Barbells and bacon has once again supplied a great list: 11 tips for Crossfitters It’s great food for training thought.  I really like 1, 4, 5 and 10.  And I know 11 is my Waterloo.

CF Modesto will have a Kettlebell seminar tomorrow night at 7:15.  Denis will be teaching, so come on out, especially if you think you can win this months challenge.

Also, don’t forget: It’s bring your friend to Crossfit at 10am on Saturday, July 10th.  We’ll have a BBQ after, so come on out!

If you find yourself in Fresno, it looks like Crossfit FTF is putting on a partner workout on July 10th.  I love this stuff, and if anyone is interested, let me know.

Strength
Deadlift
3-3-3-3-Max Rep Set

Metcon
10 100m Sprints (1 min rest after effort)
These should be all out efforts.  That’s going to be harder than it sounds.  We will run everyone together, so you get more rest, depending on how you finish.  That’s ok.  Make each sprint count!

Badminton with the Brennan’s

Hopefully, many of you spent your 4th of July with family and friends.  I spent mine battling with my in-laws…on the badminton field.  Every year on the 4th, Alison’s family busts out the badminton set, and we play til the sun goes down.  I’m proud to say Alison and I took home the doubles title against younger, taller competition. (Alison also won the second tournament against the same younger taller competition.)  I think Crossfit had something to do with that.  Just being fit for a day/weekend of fun in the sun kinda makes all the sweat worth it.  It’s great to apply your hard earned fitness; whether on the softball field, lake, or backyard.

Do you have a family tradition that you are able to apply you fitness to? Post to comments.

Monday’s Workout of the Day
21-15-9 rep rounds of:
L arm KB Snatch
R arm KB Snatch
Push Press 95/65

A Hero workout.  I served in both the military and law enforcement, and it’s good to see law enforcement officers that made the ultimate sacrifice get their due in the Crossfit world.

The Wounded Warrior Project

“Danny”
Oakland SWAT Sergeant Daniel Sakai, age 35, was killed on March 21, 2009 in the line of duty along with fellow officers Sergeant Ervin Romans, Sergeant Mark Dunakin, and Officer John Hege. Daniel is survived by wife Jenni and daughter Jojiye.

Rounds in 20 min of:
24” box jump, 30 reps
115 pound push press, 20 reps
30 pull-ups

The following observation comes from Greg Everett’s training newsletter.  Greg Everett is the owner of Catalyst Athletics in San Jose.  Greg is very knowledgeable on weightlifting, and has a great gym and a great website.  This post is a little technical, but it makes a strong point: do what makes sense, and if it works for you, then it works.  If we start saying in training, or our lives for that matter, “I NEVER do this” or “I ALWAYS do that” we may miss the little things that make us better.

Lifting: Where to Look

Here is an email I received regarding head and eye position in the lifts followed by my response.

“This weekend I went to a USA Weightlifting Level 1 Coaching cert. I learned there (which seemed to affirm all video and study I had performed concerning this position) that in the starting position the lifter should be tight and solid in the back with the head looking forward. Which implies that its up and focused on something in front.

“Today at my gym a CrossFit guy from California came in and was watching my wife do Olympic lifts. She really wants to make it to the next level so we have been working hard on them. He noticed at the bottom of her snatch that her head was up and looking forward. He told her that she needs to have her neck in a neutral position so that “she is looking at the ground roughly 6ft in front of her.”

“I thought this was wrong. Very wrong in fact, but then again I must check myself and understand that I am not an Oly lift expert. So I wanted to ask if I am wrong here and my wife (and myself) will benefit from having a neutral neck in both lifts as well as the deadlift and squat.”
-M.E.

First, there really is no “right” and “wrong” in weightlifting. There are a lot of experiences and opinions, and very few facts. That being said, there are things that are very widely agreed upon. One of them is the head and eye position for snatching and cleaning (and jerking, really). You will be hard pressed to find a weightlifting coach or high-level weightlifter who looks anywhere but straight ahead or slightly above straight ahead during the lifts. Spend a few minutes on YouTube and you’ll find plenty of examples.

Finding a focal point straight ahead allows you to maintain a constant gaze throughout the lift, which means you’ll be better able to orient yourself during the extreme and violent changes of body position. The last thing you want to do is introduce some kind of instability - when you’re trying to balance on one foot, are you more successful when you focus on a single point, or when you let your eyes wander? The snatch, clean and jerk are difficult enough as it is - don’t make it harder on yourself by shifting focal points in the middle of the lift.

So why not keep a constant focal point on the floor 6 feet in front of you? First, you can’t keep it for the duration of the lift (assuming you do it well). Second, the body tends to go where the eyes and head go. Have you ever been driving down the highway, noticed something off to the side, looked at it for a while, and suddenly realized you were driving off the road at 80 mph? Same basic concept at work here. With the eyes and head oriented down, the body will tend to tip and shift forward and down. This can cause problems in maintaining proper weight balance during the early part of the pull and cause incomplete extension at the top.

So what about the issue of a neutral spine? Well…. the cervical spine is supposed to be curved - that is neutral. Moreover, hyperextension with an upright head position only occurs if the torso is inclined forward considerably - if we’re pulling in a good upright posture, this is a moot point.

This email also brings up a final point - Who do you listen to when everyone has his own opinion? There will never be 100% agreement, but you can find pretty solid consensus on most issues if you take some time to ask around. And when it comes to merit, consider who the experts are. If you want to learn about cricket, you don’t ask a baseball player. If you want to know about weightlifting, talk to weightlifters and weightlifting coaches.

Ultimately, each lifter has to do what works best for him/her, and I’m not going waste my time arguing about right and wrong. Try it.

Friday’s workout of the Day
Run 400m
50 Thrusters (45#)
30 Pullups
Run 400m
35 Thrusters (45#)
20 Pullups
Run 400m
20 Thrusters (45#)
10 Pullups

We had plans to visit a CF gym today, but life got the best of us.  Instead, we did our workout in the park while the kids played.  I stole my rings back for travel, so I hung them from a basketball hoop and did 30 Muscleups for time.  Have you done park workouts?  If so, post to comments.  What did you do?  Did you get crazy looks?

Alison swings away

A basketball goal isn’t just for shooting hoops

Did you know Mike and crew do workouts on Wednesday at noon at the park by Beyer High School?  I hope to get one in when I get back.

Strength
Front Squat
5-5-5-5-Max Rep Set

Metcon
4 Rounds
Run 400m
50 Situps