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Have you ever thought about what are you trying to gain by doing the workout that you are doing?  Each of the workouts that we program have a specific intent, which differs based on the time, weights, and movements in the workout.  The intents of each of the workouts will play into different energy systems.  What are energy systems?  Glad you asked.

The energy for physical activity comes from the conversion of ATP (adenosine triphosphate) to ADP (adenosine diphosphate).  The human body has 3 main energy systems that are used to produce ATP for muscular activity.  These are the Phosphagen, Glycolysis, and Oxadative systems.  Don’t worry, we don’t expect you to memorize these terms, but we do want you to be aware of what they are and what they do.

Phosphagen – Think of this as the short-term, high intensity system.  The phosphagen system is an anaerobic process where muscle cells must rely on other reactions that do not require oxygen to fuel muscle contraction.  Some examples of this would be sprints or 1 rep max lifts.

Glycolysis – The is the medium intensity system.  Glycolysis is the breakdown of carbohydrates (glucose), stored in the muscles or delivered your blood to create ATP.  Glycolysis doesn’t depend on oxygen, but can use oxygen if it is available in the blood.  Activities in the Glycolysis system are in the 30 second to 2 minute time-frame.

Oxadative – You probably guessed it.  The oxadative system is the longer, low intensity system.  The oxadative system is an aerobic (exercise that improves or is intended to improve the efficiency of the body’s cardiovascular system) system that uses carbohydrates and fats to create ATP.  Examples of the oxadative system would be a long bicycle ride or long run.

That all sounds great, but why do I care?  When you are training in CrossFit, you are training in all of the energy systems.  Sometimes in the same day.  You may start with low rep strength movements, move to a quick workout, and then end with a nice long cool down on the rower.  In order to continue to grow as an athlete, you want to train in each of these systems.  Specific workouts are designed to hit specific systems and this is one of the reasons why we recommend that you “scale appropriately”.  Just because you can complete the workout with the correct weights or movements, doesn’t mean that you are training in the system it was designed for.  Doing Fran in 3 minutes is much different than doing Fran in 15 minutes and work two different energy systems.  Before you start each workout, think of what system this was designed for.  If you aren’t sure, just ask the coach how many rounds you should get, or what time range you should be in.  If you are always the last one to finish, or find yourself way behind on reps/rounds, take it as a sign that you should be scaling.  Remember to check your ego at the door and it’s not always about doing a workout RX.

“What should I be eating now that I am working out?” We get this question fairly often from our new members.  Many new members are just starting their fitness journey or starting again.  Going from not working out to doing a high intensity programming is going to be a change.  This goes for both how your muscles are going to feel as well as how your stomach is going to feel if you have poor nutrition before the workout.  If this is the case, you might find that what you were eating before doesn’t exactly agree with you during your workouts.  Stop being the definition of insanity, and consider eating different and/or for your health and goals.

Nutrition is simple.  It can be summed up with a simple phrase from the CrossFit Journal,  “Eat meat and vegetables, nuts and seeds, some fruit, little starch and no sugar.  Keep intake to levels that will support exercise but not body fat.”  (CrossFit Journal, September 2002, “The Garage Gym”)  Although it may be simple, as we all know, it is definitely not easy to follow.

If you are just starting out with a new workout routine and diet, simply trying to follow the idea mentioned above of meat, veggies, etc. is a great place to start.  If you are coming from a diet of fast food, processed food, high carb, basically the american diet, you will see big results from just eating real food.  For this person, we would recommend that you stop reading here, bookmark this page, and come back when you hit that first plateau.  Don’t sweat the small stuff until you get down the basics.

So, you have been following the CrossFit Journal phrase above, but still haven’t reached your goal, or maybe your have hit that plateau and can’t loose those last couple pesky pounds.  The next step is to look at the composition of your food.  We have all heard that we should be “eating a balanced diet,” but what does that mean?  This is going to depend on your individual goals and body composition.  There are many great calculators out there that give you recommendations on intake of macro-nutrients (protein, fat, & carbs) and calories, such as IIFYM.

After you get you macro-nutrient composition and calories recommended, the next step is to track what you are eating.  There are many great tools out there, but one of the best is to use the app myfitnesspal.  Myfitnesspal allows you to add your goals, which you determined before, so that you can see how close to ideal your diet is.  For many of us starting out, this usually means we need more protein and less carbs.  Tracking your meals is definitely more work, which is why we don’t recommend this for those just starting out, but it is very effective and beneficial.  Not only will it help you to get to your goal quicker, but it will also give you a good idea of portion size and composition once you reach your goals.  Don’t give up, healthy living is a lifestyle, not a fad diet.

1. Pick up after yourself. A simple life lesson that (hopefully) most of us were taught as children and still comes into play in our adult lives. We get it, after a rough workout the last thing you want to do is pick up those weights you were just throwing around one more time; however, if you don’t, who will? The Gym Fairy? As amazing as it would be to have a Gym Fairy, sadly, they do not exist. So the people stuck picking up after you are your fellow members or the coaches. Thankfully, most people are pretty good about picking up the equipment they used in the workout, however, the same can’t be said about those pesky mobility tools. So at the end of your time at the gym, take a look around, make sure you didn’t leave any foam rollers, lacrosse balls, Ab Mats, bands, your socks, etc., lying around for someone else to deal with.

2. Wipe down your used equipment. It is true that community is a huge part of CrossFit, we love sharing in each other’s triumphs and successes, but not each other’s germs. The workouts are hard enough, no reason to force someone to use a bar, wallball, or rower that is covered in, well, you. So whether you bled, cried, sweat, or slobbered all over your equipment, do us a favor and wipe it down.

3. Listen and don’t distract. When the coach is covering the movements and standards for that day’s class, do your best to listen. There is a reason for reviewing everything you will be doing in class, perhaps the standard is slightly different for today, or the coach has a useful tip to make you more efficient. However, if you feel like what is being said truly won’t benefit you, at least don’t distract those around you. If the coach is covering how to scale a movement that you don’t need to scale, perhaps the person you just struck up a conversation with does need to know how to scale that particular movement. Be considerate of those around you.

4. The current class has “dibs” on both equipment and space. If you come early or stay late to work on some weaknesses, get an extra workout in, or mobilize, that’s awesome! We definitely love seeing people go the extra mile to improve their fitness; however, don’t take away from the current class. If there is a shortage on rowers, bikes, bars, platforms, or space in general, the members who are participating in the class at that time have priority. Take a look around, see if what you are about to do might take away from the class, or simply ask the coach to make sure you won’t be in the way.

5. Be aware. Lastly, a rule that could easily sum up all previous rules, be aware of your surroundings and be considerate of others within the gym. Make sure that kettlebell you are about to grab from the middle of the floor wasn’t just brought out by someone else; or in those larger classes, before you throw your bar down, be sure you aren’t about to throw it down on someone’s ankle; or be aware of where you are walking, try not to walk a foot away from someone who is about to snatch, or behind someone who is doing kipping pull-ups.
We are all there for a common purpose, so let’s try to work together to make our gym a friendly, outgoing, clean atmosphere where people feel both safe and comfortable while attaining their goals.

Each month Overland Park CrossFit recognizes a member who exemplifies our values and motivates others in the gym to push themselves with encouraging words. April’s Athlete of the Month is Becky Klein. Becky was chosen because of her positive attitude and how she pushes herself within the gym.  We were so proud of her for completing her first Open and it was inspiring to other members to watch her tackle each workout head on!  Learn more below about Becky!

    1. What were your thoughts after your first CrossFit workout?

My first actual CrossFit workout was not until I participated in the Open, and even then it was scaled. I guess my first thoughts were something along the lines of “Whew, ok that wasn’t too bad. It’s gonna take me some time to become a badass like everyone else here, but I’m in!”

2. What has been your favorite workout?

3. What is your favorite cheat meal?

Beer! And (real) Ice cream! …technically not a meal, but I can make it one.

4. Where do you work?     

I am a Marriage and Family Therapist working in private practice with children, adults, families and couples.

5. What do you like to do outside of work?

Time with friends, anything outdoors or sports related, activities with my church group and the occasional nap or reading.

6. What advice would you give a newbie just starting at OPCF?

Be patient with yourself and commit! Learn to love the process and the results will come.

7. What is your favorite lift?

Anything I feel confident I have the proper form down (and remember the correct name of) which at this time is really only the clean.

8. What’s your biggest “GOAT”?

Sadly anything involving upper body strength, I get frustrated and in my head and then it is just goes down hill.

9. What changes have you seen in yourself since starting at OPCF?  

This odd, strange desire to have sore muscles, I almost feel out of sorts if I am not feeling that daily.

10. What is your biggest improvement or proudest accomplishment thus far?

Just braving the Open, without knowing at all what I was getting myself into.

11. What is something you have always wanted to do but haven’t yet?

Vacation outside of the US, Ireland perhaps.

What is CrossFit Endurance? First we need to define “endurance.” Endurance is defined as “the ability of an organism to exert itself and remain active for a long period of time, as well as its ability to resist, withstand, recover from, and have immunity to trauma, wounds, or fatigue.”

Isn’t that CrossFit in general? In all seriousness, cardiovascular and respiratory endurance is only one of the ten fitness domains that make up the core of CrossFit. The other domains include stamina, strength, flexibility, power, speed, coordination, agility, balance, and accuracy. A well-rounded CrossFit program should include varied exercises that promote physical competence in all ten areas.

A person needs to improve their “engine” to truly excel at CrossFit. There are several ways you can improve your engine.  Working on various endurance aspects such as aerobic threshold, lactate threshold, VO2 max, and speed endurance will all help you reach your full potential. The fittest men and women on earth incorporate these components to constantly refine their endurance capacity.

How do you start? How do you build better engines? How do you increase your endurance capacity? The good news is you already have a great base program.  Our daily CrossFit training is all inclusive and touches on all ten fitness domains. Anytime you see rowing, running, and an assault bike in a workout you can pretty much guarantee that you are working on refining your endurance capacity in some way. In fact, many Crossfitters can attest to the fact that the CrossFit training methodology has led to PRs in their race times without really “training” for a race. The old logic of training for races by running long distances (without predetermined workout goals) for hours on end is out. CrossFit Endurance training eliminates the unnecessary volume of training while increasing intensity. Let us take a minute to define and explain each of the aspects CrossFit Endurance will incorporate.

The aerobic threshold is the level of effort at which anaerobic energy pathways start to become a significant part of energy production. Runners want to increase their aerobic threshold because this will enable them to run a faster pace for a longer time before tapping into the anaerobic metabolism. This is important because the anaerobic metabolism cannot be sustained as long at the aerobic pathways. Aerobic threshold workouts are steady workouts at a moderate intensity to develop fuel efficiency (burn fat), the muscular skeletal system, and aerobic endurance (1).

Lactate threshold is defined as the intensity of exercise in which lactate begins to accumulate in the blood at a faster rate than it can be removed. This becomes problematic because the unbuffered acid in the blood makes you feel like you have to stop right away (2). Lactate threshold workouts are higher volume workouts with longer distance intervals at higher “threshold” intensities with less rest between reps and/or sets (1).

V02 max is defined as the maximal volume of oxygen that the body can deliver to the working muscles per minute. Although your VO2 max is largely genetic, studies have shown that targeted VO2 max training can improve your V02 max up to 15%. VO2 Max workouts are generally lower volume workouts, shorter distance intervals at higher intensities, with more rest between reps and/or sets (1, 3). An example of a workout to improve your VO2 max is a 60:60 where you work for 60 seconds max effort and 60 seconds easy recovery. If you’re running, this will be faster than 5k race pace and then recovering at a lower pace for 15-20 rounds (3).

Speed endurance is the ability to prolong the amount of time where a near maximal speed can be maintained. Speed endurance workouts are generally very low volume workouts with intervals less than 60 seconds (1, 4).  They are performed at extremely high intensities, and they are used to recruit fast twitch fibers.  The body is forced to adapt to these conditions, which leads to better endurance and recovery between reps and/or sets. An example of speed endurance workout would be something like 6 sets of shuttle run sprints (up to 30 meters) with 90 seconds rest in between sets (4).

OPCF will be launching our 6 week CrossFit Endurance program April 25th.  The program will be available to members, as well as non-members, and it is a great supplement to our current CrossFit training program. Our program will incorporate all aspects of CrossFit endurance training from aerobic capacity, lactate threshold, VO2 max, and speed endurance training. Let’s build those engines!!!!  If you are an OPCF bootcamp member or not a member of OPCF, sign up here today!

Sources:

(1) http://aerobiccapacity.com/training-plans

(2) http://www.active.com/triathlon/articles/lactate-threshold-and-v02-max-explained

(3) https://breakingmuscle.com/learn/training-to-increase-your-vo2-max

(4) http://www.sport-fitness-advisor.com/speedendurance.html

If you are new to CrossFit or know someone who does CrossFit, you know that there is a special “lingo” that is used.  If you are tired of feeling left out, or just want to be in the know, we have come up with a list of terms to get you up to speed or send to that friend of yours that “doesn’t understand.”

BOX – For a CrossFit lover, this is their second home.  The “box” is simply the CrossFit term for the gym.  Box refers to the simplistic nature of most CrossFit gyms.  Many CrossFit gyms, especially in the early days, had very few bells and whistles.  Just the bare bones necessities.

WOD – The WOD is the quintessential term in CrossFit.  It stands for “Workout of the Day” and refers to the main workout that is programmed for the class.  When CrossFit started, this referred to the workout that was listed on CrossFit.com.

Rx – Rx or Rx’ing a workout means that you did the weight that was prescribed.  For each of the WOD’s there are certain listed requirements, such as weight, number of reps, time, etc.  If you complete the workout as it is listed, you can say that you “Rx’ed the workout”.

AMRAP – This stands for “As Many Round/Reps As Possible”.  For each of the WOD’s, it is either prescribed to be for a specific time or a specific amount of reps that need to be completed.  When the word AMRAP is used this is the workout that has a specific time and you complete as many rounds or reps as possible in the time that was defined.

1RM – At OPCF most of our CrossFit classes will include a lifting portion before the WOD.  When 1RM is listed, this means that you are going for your 1 rep max.  Basically you are trying to lift as much as you can in the movement that is listed.

ATG – This stands for “Ass to Grass” and refers to going as low as possible in a squat.  For a squat rep to be per the standard, your hips must break parallel.  An ATG squat is lower than just breaking parallel.

C&J – Many CrossFit programs utilize the Olympic movements, the snatch and clean and jerk.  C&J is just a short term for the clean and jerk.

CTB/C2B – Similar to ATG, CTB is the next level for pullups.  The standard for a pullup is to simply get your chin over the pullup bar.  When CTB or “Chest to Bar” is listed, this means that you will need to pull yourself a little higher and touch your chest to the bar instead of just getting your chin above the bar.

EMOM – This is another way to program a strength or workout and stands for “Every Minute on the Minute”.  If you see EMOM, it means that the work listed should be performed every minute for as long as the time is stated.

Goat – In CrossFit terms a goat is something that you are not very good at.  For many of us this includes the more skilled movements, such as muscle ups, double-unders, snatch, etc.

This may be a small list of terms, but hopefully now you are better armed with the basic CrossFit terms.

We’ve made it.  It’s time for the last week of the 2017 Open and as many of you guessed, we get to see thrusters and double-unders.  This week brings a workout that has only two movements and is for time.

10 rounds for time of:
9 thrusters, 95/65 lb.
35 double-unders

Watching the games athletes complete the workout, it looked like it was a matter of just going through the motions and came down to how many misses there were on the double-unders.  Don’t be fooled, this is going to be a tough workout and will feel much worse than what it looked like on TV.

This workout begins with the thrusters.  The rep quantity might look small, but these are going to get tough.  To put it in perspective, this is the same weight that is done for Fran, but will have double the reps.  The strategy for the thrusters will depend on the fitness level of each athlete.  If you are a top finisher, try and go unbroken on the thrusters.  For you, there shouldn’t be many breaks in this workout and if there are, you don’t want to waste excess energy by picking the bar back up off the ground.  For the athlete that is in the middle of the pack, you probably aren’t going to be able to go unbroken on the thrusters for all of the sets, but you should be able for the first few sets.  Try to stay unbroken as long as possible, just keep in mind that if you take breaks during the thrusters, make sure they are short.

After the thrusters, we move to the jump rope for double-unders.  If you are proficient at double-unders, make sure to relax and use as little shoulders as possible.  The goal here is to move the rope as much as possible with your wrists, not your shoulders, and go unbroken.  If you struggle with double-unders, this can easily be the worst part of this workout.  Obviously, you will want to do as many as possible without missing, but that is easier said that done.  Double-unders get harder the more fatigued you get, so take those extra couple breaths before you start the double-unders to get as many as possible.  Try and stay calm, even if you are missing, there are 350 double-unders to do and getting frustrated is just going to cause more misses.

Overall this workout is going to be different depending on your skill level.  For the best athletes, this is going to be a painful workout that had very little breaks.  Push hard and stay focused on the double-unders.  For the middle of the pack athletes, do as many thrusters as possible without burning out and try to go unbroken on the double-unders.  Just remember, when you are done, you are done with the 2017 Open, unless you are the lucky few to move on.  Congratulations and good luck.

We all knew it would happen.  Repeat week.  One of the great things about CrossFit is that is measurable and repeatable.  Each year we have gotten a chance to repeat a past workout to see our progress.  For those that did the open last year, the workout will look familiar as we did it week 4 last year also.  If you don’t remember this workout brings us a chipper with deadlifts, wall-balls, rowing, and handstand push-ups.

Complete as many rounds and reps as possible in 13 minutes of:
55 deadlifts, 225/135 lb.
55 wall-ball shots, 20/14-lb. ball to 10/9-ft. target
55-calorie row
55 handstand push-ups

The workout begins with deadlifts, lots of deadlifts.  Although the weight is not excessive, it’s the same weight used in benchmark workouts such as Diane, there are a lot of reps.  55 reps of deadlifts at this weight, without a breakup of other movements, will be challenging for most.  The key is going to be to stay consistent and take as many small breaks as you need.  Plan to take 5-10 second breaks.  Try to complete as many reps as possible while still being able to take that 5 second break and jump back on the bar.  For some this might be 5 sets of 11.  For others, this might start at sets of 5 and drop to triples or doubles.  Try not to drop to singles.  Picking the bar up each time from a dead stop is inefficient.  However, if you do go to singles, make sure that you drop the bar, take a quick breath and get back into it.  You don’t want to take 5 second breaks between singles.  Try to keep your form throughout the movement.  You want to be able to move the next day.

We all know how bad wall balls are right?  Well these are going to be a little worse than if you were starting fresh.  When you get to the wall-balls it means that you have just spent 55 reps taxing your lower back and glutes.  So you probably aren’t going to go unbroken on the wall-balls.  Once again, find a pace that you can stick with.  There is no doubt about it, these are going to hurt, but you should be able to take a break on the rower.  For movements like this that, that you know you are going to break up into multiple sets, try and start with a higher number of reps and do less each time.  For example, start with 13, then drop 1 rep each time until you get to 55 (13-12-11-10-9).  Mentally this really helps in the middle of a workout to always do less reps than the last set.

No breaks after the wall balls.  Jump right onto the rower.  If you are pulling, you are moving forward and getting closer to that 55 cal, even if it is slow.  Take the first few strokes to get your breath.  This is easier said that done at this stage in the workout, but taking a break before the row isn’t going to make it better and is just going to waste time.  It is going to hurt either way, so you might as well get a better time.  Depending on when you get to the rower will determine your pace.  If you get to the rower with 1 or 2 minutes left, you are going to want to row at a high level of effort.  You aren’t going to be able to get through 55 cal in 2 min, so might as well do as many as cals possible.  If you finish the wall-balls with 4 or 5 minutes left, your goal should be to finish the row and be able to attempt some handstand push-ups.  More than likely you aren’t going to be able to remember these in the heat of the moment, but a pace of 1200 cal/hr will take 2:45, 1000 cal/hr will take 3:18, and 750 cal/hr will take 4:24.  The difference between doing 1000 cal/hr and 750 cal/hr is only 1:06 difference in time, but the difference you will feel getting off the rower will be noticeable.  You don’t want to jump off the rower and be fresh, but you don’t want to get off and not be able to attempt any handstand push-ups.  Pick a pace that is somewhere in between.

If you made it to the handstand push-ups, good job. This is going to be the goal for most of the above average athletes.  Once again, depending on how much time you have remaining will determine how you attack the handstand push-ups.  If you jump off the rower and have less than a minute, it’s time to suck it up and do as many reps as possible.  If you think there is time for 2 sets, break it a rep or 2 short of fatigue on your first set, shake out your arms and get right back on the wall.  If you don’t think you have time for multiple sets, just go for broke and do as many as possible.  If you jump off the rower and have more time for handstand push-ups, remember to break earlier than you think, take small breaks, and get back onto the wall.  Most likely there isn’t going to be a lot of time and there are quite a few reps to do.  Push hard for the time you have remaining

Overall, stay consistent through the first 3 movements.  Push hard on the deadlifts and wall-balls.  No breaks between the wall-ball and the rower.  Row at a pace that is right for depending on where you are in the workout and do as many handstand push-ups as possible.  This is a repeat workout, so push yourself to do better than you did last year and have fun.