Thursday 29 September 2011

UK: Strength and Power Series Final 2011


This weekend is the UK: Strength and Power Series Final being held at the Beaverfit yard in Shropshire.Athletes from all over the country have been competing in a series of events over the year all leading up to this final event. Throughout the series there have been some amazing demonstrations of strength and determination from both the women and men.

Our very own Caveman Snacks will be at the event providing hot and tasty paleo food. We are very excited to be invited along to be part of the day!

CrossFit Reading are looking for one female competitor to join their team, so if you feel up to the challenge and you want a fun day out, get in contact with them a.s.a.p!!
Or come along and be part of, whats going to be a great day.

Wednesday 28 September 2011

Zen and CrossFit.

I came across a great passage of work the other day whilst reading and felt that while originally describing a dojo the script also perfectly and ingeniously captures the spirit of a CrossFit box in a better way than anything else I have ever read.

I have replaced the words 'dojo' or 'martial arts' for 'CrossFit' or 'box' four times. See if you agree with the relevance.

Adapted from the book 'Zen in the Martial Arts' by Joe Hyams.

'A CrossFit box is a miniature cosmos where we make contact with ourselves - our fears, anxieties, reactions and habits. It is an arena of confined conflict where we confront an opponent who is not an opponent but rather a partner engaged in helping us understand ourselves more fully. It is a place where we can learn a great deal in a short time about who we are and how we react in the world. The conflicts that take place inside a CrossFit box help us handle conflicts that take place outside. The total concentration and discipline required to study CrossFit carries over to daily life. The activity in the box calls on us to constantly attempt new things, so it is also a source of learning - in Zen terminology, a source of self-enlightenment.'






Monday 26 September 2011

Online Class Booking

I'm pleased to announce that we now have an online class booking system, live from today, for our members to book their classes up to 14 days in advance.



Using the popular MindBody software you now no longer need to text or call us to get booked in. Simply visit the CrossFit Connect class booking schedule and click away! We hope that this will make things easier for you to organise your training during the week.

Here are a few steps to get you started:


How to book in online:  Click HERE to visit our site.

1) Create a username and password for the site. After you have entered your first and last names under the 'New To Our Site' section you will be presented with a screen that says 'Find Account'. Click on the 'This Is Me' next to your name. If you are already a member of CrossFit Connect your name will appear here. By confirming your name, your log in details will be linked with your information already on our database and you will have the ability to book online. Not clicking on your name will result in a duplicate entry and you wont be allowed to book online.
2) Once logged in, browse to the  WOD Class or Open Gym you would like to book using the tabs at the top of the page.
3) Click on the 'Sign Up Now' button next to the class you would like to book.
4) A page will appear confirming the details of the class.
5) If you are a Monthly member click on 'Single Reservation' or 'Recurring Reservation' depending on your choice. (You can book up to 14 days in advance)
6) If you are a Drop-In member click on 'Register as Unpaid' to pay when you arrive.
7) A confirmation page will appear and an email will be sent to you to confirm the booking.
8) You can also confirm your schedule, attendance history and account settings under the 'My Info' tab.

Please visit the site, bookmark it and register now so you are able to book your classes for this week. We will still be using the book at the box this week as well to allow you time to get used to the new system. If you need any advice or want to be shown how to use the service please just let us know.

Here are a few more things to note:

 * Class sizes are limited to 10 people during the week and 12 at weekends.
 * The cut off time for booking into day/evening classes is 30 minutes prior to the start of the class and 10pm the previous evening for 7am classes.
 * If you do wish to book in after these times please text David & Holly to ensure space is available.
 * Please remember to cancel your booking if you no longer wish to attend the class as this will free up space for others.
 * Only members of CrossFit Connect can book in online. If you would like to become a member or book a  taster class with us then please get in touch using the 'Contact Us' tab at the top of the page or give us a call.
 * Open gym sessions can only be booked by those designated as advanced athletes. To qualify as an advanced athlete you should be comfortable and confident in your lifts and have the knowledge to train on your own. A coach will still be present to offer advice when needed.
 * Our retail shop and online membership payment options are in development and are coming soon.

You also have the option of booking your classes through our Facebook page using the 'Book Classes' link on the left hand menu bar.

We are also in the process of developing an online shop which will sell retail items such as t-shirts and hoodies and also allow you to set up membership payments. I'm hoping this side of the site will be up and running by November.

We would love to have your feedback on these new developments and hope that the new system proves easy to use.

Thanks

Team CFC

If any affiliates would like more information on the MindBody software and how it is helping drive many CrossFit boxes forward please drop us a line.



Sugar, Sugar, Sugar!

Hey all.

We are into the last week of our September Paleo Challenge and i hope you are all by now feeling fantastic and energised.

We've heard from a few of you that it took a bit of getting used to changing your diet in this way but this is completely normal. I'm also glad to say that those of you that were wobbling stuck with it after our advice and are now feeling the true benefits of a clean diet.

The challenge officially finishes next Sunday 2nd October so have a great week of super nutritious, clean eating and then we'll see what a change can be made in just 30-days when we take all your measurements again next week!

Make sure your food diaries are being filled in so you can see exactly how good you have been over the last four weeks (and so can we!!)

At the end of the challenge we will then follow up with a 'what to do next' post concerning how to go about maintaining your new diet and not slipping back into your old ways. Yes you can start introducing a few of the things you have really missed, but in moderation and not everyday! In fact, going back to eating how you were before will more than likely make you feel quite sick.

As a little bit of encouragement i thought you may find this of interest! When you see the sugar laid out like it is next to the products it truly is stunning how much sugar we ingest without thinking about it. Imagine your disgust (I would hope!! haha!) if someone asked you to eat 10 sugar cubes instead of having a can of Coke!! Crazy isn't it!


(The pictures can be found on the internet but i got the one below from here:
http://fitter-faster-stronger.blogspot.com/)


Have a good week and see you at the box.


Tuesday 20 September 2011

Welcome to Fran!

We put our guys and gals through what is perhaps the most famous CrossFit workout of all yesterday:

FRAN
21-15-9
Thrusters (42.5kg/30kg)
Pull ups

In fact, scrap that. Its definitely the most famous CrossFit workout there is! If you are a CrossFitter and meet a fellow CrossFitter before long the question will be asked, "Whats your Fran time?" Its like a badge of honour, a quick test. Exactly how fit are you?!

Fran, despite being one of the shorter benchmark workouts in the CrossFit repertoire, is just brutal. It takes you through some of the biggest range of motions the human body can go through in the Thrusters before making you shift your own bodyweight up over a bar a beautiful 45 times! It takes it out of you like nothing else and leaves you feeling completely worked over despite taking less than 10 minutes (and often less than 5 mins).

Of course you may have to scale it accordingly first if you cant quite manage the Rx'd weight or havent quite got that many pull ups yet. Even still, to be able to complete Fran Rx'd (or As Prescribed) should be a good goal of most every CrossFitter. Just to see what it feels like. Oh, and in the process you might just become very fit.

It is the workout that got me addicted to CrossFit as my goal was to keep lowering my time as much as i could. In fact that still is one of my goals! I started at 7mins 30s am now down to 3mins 54s and would like to get sub-3 mins if im honest. We'll see. Oh and just so that you all have hope, thats taken me 18 months to improve that time. These things dont happen overnight!

For a brief history of Fran i'll leave it to Greg Glassman, CrossFit co-founder to explain how and why it came about:



So yesterday was the second time since CrossFit Connect has been open that we programmed in Fran. A few had done it before but for most it was the first experience.
We scaled it to suit everybody including ring rows and sand filled pipes for those very new to CrossFit and held back on the weights even for those who have been coming a while. To do Fran with 42.5kg Thrusters takes a hell of a lot of practice, midline strength and flexibility.

We saw some great results with those repeating it knocking good chunks of time off their previous best and a few managing to do it rx'd whereas previously they had used scaled weights or pull up bands. It was great to see.

We'll give the good lady a rest for a while now but she'll be back soon to see how everyone is progressing.



Until next time.......


Thursday 8 September 2011

6 Common CrossFit Questions

Check out this great post from CrossFit Pittsburgh about 6 common CrossFit myths.

Click below for a link to their blog:
http://if-fit.com/crossfit-blog/6-myths-of-crossfit/



Or I've re-posted it below:
(Written by Jim Crowell of Integrated Fitness)


6 Myths of Crossfit Explained
Crossfit is an evolving fitness idea that is beginning to catch fire across the world.  For those of you who haven’t heard of Crossfit it is an intense type of fitness regimen that has affiliate gyms all across the world.  The program is designed to get you in the best overall shape possible.
You will see different workouts everyday and you will challenge yourself greatly, but the prize is weight loss, fat loss, muscle gain, and confidence through achievement.  Of course with an idea that is somewhat extreme like Crossfit there are plenty of naysayers and myths about it that are out there.
Here are 6 “myths” that I hear all of the time about Crossfit.  I will be objective and present very real facts and unbiased opinions.  I also want to be clear that I am speaking about the experiences that I have had in our gym.  I always recommend that you do your research and feel comfortable with the gym that you go to.  It is important that your coaches have your short and long term interests in mind with their training program.  Here are the myths:
1. Crossfit isn’t for beginning athletes or people who haven’t worked out beforeFALSE:
We have people who have come in with zero workout experience that have turned into wonderful additions to our gym.
Some people with no experience have tried it and either didn’t like it or weren’t willing to work hard so they didn’t last.  But, those people who want to change their life and are willing to work hard can try Crossfit and end up loving it
2. Crossfit isn’t designed for womenFALSE :
We have more women in our Crossfit program than we do men.
While the workouts are hard and we use free weights I have found that many women embrace the training because they feel stronger, more confident, and they understand that it is necessary to use resistance to change their body’s makeup for the better.
I have also found that women love being on the clock in a competitive setting.  While it doesn’t matter who wins a workout, the environment is wonderful to push yourself and our women love it
3. Crossfit is going to make me too muscular (typically from a female perspective)FALSE: 
There has been a great deal of research done on what types of workout programs do what to your body.
There is a very good reason why many bodybuilders do slow sets of about 12-15 reps of a lift and then take time in between.  That type of lifting is designed to “hypertrophy” the muscles.  In other words, it is designed to make muscles bigger and more defined.  Crossfit lifting regimens are designed to be very high intensity and very diverse.
This type of training is great for weight loss and toning.  If you decide that Crossfit is a sport that you want to compete in then you may decide to increase your training, your lifting weights, and your set counts, but until then there are no ladies in our program that are overly muscular
4. Crossfit will make you tight and inflexible: FALSE: 
Speaking from my own personal perspective, I am more flexible today than I was before I did Crossfit.  The reason that people get more flexible is because we always do a dynamic warm up which gets your blood flowing and sends your muscles through ranges of motion.
A great deal of research has been done regarding flexibility and it has been shown that dynamic stretching is far superior to static stretching for most athletes.
At the end of a workout we will do a bit of static stretching, but the dynamic warm up coupled with exercises that force you to become more flexible help make our athletes more flexible, not less
5. Crossfit can’t help you with your other sports such as marathon running:FALSE: 
I have had many 5k, 10k, ½ marathoners, full marathoners come into the gym looking to run better.
Most of them come in because their bodies can’t handle the extreme mileage that they are putting their bodies through.  In every case thus far we have been able to cut time off of their runs, typically cutting a great deal of time off.  Now, in fairness, I have done a great deal of research into the biomechanics of proper running form and I work with some of my runners on their technique.  But, Crossfit is a wonderful way to supplement your training runs.
Not only do you train your aerobic threshold with challenging workouts, you train all of your important running muscles.  We train every piece of your core (low abs, obliques, low back, glutes, thighs), we train smaller muscles such as your calves and shoulders (front and back), and we train your explosiveness.
Many runners simply go out and run because they believe that that will make them faster.  In the beginning that works but then to increase intensity you have to run farther and farther and faster and faster.  It is very difficult on your body to run that far.  A far better strategy is to train all of the muscles in your body, train your technique, and train your speed (not by running) so that when you go out and run you can be more efficient and more comfortable.  It works
6. All CrossFits Are The Same: FALSE: 
Because CrossFit is such a broad way of working out there major differences from box to box. For example some gyms focus more on running and CrossFit Endurance.
Other CrossFit gyms may focus more on powerlifting and West Side Barbell Techniques. Most CrossFit Boxes are somewhat in the middle and focus primarily on Workouts Of the Day (also known as WODS).
The best thing you can do is find a box where you feel you fit in and get a great workout.
Of course I hear other questions about Crossfit all of the time but I hear these questions all of the time and I wanted to address them specifically.  If properly structured Crossfit is an excellent tool to get you fit.
By Jim Crowell


With 2012 almost upon us now is a great time to discover what CrossFit is all about. Come down to Connect for a friendly chat or a taster class and see why everyone is going to be talking about CrossFit in 2012. Seriously, the UK CrossFit scene is about to get huge!


Our first Intro Course of the year is on Sunday 8th January 12-3pm. Get in touch and book your place now.


info@crossfitconnect.co.uk

Class Changes This Weekend.

Hey all

Due to the very imminent wedding of CrossFit Connect co-owners Holly and Barney tomorrow we have changed the class schedule just a little bit to accommodate the sure-to-be-partying!!

There will be:

No Friday lunchtime class 9th Sept
One WOD class on at 11am Saturday 10th - No Oly/Gymnastics class
One WOD class on at 11am on Sunday 11th.

Hope to see some of you at the party/picnic/knees up on Saturday!

Thanks