Workout of the Day

ASSISTANCE

A1: DB Z Press
4×8-12

A2: SA Bench Supported DB Row
4×8-12

B1: Seated Lateral Raises
3×8-12

B2: Biceps Hammer Curls
3×8-12

Notes
Superset the Z Presses and Rows before transitioning directly into the lateral raises and curls. Each set should feel progressively more challenging. If your arms are still a bit blown up from Murph just go easy today on these. If your biceps have a lot of localized DOMs skip the hammer curls.

METCON

5 Rounds For Time:
16 WTD Step-Ups (alternating)
8e SA DB Push Press
16 Sit-Ups

Notes
If you’re still working out that Murph soreness consider just going bodyweight on the step-Ups. Use the Same DB for your step-ups as your DB Push Presses.

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CrossFit Group Class Programming Template (WK12/12)

Elad forgot his weighted vest at home so decided to just carry this dog around through Murph

Thank you to everyone who donated to K9’s for Warriors!! We raised over $2,000 this week!!!

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CrossFit Health Book Club Book for June: Misguided Medicine

Workout of the Day

METCON

E2MOM X 15 Sets
1 Deadlift
30 Double Unders

Notes
This is a redo from 4.18.22′s programming. If you’re feeling good go heavy. If you’re still recovering from murph use a medium light weight and consider reducing the double under volume or doing singles. Just flow through the workout at steady pace.

In 30 minutes you’ll work up through 15 sets performing 1 Deadlift and 30 Double Unders every other minute. Your work intervals should take you between :25-:40.
For the deadlift, try to build in weight such that you make about 5-8 weight changes through the EMOM. Think of today’s workout as a deadlift strength endurance piece. Advanced athletes should not plan on PRing today.
For the Double Unders, 30×15 = 450 total reps. Challenge yourself to see how many sets you can perform unbroken today
For Single Unders, perform AMRAP until the first minute expires.

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CrossFit Group Class Programming Template (WK12/12)

Michelle and Chris welcomed Fiona Mae Dent into the world on Sunday, May 29th. Doing Murph seemed too easy so Michelle decided to give birth instead. Congrats to the happy family!!

Did you forget to donate to K9s for Warriors?

You may have gotten swept up in the workout and BBQ and forgotten to throw a little support to this great organization.
Determined to end veteran suicide, K9s For Warriors provides highly-trained Service Dogs to military veterans suffering from PTSD, traumatic brain injury and/or military sexual trauma. With the majority of dogs coming from high-kill rescue shelters, this innovative program allows the K9/Warrior team to build an unwavering bond that facilitates their collective healing and recovery.

DONATE TO THE CFSBK’S K9S FOR WARRIORS FUND HERE

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Feeling Biceps Pain After a Workout? Can’t Straighten Your Arm? Here’s Why

Workout of the Day

ASSISTANCE

4 Sets of:
15-25 Crossover Symmetry Face Pulls
:30e Static SA KB Suitcase Hold

METCON

I did Murph!

EMOM 20:00
A: :40 Row Calories
B: :40 SA OH Walk (L)
C: :40 SA OH Walk (R)
B: :40 Bike

I did not do Murph!

EMOM 20:00
A: :40 Row Calories (AMRAP)
B: :40 SA OH Walk (L)
C: :40 SA OH Walk (R)
B: :40 8 Squats + 4 Push-Ups (AMRAP)

Notes
Choose a workout depending on whether or not you performed Murph yesterday. If you did, perform the first version staying at a steady aerobic pace to flush yourself out. If you didn’t, do the latter and you can lean into the intensity a little more.

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CrossFit Group Class Programming Template (WK12/12)

Check out our 2022 Murph Album! Scroll through or click into flickr to see all the pics from yesterday’s event

Thank you to everyone who participated in Murph 2022!

Yesterday was an amazing day with a ton of that classic CFSBK spirit. Huge thanks to everyone who either performed the workout, helped out with logistics, coached, came to cheer people on and brought food!

How to Recover from Murph

You will likely need a few days to fully recover from Murph. Here are two major things you should focus on this week.

Move
Motion is lotion! You’ll accelerate your recovery process with some gentle movement. Walk, bike, row, stretch. The more sore you are the less intensity you’ll need. This week should feel like a “deload” week where you decrease training intensity and focus on recovery. If you’ve been playing along we recently tested three lifts after a long 11 weeks of training then hit one of the hardest CrossFit workouts out there. Don’t worry about the clock or your numbers this week. If you take class just move through the motions so you walk out feeling better than you walked in. Given the volume in Murph we also recommend multiple daily mini stretch sessions on your elbows, shoulders and quads. If your elbows seem more bent than usual, work though some biceps and pec stretches. You can also find a bunch of post Murph recovery flow sessions on youtube you can do at home, like this one!

Hydrate
Monday was hot and you lost a lot of sweat in the process. Hopefully you heeded.. hed.. took heed of our advice and hydrated Sunday and Monday but keep it up and drink 3-4 liters of water today and.. well ideally forever but especially now. This goes doubly for anyone who had a few beers or went out for post Murph drinks after the event yesterday. Adequate water intake will help flush out the metabolites accumulated in training and increase cellular function and recovery.

Workout of the Day

“MURPH”

For time:
1 mile Run
100 Pull-ups
200 Push-ups
300 Squats
1 mile Run

Notes
Over 130 CFSBKers will take on our 15th annual Memorial Day Murph event benefiting K9s for Warriors. We will review some scaling options but try to perform a version that will challenge you and take you about 45-60 minutes. Check out yesterday’s post and the copy below for some ideas.

At your heat start time your coach will review the workout details, answer any questions and set you off. That means you need to DIY your warm-up and movement prep. Head over to the gym early to do what you need to in order to get your body ready for the workout.

Partition the pull-ups, push-ups, and squats as needed. Start and finish with a mile run. If you’ve got a twenty or fourteen pound vest, wear it! (weighted vests at the gym are very limited)

Cool Down

Enjoy some grilled goodness and drinks while you cheer on your fellow CFSBKers! We’ll start grilling around 9/930am and be running it till we run out of food or 1pm, whichever comes first! Feel free to bring any sides or exotic meats (dinosaur anyone?) if you’d like. We’ve also got some beer in house as well as seltzer and water but BYOB is welcome too.

MICHAEL MURPHY, MEMORIAL DAY & K9S FOR WARRIORS

This workout is dedicated to United States Navy Lieutenant Michael Murphy who perished in 2005 during combat in Afghanistan. Michael Murphy was posthumously awarded the medal of honor and purple heart for his service. He was also CrossFitter who created this workout which he originally called “Body Armor” because he would perform it with his body armor vest that would be worn during deployment. This workout was later renamed “Murph” in his honor and is performed all over the country and beyond on Memorial Day. With this workout, we not only come together for a good cause and personal challenge, but to also reflect on the human cost of war and commemorate on those who have lost their lives in the armed services.

Each year we offer this workout for free to all our members and ask that they instead make a donation to K9s for Warriors, a non profit organization that trains and provides service animals for veterans suffering from PTSD. We’re using the same link as last year to increase the gym’s collective fundraising for this great organization.

Donate to the CFSBK’s K9s for Warriors fund here

MURPH OPTIONS

People often understandably get some “sticker shock” when they see what Murph actually entails:

For Time
Run 1 Mile
100 Pull-ups
200 Push-Ups
300 Squats
Run 1 Mile

If you have a weighted vest, wear it.

But as everything with CrossFit, this workout can be modified for anyone’s abilities. Modifications can be broken down into three categories.

Volume Modifications
This simply means decreasing the total number of reps or the distance on the run. A common sub would be to do 3/4 of the volume on the calisthenics or 2/3 distance on each of the mile runs. You can decrease volume across the board, or only on the movements that you struggle most with.

Movement Modifications
If any movement is outside of your ability to perform, even with decreased volume we can easily modify the exercise. Push-Ups can be taken from the knees or elevated, pull-ups can be ring rows or banded and the run can be subbed for a row if needed as well.

Sequence Modifications
Finally, perhaps it’s just the muscular stamina that will catch up to you. For example if Push-Ups are the hardest part of this workout, you can perform 20 rounds of:5 Push-Ups, 5 Pull-Ups, 5 Push-Ups, 15 squats to break up the push-ups into two sets of five.

Here is an example of a version that uses all three modifications in different ways. This person can perform the runs and squats but requires some modifications on the upper body exercises. They’re also not sure about the 20 rounds so are going to plan for no less than 15 and if they’re up for it, maybe make a game time decision to add the last five rounds.

Run 1 Mile
15 Rounds of:
5 Knee Push-Ups
5 Ring Rows
5 Knee Push-Ups
15 Squats
Run 1 Mile

We will provide some standard options and also happy to discuss what makes sense for YOU in these final few weeks leading up to Murph. For most people this workout takes somewhere around 45-60 minutes to complete and is what you should aim for. The goal is to find a version that will CHALLENGE you to finish, but at the same time be realistic and achievable within that time frame. Happy Murphing!!

Workout of the Day

METCON

35 Minutes for Quality:
Sandbag Carry 270m

3 Rounds:
15 Sit-Ups
30 Double Unders

KB Farmer’s Carry 130m

500m Row, 1000m Erg Bike or 400m Ski Erg

Notes
Move through today’s workout at a steady and sustainable pace. It should feel like GOFGW (good old fashioned grunt work!)

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CrossFit Group Class Programming Template (WK11/12)

Corey and Rachel at our TYR pop up shop yesterday. Thanks to everyone who picked up some summer swag!

11th Hour Murph Tips!

1. Know your plan
Are you doing full Murph? Partial? Partitioned? Make sure to have some idea of what you plan on doing prior to getting to the gym. Your coach can give you any last minute advice but have an idea of what you want to do. Additionally, don’t be afraid to change your plan if things are going either sideways or better than expected mid workout. For example, if you planned on only doing 1/2 the volume but you’re getting near the end and have the steam to keep going, go for 3/4 or even full Murph. Strike while the iron is hot!

2. Come in early to Warm-Up
At the start of each heat, your coach will guide you through the overview of the workout, answer any last minute questions then set you off. We will not perform a led warm-up prior to each heat. With that in mind, show up 10-15+ minutes prior to your heat to get your body ready for the workout. Not sure what to do? 3-5+ minutes on a bike/erg followed by some hip openers then prep your shoulders with some hanging shoulder shrugs, ring rows, low volume push-ups etc. You want to feel like you’ve got a light sweat and your shoulders, hips and ankles feel ready to go.

3. Sleep, nutrition and Hydration
Murph is no slouch of a workout. Make sure your body is primed for the event by taking the following steps:
No Alcohol on Sunday. If you drink, save it for post workout beers and burgers at the gym.
Get at least 8 hours of sleep the night before
Use Sunday for any last minute body prep/work. Stretch out, go for a walk, hit whatever areas need some pre Murph TLC.
Hydrate on Sunday by drinking 3-4 liters of water through the day and aim for something similar on Monday. You may even want to supplement with an electrolyte mix in your drink on Monday. This will help replenish what you sweat out.
Eat a well balanced meal about 45 minutes prior to your workout. Nothing too heavy or outside of how your normally eat pre-workout.

Workout of the Day

METCON

“DT”

Five rounds for time of:
Deadlift, 12 reps
Hang power clean, 9 reps
Push jerk, 6 reps

Notes
Competition loads for DT are 155/105. The limiting factor for many people will be the push jerk, so choose a weight that will challenge you but such that you can perform most of the push jerk sets unbroken or at most in 2 sets.

Annie Thorisdottir performs DT in 8:27 with a 155lb Barbell

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CrossFit Group Class Programming Template (WK11/12)

Zelda is wondering if you’re ready for Murph…

TYR POP UP SHOP @ CFSBK TODAY!

This Saturday everyone who preordered the CFSBK x TYR shirt and hoodie will be able to pick them up at the gym. On top of that, TYR will be on site with sports bras, shorts, leggings, tanks, mens shorts, men’s tanks, mens tops, sunglasses, bags, hats, and shakers ALL AT 25% OFF RETAIL PRICE!!! CFSBK members will be the first group of folks to see some of these new merch drops for the season and can save some significant scratch on their summer threads!!! Be there or be square!

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Is This $6,500,000 Brooklyn Townhouse Worth It? | NYC APARTMENT TOUR

Workout of the Day

STRENGTH

A1: Bench Supported SA Bent Over Row
3x10e

A2: FFE Reverse Lunge
3x10e

Notes
Perform three progressively heavier sets on the two exercises. The Lunges should have a roughly 4″ Elevation.

METCON

3 Rounds for time of:
Run 400m
21 Box Jumps
12 Kipping Toes to Bars

Notes
Is this Helen’s step-sister??

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CrossFit Group Class Programming Template (WK11/12)

Throwback to this awesome shot of The Empress of Freedom popping and locking after a great class 

TYR at CFSBK Tomorrow!!!

Everyone who preordered the CFSBK x TYR shirt and hoodie will be able to pick them up at the gym tomorrow. On top of that, TYR will be on site with sports bras, shorts, leggings, tanks, mens shorts, men’s tanks, mens tops, sunglasses, bags, hats, and shakers ALL AT 25% OFF RETAIL PRICE!!! CFSBK members will be the first group of folks to see some of these new merch drops for the season and can save some significant scratch on their summer threads!!! Be there or be square!

Wim Hof Method Workshop this Sunday @ CFSBK

Put yourself in the expert hands of a certified WHM Instructor to learn the 3 pillars of the Wim Hof Method: Breathing Technique, Cold Exposure & Commitment.

Find out how you can utilize oxygen and cold exposure to optimize body & mind, and learn about the underlying physiology. The intimate quality allows for ample personal attention, and feedback tailored to your specific situation. Whether you are looking to improve mental or physical performance, relieve symptoms related to an illness, or are just curious to find out what the Wim Hof Method is all about— a WHM workshop offers something for everyone.

Learn more and sign up here.
use promo code CFSBK to get 20% off!

Workout of the Day

STRENGTH

Bench Press
1-1-1-1-1

Notes
Work up to a heavy single today! Talk to your coaches about what your goal weight is and they can help you with a plan of attack. Make sure to REST at least 2.5-3 minutes between your attempts. Use the warm-up and attempt progressions from Tuesday and Wednesday’s blog post as guidance for your lifts today.

METCON

EMOM 14:00
A: Air Bike
B: Burpees

Notes
Alternate between the air bike and burpees for 14:00. Try to find challenging calorie and rep ranges you can sustain for the whole workout. Whatever you do should take no more than :45 each interval and feel sustainable.

ASSISTANCE

REGISTER FOR MEMORIAL DAY MURPH

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CrossFit Group Class Programming Template (WK11/12)

Elijah doing some assistance work to target the demands of sitting at a table.

Grant is going to be running both miles with EVERY HEAT OF MURPH THIS MONDAY

I’m (Grant) doing a running calendar challenge this month to rebuild some aerobic fitness after having Covid in early April.  In this challenge, I’m running whatever the date is, in KM.  So on the first, I ran 1km.  On the fifth, I ran 5km.  On the 20th, I ran 20km.  For the month, that equals 496km, or 307 miles, which isn’t a lot for Azam, but it’ll be a personal record for me.

On the 30th, which is Memorial Day, I plan on running both miles in every heat of Murph.  I have to run 18.6 miles (30km) that day, so after the first 8 heats I’ll have 16 miles.  I then plan on doing Murph in the last heat of the day, and I should finish +/- 18 miles, 100 pull-ups, 200 push-ups, and 300 air squats.  I don’t plan on running particularly quick, as I’ve been taking it pretty easy with this challenge thus far.  If anyone wants to do some extra jogging throughout the day, I’d love the company, and if anyone wants to get some extra miles in over the rest of the month, feel free to hit me up at the Front Desk!

Workout of the Day

STRENGTH

Back Squat
1-1-1-1-1

Notes
Work up to a heavy single today! Talk to your coaches about what your goal weight is and they can help you with a plan of attack. Make sure to REST at least 2.5-3 minutes between your attempts. Here are three examples for today:

Goal of 225×1
45×10
135×3
175×2
195×1 (last WU)
205×1 (safe single)
215×1 (challenging but safe single)
225×1
230F
Opted out of 5th Set

Goal of 350×1
45×10
135×3
185×2
225×1
275×1 Last WU
300×1
330×1
350F
340×1
Opted out 5th set

Goal of 100×1
35×8
50×3
60×1
70×1 Last WU
85×1
100×1
105×1
110×1
115×1!

PARTNER METCON

AMRAP 12:00
12 Wall Ball Shots
6 Kipping Pull-Ups

Notes
Partners alternate complete rounds for 12 minutes. DO NOT TEAR YOUR HANDS.

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CrossFit Group Class Programming Template (WK11/12)

Halle K dropping into OG to drop slang some weights around

TYR Merch Pick-Up and Sales Event This Saturday!

This Saturday everyone who preordered the CFSBK x TYR shirt and hoodie will be able to pick them up at the gym. On top of that, TYR will be on site with sports bras, shorts, leggings, tanks, mens shorts, men’s tanks, mens tops, sunglasses, bags, hats, and shakers ALL AT 25% OFF RETAIL PRICE!!! CFSBK members will be the first group of folks to see some of these new merch drops for the season and can save some significant scratch on their summer threads!!! Be there or be square!

Workout of the Day

STRENGTH

Shoulder Press
1-1-1-1-1

Notes
Work up to a heavy single today! Talk to your coaches about what your goal weight is and they can help you with a plan of attack. Make sure to REST at least 2.5-3 minutes between your attempts. Here are two examples for today:

Goal of 135×1
45×10
75×5
95×2
105×1 (last WU)
115×1 (safe single)
125×1 (challenging but safe single)
135×1
140×1
145F

Goal of 75×1
25×10 (green bar + fractionals)
35×3
45×3
55×1 Last Warm-Up
65×1 (safe single)
70×1 (challenging but safe single)
75×1
80F
78F

METCON

AMRAP 5:00
1-2-3-4-5-6… Reps of:
Hang Power Clean
Shoulder to Overhead

Notes
Perform 1 HPC, followed by 1 S2OH. Then 2 and 2, 3 and 3 etc for 5 minutes. Choose a medium heavy weight (115/95/75/45/-)

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CrossFit Group Class Programming Template (WK11/12)

The Passing of Dr. Mike

It is with a very heavy heart that we announce the passing of longtime CFSBK member, Dr. Mike Cutaia. Dr. Mike and his wife Judy started personal training with David back in 2012 and quickly became staples of the community. Every time Mike walked through our doors he did so with enthusiasm, humility, curiosity and a relentless desire to improve. As an older athlete and someone who had persevered through many health struggles in the past, his athletic training became somewhat of a second lease on life. He was a relentless advocate for the power of exercise and community and praised CrossFit to anyone who would listen. He even completed our coaching development program with the intention of helping out with the Fit55 program and obtained his CrossFit level 1 at the site of the original CrossFit Games. Professionally, he served as a physician of pulmonary critical care for over 30 years at the VA here in Brooklyn and touched countless lives in his career as a physician as well as a mentor to his medical residents. In his personal life he was a devoted husband, father and grandfather. Dr. Mike was a kind soul with a deep love of life and passion for learning about the human condition. He was always quick to muse about philosophy, poetry, art, sport and their respective intersections. He loved meeting people and his kindness and warmth were immediately evident to all who were lucky enough to interact with him. We loved him deeply and will miss him.

Read Dr. Mike’s Athlete of the Month Interview from September 2013

A shot of Dr. Mike from the Physicians only CrossFit Level 1 in 2018 hosted at the Ranch in Aromas, California.

A collection of Poems written by Dr. Mike inspired by his time at the gym

Mayhem

MAKE A JOYFUL NOISE UNTO THE LORD

Meatballs and Back Squats

The Reluctant Athlete