and increase arousals during the night.
• Use the bed for sleeping (don’t worry, we understand that being a highly tuned CF’er has it’s um…benefits, but use the bed mostly for sleeping) Avoid watching TV or using laptop computers. Know that reading in bed can be a problem if the material is very stimulation and you read with a bright light.
• Avoid looking at the clock if you wake up in the middle of the night. It can cause anxiety. This is very difficult for most of us, so turn the clock away from your eyes so you would have to turn it to see the time.
  

Today’s Workout:
4 Rounds for Time – (74# / 45#)
15 Front Squats
15 Push Press
15 Overhead Squats

 A big thank you to everyone that showed up this weekend for our first ever 4^th of July WOD and BBQ!  CrossFitters from Los Angeles, Goleta and Santa Barbara converged for a great team WOD (Congrats to Team America F*&k Yeah for pulling out the win), followed by a generous helping of Freedom Cake and fun.  We look forward to seeing everyone again in a few weeks at the Grand Opening!

Today’s Workout:
“Nicole”
AMRAP 20 Min
400 M Run
Max Pull-ups