Michael Aaron

This month’s O-lifting focus

In case you didn’t already know it, TUESDAY IS OLYMPIC LIFTING DAY. Every Tuesday, the programming features some version of the snatch or clean & jerk. SPOILER ALERT AHEAD…
For the month of May, we’re focusing on the snatch. Today, we’ll do several sets of two reps each of the full snatch. Power snatch if you must, but you should also know, this month’s programming ALSO features a focus on overhead squats. Coincidence? NOPE. It’s time to work on our overhead squats in order to clean up those snatches. There. I said it.
Next week we’ll do hang snatches, the following week we’ll break it down further into some high-hang snatches, and on the final Tuesday of the month we’ll do a three-position snatch (each set will include a snatch rep pulling from the high-hang, the hang and the floor positions).
Some CFM students tell me they avoid Tuesdays because “I hate snatches.” or “I’m so bad at that stuff.” I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: we’re all adults. It’s up to you to decide which workouts you want to come in for, and which you want to avoid. BUT if you asked me for ONE discipline/sport/area to work on, within CrossFit, that would positively impact and improve ALLLLLL the rest of your CrossFit game & skills… I would say it’s Olympic Lifting. Keep at it. Be patient. Listen to your coaches and push through the frustrating times. Eventually, after LOTS of reps, things will start to click. Trust me.

NO CLASSES AT CFM SATURDAY!

We’ll hold ONE WOD Saturday at 10am over at the Piedmont Park Active Oval. So come for that OR PLEASE join us for the entire Field Day, Saturday morning from 9a-12noon. All proceeds benefit Strong4Life. Email Tirzah if you’d like to volunteer or if you still want to register a team.

ANNIVERSARY PARTY SATURDAY 7-10p AT CFM!

Here’s why you should come:
Someone’s tongue might get stuck to this thing!

Today’s snatch motivation:

Check it out as Elisabeth Akinwale (8th at last year’s CrossFit Games) PRs her snatch at 190#

Ninja Training is tonight at 7 with Lindsay!

Meet at CFM at 7p OR at the Piedmont Park Active Oval at 7:15 (meet them on the edge of the Oval, at the stairs closest to the 14th St gate). Don’t be late! These ninjas only stay in the Active Oval for warm-up… some days, they slither* off to other parts of the park by 7:25, so catch them before they enter stealth mode.
*Do ninjas slither? Traipse? Galivant?

Workout of the Day

A. Snatch: 2-2-2-2-2
Rest 2-3 minutes between sets. DO 1-2 WARM UP SETS. Use 80-85% of your 1 rep max from last week.
B. For time: 20 rounds
10 double unders or 20 singles
10 abmat situps

And coming tomorrow…

20 min to find 1-rep max bench press THEN…
2 min to find max standing broad jump THEN…
2 rounds:
1 min max plyo push ups
1 min max overhead lunges 45#/25#

No rest between movements/rounds.

ALSO WEDNESDAY: Yoga with Beth at 12n & Rowing with Uran at 7p!

TUES 05.07.13 Snatchy snatch snatch Read More »

New Strength Program:

It was great seeing everyone’s progress last week as we retested several benchmarks for quarterly progress checks!
This week, we’re starting a new strength cycle, based on a percentage of your 1-rep max on certain lifts. We’ll also be establishing a max on a few more lifts (bench press & overhead squat this week) to use for future strength work.
We’ll be doing lots of lower-rep sets, to put a focus on great technique and lifting HEAVY and explosively.
On today’s back squats, use the 1-rep max chart (or a calculator) to figure out 80% of the 1RM you established on Friday. If you didn’t max out, we’ll work with you to determine a good starting weight.
For the first two sets, lift five reps at 80% of last week’s one-rep max. On the third set, you’ll do as many reps as possible (5+)… shoot for at least 5, then as many as possible beyond that, in the same set, until you fail.
Don’t worry, we’ll practice proper technique to bail out/dump the bar once you get to failure.
RECORD TODAY’S RESULTS. Your performance this week (and specifically how many reps you get on your 3rd set) will determine how much weight you add (if any) next week. More on that later…
GET STRONG!

Congrats to all who set new PRs and set and/or achieved goals in April. Now it’s time to help us update the board for May. Add your goals this week if you haven’t already!

Workout of the Day (WOD)

A. Back Squat: 5-5-5+
Rest 3 minutes between sets. DO 1-2 WARM UP SETS. Use 80% of your 1 rep max on all sets. On the third “burnout” set, go to FAILURE… as in, until you fail a rep and must bail/dump the bar. Record weight and reps on set 3.
B. 7 rounds:
Handstand hold for max time
10 supine ring pull ups

Score is total time accumulated in handstand hold.

And coming tomorrow…

A. Snatch: 2-2-2-2-2
Rest 2-3 minutes between sets. DO 1-2 WARM UP SETS. Use 80-85% of your 1 rep max from last week.
B. For time: 20 rounds
10 double unders or 20 singles
10 abmat situps

MON 05.06.13 May Goals Read More »

Quarterly Progress Checks wrap up…

Be sure to retest your Baseline by Sunday. We’re also starting a new strength cycle next week, so it’s important to learn your maxes so you’ll have numbers to work from beginning next week. We’ll be lifting based on a percentage of your max, so get those maxes done this week!
Tomorrow is a make-up day and Sunday is Open Gym 12n-2p so use these chances to get in and make up a benchmark you missed this week.

Retest your Baseline (if you haven’t already)!

For time:
500m row
40 squats
30 abmat situps
20 hand-release push ups
10 pull ups

Workout of the Day

CrossFit Total:
Find your 1 rep max (in order) of:
Back squat
Strict press
Deadlift

Add the three numbers together for your CrossFit Total score!

And coming tomorrow…

Make-up Day

Choose a benchmark you missed earlier this week to make it up. Top priorities to retest are Baseline, CrossFit Total & Olympic Total. Good luck!

FRI 05.03.13 CrossFit Total! Read More »

Step your game up

A year ago, CrossFit Midtown was about to officially open for business. The past year has been the toughest and most educational one of my life. So many challenges and opportunities and amazing people have entered my life. So as our first anniversary nears, of course I’ve spent a lot of time reflecting on how far CFM has already come in such a short time.
But I’m also committed to continue making it better and better. Our community – YOU GUYS – coming in to the gym day after day – busting your butts for PRs, sweating out every last rep, working to improve each day – constantly inspires the CFM team to work harder for you and provide even better coaching, programming, accountability, and community events!
If you’re around the box today, you’ll meet my dear friend Jen, who I had the great fortune to meet over a year ago. Now-CFM student Carlos introduced me to The BIZ a year and half ago when I was working at another gym. He knew of the BIZ through his old box, CrossFit Los Angeles. Carlos encouraged me to apply to become a BIZ intern back in November 2011. I later joined their team and still work for them as a featured blogger.
Since working with the BIZ, I’ve been introduced to an amazing community of CrossFit affiliate owners who inspire and push each other to raise our game regularly. The better businesses we run, the more lives we can improve through CrossFit.
The BIZ community is a lot like the community in a CrossFit gym. Just like my colleagues encourage me to do better every day & month & year, I encourage you to do the same.
Continue working hard in the gym. Be proud of your progress and keep raising your game. You are all an inspiration to me, to your coaches and to your classmates.
What inspires you on a daily basis? How will you raise your game this month? Please share your thoughts in the comments…

Dyer, Christine & Matt GETTIN’ IT!

Yoga tonight at 8:15p

Retest your Baseline (if you haven’t already)!

For time:
500m row
40 squats
30 abmat situps
20 hand-release push ups
10 pull ups

Workout of the Day

A. Weighted pull up: 15 minutes to find your 1 rep max weighted pull up OR 5 sets of 3 pull up negatives
B. For time: 250m row
15 kettlebell swings 70/53#
25 burpees
15 kettlebell swings
250m row

And coming tomorrow…

CrossFit Total:
Find your 1 rep max (in order) of:
Back squat
Strict press
Deadlift

Add the three numbers together for your CrossFit Total score!

05.02.13 Raise your game! Read More »

Update your goals on the board today!

Yoga at 12n & Rowing at 7p today!

Why Row?

by Uran
As most of you probably know, I lead the rowing class on Wednesdays at 7 PM. I’ve seen a subset of the CFM family in my class and heard plenty of interest expressed, but for those of you who haven’t tried it yet, you may be wondering why you should use one of your weekly classes on “just rowing”.
Most of you don’t plan on jumping in an eight boat and rowing down the Chattahoochee any time soon, but if you’ve been in the CrossFit space for a little while, you’ve probably noticed that rowing on the erg comes up a fair amount in the programming. And for good reason. It’s a full-body, low-impact workout that uses large muscle groups over a long range of motion. It is both metabolically challenging and mentally demanding. And finally, correct form on the rower is a great development tool for your Oly lifting technique as the primary drivers for the rowing stroke are the legs and opening of the hips.
Don’t let your power and potential be wasted by improper technique! Come check out the class, and see how you can improve your rowing form. I review technique drills before every workout, so you will get a sense of where you currently stand and learn some things to practice any time you see rowing pop up in the regular programming.
Team Carlos’ Angels communicating on the box jump conga line (Brianne, Shelley, Amy) while Carlos rows the boat. WELCOME BACK CARLOS!

Retest your Baseline!

For time:
500m row
40 squats
30 abmat situps
20 hand-release push ups
10 pull ups

Rowing class at 7pm!

A. 5 sets of 250m row, rest 2:00, working on sprint starts and settling into a race pace,
then,
B. 2,000m row for time

Workout of the Day

As many rounds & reps as possible in 20 minutes of:
20 thrusters 135/95#
20 burpees
20 pull ups

And coming tomorrow…

A. Weighted pull up: 15 minutes to find your 1 rep max weighted pull up OR 5 sets of 3 pull up negatives
B. For time: 250m row
15 kettlebell swings 70/53#
25 burpees
15 kettlebell swings
250m row

WED 05.01.13 Read More »

Retest your Baseline this week!

We’re doing this a little differently from past quarters. You choose the day to retest your Baseline, but if you’re in the gym this week, YOU MUST RETEST IT! Do it as a warm up any of the days you come in, or do the Baseline as your workout, instead of the regular WOD, or wait until the weekend and retest it on Saturday or during Open Gym on Sunday.

Dunk Truck comes TOMORROW:

Get your body composition tested! Price is $30. Register here.

Goal-setting workshop on Saturday

Join Lis Saturday from 12n-1p to do some goal-setting for the next month, quarter, and/or even the next 1, 5 & 10 years!

Here’s some inspiration for today’s Olympic Total…

Kendrick Farris slow-mo snatch AND Camille Leblanc-Bazinet snatches 190#!

Baseline whiteboard pics from past Quarterly Check-Ins:

Feb ’13

Nov ’12 Pic 1 & 2

Retest your Baseline!

For time:
500m row
40 squats
30 abmat situps
20 hand-release push ups
10 pull ups

Ninja Training at 7pm!

Meet Lindsay at CFM at 7 or in the Piedmont Park Active Oval at 7:15 for some hill sprints!!!

Workout of the Day

Olympic Total:
A. Take 15 minutes to find your Snatch 1 rep max
B. Take 15 minutes to find your Clean & Jerk 1 rep max

And coming tomorrow…

As many rounds & reps as possible in 20 minutes of:
20 thrusters 135/95#
20 burpees
20 pull ups

TUES 04.30.13 Olympic Total & Ninja Training! Read More »

Quarterly Progress Checks

It’s time once again to retest several workouts and check our progress over the last three months. Here’s what’s up this week:
1) Retest your Baseline WOD – we’re doing this a little differently from past quarters. You choose the day to retest your Baseline, but if you’re in the gym this week, YOU MUST RETEST IT! Do it as a warm up any of the days you come in, or do the Baseline as your workout, instead of the regular WOD, or wait until the weekend and retest it on Saturday or during Open Gym on Sunday.
2) Post your PRs! If you achieve a new Personal Record this week, PLEASE add it to the PR board in the gym AND tell your coach so we can STAR it on the board. This is important data for us to review as we plan the programming for the future.
3) Get your body composition tested. The Dunk Truck will be here Wednesday. This is a great way to track your progress. Body composition is much more important than body weight alone. I weigh the same now as when I started CrossFit, but have lost about 5% body fat and gained muscle. It’s $30. Register here.
4) Enjoy the journey! Reflect on the last quarter, set goals for the next quarter, and be proud of how far you’ve come. We’ll do 10 minutes of goal-setting & reflection in the beginning of class on M, T & W. If you’d like to spend some more time setting some goals, writing action steps and deciding how to CRUSH the next quarter, join Lis on Saturday from 12 to 1 for a Goal-Setting Workshop.
Team Cooties crushing Saturday’s team WOD: Calin (rowing), Levy & Chris H (swings) & Geoff (resting).

Retest your Baseline!

For time:
500m row
40 squats
30 abmat situps
20 hand-release push ups
10 pull ups

Workout of the Day

5 Rounds for time:
7 handstand push ups
14 pistols
21 double unders or 75 single unders

And coming tomorrow…

Olympic Total:
A. Take 15 minutes to find your Snatch 1 rep max
B. Take 15 minutes to find your Clean & Jerk 1 rep max

And Ninja Training at 7pm!

MON 04.29.13 Quarterly Check-In Week! Read More »

Dunk Truck next week!

The Dunk Truck will be here on Wednesday night, to test body composition. You’ll wear a swimsuit and get dunked into a giant bathtub (treated for sanitation/up to health code standards), then given your body weight and composition results. A report will be emailed to you. We’ll be bringing the Dunk Truck back every quarter to measure our progress!
Schedule your appointment here

Open Gym is Sunday from 12n til 2p.

Spend the rainy weekend in the box! Come kick off Quarterly Progress Check week by getting your Baseline retested and hit one of next week’s benchmarks!

Emilio, P-Lane & Justin crushing the team WOD on Saturday Funday. Join the crew tomorrow for another fun team WOD!

Workout of the Day (WOD)

A. Goat work: 10 min to work on a skill of your choice
B. Every 3 min for 3 rounds:
B1. Dumbbell Kneeling torso row, 6-8 reps each side @3010 tempo, 15sec rest
B2. Dumbbell External rotation, 8-10 reps each side @3010 tempo
C. Helen:
3 rounds for time –
400m run
21 kettlebell swings
12 pull ups

And coming tomorrow…

In teams of 3 or 4, for time:
Row 3k
While 1 person is rowing, others work to complete:
100 box jump overs
200 kettlebell swings
100 burpees
200 air squats (to med ball target under the heinie)

Must complete box jump overs before moving on to kb swings, swings before burpees, burpees before air squats. Each team gets ONE ROWER, ONE BOX, TWO KETTLEBELLS… all can work at once for burpees & squats.

04.26.13 Benchmark Friday…HELEN! Read More »

Quarterly Progress Checks are next week!

Here’s a sneak peek at what is coming up so you can plan your workouts accordingly. We HIGHLY recommend you get in on the lifting days (Tues & Fri) if possible, so that you can test your max lifts. It will be important to know these numbers getting into our next strength cycle in May.
MON 4/29
5 rounds for time:
7 handstand push ups
14 pistols
21 double-unders or 75 singles
TUES 4/30
Olympic Total:
15 minutes to work to 1 heavy snatch (your 1-rep max)
15 minutes to work to 1 heavy clean & jerk (your 1-rep max)
WED 5/1
As many rounds & reps as possible in 20 minutes:
20 thrusters 135/95#
20 pull ups
20 burpees
THURS 5/2
1 rep max weighted pull up, THEN
For time:
Row 250m
15 kettlebell swings 70/53
25 burpees
15 kettlebell swings 70/53
Row 250m
FRI 5/3:
CrossFit Total –
Find your 1-rep max of back squat, then strict press, THEN deadlift. Add up all maxes for your CrossFit total score.
THEN 1-minute AirDyne test for max calories.

Is this your first Quarterly Check-In Week?

Here’s what’s about to go down…1. Retest your baseline! For your first workout of the week, you’ll retest your Baseline as your warm-up. You also have the option to retest your Baseline WOD on Sunday at Open Gym on 4/28 or 5/5 from 12n-2p with Dyer OR on Saturday, 5/4…
2. Goal-Setting & reflection: At the beginning of class on Mon, Tues & Wed, we’ll take 10 minutes to reflect on our progress over the last three months and set some goals for the next quarter. If you prefer to spend more time on goal-setting, join Lis next Saturday, May 4th from 12n-1p for a free goal-setting workshop. We’ll take some time to visualize what we want our future to be like, then set smaller, action steps to achieve our longer-term goals.
3. Record your results! If you haven’t been doing it already, now is the time to start tracking your progress in the gym. Use the Zen Planner iPhone app, or you can track through the Zen Planner web page.
4. Saturday is a Make-Up Day. Next week ONLY, we won’t be doing a Team WOD on Saturday. Instead, in each of the three classes, 9, 10 and 11, you’ll have the chance to make up a workout you missed earlier in the week.

Lis sets the state record at Powerlifting for Pink with a back squat of more than twice her bodyweight… 130 kg/286# (bodyweight 142#). Thanks to Ian for catching the footage!

Yoga tonight at 8:15p with Laura!

Workout of the Day (WOD)

A. Every 4 min for 5 rounds:
A1. Deadlift 6-9 reps @2010 tempo, 15sec rest
A2. Dumbbell Single-arm press L 6-8 reps @3010 tempo, no rest
A3. Dumbbell Single-arm press R 6-8 reps @3010 tempo
B. For time: 21-15-9 –
Wall balls
Plyo push ups

And coming tomorrow…

A. Goat work: 10 min to work on a skill of your choice
B. Every 3 min for 3 rounds:
B1. Dumbbell Kneeling torso row, 6-8 reps each side @3010 tempo, 15sec rest
B2. Dumbbell External rotation, 8-10 reps each side @3010 tempo
C. Helen:
3 rounds for time –
400m run
21 kettlebell swings
12 pull ups

THURS 04.25.13 Quarterly Progress Checks next week… Read More »

Field Day registration price goes up on May 1!

Teams of 4 can still register for $100 (ALL proceeds go to Strong4Life), but on May 1 the price goes up to $150 per team. WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR? Register here.
Team events are: Tug-o-War, Hooverball, Skills Challenge (1 member competes at the softball throw for distance, 1 competes in the hula hoop contest, and 2 compete in a 3-legged race) & the Team Relay (as many rounds as possible in 10 minutes of wheelbarrow, sack race, dizzy bat & burpee leap frog).
Don’t miss the fun!

Weekend fun w Alison, Beka, Lis, Lindsay, Uran, Tirzah, Meesh and the one and only Sir Charles.

Yoga today at 12n with Beth!

Rowing tonight at 7p:

For total meters:
8:00 row
3:00 rest
7:00 row
2:00 rest
6:00 row
1:00 rest
5:00 row

Workout of the Day (WOD)

A. Barbell step up: 4 rounds, every 3 minutes of 6-8 reps @1010 tempo (each side)
B. As many rounds and reps as possible in 15 minutes:
10 pistols
2 rope climbs OR 10 ring rows

And coming tomorrow…

A. Every 4 min for 5 rounds:
A1. Deadlift 6-9 reps @2010 tempo, 15sec rest
A2. Dumbbell Single-arm press L 6-8 reps @3010 tempo, no rest
A3. Dumbbell Single-arm press R 6-8 reps @3010 tempo
B. For time: 21-15-9 –
Wall balls
Plyo push ups

WED 04.24.13 Field Day Reg price goes up next week! Read More »