Performance
For Time:
1 Mile Run
then,
2 Rounds:
7 Power Snatches 155/105
50 Double Unders
then,
50 Burpees

Fitness
For Time:
1 Mile Run
then,
3 Rounds:
10 Deadift 225/155
30 Double Under
then,
50 Burpees

Score load and total time.

Post time and Rx to comments.

Todd (or Scott Ian?) dumbbell bench pressing like a boss

CFSBK Classfieds and Travel Gym Recommendations

Some recent highlights…

• Amy M. is looking for a physical therapist. 
• David and Rachel run a pet care business, and want to help with your cute creatures! They offer a variety of services including boarding, walking, off-leash romps, and raw food delivery. Check out their website. 
• Matty C. visited River North Crossfit Chicago, which he recommends, and Scott visited Reebok Crossfit BCN, Barcelona Spain, and shares some interesting thoughts. 

Check it out, post your own!

Come Roller Skate with CFSBK on October 12th!

What: All-ages roller-skating, admission for the first 25 people that RSVP is compliments of CFSBK
When: Sunday, October 12, 2-4pm (Note: this is the weekend the gym is closed for the Starting Strength Seminar)
Where: the newly-opened Pier 2 Roller Rink at Brooklyn Bridge Park

Event is a go with a minimum of 10 people. Skate rental is not included. The same pier also has bocce and shuffleboard courts we could play on. Afterwards, we’ll head to 68 Jay Street Bar (where Charlie works) for some post-skating drinks. Stella Z.‘s SMART in DUMBO trivia night is also happening later that day at 7pm, in case people want to stay for that too. 

RSVP to mare [at] CrossFitSouthBrooklyn.com by Friday, October 10.  

_____________________
The Ghost Trains of America The Atlantic
5 Common Mistakes New Athletes Make CrossFit Invictus
Are We All Unique Snowflakes? Hyperallergic 
Hydration by CrossFit Endurance CrossFit

How much water do you drink everyday? How do you gauge your intake?

“Fran”

21-15-9 Reps For Time of:
Thruster 95/65
Pull Ups

Post time and Rx to comments. 
Compare to 10.2.2013 and 2.13.2013.

Coach DO and Dan go to the video for further analysis. (Or are they just Googling cat memes?)

Fight Gone Bad 2014 Reminders

• ATTENTION FIGHT GONE BAD TEAM CAPTAINS! You should have received an email yesterday inviting you to sign up for CrowdRise. Jump on it! Also, if anyone got assigned to multiple teams, email Info [at] CrossFitSouthBrooklyn.com ASAP!!! We’re also still accepting registrations for anyone that missed the boat but still wants to participate.
• We are still on the hunt for super awesome (or just awesome) donations for prizes. If you own or work at a business that wants to provide some sort of prize (no matter how small!) for our top performers (for the WOD and fundraising) please email David [at] CrossFitSouthBrooklyn.com. 

Upcoming Schedule Changes

Saturday 9/20: 11am/12pm Active Recovery CANCELLED
Sunday 9/21: 11am Active Recovery CANCELLED
Saturday 10/4: 11am/12pm Active Recovery CANCELLED

Walk for Climate Change this Sunday!

People’s Climate March is this Sunday, September 21. The March takes place two days before the UN meets to decide on key issues regarding climate change. If you are interested in participating in the March (which starts on the west side of Central Park), CFSBKer Keith F. would love if you’d join him. First, sign up here, then email him at keithrfr [at] gmail.com. 

_____________________
Everything: You’re Doing It Wrong The Atlantic
Seeing the Invisible New York Times
Artist ‘Bordalo II’ Brings Trash and Found Objects to Life on the Streets of Lisbon Colossal
Fitness Through Sports? The CrossFit Journal

Bethany’s Mother’s Day CrossFit Total 

CrossFitting While Pregnant: An Interview with Four Women and a Coach, Part 1 

By Kate Reece 

Over the last couple years, the CrossFit blogosphere has exploded with articles about pregnancy and CrossFit. Beyond the typical and legitimate concerns about what is “safe,” many women who become pregnant while CrossFitting often find themselves lost in a sea of conflicting information—not just on the Internet, but also from their doctors and other well-intentioned friends and family members with strong opinions. In the interest of caring as well for CFSBK’s community of women and parents as possible, we decided to enter the conversation from our perspective and experience, and gather as many resources as possible for anyone who is training with us and becomes pregnant. 

Our approach is simple, and acknowledges that everyone’s experience is different—and that the most important thing is listening to your body. We talked to four CFSBK members who became pregnant during their training: Bethany E., Noor A., Courtney S., and Ellie M. We also interviewed Coach Fox about CFSBK’s guidelines for training women who are pregnant (available here). 

We got such great information from these women and Coach Fox that we’ve broken the article into three parts, which we’ll post over the next three weeks. There will also be an article on ITA soon. 

CFSBK: Tell us about your training history before you became pregnant, or where your CrossFit journey intersected becoming a mom. Did you already have a child before you started CrossFitting? 

Bethany E.: When I became pregnant with my first child, Alex, I had been CrossFitting for about four years already, and was a few weeks into my second consecutive Strength Cycle with Coach Jeremy. Two years later when I became pregnant with my second son, Oscar, I was a week or two into my fourth Strength Cycle. 

Noor A.: I was CrossFitting for about three years before I became pregnant—the intensity of the workouts were a perfect antidote for the stress of law school. The game plan between my husband, Samir, and me was to make a baby while I was in school, and for me to start Coach Jeremy’s Strength Cycle while we were working on it. By the time I started Strength Cycle, there were already two or three other pregnant women who had gone through at least one eight-week cycle, so I figured it couldn’t hurt to give the “Squat Whisperer” a try.

Courtney S.: I started CrossFit in April of 2011 when I moved from San Francisco to New York.  In June of 2012 my box started, and I participated in, a competition team for those who were interested in CrossFit training at a competitive level. We trained two-plus hours a day, five days a week. I trained with the team until I moved to Brooklyn this past September.  My first child, Hannah, was born October 4, 2013.

Ellie M.: I started doing CrossFit-type workouts sometime in 2008 when I lived in Virginia with McDowell. I followed the main site programming, with everything scaled beyond recognition, but I enjoyed it, and was able to start building skills just by reading, watching videos, and winging it. I took Foundations at CFSBK when we moved to Brooklyn in August of 2011. For the past two years, I’ve focused on training and learning, participating in random local competitions, and just having fun with it.

CFSBK: What was your reaction to finding out you were pregnant in the context of your training? 

Bethany E.: Delight and an even stronger commitment to my physical health and consistent training for the duration of my pregnancy. I have non-insulin dependent diabetes, and was well aware of how carefully (i.e. medically) diabetic pregnancies are treated. I wanted to have the most low-key pregnancy possible and a natural, unmedicated delivery, and knew that training would help me achieve that. 

Noor A.: After years of trying not to get pregnant, Samir and I assumed that the minute we actually consciously tried to make a human it would happen. Not so much. To spare you the details, I was pretty psyched when I finally realized I was pregnant. I was in the middle of my second strength cycle at the time, and felt pretty good overall. More than anything, the forced abstention from alcohol and caffeine probably did me a lot of good, because if I remember correctly, I was pretty happy with my Total. 

Courtney S.: I knew that to the extent I had a healthy and low-risk pregnancy that I would continue to CrossFit throughout my pregnancies. I found out I was pregnant with Hannah two months prior to the 2013 Open. I honestly didn’t expect to get pregnant so quickly, and although I was ecstatic that it happened right away I was (secretly) a little bummed that I wouldn’t be able to help the team qualify for Regionals. I actually think I napped in the corner of the gym during the Open workouts that year. 

Ellie M.: I was so excited to be pregnant. I knew it would be a big change, and I kind of looked forward to slowing down and focusing on something different for a while. Gwen Stefani once said, “I imagine my children will save me from my vanity.” (Who knew I’d ever be quoting Gwen Stefani’s maternal wisdom?) I like this quotation, because becoming a parent means sacrificing your vanity, and women certainly experience that when they see their bodies and training change so dramatically.

CFSBK: Did you seek out resources or advice from our coaches or other coaches about how to proceed? What was some of the best or most resounding advice you received/learned about how to proceed?

Bethany E.: Because I was enrolled in Strength Cycle at the time, Coach Jeremy was the first person after my immediate family to know about both of my pregnancies! We both did our research and didn’t find a whole wealth of information on pregnancy and powerlifting specifically. There is a lot of good info on CrossFitting and pregnancy so that was a good start. We decided to just take it a session at a time and use common sense and listen to my body. The best advice I’d read was exactly that: use some common sense, protect your belly and abs from diastasis (no sit-ups!), stay cool and hydrated, and in general just listen to your body. There is a great forum on BabyCenter.com called “BBC Crossfit Moms” that I found helpful. 

Noor A.: My mother’s a doctor, and … I knew many women who were cautioned against doing anything by their doctors while pregnant. … [I was skeptical of] medical advice regarding working out and pregnancy, [so] I decided to use the more unscientific approach of asking around, checking out blogs, and listening to my own body when it came to working out. Of course, I was aware of certain changes to look out for, such as the effect of the hormones relaxing my ability to maintain proper form on my squats, or problems that could arise if I were dehydrated or overheated. I don’t consider myself to be an overly competitive person, so I wasn’t too worried about overdoing it. 

My general principle was to keep coming to the gym, to keep moving, and to do things at a pace where I felt good and stayed in proper form. The best advice I got was from other moms, who told me to make sure I could always keep up a conversation while doing any WOD, and those who taught me to adjust my stance in my squats, or in my rowing, to make room for my growing belly.

Courtney S.: Oddly enough, I was only the second member at our box, and the first who was training competitively, to become pregnant. As a result, my coaches—who were the first people to find out I was pregnant outside of my immediate family—and I did a lot of experimenting with modifications and substitutions throughout the different stages of my pregnancy. Learning to think creatively and modify workouts within the context of my pregnancy was not only fun, but allowed me to do many of the workouts up until the last weeks of my pregnancy (Barbara at 37 weeks—yup!), and also allowed me to continue to train with the team as opposed to doing totally different workouts off on my own. 

Aside from seeking advice from my coaches whenever I had a question or needed inspiration, my main focus was to simply listen to what my body was telling me felt okay on each particular day I made it to the gym. Although it sounds simple, that was the most important lesson that I learned during my pregnancy:  to listen to my body on a day-by-day, movement-by-movement basis. What felt good one day often did not feel good the next, so I would try to focus in the moment and not push too much or have too many expectations about what I should or could be doing. 

Ellie M.: I read a lot online, seeking a story like mine. I wanted to hear about another experienced CrossFitter who kept it up throughout pregnancy, and find out how it felt, how it benefitted the pregnancy, what’s possible, etc. I know that relying on the voices of the Internet can be tricky—I had to navigate my way around a wide spectrum of opinions and experiences. But basically, I knew deep down this was something I wanted to try. I never discussed CrossFit with my doctor.

The biggest challenge is all the conflicting information. You see guidelines that tell you not to go upside down or lie on your back during the second trimester, but find that those movements still feel just fine, and that your handstands are actually better than ever! Or you’ll see videos or photos of pregnant women in their third trimesters doing muscle ups. It’s hard to determine what’s safe.

The best advice I received came from CFSBKer Kristin H., who told me that from her experience training pregnant women, she learned that exercising while pregnant is a deeply personal and relative experience for each woman. We decide what is best for us and what we feel safe doing. That might seem obvious, but with a first time pregnancy, you are seeking some kind of blanket advice to help steer your actions, and the truth is, this is it. The best thing you can do is take it one day at a time, listen to your body, and put your vanity aside.

CFSBK: Coach Fox, how do you respond, as a coach, when a CFSBKer tells you she is pregnant? What resources do you point them to? 

Coach Fox: Usually a smile and a hug or high-five first. Then if I don’t know already, I’ll ask if it’s their first kid, and how they’ve been feeling. I’d explain many of the things we included in our new internal guide—explaining what to expect in the beginning, and how things change in the second and third trimester. CrossFit as a whole obviously supports women working out while they’re pregnant, but I can only speak from my experience training pregnant women and doing research. All the useful information is common sense—how does it feel? If it doesn’t feel good, don’t do it. I tell women not to ever be afraid to scale something, ask if they’re not sure, and to look at the next nine months as maintaining a level of fitness. You’re not going to be coming in and crushing workouts. 

We’ll be back next week, with Part Two!

News and Notes

• ATTENTION FIGHT GONE BAD COMPETITORS! Teams need to reply to their welcome email with the name of their team captain ASAP. Team captains will then receive a separate email with details on how to set up their fundraising page, invite their teammates, and start fundraising! Also, if anyone got assigned to multiple teams, email Info [at] CrossFitSouthBrooklyn.com ASAP!!! We’re also still accepting registrations for anyone that missed the boat but still wants to participate.
• People’s Climate March is this Sunday, September 21! The March takes place two days before the UN meets to decide on key issues regarding climate change. If you are interested in participating in the March (which starts on the west side of Central Park), CFSBKer Keith F.would love if you’d join him. First, sign up here, then email him at keithrfr [at] gmail.com. 

_____________________
The Learning Myth: Why I’ll Never Tell My Son He’s Smart Khan Academy
Pumping Iron in Cuba: Arien Chang Reveals an Underground Scene National Geographic
Introducing Brooklyn’s Threes Brewing, on 333 Douglass Street around the corner from CFSBK

Performance
For Time:
Row 250m
9 Muscle Ups
9 Push Jerks, 135/95
Row 500m
6 Muscle Ups
6 Push Jerks, 135/95
Row 750m
3 Muscle Ups
3 Push Jerks, 135/95 

Compare to 7.5.12 and 12.2.10

Fitness
For Time:
Row 250
21 Dumbbell Push Presses
21 Ring Rows
Row 500m
15 Dumbbell Push Presses
15 Ring Rows
Row 750
9 Dumbbell Push Presses
9 Ring Rows
Use a heavy-ish load on the dumbbells that you can move through in sets of at least 7 when fresh. Make the Ring rows hard. No pull up scale today.

Post time and Rx to comments.

Strength Cylers Post Total

Ever Wanted to Compete in a Strength Competition? 

Now’s your chance—and you don’t even need a singlet (but you can wear one if you want)! On Saturday, October 25th, eight gyms across the US and Canada will hold a strength lifting meet organized by Starting Strength coaches. Three attempts to establish a one-repetition maximum in the Squat, Press, and Deadlift. The competition will be both local and international. Coach Fox and others will be attending the event in Queens from 8am to 4pm, and there are still a few places left if you want to compete. Learn more here.

Each meet will have its own winners, but the results from all the meets will also be combined and the best lifters announced. Each best lifter wins a spot at a Starting Strength Seminar.

News and Notes

• We recently updated our Membership Policies (and included some advice for choosing between Fitness and Performance programming). Please review this page in case you need to make any changes to your membership!
• There’s a new post over on Coach David’s blog, Inside the Affiliate, about CFSBK’s standardized warm-ups. Geek out about body temperatures and the fragility of cold tissue!
• Lost something and want to find it? Check out the items in our recent found collection, and grab your stuff by 9/25 in the bin by the sink, or we’re going to donate it!
• Congrats to everyone who PRed their lifts this past week. We saw some awesome numbers in the comments and on the white board!  
• CFSBK’s soccer team won their first game yesterday, 4-0, with goals by Coach MeLo, DH3, Moe, and someone on the other team, forced by Murat. In Coach Noah’s illustrious words, “We are awesome.”

Calling all Food and Wine Geeks! 

Resident CFSBK sommelier, Brian S., is looking for some help pouring wine at his fundraiser, Sip for the Sea, this Thursday (9/18) at the Central Park Zoo. No experience necessary as long as you can open a bottle of wine and are over 21. Sip for the Sea is an upscale food/wine pairing event to benefit the rebuilding of the NY Aquarium in Coney Island, which is still recovering from Hurricane Sandy (can you believe it?). All the details are here.

Brian is looking for 5-8 people to help pour wine from 6pm-9pm. You will be fed and have plenty to drink! If you are interested, please send him an email at bscott [at] hesscollection.com. 

_____________________
Your Body Is Not Your Masterpiece Huffington Post
On Resetting Wellfesto
Scrabble Versus Crossword Champs: Who’s Smarter? Science of Us
Yes, The R Train Will Connect Brooklyn and Manhattan Once Again WNYC

1 Rep Max
Work up to a 1RM for the day. If you have a hard time organizing the pull from the floor, then work from the hang. Press outs are missed lifts.

Post loads to comments.
e6/6  
_____________________ 

For Time:
10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1
Power Clean 115/75
Push Ups

Post time and Rx to comments.

All the pull ups

• The Teaser class is canceled today! 

Strength Total Today at 2pm

_____________________ 
Training Dogs to Sniff Out Cancer New York Times
Werewolf Legend Bell Onnit

Fitness: 3 Rep Max or 1 Rep Max
Only more experienced lifters (3+ cycles consistently following an Linear Progression) are allowed to go for a 1RM. Start at about 5% above your 3 x 5 weight. Add about 5% to your next attempt and go from there. 
e12/12 

Performance: 90%x 1 x 5
e6/6 

Post loads to comments. 
_____________________ 

4 Rounds Not for Time:
25 Wall Balls 20/10, 14/9
25 Calories Rowed
Focus on developing a rhythm on each movement and doing the wall ball unbroken. Rest as needed between movements. If you can perform the Rx for wall balls easily unbroken, consider scaling up by using a heavier ball or a higher target. 

Kettlebell Kascade

News and Notes

• Fight Gone Bad 2014 teams have been announced! Please check your email for details. If you registered but received nothing, please email Info [at] CrossFitSouthBrooklyn.com. Fight Gone Belated emails have not been sent yet, so hold your tiny horses on that one. 
• Happy belated birthday, Alex B.! And happy birthday, Murat U.!
• Congrats to Front Desk Super Star Lindsay S. and Megan D. who participated in the GORUCK challenge to commemorate 9/11.  
• Yoga for Athletes with Coach Whitney is canceled today. Check out Active Recovery at 11am and 12pm with Coach David instead. He’ll ask you a bunch of weird questions and his cute dog Herschel might be co-coaching…
• If you signed up for Ken H.’s rings class, remember that you’re meeting today from 2-3:30pm! 

Strength Total Tomorrow at 2pm

_____________________ 
Squatting Specifics—What Technique Is Best For Your Sport? Juggernaut
The Upside of Pessimism The Atlantic

McDowell lifts MeLo up at the final Subway Series event

Do You Run or Work for a Cool Business?

We are still on the hunt for super awesome (or just awesome) donations for prizes for Fight Gone Bad 2014. If you own or work at a business that wants to provide some sort of prize (no matter how small!) for our top performers (for the WOD and fundraising) please email David [at] CrossFitSouthBrooklyn.com. 

Come Roller Skate with CFSBK on October 12th!

What: All-ages roller-skating, admission for the first 25 people that RSVP is compliments of CFSBK
When: Sunday, October 12, 2-4pm (Note: this is the weekend the gym is closed for the Starting Strength Seminar)
Where: the newly-opened Pier 2 Roller Rink at Brooklyn Bridge Park

Event is a go with a minimum of 10 people. Skate rental is not included. The same pier also has bocce and shuffleboard courts we could play on. Afterwards, we’ll head to 68 Jay Street Bar (where Charlie works) for some post-skating drinks. Stella Z.‘s SMART in DUMBO trivia night is also happening later that day at 7pm, in case people want to stay for that too. 

RSVP to mare [at] CrossFitSouthBrooklyn.com by Friday, October 10. 

_____________________ 
How to Heal Shoulder and Lumbar Spine Injuries Breaking Muscle
How Heavy is Too Heavy? Choosing Training Weights Catalyst Athletics
The Truth We Won’t Admit: Drinking Is Healthy Pacific Standard
Understanding How Grief Weakens the Body The Atlantic

Snatch 1RM
If you have trouble organizing the pull from the floor, work from the hang. 

Post loads to comments.
e6/6
_____________________ 

Fitness
AMRAP 10 Minutes:
50 Russian Kettlebell Swings
50 Burpees
50 Pull Ups

Performance
AMRAP 10 Minutes:
100 Double Unders
50 Burpees
30 Muscle Ups

Post time and Rx to comments.

Austen I., ready for anything, with some great advice for your Thursday

News and Notes 

• Yoga for Athetes is canceled tonight (9/11) and Saturday (9/13).
• Happy birthday, Henry O.!

Throwback Thursday

To get your creative vibes rolling, these were the team names for Fight Gone Bad in 2010:

Charmelicious Crew
Mr. Scott and the Astafarians
Fight Gone Bad Club
SBK MisFits
X-Men
The Sixy Beasts
CrossFit Kids Gone Bad
The Leftovers
La Lucha Dolorosa
Tyrannosaurus Rx’d
D.F.L.
Conn Men
Heedless of the Consequences 

Also, Erica N. painted her nails in a particularly spirited way for the event. 

We still need donations for prizes for this year’s Fight Gone Bad. If you own or work at a business that wants to provide some sort of prize (no matter how small!) for our top performers (for the WOD and fundraising) please email David [at] CrossFitSouthBrooklyn.com. 

_____________________  
Drink Soda? Take 12,000 Steps New York Times
The United Sweets of America Slate
The Ballsiest Lifter in History… and You Catalyst Athletics
9 Ridiculously Cute Underwater Puppies (You’re Welcome) NPR

Fitness: 3 x 5 Linear Progression
Add 5 pounds to last exposure. 
BSQ e11/12 

Performance: 1 x 20
Add 5-15 pounds to last exposure. Use spotters.
BSQ e6/6 

Post loads to comments.
_____________________

4 Rounds, As Many Reps As Possible:
1 Minute Kettlebell Sumo Deadlift High Pull 72/53/35
1 Minute Box Jumps 20/16
1 Minute Push Presses 75/55/35
1 Minute Rest

Post reps and Rx to comments.

Katie… holds a barbell. We just think this is a nice picture.

Are You a Strong Woman Who Wants to Flex on the Beach?

Two pretty cool dudes, Alan L. and Mike F., are looking for a girl to compete in the Flex on the Beach this Saturday, Sept. 13th. If you can Rx the WODs and want to have a shit ton of fun, email Mike ASAP at mfiore319 [at] gmail.com. 

Learn More About the Park Slope Babysitting Coop

CFSBK parents, are you looking for affordable and convenient babysitting? A way to get to to know other CFSBK/Park Slope families? The Park Slope Babysitting Coop—currently headed by CFSBK’s own Coach Nick (president) and Erica N. (secretary)—allows parents to trade babysitting shifts with each other, and is currently recruiting! The fall meeting will be held at CFSBK on October 5th at 3:30pm-5:30pm. If you are interested in joining or just want to learn more, please plan on attending! 

About the Park Slope Babysitting Coop 
The Park Slope Babysitting Coop is a convenient way to trade babysitting time with your neighbors! Babysit others’ children to earn points, and trade those points in when you need a night off. You have complete control over who you sit for and who sits for you. Scheduling and point management are handled though an easy-to-use website.

Best of all, trading babysitting is affordable. Annual coop dues ($10) pay for managing the website, and there are no additional costs for trading babysitting hours.

The Park Slope Babysitting Coop meets quarterly to ensure that all participants have a chance to get to know their potential sitters and children. Attendance at a meeting prior to joining is mandatory. If you are interested in joining, please plan to attend the summer meeting at CFSBK, October 5th, 3:30pm-5:30pm! RSVPing is appreciated, but not required.

Contact Erica N. with any questions and to RSVP: erica.nofi [at] gmail.com

QOD: When you were in grade school, what did you want to be when you grew up? What do you do now?

_____________________
What I Find Myself Doing When I Watch CrossFit Videos
A Sure Sign of True Love at the Box
See the Irony?
What Do You Look Like When You Swing a Kettlebell?

Good rack mates are engaged with each other and provide feedback when they can

Failing, Bailing, and Training Culture at CFSBK 

The original version of this article appeared on Inside the Affiliate.

At CFSBK, we discourage members from failing slow lifts—squats, presses, and deadlifts—on a regular basis. Of course, failing is an inevitable part of training for experienced CrossFitters, since we want to push our limits and really discern our capacity. But the key is that it’s inevitable for experienced CrossFitters. We particularly encourage new members at CFSBK not to hit failure on their lifts for at least four to six months of consistent training, since they don’t have a solid enough foundation to be working with training maxes. We believe that how we approach hitting failure on lifts strongly correlates to our gym’s culture, safety, and training appropriateness. 

How we handle and teach failing is related directly to the intentionality of our programming and our overall culture of how to train well. For more information about CFSBK’s programming, check out previous ITA articles “Effective Programming Strategies at CrossFit Affiliates” and “The Benefits of Leveled Programming,” which address how we program and offer our members different options based on training age and goals. In this article, I want to focus more on how failing should happen only within certain programming contexts.  

Training Versus Testing, and Its Impact on Gym Culture
Failing lifts too often can be seriously taxing on the central nervous system and frustrating for athletes—in addition, it adds psychological stress and creates negative expectations when approaching lifts. To prevent it from occurring too often and to gain control over teaching our athletes to fail well, CFSBK works testing our lifts into our programming macro cycles. For more experienced members, testing new rep maxes at the end of our cycles is an acceptable and inevitable part of serious training. But every day is not a limit test and we don’t want anyone maxing out to failure with any regularity. Our day-in, day-out workouts should be considered training, and an opportunity to go a little bit heavier or hit prescribed percentages without reaching absolute limits.   

Teaching the difference between training and testing significantly impacts the culture of a gym, since training intelligently enables athletes to learn when to push through a difficulty instead of giving up. If an athlete is trained to think, “Okay, when things get hard, I’ve got an easy escape route in bailing,” they learn to give up more often and expect missed reps to be a regular part of their training routine. Missed reps should be meaningful as an indicator of one’s current capacity, not simply the norm. When missing reps and failing become the norm, the experience can subtly undermine an athlete’s self-expectations and the mindset with which they approach their lifts. 

We teach our advanced members to respect heavy weight, and teach that when it comes time to work, you should grind. Of course it should feel difficult and it should feel heavy! You should expect to fight for lifts! But just like in real life, you don’t start fights you don’t think you can win—especially on a regular basis. A skilled athlete doesn’t need to constantly miss reps to know their potential on any given day. A mark of real skill and intelligence in training involves developing an innate sense of one’s capabilities, and knowing when to call it quits. Missed lifts should be considered learning experiences for an athlete’s physical capacity, psychological outlook, and technique, and they always should be put into the broader context of the intended training stimulus for that specific day. 

Why Novice Lifters Should Avoid Failing Lifts
Having novice lifters attempt rep maxes on their lifts is both dangerous, inappropriate, and an ineffective use of training time. All our new members should start out with weights that feel “too light” and then gradually add weight on a weekly basis and as your technique warrants (better technique equals more weight). Over time, you’ll develop the requisite motor patterns, soft tissue integrity, and experience to handle heavier weights and test your limits. But before that, the proper foundation needs to be established. Remember, literally anything will “work” if you haven’t been training. You could squat on Day One, take a Zumba class on Day Two, run five miles on Day Three—and then a week later, test your squat and see some improvement. So the key is optimizing your novice training stage in a way that sets yourself up for long-term success. 

Long-term success happens through progressive overload and good coaching. As coaches, we want to provide you with the appropriate stimulus for your strength and experience, and most novice athletes have a pretty low baseline for what’s required to stimulate an adaptation. Having someone walk off the street and attempt a 1RM deadlift is well in excess of what they need to produce a meaningful adaptation. If you have no deadlifting experience and sit behind a desk all day, why not work up to 75lbs (which may feel “light” to you) for a set of five and focus on being perfect at the movement? The next time you come in, you can try 85lbs, and so on and so forth until you’re gradually moving some significant weight with the confidence, experience, and consistent form that you need to get stronger.    

An overarching goal of our programming is to teach you how to train responsibly with longevity in mind, so you learn how to slowly approach gaining strength and competence with the required lifts. That’s why we start you slow and let you know that just because you could go a little heavier today doesn’t mean it’s optimal for you. If you focus on going a little heavier each week, you keep pushing the ceiling of your potential a little bit higher—instead of slamming into that ceiling and having nowhere to go but back down. When we see you missing reps out of the programming context, we’ll probably pull you back and have a conversation about training versus testing. 

How to Fail Well 
Proper spotting and bailing techniques need to be taught and initially supervised—the same as anything else at CFSBK—so that when it comes time to test training, you are prepared and safe. Spotting technique for the back squat and bench press can be found in Mark Rippetoe’s Starting Strength: Basic Barbell Training (Third Edition), pages 62-64 and 172-172 respectively, if you’re curious. All other lifts require teaching proper bailing technique through demonstration and practice at sub-maximal weights. If people are going to potentially miss reps, it’s important that the area is clear of loose plates and other athletes that could make a good bail go bad. 

Conclusion
At CFSBK, we seek to address your needs at the various stages of your development—so listen when a coach tells you to temper your loads to be safe, and also when you might need to put more weight on the bar to get better.

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