Why We Love Partner WODs at the Cove
PARTNER WODS!
Those of you who have been with us for a while understand our tradition of Partner WODs and look forward to it like a weekly little gift. For those of you new to the Cove, we want to encourage you to make this a ‘must attend’ workout as it’s one of our most favorite times of the week (and often evolves into impromptu happy hours afterwards).
Each Friday we program a partner-style workout. Not only is a great way to meet new members (or a way to make a fitness date with a friend or special someone), they add a whole new level of accountability and strategy.
On the accountability side, we do NOT mean that you need to do the same level (weights or volume). The last thing we want is for someone to feel like they ‘have to’ do ANYTHING they are not comfortable with. Just because you are in pairs, does not mean you need to be doing the same thing! FX can pair with RX+ and newbies can pair with veterans (and we highly recommend mixing things up like that!), but we do mean that you should uphold high quality of movement standards and maybe… just maybe… you’ll push that extra 5% because you have someone right in front of you cheering each other on.
Then there’s strategy! Talk to your partner and find out how they plan to attack it (maybe you’ll learn a tip?) and if you need a bigger rest, tell your partner to slow it down. Yep, we’ve all said “take your time” to a partner at one point or another! You’re a team and it’s not just about the numbers you put up, it’s how you work as a team to get there!
For those of you new to this, this should be FUN, not scary. We heard early on from people that they were intimidated to come on Fridays because a) they didn’t know anyone to partner with and b) they didn’t want to ‘hold anyone back’. STOP thinking that way! We are part of this community because we are all stronger together. Partner WODs embody that philosophy… and if you are new, they are some of the BEST ways to meet new people!
And there’s any piece of you that thinks you will prevent someone from getting in their best workout or (and we’ve seen this) someone apologizing to their teammate for being slow or going light… we need to smack you upside the head!! In fact, Coach Mike wrote a brilliant blog entry a while back about what its like to fear Partner WODs and it is a MUST READ!!
PARTNER WOD
10 Rounds Between 2 Athletes
12 Deadlifts
9 Hanging Cleans
6 Front Squats
FX (Fitness): 95/65
RX (Performance): 135/95
RX+ (Open): 155/105 (Clean can be squat or power)
Coach’s Tip: 1o rounds total means 5 5ounds for each partner. It’s designed to do “relay style”. One partner completes a full round then switch. Just like “DT”, the deadlifts will feel light and the Cleans/Front Squats should be heavy. You are meant to move quickly, however, so anything more than two sets (ideally one set) means your barbell is too heavy!
Robert N. can do it all. Dad. Teacher. One of the nicest guys we know. All that AND knows how to rock a set up for a clean!
Hamstring mobility!
ENDURANCE CYCLE OFF TO A GREAT START!
So great to see so many people on the WhiteBoard establishing their benchmarks for the endurance cycle. As you felt, going all out can leave you flat out on the floor (even without a barbell!) so tend to your body just as you would after a strength day. Lots of water, lean proteins and good carbs… and STRETCH!
Tight hamstrings are a common issue for many of our athletes and running/sprinting without stretching can cause issues in the short and long term — so stretch not just BEFORE, but after too! Tight hammies can accompany virtually all cases of chronic lower back pain. The pull of these tight muscles forces the lumbar spine into a forward bent posture, the effects of which can get quite uncomfortable. Additionally, the overall mobility of the hip joints is affected… so the lesson here is — tend to those hamstrings!
Here’s a great video by Kelly Starrett (most of you know he is a mobility guru and we keep his books at the gym). It’s 8 minutes, but gives great info on assessing your limitations AND how to fix them:
STRENGTH WOD
Open-Performance-Fitness
5 Strict Press
8 Tempo Push ups (3 seconds on the way down then explode up)
1 Minute Rest
5 Rounds (go as heavy as possible and keep the best form possibly during the push ups)
PARTNER WOD
10 Rounds Between 2 Athletes
12 Deadlifts 9 Hanging Cleans 6 Front Squats FX (Fitness): 95/65 RX (Performance): 135/95 RX+ (Open): 155/105 (Clean can be squat or power)Coach’s Tip: 1o rounds total means 5 5ounds for each partner. It’s designed to do “relay style”. One partner completes a full round then switch. Just like “DT”, the deadlifts will feel light and the Cleans/Front Squats should be heavy. You are meant to move quickly, however, so anything more than two sets (ideally one set) means your barbell is too heavy!
This is one way to get to know someone. Welcome back Nathan!
Wednesday Wins – Denisse W!
Today we celebrate a woman who has accomplished so much in such a short period of time that it seems almost unfathomable. Denisse W. embodies the spirit of the Cove and is such a core part of this community — and we are so lucky to have her here. She walked through our doors (hesitantly and at the STRONG urging of her husband Scott) eight months ago and now is kicking ass and taking names. She’s crushing WODs and dialed in her nutrition, resulting in amazing fat loss and muscle gain. She attends classes consistently and works on developing her skills before and after class (or at Open Gym). She’s a coach’s dream in that she’s doing everything “right”.
If you see her throwing around a barbell today, you’d never know she wasn’t always an athlete. She’s a self-proclaimed “girlie girl” who played with Barbie as a kid, went shopping for fun and then became a Real Housewives junkie. She had tried a ‘regular gym’ and went five times in a year. She bought roller blades and then returned them the same day (apparently they were defective because they made her fall). As you can imagine, stepping through those door took her FAR outside her comfort zone and she’s never looked back.
“It was the best decision I’ve ever made. And I’m so thankful to Scott for bringing me in here. He inspired me to start working out and got me to come. He had been talking about it all the time and knew I’d love it. I came once and that was it for me. I’ve never stuck with anything before. I’m not just working out, I’m having so much fun doing it. It’s not a chore, it’s how I choose to spend my free time.”
For Denisse, it’s a great combination of people and proximity. “It’s nice to be so close to the gym. I’ll come in for class and then come back with Scott and Trevor later that day and run or practice skills like pull ups or jumping rope.” And regarding the people, “If I had a question I didn’t have to be embarrassed or ashamed. I can talk freely to everyone at the Cove like they are my friends.”
More importantly, her mindset has shifted entirely. At first “I wanted to not be fat.” But now it’s “I want to get stronger. I’ve got quad goals now. . I want to see my quads when I walk. I’m eating to get stronger to meet my goals. I’ll discover a new muscle in the mirror and scream out loud ‘I never knew this existed’. Or I’m sore in a new place I’ve never knew I had”.
On the nutrition front she said, “I’ve learned how things work for you (and carbs are not bad for you!) and now I eat more, I am full and am still losing weight. I don’t’ drink like I used to. When I drank on a Friday, it would make me lazy all weekend. And I’m at a point where I don’t want to be lazy. I want to feel good and work out.”
Performance-wise, her hard work is paying off. She’s recently done her first rope climb, she’s got kipping pull ups and is stringing doubles together like nobody’s business. “I’ve accomplished things I never thought I could. I have body goals but I have strength goals I’m excited about now too!”
The hero WOD “Murph” is top of her list (mile run, 100 pull ups, 200 push ups and 300 air squats) but she had never run a mile. That is, until now. She said, “I felt like Forrest Gump. I just kept going. I’m 40 years old and have never run a mile. It felt so good. I thought I’ll never do it, but I just did.
And while she loves her Cove family, she’s got the love and support she needs for her fitness journey right at home with Scott and Trevor. “We look forward to 8p every day, then strategize as a family team about the WOD. CrossFit is now part of regular dinner conversation. If I come in early, it’s ‘How’d you do? How do you approach it?”
Yes, she has her weaknesses (anything ‘bread-y’—pizza, muffins, etc.) but she has balance. And we can all learn from her. “If I didn’t have the nutritional piece, I don’t think I’d see the gains. It took a while to figure out, but it’s my new normal. I’ll still indulge time to time. For example, I ate a whole thing of soda break last week, but working out is now at the top of my list.”
She’s a role model for how to get it all done. And she has fun doing it. She’s spirited and a joy to be around, so that makes it fun for the rest of us. Sorry Barbie. Sorry Real Housewives. She’s ours now.
ENDURANCE WOD
800 M Run
800 M Row
Rest 5-7 minutes
WOD
7 Minute AMRAP of:
21 Wall Balls
12 Toes To Bar or 15 Sit Ups
Fitness: 14/10, 15 Sit Ups
Performance & Open (RX/RX+): 20/14, 12 T2B
If you haven’t met Brent M, you’re missing out. Beast. All around great guy. And check out that focus!
NUTRITION CHALLENGE COMING BACK TO THE COVE!
REMINDER: “SPRING INTO SUMMER” NUTRITION CHALLENGE STARTS SOON!
4-WEEK NUTRITION CHALLENGE
For those of you who missed the post last week, here’s everything you need to know!
This January more than 30 members experienced massive gains in the gym and loss major pounds of fat by participating in the New Year Nutrition Challenge. We are coming off of The Open where we experienced 5 weeks of incredibly difficult and demanding workouts. We are surrounded by Easter treats and it seems as though Spring has sprung and Summer will be here before we know it. With summer comes shorts, bathing suits and ALL the BBQs. So its time to get ourselves beach body ready!!!
We are excited to announce a ‘Spring into Summer Express Nutrition Challenge’. This will be similar to what we offered in the New Year with some slight twists.
Because we know how easily we can talk ourselves into doing something ‘bad’… but if we know someone else is counting on us we think twice and tend to walk the other way. Couplets (or teams of three) will be set up to increase accountability. Each week teams will accrue points based on following food criteria, working out and weekly bonus challenges. There will be a can and can not eat list as this is a time to reset the body and clean out the sludge and bloat allowing the abs to pop. We will work to instill healthy eating habits that can be pulled through all summer long.
This challenge is for those that are looking for fat loss, muscle gain and increased performance and just overall enhanced nutrition. It includes health-supportive dietary recommendations, as well as coaching and support to keep you on track.
This challenge is for those who are willing and dedicated to making a change. The cost is $100 or $135 for the “bonus package” and includes the following:
- During the 4 weeks there will be food rules, but this is NOT a “30 Day Paleo Challenge”. Carbs ARE allowed and highly encouraged….yes, you can eat carbs and still have abs. We will focus on clean and healthy options.
- Although sign ups will be individual, we will team people up in couplets (or in team of three) to increase our accountability and see our successes sore.
- There will be some rules and it will be work , but more importantly, you will be coached on developing the mindset that will transform and ingrain these guidelines into habit and lifestyle.
- This Challenge will be led by Coach Brittany with the assistance of Coach John and will last 4 weeks.
- We will set up a Private Facebook page to post recipes, challenges, successes etc.
- InBody body composition analysis at the beginning and end of challenge, providing weight and % body fat analysis. The value and accuracy of this, similar to a BodPod, would be $50 PER use. So the $100 would cover the analytics alone!
- The “Bonus Package” will include a personalized macro count and daily intake goals. Not sure what macro counting is reach out to coach Brittany at flexnutrition.brittany@gmail.com and she will provide you some additional information.
- Kick Off Meeting Wednesday April 19th at 7:00PM.
- The Challenge officially begins April 23rd and ends on Saturday, May 20th.
- Pre Body Scans: Wednesday April 19th, Friday April 21st & Saturday April 22nd
- Post Body Scans: Friday May 19th, Saturday May 20th and Sunday May 21st
“Eating clean” is one of the least restrictive and most effective pathways to better health. You’ll learn how identify and eliminate processed foods that may be wreaking havoc on your body, and how to replace them with foods that will make you stronger, leaner, and overall better. Most importantly, you will be coached to adopt the mindset that will make this outlook your lifestyle, setting you up for success in the new year and beyond.
We will post more information about the challenge over the next week. Space in this challenge will be limited and you can sign up HERE!
STRENGTH WOD
Take 12 minutes to:
Find a heavy 5 Rep Power Clean
WOD
15 Power Cleans
Jump Rope
12 Power Cleans
Jump Rope
9 Power Cleans
Fitness (FX): 115/75, 150 Singles
Performance (RX): 155/105, 75 DUs
Open (RX+): 175/115, 100 DUs
Coach’s Tip: This couplet will be challenging for people in different ways depending on your double under proficiency. Think back to 17.5… it was a moderate weight barbell (thrusters) and the doubles either made you or broke you. This is not meant to be another 17.5 where you take 40 minutes to get as many as possible. Pick a volume that works for YOU! If you are in the ‘performance’ or ‘open’ tracks and you have “some doubles”, do them! (just scale the number). We want you to go moderate to heavy on the bar and if doubles are your kryptonite, do NOT sacrifice the barbell load… sacrifice the number of doubles.
Coach Brian walking the floor looking for flawless form. Nichole B. is ready and waiting with a great front rack position!
