Those of you who have been around long enough, have probably heard the rumors that at 9:30 on Saturday morning’s, people meet with me at the gym to put themselves into strange positions, sometimes with a partner and sometimes not, sometimes we use different toys and equipment and sometimes we use just our hands.

Frequently the room is filled with the sounds of moaning, cries of pain/pleasure and the tantalizing utterances of new discoveries. Often they experience feelings and emotions that open up whole new worlds to them and their bodies feel liberated from the shackles of conformity placed upon them by some puritanical sense of shame about their own natural god-like form. That’s right folks, this is mobility class.

In an ever expanding crusade to save your tissues from the destructive forces you heap upon them on a daily, if not hourly basis, I offer my services up to you every week, and sometimes after hours, in an attempt to make your hips supple, your hamstrings svelte, your deltoids limber, your back lissome and your thighs agile.

This may sound like a mountainous task of unending proportions but I assure you I’m up for the challenge. I refuse to let your bodies go by the wayside when they could be so much more, for you, the person or persons lying next to you and for Crossfit. I’ll be writing a series of blog posts, each more tantalizing then the last, to encourage you to lay aside your inhibitions but for now I want to share a testimonial from one of our own.

Some of you already know Eric Campbell…and some of you have seen his overhead squat. Prior to meeting with me, Eric’s overhead squat was about as impressive as luke warm salmon without the bagel or the cream cheese. All was not lost though, seeing Eric, and his frustration due to his inability to overhead squat weight equivalent to his Crossfit enhanced physique, I gave Eric a number of stretches and mobility exercises to do on his own. With the right amount of time, determination and attention from me, Eric was soon upping his OHS numbers in leaps and bounds. I’ll now turn this blog over to Eric, so that he can tell you, in his own words, how awesome mobility is.

“Like most athletes, when I first joined CPC, I was presented with a number of new athletic movements which I would need to practice and hopefully in the future begin to perfect. Of those movements there was one above all the rest that haunted me like a monster in the closet, the overhead squat. What kept me from facing this monster was the simple fact I was unable to do a squat with anything more than a PVC pipe above my head. For more than six months I ran, hid, dodged and scurried away from any WOD with OHS; only prolonging the inevitable truth, that to be a true crossfiter I must be proficient in all of the basic movements.

When I finally made the decision to face my monster, I was not alone. Coach Jeff Baker made it a personal goal to assist me in my journey of taming the Over Head Squat and increased mobility. My personal lack of mobility with the OHS was a bit different than most athletes and required a unique stretching regiment prescribed by Coach Baker. I still remember the first day we began, Coach Baker had me use the lacrosse ball on my chest between sets of OHS and by the end of class I did my first rep with the bar, a monumental personal feat at the time. Since that day I have completed OHS exercises including, 100 reps of 95 lbs and multiple rep bodyweight sets.

I do not believe the mobility journey ever ends but it does not have to be traveled alone. We have amazing coaches at CPC and if you have your own mobility monster, don’t hesitate to ask Coach Baker for some expert advice and if possible some one on one training.”

-Campbell

Today’s Workout:
Overhead Squats:
3-3-3-3
Followed by:
3 Rounds for Time of
10 x 1o M Shuttle Runs
10 Push Press (95#/65#)
10 Lateral Burpees Over Your Barbell
*Forward/Backward = 1

Today’s Paleo Deliciousness

Beef Stew

1 lb. beef sirloin, cubed and fat removed
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 TBSP. sesame oil
6-8 cups beef broth
1 bag kale or 1 bunch (stems removed, and cut into small bite size pieces)
lime
salt and pepper to taste

In stock pot, over medium heat add sesame oil. Brown beef, then add garlic until lightly brown as well. Add kale and stock to soup. Simmer until kale is tender about 45 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste. Squeeze fresh lime into soup when serving.

Let’s hear it folks, how’s everybody faring after the first week?  Jot down any thoughts that you have so far, what’s worked, what you’re having issues with, what resources you’ve found valuable (this is big), and any support that you’d like us to add in.

The value of everyone sharing here is immense since we’re all in this together.  This is truly one of the great benefits of being a part of a community.  Your issue is most likely the same as someone else’s issue, so don’t think that you have a “stupid” question or comment.

For us, the first week is always a bit of an adaptation period. Since Ali and I eat mostly Paleo most of the time, I really don’t start missing things like chips and salsa until week two or three – but parting ways with beer and wine is slightly more problematic – and always enlightening.

For Eric, the situation is similar. He eats more cleanly than I do most of the time (he has an It’s It issue though), bringing spaghetti squash and meatballs into the office for lunch a lot. After dinner Eric usually has a hankering for something sweet and says that is the most noticeable aspect of the first week.

If you are not sure how your body is reacting this week, start paying more attention. Just the simple act of realizing that there is an unconscious habit such as grabbing something after dinner is a great sign as it’s one more bit of insight for you to have about your relationship to food.

Great job to everyone this past week, we know that this challenge isn’t easy, especially if it’s your first go around with it.  Forge ahead fellow CPC’ers, you can do it!

Today’s Workout:
AMRAP 20
4 Ring dips
8 Kettlebell Swings (1.5/1)
16 Situps

ADVANCED:

“Nate”
- AMRAP 20
2 Muscle Ups
4 HSPU
8 Kettlebell Swings (2pd)
”

Sauteed Kale

1 bag Kale or about 2 bunches (stems removed, and cut into small bite size pieces)
1 small onion, diced
2 slices thick cut bacon
3 cloves garlic
red pepper flakes
Cook bacon, remove from pan. Save 1-2 TBSP. of the bacon drippings. saute onion and garlic until tender. About 10 minutes. Add kale to pan a little at a time, until it is all wilted. Add bacon back to pan. Season with red pepper flakes and sea salt and black pepper.

Fruit Smoothie:

1 banana
1/2 cup mixed berries, frozen
1/2 cup coconut milk

Blend all ingredients until smooth.

Indian Chicken Kabobs

1 lb. Chicken thighs, boneless with skin removed  (Cut into Cubes)
1/2 tsp   Fresh ground garlic
1/2 tsp   Fresh ground ginger
1 tsp  Ground coriander
1/2  tsp Chili powder
1/2 tsp Garam masala
1 tsp     Fresh lemon juice
1/2 tsp  Salt
2 TBSP. Olive Oil
8-10 wooden skewers

Mix all the above ingredients and marinate it in the fridge for an
hour or two. Soak about 8 to 10 wooden skewers in warm water for an
hour. Mix all the below ingredients in a separate bowl and marinate for an
hour or two:

1 Large Green Pepper (Cubed)
1 Medium Onion (Cubed)
1/2 tsp Salt
1  TBS Olive Oil

Thread chicken alternately with green peppers and onions on the soaked
skewers. Line a broil safe cookie sheet or broiler pan with heavy duty
foil paper. Oil the foil with very little oil. Arrange the threaded
skewers on the cookie sheet so they do not touch each other. Broil in
preheated oven for about 8 minutes than turn them over and broil
another 6-7 minutes making sure they are not burning.

*You can also cook the kebobs on the grill outside. (like a boss)

 
Ladies, grab your questions and your malice and bring both in to CPC on Saturday the 28th so we can teach you how best to channel it. After the success of the last two, Miguel and I are back at it again and will be holding another Women’s Self Defense seminar from 1pm to 5pm that Saturday afternoon.

We’ll be covering a lot about situational awareness, avoiding problematic encounters and of course, the physical responses needed both on your feet, and on the ground if one should arise. If you have four hours to spare, this is a great way to reorient yourself with your physical surroundings as well as your innate human weapon system. Everyone who attends also get’s a free copy of the Gift of Fear, by my old boss Gavin de Becker.

This class is open to non gym members as well, so if you know of any women that you think could benefit from a course like ours, please pass the information on. We got a ton of great testimonials from the last two classes and made some changes to make this round even more effective.

We will continue to hold the once-a-month follow up classes for anyone that’s taken the course before, most likely Thursday the 26th in the evening again. Stay tuned for a specific time/date.

If I could have it my way, no one would graduate from high school without having to take a course like this – male or female. There are very effective ways to both keep and get yourself out of trouble that we all should be walking around with a working knowledge of. Please pass the word!

Today’s Workout:
Bench Press:
8-8-8-8-8

Followed by AMRAP 6:
5 Push Ups/5 Sit Ups
10 Push Ups/10 Sit Ups
15 Push Ups/15 Sit Ups
…all the way up to A MILLION!
 

Jalapeno Biscuits

2.5 cups almond flour
1/2 tsp. sea salt
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 cup grapeseed oil
2 tsp. honey
2 large eggs
2 TBSP. jalapenos, chopped finely
1 TBSP. chives, chopped finely

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheet with parchment paper. In large bowl, combine dry ingredients. In seperate bowl, whisk wet ingredients together. Add to dry mix. Fold in jalapenos and chives. Take about 1/4 cup of mixture and drop on baking sheet. Place in oven 15-20 minutes. Makes 8 biscuits. Allow biscuits to cool. Slice in half and place sloppy joe mixture in middle or serve open-faced and with a fork. Enjoy!

Watch and learn all ye hand rippers!

Today’s Workout:
“Kelly” (you’re welcome Claw)
5 Rounds for Time
400 M Run
30 Box Jumps (24″/20″)
30 Wall Balls (20#/14#)
Sloppy Joes  
“Have some more sloppy joes. I made them extra sloppy.”

Sloppy Joes
1 onion, finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
3 ribs of celery diced
1 lb lean ground turkey
1 (14oz) can diced tomatoes with basil and garlic added
1 tsp. mustard
¼ water
5 TBSP. tomato paste
½ tsp. oregano
½ tsp. basil
1 pinch thyme
1 TBSP. chili powder
½ tsp. cumin
½ tsp. crushed red pepper

Saute onion, garlic and celery until tender, about 5-7 minutes. Add the meat and brown. Add tomatoes (with the juice) and all other ingredients and simmer for about 10 minutes until flavors come together.

Micheal Stanwyck, my nemesis!

Do you have a nemesis here at CPC? Do you have one in another gym? You should.

As CrossFitters, we are no strangers to healthy competition, it drives us further than most recreational athletes will ever push themselves, forces us to consume endless amounts of Youtube videos and way over analyze just about all of our workouts (and the rest of our lives).

Michael Stanwyck was my CFLA nemesis back in the day. He’d been CrossFitting a lot longer than I had, but had also suffered a pretty hearty back injury, which brought him back to just above my level.

Stanwyck, who is still to this day a great coach and friend, was the one person that I could never manage to beat. If I did 40 pull ups, Mike did 41. If I deadlifted 355, Mike would deadlift 356 (just to piss me off) and then would hit 360. He was better than me in every aspect of the game, has hair and knows how to cook, all of which made me want to work that much harder.

I’m sure that Stanwyck had a nemesis of his own, someone that just edged him out time and time again as well. The purpose of such a relationship is that it makes both of you better. I know for a fact that if I’m working out next to Eric or Fielding, I’m going to push that extra little bit harder because I hate losing to those guys and know that it’s pretty much a crapshoot anytime that we decide to go after it together.

Find someone in the gym that’s just a little bit better than you are and start getting after his or her scores. Watch how they train, how they eat and how they rest and start to “borrow” ideas from them that will work for you too.

It’s healthy and natural to want to outwork people in here, just make sure that it’s all hugs and high fives at the end of the hour.

Today’s Workout:
3 Rounds for Time:
50 Air Squats
20 Pull Ups
10 Hang Power Cleans (135#/95#)

Advanced:
”Nasty Girls”
3 Rounds for Time:
50 Air Squats
7 Muscle Ups
10 Hang Power Cleans (135#/95#)

“Spaghetti and Meatballs”

1 lb. grass-fed lean ground beef
1 large egg
1/2 cup almond flour
2 TBSP. fresh parlsey, chopped
2 TBSP. garlic, finely chopped
1/4 small onion, finely chopped
salt and pepper to taste

“Noodles”
1 lb. small green zucchini
extra virgin olive oil for pan

Spaghetti Sauce
homemade or 1 jar spaghetti sauce
1 lb. mushrooms
1 can artichoke hearts, drained.
3/4 small onion, chopped
olive oil for pan

For the meatballs: Combine all ingredients. Mix well. Roll into 1″ inch balls. Add to pan, carefully brown on all sides. The meatballs tend to fall apart, so flip carefully!

For the sauce: I used jarred sauce to cut back on prep time, but homemade sauce is delicious! If using a jar sauce, saute mushrooms and onions in a little olive oil over medium high heat until cooked about 10-15 minutes. Add sauce, meatballs and artichokes to pan. Bring to slow boil and then reduce heat to low, cooking 30 minutes or so until flavors come together and meatballs are cooked thoroughly. My meatballs tended to fall apart some, but the sauce was still delicious!

For the “noodles”:  While sauce is simmering, cut 1lb. zucchini into thin strips. Add olive oil to pan and saute in pan over medium high heat 15 minutes or so until zucchinis are cooked but still al dente (when cooked, zucchinis will still be slightly firm but will bend some, like spagetti noodles).  Mix into sauce and serve.

TIME!!!!!! – by Malzone

One of  Traver and my New Year’s Resolutions is for both of us to spend more time in the group classes and less time training on our own.  The reasons are numerous, but most of all from a selfish standpoint, CrossFit isn’t nearly as much fun to do by yourself as it is to do with a group.  Many of you who’ve tried it on your own before joining CPC will testify to that.

What I’ve noticed over the past few months when coaching, but especially while training in a class, is that many of our athletes are depriving them of one of the greatest parts of a CrossFit WOD.  What is it you ask?

Well, it’s the satisfaction and emotionally release of screaming…

“TIIIIIIIIIMMMME!!!!!!”

I remember being a newbie up at LaLanne Fitness and watching seasoned CrossFitters beat the crap out of my times.  The last thing I wanted to do was bring attention to what I felt was an embarrassing result by screaming it out…but eventually I got over it.  No matter what level you’re at, these workouts are tough and you earned that war cry.  Take it.

Don’t go out with a whimper!  Scream that shit to the high heavens!  BE A LION GODDAMMIT!!!

Today’s Workout:

1 Round for Time:
1,000 M Row
25 Knees to Elbows
50 Burpees
75 Push Presses (45#/33#)
100 Double Unders

Today’s Paleo Deliciousness:

Chicken and Mushroom Kabobs

3 garlic cloves, chopped
1/3 cup liquid aminos or coconut aminos
1/4 cup sherry vinegar
1 TBSP. honey
1 TBSP. finely chopped fresh ginger
2 tsp. sesame oil
1 TBSP. grapeseed oil
1.5 lbs. skinless boneless chicken thighs, cut into 2″ pieces
1 lbs. baby bella mushrooms, washed
14 wooden skewers, soaked in water for at least 30 minutes.

Boil liquid aminos, vinegar and honey over medium heat for about 5-7 minutes until reduced to about half (make sure to stir occasionally, so honey doesn’t burn). Remove from heat and add rest of ingredients to pan, leaving mushrooms and chicken out. Stir and then place in refrigerator to cool. Once cooled, place marinade, mushrooms and chicken in bowl. Mix. Place in frig for at least 3 hours and up to 8 hours. Once chilled, thread mushrooms and chicken on skewers. Grill about 12 minutes, making sure to cook all sides of the skewers. Serve with sauted bok choy.

I think the Claw is a better and more realistic representation of the sport since I’ve never done a workout in a shipping container before….but I do know a guy that likes to carry heavy people around on his vacation, and that is the real definition of a CrossFitter.

Today’s Workout:
Skillwork: Freestanding Handstand

Box Squats (for real this time)
5-5-5-5-5

Advanced:
While the handstand practice is happening you will have the opportunity to do handstand pushups. 5 sets of your max with 2 minutes rest, to be perfectly honest.

Today’s Paleo Goodness:

Carne Asada Egg Scramble

Ingredients for the Marinade:

• 3 pounds carne asade meat
• 1/3 cup white vinegar
• 1/2 cup coconut aminos or liquid aminos
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 limes, juiced
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon paprika

Egg scramble

• 1/2 onion, sliced
• 1 green pepper, seeds removed, sliced
• 4 ounces of mushrooms, sliced
• Hot sauce
• 1-2 eggs per person
• carne asada, cut into thin strips

Directions

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together the vinegar, aminos, garlic, juice of two limes, and olive oil. Season with salt, pepper, garlic powder, chili powder, oregano, cumin and paprika. Whisk until well blended, then place steak in bowl, mix well. Cover and marinate overnight.
2. Grill meat quickly over hot grill. Slice meat.
3. Sauté onion, mushrooms and green pepper in pan. Set aside. Scramble eggs, when cooked add onion, peppers and carne asada. Mix. Top with hot sauce. Eat the leftover meat for other meals!

What do you think the Claw is thinking? Do tell.

Here’s the rundown on tonight’s seminar and tomorrow’s hydrostatic body fat testing.  There will not be a 6pm class tonight, in it’s place Eric and I will be putting on a Paleo Seminar where we’ll cover what Paleo is, what it isn’t, why we’re doing this as well as giving out some very helpful insight into ways to make the month successful.

Please come at 6pm, feel free to bring a notebook and pen (we’ll have handouts for everyone) and any questions that you have on the topic.  We’re not going to spend an hour debating the differences between sweet potatoes and potatoes nor cashews vs. peanuts, but you will walk away with a much better understanding of how to deal with this month.

Tomorrow you should all have an assigned “dunk” time.  Please come a few minutes early to change into your swim suit (Andy Wood and I will be conducting our “who can get into a smaller speedo” competition around 1 if anyone is interested.  I’ve got a secret bucket of ice hiding in the safe that I’m going to use to my advantage) and get yourself sorted out.

CPC will be writing a check at the end of the day so there’s no need for anyone to bring one in themselves. Eric will send an email out today about the billing.

Thank you all for putting up with my health rants this week, our goal is not to scare people but to give you all insight into the very scary reality that already exists. I promise more posts about Zombies and snatches later on in the month.

Namaste Paleo bitches,

Your CPC Coaches

Today’s Workout:

7min AMRAP
20 KB Snatches (10R/10L1) (1.5/1)
20 double unders
3min Rest
5min AMRAP of the same