Flashback Friday: On March 13th, 2013, CFSBK hosted Lindsey Valenzuela and Annie Thorisdottir for the live annoucement of Open Workout 13.2. Hear that excitment in the crowd? See the camaraderie between the competitors? That’s what the Open is all about, and that’s why we want you to register! It just so happens that 13.2 is programmed for tomorrow. So come give it a try, relive the glory, and see what all the fuss is about!

• SCHEDULE CHANGE: Tomorrow’s 10am Yoga for Athletes class with Coach Whit is cancelled.

This Week at CFSBK in Review

Because we love you and we don’t want you to miss any of the awesome stuff that’s happening at the gym right now, here’s your weekly recap.

1. Our new programming cycle started this week, and it’s a little different from the way we’ve done things in the past. Check out the details here.

2. In another installment of “The Iron Maidens of CFSBK,” we profiled TFBA Morit S. We’re now just about $1,000 away from our $20,000 fundraising goal. Thank you all for your generous contributions and your diligent fundraising! Go here to donate to a lifter’s campaign and help us push past the finish line.

3. Over at Inside the Affiliate, Coach David just published an interesting new piece entitled “How To Give Newbies Their First Taste of CrossFit.” It’s an excellent reminder of how lucky we are to be part of a gym where the managment puts so much thought into programming and works so hard to create an inclusive environment.

4. We’re less than one week away from the annoucement of CrossFit Open Workout 16.1. Guys, this is getting serious. You best get registered! 

5. Speaking of the Open, this year we’re adding a new twist in order to promote some friendly competition. We’ll be organizing intramural Open teams for those who are interested. Go here for more details, and here to sign up. So far, 24 out of the 53 CFSBKers registered for the Open have signed up for the Intramural Team Competition. We want more of you to join in on the fun! The deadline to sign up for intramurals is Wednesday, February 24th.

4. We have a ton of your personal belongings in our Lost and Found, and we want to give them back. Do any of these shoes belong to you? What about this other stuff? Please claim it before we donate it to CHIPS!

5. Movie night returns on Friday, February 26th! From 8 to 10:30 (after OG), we’ll be screening Fittest on Earth 2015, a behind-the-scenes documentary about last year’s CrossFit Games. Come watch it with your fellow CFSBKers and other CrossFitters from local affiliates. Go to yesterday’s post for more detals.
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Yesterday’s Whiteboard: Snatch Balance | Overhead Squats, Run
Allow These Two Olympic Runners to Demonstrate the Motivational Powers of Belonging to a Team NY Mag
Which Type of Exercise Is Best for the Brain? New York Times
Peru’s Mysterious “Boiling River” The Telegraph

Snatch Balance

1-1-1-1-1
Take 5 attempts at max for the day.

Post loads to comments.

Compare to 12.31.15 and 11.29.15
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Partners alternate full rounds to complete 10 total rounds for time of:
270m Run
10 Overhead Squats 95/65
Overhead Squats come off the floor and should be done unbroken. Push the pace on the runs.

Post time, partner, and Rx to comments.

Movie Night! Fittest on Earth 2015 on February 26th from 8 to 10:30pm

Hang out with your CFSBK buds after Open Gym and get inspired to compete in the Open!

News and Notes

• The fourth LFPB Q&A Info Session, “Adjusting Nutrition to Meet Your Goals,” is tonight at 6:30pm in the second-floor Annex. Have you been following the LFPB Challenge guidelines but aren’t seeing the changes you thought you would? Are you trying to gain or lose weight, get stronger and improve your conditioning, but it just isn’t happening? In this lecture, we’ll discuss how to adjust your nutrition habits to better align with your goals.
  
• We’re down to one week until the annoucement of CrossFit Open Workout 16.1. You best get registered! Here’s why you should.
  
• Schedule change: This Saturday’s 10am Yoga for Athletes class is cancelled. Coach Whit will be out of town.

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Yesterday’s Whiteboard: Bench/Row WOD
2016 CrossFit Open Predictions from Games Athletes Fitness HQ
16 Hours in a CrossFit Box BuzzFeed Blue
The Strangely Suggestive Power of Birdsong Pacific Standard

Bench/Row WOD

5 Rounds:
5 Bench Presses, as heavy as possible
250m Row for time

This is a slight variation on a WOD we’ve programmed a few times over the years. Work up to as heavy a load as possible on the Bench Press while still making all 5 reps. Your score for the Bench Press portion is the total poundage moved for all 5 work sets. However, if you miss a rep and only complete 4 then you score a 0 for the Bench Press for that round. There is no time component for the entire round, but you’ll score each 250m Erg sprint. The intent is to go all out on the row. Set the monitor up to count down 250m and score your time for that as well. Rest as needed (probably at least 3 minutes) between rounds. Score total pounds moved in sets of 5 and total time for the Erg sprints.

David G. working on his Handstand Push-Ups

• In case you missed it, check out Coach David‘s new post at Inside the Affiliate, “How To Give Newbies Their First Taste of CrossFit.” It’s a fun, interesting read!

The 2016 CFSBK CrossFit Open Intramural Team Competition

Morit (right) on the podium with Val and Ellie at Fight Gone Bad 2015

• The fourth LFPB Q&A Info Session, “Adjusting Nutrition to Meet Your Goals,” is this Thursday at 6:30pm.
• We have a ton of your stuff in our Lost and Found! Do any of these shoes belong to you? What about this other stuff? Please claim it before we donate it to CHIPS in two weeks!
  

The Iron Maidens of CFSBK: Morit Summers

The Iron Maidens Raw Open is fast approaching! Leading up to the event, we’ll be posting brief interviews with CFSBK lifters to help you get to know our team and give you a sense of what these women are doing to prepare. This year, through competitors’ fundraising efforts, Iron Maidens will create the inaugural annual Iron Maidens Stay Strong Scholarship. Our goal is to raise $20,000 to pay for 70% of college tuition for 10 women in the College Prep program at the Bronx-based Grace Outreach. Right now we’re at $17,335 donated. We’re so close, and we need your help to reach the finish line! You can donate to a lifters’ campaign by going here.

What’s your athletic background, Mo? When did you start barbell training?

I don’t really have an athletic background. I started lifting weights when I was 14. I was overweight and did not enjoy sports, so the gym became a part of my life. I went to SUNY Cortland for Exercise Science and Kinesiology, and that’s where I learned how to use the barbell. I really didn’t start working out with the barbell all the time until I joined CrossFit South Brooklyn a little over a year ago. Now I couldn’t live without it.  

How has lifting impacted you athletically and personally?

Lifting is really the only time I feel at my most confident. I am the strongest I have ever been and feel that I can always become better and that there is always room for improvement. I am excited to be at my most athletic in my 30s. I’ve always lifted, but Iron Maidens has given me something new and different to work towards. I’m at a crossroads in my life and career, and having this to focus on has been really amazing and empowering.

Have you competed in a powerlifting meet before?

No, this will be my first powerlifting competition. I am super excited to do this for the first time in a place I feel comfortable and surrounded by strong women! I work in the fitness industry, and for a lot of people it’s about aesthetics and the amount of weight you can lift (although I know that at a powerlifting meet we are trying lift a big number). To me the event means so much more than the numbers! 

So this is your first time competing in Iron Maidens! Anything in particular that you’re looking forward to or nervous about?

It is my first time, and I’m really looking forward to being surrounded by strong women! People have always told me I’m strong, but I’ve never been totally sure what that means. I really feel like training for this competition is a way of proving to myself what I am capable of. I’m not nervous now. I know I will be the day of, maybe even the week of. Usually before any competition I’m incredibly nervous until I get started.

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Yesterday’s Whiteboard: Clean | Front Squats, Toes-to-Bars
Is It Dangerous to Sleep with Your Smartphone? Hopes&Fears
CrossFit HQ Redesigns CrossFit.com

Power Clean

Every Minute on the Minute for 15 minutes:
3 Touch-and-Go Power Cleans
Start light and build to a max for the day.

Post loads to comments.

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5 Rounds For Time:
12 Front Squats 115/75
10 Toes-to-Bars
The Front Squat weight should be light enough to do unbroken and fast, even if you don’t really want to. Nowhere to hide on this one. Sub Hanging Leg Raises for Toes-to-Bars as necessary.

Manuel G. demonstrates an excellent front rack postition

• Over on Inside the Affiliate, Coach David just published an interesting new piece entitled “How To Give Newbies Their First Taste of CrossFit.” It’s an excellent reminder of how lucky we are to be part of a gym where the managment puts so much thought into programming and works so hard to create an inclusive environment. What was your first CrossFit workout? Tell us in the comments!
  

New Programming Cycle Starts Today!

This next 8-week Group Programming Cycle, running from 2/15/16 until 4/10/16, will take a different approach than our previous cycles. Instead of programming the same lifts on the same days of the week for the entirety of the cycle, we’re going to rotate through different movement variations across 3 categories in the strength/skill portion of each class. These 3 categories are: Olympic WeightlIfting (the Snatch, the Clean and Jerk, and all their variations), Powerlifting (Squats, Presses, and Pulls), and Gymnastics Skill Work (Ring and Bar Muscle-Ups, Inversions, etc). This will provide broader exposure to a wider pool of movements and allow for the daily programming to look much like a class that’s prepping for an Open Workout. Since we’re running right through the Open this cycle, it’s perfect timing! Here’s the basic structure:

Monday – Olympic lift + Metcon
Tuesday – Rest
Wednesday – Powerlift + Metcon
Thursday – Olympic lift + Metcon
Friday – Rest
Saturday – Skill (or Open Workout prep) + Metcon (or Open Workout)
Sunday – Powerlift + Metcon

We’ll continue to throw in some Not For Time assistance/accessory work and will vary the mode and time domains of the metcons, so you can expect to see some Olympic lifting variants in the metcon on powerlifting day and vice-versa.

During the CrossFit Open, we’ll be programming Open Workouts on Saturdays. This means you’ll have several opportunities to complete them and get your scores in. You’ll be able to do Open Workouts at the following classes:

Friday – All morning classes (following Saturday programming), plus Friday evening Open Gym
Saturday – All classes, plus Saturday afternoon OG
Sunday – Evening OG

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Yesterday’s Whiteboard: Handstand Walking | Chipper WOD
How Steph Curry Got the Best Worst Ankles in Sports ESPN
CrossFit Teens: Competing at Wodapalooza and More Fitness HQ

Handstand Walking

Choose one of the following scaling options and spend 12 minutes developing your hand balancing:
A) Hand Walking (free or 2′ from wall)
B) Wall Inverted Hip Shifts with Hand Release (from a kick up)
C) Box Piked Hip Shifts with Hand Release
D) Floor Piked Hip Shifts with Hand Release

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For Time:
50 Double-Unders
50 Pull-Ups
50 Double-Unders
50 Burpees
50 Double-Unders
50 Squats
50 Double-Unders
50 AbMat Sit-Ups
50 Double-Unders
Aim to stay below redline on this chipper. Break the sets up as needed to stay fresh throughout. Smooth and steady is the goal. 

Remember summer? Dan G. and Greg C. do 

Editor’s Note: Tomorrow we’ll be posting the template for the upcoming group programming cycle, which will be quite different from the way we’ve organized mesocycles in the past. Our basic programming philosophy will, however, remain the same. Now’s a good time to revisit it! The article below was orginally posted on 6.10.2014. Enjoy! 

The Underlying Philosophy Behind Programming at CFSBK

By Chris Fox 

At CFSBK, we program for long-term health and fitness utilizing strength training, Olympic lifting, gymnastics, and mostly CrossFit-style couplet and triplet conditioning work. While some days look a bit different, a routine day at CrossFit South Brooklyn looks like this: DROMs, Warm Ups, Lifting, WOD prep, followed by a WOD. Let’s look at some of the reasons why we structure and program this way in terms of what each segment offers. 

DROMs: A general, light, dynamic warm up of joints and soft tissue will get your heart rate up a bit and help you enter a training mindset. It starts to get the sleep out of your eyes or the emails in your inbox out of your head. It also offers time for the QOD [LINK], which can lighten the mood and let you get to know a bit about the people you’ll be working hard with. 

Warm Ups: You need to be warmed up properly to move well and help prevent injury. Standardized warm ups move you through a wide range of motion, get you sweaty, and give you an opportunity to develop some strength in basic gymnastics and barbell movements you’ll regularly see in classes. Focused barbell drills review the positions and intentions of the lift you’ll be working on that day. We structure the drills so that you also get warm as you’re doing them.

Lifts: You need to be stronger, as strength is the physical adaptation with the greatest carryover to the rest of your training and to life in general. You may have noticed that we often squat twice each week. We’ve been programming this way for years and for good reason. I can’t say it any better than Mark Rippetoe so here’s a quote from the man himself:

“There is simply no other exercise, and certainly no machine, that provides the level of central nervous activity, improved balance and coordination, skeletal loading and bone density enhancement, muscular stimulation and growth, connective tissue stress and strength, psychological demand and toughness, and overall systemic conditioning than the correctly performed full squat.” 

We agree. 

The Olympic lifts train power, strength, coordination, flexibility, and overall athleticism. If you can throw a heavy weight overhead, catch it in a rock bottom overhead squat, then stand it up (PR bar slam optional), almost all of the other things we do will be easier. As far as the other lifts go, the bench is the best upper body strength developer and is simply fun. The press is another great upper body strength developer—it keeps the shoulder girdle healthy and works the muscles that stabilize your trunk extremely well. Every few cycles we’ll program an upper body gymnastics movement as a strength developer, as this allows us to have some fun and vary the stimulus a bit. The deadlift will get your back stronger like no other exercise can, and it’s almost always the lift where you’ll be able to move the most weight, automatically making it pretty cool. The average lifter should be able to deadlift more than they can squat. If that’s not the case for you, we recommend coming in on days when we’re pulling weights off the floor. 

WOD Prep and WOD: We discuss the intent of the WOD at the whiteboard, along with scaling options and strategies. The WOD is where we get our conditioning and develop the ability to work at high intensities for longer than a set of squats can take us. As stated above, we use mostly mixed modal couplets and triplets. Our conditioning tends to range from short, high intensity three- to seven-minute efforts, to medium intensity eight- 15-minute efforts on most days, with a lower intensity 20-minute-plus WOD thrown in once a week or so. 

Even when the total time is above 15 minutes, we’ll often use interval work so that intensity stays high, given that high intensity (anaerobic) training has positive carryovers to low intensity (aerobic) training and offers other benefits. High intensity training can develop and preserve muscle mass, whereas long slow distance training can cause you to lose it if used exclusively. High intensity training creates EPOC (Excess Post-Exercise Oxygen Consumption), which sets your metabolism up to burn slightly more fat after exercise compared to endurance-type training—a boon if you’re looking to lose extra fat. Plus it’s time effective. If you can get the same or better benefit metabolically with shorter high intensity training, then the only reason to do the long slow stuff is if you don’t want to work that hard. 

Consider that maybe you don’t need more “cardio,” but actually need to work harder. I’d argue that hard work will also make you stronger in non-physical ways. We throw something like “Murph” at you a few times each year since we know you secretly love it and it’s cool to see that you haven’t lost your ability to go that long in spite of all your gainz. If we programmed hero type WODs all the time however, we’d likely have an oft-injured population with a narrow scope of fitness. Time and intensity have an inverse relationship in that the longer you work, the lower the intensity must be. By intensity, I mean power output. I know a marathon can be an intense experience, but you’re not working as hard on those miles as you would be while doing 800m repeats. Furthermore, the longer you go, the more reps you’re going to be doing and the more fatigued you’ll be. You don’t move better on the 69th deadlift compared to the 9th, trust me. Remember: we’re programming for our general population to be fit for the long term—not to crush a week’s worth of hero WODs followed by six weeks of PT. 

Cool Down: This portion is largely up to you, but you really don’t need us to babysit while you run, row an easy 1000 meters, or spend some quality time with a foam roller. 

To wrap up, CFSBK’s programming is designed to give you the most training value. We do these things because they are effective, not because they are in vogue or even because our members demand that we do things a certain way. We’ve withstood a few silly fitness trends in favor of what science and experience says works and will continue to do so, evolving as we learn. Training here is hard, it’s consistent, and it isn’t always exciting or sexy, but it works. We’re lucky to have so many of you who seem to agree and are willing to put in the hard work!

What, in your opinion, was the most difficult workout of this Crush Week? 

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Yesterday’s Whiteboard: Partner WOD
Donald J. Trump State Park Atlas Obscura 
Streetcar Desired The Awl 

Partner WOD

With one partner working at a time, partners alternate full rounds in this workout to complete 10 total rounds for time of:
8 Hang Squat Clean Thrusters 135/95
270m Run or 300m Row
First partner completes a full round, then second partner starts on the Hang Squat Clean Thrusters when they finish the run or row.

Post time and Rx to comments. 

Griselle O. and Jason M. were all matchy on Wednesday night. Get it? Because their shirts match and also it’s called a rugby match. I’m sorry

Interested in Working Among CFSBKers at a Part-Time Workspace?

Brooklyn Creative League offers part-time workspace to independent workers, creative freelancers, entrepreneurs, and small-shop companies across Brooklyn and NYC. Several CFSBKers, including Richard G., Rob U., and Joe M., work there and can attest to the great environment. Get the details about availability and amenities over at brooklyncreativeleague.com.

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Yesterday’s Whiteboard: Rest Day
What I Paid To Be A Division I Athlete Vice 
13-Year-Old Maryana Naumova Benches 240lbs Raw YouTube 

More photos from the Community Potluck, including the aftermath of this one, are now up on our Flickr account. Check ’em out! 

This Week at CFSBK in Review

1. In our continuing Iron Maidens of CFSBK series, we heard from Jenna J. and Worm. We’re a little over 3 weeks from The Iron Maidens Raw Open, and we just hit 81% of our fundraising goal. We need your help to reach it! Can we make it past 100% by next Friday? Hell yeah we can. Go here to donate to your favorite lifter’s (or lifters’) campaign(s). 

2. Also, over at the Iron Maidens main site, Coach Margie wrote a very useful post about weight class considerations for those competing. Not competing but interested in volunteering on the day of the meet? We are still in need of spotters and plate loaders. Please fill out this form if you can help out.

3. Coaches Chris and Jess Fox threw down in front of the Eiffel Tower. It’s okay to take a break once in a while, guys. 

4. Coaches McDowell and Noah traveled to Arizona for James FitzGerald’s OPEX seminar and are looking for volunteers to do a free consultation. 

5. We gave you a rundown of all the recent gymprovements we’ve made at 597 and 608. What else what you like to see?

6. There are just 13 days until the annoucement of CrossFit Open Workout 16.1. Holy crud! Have you registered for the Open yet? Here’s why you should. 

7. The fourth LFPB Q&A Info Session, “Adjusting Nutrition to Meet Your Goals,” will happen Thursday, February 18th at 6:30pm. 
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Yesterday’s Whiteboard: Snatch | Row, Power Snatch, Burpees
Why Men Fight: An Empirical Investigation of the Extremes of Masculinity Quartz
Your Sorry Ass: Door Holding The Baffler 
FDA Recommends Adding Little Tabasco To That Bad Boy 

Power Snatch

Power Snatch:
Take 12 minutes to warm up to a Power Snatch slightly above your work weight for the metcon. Everything about the Power Snatch should look exactly like the full Snatch with the exception of the receiving position. Don’t default to sloppy mechanics.
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For Time: 
1000m Row
30 Power Snatches 135/95
50 Burpees Over The Bar 
Don’t sandbag the row here. Stay at a pace that allows you to come off feeling fresh. The Power Snatches should be a medium heavy load for you, so scale as necessary. If you can organize sets of 2-5 touch-and-go Power Snatches, then try to stay with that. Otherwise, singles with quick resets can keep you moving through. Burpees over the bar suck, we know. Full extension is not required and these are not bar facing. Set a pace that keeps you moving, and don’t take any long breaks. If you have a little bit left in the tank, then sprint for the last 10 reps.  

Worm driving to the top of a Thruster

• The fourth LFPB Q&A Info Session, “Adjusting Nutrition to Meet Your Goals,” is next Thursday, February 18th at 6:30pm.
  
• Interested in volunteering for Iron Maidens? We are still in need of spotters and plate loaders.  Please fill out this form if you can help out. Thanks!

The Iron Maidens of CFSBK: Sara Widman

The Iron Maidens Raw Open is less than 4 weeks away. Leading up to the event, we’ll be posting brief interviews with CFSBK lifters to help you get to know our team and give you a sense of what these women are doing to prepare. This year, through competitors’ fundraising efforts, Iron Maidens will create the inaugural annual Iron Maidens Stay Strong Scholarship. Our goal is to raise $20,000 to pay for 70% of college tuition for 10 women in the College Prep program at the Bronx-based Grace Outreach. Right now we’re at $15,550 donated, and we need your help to reach the finish line! You can donate to a lifters’ campaign by going here.

Worrrrrrm! (Did you know she’s had that nickname since summer camp?) What’s your favorite powerlift? 

I have to say, my favorite is definitely the Deadlift. The fact that I can lift well over 200 pounds makes me feel fierce. If my back is strong and my core is tight, I can safely lift 2 times my body weight, and that is amazing.

What’s your motivation for competing in Iron Maidens?

My main motivation is the comradery. I’ve competed in Iron Maidens for the past 3 years, and each time I am amazed by the amount of praise everyone gives to one other. Everyone is clearly respected and encouraged, no matter what her size or skill level. As a young woman growing up in Long Island, New York, I saw a lot of women around me working out to lose weight. They were always talking about the number on the scale, and they seemed to think of success as being skinny. At CFSBK, and more specifically at Iron Maidens, women clearly workout to get strong. For men strength is important, but for women, I believe it is a must. Feeling strong on the outside makes me feel strong on the inside and enables me to face all of the things in my life that are difficult. 

Any advice for first-time competitors? 

My advice is to just come and experience it. You will have so much fun, and really I think that’s the most important part—to have fun! 
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Yesterday’s Whiteboard: Open Workout 15.4
Frinkiac: A Searchable Database of Simpsons Screencaps
How to Reboot Your System Breaking Muscle

Open Workout 15.4

Complete as many reps as possible in 8 minutes of:
3 Handstand Push-Ups 
3 Cleans 185/125 
6 Handstand Push-Ups 
3 Cleans 185/125 
9 Handstand Push-Ups 
3 Cleans 185/125 
12 Handstand Push-Ups 
6 Cleans 185/125
15 Handstand Push-Ups 
6 Cleans 185/125
18 Handstand Push-Ups
6 Cleans 185/125
21 Handstand Push-Ups 
9 Cleans 185/125
Etc., adding 3 reps to the Handstand Push-Ups each round, and 3 reps to the Clean every 3 rounds.

The Cleans can be performed in any way. Prior to starting you will need to establish the foot line for your Handstand Push-Up. Stand facing the wall with your feet at hip width and your toes touching the wall. While standing tall, reach your hands over your head with your elbows straight, shoulders extended and your thumbs touching. From here, mark the height of your wrists, then measure down 3 inches and create a line on the wall. Mark your line with a permanent marker, chalk or tape. Judges may restore the line between rounds as needed. Each Handstand Push-Up begins and ends with the heels in contact with the wall and above the pre-marked line. The athlete may place their hands however they choose, as long as their heels are above the line.

Evan and Michelle at the Community Potluck this past Saturday. Pics from the Potluck are now up on Flickr! 

• Are you on the list to get our newsletter? You can sign up using the widget to the right, just above the link to CrossFit Journal. Don’t miss out on important news and events!

Gymprovements! 

Here are some recent additions to our equipment arsenal! 

• 3 new 10kg/22lb barbells for 608
• 6 Pairs of 15lb bumper plates for 608
• We ordered a new set of six 20″ and six 16″ stackable plyo boxes like the ones we have in 597 to replace the ones in 608 that stick together and make you say swear words. 
• 10 beaded jump ropes. These are a heavier than our speed ropes and make even Single-Unders feel harder.
• We put pop pins in the Crossover Symmetry stations in 608 so that they can be placed in any available rack instead of whichever ones happen to have the grey straps on them.
• We replaced the Assault Bike monitor since the last one was glitchy and kept resetting.
• We ordered 3 new back lit Concept2 PM5 rowing machine monitors.

What equipment would you like to see or see more of at CFSBK? Tell us in the comments!
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Yesterday’s Whiteboard: Rest Day
Brooke Wells Does Grace Scaled Up to 155lbs in 3:18 YouTube
We Are Hopelessly Hooked The New York Review of Books