Ever wonder? Some places let their athletes know what they’re in for before they get to the box.. more power to them, but we like to surprise you. When we are first introduced to CrossFit we learn about “expecting the unexpected”. Athletes at the CrossFit Games don’t see what the WOD is until about 2 days before the event… why? Because as Coach Glassman says “We train for the unknown and unknowable.” We like the challenge, we like the excitement, we like being able to tell people we can crush whatever workout is handed to us!
How many of you think that if you saw the WOD and it included something you were weak at you would turn around and go home? Well, I KNOW some would… hell, I’ve seen people do it. Maybe that’s Ok though, because the people who stay know that challenging and exposing our weaknesses will only make us better. The greatest gift a coach can give to an athlete is the opportunity to excel. So that’s why we do it this way… we want to increase your confidence, we want you to stop rationalizing why you CAN’T do something and start looking forward to the challenge. We want you to face your fears and your weaknesses and come out feeling great about it. And we want that to transfer to your lives outside of the box too…
“Hard work is good for the soul, and it keeps you from feeling sorry for yourself because you don’t have time. I think the harder you work, the more luck you have. If you want it bad enough . . . and try hard enough . . . you can get it. You can make your dreams come true.”
Photo Credit: CrossFit Games blog
Can you guess who this quote is from?… Dave Thomas, the founder of Wendy’s wrote it. I found it kind of funny that the CrossFit main site had this on one of their affiliate blog posts! The message is true though. Yes, some people come in and the are stronger than others, some have disadvantages and obstacles to overcome, but if you really want to reach those goals you set when you decided to start CrossFit you will have to work hard to achieve them. The good thing is you CAN get there if you want it enough. How bad to you want to reach your goals?
Continuing from a post I made on our CrossFit Girls blog, I wanted to post this article from the CrossFit Journal that discusses the difference in low-glycemic and high-glycemic carbohydrates. High-glycemic carbs come from sources such as breads, pasta, rice, and breakfast cereals. Wheat, whole grains and dairy, although lowER, are still not low on the glycemic index when compared to other sources of carbohydrates like veggies and fruits, and can promote a host of other health problems that I won’t get into during this post. Here is a clip of the article. If you have a subscription to the CrossFit Journal, I suggest you read up and learn more about how different kinds of food produce an insulin response in your body that ultimately can be very unhealthy.
“Zone Diet creator Dr. Barry Sears has said people should treat food as a drug, and Dr. Michael Ray agrees.
Speaking at a recent Level 1 Cert at Elite 400/CrossFit Northern Ireland, Dr. Ray addresses macronutrients and their effects on the body. Simply put, your body needs carbohydrates, but different kinds of carbohydrates can produce very different changes in the body.
Low-glycemic carbs will slightly boost insulin and glucose levels for a longer period of time, while high-glycemic carbs send them skyward for a short period of time. When the levels plummet back down, you feel hungry, and if you eat high-glycemic carbs again, you’re setting a pattern of insulin spikes that can have negative effects on the walls of your blood vessels.
Consuming protein encourages the release of glucagon, which helps blunt insulin spikes, and eating low-glycemic carbs reduces the potential for sharp peaks even more. The inclusion of fat in a meal slows the absorption of high-glycemic carbs and further reduces the likelihood of dramatic increases in hormone levels. The result of a well-planned meal: nicely regulated levels of insulin and glucose.” READ MORE
Here’s a great article from the CrossFit Journal about experiencing life rather than wasting away on the couch…
“Those of us who actually train should understand why it’s good. Physically—and mentally—difficult tasks are normal and natural to our existence. Overcoming the challenges presented by these tasks makes us generally better as humans. Finishing a very heavy set of twenty squats, or pushing through “Three Bars of Death” as prescribed, or suffering through “Murph” wearing a weight vest, is as much a mental task as it is physical.” READ MORE
A Big Congrats to Marli for getting her first unassisted pull ups tonight! She got 2 in a row… Get it girl!
Why Eat Paleo?
The word “diet” is a pretty scary thing for lots of people. For many, dieting is something that only leads to frustration, failure, and cannot be maintained for the rest of your life. But what if there was something else?
PALEO – Back to Basics
In the CrossFit community, nutrition is a huge factor in maintaining a healthy lifestyle. We promote certain ways of eating that not only improve your workout performance, but also make you feel and look better. Best part about it, this is not a “diet”, this is teaching yourself to eat high quality food so that you can live longer, be stronger, and avoid disease.
“Few contemporary people ate paleo until CrossFitters began championing the diet, but now thousands are rejecting French bread and tofu (soybeans) and cheddar.
Among those CrossFitters who follow paleo diets are people with autoimmune diseases like diabetes. Some have seen dramatic improvement in their condition. At least two people, in fact, reportedly had their Type 1 diabetes simply vanish.” … READ MORE
If you would like more information on the Paleo way, ask Danny Lopez or Monik for some resources to get you started.
So how many of you are happy with your accomplishments from yesterday’s Box Jump PR work? How many think you would have attempted to increase the height of your box jumps on your own? More importantly, how did you feel after reaching those new heights yesterday???
One of the biggest ways we can continue to stay motivated about CrossFit and coming to the box each day is by constantly making it a point to challenge ourselves. Jen Cardella writes on SicFit about getting complacent “It is now mid March. If you are setting a goal once a month, three should already be met. If you have not set or met any goals since the New Year, you are complacent! Pull yourself out of it and re focus. Re-visit why you signed up for Crossfit. What are you trying to do? What is written on the white board that makes you cringe when included in the WOD? Those skills cannot be ignored.”
It might be time to revisit your goal sheets that you completed during your first couple weeks here. Go back into your folders and read what it was that you wanted to accomplish. Did you reach those goals? Surpass them? If you are new to CrossFit and haven’t sat down to write your goals yet, get to it! Reaching those goals is one of the best feelings and it is not uncommon to see many of our athletes reaching new goals each and every day.
“Be hungry for success. Lift heavier, run faster, and breathe less.”
Embracing your new lifestyle: Changing your eating habits
Some of us just starting CrossFit are already in good health and maybe we came in just looking for a change; something more challenging. For most of us though, we start to realize that this is not just “working out”, this is a whole new lifestyle, complete with new eating habits and a healthier way of life overall. In this article from CrossFit Journal, Nicole talks about her struggles with beginning the zone diet and how it has changed her perspective on food…
“Nicole Carroll writes of her struggles with implementing the Zone Diet in, “Getting Off The Crack.” At first Nicole thought she was starving and wouldn’t survive. But she went on to thrive on the Zone Diet after four tough weeks and came away with a new perspective.
Do the diet! Do the math to find your block prescription then weigh and measure your food for at least two weeks, she said. That said, at ten blocks per day, I found the first three weeks of the Zone to be some of the hardest days of my life!”… READ MORE
If you are interested in improving your workout performance or just feeling better in general, make sure to set your nutrition appointment with Vidal or Danny Lopez. Additionally, tracking your progress along the way will make it easier for you to stay motivated in the long run… because you WILL see progress. If you haven’t done your body fat yet, you can make an appointment with Christy, Sarah, or Monik.
Posted by Monik 
Monik