Fitness: 3 x 5 LP
Add 2.5 to 5 lbs to last week.
Performance: 72.5% x 8 x 4
Rest two minutes between sets.
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e2/6
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4 Rounds
10 Kettlebell Swings 72/53
10 Squats with Kettlebell with Kettlebell in rack position Right
25-yard One-arm Farmer Walk with Kettlebell in rack position Right
10 Kettlebell Swings 72/53
10 Squats with Kettlebell with Kettlebellin rack position Left
25-yard One-arm Farmer Walk with Kettlebellin rack position Left
Work with a partner and alternate rounds with minimal rest. If you can’t organize the front rack squat, perform a goblet squat instead. Kettlebell swing Rx is American, as always, unless stated otherwise.
Flynn Dog Millionaire (as David affectionately calls Ryan F.) goes overhead with a picture-perfect split jerk
Brooklyn Zen Center Event
Are you curious about meditation and Zen, or just interested in doing something different on a Saturday night? Then join CFSBKer Keith F. for the first ever Brooklyn Zen Center May Awakening on Saturday, May 17, from 5:30-7:30pm. There will be music, Zen-inspired cuisine by The Pines, tasty pies by Four & Twenty Blackbirds, and a silent auction of artwork created by our Awake Youth Project teens, which is our teen meditation program that has served 800 youths from under resourced communities since 2010. RSVP by April 27 HERE.
Inside the Affiliate
There’s a new post over on ITA about how we’ve thought inside the box with the events we’ve hosted in our gym. Let us know what you think!
Why Are Some People Early Birds and Others Night Owls? Slate
Best Space Pictures: Blood Moon, Auroras, and Rover Tracks National Geographic
Bubble Football/Soccer Algund YouTube
A Better Way to Say Sorry cuppacocoa
Bench press: 101.5x8x3, failed 6th rep of 4th set. Eek! Are we going to be sticking with 8s for the remainder of the cycle? If so I need to rethink my weights!
I should know better than EVER, EVER to think that NFT work is going to be not so bad. Front squatting that kettlebell was SO HARD. Rx. All I can say is I'm glad it's over.
Class ended early so I had time for ring dip practice. 3×3. Yay, I can do 3s now!
6am with the usual gang and NickDowell.
Bench Press at 170# went really well for 3 1/2 rounds. The last few reps on the last round were a real grind. If 8×4 is on the docket for next week I may be looking at a 5# jump.
Echoing Stella, I was very surprised by how gassed I was from that WOD. I really thought the farmers carry would be a lovely rest period before having to start up again. Paired with Peter on this one. I'll say I did this Rx'd but really my American KB swings had some hefty Russian influence and my front rack was pretty ugly needing my free hand to help support the weight.
It was nice to do a full WOD outside.
Great ITA article!
6:30am Strength Cycle w/Jeremy
LBBS 100lbs 5×3
Press 50lbs 5×3
Deadlift 160 x2
Things are getting heavy, especially the deadlift. And I'm getting progressively more hungry. Just bought a whole chicken for breakfast.
Not sure where we go from here…
6am. Bench press. Managed 210x8x3 and then 210×7. Struggled mightily on the 7th rep of the 4th set and knew that I'd fail an 8th rep and racked it without even trying. That shit got heavy. Partnered with Matt for the NFT work which was much tougher than it looked on the whiteboard.
"my American KB swings had some hefty Russian influence"
I snorted out loud. Well said, sir.
8am with McD.
Bench (Fitness)
Last week was the first "real" time I ever did bench presses (aside from Tur-Ro doing a quick run-through of them in my last foundations private). Naturally, I PR'd at 68# last week! It moved pretty good, but my last rep on last two sets were slow to get up. With that said, this week I was nervous about adding weight (thought maybe I started too heavy) but when I went for a set at 68#, they moved so well! I then felt confident to add some baby weights (2.5#) to do my 3 working sets @ 70.5# – another PR! I am happy to report that I got all of them DONE. BOSS!
WOD was fun! Love partner stuff, because there's that long built-in break. Amazing. This didn't seem that bad, but, oy, I'm feeling it now. The one arm shit got me good. Used 16kg bell which still feels heavy to me.
Finished by working on my alter boy snatches – snapping up to squat from knees (with PVC). I am making this happen. One day. It WILL happen.
I'd also like to say that I loved the article I read about Coach Fox last week from inside the affiliate. The advice was spot-on – and universally relatable to all types of coaches/trainers/….annnnd Pilates instructors! The whole bit about be willing to be bored to make your clients better was the jam. SO true. Loved it.
I need to move next Thursday, May 1st. I have a few boxes and three pieces of furniture. Can anyone recommend movers or know anyone with a van who wants to earn extra cash?
berrios.michelle(at)gmail.com
<3 the ITA article!
And remember the alternative jazz thing? I do. I brought a bunch of my Manhattan friends (when I still had Manhattan friends 😉 haha).
Thanks for sharing the article about early birds vs. night owls, it was interested to read that there are actual brain imaging studies that show consistent differences. I CANNOT sleep in, regardless of what time I crash. Although I really enjoy being up and out before the rest of the city wakes up, not everyone in my life has enjoyed my habit of being wide awake by 6. I'm heading to New Orleans and by default I'm sharing a hotel room with the other earlier riser in my group of friends because everyone else refused to share a space a with us.
6am with NickDowell and the usual mod squad.
Hit 185# for 4×8 on the bench press. Jumped up 20# from last week since i'm still working to find a good working weight; I will jump a bit more next week.
Loved the WOD outside and echo previous comments about it being much more difficult than it looked. My lower back is way more tight right now than I thought it would be. The squats with the one-arm rack were tough.
MGMT — wondering whether there might still be AR this weekend in spite of the Starting Strength seminar, given that I'm guessing SS does not use the upstairs area.
6am with McDowell and Nick
bench press (fitness linear progression): 180 x 5 x 3
This was heavy but at no point did I feel close to struggling. Excited to see if I can beat last bench cycle's numbers (185 was where my previous, and heaviest LP ended up)
After that it was fun shooting the shit with everyone on the sidewalk and carrying a kettlebell around.
Makeup post for Yesterday's workout (done on my own at OG):
Squat Snatches (instead of power snatches, so I could practice getting low): 135 x 2 x 5
Some of these were wobbly at the bottom position, and I caught one or two high in a power snatch. Feels pretty easy now to catch this weight low.
WOD:
400 m run,
40 db snatches at ~1/3 bodyweight (55 lbs),
40 burpee box jumps,
800 m run
~ 12 minutes.
Didn't keep exact time, but the clock read 7:48 when I ran out the door (under Noah's raised eyebrow), and 8:00 when I came back.
I came into the gym with 30 minutes to go, so I was glad to get all this done before closing time!
First, CALLING ALL volunteers, especially artistic types and crafty folks. PS/MS 282 (technically the box's "zoned school", if you lived at the gym) is starting a massive outside mural project and looking for volunteers starting this Saturday and going every Saturday to June. A great opportunity to give back — sign up at http://2020schools.org/murals/volunteer/
Second, I *LOVE* all the innovative partnerships the box is doing. The Brooklyn Zen center is another huge add. I love the focus on good diet and a calm, focused mind at the gym. I can't make 5/17, but hope this is the first of a deeper partnership.
Third, must have been the nervous energy (up in Maine for my grandmother's funeral) but worked out today and… did CrossFit at CrossFit Beacon (OHS 4×4, followed by WOD of AMRAP 200m run, 10 Front Squats, 5 burpees — I did 4 rounds, plus run, plus 2 FS), then did 2/3 of my scheduled strength cycle (3 x 5 on shoulder press at 115lbs followed by 1×5 of dead lift at 305 lbs; skipped back squats given the OHS and FS I did in CF), then went for 4.3 mile run "around the boulevard", i.e., the Portland "Back Bay" run.
WEEKEND ALTERNATIVE PROGRAMMING
This week we will have the following alternative programming on tap for CFSBKers since there will be no in house CF Group Classes:
Saturday:
(Upstairs With Coach Whitney)
9am Yoga
10am Yoga
11am AR
12pm AR
(At Prospect Park with Coach Melo)
gymnastics and Sprint WOD?
9:00am
10:30am
Sunday
Red Hook Track WOD with Coach Arturo and CFSBK Endurance Coach Mike O
10am
11am
12pm
GET STOKED!!!!!
More details on blog soon…
YESSSSSSSSSSSSS SATURDAY AR THANK YOU!
Quick bench press before the noon class.
45×5, 95×5, 135×5, 165×2
185x8x4
Timed my rest to be 2:00 in between sets. Felt better than last week. I love how swole I feel after these. Almost did some curls but had to teach.
Going for a run in lieu of the KB fun in the sun. I should probably be at about 8 miles by now in prep for the BK Half…oh boy.
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FYI, week 3 will NOT be 4×8 on the bench (or the squats). We'll still be hitting roughly the same volume though with 5×6 starting at 75%.
12pm class
Did 2 rounds of performance warm-up with 4 tempo bar dips (will graduate to rings hopefully soon), 8ea pistols (good times; left side is getting there), and 12 tempo v-ups. Tasty.
Bench:
45×5, 65×5, 80×3, 90x5x3
All speedy and clean. Ro pointed out my extreme arch. Next week, will play with bracing ribs down more … saving the big arch for 1RM attempts.
NFT work with MeLo, who with one glance talked me into doing this at the RX'ed weight (24kg).
HARD!! I did three rounds before our meeting commenced.
American swings were actually the easiest part of this whole thing. Felt quite put together, which was cool. Front rack position was interesting; needed to use my other hand to support. Felt good to work another upright squat — focused on letting knees move forward and also driving them out.
Right side MUCH easier than the left on all of this, as was expected.
COME TO YOGA AND/OR AR ON SATURDAY!! Details will be posted soon 😀
Benched 200x8x4 today. Glad to be back on track after failing on the 7th rep of my 4th set last week at 195. I think it was swole through osmosis due to working with Big Mike Chulak.
The NFT was a toughie, went 24, 28, 32×2 rds with the KB. Lots of time in the KB front rack was not comfortable, but using my non-working arm to support my working wrist helped a bunch. Nice to be outdoors doing just about anything.
Bench was better today but light in terms of past cycle WODs.
The WOD was from hell. I did 2 rounds at 28kg and dropped to 24 for the last two. It was brutal. Everything hurt from this past weekend's WODs.
Benched 103x8x4. This felt way more organized than 100# did last week.
I agree with everything that has been said about the brutality of that NFT work. Partnered with Courtney "Creepy" Hart, who crushed it with the 24kg bell.
'merican swings felt good. Had to use my other hand to support the rack position on all of the squats and farmer carries. Found it really hard to breathe with 50 lbs resting on my chest. Weird.
Power Snatch-80%x1x5
220x1x7 (I missed 2 of these)
**This was supposed to be 232, but my hand is ripped to shreds and i had to use straps, which for some reason really effects my lifting.
Power Clean+jerk- 80%(of PC)x1x5
231
Snatch grip DLs@297x4x4
GHD situps-60
….grindin
Day 2 of my return! Playing with my training wheels
4:30 sesh with Ro
Jerk put me on rings, what was he thinking?! Inversions and crap. Ha!
On a serious note.. Feels good to get back, hit some good handstands and work on gymnastics/body weight stuff that I suck at/need to achieve Ninja status on. Man my arms were exhausted. Gonna be funny trying to pull up a pair of pants tomorrow morning. Ro has been a rock through out this entire process, so it's killa to work with him twice a week and get back on the wagon.
Loved seeing all the faces and people working hard around me. Good to be back and feeling much less frustrated and lost about where I am in the process of recovery. Giggles and smiles were heard and seen 🙂
10am with Noah.
Fitness Bench Press @ 85lbs. Was very heavy for me. Thanks to Noah for some great tips. I am still relatively new to bench pressing so need all the help I can get!
WOD was really hard! It was one of those days I left scratching my head wondering if I am not making progress each week. I only used a 16kg KB and it was a really painful WOD. Good thing for the rest time!! Glad to see that I was not the only one who struggled through this!
Bench 45×5, 95×5, 125×3
145x5x3 went up easy, room to grow.
KB WOD @ 2pood
8:30pm Group Class with Coach Noah
2 Rounds of:
8e OH Reverse Lunges 35>55
8 Push-Ups
8 CTB Chin-Ups
Bench Press
with Joel and John
Fitness Programming
(45×8, 95×5, 135×5, 155×2)
160x5x3
Weak at the last few inches at the top which indicates my triceps being the weak link in my bench. Food for thought regarding assistance work..
Did the NFT Assistance work with Dave. We did it at 1.5p which may have been a touch light for me. I saw so many TFBAs struggling all day with the 2 pood that I got spooked out of it. I think the 28kilo bell would have been more appropriate. Was happy that I did all the carries using only one arm, no support from the free arm.
Afterwards John and I cashed out with 6 Rounds of a reverse Tabata L-Sit
Fun timeZ
Also for all interested parties… today is Herschel's 4th birthday 🙂
🙁
Haven't kept up posting my office workouts. Here's today's:
Press
45×5 75×5 105×5 125x5x3
LP is pushing into uncharted territory here, still feeling pretty easy.
BB Shrugs (Trapzzz)
135×5 225×5 275x5x3
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In as few sets as possible, rest as needed:
40 pull-ups (5 sets)
11,8,7,8,6
50 ring dips (5 sets)
13,11,10,8,8
60 45# plate-overhead sit-ups (4 sets)
17,15,15,13
8:30 with Noah. Nice to be back after a weekend of indulging upstate.
180x5x3 on the bench press. Felt about the same as last week.
Cash-out with the 32kg KB. Supported with my off hand for the front rack squats and walks.
Really liked the article on apologizing. Something I'm going to think about and expose my students to, as well.
bench, missed last week,
165x8x4, missed the 32d rep, which, eff. Happy we're doing all this volume though. Trying to eat enough.
WOD: started with the 2 pooder, and holy moly that kicked my ass, and moved down to 1.5 pood. All in that was great though. Resolved to do more of that sort of thing at OG.
6am.
BP w/ Alan and DJ: 145x5x2 and then 145×3.
Fifth rep of second set was sooo slow, and by the time I got to fourth rep of third, I knew that was it. Don't think I psyched myself out of it – just couldn't get out of the bottom at all. Not sure where to go for next week.
NFT @ 28kg w/ John.
Fun swinging that thing overhead, but couldn't get comfortable on the rack position. Felt all kinds of back muscles attempting to stabilize the poor handling of the wobbly rack.
Haven't read the ITA post yet, but looking forward to the outcome of the movie night query last week.
Solid bench press with Christina w/ work weight at 80# for fitness. She gave me a great cue to keep my wrists solid – I was getting floppy as I fatigued.
Today's NFT work was the devil's handiwork. But even as miserable as some WODs can be, I always feel so good when I'm done that I appreciate Fox's devious creativity, even as I'm cursing him under my breath when I'm still moving.
Rx'd – 1.5 pood was doable, but holy hell was it hard (and almost not doable). I knew I was in for a ride when DO came over and said, "Whoa – you girls went heavy today!" Did it with Strong Laura, who we don't call Strong Laura for nothin'. She steadily and smoothly moved through everything while I huffed, puffed, and almost blew the buildings on Degraw down in exhaustion.
* 3 rounds warm up 1
* 3x5 bench press @ 152.5#, felt good
* 4 rounds of kettlebell fun @ 24kg, farmer's carry last round