Sunday 28 August 2011

September Paleo Challenge

So there are 5 days to go to sign up for our September Paleo challenge. We have a whole stack of people on board this time to try to 'go Paleo' for 30-days and see what great results they can achieve.

Do you want to drop body fat? Check.
Do you want to drop inches off your waist? Check
Do you want to drop your weight by as much as 5kgs? Check
Do you want to improve your strength, fitness and speed? Check

Do you want all of this in just 30-days with a simple eating plan and some good old fashioned hard work at CrossFit Connect? You bet you do!

Okay, so I'm not telling you its going to be easy or that we do all of this for you. You have to WANT to make the change and you have to actually WANT to make this happen.
We as coaches are here to guide you, motivate you and teach you how to become fitter, faster and stronger. CrossFit changes peoples lives. You just have to make that decision to try it and you wont look back.



Results from our June challenge amazed the people who took part. Here's a section of an earlier post from the first challenge:

Ten of our members completed the challenge and i have to say they are very happy with the outcome. Plan P included a detailed meal plan drawn up by our 3 AA rosette winning chef, a food diary, a carefully structured training programme of lifting and WODs (workout of the day) and full support via email and phone. We didn't allow them any cheat days so that they could feel the true benefits of being 100% 'clean' and most of them trained at least three times a week down at the box.

The measurements we took were:
Weight (Kgs)
Body Fat % (as a total)
Body Fat % (as a score in four areas of the body; biceps, triceps, hips and shoulder)
Waist in Inches
Hips in Inches

So what happened and how did they feel?

Between them they lost 27.8kg in weight (approx 4.4 stone), 19.4% body fat and 15 inches around their waists!
(I dont want to give out individual results and names over the internet but if you would like more exact details then they will be available down at the box. Also, the 15in waist measurement total was only between 7 people not 10!)


Not bad eh? And this includes a few people who weren't looking to actually lose much weight but to just lean up around the mid-section. The before and after photos we took showed great differences and we kept having to remind ourselves that this was in fact only a 30-day challenge and not longer. Imagine 30 days from now being over half a stone lighter and having 5% less body fat around your mid-section? You'd take that wouldn't you?

I should also tell you that we saw some amazing increases in strength during that time as well proving that you can indeed get stronger and lose weight at the same time. One Deadlift went from 140kg to 170kg and one Shoulder Press from 32.5kg to 50kg.

CrossFit and Paleo are a potent combination.



We have packages for existing members and new members alike.


Members entry is £15.


For new members the package is outlined below:
~30-day Plan P guide including detailed meal plans, food diary, shopping lists and exercise guide.
~Personal two hour Intro course at CrossFit Connect.
~One months membership at CrossFit Connect.
~Full health check and measurement assessment at beginning and end.

Cost = £150


If you would like to know more about the next Plan P challenge, CrossFit or simply want to see the place where our members are seeing so much success then give us a call, drop us a line or come down to the box and say 'hi'. We are a friendly, community driven gym where top quality coaching and nutrition advice are combined to get you into the best shape of your life. 



We will be taking starting measurements from this Wednesday 31st August until Saturday 3rd September when the challenge starts. Paleo books with food guide, menu plans and food diaries will be available from Saturday 3rd from the box.


If you have any other questions don't hesitate to drop us an email. Also see our facebook page at:
http://tinyurl.com/3rk5x39 for updates.


I would wish you good luck but you dont need it!
If you sign up, follow what we say and train hard the results will speak for themselves. 
Come and find out about the buzz thats being generated by one of the best gyms in Brighton and Hove . We produce results. Full stop.


Take care

Bank Holiday Opening Times

We are open as normal this Bank Holiday Monday 29th August!

This means WOD classes on at 7am, 1pm, 6.30pm and 7.30pm.

See ya'll there!

Friday 12 August 2011

Divided We Fall Games 2011


CrossFit Velocity are hosting this years UK CrossFit team games on October 29th /30th.

Velocity are based in Swansea and by all accounts last years event was a cracking day out for all. This year it has grown further and is now a two-day event.

Teams need to consist of 1 woman and 3 men. The cost is £15 each so £60 for the team to enter.

I think we should be able to get two teams together so if anyone is interested the we need to know numbers ASAP. Crossfit Velocity want to know how many teams are entering by THIS WEEKEND (13th /14th August).

Obviously the competition is going to be pretty tough and there will be some excellent athletes taking part (last year Sam Briggs competed who has just finished 4th in the ladies division at the Reebok CrossFit games in California!). But dont let this put you off!

It will just be an awesome weekend away, meeting up with fellow CrossFitters, having fun and banging out some WODs. Plus, what an incentive to up the training over the next few months!

If anyone is keen we would like to know so get in touch with either myself or Holly or discuss it with us at the box over the weekend.

Travel arrangements and accommodation will be made after we know how many people are keen.

It should be a great weekend so lets get CrossFit Connect involved!

Monday 1 August 2011

The 2011 CrossFit Games.


Well that was certainly an inspirational weekend! We have just witnessed the biggest CrossFit Games so far and you could clearly see the potential this event has to become huge.

With Reebok behind it this year everything was upped from the prize money ($250k for first place anyone?!) to the production scale to the locations and the TV coverage on ESPN. To the detest of many followers CrossFit is now no longer an underground movement. CrossFit is going all glitzy and glamour and moving away from the spit-and-sawdust of how it started out. It has 'sold out' as so many forum scribblers are keen to tell us.

But is this a bad thing?

As an affiliate owner and CrossFitter i have to say 'no'.

If what drew you to CrossFit in the first place was the hardcore, beat your chest, grab an old pair of shorts and workout till your sick kinda thing then i can see why the brand placement, massive product advertising and CrossFit apparel may piss you off. However, ultimately we all became addicted to CrossFit for the same reason. It works. We got stronger, fitter and faster than we had ever been. We pushed ourselves harder than we thought possible because we wanted to lower our times or improve our scores. We wanted to get more technically proficient at the hard Olympic lifts because we wanted to lift more weight above our heads. And we wanted to train as much as we could because we loved training with the community that was created at our local box. Wanting to go to the gym? Now theres a thing.

Something this good is always going to be found out by the wider public eventually. I didn't even get into CrossFit until a couple of years ago. I would call myself a relative newcomer too. But whats wrong with sharing? I opened an affiliate because i was passionate about getting more and more people involved with CrossFit. I wanted to share my knowledge and make real changes in their lives. I wanted to see people go from not being able to hold their own bodyweight on a bar to doing full chest to bar pull ups, to go from feeling awkward with an empty Olympic barbell in their hands to clean and jerking their bodyweight.

When we ran the recent 30-day Paleo challenge at the box (see an earlier post) we saw some incredible changes in our members. To watch as they lost nearly 30kg in combined weight over the course of just one month and became leaner but also stronger and fitter too was inspirational. They now see that what we were saying about CrossFit being a fantastic way to train when they first walked through our doors is true. If you want to make a serious change to your health and fitness CrossFit is one hell of a place to start.

The Games this weekend were a great example of what can be achieved by the human body. All the men and women that competed, including the truly amazing Masters categories, were phenomenal and just looking over some of the times and results that they posted is a real inspiration to keep training harder. We may never reach their level but to finish a workout knowing you have truly given everything is all that can be asked. If you do, the results will follow.

So is CrossFit the be-all and end-all of fitness training? Certainly not. It is just one nicely packaged, results driven, community inspired movement that i am happy and proud to be part of. I will always do my own research and learn from my own experiences as to what works best at any given moment. I think CrossFit can grow further and become even better by ensuring they continue to look at all other training modalities and dont just declare that CrossFit is the only way to go. We can all continue to learn.

So, do i mind that Reebok have come on board; that more and more people are getting in touch with our affiliate because they have started to see the name around the Internet and on TV; that more people like the look of CrossFit because they are bored with their regular way of training and that more people are making a positive change in their lives by dramatically improving their health, diet and lifestyle?

No, you bet i don't.