Coach’s Tip: We did “Fran” just over two months ago (10/21 to be exact). For those of you who did it for the first time, we hope you learned a bit of strategy of how to attack it again. And for those of you who haven’t done it yet, PLEASE come in as it is a quintessential benchmark workout! For some reason, when we did it in October, we saw fewer athletes than we normally do, so now’s your chance to come in and get your Fran on! Fran is a SPRINT, so you need to be very efficient on the barbell — most people fear the barbell but it is the pull ups that will get you (so you will need to conserve energy for them). Because the bar is held in the front rack position and it is a difficult position to hold for some, athletes have a tendency to drop the bar to the floor on rest periods. Dropping the bar causes you to lose precious time. Fight the urge to drop it, and get used to taking deep breaths in the rack position when you need to recover. Go for big sets on the pull ups, but when you start to fatigue, quick small sets with very little rest are the way to go!
Today we one of the busiest and best guys we know. He’s got his hands full as dad of FOUR with a demanding job… and recently made the commitment to himself to get healthy. And not only is it working, it is impacting his family as well! At 7 weeks in, he did our in-house competition. And when we set up the 100K rowing challenge between Thanksgiving and New Year’s, he upped the ante and went for 200K. He’s driven. He’s seeing amazing gains. And we are in awe of him. We asked Corey to tell us a bit about his CrossFit journey and how it has affected life inside AND outside the box.
“Since joining CrossFit, I’ve started to remember why I enjoyed being in sports during high school. Between running cross country and wrestling, I was always constantly trying to push myself to achieve new goals. Once I went off to college, I didn’t have that constant drive to push myself in competition. After college, I ran through multiple gym memberships. I’d go consistently for a few months, but then the time between each visit would grow large — and I’d start to grow large as well.
After moving to Maryland, and at the suggestion of a friend of mine, I started CrossFit as part of the Men’s Challenge at the Cove. During the Challenge, I realized I missed that constant drive I had to push myself and do better every day that I had when I was in high school. Having that drive is what lead me to do the in-house competition (Clash at the Cove) in October even though I was only 6 or 7 weeks into CrossFit. And it also got me to do the 200k meters of rowing in a month.
The other thing that I’ve truly enjoyed gaining from CrossFit is the fact that I always look forward to going to the gym. Even on days when I don’t feel like doing the WOD, I still wake up and drag my butt into the box because I know that it’s a chance for me to improve myself both physically and mental.
Outside of the gym, the biggest two gains that I’ve seen is the fact that I’m less tired at work, and the change in my eating habits. When I initially began this, I would have told you that you were crazy if you told me I’d be waking up at 4:30A on a regular basis to get into the box for a 5:30A workout and not be tired at work at 3PM. I typically work 10-12 hours a day/5 days a week. Before I started CrossFit, I would have energy issues on getting through the week. There would be multiple occurrences where it would be Wednesday and I would be dog-tired and wonder how I was going to get through the rest of the week at work. Since I’ve been at the Cove, I haven’t had any weeks in recent memory where I’ve struggled with getting through my work week.
Additionally the extra energy also allows me to chase my 4 kiddos around more often without becoming tired (which is a win in my category). My involvement with CrossFit as well as the Cove’s “CrossFit Family”classes, has made my kids become interested in CrossFit too. I’m constantly getting asked on a weekly basis of when the next day will be. By the way when will the next class Marina? 😉
The other thing that I’ve gained from this experience, is the change in my eating habits. I refuse to call it a diet because in mainstream culture a diet typically makes it seem like it’s going to be a short term thing. Prior to starting CrossFit, I already had modified my eating habits due to one of my kids having food allergies to gluten and food coloring. But since joining, I’ve even modified it more as I try and follow the paleo diet on a more strict basis. That doesn’t mean I don’t have days where I cheat, and believe me there are days when I do. The biggest thing is I don’t let that one day turn into a habit.
It’s the old football adage of bend but don’t break.”
SKILL WOD
8 Reps Single Arm KB Row (use a bench, 8 per arm)
30 Second Weighted High Plank
4 Rounds
WOD
6 Rounds of:
1 Minute of Rowing (calories)
1 Minute of Burpees
1 Minute of Double-Unders
1 Minute Rest
Score = Total Reps
Corey and his “dance troupe” warm up for the Holiday 12 Days of Christmas WOD
Thanks to everyone who turned out for Friday night’s Holiday WOD and Potluck. Congrats to ALL the athletes who tackled it ALL day long and a special thanks to those who came with beer, wine (vodka!) and tons of food. It was an amazing night and a great primer for the holiday week ahead!
We are open with a full regular schedule tomorrow, so let’s get back at it!
SKILL WOD
Floor Press 8/8/8/8Chin ups 6/6/6/6
WOD
1 Minute at each station:Wall BallsPush UpsBall SlamsRest30 Seconds at each stationWall BallsPush UpsBall SlamsRestx 3Score = Total Reps
Come on in and make up a missed WOD, work on some skills or tackle those mobility issues! And of course, get those meters in! The gym will be open from 9a – Noon. Yep, even on Christmas Day!
What a wonderful start to the holiday season… Friday’s Holiday WOD and potluck leading right into the first day of Hanukkah (which is also Christmas Eve!). We hope every one of you, regardless of your religion or lack thereof, has an AMAZING end of year. It’s been a great one for us, and we consider each of of you family! Spend time with your loved ones and revel in all the good you’ve done for yourselves. And help spread that goodness to those around you! We hope to see a lot of you at the gym in the coming days as we OPEN for the holidays!!!
HOLIDAY SCHEDULE
Here’s our (slightly) modified holiday schedule (next week through the New Year):Saturday (Christmas Eve): Normal hours: 9, 10 and 11a classChristmas Day – OPEN GYM 9a-NoonDecember 26 – 30th: Normal hoursNew Years Eve: Normal hours: 9, 10 and 11a classNew Years Day (Sunday) – Delayed Open Gym 11A- 2P
WOD
EMOM for 25 minutesMin 1: 15/12 Cals on the RowerMin 2: 10 Slam BallsMin 3: ___ Rope ClimbsMin 4: 2 Cove SuicidesMin 5: RestFitness: 1 RCRX: 2 RCRX+: 2 RC
Coach’s Tip: We love a good EMOM and here’s why. In case you don’t know what it is, on each scheduled minute, perform the described exercise (EMOM=Every Minute On the Minute). You then rest for the remainder of each minute. When the second minute starts you get back at it again. Repeat this process until the time specified is over. This way of structuring a workout is very intense and time efficient. But the ticking clock could mean you get careless about form (and you know that’s never a good thing). Always complete every repetition correctly and properly, even if it takes longer, and you have less time to rest between each set. EMOM workouts are guided by the clock, which makes them easy to track your pace. You can always see how many seconds you needed for each rep, and determine whether you get faster over time. BUT make sure that there is always a rest break between the last rep and the beginning of each minute. SCALE VOLUME if you are not finding at LEAST 15 seconds (ideally more) of rest before the top of the next minute! The goal is to do fast work, then have a short window of recovery. Sprint, quick rest. Sprint, quick rest.
Please join us for the 6:30p Friday class and stick around after for the Holiday WOD and Potluck after! Celebrate the holidays with your Cove Family and get in a great workout! Or, feel free to take an easier class (the same WOD will run all day in regular classes) and come back later for the festivities around 7:30 after the WOD! PLEASE BRING A DISH OR BEVERAGES TO SHARE. There’s nothing worse than an army of hungry athletes with nothing to eat! We want you to come… but please bring something!
For those of you familiar with this tradition, it will be a “12 Days of Christmas WOD”. Like the song the “12 Days of Christmas”, you will complete each exercise in ascending order then work back down to 1, adding one exercise per round. Like this: 1; 2-1; 3-2-1; 4-3-2-1; etc (just like the song) – for a total of 364 reps. Again, All classes Friday will be the “12 Days of Christmas WOD” so if you can’t make it that night, you’ll still be able to tackle this awesome workout!
HOLIDAY SCHEDULE
Here’s our (slightly) modified holiday schedule (next week through the New Year):
Saturday (Christmas Eve): Normal hours: 9, 10 and 11a class
Christmas Day – OPEN GYM XX-XX
December 26 – 30th: Normal hours
New Years Eve: Normal hours: 9, 10 and 11a class
New Years Day (Sunday) – Delayed Open Gym 11A- 2P
WOD
12 Days of Christmas1 Burpee2 Toes-to-Bar3 Kettlebell Swings #53/354 Hang Cleans #95/655 Push Press 95#/65#6 Front Squats #95/657 Push Ups8 Sit Ups9 Wall Balls #20/1410 Box Jumps 24/2011 Pull Ups12 HSPU
30 MINUTE HARD TIME CAP!
Please note it can be completed individually, as a team or scaled in a VARIETY of ways. Talk to your coach about how to scale for your level of fitness… it should be FUN… not brutal!
Fitness: 75/55 (25/26)RX: 95/65 (53/35)Coach’s Tip: We did this same WOD last year on 12/18, so if you were here, check out your times and scales as this will help you with picking out how to tackle this workout. Last year’s times ranged from 22 minutes to 40-ish minutes. We will be doing a HARD stop at 30 minutes, so please pick weights you can move unbroken for every set! This is a great WOD and has tons of movements and is meant to be FUN! For the 6:30p class we will be running more than one heat, so if you can’t get there until 7p, no worries… you can still do it! For the larger evening classes we will set up designated areas for the various equipment so you will need to move from station to station, but it shouldn’t affect your time (trust us, you will want a few seconds rest between movements!)
Warming up for last year’s “12 Days of Christmas” WOD…
Just a reminder that our Holiday WOD and Potluck is THIS Friday at 6:30pm. This will be in lieu of the regular class and will be directly followed by a potluck party! Bring drinks, food or whatever suits your fancy (and enough) to share and let’s ring in the holidays with our extended Cove family! We will publish more on this tomorrow (including the WOD details) but because we are expecting a big group we will be running multiple heats with a hard time cap. So if you can’t get her until 7, DON’T WORRY! You can go in heat TWO!
HOLIDAY SCHEDULE
Since so many of you are staying local for the holidays, we have done our best to give you every opportunity to work out. The last thing we want to do is close shop when so many people are off, so we hope you can find lots of opportunity to come in for a WOD (or anything else you want to do to shake off that holiday indulgence):
Here’s our *slightly* modified holiday schedule (this week through the New Year):
Friday: Regular schedule with special Holiday WOD and Potluck in lieu of 6:30p class
Saturday (Christmas Eve): Normal hours: 9, 10 and 11a class (sitter coverage 9a)
Christmas Day – OPEN GYM (9a – Noon)
December 26 – 30th: Normal hours
New Years Eve: Normal hours: 9, 10 and 11a class (sitter coverage 9a)
New Years Day (Sunday) – Delayed Open Gym 11A- 2P
STRENGTH WOD
Take 12 minutes to find a heavy 3 Rep OHS
WOD
8 min AMRAP
10 Hanging Power Snatch
12 Box Jumps
Fitness: 45/35
RX: 75/55
RX+: 95/65
Coach’s Tip: Low weight, move fast. Today is all about explosive and quick movement! The barbell should be something you can do unbroken for several rounds. You should be close to 6-7 rounds if you picked the right weights and box heights!
As Coach Chris counts down to 3-2-1 go Christen and Drew (dressed as twins, but also husband and wife) focus on getting ready for the barbell!
Today we celebrate Misa S., a multi-tasking mother of two who seems to be unstoppable. She’s fast, strong and moves beautifully… and now she forever holds the title of being the first women to ever get a ring muscle up here at the Cove! BUT she started out like most everyone else. She had never done a pull up… never done a double under. But after three years at the CrossFit thing (with a couple of kids in between), you’d never know that.Newer CrossFitters get to experience this wonderful thing called the “PR Honeymoon”. Almost every time you walk into the box you are lifting heavier, crushing benchmark WODs and surprising yourself with what you are capable of. But then that levels out eventually – and you are fighting for a 5lb PR on Clean and Jerk. Some get frustrated by this… others get FOCUSED.While the “PR honeymoon” is over for Misa, she says “I hit them periodically but it’s no longer a common occurrence. At this point, it’s more about tweaking form to make movements better or more efficient. It doesn’t always show on the PR board but I know that I’m constantly trying to improve.”
How does she do it? She sets realistic goals for herself in bite-sized pieces. “I tend to focus on one thing that I’m struggling with at that time. Then I try to set goals and actually work at them.” This is why you’ll see her at the barbell club, drilling technique at open gym and programming her own “Goat WODs” (‘Goats’ are movements that are your weaknesses). That’s how she got so good toes-to-bar and this is how she will continue to increase proficiency in her handstand pushups. It’s already in her plan.People often say “I don’t have time” and somehow that becomes an acceptable excuse. No one has less time than Misa. But she will MAKE the time because she knows it is important for her health (and her sanity). And the result is that, two kids later, “I am approaching 40 and never knew I could do the things I’m doing now. Age should not stop anyone. I think setting small and realistic goals and working towards them – over time (that’s important – this stuff takes time as you know) – is the best way to becoming a better CrossFit athlete. Whatever your situation or perceived limitations, you can set attainable goals and even surprise yourself!”And while she has her hit list of things to tackle, her overall fitness continues to improve. She said “In the Open last year when bar muscle ups came up, couldn’t do them. But I tried last week. And just through consistency and overall conditioning and tried one last week “suddently I could do that”.
And her first one was caught on film!
[video width="360" height="640" m4v="https://www.cove-fitness.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/IMG_2287.MOV.m4v"][/video]
Just like many of us, there were so many things she couldn’t do. She scaled everything. Got stronger. Got those pull-ups. And now has her bar AND ring muscle ups. Just remember (even though it’s hard to believe)…“I started out like everyone else”.
METHOD BEHIND THE MADNESS
As you probably know, we take great pride in the programming here at the Cove. We carefully consider the development of each athlete (and the gym as a whole). We strategically use a combination of movements, time domains and loads to deliver on that CrossFit promise of “constantly varied, functional movements performed at high intensity”.
Often times our movements are combined together to give a workout using opposite muscle groups. Think of Fran, for example, a lower body and upper body push (thruster) combined with an upper body pull (pull up). It makes for a deadly combo because you can keep moving through it. You are using opposite muscle groups so your CNS (central nervous system), muscles and cardio get worked. I mean really worked.
But today in the skill work today you will see we have an upper body pulling movement paired with another upper body pulling movement. They do not compliment each other like a traditional CF workout.
Lets call Fran a “Game Day” workout. The other 90% of workouts should be looked at as practice or training. Think about any other sport, you practice and you play. Think about sports that beat up your body and require an extreme amount of physical endurance and preparation. Football, soccer, skiing, rugby; these athletes practice, practice, practice… then play. It is all about training for game day. In the sport of fitness it is the same thing. Everyday should be looked as practice then one day a 1 RM is programmed, or your favorite workout, or you enter a competition, now it is game day.
The skill work today is a small example of a training day, not game day. If we train an upper body pull with a different type of upper body pull we will be much better at this movement pattern. This focused couplet of movements will allow us to get a stronger training effect. The key for this is focusing on form and range of motion. Do not get frustrated if you loose your chin ups and feel stuck at 4 reps. Find a good progression and finish the set. It is all about the long game. Taking small steps each day in route to a higher goal, to a stronger better version of yourself. And thank you for trusting the process!
HOLIDAY SCHEDULE
Since so many of you are staying local for the holidays, we have done our best to give you every opportunity to work out. The last thing we want to do is close shop when so many people are off, so we hope you can find lots of opportunity to come in for a WOD (or anything else you want to do to shake off that holiday indulgence):Here’s our *slightly* modified holiday schedule (this week through the New Year):Friday: Regular schedule with special Holiday WOD and Potluck in lieu of 6:30p classSaturday (Christmas Eve): Normal hours: 9, 10 and 11a class (sitter coverage 9a)Christmas Day – OPEN GYM (9a – Noon)December 26 – 30th: Normal hoursNew Years Eve: Normal hours: 9, 10 and 11a class (sitter coverage 9a)New Years Day (Sunday) – Delayed Open Gym 11A- 2P
STRENGTH WOD
A1) Bent over Barbell Row (overhand grip) 8/8/8/8A2) Chin ups with a 1 second hold at the top of each rep 8/8/8/8
WOD
Buy In: 50M Farmers Carry (as heavy as possible)10 Deadlifts8 Toes to Bar5 RoundsCash Out: 50M Foot Farmers Carry (as heavy as possible)Fitness: 185/125RX: 205/135RX+: 225/155
Teresa F. is a coach’s dream! She listens to advice, scales appropriately and focuses on form first!
Just as you break in your new hoodies, our new T-Shirts and Tanks have arrived. We’ve got several options for both ladies and gents, so pick up one as a gift for yourself or a loved one!We’ve got ladies’ racerback tanks in “Scarlet” and scoop-neck cap sleeved T-Shirts in “Charcoal”. Both have the shell and “athlete” printed on the back. Both options are $25.For men, we’ve got two tri-blend options (meaning, ultra soft) in “Cardinal” and in “Charcoal”. They, too, both have the Cove shell and “athlete” printed on the back. Both are $30.
Per usual, just fill out a form in the small green binder on the front desk with what you bought and how you want to pay and we will process it for you. We have a liberal return policy so if you grabbed the wrong size, feel free to bring it back for an exchange!
HOLIDAY SCHEDULE
Since so many of you are staying local for the holidays, we have done our best to give you every opportunity to work out. The last thing we want to do is close shop when so many people are off, so we hope you can find lots of opportunity to come in for a WOD (or anything else you want to do to shake off that holiday indulgence):Here’s our *slightly* modified holiday schedule (this week through the New Year):Friday: Regular schedule with special Holiday WOD and Potluck in lieu of 6:30p classSaturday (Christmas Eve): Normal hours: 9, 10 and 11a class (sitter coverage 9a)Christmas Day – OPEN GYM (9a – Noon)December 26 – 30th: Normal hoursNew Years Eve: Normal hours: 9, 10 and 11a class (sitter coverage 9a)New Years Day (Sunday) – Delayed Open Gym 11A- 2P
STRENGTH WOD
A1) Front Rack Reverse Lunges 6/6/6/6A2) Weighted Low Plank (30 second hold) 4 times
WOD
AMRAP in 5 minutes750/600 M RowMax Effort KB SwingsRest 4 minutesAMRAP in 5 minutes750/600 M RowMax Effort Double Unders
Coach’s Tip: The goal is to get off the rower as quickly as possible, so approach this as a sprint. You will be fatigued, but try to get right to the next movement. Quick transition out of the rower to the KB or rope will be a must!
He’s only been here a short while, but is crushing it at the Cove. Mohammed is an evening regular…if you haven’t met him yet, introduce yourself when you see him and tell him WELL DONE!
