10/9/18

What’s going on?

• Keeneland Trip: 10/13, see Heidi Ferguson for details

• Parent Kids Class: 10/14 @12PM

• Sunday Zone Class: 10/21 @9AM

• Halloween In-House Comp, 10/27, roughly scheduled 8AM-12PM but we will do our best to finish early. Sign up is on the Coaches Desk with a FAQ Guide. You sign up, I pick the teams, we all have fun.

• Kids Class with Costumes: 10/30

• Last 60 Nutrition Challenge: Traditionally the last 60 days of the year are the hardest nutrition wise, with Thanksgiving and Christmas. This year we are going against that trend and doing a challenge to finish 2018 strong, and start 2019 on the right foot. More info to come on this next week.

Snatch Technique

• Here are some great tips and corrective exercises from the legendary coach Mike Burgener https://www.instagram.com/p/BnotBwKjSxd/?hl=en&taken-by=crossfit_weightlifting

Survey Results

1. How Would you rate the cleanliness of the gym?

   • Average: 4.79 out of 5

   • Really happy to see this, as we devote a lot of time, resources, and take a lot of pride in the cleanliness of the gym.  

2. How would you rate the Safety of the gym?

   • Average: 4.83 out of 5

   • There were a few comments regarding kids running around during classes, but more on that later.

3. How would you rate the coaching staff?

   • Average: 4.87 out of 5

   • Happy to see this, as all of our coaches have 3+ years of experience.

4. How would you rate the quality of instruction?

   • Average: 4.78 out of 5

   • There were a few comments about more gymnastics and weightlifting instruction.  We will take these under advisement, and plan to have our own instruction for coaching these movements at our next coaches meeting.

5. Which of these best describes your Goals?

   • Lose weight and tone muscle

     -47.47%

   • General Health and Wellness

     40.40%

   • To compete in CrossFit

     4.04%

   • Other (please specify)

     8.08%

   • Most of the “Other” were combinations of the other 3.

6. What would you like to see more of?

   • Nutrition Challenges

     23.96%

   • In-House Competitions

     15.63%

   • Social Gatherings

     8.33%

   • Free Seminars (Strength, Competitor, etc...)

     25.00%

   • Hill Runs

     4.17%

   • Other (please specify)

     22.92%

   • Again most of the “other” responses were “more of everything, except hill runs”

   • The top 2 responses were subject specific seminars, and nutrition challenges. We have both planned for this year, with Double Under and Running Seminars, and a “Last 60” Nutrition Challenge.

7. If you would like to see a morning Weightlifting class, what time?

   • 5AM

     26.79%

   • 530AM

     19.64%

   • 6AM

     37.50%

   • 630AM

     16.07%

   • In the past we have only done evening weightlifting classes, and we wanted to gauge the interest of a morning class. Also having an idea of what time most people would prefer is helpful, so be on the lookout for a signup for a morning weightlifting class soon!

8. Do you have any other feedback, or ways for us to improve?

   • There was a lot of feedback, both positive and negative. I’ll do my best to summarize and address those below.

   • Multiple complaints about kids running around during classes, and generally making an unsafe situation. I would say that 2/3 of the additional comments were directed at this subject. I take responsibility for this, as I haven’t been as aware of this lately as I should be. I often get so focused on my class that I miss it happening. One of the most often referenced times was during evening Zone class, as they’re usually right outside the kids room. Parents please help us control this, your kids are more likely to listen to you than some bearded stranger. Please note that I’ve instructed the coaches that if the kids won’t listen, then stop the parents workout, and have them address it. Safety is the goal here, both for your kids and the people working out.

   • Had a few comments about wanting more gymnastics instruction, specifically in place of “no measure” cool-downs. We took this under advisement, but if you look at the “Goals” question; 87% are looking for “General Health and Wellness”, or “Lose Weight/Tone Muscle.” With those goals in mind our no measure cool-downs have focused on Cardio and Core Strength. Meaning running and ab exercises translate better to overall health than the ability to do a bar muscle up. However I think there is a way to do both, 1. By improving our gymnastic instruction during warmups and 2. Potentially doing “skill sessions”: outside of regular class time. Those skill sessions could also be videoed and distributed for everyones benefit.

Conclusion

• First of all thank you to everyone that filled out the survey. I really do appreciate your feedback and can assure you that I read every one of your comments. It’s very easy to sit back and assume you are doing the right thing, so it’s nice to hear of things we’re doing right and things we’re doing wrong. Our gym has changed a lot over the last 6 years, and almost all for the better. Thank you for believing in us, and we will continue to work hard to make this place better, and to make it the best hour of your day!

• If you have any additional feedback, or would like further explanation of anything please feel free to email me at: info@ftwrightcrossfit.com

Tuesday 9/25

Team Series

• That’s a wrap on week 1! Next set of workouts will be released Wednesday 9/26. My speculation is we will have some longer 20min style workouts, a “max” type lift, and some relay type workouts instead of all the Synchronized stuff like last week. Either way I’m excited for the next set! The plan for the workouts will be #5 Thursday, #6 Friday, #7 Saturday, and #8 Monday. However we may adjust that to accommodate new folks on Saturday. If we do, we will make sure to announce that.

Running

• I’m heading to the CrossFit Running Course this weekend (9/29) so be prepared for some running knowledge when I come back!

Endurance Work

• Here are 2 sample workouts that are intended to build Aerobic Capacity. The first will work on Lactic Threshold, with shorter sprints. The Second works more on pacing and Aerobic Efficiency:

• 10x500m row with 1:00 rest between. Goal here is to find a fast pace that is repeatable, with all 10 intervals being within a few seconds of each other.

• 6000m row with negative splits. Goal here is to increase your pace and finish each 1000m faster than the previous one. Start at around 70% effort and bump it up every 1000m.

Need to Know

• Sweatshirt order and $$ due this Friday, 9/28

• Keeneland Bus Trip 10/13, see Heidi Ferguson for details, payment etc..

• Parent/Kids Class 10/7 at 12PM

• Halloween In House Competition 10/27, sign-ups for that coming soon.

• Kids Day Camp (Ages 8 and up) on 10/28, 9am to 12pm, $25 for Members, $35 Non-members.

Flying Axes

• Thanks Heidi Ferguson for organizing this fun social event. If you haven’t done this yet, I highly recommend it!

9/18 Blog Post

Nutrition

Post-Workout Nutrition Hacks!

Heavily research and forever proven as effective is the post-workout snack.  While there are many theories floating around out there, consistently considered the King of athletic nutrition is the Post-Workout.  So how do you grab this meal and do it right? Follow the next 5 steps and see how much better you start to feel or how quickly you recover!

Who:  Any athlete who has just finished a workout

What: A small meal or snack, consisting of a protein and carbohydrate

Where: Either at the gym or in your car on the way home

When: Within 30 minutes of finishing a workout

How:  It is completely up to the athlete’s preference.  An easy way to start is by grabbing a protein powder (that you will drink and is affordable) and a piece of fruit.  The protein begins cell repair as the fruit replenishes glycogen stores. The cool thing about placing your protein powder in water is that it immediately begins flushing the system of lactic acid and helps to reduce muscle soreness.  As the athlete begins to consume their post-workout snack consistently, they can begin experimenting with a more paleo post-workout or a more macros based workout! (Also, yes Fit-Aid counts, but you still need a protein!)

Try it out and see Coach Kate with questions!

Programming

Try this interval running workout from Coach Zach:

• 5x1200m repeats with 3:00 rest between. Try to keep all efforts within a few seconds of each other.

Current Events

• Flying Axes 9/22, details in the Event part of the FB group

• Team Series starts this Wednesday 9/19 with the first set of workouts being released at 8PM on crossfitgames.com

• Sweatshirt Order and Money due 9/28. Order form is on the Coaches desk

• Please check if you’re membership is expiring! If you signed up for the 12 month membership when we changed prices that means you. You can let any coach know, or email us at info@ftwrightcrossfit.com

Mobility

• Check out this shoulder warmup that I have been implementing with some of my classes.

Grip Talk with Coach Zach

Ever wonder why a lot of people where those funny things on their hands during bar work?  Here's a breakdown from coach Zach on why to wear them and which grips he prefers.

"During regionals in 2017, one of the events featured 45 ring muscle ups. At the time, I hated gymnastic grips because they bunched up in my hand and they would never stay where I wanted them to, they were just uncomfortable. I finished the event but ended up with a rip in my hand the size of a silver dollar. Luckily for me, that was the last event of the weekend where grip was a major factor but from that point on, I realized that ripping my hands was not an option. I immediately committed to wearing grips for every possible gymnastic movement plus any movements that caused too much friction on my hands. My favorite grips to use are the 3-Hole Carbon Fiber Grips from Bear Komplex. The 3-Hole Grips give the most protection on my hand and the Carbon Fiber fabric really helps me stick to the pull-up bar for large sets especially on our Speal Bars at the gym. There’s a lot of gear that’s important to me in CrossFit but the one thing I’ll never forget is my grips."

• To get your own pair of grips, head to www.bearkomplex.com
• Use Code: "Zwatts" to get 10% off your order!

Coach Liz is off to the Games!

CrossFit Games Info

• Coach Liz will start competition on 8/1 
• You can follow along with the CrossFit Games App, and you can even "follow" athletes on the app to see when they will be competing again.  
• For information on how to watch the games check out games.crossfit.com

Performance Nutrition

We all see how often and how much Coach Liz works out, right?  But the even more in-depth part of her training has been her nutrition.  Over the past 4 months, Coach Kate and Liz have been perfecting a plan for the CrossFit Games.  First, Coach Liz made a commitment of eating strictly on plan.  No alcohol, no pizza.  Second, they went through almost 40 recipes, Liz tested them for ease of making, how they made her feel physically and how they made her feel in training.   As Ben Bergeron says, be prepared for the unknown and unknowable.  With this in mind, they tested different scenarios with snacks and timing, some of which made Coach Liz feel not so hot!  Once they compiled a list of recipes and snacks Liz wanted to repeat, Kate made her own list of foods that could be made ahead of time and taken to the CrossFit Games for the week, along with foods that made easily on-site in Madison. 

Now, we are in the final leg of the CrossFit Games season.  With her nutrition dialed in tightly, Coach Liz has been putting up numbers, and feeling healthy.  Liz has truly earned and honored her place CrossFit Games 2018.   Follow @Kg3Nutrition and @ftwrightcrossfit on Instagram to see pictures of her Games week nutrition, and a few behind the scenes shots too!

Current Events

• MBB is on 8/18/18, we have a lot of athletes competing so we will need as many volunteers as we can get.  Please sign up on the sheet on the coaches desk!

Where's Coach?

Where’s Coach?

As I start my travel to work the Regionals this year it occurred to me that not everyone knows where I am, or what exactly I’m doing.  Some of the morning classes may not even notice I’m gone! With that in mind I thought I would jot down a quick summary of what it is I do on these long trips.

Who?

I am a part-time employee for CrossFit Headquarters(Not Rogue), and work mainly during the competition season (Open-Games, although there is travel all year to support those.) My department is under “Games” and is called “Signage.”  My official job title is “Signage Installer.” Our Signage department is pretty small with 1 full time employee (my boss), and 3 of us part time employees. We also have contractors that we hire to help during the actual events.

What?

So what does a “Signage Installer” do?  I like to say that we are responsible for making the competition look like an “event.” One of the main pieces is the competition floor,  The flooring comes to our warehouse in Wisconsin completely blank and in large rolls. We divide it out and ship it to the events, and then once onsite we cut, and lay it out to the exact dimensions of the competition floor.  Once laid out and put in place we create the “ruler” look that is marking it every 6’, creating a border, create a finish mat to hide the scoring cable, and make it look “pretty.” It’s extremely important that this is all done with precision, to create a safe and fair competition.  

After that we cut and create all the other mats: rep mats (to show rep counts to audience) rep markers (to show rep counts to athletes and judges), start/stop mats, warm up area mats, and any other specific needs for the event(there are 100’s of these.)  

Once finished with the rubber we start on branding the competition floor and venue.  This includes all the barricades surrounding the floor, the flags in the corners, the covering over the rig, the clocks and clock covers, directional signage (think “ticketing” and an arrow, or “athlete warm up.” Branding and numbering of equipment (yep that tiny lane number on the Assault Runner, that was me.”

We also provide logistical support for several other teams at the event.  This includes packing and transporting kits for the Directors, medical teams, scoring, judges etc….

During the actual event we ensure that the competition floor matches the diagrams, and is safe for the athletes and judges.  We facilitate the name change outs, and floor change outs between heats and events.

Then the best part we break it all down in about 4 hours and load it onto a truck to go back to the warehouse or onto the next event!

Why/How?

I got started with this work as a volunteer, and I did it as a way to give back to CrossFit that had given me so much.  I started volunteering at our specific Regional and at the Games in 2012 and did it every year in various roles (Judging, Gear, Signage.)  In 2015 I became the volunteer Signage lead at our Regional, and then was picked up for the paid team at Games that year(2015.) I continued on the team as a contractor until early 2017, when I was hired on as a Part-time employee.

I have several reasons for doing it, but the main reason is the experience.  It gives me the opportunity to work with and learn from some really great people.  I’ve gotten to travel to some amazing places that I may have never visited(Australia 2x, Spain 3x), and there’s something exciting about the high stress “make it happen” environment of the event itself.  It also provides an extra stream of income to my family, and has helped us provide us some opportunities we wouldn’t have had. I also genuinely enjoy some of the work. I love to work with my hands and build/create things, and also like to problem solve on the spot.  Both of which I get ample opportunity to do, and often spend 12+ hours a day doing.

Conclusion

Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to go out and do these crazy events.  I always return with a renewed appreciation of the gym and community that we have.  Until then know that I miss all of you, and can’t wait to WOD with you again soon.

Week 1: East Regional in Albany, NY

Week 2: Central Regional in Nashville, TN

Week 3: Meridian Regional in Madrid, Spain

Friday 4/6

New Gym

• Here are a few pictures of the wood walls going up.  We did these to cover the structural "X"s and maximize our wall space!
• Permanent Power is on, and they began work on the parking lot this week!

Current Events

• Zone Class this Sunday (4/8) at 9am 
• Parent/Kid Class this Sunday (4/8) at 12:00pm
• Starting 6/4/18:
  • Kids Class will be split into two different age groups and times!  We are doing this so we can provide the appropriate attention, workout, and coaching for your kids!
  • Tuesday (5:30-6:00pm, 3 yrs - 6 yrs) & (6:00pm - 6:30pm, 7 yrs - 11 yrs) 
  • Saturday (9:00am - 9:30am, 3 yrs - 6 yrs) & (9:30am - 10:00am, 7 - 11 yrs)

What Now?

• The 2018 Open is over now and the 2019 is a long way off.  Now is the time to plan and set yourself up for next year.  The best time to make a change is NOW.  Finally ready to dial in your nutrition?  Do it now and reap the benefits for 50 weeks before the next Open.  Want to get a detailed plan to improve your lifts or gymnastics?  Contact a coach now so you don't get caught hoping "xyz" movement doesn't come up next year.  Think your conditioning could improve?  Maybe start attending some Zone classes throughout the week.
• We have several things in the works for the next few months, including a Competitors seminar with Coaches Zach and Liz, and a Strength seminar with Coach Kyle S.  Both will be free to our members and are designed to help you reach your goals!
• For some extra conditioning work try this fun little workout from MisFits
  • For Time:
    Run 1k
    Row 1k
    Bike 3k
    Row 1k
    Run 1k

Quote

• Here is a good quote I heard this week:  "Sometimes you find yourself in the middle of nowhere, and sometimes in the middle of nowhere you find yourself"  Have a great weekend everyone!