CrossFit Evolve - Fort Collins, Colorado

Sunday 120226

Rest day! Good luck to the Open competitors getting after it today!

Donnie and Ilya getting after WOD 12.1!

Saturday 120225

Teamwork Saturday!

In teams of 4 complete the following:

30 wall balls, 20#/14# - each team member must complete their 30. Once all 4 are finished, then complete as a team:

Run 400m as a team. Carry your med ball with you.

250 Goblet Squats, 55#/35#

200 Push-ups

150 Hang Power Cleans, 95#/65#

100 Shoulder to Overhead, 95#/65#

Run 400m as a team. Carry the med ball again.

Only one team member can work at a time, reps are cumulative!

Brandi doing work!

Friday 120224

Strength

Overhead squats

5 - 5 - 5 - 5 - 5

WOD

Complete 3 rounds for time of:

20 box jumps, 24"/18"

20 knees-to-elbows

Jenna is always good for a smile, even mid-WOD while resting with a loaded bar on her back!

For some of you Open WOD 12.1 is in the books! Great effort from everyone in the box today! Garcia posted an open letter under comments yesterday, as well as on our facebook page. It's worth re-publishing here. If after reading it you're so motivated, you have until Sunday to register!

The CrossFit Open is upon us again! It is amazing how fast the year went by, and it feels like we were in the midst of competition not so long ago. Last year was the first year EVERYTHING was standardized in relation to the CrossFit competitions. This year it will follow a similar format, but it is bigger...much bigger.

So while I have been doing my best to harass individuals in the gym on a regular basis about registering for the Open, I figured I would put my thoughts in writing to try and sway the remaining few I might have missed.

In a perfect world I would LOVE to see EVERY one of our athletes register for the open.

Unfortunately, just eavesdropping on conversations I have heard excuses ranging from "I am not good enough", "I am too scared", "I want to wait and get better", "I will get my ::insert explicative here:: kicked" And I am here to tell you that those ARE NOT legit reasons to be held back...if anything, those are all good reasons TO REGISTER and be a part of the action.

Yes it is a competition, yes it is scary, yes it will be tough, but CrossFit is YOUR SPORT. You do it on a daily basis, it is what you train for, YOU are a part of the community....why would you miss out on an opportunity to be a part of this event?

The subtle and overlooked tagline for the Open this year is "Anyone can do it"...Let me emphasize the ANYONE part of that.

It doesn't say "Only fire-breathers can do it", nor does it say "Only those with a sub 2min Fran time and 500# dead lift can do it", it says ANYONE...that means RX'd or Scaled, open or masters, competitors or just-for-fun-ers...I ask again, why miss out on an opportunity like this to register, and be a part of the largest GLOBAL event YOUR SPORT has to offer?

I challenge YOU to challenge yourself.

Register for the open, do the workouts to the best of your ability (RX'd or not...both scores can be submitted), and be a part of something that is much bigger than yourself.

Last year the Open proved to be an effective way for athletes to push their boundaries, reach new heights, and ultimately learn more about themselves.

I would say the overall sentiment of athletes I spoke with last year that DID NOT register, regretted their decision a few weeks into the open.

Do not be the one with regrets this year.

The name of the game is measurable progress...it is what we do.

The first WOD was released tonight...7 minutes of burpees...it doesn't get much more functional than that...get on the ground, and get back up...moving your body weight over and over again....

Take a second to think about that....at some point this week EVERY CROSSFIT ATHLETE IN THE WORLD that has tuned in to the Open will take 7 minutes out of their day to do burpees...and in the upcoming weeks will do whatever the remaining 4 WODs have to offer...call me a CrossFit Kool-Aid sippin hippie but to me, that is an amazing thought to fathom...and I have yet to find good reasons that should hold any of our athletes back from registering and being a part of it.

Yes it is scary, yes it will be tough, but you won't be doing it alone, and most of all...IT WILL BE FUN!

Sunday is the deadline to register and join the Evolve team.

We want maximum participation.

Leave the excuses behind, and challenge yourself!

 

Thursday 120223

CrossFit Open WOD 12.1

Complete as many reps as possible in 7 minutes of:

Burpees

This workout begins from the standing position. The Athlete will move from flat on the ground to touching an object with both hands that is 6 inches above their max reach. Score is total reps completed.

Check out the WOD 12.1 details here!

Molly swinging away!

It's on! A couple of important things for you to keep in mind during the Open:

Open WODs will be offered on Thursday and Sunday (open competitors only this day). Be sure to make one of those days. Please sign up in MBO!

Please be sure to review the written ROM standards and watch the video describing each workout prior to coming in. These will be linked under the WOD on the Evolve page and can also be found on the CrossFit Games Site.

Once you complete the WOD, your judge will give you a card with your score. IT IS YOUR RESPONSIBILTY TO ENTER YOUR SCORE. We can't do this for you. Once you enter it, we will validate it on our end. In order to enter your score, simply Login to the games site. On the right hand side under the WORKOUTS header there's a link titled "Submit Workout 12.x Score". Easy!

Your workout score must be submitted by 6pm Colorado time each Sunday. Don't wait until the last minute...submit it as soon as you can following your WOD so we have time to validate it!

Remember, although this is a competition, this should be fun! Go into it with a positive attidude, have a good time, and go after it!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Wednesday 120222

WOD

Complete 5 rounds for time of:

5 Handstand push-ups

10 Wall balls, 20#/14#

15 Kettlebell swings, 55#/35#

20 Double-unders

In lieu of a skill or strength today, we'll have some time at the end dedicated to mobility!

Jump like this for your DUs today!

Check out this video of Dr. Terry Wahls. The thing that really gets me about this is that she didn't change her nutrition to shed pounds, improve her Fran time, or to get better at a sport. She just wanted to live. The fact that she's giving this presentation while standing is simply amazing.

 

 

Tuesday 120221

Skill

Pistols

WOD

Compete as many rounds as possible in 12 minutes of:

7 Overhead squats, 95#/65#

7 Push-ups

7 Pull-ups

Kelley D mid-swing!

Below are the 6 Truths of Weightlifting Technique from Catalyst Athletics. You have probably heard at least some of these before and they are great points to keep in mind to enhance your own oly training. You know what else will help your oly training? Oly lifting night at Evolve...tonight at 7pm!

When it comes to weightlifting technique, there are disagreements. Some are legitimate, some are questionable, and a few are downright silly. But when you sift through it all, there are a few universal Truths when it comes to the snatch and clean. If you can make these following six things happen with a given technical style, you can probably make it work for you.

Truth 1: The lifter and barbell system must remain balanced over the feet.

This is pretty simple. If the balance of the system doesn’t remain over the feet, the combined weight of the bar and lifter will not be supported by the base and it will fall over. This is basically an average measure—the actual balance over the foot isn’t exactly the same throughout a given lift, but it must end up being essentially balanced on average. If it diverges too much at any given point, it will be more than the lifter can compensate for, and the result will be the entire system being pulled forward or backward out of balance. There is actually a bit of latitude here. It’s possible to perform a snatch or clean with a backward or even forward jump as long as you can re-establish the balance over the newly positioned base. However, there is a limit to how much this can be done, and any degree of horizontal movement, in particular in a forward direction, makes the stabilization of the bar more difficult.

Truth 2: The barbell and lifter must remain in close proximity to each other.

This seems pretty obvious like Truth One, but this Truth is violated so commonly that it warrants emphasis. I like to illustrate this point by asking people what they would do if I asked them to pick up a barbell and then rolled it away from them. Everyone either answers that they would walk up to the bar or roll the bar back to themselves—in this extreme example, no one fails to recognize that the closer the bar is, the easier it is to lift. When we’re talking about a more complex movement like the snatch or clean, the effect of distance between the bar and body is magnified; that is, extremely small distances can create big problems. I prefer to have the barbell as close to the lifter as possible without making contact until the appropriate point of contact during the final explosion effort (hips for the snatch, high upper thigh for the clean), but would rather have it in light contact earlier than be considerably distant.

Truth 3: There must be no time wasted at the top of the pull.

You can argue about either the elevation of the bar or the pull under the bar being more important than the other, but you can’t deny that any time spent in an extended position following the point of producing maximal acceleration is limiting the lifter’s ability to relocate under the bar. That is, whether you want to focus on lifting the bar or getting under it (or, a novel idea, both…), you have to transition between accelerating the bar upward and accelerating the body downward as quickly as possible.

Truth 4: The relocation under the bar is an active movement

The pull or push under the bar must be as aggressive as the attempt to accelerate it upward. In effective lifting, there is no falling, dropping or catching. There is pulling, pushing, squatting and splitting—the relocation of the lifter under the bar is just as active as the rest of the lift, and a lack of aggression in this phase of the lift will ensure a lifter fails to maximize his or her potential.

Truth 5: The receiving position must be stable and strong.

You can argue with regard to the snatch or jerk about how many degrees of internal or external rotation of the humerus is correct, what the shoulder blades should be doing, and how the hands should be holding the bar, but all that matters is that you establish the position that best allows you to support the weight and stand up with it. This position will vary somewhat among lifters based on anatomical peculiarities, flexibility, etc. The rack position of the clean similarly will look different among lifters, but in any case, the bar must be supported securely on the trunk, not in the hands and arms, and the position must allow optimal posture in the squat position.

Truth 6: Consistency is more important than the actual technical style.

No two athletes lift exactly the same way. Some use the same basic style, but every lifter has his or her own technical idiosyncrasies for better or worse. In the long term, it’s more important that a lifter perform the lifts as consistently as possible relative to him- or herself than it is to perform the lifts with a certain technical style (assuming the style is within the range of acceptable). If a lifter is much better with an emphasis on hip extension, his snatch or clean will look different than a lifter who is better at producing a powerful downward punch of the legs along with the hip explosion. If those styles are truly what works best for each lifter, each lifter is maximizing his ability and attempts to mimic another technical style will limit that ability to lift as much as possible. Each lifter should strive to optimize the technique that proves to be most effective, and then make that optimized technique second nature through high volumes of practice and training over time.

Monday 120220

Strength

Bench Press

3 - 3 - 3 - 3 - 3

WOD

Complete 4 rounds for time of:

Run 400m

25 squats

10 burpee box jumps, 24"/18"

Josh crushing the HSPUs!

As you know by now we'll be holdingthe Open WODs on Thursdays for everyone and Sunday for those signed up for the Open. To provide an opportunity for you guys to get some extra work on skills, we'll be having open gym time on Fridays from 11am - noon. This will give you guys a chance to come in and work on goats, to spend some time improving your mobility, or to dial in your skills. There will be a coach present for this open gym time. However, keep in mind that depending on how many folks are in there and what's going on, there's the real possibility you'll be on your own.

With that, please sign up in MindBody and come in with a plan of what you want to work on. Also, please be considerate of the coach and their time. Be sure to have what you're doing wrapped up and you gear put away by noon.

This open time is available to everyone, Open competitors or not!Once the Open is over, we'll continue the open gym format a few times a week. More details on that will be announced a little later! See you in the box!

Sunday 120219

Rest Day!

Dan snatches!

Saturday 120218

Teamwork Saturday!

In teams of 3 complete the following work:

FIRST...

5:00 Front squat for total load moved

For this portion, the goal is to move the most total weight (# of reps x weight) in 5 minutes. The kicker is that each of the 3 team members have to use the same load. So the question for you to answer is how will you do the most work over 5 minutes? Load the bar up and perform less reps, or go light and try to bust out tons of reps? Maybe somewhere in-between?

Rest 5 minutes

SECOND...

Complete 3 rounds for time of:

Run 200m (Pacer)

Push press, 75#/55#

Box jumps, 24"/18"

One team members runs, one does the push press, one box jumps. When the runner finishes, they move to the push press, everyone rotates, and so on. 3 total rounds. Score is total reps performed. I have heard it said of pacer WODs that if a team does the pacer slow on purpose, then they can accumulate more total reps and thus do better. Don't be lame. Go hard.

Rest 5:00

LAST...

Max cumulative seconds of an L-sit.

For this, 45# bumps will be on the floor, feet will be off the floor. Each team member gets a shot. Total time for all 3 is the score. 

Nothing spells fitness like a 400m run with a shaker weight. The Evolve crew has the best triceps in town!!!

Friday 120217

Skill

Handstands and handstand walks

WOD

Deadlift

5 - 5 - 5 - 5 - 5

Increase the load each set until you set a new 5RM PR!!

Kim using some unique dynamic ROM for her warm-up!

It's only days away. Hells yeah!!!!

 

Thursday 120216

Skill

Snatch drills and skills

WOD

Complete 3 rounds for time of:

30 wall balls, 20#/14#

30 Hang power snatch, 75#/50#

Jeff doesn't need to put the weight down when he rests during teamwork WODs!

Congrats to Donnie on completing his Level I this past weekend!

 

Wednesday 120215

Strength

Push Press

Work up to a 3RM in 10 minutes

WOD

Jackie

Complete for time:

Row 1000m

50 Thrusters, 45#/30#

30 Pull-ups

Compare to 5/20/11 and 9/29/11

Lynnea going overhead!

OK sluggers, it's that time of year again. Jeff Smith has graciously agreed to organize, coach, and manage the Evolve Softball Team again this year. Here is a message from Jeff:

Hey Evolvers, Spring is coming up and its time to get your softball gloves and cleats out! I am looking for interest in the Spring coed leauge, hopefully Sunday games. The spring leauge is short, only six games, but if there is enough interest we can look at the Summer leauge too.

Spring Leauge starts the week of March 18th and runs six games. The cost is $334 for a team.

Summer Leauge starts the week of 5/8 and is 12 games. The cost is $569.

We will probably need to get some thing with a number on the back ( I dont wanna get yelled at by some grumpy old man again this year.) Remember this is all just for fun, you dont have to be a superstar. So come out and show off your fitness.

Please email Jeff if you're interested or have any questions at jsmith284@comcast.net . In order to get things rolling, please let him know by February 29th if you're interested!