New Equipment!

We can thank HEL athlete Rob Straughn for the construction of some beautiful new 24" box jumps for the Lab today. We took them for a test during this morning's WOD and they make an awesome addition to our arsenal of torture devices.
Never high enough for Craig B and Kevin - these two monkeys had to stack the new boxes on top of a gym mat, and then balance a weight bench on top of the whole junkshow to create a 40" behemoth...

Friday the 15th saw the return of an old HEL favorite: the painstorm. These intense, multi-tasking met-cons(metabolic conditioners) move us beyond the realm of short power-intensity bursts into much longer workouts lasting up to an hour or more. Testing our physical and mental fortitude, stamina and ability to pace ourselves for the long haul, nothing separates the wheat from the chaff like a painstorm!

Welcome back...

These last few weeks have been a super busy time for me: climbing on great local projects, adventures in the Cascades and even a quick tour of the Canadian Rockies with Team Harro(thanks Dan & Elisif!). Thank you to Kris, Craig, Nick, Stacy and Greg for helping me cover the WODs and keep the 1200 running smooth in my absence. Alas, the blog has also been somewhat neglected during all of these hijinx. So, here's some of what's been happening...

This last weekend on a trip up to British Columbia I got to briefly visit the local affiliate, Crossfit Vancouver. It was a small, but clean and bright facility tucked away down in the industrial district. Their 'benchmark boards' were packed with some solid times, and that evening they were holding a competition event. One night each month they do multiple WODS(say Fran & Helen back-to-back), work on PRs and challenge each other all in the spirit of everyone reaching a personal best. I was an hour late to my own WOD(can anyone say 'daylight savings time'?), but really look forward to visiting them again in the future.
*****
All hail the Ladies of CrossfitHEL!!! I have seen some real improvment lately from some gals around here and they definitely deserve a shout out. Leslie struggled forever to gain her first complete pull-up. These days I see her crank them out like clockwork: good kip, good form and(when she feels like it) full range of motion. Way to go, Leslie! And Morgan also has started to put in some real effort lately: beginning to apply herself harder in the WODS, moving beyond what's comfortable and toying with what is possible...keep it up! And have you met Jennifer Kellams yet? Straight outta boot camp this newbie has drank the Kool-Aid big time right from the get-go and her effort already shows. Every day she's asking questions, watching the big dogs and stepping up for her own piece of the action.
*****
The Clean and Jerk...learn it, love it, make it your best friend. The complex and challenging Olympic lifts(C&J and snatch) are cornerstones of our whole crossfit philosophy. Utilizing speed, power, coordination and agility simultaneously, these testpiece movements can take years to master and should be a regular part of every serious crossfitter's regular practice. So get started on your introduction or learning them more deeply. With numerous timeslots available for this month's lifting seminars and the clean also being our 'focus lift' this month...what's your excuse? Train your weaknesses, get stronger fast!

Crossfit HEL Goes Global!

Greetings from across the Pacific: Kris Rotan keeps the training up even on vacation in Aklan.

Note: Crossfit HEL will now also offer 12:00 WODs on Tuesdays & Thursdays. Come join Nick T. for another opportunity to get your midday pump on!

Training Log

In seeking out articles or writing material for this blog, I always look to keep the focus on you guys: the athletes of Crossfit HEL. Occasionally I may share something from my own experience that I think may highlight some of the unique challenges we all encounter as crossfitters in a big-box world. Mostly though, I just try to include helpful tips, training tools and some recognition for those athletes that I see around the Lab going above and beyond the call. Each week at my keyboard, slowly pecking away, I remind myself: "Its not about me."

When coaching the 12:00 WOD, I try to see each athlete who comes into HEL as an individual bringing unique skill sets, goals and motivations. And within that framework, I look to scale every WOD, exercise and application to meet each athlete's needs so that they can bring it 100% and be successful: get better, stronger, faster.

For myself, I am what hardcore CF-ers refer to as a 'sport-specific athlete using a crossftit modality.' This means that the primary purpose of my crossfit training is just simply to become a better athlete within my discipline. To that end, I am always tailoring and modifying my own workouts in an effort to move closer to those sport-specific goals. This week I've decided to begin sharing my training log on this blog in hopes of encouraging each of you to look at your own unique goals and to find the most direct path which will lead you to them. It is located under 'My Training Log' in the links section to the right. It is bare bones, no frills, and easy to ignore if you're not interested. If your eyes are on a prize and crossfit is the vehicle to get you there, then let us know...together we can formulate some fire-breathing WODs customized to get you dialed in!

The Non-Negotiability of Perfection

CrossFit is the pursuit of athletic perfection—performing difficult workouts with technical mastery under conditions of duress. We’re looking for flawless form with a jackhammering heart, bursting lungs, and battery acid-filled veins.

When this is accomplished with unyielding intensity, the result is nothing short of beautiful. When we fall short of the mark, the result is horrifying at best.

Athletes often set up a false dichotomy between perfect form and intensity, assuming that as one increases the other must necessarily fall. This idea is a thinly disguised excuse for athletic complacency. Rather than revisit proper technique through low-intensity, low-excitement skill work, the athlete chooses to pursue personal records with diminished form. The unstated reason for this choice: it’s easy on the ego to put up “good” WOD times. Taking a hit to your “Fran” time in order to perform perfect thrusters is not going to move you up the records board—at least not right away—and the blow to the ego is too much to bear.

In reality, form and intensity are not mutually exclusive, but the non-linearity of their relationship leads novice athletes to the wrong conclusion. For the novice, maintaining form becomes a cruel joke as intensity increases, leading to the erroneous conclusion that the two cannot coexist. Advanced athletes believe the opposite. These athletes recognize that continuous high-intensity work is nearly impossible without strict attention to form. The advanced athlete knows that perfect form is perfect for a reason: it imparts structural advantages that poor form does not.

Take the thruster as an example. Performed poorly, the movement relies on the small muscles of the anterior shoulder to support the weight at lockout. These muscles fatigue extremely quickly, leaving the athlete with reduced capacity in short order. When the thruster is performed well, the weight is supported by the large, hard-to-fatigue muscles of the posterior chain, allowing the form-conscious athlete to continue at peak power long after his sloppy brethren have stopped to rest.

The advantages of good form are not isolated to the thruster. Clear structural advantages can be had in the majority of our movements if one chooses to pursue perfect form. Most of these advantages are based on the physics of power transmission, specifically the fact that it is easier to send power through a rigid structure than through a limp one.

Squatting provides a wonderful illustration. The squat utilizes power from the hip to propel the torso through a complete range of motion. If the spine is rounded and the torso is loose, power is lost and the torso becomes difficult to move. If the spine is kept in a neutral or arched alignment and the torso is rigid, as proper form dictates, power flows freely and the load is easy to move. Nonetheless, we’ll often see novices blasting through flaccid, rounded-back squats, heedless of the power-draining effect of their substandard form.

Condoning bad form for the resulting intensity ignores the big picture. In doing so, we rob our athletes of their long-term potential, artificially capping their progress in the name of immediate gratification. An athlete with poor form and an ugly three-minute “Fran” will always have an ugly three-minute “Fran”, while a similar athlete with good form will soon find himself pushing the limits of possibility, utilizing the structural advantages of the perfect thruster to close in on two minutes.

For the CrossFitter, perfection should be non-negotiable, regardless of the near-term outcome. Progressing to the elite level—heart jackhammering, lungs bursting, and records falling—depends on it.

(written by John Gilson of Againfaster)

Homecoming...and a Dose of Reality!

Hey All-

Ruturning to the Lab after a week away, I was very stoked to see the great turnout and high energy going on! Warming up, everyone was motivated, talking smack(the good kind!) and clearly on task for a hard workout. Despite more athletes than equipment, people arranged themselves quickly into two squads and got to work, spurring on comrades with coaching and encouragement until their own turns came. And some rare faces at the Nooner: Finley busting out a stellar time despite a week of telemarking and imbibement...and Laurie Fish - our latest addition to the HEL Climbing Team!

*****

Doing CrossFit WODs at a local climbing gym this week, I was reminded of how lucky we are to have such a great, CF-only dedicated facility. With the stopwatch rolling, I moved through a succession of deadlifts, pull-ups and KTEs, all with my typical grunting and growling. As little kids from a 'climbing birthday party' began to gather around in a too-close circle, I heard a great wailing behind me. Dropping the Oly bar with a clang and dodging tykes to reach the pull-up bar, I looked over to see a couple holding their wide-eyed little boy in tears. Mom was explaining the situation to an obviously concerned parent: "He's just never seen anyone work out like that before. I think it scared him!"

Rowing Technique

Take a look at the new link in the right-hand column about rowing technique by Flip Luisi. Step-by-step breakdowns of body prep for every phase of the row are analyzed in a quick and easy to understand format. Check it out and improve your times and efficiency!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

It has been such an awesome first year at Crossfit HEL! I am very psyched to see our community grow as each day more and more pipe-hitters get turned on to doing CrossFit HEL-style. And a very big shout out to all the HEL athletes I have been privleged to share the Lab with this past year: watching you guys and gals grow faster and stronger fuels my own training and gets me fired up for goals and dreams in the mountains and beyond.

And to all the "12 O'clock Jocks": I'll be out of town this week. Watch the shop, do your warm-ups(x10 of everything!), s-t-r-e-t-c-h...and also if somebody could please yell at Damon for me while I'm gone? I know he'd appreciate it...

See ya all next year!!!

Watch out...she's comin' for ya!

Heads up, HEL athletes: Kris Rotan is out to get you. Don't let that sunny smile or unassuming demeanor throw you off...cuz she's coming in early and staying after class to learn all the skills it takes to be a crossfit animal. Props go out to Kris for getting her first rope climb...and promptly following it up with six more!!!

So if you see socks like these in your rearview mirror, you had better lock your doors!

S-T-R-E-T-C-H!!!

You can’t brag about your best stretching time, you don’t get to write your stretch PR on the wall, and there is no immediate “Fran”-like gratification that you are really tough. And despite the fact that flexibility is one of the ten CrossFit pillars of complete, well-balanced fitness. Increasing flexibility potential remains the ungreased squeaky wheel of most athletes’ training programming. According to the ten general physical skills list, flexibility is allegedly as important as power or strength. So why don’t we take it more seriously? Because, typically, we simply fail to frame flexibility in terms that are important to us: increasing performance.

Lacking flexibility in crucial areas has a crushing impact on your athletic abilities; to say nothing of the host of pains and problems that inflexibility predisposes you to. If you know you have tight hips, calves, hamstrings, quads, thoracic spine, or shoulders and aren’t actively, aggressively striving to fix them, then you must be afraid of having a bigger squat, faster rowing splits, or a more explosive second pull. If you are tight and a CrossFitter, you are missing a huge opportunity to get better, stronger and faster. There are many areas of restriction in the typical athlete, but it makes sense to begin a discussion about flexibility and performance at perhaps the most commonly neglected and profoundly underaddressed area of the body, the hamstrings.

Before examining a few movements that are greatly affected by short hamstrings, we should touch on a few salient points about anatomy and function. Every athlete should know that the hamstrings are both a hip extensor (they help extend the thigh, or open the hip) and a lower leg flexor (they bend the knee). The important piece of information here is that the hamstrings cross both the knee and the hip. Hamstrings are two-joint muscles. This means that tight hamstrings will affect the knee and also the hip and back. This is important because most of the typical musculoskeletal complaints involving the knee, hip, or back typically have short hamstrings as a confounding variable. That is, explosive hip-based movements will often have consequences at the knee because taking up a lot of slack at one end of the muscle (the hip) will steal length from the other side (the knee). And this is true the other way around as well. In fact, muscles that are too short to stretch to meet the functional demands of a desired movement are said to be passively insufficient.

For example, it is well known that the quadriceps (also a two-joint muscle) help stabilize the pelvis and control the eccentric loading that occurs in the knee in, say, squatting. The quads also play a role in straightening the lower leg, of course, but that task is and should be the chief domain of the hamstrings and glutes through hip extension. Now if an athlete’s hamstrings are too tight or aren’t of sufficient length to allow full extension of the lower leg (knee) when the hip is loaded in a flexed position (i.e., rowing, deadlifting, running), then the quads have to overcome the passive insufficiency of the hamstrings and also bear their load to boot. Not only does this typically predispose the athlete to possible knee pain and future pathology, but it is the equivalent of driving your quadriceps around with a gigantic hamstring brake on.
(CFSD)

Winter Training

As winter weather comes to the Northwest, H.E.L. athletes are faced with new challenges about how to train effectively in our often cold and wet local conditions. Do we scale back or stop training when it is miserable out? Not necessarily. Researchers have found that while exercise in cold weather can suppress immune system response, athletes who train regularly in the cold can adapt and are less likely to see cold weather downturns. But warming up properly for a dose of Crossfit H.E.L. takes more time in the cold, so remember that the 12:00 WOD opens up fifteen minutes prior to give everyone time to prepare. Besides longer warm-ups, here are some other strategies for managing chilly temps during the winter WODs:

Layer Clothing
Several thin layers are warmer than one heavy layer. Layers are also easier to add or remove and thus, better regulate your core temperature. Or use jackets with zippered vents to regulate airflow. The goal is to keep the body warm, minimize sweating and avoid shivering. For indoor/outdoor WODs, I also see some Lab athletes keeping a light layer by the door to throw on for that 400m run.

Cover your Head
Your head should be covered while exercising in the cold, because heat loss from the head and neck may be as much as 50 percent of the total heat being lost by your body!

Stay Dry
Wet, damp clothing, whether from perspiration or precipitation, significantly increases body-heat loss. Bring a fresh shirt to the Lab for post-workout - and throw on a jacket the moment you cross the finish line.

Keep your Feet Dry
Use wool or poly socks that will wick perspiration away from the feet. All-climate or trail running shoes can retain insulating properties, helping keep the feet warm when wet. And during winter, have a couple pairs of shoes on hand: wet shoes not only keep your feet cold and sap precious energy - they lose almost half their shock-absorbing properties. So let those damp trainers dry at least 48 hours between workouts.

And most importantly...

Stay Hydrated!!!
Dehydration affects your body's ability to regulate body heat and increases the risk of cold injuries or illness. Fluids, especially water, are as important in cold weather as in the heat.
In the cold weather your body temperature normally drops. Metabolism increases to warm and humidify the air you breathe and you tend to burn slightly more calories to stay warm. Breathing in cold, dry air forces your body to warm and humidify that air and with each exhalation, and you lose significant amounts of water. Winter athletes need to consciously drink more fluids to replace the water that gets lost via respiration. Add this to a decreased desire to drink (the thirst mechanism is reduced in cold weather) and you can see why one of the biggest nutritional needs during winter exercise is replacing lost fluids and getting proper hydration. Dehydration is one of the main reasons for reduced performance in the cold.


So don't get caught out in the cold - plan ahead and take the steps you need to be an all-weather athlete. Beacuse winter is coming and this ain't no cozy big-box gym...it's HEL!!!

Half-empty?

Paying attention to what we eat after a workout is critical to maximizing recovery. In the first 15-30 minutes immediately following exercise our muscles are like a sponge, ready to absorb. Glycogen stores are depleted, bloodflow is high - all the conditions are right to deliver key nutrients directly back to our muscles, fueling recovery and preparing us for the next worout.

15-30 minutes is not a lot of time. My post-workout routine typically has: 3 minutes of panting and staring at the ground...5 minutes of hanging out and laughing about the WOD...and then maybe 10 minutes of stretching. By the time I've changed out of those sweaty shorts my recovery window is pretty much gone - no matter what I do in the next 24 hours I won't be fully recovered. This is why I bring fuel to the Lab every day, every WOD. Philosophies can vary(Zone, paleo, etc.), so I won't go into specifics about what you should eat. Each athlete should find what's right for their own needs. But remember this: what you eat(and when you eat it) will fuel today's gain and tommorow's workout.


1200 notes: Shout out to Tom Offerman: still fresh out of boot camp, often learning the movements just prior to throwing himself into the WODs...we see his dedicated hard work and know it will pay off!

Turkish Get-up

When people saw the WOD posted on Wednesday, I could just imagine the thoughts..."The Turkey What?" Well, now that everyone's been exposed to what a crusher the Turkish Get-up can be, let's take a look a what some other folks in the elite fitness community are saying about this sleeper of an exercise...

"The Turkish get-up (TGU) is an outstanding exercise that develops strength, flexibility, and stability throughout the entire body. It has especially proven itself as an excellent prehabilitation and rehabilitation exercise for the shoulders. In addition, a mastered TGU will make all overhead exercises safer and easier.

Historically, the TGU was a staple exercise for old-time strongmen and wrestlers. It’s been said that in the days of old, this was the first and only exercise taught to many aspiring weightlifters to practice. Supposedly, no other exercises were taught or practiced until the pupil could perform the TGU with a 100-pound weight in either hand. First, it takes tenacity and commitment to conquer this feat of strength. Second, it slowly yet steadily builds a solid foundation of strength that nearly "injury proofs" the body, making it ready for more demanding training. Third, it significantly strengthens the major muscle groups, small stabilizing muscles, and connective tissues." (Jeff Bartone, CF Kettlebell Guru)


"Thanks to guys like Brooks Kubik(of 'Dinosaur Training' fame), the get-up is making a comeback, especially among combat athletes and martial artists. That’s no surprise since it trains your stabilizers, hits your all-important core muscles, and improves balance as well as functional strength." (Testosterone Nation)


• Keep your eyes on the weight at all times.

• Kettlebell too easy? Try a barbell like the old-timers used to - in fact, a couple of them could do this exercise using a load exceeding their body weights!

• There are several ways to work Turkish get-ups into your routine: You can use them as a warm-up or as a "finisher" at the end of your workout. Try to do one heavy set with each arm or do multiple "reps" of a lighter weight. Another option is to set a timer and do as many as you can in a given time, say, two or three minutes.

The Deadlift

In the coming weeks we will be focusing periodically on the deadlift. This simple exercise is the purest single event test of strength because it is one of the few lifts of dead weight (weight lying on the ground). In most other lifts the weight changes direction or starts in the air and several other athletic skills such as balance, coordination are emphasized. For example, both Olympic weightlifting events(the snatch and the clean & jerk) require a great deal of athletic skill in addition to strength. Isolating solely strength and muscle recruitment, the deadlift is a great starting point and foundation for these other, more complex lifts. It elicits a powerful neuroendicrine response and will translate into gains in the gym if utilised properly and safely.
A poorly executed deadlift can quickly result in injury: strained muscles, compressed vertebrae, even pinched nerves or damage to the spinal cord. So take great care in learning the deadlift well before moving into heavy loads. A proper deadlift consists of the following:

1. Step up to the bar such that your feet are approximately shoulder width apart and under the bar pointing forward or slightly outward. Looking vertically, the bar should be just touching your legs. This helps maintain a direct vertical drive over the bar.

2. Squat down and grasp the bar. Your hands should be slightly more than shoulder width apart (on the outside of your legs). Actively engage your shoulders to pull the the bar slightly towards you.

3. Lower your hips so that your thighs are parallel to the floor. Straighten your back and look straight ahead.

4. Lift the bar off the ground by forcefully extending your hips and legs. Do not exert force with your arms, this is not an arm exercise. (Note: You can also mentally visualize that you're not trying to lift the bar, but rather trying to drive your legs through the floor. This will force you to extend your legs earlier in the lift and prevent you from raising your hips before the bar comes off the floor. If you raise your hips before the bar, your back will get "rounded", which can lead to injury.) Come to a standing position with upright posture. The bar should just be "hanging" in front of your hips, don't try to lift it any higher. Pull your shoulders back if they are rounded forward.

5. Lower the bar in a controlled manner back to the starting position. Remember to keep the back straight and maintain form while returning to bar to the ground.

Running Form and Efficiency

We've got some running in this week's WODs, everything from short sprints to distance runs. Depending on the other exercises in a workout, a run can feel like a place to recover a bit from 'heavy' movements - or a place to put the hammer down and make up some time against the stopwatch. With correct form and efficient turnover perhaps we can get both. Here are some points to keep in mind while running:

Head Tilt: How you hold your head is key to overall posture, which determines how efficiently you run. Let your gaze guide you. Look ahead naturally, not down at your feet, and scan the horizon. This will straighten your neck and back, and bring them into alignment. Don't allow your chin to jut out.

Shoulders: Shoulders play an important role in keeping your upper body relaxed while you run, which is critical to maintaining efficient running posture. For optimum performance, your shoulders should be low and loose, not high and tight. As you tire on a run, don't let them creep up toward your ears. If they do, shake them out to release the tension. Your shoulders also need to remain level and shouldn't dip from side to side with each stride.

Arms: Even though running is primarily a lower-body activity, your arms aren't just along for the ride. Your hands control the tension in your upper body, while your arm swing works in conjunction with your leg stride to drive you forward. Keep your hands in an unclenched fist, with your fingers lightly touching your palms. Imagine yourself trying to carry a potato chip in each hand without crushing it. Your arms should swing mostly forward and back, not across your body,between waist and lower-chest level. Your elbows should be bent at about a 90-degree angle. When you feel your fists clenching or your forearms tensing, drop your arms to your sides and shake them out for a few seconds to release the tension.

Torso: The position of your torso while running is affected by the position of your head and shoulders. With your head up and looking ahead and your shoulders low and loose, your torso and back naturally straighten to allow you to run in an efficient, upright position that promotes optimal lung capacity and stride length. Many track coaches describe this ideal torso position as "running tall" and it means you need to stretch yourself up to your full height with your back comfortably straight. If you start to slouch during a run take a deep breath and feel yourself naturally straighten. As you exhale simply maintain that upright position.

Hips: Your hips are your center of gravity, so they're key to good running posture. The proper position of your torso while running helps to ensure your hips will also be in the ideal position. With your torso and back comfortably upright and straight, your hips naturally fall into proper alignment--pointing you straight ahead. If you allow your torso to hunch over or lean too far forward during a run, your pelvis will tilt forward as well, which can put pressure on your lower back and throw the rest of your lower body out of alignment. When trying to gauge the position of your hips, think of your pelvis as a bowl filled with marbles, then try not to spill the marbles by tilting the bowl.

Legs/Stride: Sprinters need to lift their knees high to achieve maximum leg power, Efficient endurance running requires just a slight knee lift, a quick leg turnover, and a short stride. Together, these will facilitate fluid forward movement instead of diverting (and wasting) energy. When running with the proper stride length, your feet should land directly underneath your body. As your foot strikes the ground, your knee should be slightly flexed so that it can bend naturally on impact. If your lower leg (below the knee) extends out in front of your body, your stride is too long.

Ankles/Feet: To run well, you need to push off the ground with maximum force. With each step, your foot should hit the ground lightly and then quickly roll forward. Keep your ankle flexed as your foot rolls forward to create more force for push-off. As you roll onto your toes, try to spring off the ground. You should feel your calf muscles propelling you forward on each step. Your feet should not slap loudly as they hit the ground. Good running is springy and quiet.
(Jane Hahn, Runner's World)


The top three lifts to develop sprinting power? The deadlift, the back squat, and the clean. The explosive power developed in these lifts will translate directly into increased power and speed at the track.

Level Advancement

Some individuals are motivated more by external factors or rewards, others driven internally. I tend to fall into the latter category. Though I really do enjoy the camaraderie and competition of our H.E.L. community(I run faster when someone's on my tail!), ultimately it is my own game, mental and physical, that I square off against each day in the gym or out in the hills. The only ranking which truly holds ground for me is the personal record(PR) and where I measure up against my own capacity. As such, our system of fitness ranking from Recruit(completion of Boot Camp), through Basic, Advanced, Elite and Mutant levels has historically held little interest for me. In fact, I had been resistant to the notion of testing. However, as I have often found when there is something in life I am resisting, there may be a lesson I need from it within. With this in mind I showed up to the Lab on a rainy Saturday morning recently to test my mettle against the board.

As Coach Kevin and I moved through the exercises, he stopped to give me useful input on lifts I knew - subtle inefficiencies in form or mechanics overlooked in the heat of the WOD or a larger group session. On other movements I felt more competent with, we talked about aggressive strategies for elevating performance even further. On one exercise test I even broke a PR with Kevin's encouragement. Now I was interested! But what I surprisingly found most helpful was the overall objective examination of my own abilities across the board: knowing which ones were hard for me, and which seemed easier, this gave me more insight into my own challenges and where to focus my attention in training. I'm still not really concerned with where my name lies on the board or amongst the rankings, but testing out offered me something of value to any athlete, regardless of their motivations: an accurate picture of truth in training.

And a note to senior HEL athletes: as a new crop of recruits graduate from Boot Camp and ABC their eyes are upon you , seeking an example. So if you are not moving forward, then perhaps you are holding back! Go on...GET SOME!!!

Team Week

As this week's WODs focus on team workouts, here are some simple things to keep in mind: These events are not about PRs, but elevating each other's performance and forging bonds within the community as a whole. Find a team or teammate that might benefit from your strength or speed rather than the combo that will get you to the finish line first. No 'A' teams here. This is a good week to ignore the time board completely and instead focus on learning to work together effectively. And anytime a 'penalty' is encountered from a dropped ball or missed cue, remember that this dynamic is created to make each of us stronger, inside and out. So if your ego flares because the guy next to you is creating extra burpees for the team, then perhaps the leader within still has some work to do. Notice what goes on inside your head during this week's workouts and use it to learn more about yourself.

The Headstand

The handstand push-up is one of those crossfit skills that requires so much strength, balance and coordination that it might seem unattainable. For me currently, the ablilty to complete HSPUs against a wall doesn't seem to translate into the quantumly more difficult free-standing variety. Obviously I need a handstand first. And to get a handstand, I'd need a solid headstand first. I don't see many HSPUs, handstands or headstands around the Lab so I'm guessing that I am not alone. So a little web searching came up with this...

THE HEADSTAND

For those who are apprehensive about going upside-down in a handstand, the headstand is a good skill to get you used to being inverted. It is a fairly simple skill that you should be able to master very shortly.
First, let's look at the head and hand placement for the skill:

What's important to note here is that the hands and head are NOT in a straight line. That's the mistake seen the most often. Instead of a straight line, you'll want to space your head and hands out so that they make a triangle. Your hands will be a little more than shoulder width apart and far enough away from your head that your arms will be bending at about a 90 degree angle (you'll see this clear in the pictures to come). Your bodyweight should be evenly distributed between your head and each hand. All this will give you better support and balance in the skill. Put a pillow down on the ground if you're practicing on a hard surface.
With this head and hand position, put one knee ON TOP of one of your elbows. If your arms are bent correctly, your knee should sit up there like it's on a shelf.

Bring your second knee up on top of your other elbow. This is a position know as the "tripod".

You should be very stable in this position - just like a tripod. Of you feel like you're falling(especially to your back) then get down and reposition your headand hands to make a bigger triangle.Here is a view of the tripod from the side. Notice how his knees rest on his elbows, and that his arms are bent at 90 degrees.

When you feel comfortable with the tripod, start to lift your legs up and end in a headstand.

From here it's pretty easy to hold the position. If you have to put more weight on any part of your body while balancing, put it on your hands, as they can push and balance you better than your head can. Notice that his body is straight. There's no reason to arch as he has three points of contact with the ground and plenty of balance.


(This tutorial was adapted from James Bathurst, a Washington DC area gymnast and fitness consultant. Check out his website at www.beastskills.com)

Note: Congrats to all the 12:00ers(Ryan Neal, Daniel & Elisif Harro, Josh Hobbs...me too!) - everyone managed a successful headstand with a little practice following the WOD on Friday...next up: the elusive handstand!

Wall Ball Functionality

In celebration of today's 'Karen' benchmark workout, let's take a closer look at wall ball shot mechanics:

* Each rep begins with a rock bottom squat, with feet flat on the floor.
* Keep the elbows down and in.
* Keep the ball low to the chest.
* Don't let the ball obstruct view of the target.
* Launch the ball with little finger roll or push.
* Make ascending and descending movements the same.
* Minimize breathing and ball contact noise.
* Breath deeply and attempt to synchronize breathing to shot rate.

Look back on CrossFit HEL's WOD archives to June 13th and see how well you did. Can your beat your PR? CrossFit 'gold standard' for this workout is 6 minutes - that's 25 shots per minute! How many minutes can you maintain this rate? Try scaling your med ball weight until you can meet this speed, then add weight as you improve.

Weight Gazing

"You've seen the weight gazers on the floor. They're the ones in the middle of a kickass Fran or a raging FGB who feel the need to pause and assess the apparatus they've just spent hard won reps lifting, pulling, or slamming. Why? Because they have fallen into the mental trap of weight gazing. Most commonly they're just coming off a metabolically demanding exercise, and they spend valuable moments pausing before engaging a strength component. In our Fran example, the gazer comes off the pull up bar and stops for 10-30 seconds before starting to negotiate the Thruster. Instead, our intrepid Crossfitter should grasp the bar immediately and crank out as many reps as possible, even if it's only one or two, to break the psychological pause of moving from one exercise to another. Once that positive feedback cycle of exercise / progress / exercise has resumed the athlete can start to accurately assess his or her rest needs. The trap of weight gazing is almost exclusively mental - of course we're tired, but we make negligible metabolic recovery by abstaining from that first rep.

'Rest Smart' - take three to five deep breaths and fire it up again. Utilize this technique and see valuable seconds recovered, intensity retained, and inevitable improvement achieved."

-Ray Kaplan, CrossFit Challenge


*Welcome Daniel, Elisif and all the ABC candidates! And big props going to Jake, Dan, David and Daniel for taking time after Monday's track WOD to come back to the Lab for an extra hour of skills practice. Rockin' the Turkish Get-up!!!

CrossFit Goals

Often at CrossFit H.E.L. we come in, complete the WODs and leave. However many of the movements we use in CrossFit involve complex neuromuscular programming (called 'engrams') which require many slow repetitions and careful attention to mechanics in order to master completely. This sort of training is something that must occur outside of the WOD and away from the stopwatch. John Frieh, one of our top athletes, is currently working towards a true, unassisted handstand push-up. I see him working on it during every free moment of his day: at home, at work, during meetings(!), and of course at HEL. With this sort of dedication surely any of us could attain that elusive prize.
What are your CrossFit goals? A muscle-up? Double-unders? A hands-free rope climb? Whatever they may be, we hope that you will bring your goals along with your best 'A' game to the Lab this week. Any workout time beyond the WODs will be used practice and hone those skills that may be eluding you and keeping you from moving to the next level.

Train your weakness, that it may become your strength.

PDX Icefest Wrap-up

The 2nd Annual Portland Icefest went off great last night, raising over $700 at the event for a total of almost $2000 with matching funds going to the Southwest Montana Climber's Coalition! CrossFit H.E.L. athletes attending included Matt(who competed in the mixed climbing competition), Shannon, Ellen, Evan, Ryan - and of course John and I. Thanks gang for all the support!

PDX Icefest Sat, Sept 29th

A reminder to everyone: After the FGB on Saturday come on down to the Portland Rock Gym(located on Burnside at 12th Ave) at 5pm with John and I to check out some ice and mixed climbing demonstrations, slideshows and FREE BEER! Bring some dollars for a charity raffle and check it out!

Why We're Here

Guiding troubled youth groups in the Utah desert some years ago, we had a simple rule for new students: to eat with our community, you've got to make a spoon. No other utensils were supplied and, until a new student cooperated, he or she would simply go hungry. I imagined this challenge was meant to break down resistance and force students to find a new way of doing things. But when I questioned a senior guide about the rule, he gave me a very different answer, "The way we do anything is the way we do everything." As I observed the students, I began to see what he meant: Some would eat with just a stick, thinking they were beating the system. Others made huge ladles to ensure they got more from the pot. And some spoons were so ornate that they were even too fragile to eat with. But in each case, the craft always reflected the craftsman.
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CrossFit HEL will hold WODs @ 1200 each Monday, Wednesday and Friday. To work out with us, please arrive five minutes early and prepared to work. This will allow for a group warm-up, focused workouts and post-cooldown stretching.

* Welcome back Ryan Neal!