Workout of the Day

12 Rounds for time:
130m Run
6 Kipping Pull-Ups
18 Air Squats or 12-18 Anchored Sit-Ups

Rest 1:00

If you have a weighted vest, wear it! (probably won’t work with the sit-ups)

Notes
This works out to 72 Pull-Ups, and 216 Squats/Sit-Ups which is roughly 75% of the volume in Murph. We have back squats tomorrow, so if you’re coming we recommend you perform today’s workout with sit-ups.

KPU: 3 BMU / 6 CTB / 6 Kipping / 3-6 strict or banded / 6 ring rows

Each round should take around a minute or less to complete but no more than 90 seconds.

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CrossFit Group Class Programming Template (WK3/9)

Matt M taking 185 for a ride during Saturday’s Front Squat, Box Jump Row workout

Opportunities

Today’s workout contains 2 “simple” calisthenic movements. The full version which is posted above contains 288 repetitions in total.  That’s 288 opportunities to ingrain and develop the motor skills and strength required to successfully perform these seemingly simple movements.  Will your first push-up look like your 96th?  Will your 144th air squat include planted heels, full depth and a neutral spinal position?  Range of motion is only one component of functional movement.  When you initiate a movement, what happens between the start and finish dictate the adaptation you’re pursuing.  Soft technique builds soft athletes.  Lazy attention to details builds laziness inside and outside the gym. Virtuosity is defined in Gymnastics as “performing the common uncommonly well”.  Will you settle for mediocrity today, or will you pursue virtuosity? No opportunity is too small!

Workout of the Day

5 Rounds for load and reps of:

Minutes 0-3:
10 Bench Presses

Minutes 3-6:
AMRAP 3:00
15 Kettlebell Swings
15/10 Cals Air Bike

Notes
Every three minutes alternate between the bench press and the AMRAP until you’ve completed 5 rounds of each movement. The bench press should be performed in 1-3 sets each round and the weight can stay static or go up as long as you don’t fail any reps. Try to go a little heavier on the Kettlebell swings to balance out the bike effort.

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CrossFit Group Class Programming Template (WK3/9)

MAY MEMBER OF THE MONTH: MIKEY BOGESE

Over the years we’ve been bringing our devoted blog readers new installments of our Member of the Month series in which we talk to our shining star athletes. We’re excited to announce that the series is back and we’re kicking it off with – insert drum roll – Mikey Bogese! Mikey has been a presence at CFSBK since their first day walking through our door. If you’ve had the chance to partner up or work out alongside Mikey, shoutout to 8am class!, I bet you’ve been happy for it. Whether through encouragement shouted or flashing a big joyful smile, even when a million burpees are programmed, he’s excellent company to be around. We’re so proud to have him as part of our community and hope you enjoy getting to know more about Mikey as much as we did.

Name (and any nicknames)
Mikey (IRL) or Kalganeth (in World of Warcraft)

Where were you born, and where did you grow up?
I was born in and grew up in central Virginia! Mostly Richmond. After high school I’ve been taking a tour of the northeast – New Haven, Boston, and now Brooklyn.

How long have you been CrossFitting, and how did you arrive at CFSBK?
I on-ramped in January 2016 at CrossFit New Haven (Now District Athletic Club). Life took me to Boston in 2018 where I joined CrossFit on the Hill, then I joined CFSBK in December 2020 after an amazing and intimate drop-in with Coach Whitney and 7 AM mainstay Steven Norton <3. Couldn’t say no to Coach Whit’s precise pointers and the warm welcome I got from Steven and JB 🙂

Program your nightmare workout:
4 Rounds for Time:
5 Tall Box Jumps
10 Goblet Squats
15 Thrusters
20 Wall Balls

Program your dream workout:
AMRAP 20:00
400 M Run
40′ Bear Crawl
8 T2B
6 Burpees

Favorite and least favorite lift?
Favorite: Deadlifts, Least Favorite: Thrusters or Back Squats

Ask me about that time I….
Studied captive dingoes in Australia, or when completed my master’s research with the help of many CFSBK dogs and their companions!

What are you recommending right now?
Massage Therapy at CFSBK with Leah, bright silver jewelry, baked potatoes, and the new Zelda game on Switch.

What are you up to when you’re not at 597 (or 608) Degraw Street?
Playing video games (PC, Switch), attending to my cat (Doodle), and doing psychology research. Also getting my friends to play my Pokémon board games and fight in my LARP battles.

Any advice for new CFSBKers?
Have some grace with yourself as you learn movements and calibrate your effort, it will make CrossFit so much more sustainable and rewarding long-term. I remember wanting results immediately when I started, but I’ve found the magic is in consistent attendance and patiently taking time to work on form.

We couldnt have said it better ourselves! Congrats to Kalga.. we mean Mikey on being our May Member of the Month. Please give them a high five next time you see them at the gym!

Workout of the Day

STRENGTH

High Hang Muscle Snatch
+
High Hang Power Snatch
+
OHS

Notes
Go light on weight and use it more as a technique and position day than anything else. If you didnt practice bailing last week OR you just want more practice, work in some intentional front and back bails. Complete the OHS then initiate another rep and let the bar go forward or back to practice bailing around parallel or lower. Make sure the people around you know that you’re going to bail.

ASSISTANCE

3 Rounds for Quality of:
10 Barbell Roll Outs
100 Double Unders
75m Mixed Rack Carry

Notes
RO: Hold tension and try to challenge how many you can perform unbroken. If 10 is easy increase the reps by 5.
DU: 100/75/50 or 2:00 Double Under Practice
MRC: Hold one lighter kettlebell in the front rack and another heavier KB or DB at the hang. Walk to 3rd ave, switch arms and return.

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CrossFit Group Class Programming Template (WK2/9)

Part 2 of annual staff CPR/AED/First Aid training

Workout of the Day

Five 3-minute rounds of:
10 front squats
10 box jumps
Row for max calories.

Rest 3 minutes between rounds.

Notes
125-lb front squat, 30-in box
185-lb front squat, 36-in box

Listed above are the Rx’s provided by CrossFit.com for this workout and they are no joke! The front squats will be taken off the floor and you should get through most if not all sets unbroken (no more than 2 sets). Make sure to be breathing while you squat.
The box jumps should be higher than you normally go but at a height you KNOW you can hit for 50 reps.

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CrossFit Group Class Programming Template (WK2/9)

Ben running hard on a beautiful day on Degraw street.

Today’s Workout Demo at CrossFit 720

Workout of the Day

FLOATER STRENGTH

A: Shoulder Press
Heavy 5

B: Back Squat
L2: 75%x 2 reps x 6 sets
L1: 3×8 Across

C: Power Clean
Heavy 3

Feel free to superset any of these with some DB Bent Over Rows.

Notes
Choose one lift that best rounds out your training week thus far. Tomorrow we have Front Squats, box jumps and rowing.

METCON

10:00 EMOM x 8-12 Push-Ups

Rest 2:00

Run 1 Mile

Notes
For the EMOM choose a target total number from 80-120 push-ups and try to get there hitting consistent or gradually descending reps through the EMOM. Below is an example of descending reps for a 100 rep workout. Elevate or use bands around your hip to modify your push-ups so that you could do at least 8 reps every round for all 10 minutes. Scale up by wearing a weight vest and/or create a deficit by elevating your hands on bumper plates.

1. 12
2. 12
3. 12
4. 10
5. 10
6. 10
7. 10
8. 8
9. 8
10. 8

= 100 Push-Ups

For day’s mile run, if you’re someone who does not enjoy or even dreads running, focus on your internal dialogue. Stay positive, acknowledge your progress and remember you’re a badass for doing hard things you don’t love.

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CrossFit Group Class Programming Template (WK2/9)

Nora working her Overhead Squats last Sunday!

Banded Push-Ups

Banded push-ups are a great variation for someone who may have some strict push-ups or be pretty close. This allows you to train on the ground but provides increasing support as you descent into the harder portion of the exercise.

Workout of the Day

STRENGTH

In as few sets as possible:
30 Strict Handstand Push-Ups
OR
30 Strict Pull-Ups

Notes
Choose one gymnastics exercise and perform 30 reps with perfect technique in as few sets as possible. If 30 HSPUs can be performed in 3 sets or less add a deficit. Similarly, if 30 Pull-Ups can be performed in 3 sets add a little external weight with a dumbbell held between the knees or feet.

Modify the HSPUs to box piked (no more than 1 abmat) or 6×5 DB Presses. Modify pull-ups to banded pull-ups.

METCON

TABATA YOU GOTTA BE KIDDING ME

A: Kettlebell Swings
B: Sit-Ups
C: Jump Rope
D: Air Bike

Notes
Perform 8 sets of 20 seconds of work followed by 10 seconds of rest on ONE exercise, then rest 1:00 before rotating to the next one.
KB: Most folks can perform about 10+ swings in 20 seconds, which could be around 80-90+ swings in 4 minutes of tabata intervals. Choose a weight that will challenge you but should be lighter than you usually go in kettlebell workouts.
JR: Any style, Double Unders, Single Unders or Crossovers.
Bike: If you want to survive don’t go full send here and try to pedal at no intensity during the rest periods. watch your RPMS.
Sit-Ups: Use an anchor if needed

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CrossFit Group Class Programming Template (WK2/9)

Last year’s Murph Grill crew, Suzy, Renaldo and Lago

Grillers wanted for MURPH!

Are you good on the grill? We need 3-4 folks to run the grill during our annual Memorial Day Murph event. We’ll supply everything we just need you to flip burgers and hot dogs! Murph is on Monday, May 29th and we’ll need you from roughly 9am-1pm.

please contact david @ crossfitsouthbrooklyn.com if you’re interested!

Workout of the Day

STRENGTH

LEVEL 2

Back Squat
75%x 2 reps x 6 sets

Notes
Today’s strength work should not be terribly challenging in terms of load. Try to perform a work set every 90 seconds or so and try to come out of the bottom quickly each rep.

LEVEL 1

Back Squat
3×8 Across

Notes
Perform 3-4 progressive warm-up sets followed by three sets of 8 reps at the same weight. You should feel like you’ve got 2-3 reps in reserve.
FYI, an 8RM is ~75-80% 1RM. Helpful as a reference but this should be be a RM (Rep Max) session. Keep 2-3 reps in reserve and move well.

METCON

For Time:

3 Rounds of:
16 Box Step Overs (Single DB)
16 Kipping Pull-Ups

then,

Run 550m

If you have a weighted vest, wear it!

Notes
Hit the couplet for three rounds then finish with a hard 550m run (one lap around the block). The couplet should be pretty quick with the step overs performed mostly unbroken and the pull-ups in 1-4 sets per round.
Step Overs: Use a single heavy dumbbell, kettlebell or medicine ball. Carry style is anyhow.
Kipping pull-ups: 16/12/8/ 16 Ring Rows or Jumping Pull-Ups
Run: 550m/400m

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CrossFit Group Class Programming Template (WK2/9)

CFSBK LEGEND Chris A fighting the good fight 

Level 1 versus Level 2 Squats

The next 8 weeks of squatting will follow two tracks. Check out the descriptions below to see which one makes the most sense for you. Also note that you will have the option to perform these squats Wednesdays or on Fridays.

Level 2:
% work appropriate for people who have been consistently squatting over 1 year and have attempted 1RMs several times in their training history. The %s you use should be based on a heavy single attempt in the last 6 months. The intent is to work towards a new 1RM

Level 1:
Less than a year of squatting or prefer not to follow %s and hit rep ranges based on feel. This track is better for folks who feel really out of the flow with squatting or who may be less consistent on Wednesadys.

Workout of the Day

PARTNER METCON

20 Rounds for time of:
10 Weighted Push-Ups
12 Kettlebell Swings or Goblet Squats
30 Double Unders

Notes
Partners alternate complete rounds until each person has completed 10 rounds
Push-Up Options
– 10 with a plate on the back (buy in: 20+ unbroken push-ups fresh)
– 10 BW
– 10 Elevated or Banded

Jump Rope Options
– 30/20/10 Double Unders (Less than :40 to complete)
– 50 Single Unders

Tomorrow we have Back Squats, if you’re coming perform this as kettlebell swings, if you’re not, taster’s choice

ASSISTANCE

3-4 Progressive Sets:
8-12 DB Bent Over Rows
8-12 Barbell Roll Outs

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CrossFit Group Class Programming Template (WK2/9)

Andrew and Grant post marathon

Andrew’s amazing CFSBK testimonial

I wanted to send a note of thanks and explain how much the CFSBK family has meant to me since becoming part of it in December 2017. I’ll try to make this brief, but it might take a minute….so pull up a chair.

Growing up and into my 20’s, I had never excelled, nor had much interest in any kind of athletic pursuit. From a young age, I was told/told myself that I was “too uncoordinated” for sports or “not born an athlete.” Throughout high school, college and beyond, my physical activity would consist of going to the gym for an hour, a few times weekly. I would hop on a elliptical, mess around with random weight machines, do some crunches and call it a day.

This shifted in 2010 when I was hit by a car on the Upper West Side. While healing from that (specifically, an ACL tear) I began to consider how fortunate I was to have my physical health intact. As a result, I started running and eventually worked up to entering my first marathon – NYC – in 2013. I finished with a time of 4:00:50 and while I was proud of my accomplishment, I was annoyed that I didn’t break 4 hours (especially considering I made the rookie mistake of waiting in line to pee in a port-a-potty at mile 7!). Nonetheless, I now had the running bug and ran a bunch of races from 2013-18. Despite dropping weight and increasing speed on the shorter distances (1:44 PR on a Half), the sub-4 hour marathon eluded me on two additional attempts.

Fast forward to 2017. I’m growing bored with the monotony of running and decide I want to try something new. I had heard about CrossFit and its ethos certainly appealed to me, even if many aspects of it were quite intimidating. My CFSBK journey started on a chilly 6AM Friday in December where LadyFox was running Foundations. I was instantly hooked. And clueless. I’d never worked with a barbell. Or completed a pull-up. Or jumped on the rings. I was always naturally strong in the legs but had no path to unlock their potential.

Working mostly with you, the Foxes, Brett and Whitney, I slowly began to improve. Starting Strength in May ‘19 marked a huge jump in my progress and confidence. When the pandemic hit, I immediately purchased a pair of variable weight dumbbells and a bench. Brett remote-coached me for over a year and when I returned to the gym post-pandemic, I was at my then peak of strength and fitness. I achieved a raft of milestones that were unthinkable a few years earlier: double-unders, kipping pull-ups, weighted pull-ups, pistols, HSPUs etc.

Coming back to the gym also gave me a renewed appreciation for the CFSBK community. I cherish my friends in the 7A and 8A weekday classes, Short Circuit and Open Gym. Connecting with, and learning about them is just as enjoyable as the workout.

At some point post-pandemic, I met Grant at the front desk. We would chat, mostly about music but also about our mutual appreciation for distance running. By the beginning of ‘23 I was eager for a fresh challenge. I mentioned this to Grant who shrugged and said “I know you can break 4 hours in the marathon. And I can program the training for you.” I was skeptical (not of his abilities, of mine), but figured I would give it a shot and signed up for the wonderfully random Delaware Marathon.

Grant’s training employed a different method (focused on “Zone 2”) and with substantially more “time on feet” than my previous efforts. Best of all, Grant could run the race with me as a pacer. On race day, he was amazing. Not just for me, but for the countless spectators that he smiled or high-fived – and for those racers that he bucked up or assisted when they fell down. Grant was unfailingly cheery and when the tough miles set in on the back-half, he dispensed crucial advice on pacing and fueling.

I finished the race in 3:57:20 – an achievement I thought impossible – especially being 10 years older (and 10 pounds heavier) than when I ran my first race in 2013. As I sit here today, my heart is so full of gratitude and appreciation. For Grant, you, all of the coaches, and the entire community you’ve built around the gym. It’s unlocked a level of physical and mental aptitude (and confidence!) in me that I wouldn’t have thought possible. So thank you for that. And for fostering incredible connections between people who otherwise might not have had the occasion to meet.

Much love,

A

(Grant snapped this pic approximately 3 seconds after we crossed the finish line. I have no recollection of him taking it, but we are definitely happy!)

Workout of the Day

GYMNASTICS ASSISTANCE

3 Rounds for quality of:
:20 Chin-Up Lock off + :20 L-Hang
4e Back Scales
4-8 Handstand Kick-Ups or entries

Kick-Up Options
– Freestanding
– To a wall
– Wall HS Kick-up with Box
– elevated ground

METCON

In 12:00:

6-9-12-15-18-21… reps of:
Hang Power Cleans
Push Presses
Calorie Bike or Row

Notes
Work up the ladder at a steady pace seeing how far you can get in 12:00
Suggested barbell loads: 135/95/75/..

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CrossFit Group Class Programming Template (WK2/9)

Rachel H getting deep on yesterday’s Overhead Squats

Handstand Race

A little fitspo for you on a Monday. Check out this event from the 2020 CrossFit Games which was a 100 yard handstand walk for time!

Workout of the Day

SKILL: Bailing a barbell

STRENGTH

Overhead Squat
5-5-3-3-1

Notes
We’ll be working the Snatch on Sundays. The root of this movement is the Overhead Squat. Today we’ll dive into the OHS and also practice how to safely bail missed reps.

ASSISTANCE

5 Rounds for Quality & Load of:
1:00 Sled Push
100m Farmer’s Carry
Floater Exercise

Floater Options
– 10-15 Push-Ups or Ring Push-Ups
– 5-10 Chin-Ups or Ring Rows
– 1:00 Bike

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CrossFit Group Class Programming Template (WK1/9)

Day one of the Barbell Medicine Seminar yesterday in 608

The Overhead Squat