Sunday, February 28, 2010

Squatting


THE SQUAT = the champion of strength training. If you told me that you were able to do only one strength training exercise, I would tell you that it must be the squat. Hands down! No other exercise works your body as one whole unit in the way that squats do. With the squat, you are building strength not only in your thighs, hips, and buttock, but you are also strengthening bones along with surrounding tendons and ligaments throughout the entire lower body. In addition, it is the most functional of movements. Think about it. You are seriously squatting each and everyday of your life. You squat down to pick stuff off the floor, you squat to sit on a toilet or couch… you squat all of the time! (And yes…. You should be squatting to pick up items from the floor, NOT bending over and using your back!) However, the squat is a tricky exercise to perfect with proper technique. Poor execution of the squat can result in injuries to the knees and lumbar spine.


We have all heard that, “Squatting below 90 degrees is bad for your knees.” This is a common myth. WRONG! Think about real life situations, when you get up off of the ground, your body is already at a position that is below 90 degrees. If we do not train our muscles to adapt to this full range of movement, all too soon we will become that little old lady in the commercials stating that she “has fallen and can’t get up.” We need to train our bodies to squat deep so that we are able to perform the movement properly when we need it the most….in life! Your knee joint is strongest when it is either fully flexed or fully extended, not somewhere in the middle that is often referred to. This can create muscle imbalances and in turn lead to injuries. Not a pretty sight.


So what is the cause of knee pain that is often related to squats? The vast majority of the time, it stems from bad technique or lack of mobility. Without good mobility, a full squat cannot be fully executed. We must first increase the flexibility range of our hip in order to begin the process of squatting. As for technique, we are constantly stressing to you to lead with your hips, keep your toes pointed slightly out, maintain knee alignment and use a hip-drive to push the weight up. There are many other cues and factors that are necessary to performing a good squat, but these are key ingredients.


Once the squat has been mastered, there are is a huge range of variations that can be built upon. Familiar ones that we use are the overhead squat, front squat, pistol (one-legged squats), and jump squats. Thus proving just how vital an exercise the squat can be once properly executed.


WOD
~ AMRP20 (95/65#)
5 DL
5 HPC
5 FS
5 PP
5 BS
**Compare to 7/27/09
Post rounds and weights to comments.

Thursday, February 25, 2010

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MIKE!


Mike, the birthday boy, and Jamey working on stability using overhead weights!

Hey AM crew, please relay a message to Brett for me..... HE IS SLACKING IN THE PICTURE DEPARTMENT! I need some photos so we can remember who you all are! ;)

WOD~ AMRP20
Row 250m
21 SDHP (95/65#)
15 Pull ups

*Compare to 11/18/09
Post rounds and weights to comments.





REMEMBER TONIGHT'S SOCIAL! SEE YOU THERE!

Tuesday, February 23, 2010

Elizabeth


Above Tai and Diane fight through various implementations of the dip.

WOD~ "Elizabeth"
21-15-9
Cleans (135/95#)
Ring Dips
Post weights and times to comment.

Sunday, February 21, 2010

Seventh Heaven Baby!

The fishing game was very intense! Competative nature filled the air, then... two little children stopped in and asked if they could participate. Results: A NINE YEAR OLD FISHING GAME CHAMPION BY A LANDSLIDE! Congratulations Graham!

And we cannot forget the heroic efforts given by Mya, 7 years old, and yes, she beat Tai who was a very good sport about it. :) Okay firebreathers, you need to regain the championship. Rematch will appear again down the road!


WOD~ "Seventh Heaven"
7 Rounds:
7 thrusters (95/65#)
7 pull ups
7 burpees ---> Yeah burpees!
Post times and weights to comments.

Thursday, February 18, 2010

Anybody got a bucket???

It's time to row! No nose plugs are even needed for this event!

Quote of the week, given by our own fellow WODer, Nick: "It's (re: tabata squat finisher) like the fudge sundae on the cherry." (He may have been a little disorientated at the moment.)

WOD~
Snatches 3x3
THEN....

Rowing Competition
4 rounds:
500m row (person 1)
500m row (person 2)

**If numbers do not allow 2 person teams, we will adjust so that each team member must row 2,000m total.

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

TWO MORE!

(No, this is not Joe P.)

Two more have gone missing! Please contact us if you have a sighting!
WOD~
21-15-9
OHS
Pull Ups
Push Ups
Finisher.....Tabata Squats.... Oh yeah, baby!
Post times and weights to comments!



Sunday, February 14, 2010

Game Time!

How do you mark your workout space????

WOD~
3x5 squat cleans
THEN....

"2008 Crossfit Games DL/Burpee WOD"
5 Rounds:
5 DL (275/195#)
10 Burpees

Post weights for squat cleans and time/weight for WOD to comments.

Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Happy Valentine's Day!

Reminder! No class tomorrow night.
MISSING! Has anyone seen this man????? If so, drag his butt back to the AM class. He comes to the name of Telly when he is called.

WOD~ Your choice.....
"Dirty 30" which entails 30 reps of each movement below
OR
"Filthy 50" which entails 50 reps of each movement below


Box Jump
Jumping Pull Up
KB SwingWalking Lunges
Knees To Elbows
Push Press 45/33#
Back Extension
Wall Ball
Burpee
Double Unders
Post times and poison of choice to comments. Compare to 11/20/09.

Tuesday, February 9, 2010

Gymnastic based skills!




WOD~Complete 5 rounds for time of:

10 True Push Ups
10 Ring Dips
10 Weighted Sit Ups

*True Push Ups are done with both hands and feet balancing on parallets, make sure you get your chest below parallel. This movement is courtesy of CFFB.
*To perform weighted sit ups, hold a dumbbell close to your chest and perform a sit up with the use of an abmat for lumbar support.

Post times to comments.

Finisher~ Will their be a new fishing champion??????

Sunday, February 7, 2010

HANDSTANDS!


Those handstands are coming along. Irene, Nick, and Steve work on maintaining a balanced stance through the guidance of spotters. Yes, some of their handstands are slightly off balance. However, we are making HUGE gains in building strength and stability with less spotting. Keep it up crew!

WOD~
DL 3x3 then...

3rds:
4 handstand push ups
8 chest to bar pull ups
12 DL (185/135#)
16 box jumps

**Compare to 6/5/09

Post weights and times to comment.

Thursday, February 4, 2010

TEAM TIME!

WOD~ In teams of 2, complete.....

5oom row (each person)
100 thrusters (65/45#)
100 pull ups
100 box jump
500m row (each person)
**Only one person can work at a time.
Post team times and weights to comments.

Tuesday, February 2, 2010

FIGHT GONE BAD BABY!

Memories from FGB 2009! Will you partake in the festivities and fundraiser for a great cause this summer????? Just planting a little bug to get you thinking early on! Remember, everything is scalable and you are surrounded by family and friends.

WOD~ Fight Gone Bad
3 rounds with one minute at each round~

Wall-ball: 20 pound ball, 10 ft target. (Reps)
Sumo deadlift high-pull: 75 pounds (Reps)
Box Jump: 20" box (Reps)
Push-press: 75 pounds (Reps)
Row: calories (Calories)
Rest 1 minute

The clock does not reset or stop between exercises. On call of "rotate," the athlete/s must move to next station immediately for good score. One point is given for each rep, except on the rower where each calorie is one point.

Post total to comments!