Bank Holidays & Paleo - Neils Blog - Part 4

So more news from the Farley camp......

We all went training as a family on the recent bank holiday and once again (as they usually do on bank holidays) Connect opened up the classes to over 30 people and by using expert programming made it a team WOD that everybody could enjoy.

Plenty of room at Connect for some big Team events!

Team WODs are always great fun and this was no exception. It did have a downside as my team got beaten by Sarah's team and Madi's team but Sarah did manage to hit herself in the head with a 10kg plate whilst beating me so not all bad!  Haha! (I might be going to pay for that later ...!)

The fact that we can all go together makes training easier and even though my son Leo is only four and obviously too young to take part he is always made to feel welcome and loves coming down with us. He gets to swing on the rings and he loves the punch bag but I think his favourite is the chalk bucket!

Away from the training, Sarah has also started what is called the 30-Day Paleo challenge. This again is something that Connect offers and is an excellent support to fitness and health. It’s run by Barney and Holly who created Caveman Snacks and PlanP (check them out on Facebook and Twitter) and every six months or so we are invited to commit to a 30 day strict Paleo eating plan.

If you have never heard of Paleo, it is a 'modern nutritional eating plan based on the diet of Paleolithic humans'. It is also referred to as the caveman diet and avoids refined/processed foods and any that are perceived to be agricultural products. Basically you can eat what cavemen used to be able to hunt or gather. a great resource and place to start learning about this is on Marks Daily Apple.

The 30 day challenge results are amazing. The first time I tried it I lost 7kg and 3in off my waist. An astonishing result in just 30 days. I also had more energy and felt great. I can't recommend this highly enough. We have followed Paleo since starting at Connect but it’s always good to strip it back every now and again and do this challenge in its entirety.

I know we have posted this before but its always good to see the change Neil has made!

CrossFit sometimes gets some bad press; people slate it for bad coaching, poor form and high injury rates. I'll agree that there are some poor quality coaches out there who tend to teach weight over technique and if you search YouTube you will see some horror stories. This is not true of Connect. Our coaches are second-to-none with years of experience and the one thing they all tell you is technique, technique, technique! They always have three different scales to the workout too (Health, Fitness and Performance) so you can choose exactly the right difficulty level for your current level of ability or fitness. Along with the normal CrossFit classes they offer Olympic lifting classes, gymnastic classes, mobility classes and barbell classes too to ensure everyone can develop the essential skills that make CrossFit so damn fun!

With 3 different WOD options each day we always scale you to your current
abilities to ensure safety and the fastest progress.

Success Stories

With all the training that goes on down at the box and the high frequency we see our members every week its sometimes easy to forget the journey that some of them have been on.

We see them training hard and following our dietary advice, we programme our sessions to hit their fitness from all sides and we are always around to offer support via email, Facebook and in person at the box whenever they need it.

We have been doing this CrossFit thing for over 3 years now but you know what? It still amazes me when one of our members shows us old photos of themselves before they joined up. It shouldn't amaze me because I know what we do and the advice we give is the best advice they can listen too and follow and I know the CrossFit methodology irrefutably works. I've seen it with so many people over the years. But I still get that buzz of excitement when I see that absolute change in one of our guys or girls. I guess its why we do this job and why I wouldn't want to do anything else. 

Neil Farley joined us in August of last year (2012) after continual harassment from most of his friends and family who were already training with us! You know how it is if you do CrossFit. WODs, training and AMRAPs become your sole topic of conversation that you get to bore all your acquaintances with!

So he finally gave in and came down to check us out himself......

Neil at 98kg.

This 'before' photo was taken a few years earlier when Neil had decided enough was enough and had signed up for a 10km run. At this point he weighed 98kg. We cant take all of the credit for his weight loss as at this point he had started running and cycling to work. He says he joined a gym but like most big-chain gym memberships it hardly got used as he got bored and had no direction or guidance in the right way to train.

By the time he joined us he had already done a fantastic job of getting his weight down to 89kg but felt as though he needed more of a push as he wasn't seeing any more progress.

As well as training consistently with us at least 3 times a week, Neil also joined up to our regular Paleo challenges run by Plan P. These 30-day events are an introduction to the Paleo way of eating for our members. Provided is a full two-week recipe meal plan created by coach and chef extrodinaire Barney Gehlcken (who runs the kitchen at the fantastic Noble House Pub in Hove, East Sussex) and full shopping lists of things to buy and things not to buy. We also weigh and measure everybody in at the beginning so that we know exactly what progress they make during the 30 days.

It most definitely isn't easy, with the hardest part being 7-10 days in when the body is craving sugar and headaches and mood swings are common. However, after about 14 days the body starts to switch energy sources and you start to feel amazing. For more info on Plan P or the Paleo diet click on the links.

Neil had a fantastic success with his paleo and has kept it up ever since. It really does change the way you think about food and what you put into your mouth. Yes, of course there are still times for treats but on the whole most of our members who try it out end up sticking with it for the majority of their meals.

Neil at a sprightly 72.5kg this week.

Neil lost an impressive 5.5kg in weight and 3 inches from his waistline whilst on the challenge, taking him down to where he is at today......a fantastic 72.5kg.

The change from last August has been amazing to witness and be a part of and now Neil is fully in tune with the CrossFit way of life. He trains hard, takes our advice on board and is feeling a whole load better for it. Oh and yes, he does now talk about CrossFit all the time too.

If you would like more information on CrossFit, Paleo or Plan P and how we could help you out just give us a call or drop us a line. We're ready to help.

Lets see those photos again. Great work Neil, fantastic job!

Beyond the Whiteboard....CrossFit at Work.

At CrossFit Connect we regularly publish photos of our whiteboards, workouts of the day, photos of our members in various displays of lifting prowess and anything else we can think of to try and convey CrossFits huge appeal and results to any potential new clients. Yet, to those who are not initiated into the folds of CrossFit our endless posts and tweets about how great it is can quite easily not mean a thing!


The UK CrossFit scene is thriving right now and with the addition of Reeboks backing it is about to go stratospheric in its popularity. But what can we do to help people take that first step in becoming involved in CrossFit if the adverts on TV and the new 180kg deadlift video you posted of one of your members last night seem a little 'elite' from the thought process of your regular gym goer?


Well, we thought it would be nice to go a little old school and simply ask one of our members who has had great success with CrossFit to answer a few questions about their time with us and what they have achieved. To show you real evidence of CrossFit at work. 

August 2011                                         March 2012

Rosie Francis is a 37 year old school teacher who joined us in August of 2011. She has become one of our most dedicated members and has been an absolute inspiration to us all at the box. Since the start of her training with us Rosie has lost an incredible 17kg (thats over 2.5 stone) and has transformed herself with our coaching and her utter dedication. I will continue to sing her praises at the bottom of this blog but for now, lets hear it in her own words. Over to you Rosie.......

CFC: Could you tell me a little detail of your background in sports. What did you used to do when you were younger and when did you start noticing you were getting out of shape?

RF: I was useless at sport at school and I was never in any school teams. I did a bit of kick boxing at Uni but this usually involved more time in the union bar than actually working out! We moved to Malaysia in 2007 and I was living the high life of a diplomat. It really took its toll on the waist line and after seeing myself in a photo about 18 months in I decided enough was enough. I joined a martial arts centre and took up taekwondo. I trained 3 hours a day, 6 days a week and went from total beginner to 1st Dan in 15 months (a gym record). I guess this was my first taste of success in sports. When I got back to the UK in 2010 I didn’t continue the taekwondo straight away as I needed to concentrate on getting a job and some money but I think it was also because I knew that I wouldn’t be able to sustain that level of training. I didn’t want to wear the belt if I felt I no longer deserved it, so regrettably I have never gone back to it. 

CFC: What made you decide to get fit and change your habits? Was it one moment or one thing? Or a gradual build up of factors?

RF: Since returning to live in England I’d put off joining a gym – the usual excuses of not enough time or money, pressures of looking for work etc..... then before I knew it we’d been back in England for two years and I was still making the same excuses. I found some old pictures of myself from when I had been doing taekwondo and it just reminded me of how much I used to enjoy working out and having a goal to work towards outside of my career. That was when I started looking into what was available in the area. I knew I was looking for something different to a normal gym as they just didn’t appeal to me. I had never heard of CrossFit but when I stumbled across CrossFit Connect’s website I knew it was just what I had been looking for.

CFC: Did you find it hard to make that first phone call to us?

RF: No. I read through all of the info on the website and thought it sounded interesting. I think by the time I got round to calling I was so fed up feeling unfit and putting on weight I was just relieved to get the ball rolling.

CFC: What made you decide to come to CrossFit Connect over anywhere else?

RF: I read everything on the website and it made me feel it was just what I was looking for. I watched some videos online and thought I would give it a go.

CFC: Had you been a member at any other 'big chain' gyms before? And if so how did you find them?

RF: Ha ha! David Lloyd – lasted all of 1 month and got thoroughly bored. Gold’s Gym - again about 1 month then got BORED.
With the big gyms I just felt lost. It was hard to remember what to do with all the machines, there was very little monitoring of your progress and I couldn’t afford a personal trainer so was pretty much left to my own devices. In the end I used to just turn up, do an hour on the cross trainer and then go home. It was quite a lonely experience, everyone plugged into their iPods in their own little world, and I just found the whole thing very unmotivating. 

CFC:  How did you find the first few weeks training at CrossFit Connect? Was it tough for you to motivate yourself to keep coming?

RF: I knew that Crossfit was something I wanted to stick to from the moment i started. However, I’d had good intentions about exercise before and hadn’t seen them through. So knowing myself and not wanting to repeat the past I made sure that before I left each class I booked myself into the next one – giving myself no excuses!
I have to admit for the first few weeks the drive over to the box was a little nerve racking! What would we be doing today? Would I be able to do it? Would I make a fool of myself? I knew this was silly because the coaches down at the box would always make sure I knew exactly what to do and that all the movements were scaled to my level of ability.

CFC: Would you say there was a watershed moment when it went from being hard to motivate yourself to just becoming automatic to come down to the box as part of your week?

RF: I can’t really remember when it changed but all of a sudden the drive to the box wasn’t nerve racking anymore. It was routine – just something I did as part of my day. Now I can’t wait to get to the box. I’m excited to see what’s in store for us on the whiteboard - even though sometimes I still groan when I see lots of running (not my strong point but I’m working on it!).

CFC: How do you think CrossFit differs from anything else you have done before?

RF: I think what makes CrossFit unique is the amazing supportive atmosphere you get at the box. It doesn’t matter who turns up to a class, we all cheer one another on and everyone really wants you to achieve your goals and do your very best. Even though I’m often the last to finish a WOD, you know what, I really don’t mind! It just means I get more people shouting encouragement and cheering me on! :)

CFC: What’s been your biggest achievement?

RF: I think for me my biggest achievement was to run a mile without stopping. It might not sound far to some people but when I first joined CrossFit Connect I couldn’t even run 200m without stopping to walk some of the way. 

CFC: Did you set yourself goals when you came down?

RF: When I first joined I had very vague goals – to get fitter and lose weight. As I’ve got more and more familiar with CrossFit my goals have become more specific and getting fitter and losing weight are things which I know will happen naturally without having to focus on them. (Coach Dave - that 400m run without stopping was a great moment when Rosie achieved it!)

CFC: What are your goals for the future?

RF: Where do I start?! There are so many things I want to improve. I really, really want to be able to do pull ups without assistance and get some double unders (twice round with the skipping rope on one jump). Perhaps even do a 5k run... ...one day! (although don't go getting any ideas with the programming coaches!)

CFC: What has been the impact of CrossFit on your life?

RF: My job is quite stressful and the workload can be overwhelming (I’m a teacher). Since joining Connect I have been making much more of an effort to get my life back. Surprisingly I have found that even though I’m working less hours, I am more efficient when I am working because I’m not so exhausted all the time. Also I’m much less stressed than I used to be. I am definitely more confident, happier and healthier than I have been in a very long time.

CFC: What would you say are the two or three things that really made CrossFit successful for you? Community, coaching etc?

RF: I like the variety of the workouts (WOD’s) knowing that every day you’ll be doing something different. It is absolutely impossible to get bored of CrossFit. As I’ve mentioned before the support of the coaches and the rest of the members is key to the success I’ve had so far. Knowing people believe in you and want to help you improve makes all the difference. Every time someone shouts “Come on Rosie” it just helps you dig deeper for that extra little bit of energy you need.

CFC:  How many times a week on average do you train and how has it been adopting the paleo eating style that we advocate at CrossFit Connect? Do you have cheat days still? How strict are you with the eating?

RF: I started training 3 times a week but found that I missed being at the box so now I train 5 times a week! It means I have to be organised to fit it all in but it’s definitely worth it. 

When I started eating paleo I was only planning on doing it for a month during the 30-day challenge the box held. I wasn’t really a big meat eater and I didn’t really see how I could give up bread, pasta and potatoes forever. During that month I lost 6kg and felt really good. But the month was over, so back came the bread and the dairy and back came the tiredness and bloated feeling that I’d put up with for so long. So back i went to it. Now I eat strict paleo 98% of the time. I don’t find it difficult to stick to, I don’t crave sugary things like I would do on other ‘diets’ (and I had tried every diet!) and I feel more in tune with my body. Now I know if I need a protein hit or a piece of fruit whereas before I’d stare into the fridge, hungry but not really knowing what I fancied. Inevitably I would choose the wrong thing to eat, feel unsatisfied and go back to fridge for more. I am strict with the paleo because I want to be. It makes me feel stronger when I stick to it and when I do have a little something ‘off plan’ I don’t feel guilty like I used to do on past ‘diets’ because I know my body can handle the small amounts of extra sugar or gluten and that it won’t stress my system.

CFC: Any last thoughts in general? Would you encourage women to start lifting weights and get away from aerobics/spin etc that they traditionally do? Did you ever see yourself doing clean and jerks and snatches?! And why do you enjoy them so much?

RF: I would definitely recommend Crossfit to anyone, including lifting the weights. I never really imagined myself lifting big weights and was a little worried about getting big unsightly muscles. What I’ve found is that lifting the weights have helped me to tone up and lose inches all over. The results I am seeing from Crossfit are just so much better than anything I ever got from bums and tums or boxercise or any of the many, many different classes I’ve tried over the years. I really enjoy lifting the weights – there’s a lot of skill involved and it’s definitely not all about brute strength. Getting the technique right and feeling the weights fly up in the air is a real buzz. When lifting weights, it’s so easy to monitor your progress week by week and keep track of your personal bests.


Rosies Lifting Stats:  (Aug 2011 / March 2012)

Deadlifts - was 40kg / now 110kg
Squats - was 30kg / now 70kg
Press - was 15kg / now 37.5kg
Clean & Jerk -  na / now 50kg
Snatch -  na / now 40kg


I hope this gives you some insight into just what can be achieved with sheer hard work, good coaching and access to great nutritional advice and support. Rosie, along with our other members have jumped right into the recent Reebok Games Open competition (see post here) and this extra amount of motivation has driven her even further towards all of her goals. It was great seeing Rosie get her first Toes-to-bar and Double unders over the last few weeks!


For more information and to see for yourself just what CrossFit can do for you, give us a call or drop us an email and come down and meet us and try your first class for FREE. Its perfectly suitable for all levels of ability and we'd love to have you part of the growing CrossFit community. A whole wealth of info on CrossFit and more on why our members see better results than at their previous gyms can be found on our website at www.crossfitconnect.co.uk. This is going to be a big year for CrossFit Connect so come and be part of it. Thanks for reading.

New Year, New Leaf, New You!

Yep, whilst you still have all the enthusiasm in the world its time to decide the best place to go and get yourself into shape. Where is it going to be this year? Do you still even go to the gym you signed up for this time 12 months ago? Or more importantly can you really still the results of all your hard work stacking up in your favour? Are you getting stronger? Are you losing body fat? Can you honestly say you are on the path to where you want to be in three, six or twelve months time?

If so then congratulations! Its a nice feeling isnt it! :)
If not then perhaps its time for a change. Time to try something new.

Time then to get down to CrossFit Connect or one of the many CrossFit boxes popping up near you. CrossFit is growing rapidly and there are now over 75 CrossFit gyms or 'boxes' in the UK. Not to mention somewhere in the region of another 2500 worldwide.

The first few months of this year are going to be a busy time for our guys and gals at the box.  First up is our January paleo challenge which you can read about below, then we've got to get training for the UK CrossFit Throwdown Games happening in February at Brunel University and then towards the end of February registration opens for the 2012 Reebok CrossFit Games. This year is bound to be bigger than ever with live broadcasting on ESPN and the general awareness of CrossFit growing massively last year thanks to Reeboks involvement.

So what can you get by coming down and checking out CrossFit Connect?

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 to make friends and actually enjoy coming to the gym? Check

Do you want all of this in just 30-days with a simple eating plan and some good old fashioned hard work? 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 recent challenges 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
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 that includes unlimited classes.
~Full health check and measurement assessment at beginning and end.

Cost = £125 (a 15% saving on individual costs)

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. 


The challenge starts on Monday January 16th and will run for 30 days. We will be holding a talk from our resident paleo chef Barney on Saturday January 14th at which time we will also take your starting measurements and photos if you wish. You will also be able to collect your paleo books at this time for those that need them.


If you have any other questions don't hesitate to drop us an email. 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

September Paleo Challenge Results!

So our second 30-day paleo challenge in association with Plan P has come to an end and everybody has been weighed in and measured up!

And just like in June the results have been fantastic! A big well done to everyone that completed the 30-days. I think there may have been a few wobbles this time round if the talk in the box is to be listened too but the results are still plain to see!

A paleo diet and CrossFit training is a potent combination to melt away fat, increase muscle and leave you feeling faster, fitter, stronger and leaner.

Its been fantastic to watch our guys and girls improving so much with their lifts, their skills and their fitness over the last few months and to see the newcomers to the paleo diet taking to it and learning its principles is great. Myself and Holly are in this business to change peoples lives and i think the feeling you get when you complete the 30-day challenge is enough to convince you that what we keep blabbering on about is the truth! :)

Eating paleo is not an easy concept to get your head around initially as it cuts out a lot of things that most people have considered a staple part of their diet for all of their lives; potatoes, rice, pasta and bread. Just what are you meant to have with your meat and vegetables at dinner time? Or lunch without sandwiches? Are you crazy?!

However, it takes perhaps a week to 10 days for you to realise that you can live without those items and not long after that to fully feel the benefits of not having them in your diet. You have more energy and your energy levels are more balanced across the whole day without having the highs and lows associated with big sugar spikes. This is not to mention the longer term health benefits that a wheat and sugar free diet brings.


Okay so lets get down to it!

This time around we had 10 people complete the new Plan P guide. And here are the results:

Total weight lost:                   22.4kg
Total body fat % lost:            12% (on 6 participants)
Total waist inches reduced:    15.25
Total hip inches reduced:       10.75

(I dont want to give out individual results and names on the blog but if you would like more exact details then they will be available down at the box.)

Another amazing result and a new batch of members feeling all the better because of it!

Averaging that out comes to 2.2kg and 2% body fat lost per person in 30 days which, if continued like that until Christmas, would mean a drop of 9kg and 8% body fat! Imagine how good you would be feeling about yourselves then! Of course, not everyone wants to lose that much weight. The remarkable thing about paleo is that you only lose the excess fat that you are carrying. The stuff you don't want. If you are eating adequate amounts of protein and calories you wont start losing precious muscle. That's not how it works. And I'm sure the vast majority of people could do with a 5-8% drop in body fat!


This was achieved at the same time of course that everyone saw good increases in their strength and fitness levels, a fact that is recorded in a personal diary of achievement that every member keeps and fills in after every session. We can see the exact progress you are making and importantly for you it acts as a great motivational tool. 

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 really make a difference to your life.


http://www.crossfitconnect.co.uk
http://www.planp.co.uk
http://www.cavemansnacks.co.uk

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.

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

Great CrossFit/Paleo blog

Take a look at this blog for a great read on what it means to do CrossFit and follow a 30-day Paleo challenge.

Joe is one of our members who has been CrossFitting for a while now and he talks about what differences he has seen and how it has made him feel. There are some great photos in there too.

He also is going to cover the next 30-days of his Paleo challenge and there is lots of good information about what to eat, what not to eat and why.

http://jodyblogs.blogspot.com/


Thanks Joe! :)

30-Day Paleo Challenge...more info

Hey all. Here is some more info for the challenge which starts on Monday 6th June:

* There will be a nutrition talk from Barnaby our resident Paleo chef this coming Saturday 4th June after classes at approx 12.30pm. This should last around one hour and we will be able to answer any questions you may have about what to eat and what not to eat. We might even rustle up a few tasty treats for you to try! Attendence at this is not required for you to enter the challenge but it will give you a good idea of what to expect, why its so beneficial and the right and wrong foods to go shopping for!

* You will need to take before and after photos to be eligible for the prizes. For men this will require shirts off and for ladies bikini tops. We can take these for you at the box or submit a suitable one yourself. We will keep these confidential unless you agree otherwise and want people to see the remarkable transformation that has happened to you! :) You can by all means still enter the challenge even if you dont submit a photo, its just that you will not be eligible to win any prizes.

* You will receive a PlanP guide to Paleo nutrition which will include a two-week full meal plan devised by Barney (did we mention he's a 3 AA Rosette winning chef?!), a comprehensive shopping list of things to look out for and things to avoid and a food diary in which to record your progress. We will encourage all of you to keep this food diary properly as an incomplete diary = no prizes!!

* You will get your weight, blood pressure and measurements taken on entry and at the end of the challenge for comparison and so everyone is using the same set of devices.

* The three coaches (Dave, Holly and Barney) will be at your beck and call day and night (okay, so thats going a bit far...just day!) to help you with any questions you have about what to eat and what not to eat. Just drop us an email or question us at the box. We will keep you on track.

* The prizes will be awarded to the male and female that we feel has made the biggest transformation over the 30-day period. This will include things such as the photo, the measurements, how detailed your diary is, how often you have trained and how much your strength and fitness levels have progressed (so training diary essential too!). It isnt just about the look of the photo its about attitude and dedication to the challenge at hand. Our decision is final and we will not accept any bribes........ ;)

* Entry is for friends and family too so even if they are not members of the box they can still enter. Feel free to tell anyone you know about it, post it on facebook etc. The more the merrier!

* Entry fee is £10 and you need to be signed up by  8pm on Thursday 2nd June. Please drop us an email at info@crossfitconnect.co.uk to register if you havent done so already. Payment can be made to us either in cash when you are at the box or as a bank transfer (details on request).

So good luck everyone, get in touch if you are ineterested and hopefully see most of you on Saturday.

30 Day Paleo Challenge

The summer is coming and even CrossFitters care about how they look on the beach!

So we have put together a plan, in conjunction with Plan P, to get you in the best possible shape we can.

From Monday 6th June, CrossFit Connect will be running a 30-day Paleo challenge. We will be holding a talk on Saturday 4th June at 12.30, after our skills class, to run through the plan and answer any questions you may have, as well as giving you some guidance on how to handle the 30 days.

What is Paleo?
 If you’ve been training with us for any period of time then you will have heard us talk about this a lot. It is, we believe, the healthiest and most nutritious plan on which to base your everyday nutritional needs. The talk that we will hold will go into more details but Paleo in brief = meat, veggies, nuts, seeds, some fruit, little starch and NO SUGAR! Basically removing all the processed bread, rice, and pasta-like items from your daily plate (and any and all sugar/artificial sweetener infused beverages) and eating clean.

The challenge is open to all of our members and their family and friends. Prizes will be awarded to top male and female for the most stunning physique transformation. This contest is not based on weight loss or measurements alone, your goal may be to bulk up for example, so even if you don’t want to lose a whole lot of weight you still have a great chance to win! Its simply the best physical change in body shape and composition.

 
So if you are thinking about coming down to check us out maybe the 4th of June would be a good day! We will require before and after photos and for you to keep a quality food diary of the entire 30 days. This way you will really be accountable for what you eat. When you write everything down you really get to see all of those 'treats' that you conveniently forgot when someone asks you if you eat well! As for training, we recommend a minimum of 3 x a week to see the best results.

All members that are interested just let myself (Holly) or Dave know and we will put you on the list. The more the better as you will really stick to it knowing that your fellow members are going for it too. Many other CrossFit gyms have held similar challenges and have seen some great results in their members body compositions and weights in just the 30 days.

Before

 After

 The above photos are of my friend Luke who took part in the Paleo challenge held at CrossFit Bath last year. He stuck to the plan to the letter and lost an amazing amount of body fat. (Nice work Luke!)

Join up and boost the hard work you are doing during the classes even further!

Caveman Snacks - Perfect training food

Our friends at Caveman Snacks have come up with an absolute beauty of a new product in Paleo Protein Flapjacks. We have obviously had to put in hard work in the name of research testing and tasting these to get them absolutely perfect...but we managed! :-)

With ingredients including almonds, coconut oil, raisins, flax seeds and vanilla they are just the right balance of proteins, carbohydrates and fats and taste amazing.

The batch above is fresh from the fridge but they will soon be packaged up and ready for you hungry Cavemen and Women out there. More info to follow.....................

Meanwhile, if you havent yet heard much about the Paleo style of eating and why it is so good for you, take a look at the extract from the post below this one. Its basic premise is to eat meat and vegetables, nuts and seeds, some fruit, little starch and no sugar. If you follow this simple plan you will feel a rapid regulation of your blood sugar levels which leads to more balanced energy levels throughout the day. Your body learns to burn fat more efficiently as an energy source and you therefore become leaner (burning those pesky stored fat areas easier) and actually have less cravings for food.

Combine this with an exercise programme such as CrossFit and you will rapidly improve your health, strength and wellbeing. In fact there are more plans in the pipeline to work directly with Caveman Snacks to produce a 30-day 'all-you-need-to-follow' Paleo plan for those who need help and guidance in changing their nutrition habits for good. Our test subjects are already thrilled with the results they have seen so we'll be rolling this out to everyone soon.

For more information take a look at the Caveman Snacks website:

www.cavemansnacks.co.uk 

or find them on Facebook -
https://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/CavemanSnacks/104118966295659

You can buy their goods online or get them direct from the CrossFit Connect box by Hove Lagoon (www.crossfitconnect.co.uk). As well as the new flapjacks they also do a fantastic 'PowerBall'.

We thoroughly recommend the quality and taste of their products and encourage all our athletes at CrossFit Connect to use them as ideal snack options and post-training food.

Extract From Good Paleo Article

Below is a good little section about fitness and training from an article on the Paleo lifestyle that i got sent the link too:  http://tinyurl.com/695wt3e

Written by J.Stanton it outlines the main ideas behind Paleo eating and living in 6 steps. It might be a bit extreme for some but as he says even if you make a few of the changes he suggests you will feel a lot healthier. The most noticeable change that i felt was the constant energy levels rather than the awake/sleepy states that usually fluctuate throughout the day. And as for the exercise, thats exactly what CrossFit prescribes; running, jumping, lifting, swinging, playing, pushing and pulling. Come down to the box to find out more and change the way you train.

 Play Like A Predator

• Play hard, work hard, challenge yourself, then rest.
  Lift heavy objects, sprint until you’re out of breath, climb trees and jump down, kick balls, shoot baskets. Shovel snow, dig dirt, split firewood. Practice agility as well as strength and endurance. People will stare at you if you’re doing it right, because you’re enjoying yourself—not shuffling down the road in ‘running shoes’, with that vacant look of resigned suffering usually seen on wildebeest being eaten alive by hyenas. The world is your playground! (And if others won’t take advantage of it, too bad for them.)
• Don’t ‘exercise’, don’t ‘do cardio’. The only way to improve is to push your limits.
  You’ll lose more weight and gain more strength from periodic bursts of short, intense exercise than from hours of ‘cardio’. You’re a human, not a hamster; get off the treadmill! Seriously: drive to work, then drive to the health club so you can pedal a bicycle that goes nowhere? Imagine this: every time you get hungry, you and your six closest friends have to chase down an antelope or spear a mammoth—and if you can’t, none of you get to eat. That is the required intensity.
• If you must ‘work out’, do bodyweight exercises, and get some dumbbells or kettlebells.
  That way you can finish a workout before you’ve even arrived at the gym. Our objective is health and fitness: a gym body is a lot more work. (Do it if you want, and I admire those with the dedication to sculpt themselves—but it’s not necessary.) Remember, you should be doing short, intense bursts of activity throughout the day: you’re not going to drive to the gym three times.
      Note: If you have the time and genuinely enjoy it, absolutely lift heavy weights and get strong. Especially women: you’re not going to suddenly become 1970′s Arnold just because you do squats, and any man who thinks you’re “too muscular” because you don’t look like a heroin addict is weak, insecure, and not worth your time.
• Stop trying to ‘save energy’. Make physical effort part of your life. Don’t waste time looking for the closest parking space: just park and walk. Take the stairs. Shovel your own snow, split your own firewood. Unless you’re a cabinetmaker or construction worker, do you really need that cordless screwdriver?