Deadlift | WOD 2.18.20

Speed Band Deadlift:
10 x 3 @21X1

Rest :45-1:00 between sets.

Barbell loading is light, about 45% of a 1RM or about 55% of your recent heavy 5 x 3. You can choose Sumo or Conventional Deadlift, but we recommend sticking with one throughout the cycle. These should be fast reps. Focus on moving the bar with speed through perfect positions. Note the tempo includes a 2 second descent and 1 second pause on the floor. This is meant to help prevent you from bouncing the plates and/or relaxing on the descent. The intent is to lower the bar under control and maintain tension before exploding up. In each of the linked videos above you’ll see examples of moving through perfect positions with amazing speed.

Band Guide

If your MAX deadlift is…

<135: Orange Band
135-225: Red Band
225-315: Blue Band
315+: Green Band

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Week 1 of 6

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20 Minutes Continuous Effort:
15 Calorie Row
100’e Single-Arm Rack Kettlebell Carry
20 Alternating Dumbbell Snatches
:20 L-Sit

The carries should be challenging, use an appropriate load. The Dumbbell Snatches should be light-medium and unbroken. Focus on getting into a rhythm with these. The L-Sits can be done on parallettes, boxes, or rings. Modify to Tuck Sit Holds as needed. 

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February Athlete of the Month: Caroline Svenson

As told to Chris Fox

Though Caroline is a relatively new part of our CFSBK family, she’s been making a great impression since day one. Right away you see that she’s smart, funny, and certainly more than capable in a group class. We also appreciate how she goes that extra mile. whether it be to help one of her classmates in class, connect outside of 597 and 608 with gym friends, or volunteer at a gym event, Caroline is an A+ example of a CFSBK Athlete of the Month. Keep reading to learn a bit more about this gal from the Palmetto State.

Hey, Caroline! Congrats, and thanks for meeting with me. Let’s begin at the start…When and why did you begin your Crossfit journey, and how did you end up at CrossFit South Brooklyn?

Thanks! This is so exciting and a great way to start my day! I started doing “CrossFit” during the summer of 2017 at a gym in Columbia, South Carolina called Base 10 Fitness. They’re not a CrossFit affiliate, but the classes are structured pretty similarly and the movements are mostly the same. It was a great intro and such a great experience, largely because it’s a small gym with small classes and a tight-knit community. I’ve never really been a “gym girl” and didn’t know how to do the stuff in classes at first, but the coaches were super helpful, as were the other members.

I joined CFSBK in the summer of 2018 after moving to Brooklyn! I moved here with no job and no real plan for what I’d do, but I figured spending time with people who might be as nice and positive as the folks at Base 10 would be a good idea. In all honesty, I needed a reason to get out of the house! I had a list of gyms and figured I’d check out others in the area, but once I took the free intro class with David, I didn’t go anywhere else.

Lol, let’s come back to the “moved to NYC with no job” part later. What were you doing for fitness prior to joining that gym in SC?

I guess I’ve been an “athlete” of some sort all my life. My momma put me in gymnastics classes as a toddler so I could have a place other than the couch to jump on and flip off from. I wound up competing in gymnastics from about ages 2 through 10. During that time, I participated in different programs and camps, like TOPs (basically like a strength and conditioning school for young female gymnasts), and really enjoyed it! I quit at around 10 years old when my family moved to a new area. The change was a lot for me… new coach, new classmates, etc. I wasn’t enjoying it and didn’t want to go anymore, so I stopped.

I started cheerleading soon after leaving gymnastics (yes, like that Cheer) and continued throughout college at Louisville and then at USC. It might sound funny, but I think there’s a lot of similarity between cheer and CrossFit. To excel at either you need to be coordinated, strong, and powerful enough to throw heavy stuff around. In one it’s barbells; in the other it’s people.

Once college was over and cheerleading wasn’t an option anymore, a lot of girls “joined gyms.” I wanted to stay fit and had no idea what to do, so I joined one too. To my surprise, there was a lot of carryover from all those years of cheer! From the need for strength, to the teamwork aspect, to developing new skills, setting goals, and tracking progress. I was immediately drawn to it.

I hope we get a shot of you in your full cheerleading regalia as the pic for this article! What were your initial impressions of the CFSBK environment?

I loved it, obviously. I’m not huge on trying new things, so I was nervous and almost didn’t show up, but I live literally on the same street as the gym and had no good excuse to skip out. I was greeted at the front desk, chatted a bit, and noticed people hanging around and talking. The people here just seemed to be happy and enjoying themselves. And the logo is pretty cool, too. 🙂

Glad you left your apartment and didn’t chicken out! Where did you grow up, and how’d you end up in Brooklyn?

I was born in Greensboro, NC and grew up between there, Greenville, SC, and Boiling Springs, SC. There’s not a lot happening in the Carolinas other than counting cows and sitting in parking lots, which is to say I grew up in small, rural, Southern towns. I went to the same school as my mother, grandma, and great grandma. I’ve got two older brothers (I’m the baby) and also grew up with lots of cousins just a few years apart. It was nice and we’re a close family because of it, but small town + big family = everyone knows your business. And, my mom teaches middle school and coached at our high school, so someone always knew who we were! Her maiden name is Pace and I was always “one of those Pace kids.”

I moved to Brooklyn because I wanted to get out of the South. It was such a great place to grow up, and I’ll always be thankful for it, but I saw generations stay. Not that there’s anything wrong with that; I just wanted to know what else was out there. My parents lived in new York when they were first married and encouraged us kids to explore. I studied abroad for a summer in Reggio Emilia, Italy, and pushed back “real life” for a bit after college. I spent a few fun months bartending and was in no rush to make any big decisions. When my brother’s roommate situation fell apart last minute here in Brooklyn, I took it as a sign and decided to move. So here I am!

Wow…I’m always impressed by people who just pick up and move, especially when they could well have stayed comfortable where they were. How do you spend your days outside of CFSBK nowadays?

I eventually did look for a job and now work for Brooklinen. I joke that it’s sort of my first “real-person” job, and I love it. I’ve got awesome co-workers who’ve become my best friends, and I also have a ton of fun with gals and guys from the gym. Some of us recently had a 2020 Vision Board Party! I may be a bit of a jock, but I come from a book heavy family, so I’m also quite bookish. Last year, I read 52 books and plan to do it again this year! 2019 was filled with mostly fiction (ironically, I find that reading fiction makes me more empathetic in reality), but this year I’m trying to include more non-fiction as well. I’m also in a few book clubs to keep me inspired, and for Christmas this past year I received the perfect gift—one of those bed tray tables to read and keep a drink on! I’m obsessed with it. And, of course, I love to watch sports of any and all kinds, with college football as the front runner. (SEC, baby!) I’ve also had some of my best New York conversations with random old guys while catching the Carolina Panthers over at 200 5th.

52 books in a year! Holy cow. I would need to do nothing else but read to hit that number. I love asking this next question because I feel it gets to people’s true self in a way. If you could place an ad in the NYC subway system or on a huge billboard in Brooklyn that people would see every day, what would it say?

That would be my momma’s motto: “Nobody Cares.” And not in a bad way at all, but more as a reminder to not worry about being judged. Nobody really cares about what you do since they’re all busy caring about themselves. You wanna dance, then dance your heart out. You wanna wear leggings and a tee to go out, do it and be comfy! If you meet a cute bartender and want to leave your number, do it, because why not? I’ve always been comfortable in my own style and have my mother to thank for it. There’s a quote—maybe by Dr Seuss, maybe not—that goes: “Those who mind don’t matter, and those who matter don’t mind.” I think that’s a powerful thing to believe.

Thanks for that! I love Dr Seuss and love that quote, so of course I had to look it up. Turns out it was Bernard Baruch, but the sentiment is there nonetheless. What piece of advice would you offer to someone just starting Crossfit?

SCALE! You don’t have to do what’s on the board. Forget what you think you “should” do. Go light, learn from the coaches, and stay positive.

What keeps you coming back to CFSBK? How do you make training fit into your lifestyle?

CFSBK just feels like home. Sometimes I might not want to come to class, and when I do, my most-used phrase is “This is NOT fun.” But I always like who it makes me. The programming is awesome and coming here in the morning sets the vibe for the rest of my day. It makes me want to eat better, puts me in a great mood, and serves as an anchor for whatever else happens in my life.

I love the phrase you use there, “I always like who it makes me.” To me that sounds like you’re putting action ahead of inspiration and letting the results follow. Which I both admire and recommend, and strive to do myself. Last question! What qualities are important to you for a future Athlete of the Month?

A future AOM should be someone who’s willing to listen and learn more, no matter how much they think they already know. Someone who asks questions, helps others, and is excited and enthusiastic about improving!

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