Check it out! Here are the movements you will see in our upcoming Night of Champions competition! Stay tuned for official workouts, weights, divisions, and standards to be released on Monday!
Cleans
Broad Jumps
Power Snatches
Burpees
Front Squats
Many times as we approach a lift we become our own worst enemy. Our minds fill with anxiety, fear of failure, and perhaps frustration as we try to accomplish the task at hand. Our intentions are good, but the inability to control our thoughts many time impedes our physical capabilities. Today, I’m going to go over a couple of “mind tricks” I’ve developed over the years to help in one of the most common scenarios we see in the gym: lifting weights.
My general rule of thumb here is the heavier the lift, the less you can think about what is happening. An example of this would be on a back squat if I’m lifting below 80% I’m going to be focusing on allot of elements of the lift.
Is my breathing sequence correct?
Am I tight through my core?
Is the weight distributed correctly in my feet?
Am I “spreading the floor” with my feet so my glutes are involved? etc.
Even in an exercise as simple as the back squat there are several moving parts and conscious effort needs to be directed to the movement to make sure things are on point. However the trick is stripping away that conscious thought as you get heavier and heavier. At 80-90% you can only focus on 2 maybe 3 elements of the lift, and once you get into the 90% to max zone you simply have to trust your training and focus all you mental effort into one thing. In our back squat example your focus should 100% be on being as aggressive as possible.
The problem is athletes, and especially novice athletes tend to approach this backwards. They go into “autopilot” and pay little attention to weights that are light and “easy” as they build to the heavier sets. Then once the bar becomes heavy enough to “notice” the athlete begins to over analyze and micro manage the movement. By the time max loads are reached fear, self doubt, and anxiety have taken over. Resulting in the athlete’s thoughts impeding their ability to reach the speeds necessary to perform a maximum load.
While our example above is a back squat this concept becomes more important the more complex a lift is. In simpler slower lifts (squats, deadlifts, etc) you can get away with more conscious thought at heavier loads, than you can in more complex faster lifts (snatch, clean & jerk). That’s why when I coach an Olympic lift my cues to my athlete become simpler the heavier the weight is. I might start with something like “stand longer, and keep you shoulders over the bar” and then move to cues like “tighter”, “more legs”, “more aggressive”, “big throw”, etc. If athletes are trying to think of multiple individual actions of the lift then they are for sure going to be moving to slow to be successful.
In closing, here are a few tips to keep your focus simple during a lift:
Night of Champions – Team Edition is an in-house member’s battle for the belt!
Are you a champion? Show us your stuff!
$50 per Team (includes registration for both team mates) Come show us how much of a champ you are!
(Only 1 registration per team – We’ll send an email to get division and partner name)
As many of you know, I tend to write about things that are more directly applicable within the walls of the gym. I write and post about this, but in individual conversations we are able to go a little further into what overall health means to me. Not just how to perform a lift properly or what you should/ should not eat. Find balance. Challenge yourself. Appreciating said challenge and attacking it with a win/win mindset can help us grow. We may not win them all, but with this mindset…even a “loss” can be viewed as a “win” if we contemplate and learn from the “loss”.
Here lately, your Coaches at CFA have been studying up on psychology and communication. We want to be able to listen and understand more effectively so that we can be more precise in communicating with you. Communicating …any and all knowledge we accumulate through continued education to make your experience here an experience of progress and growth. Physical. Mental. Emotional. Social. Growth.
The article below is something I stumbled across the other day in search of a different paper. However, I recently had a conversation with someone who had been in a rut. This hit home for me within the context of that conversation, but can be interpreted/applied by all in some form or fashion.
A couple of highlights that stood out in this article that I see/ hear reflected in people’s daily actions and responses;
This weekend, I challenge you to get outside. Be still. Be quiet and think.
What area of your life can you grow?
-Coach Tim
State your Name and/or Nickname please:
Liz
Words to live by?
“That which does not kill us, makes us stronger.” – Nietzsche
What is your fitness background?
I’ve played volleyball since I can remember. It pretty much ran my life for about 10 years all the way through college, and I loved it. After that, I dabbled in the general gym arena, but it never much caught on. I love to hike and be out doors.
How long have you been CrossFitting?
2.5 years. How time flies!
Take us back to your first day of CrossFit… How did you feel? How do you compare it to workouts today?
I don’t remember the first day as much as I do the introduction class. I started when I still lived in California, so I wasn’t at CFA yet. I remember I felt pretty confident, definitely wanted to get stronger, and slightly intimidated…okay very intimidated. Everything was going along relatively smoothly until I had to do a clean. Let’s just say the execution was….awkward. Since then, I like to think things have gotten a little less awkward – although there are moments. Once I realized the only person I was competing with was myself, I was able to get a lot more comfortable with the workouts.
What’s your favorite part of CrossFit Austin?
My favorite part of Crossfit Austin is the people. From the amazing coaching staff to the evening workout crew. They’re the best!
Current Training Goals/PRs?
Working out 5 days a week. Most of it’s done with Crossfit, but I make sure to squeeze in a run or a hike, as well. I travel a lot for work so between that and a desk job, staying active when I can is very important.
What advice do you have for folks just starting out in CrossFit?
Technique, technique, technique. If you are not comfortable with the movement, go a little lighter with the weights – even too light. There is plenty of time to build up. And listen to your body, sometimes it just says ‘no’ or ‘I’m a little slower today’. It doesn’t mean don’t go out there and give it your all, just be mindful when you do it.
What is your cheat meal go to?
Would you like the full list or should I just seem like a normal person and name one thing? Let’s go with chocolate…it’s the root of all my weaknesses anyway. 🙂
Tell us about a moment you felt most proud of yourself during a workout.
I don’t have one moment. I have a lot of moments, which is why I think Crossfit is awesome. The more you work at it the more you succeed and achieve those wins, even the little ones. It’s an amazing feeling and it’s why I keep coming back for more!
If you could create a WOD and name it for yourself, what would it be?
Tall Person WOD
500 meter row
40 wall balls
500 meter row
20 wall balls
500 meter row
10 wall balls
What are your hobbies, interests and/or talents outside of CrossFit?
I love hiking and exploring new places.
Tell us something we don’t know about you…
I have no boundaries when it comes to my animals. I share my breakfast, lunch and dinner with them. They hang out with me all day in my office. They take over the bed at night. And they come with me pretty much everywhere.
Longhorns or Aggies?
Ummmmmm baseball? SF Giants all the way.
Leave the fine folks of CrossFit Austin with some parting words…
Thank you to everyone for making CFA an amazing and fun place to sweat it out!
We will be closed on Monday, September 5th for Labor Day. Regular classes will resume on Tuesday. Enjoy your weekend!
Over the past 5 months CFA has made some changes and evolved the way we operate. One of the biggest changes that happened was that many of you were given your own personal coach. And those of you that have started with us in the last 5 months have we’re set up with a “Coach for Life” from the get go.
Maybe you realized at the time—or maybe you didn’t—but having your own personal coach is a fairly unique concept in our broader community. Talk to your friends who CrossFit at another gym in a different city, and chances are they probably don’t have a personal coach in their corner.
But have you ever thought about why we do it this way?
Why we think it’s best for you to have a consistent coach for the duration of your time with us?
I can assure you it wasn’t an arbitrary decision. We adopted this concept because we think it’s the best way to help you be successful with your long term fitness plan.
Most people who become CrossFit coaches, personal trainers, or bootcamp / spin class / yoga instructors, or even folks that have worked with us in the past do it for an average of one to three years and then they quit and move on to something else because it hard to make a living in the fitness industry.
Truth is, there are very few full-time, career fitness coaches today (let alone professional coaches). For some folks they simply get burnt out, others have other career and family obligations that supersedes their job as a coach, and some move on because they realize they can’t earn a living in the fitness industry.
For the client, this can mean many things, but the worst case scenario is a coach that isn’t invested in the clients. The best case scenario is a coach that really cares, but simply can’t sacrifice anything else to chase their passion and have to move on. Both scenarios are a net negative for the client.
We’re part of a movement called the MadLab Group that’s trying to change this. MadLab has found a way to help coaches become career coaches able to make a professional living in the fitness industry. And because of this, coaches stick around are able to offer clients more coaching security by providing you with an invested coach for life (CFL).
Our hope with the CFL concept is for you to have someone to manage your health and wellness for years to come—the same way you have a family doctor, accountant, lawyer, and maybe even hairdresser for the duration of your entire life.
This doesn’t mean you can’t work with other coaches, of course. It just means your personal CFL —the one who put you through your first day experience at our gym, who trained you during personal training, and who probably still coaches many of the classes you attend—is invested in your progress, and he or she isn’t leaving next month!
And if you ever want more personal training, or you find yourself needing to rehab from an injury at some point, or you want some diet advice, or just need someone to vent about life, you have a personal coach to turn to.
We’re well on our way, but are still working to get all of our current clients with CFLs. Regardless we are big believers that this is the path to a sustainable future for any gym that wants their clients to succeed over the long hall!
-Coach Wes
A few weeks ago Dan Pope put out a very interesting article:
“HOW TO INCREASE YOUR RISK OF INJURY BY 7000%”
I suggest everyone click on that link and read the article. The premise is simple, researchers studying elite rugby player found that performing too much exercise at any given time increases risk of injury. In this particular study they were able to quantify a threshold of volume for these rugby players that if crossed rendered them 70x or 7000% more likely to incur a non contact soft tissue injury.
While this particular studies done on rugby players isn’t a one to one correlation to what we do in the gym. It is not hard to see that the fundamental principle of this study could be applied to those of us pursuing recreational or competitive fitness goals. Now the flip side of this is the researchers also confidently stated that greater intensity and volume produced more physically and mentally prepared athletes. Or put more simply improved the chance of getting “Results” the hard work involved in training.
So what’s the answer?
How much is too much?
Where is the line that I shouldn’t cross to give me optimal results without injuries?
The answer is we don’t know, and the reality is most of us don’t need to get close to that line if we’re not professional exercisers or professional athletes. Maybe one day someone will do a study of this nature in the CrossFit world and try to quantify the optimal volume threshold for CrossFit. That said here’s my advice if you feel like you need to do more:
Focus on practice, and movement virtuosity over heaps of mindless work. A common mistake folks make when they are in the novice stage of training (typically 1-3 years) is trying to do more work instead of making the work they’re already doing better. Spending an hour or two a week perfecting your kip swing or drilling you pulling positions in the clean will trump slogging through a 60 minute workout with 100 pull-ups and 100 heavy squat cleans any day.
Match training time with purposeful recovery time. A typical training session last 60-90 minutes and for some the rest of their day revolves around sitting at a desk at work and laying on the couch at home. I always recommend you match your training time with purposeful recovery time. This could be more active recovery modes like walking, hiking, casual bike riding, swimming, stretching, and meditating. Or more passive modes like ice baths, contrast showers, massages, or soft tissue work. For most of us this means we train hard 3-5 hours a week and match that with 3-5 hours of non stressful activity. It’s also worth mentioning that good nutrition and good sleep should be the foundation of all this as it “amplifies” what you do in the gym. While poor sleep and poor eating habits limit the results of your hard work in the gym.
Those are the big ones for me. If you can do these two simple things then you’re likely safe to add some additional work volume to your weekly routine. For those that choose to train multiple times a day with no thought or purpose to recovery practices. And / or those that beat themselves down with mindless work without a sound foundation of good movement just know it’s not if but when you’ll be sidelined with an injury.
Coach Wes
CONTACT: Frontdesk@crossfitaustin.com for 3-Day discount rate
About our Expert:
CFA is proud to welcome our very own David Henderson as our Expert Series coach this month. David has honed his craft under some of the greatest gymnastics coaches in the world including 3x USA Olympic Head Coach, Kevin Mazeika, one of China’s top coaches, Xiao Yuan, 2x Olympic Champion from Ukraine, Rustam Sharipov, and current U.S. Olympic Men’s Gymnastics head coach Mark Williams. As an athlete David is a 4x NCAA National Champion (3-Team, 1-Individual) and 5-time All-American, and spent 3 years training at the OTC with the men’s national team. At the culmination of his competitive gymnastics career David spent four years as a professional acrobat as a part of the Cirque du Solei Company.
David now resides in Austin as Head Coach and Men’s Program Director at Star Center Gymnastics. David also currently travels the country teaching CrossFit specific gymnastic methods as a part of I99 Fit.
David’s concept is that he, “…teaches life lessons and principles using the tool of gymnastics.”
Dates:
Saturdays August 27th, September 3rd, and September 10th
Time:
10 am – Noon
Price:
$75 / session or $200 for all 3 sessions (limited to 12 athletes / session)
CONTACT: Frontdesk@crossfitaustin.com for 3-Day discount rate
Movement Focus:
Progressions for Muscle-ups (Strict & Kipping)
Progressions for pull-ups (Strict, Kipping, Butterfly, & Bar muscle-ups)
Handstand control and handstand walking
Core control, mobility, flexibility and body control for all gymnastics movements
Experience Level / Prerequisite :
This is an Intermediate to advanced course. Athletes should have at least a year of experience utilizing gymnastics in their training (rings, handstands, pull-ups, etc.) This is not a beginners course, athletes should have the ability to perform a minimum of 3 strict pull-ups, 3 strict dips, and 3 kipping pull-ups. If you have any question as to whether you’re prepared to take the class please contact us at info@crossfitaustin.com .
Full Bio:
David began his career in gymnastics at the age of 12, considerably late for a gymnast, yet excelled quickly to the highest ranks. Within four years he was on the National Team representing USA at the international level. He was coached by the top coaches in the world ranging from the 3x USA Olympic Head Coach, Kevin Mazeika, one of China’s top coaches, Xiao Yuan, and 2x Olympic Champion from Ukraine, Rustam Sharipov. Following his junior career, he attended the University of Oklahoma on a full- ride scholarship where he helped establish the dynastic reputation in the men’s program. He was a 4x NCAA National Champion (3-Team, 1-Individual) and 5-time All-American. Upon graduating, in 2006, with a degree in Anthropology, he then continued his competitive career at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colorado for three years. At the culmination of his competitive career he decided to move into the field of acrobatic performance.
In 2010, David joined the spectacular company, Cirque du Soleil, by completing the General Formation. Yet, prior to his actually joining a Cirque show, he performed as a Tumble Monkey in the Festival of the Lion King at Walt Disney World’s Animal Kingdom. After six months of performing in the Lion King he then went on to perform as a flyer in two shows for Cirque du Soleil. He toured throughout Europe in the show, Corteo, for one year with his family. At the end of his tour he was offered another contract to perform and tour North America in the show Totem for another year. He remains active with Cirque on special requests.
Learning much about himself and the world while in the circus, he then chose to take his family and live “off the grid” in California for four months in order to learn the principles of permaculture. He is fascinated with nature and all that this world has to offer. After trying his hand in the field (quite literally), he honored his true calling which was to be back in the gym as a gymnastics coach. Realizing that he could offer more to humanity through what he knows best, David and his family found a home in Austin, Texas, where he now resides as Head Coach and Men’s Program Director at Star Center Gymnastics. David’s concept is that he, “…teaches life lessons and principles using the tool of gymnastics.”
David was recently introduced to the CrossFit world through providing handstand clinics in the Austin-area over the past year. He now offers his expertise to people interested in enhancing their understanding and development of the gymnastic elements within CrossFit.
David Henderson lives with his wife, Kai, and three daughters, Sanoa, Gaia, and Ea and their dog, Osiris. His interests are cognitive development, philosophy, the study of the human body through Anatomy Trains and other Structural Integration practices, health and well-being, nutrition, and overall holistic living.
Happy Friday, All! I just want to give a quick shout out to Chris Williamson! This guy has been doing PT with me once a week for the last few months and he’s made huge improvements along the way. He comes in to group class 3-4 times a week and works with me 1 time a week. We’ve worked everything from mobility to technical break downs and he’s done a great job carrying our personal work over to group class. I see him doing his homework and getting great results. Kudos to you Chris for putting in the hours and making a solid commitment to your health and fitness journey.
Thanks for all your hard work and great company!
-Coach Gen
