CrossFit South Brooklyn

Established 2007

Bench Press

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Fitness: 3×5 Across
Add 5lbs from last week’s exposure.

Performance: 5/3/1 (1 week)
75%x5
85%x3
95%x1+

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Bench Press e6/6
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Power Clean

Perform 2 Reps on the minute for 10 minutes.
Today’s reps should be heavy but crisp. Make sure every bar is racked correctly before fully recovering. Go heavier than last week

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Power Clean e6/6

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The Myers’ finish up mile #2 at Memorial Day Murph

  • Farewell to Corbett M who will be down south for the next few months. You will be missed!
  • Check out Bekka P’s awesome Memorial Day Murph phots on the CFSBK Flickr

Sasha’s IFTT Email set up for Blog Posts

“Just wanted to share this thing that I’ve set up.  Using IFTTT, I configured your blog to e-mail itself to me every day. I find it really useful to keep my head in training on days when I can’t make it, and thought others might find it useful too.

If you don’t want to add it to your site, here is my IFTTT recipe that anyone can use: https://ifttt.com/recipes/96202

–Sasha

A Visitor Experiences Memorial Day Murph at CFSBK

Hi Crossfit South Brooklyn –

I am a default gawker on your scene there at Crossfit South Brooklyn.  An  Crossfinnocent Bystander.  I’ve been offered a viewport into your group there that few people get to see.   But today, on Murph day, I got a special preview into what you guys have there.

My girlfriend, She Who Must Remain Nameless, (Voldmort) is a member of your group and is enthusiastic about everything going on over there.  She’s told me about Murph, and the Murph, and I think it’s pretty amazing.  She encouraged me to come on down to see her and everyone.

I thought awesome I’d like that but in the spirit of things, I figured I’d run there instead of drive, do my own Memorial Mile.  No GPS.  No Phone.  Just me, running to your box on my own wits and memories of rusted buildings. 

I dug in, and ran my turtley way over there – invented an amazing app idea in the mids of runners bliss, – but  got confused and  wandered for a little bit when I ran across the bridge…which way was it?

Suddenly, bam….” sorry.”” ..sorry…”  two people go blasting by me at an easy trot, clearly running together, and running strong.

“I must be getting close….” I followed them as close as I could. 

I made the left on 3rd Ave, and like turning the home stretch could see the hive of activity as people were running around. 

People running hard, for the joy of it, for the pain of it, for the victory in every stride.

I picked up my pace and decided I was just gonna run on in like my wheels were wings – let it go and hey, no one will notice…

but when I cam running down DeGraw street i was greeted with the most incredible cheer I never deserved in all my life, as Crossfit South Brooklyn, en masse, were getting behind me and I was truly lifted up.

A true Rosie Ruiz experience. 

but an incredible one, because I think I felt in that moment what the spirit of Murph was, what the kind of a person that creates this sort of torture for fun :  The kind of person that never loses the joy of what he does.
And if that is the spirit of murph, then that spirit is in you guys, and i’m glad i felt i.  that was aweosme crossfit SB –
I owe you one.

-slim jim
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Is Racewalking a Sport?

Comments

  1. You can also configure the site to automatically email you updates. Downside is that it emails you every comment too, so I set up a gmail rule to delete the comments and just save the main content updates.

  2. I squatted my last squat at CFSBK last night. I'll be back but I just want to say there aren't words enough to describe how important this box and YOU are to me. See y'all later, strong people.

  5. Corbett, I always loved overhearing from the front desk the funny and intelligent things you'd say. You were such a joy to have around. Happy travels.

  11. 6am with D.O. Bench press: 205×5, 235×3, 260×7. Biceps and triceps are still sore from Murph, so I was pleasantly surprised by the rep out. Might have had another rep in there if I was fresher. I was predicting a shit-show on the power cleans due to soreness and yet was again pleasantly surprised: 175x2x2, 185x8x2. Did a better job at opening my hands on the catch today. Only one rep land on my collar bone and many that landed nicely on my deltoids. Feet started to do a bit of starfish action at the last 2 sets, though.

  12. Haven't been back since Murph. Tuesday was rest day; Wednesday yoga; today 3 mile run. Will be back tomorrow for the 6am class.

    What I did want to share was my running time. I almost never run (not a fan) but the last time I ran 3 miles was in March and it took me 37 min. And today it took me 31 min.

    I've read enough comments from other Crossfitters to know what your overall performance improves over time, so I don't think it's anything extraordinary. But I can't help feel a small sense of accomplishment.

  13. 6 AM with DO. It's much easier to get up at 5:15 to go to the gym when the sun is already out. I took 2 days of extremely passive recovery. No soreness prevention work and drinking many many beers is not a wise post-Murph strategy.
    Bench: 45×8, 135×5, 185×5, 210×3, 235×8. I was happy with the rep out as my warmup push ups hurt and I didn't know what to expect. It's been a long time dream of mine to bench 300 lbs. 1 RM calculator says 235×8 = 292×1.
    Cleans: 165x10x2. Went down in weight to try to fix my landing position. Inconsistent. Some felt very good, many others didn't. Still splaying feet at times and not sending my ass back enough in the catch position. My mangled hands distracted me some early on but they're healing pretty well.

  14. 6am with David. Bench press at 105# for 3×5. Quite heavy, but doable. Then power cleans at 93#. Before every rep, I focused on Josh's "be confident" advice from yesterday and I think it made me a lot more explosive (at least in my head).

    Janelle — saw your post last night, congrats on the squats!

    Michelle B — congrats on the running improvement!

    Slim Jim — nice write-up. And I saw you finish that run like a champ – great job!

  15. As per David's HW assignment…
    The DOE blocks youtube from their content, so I can't complete my assignment at the moment. I am submitting this modification for now:

    I will Power Clean much better.
    I will Power Clean much better
    I will Power Clean much better.
    I will Power Clean much better.
    I will Power Clean much better
    I will Power Clean much better.
    I will Power Clean much better.
    I will Power Clean much better
    I will Power Clean much better.
    I will Power Clean much better.
    I will Power Clean much better
    I will Power Clean much better.
    I will Power Clean much better.
    I will Power Clean much better
    I will Power Clean much better.

  17. Bench and clean today. Murph still lingering in some places so didn't hit my last rep on my set. So no increase and a little back slide. The cleans I kept light and those went smooth.

    Watched some clean videos as David asked but all are with the jerk. I think the best one so far has been the three time Olympic coach walking through the lift at each step.

    Form is certainly paramount to doing weight. Lift less weight and get the form pristine will pay off.

  19. Keith,

    Watch the California strength videos, which go through the progression that we do in the gym before we power clean. Obviously they go to full depth, but everything else is the same. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WHuiw4GvB0g

    One thing I have noticed in those videos, and have never really been able to get a good grasp on, is the starting position when doing Olympic pulls. I think in part because you see it done so many different ways, and if I'm not mistaken there is a huge debate between Rip and other coaches about the proper starting position and perhaps that is why I'm confused. I have tried to start from a lower angle, and I think it helps me get into the correct position for the second pull better than, but I think I have been told not to do that by our coaches at other points.

    Maybe an article from, I don't know, Josh???, on this issue would be interesting.

  20. @Joel, that's a problem I'm wrestling with right now too.

    I came and did the Clean and Snatch camps that were taught Rip style, straight bar path, and I decided to run with it for a while and see how I felt. It starts with hips VERY high, which allows me to keep my back angle consistent through the first pull, but I feel like it leaves me without the ability to really accelerate and "scoop" on the second pull.

    I find that if I adjust to start with my hips any lower that I always end up doing the "stripper butt" pull to where my hips normally are before the bar comes up. Not sure if that means that hips-high is just my default or I really need to drill that slow, shoulders-back first pull. I managed to finally fix the same problem with my deadlifts, but of course the snatch and clean are different animals.

    Would definitely be interested in hearing some more discourse on this stuff!

  21. Todd+Joel:

    As it was told to us during the Rip seminar, and then demonstrated with video, even lifters who set up very vertical torso/low hips end up moving into a "conventional" deadlift position at some point during their 1st pull. Rip showed a bunch of videos of world class olympic lifters that backed this up. My personal experience and anecdotal evidence doesn't totally bear this out, but I see the merit in it, especially when teaching the setup for novices.

  22. Also bon voyage Corbett! Have a great southern summer, hope you're back in time to get back on the middle platform with me for a Fall strength cycle.

  23. My 2 cents on hip positioning regarding:

    Hip crease JUST above knees. This starting position puts you in an optimal position for the second pull, allowing you to NOT reach full extension before slipping your knees under the bar, thus allowing you to hit full extension only after the bar has risen above your knees. A higher back position negates this and puts you in the position of having to pull the bar into your hips, most likely banging it and or pulling too early, leading to a bar that is way out in front.

    I fully disagree with the way Rip teaches the Oly lifts (from what ive heard). Along with a higher start and a "straight bar" path, he also preaches the LBBS. None of these things are done by any Olympians, simply because they dont work. The LBBS sets up a neurological pattern of pitching forward under a heavy load (thus the HBBS for olympic lifting), and a straight bar path and higher start position dont really make much sense when you look at the optimal mechanics of the lifts.

  24. Hey.. soo.. I had this idea. Many of us have summer Friday's which means off work at 1pm. Any chance for a Summer Friday OG from 2-4 or 1-3? I figured the worst that can happen is Team SBK would just laugh at me and say NO. Never hurts to ask and put on the #wishfulthinking radar. #iamnotdrunk

  25. @Jake: Rip's defense to the argument that few world class O-lifters use the vertical bar path is that a very small percentage of them train using that method. If more were dedicated to training his way, there would be champions. In theory, that's probably true. Everybody doing something one way doesn't make it the best way. The Fosbury Flop is an obvious example. But Rip seemed pretty defensive on this point (and many others) in his book and seminar. I'm no expert, but it certainly possible to me that there is a mechanical advantage to the curved bar bath that he hasn't figured out yet. If you want to read him argue about it:

    http://startingstrength.com/resources/forum/archive/index.php/t-32077.html?s=7bdd60f435fe3269ae0b6ec09985abd5

  26. @Ben: Without sounding sarcastic, World class lifters are too busy Winning Olympic medals to worry about a possibly different way to do things that has yet to produce significant results…is what I think the Chinese or the Russians would say to Rip.

  27. Yeah, I just finished his book about an hour ago. It's possible but yeah, one monster using Rip's method would help his argument a lot.

  28. @JB you are not alone! I also suggested this to DO with nothing but the highest of hopes. Sadly though, my summer Fridays don't start till 3pm. I know, PROBLEMZ.

  29. +1 for summer Friday OG! I actually asked about 4:30 OG a while back (since there is 4:30 class every other day)…crickets…

    CORBETT. XOXO

  30. I get the blog emailed to me every day too! I use a site called Blogtrottr to do it. I love having it be the first thing I read when I wake up, it really helps me stay involved with the gym especially since I'm a 3x per week person.

  31. I could be wrong but although I understand the plea I don't see a "summer Fridays OG" happening anytime soon…sorry 🙁

    —–

    Video analysis shows that many (most from the vids I've seen) lifters move into a high hip (a la Rip) pull position on the first pull. This position looks shockingly like the conventional deadlift AND the LBBS. Lifters that set up with low hips will move the knees back and out of the way of the bar to create optimal bar path. If the hips are higher then the knees are starting more back to start out with. The LBBS is used ( a la Rip) to make that pull stronger, the FRONT SQUAT is used to develop the capacity to get out of the hole when you catch the (very heavy) barbell. The position that a lifter needs to be in to recover a clean (or a snatch for that matter) is exactly the front squat, relegating the HBBS senseless since you can't load it as much as the LBBS and you are already going to be FSQing. Also, body landmark cueing can be dicey, since "hip crease just above the knee" will create different diagnostic angles on lifters of differing anthropomerty.

    PS – Wendler says "JUST SQUAT".

    —

    Bench
    175×5
    200×3
    220×6
    Meh

  33. One could make the argument that ANY type of back squatting be labelled senseless leaving the FRONT SQUAT as the only useful lift for olympic lifting (a la Abijaev). Again, LBBS ingrains a neural pattern of pitching forward under a heavy load (Pendlay makes this point in a recent podcast). While it is true that at some point in the lift the hips obviously come up, I think it is more a question of where the bar is in relation to the knees when they come up, not simply that they come up. I think the point of not having the knees start back is so that you have time and room to move them back before your legs reach full extension so as to be able to maintain a slight bend in the knees when the bar gets into position for the second pull, maximizing that explosive moment. If your knees are already starting back, then you essentially have nowhere to go.

    As for a stronger pull…thats why we do pulls!!!

  34. Please scroll down if this is too long winded. I apologize, but I need to make up a post.

    Yesterday
    BSQ 3×5 @ #136
    Eating, sleeping, and dreaming of backsquats until Saturday.
    Thank you so so so so much to McDizzy (McDowell, for those who don't speak fluent SnoopDoggish) for being my Backsquat Yoda this cycle. Thanks also to Fox for the much needed pointers that I will practice at my house until Saturday.
    WOD DB's #20 – push presses were easy breezy. Rows, not so much. And running remains my least favorite activity.

    Today
    Bench
    3×5 @ #85 – probably could've added a couple of pounds. But my goal for the cycle was #80, so I surpassed that – yeah. Thanks to Fox for the dancy-feet pointer.

    Clean
    8×2 @ #115
    2×2 @ #120
    Dub Hub assured me that I looked pretty good with the 120's.. which is good because it was so damn heavy, But YAY! for accomplishing goals this cycle.. one more lift to go

    p.s. CORBETTT… NOOOOOOOOOO!!!!! But have fun 🙁

  36. I thought we'd have ONE day where we could ALL agree on something:

    I'm bummed you won't be around this summer Corbett– don't stay down south too long!
    _________

    I'm sorta surprised the HB vs. LB debate is being hashed out again. This is like a religious feud between Pendlay and Rippatoe. Those are two big egos– I can't believe they were able to work together in the first place.

    70's big had a good write-up on the subject, taking a nice middle ground.
    _________

    FOUR LIFT FRIDAY tomorrow night people. Get excited!

  38. sooo…. reading what Rip writes on his blog that B-dub posted, I am reminded what unpleasant stuff he said in my presence. And a lot of dogma (we are pressing THIS way and OUR way is right, and WE KNOW MORE THAN EVERYONE). Everyone, please, chill. Which leads me to…

    … how much freaking fun I had tonight. Nathan and Dmak on Bench (165, it moved), and Dmak again on Power Cleans (125#, should have gone heavier, but I have not been here a lot on Thursdays this cycle). Fun guys who make it fun for me, too. I do want to get fitter/stronger/[insert whatever], but I want to have a good time doing it. Not too much to ask. Tonite was just what the Dr. ordered.

  39. 6:30 with Fox and Josh

    Bench
    45×5 95×4 135×3 155×5 175×3 195×5

    Totally happy with where I ended up this cycle. Here's hoping for another heavy single search during back-off week so I can hit that 225 I've been aiming for.

    Had a goal of doing the EMOTM cleans at 185 by the end of the cycle so I went for it today. I missed one near the beginning due to "slippery shoulders in a sleeveless shirt syndrome" but after chalking up a bit I caught the rest no problem. An early cue from Fox to finish the pull had the bar flying and me getting under much faster, so much so that I caught the first one right in the throat.

    Loved 2-lift Thursday this cycle, fingers crossed for lots more heavy lifting next cycle, and maybe some snatching???

  40. Well.. it was worth a shot, thank you so muchly for the response Fox! Maybe I should think about why I would rather go right from work to SBK for a few hours right in the middle of a Friday instead of going to the beach or getting booze or seeing a movie or napping or.. or.. or.. but.. SBK still comes on top. Hmm..

    Summer Friday OG is my Unicorn #stillsober

    CORBETT. Miss you muchly.

  41. The basic argument for a more vertical torso in the set up for the oly lifts is:

    1. A more upright torso reduced back fatigue in the set up and 1st pull
    2. A more upright back brings the barbell closer to the hip and minimizes the moment arm between the two
    3. The upright torso creates more vertical arms which helps keep the barbell tighter to the body
    4. The upright start position creates a smaller rotational excursion of the torso in the second pull which makes creates less room for error since finishing positions are more limited.
    5. The hips low start "preloads the hamstrings" so that they can fire more optimally later in the lift.

    I think the back fatigue issue is kind of BS. One because you're only in the pulling position for a fraction of a second and the amount of pulling that weightlifters do in their training IMO negates the idea that their poor little backs would get fatigued by being more horizontal for a 16th of a second.

    I think rip does a good job of demonstrating that the bar actually leaves the floor (especially in the clean) when the back angle becomes more horizontal anyway. Which makes point 2 moot. Also the arms will end up not being vertical when the bar leaves the floor

    As for point 4 there might be some merit there. Not sure if again that becomes moot since the bar leaves the floor in essentially the same position whether you start high or low.

    Not sure about 5. The pre load might not really exist unless you've got a really dynamic start where you drop in and then immediately rip off the floor.

    Overall, I think the hips higher start position ala Rip makes more sense for most people. I think it makes the first and second pulls easier to learn and more repeatable. Starting low forces you to have to shift the weight in your foot around creating another nuanced variable the lifter has to organize when pulling. Opinions aside, the more linear the bar path is off the floor, the more efficient the movement is. Period.

    The argument that everyone does it a certain way is both a compelling and weak argument. It proves you can be really successful doing something a certain way, however without demonstrating mechanically why it's better you're sort of shooting yourself in the foot. History is full of people doing things a certain way just because that's the way it's always been done, that doesnt mean its optimal.

    I also don't think it matters as much as people think what version squat you do. They both have advantages for different part of the lift. I say do them both.

  42. I would like to interrupt this squat argument broadcast to toot my own horn for a moment:

    Kipping pullups! Like, twos and threes of them at once! SO EXCITING.

  43. @DO-

    YOU ARE EITHER WITH US OR AGAINST US!!!! Im talking about drawing a line in the sand DO. Across this line, you DO NOT…

    High bar or die!!!

  46. I'm just happy to have make it to class today for a change.

    Bench: 185×11

    Cleans: 185 – weight felt light.

  49. I will say that as to point 5 from David, I feel the "pre-loaded" hamstring thing. It may speak to my mobility issues, but I do feel it.

    Got into do my squatting tonight:

    5/3/1 night, repped out at 340 for 5 reps. That matched my 5rm from strength cycle, so i was happy, especially given how wonky everything felt tonight and how hot it was.

    Bench: rep out 205×7. Very happy with this. This was 2 more reps than my 5rm at strength cycle at the same weight.

    Power Cleans emotm: 165x2x10. Felt good.

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