Make up day / Active Recovery Day
30:00 EMOM
1:00 – 5 Hip Power Clean @ 95 / 65
2:00 – 5 Superman to Hollow Twists
3:00 – 5 Push Press @ 95 / 65
4:00 – 5 Flutter Kicks / leg
5:00 – 200 M Run
Next Week: Spring Break Special!
Teachers & Students – Join us during Spring Break for a free week of class
March 16-20 @ 10:30 am
Spread the word!
{Details & Registration}
Over three years ago I wrote a blog post for the CFA community chronicling my first-ever 30-day challenge. Though I’d made a shift in my nutrition starting in 2010, I’d hovered around 80/20 forever; I’d honestly never done a 100% compliance. The difference was truly incredible and I was excited to share the support others. With our new website re-design, that post is lost to the internets (whew), but I wanted to revisit a few points now as we reach the end of the Whole Life Challenge.
My post included the usual tips about strategizing food replacements and food prep, but this is old news, all you Challengers are pros by now. But even so, you may hit a speed bump or two, so here are two other valuable strategies I’d like to share…
The first is my favorite; it’s so important, but easy to lose sight of:
“The “WHY” becomes really important when times get tough. A piece of advice I got from a blogger was: Write down why you are doing this. I took this important step before I started and it was paramount to my success. Instead of reaching for that brownie, I re-read over my “WHY.” Sure, one sweet treat is not really the end of the world, but I wasn’t doing this to see if I could follow a list of rules. My “WHY” was much deeper than that.”
Part of my ‘why’ was that I didn’t want to be a slave to sugar; I wanted to break out of that addiction. I also didn’t want my emotions to rule what I ate. So while making (and eating) paleo-friendly brownies might have fit the “rules,” I knew in the back of my mind it wasn’t the best decision, and it wasn’t going to help me reach my goals.
So, when you hit a rough spot, revisit the reasons WHY you decided to participate in this challenge in the first place, it just may get you over that bump.
In case you were thinking you would just avoid any roads with bumps, think again. For example, I initially avoided eating out. The idea of being surrounded by temptation and having to make a series of decisions was daunting (Perrier instead of wine, pass on the bread, sub veggies for pasta, and so forth). But here’s how I got over it:
“I read an article about addiction recently that stated the obvious: the more you use a muscle, the stronger it gets. Using a new muscle (to make a new decision) will feel very difficult at first; this is why old (a.k.a “strong”) habits are hard to break. The recommendation was to continue to put yourself in situations where you have to flex a new muscle, i.e., make a different decision. So, instead of avoiding situations (restaurants, parties, the break room), I decided to face them head-on and flex the “muscle,” so that over time it would get stronger. The decisions became easier and I personally felt more awesome each time I made a decision congruent with my goals.”
Whenever I think of that nugget of advice it totally changes my perspective. Don’t shy away from difficulty, embrace it, heck, seek it out! Sure, Fran isn’t the most fun ever, but you still come in and get after it, right? I encourage you to attack nutrition (or any other area of your life you are seeking to change) with the same gusto.
For those participating in the Whole Life Challenge, or for anyone facing any sort of resolution or challenge, I hope reconnecting with your WHY and taking initiative to make a new and better decision is helpful in your journey.
-Coach Walker (Fenz) Palecek
A.Snatch x2x8 @ 60% Rest :60
B. 2 Person Team Workout
4 Rounds
10 Push Press @ 95/65
10 CTB Pull-up
10 Front Squats @ 95/65
*Time recorded
*One person works at a time
*All athlete complete all 4 rounds
*Can’t move on to the next movement until the movement in front of it is finished
Join us at 6:45pm for the 15.3 Live Announcement Watch Party at CrossFit Austin
BYOB and bring a pal!
Re-Test
A. 1 RM OHS in 15:00
*Weight recorded
B.1 RM Strict Press in 15:00
C. “Grace”
30 Clean and Jerks
135/95
*Time recorded
*Time cap 10:00
“I think exercise tests us in so many ways, our skills, our hearts, our ability to bounce back after setbacks. This is the inner beauty of sports and competition, and it can serve us all well as adult athletes.” –Peggy Fleming
We are excited to announce that we will be hosting a FREE week of 10:30am classes Monday-Friday, March 16-20th @CrossFitAustin for any & all Teachers & Students (18 years or older) during their Spring Break!
This class will be a great introduction to #CrossFit for those who haven’t tried it before [and] challenging enough for those that have been getting after it for years! Spread the word to your friends, family & co-workers!! Remember, the whole week is FREE for teachers & students so come one day, two days or all five!
TELL YOUR TEACHER FRIENDS & ANY STUDENTS TO LET THEM KNOW!
*Valid Teacher/Student ID req’d
Register for class {HERE}
A. 21:00 EMOM
Min 1 – 15 DU’s
Min 2 – 10 Total Step-ups
Min 3 – :20 L-Sit hang
B. 5 Rounds for quality
3 TGU / Side 15/10
6 Push-ups
9 Russian KBS 24/16
200 M Run
“Desire is the key to motivation, but it’s determination and commitment to an unrelenting pursuit of your goal – a commitment to excellence – that will enable you to attain the success you seek.” –Mario Andretti
What Drives You?
My CrossFit Austin family, I am beyond happy to write about motivation/goal setting and why we should choose to make ourselves better through physical fitness. I will start with this simple question for you to ask yourself. What drives you to step through the doors at the gym and put yourself through hell for an hour? Take a moment to really look deep within yourself. I would like you to think past the basics: physical aesthetics, feels good to workout, weight loss, improve health status, and camaraderie. Although these few basic reasons are great, I believe that individuals seek self- improvement on a much deeper level even without their conscious recognition of it. Look at the above mentioned reasons and ask yourself (why?) to a few of them. You may begin to understand the deeper connection to what motivates you. Before I go any further towards helping you discover your hidden drive or motivation, I would like to share why I’m driven to push myself every day.
As many of you know, I have been a lifetime athlete and competitor within sports and academia. However, I have never been more motivated or serious about my health/wellness than I am right now. Last January, I stood at the foot of my father’s hospital bed and witnessed him struggle with tremendous amounts of pain as he just endured his 5th, 12+ hour long, operation due to cancer. I could not bear the sight of my father in so much pain and had to leave the room. As my brothers and I were leaving the hospital, I could think of nothing else but the image of my father writhing around in pain. I decided right then and there that I would do everything in my power to NOT put myself, family, or future family through that type experience. I am driven by the image of my father lying in that hospital bed. I am also driven by each and every person I coach, teach, or train. My goal is to be the best role model I can in support of a healthy lifestyle. Whether I am working out at the gym or in a competition, I will represent what CrossFit Austin expects. That’s enough about me, but I hope you can now begin to see that fitness & wellness is much more than what we see on the surface. We all have the iceberg under the water!
So…I’ll ask again, “what drives you?” Let’s take a deeper look at one of the basic answers I mentioned earlier (weight loss?). Yes, I’m sure you want to look and feel better…but why? If you are on medication due to being overweight, I think that is pretty damn good reason to lose weight and get in shape. Who the hell wants to be told they have to take medicine for the rest of their lives in order to combat illness? I sure don’t, and I hope you feel the same. Would you like to play with your children or be active with your friends/family, but feel limited due to your weight, condition, or mobility? Let THAT feeling drive you! Have you ever been told that you’re too big or out-of-shape to do something? Let THAT feeling drive you! These are just a few examples, but I hope the light bulb is starting to turn-on about how serious motivation is.
I have news for everyone; motivation is NOT an action but rather a raw feeling. Motivation is an emotion that tells us to do one more rep as the clock is 2 seconds away from hitting zero. Motivation is a feeling triggered from the bully or wise-ass way back when. Motivation is the emotion we get as we look at our loved ones, and recognize that we will do whatever possible to be there for them. Lastly, motivation is also the feeling of failure. Yes, I said failure. To quote Arnold Schwarzenegger’s keys to life, “Don’t be afraid to fail.”
Look DEEP within yourself and find your MOTIVATION.
– Coach Mark
Re-Test
A. Complex Max
1 Power Clean +1 Thruster+1 Hang Squat Clean
*Weight Recorded
B. 15:00 AMRAP (Whole Life Challenge Re-Test)
**800/400 M Run
5 Push-ups
10 Burpees
15 Reverse Lunges (Total)
20 Air Squats
25 Butterfly Sit-ups
30 Flutter Kicks (Total)
**You will only complete one 800 m Run or 400 m Run
*Reps Recorded
“Hold yourself responsible for a higher standard than anybody expects of you. Never excuse yourself.” –Henry Ward Beecher
Every 3 minutes for as long as possible complete:
From 0:00-3:00
2 rounds of:
10 overhead squats (95 / 65 lb.)
10 chest-to-bar pull-ups
From 3:00-6:00
2 rounds of:
12 overhead squats (95 / 65 lb.)
12 chest-to-bar pull-ups
From 6:00-9:00
2 rounds of:
14 overhead squats (95 / 65 lb.)
14 chest-to-bar pull-ups
Etc., following same pattern until you fail to complete both rounds
A. 10:00 For Quality
Farmers Walk (one lap around the gym)
Bear Crawl (Rig distance)
10 Step-ups / leg (unweighted)
B. 3 Rounds
10 Walking Lunge / leg
10 SA KB PP / arm @ 16K/12K
10 Flutter Kicks
10 Burpees
*Time recorded
{The Prep} starts Monday (3.9)
Come join us!
