03/02/14: NC Day #28 – Last Day! Sunday Update

NC – Today marks the last day of the Nutrition Challenge.  Your last scored sleep was last night, and today is your last day for points for hydration/exercise/food/mobility.  It was only a short 28-days ago that we started this challenge.  We had one of the highest participation rates this time around, and I’m so excited to see the results.  Please make sure that you weigh yourself, and send your results to [email protected].  Remember, Heather is still doing measurements and will be around this week to help, so please email her at [email protected].  Congratulations to everyone who completed the challenge. Enjoy that cheat meal tomorrow, but don’t fall off the wagon.  This is about small lifestyle changes, not temporary diets.  If you look and feel better, why go back to your old ways? Great Job!

CrossFit Open – 14.1 Recap – Wow….yesterday was electric at 908.  From the amount of people who came to do 14.1, to the judges, to the amazingly supportive crowd, the day was a huge success.  There were so many PRs on double unders, it was outstanding.  I am so happy to be a part of a community with such drive, integrity and encouragement. There were several people who had a little piece of them die when they saw “Double Unders,” but they still came in, worked hard, and did phenomenal.  CrossFit 908 currently has the 3rd most participants of all New Jersey CrossFit gyms, and every single person got a double under.  I couldn’t be more proud.

Onwards and Upwards – There are still four weeks left in the 2014 CrossFit Open.  I’m sure some of you have an idea of what we can expect in the coming weeks, but for those of you who don’t, here are my thoughts and tips.  You will likely see movements like Wall Balls, Burpees, Box Jumps, Toes To Bar, Pull Ups (esp chest to bar), Muscle Ups, Deadlifts, Cleans, and maybe a few more.  My suggestion to all of you is look at that list, decide what movement is your biggest weakness and where you think you can make the most short-term improvements, and start practicing like hell. Come in a little early, stay a little late, get a pull up bar at home.  Do whatever you can over the next few weeks to prep for these movements.  Clearly if you are unable to do an unassisted pull up, it is going to take longer than just a few weeks to get there, but for those of you on that Purple band, GET RID OF IT!  You all know how hard you pushed on workout 14.1.  You left it all out there.  I’m not saying you have to give that effort every time you are in the gym, but, in my opinion, intensity is the key to your progress in the gym.  Don’t mistake intensity for moving around like a maniac trying to go as fast as possible.  Intensity is relative to each of you, and what’s intense for someone maybe not enough for someone else.  Lifting a little more weight than previously, that’s intense.  Struggling to do unassisted pull ups and ring dips, that’s intense.  Knocking a few seconds off your 500m row pace, that’s crazy intense. Performing the proper range of motion on every rep, that’s intense.  Do a little more, a little better, a little faster, that’s the secret right there.  We write down our results for a reason, to look back and say, “I’m going to try to do better this time.”  When you look back, have you made progress on your lifts and times in the past six-months?  Is your movement pattern better?  Is your mobility better?  The answers to those questions need to be yes, or somethings wrong.  Take your book home for a night.  See where you were 2-years ago, last year, 6-months ago, and now.  What’s changed?  What has not?  How can we help you with your goals?  Always look to improve at least one aspect of your fitness, even if it is something outside of the gym.  The CrossFit Open is nothing more than a series of workouts meant to give you feedback.  We will repeat these workouts in six months.  You better be ready.

This week @ 908:

• Mon – Back Squat + Triplet
• Tue – TTB Skill Work + Triplet
• Wed – Couplet Sandwich
• Thur – Power Clean + Couplet
• Fri – Open Gym
• Sat – 7:30am TBD + Open WOD 14.2 @ 8:30/9:30
• Sun – Open Gym