Monday, March 31, 2008

SFCF Adds Five More Classes Starting Tonight!



Hey Gang!

Just a reminder that we've just added an additional 6pm class Monday through Thursday. We are going to also try a trial 7pm class on Friday for a couple of weeks and see if we have any takers.
All of these new classes are open level for now.

The new classes are also reflected on our calander.


See you then!

Coach K

Friday, March 28, 2008

Strength


How do you define Strength? Is it the ability to carry more load? To be able to control one's body to a higher degree? Making it through the work-week with a cool head? Defining what this means to you brings you one step closer to getting there. How do you want to be stronger? Add your definition/goals to comments.

Wednesday, March 26, 2008

In the Morning or The Evening

It's official. April marks the beginning of some new scheduling at SFCF. We are pleased to announce that we will be adding a 6pm class Monday through Thursdays and also a 7pm Friday class beginning March 31st. So spread the word and bring a friend!


See you at 6,

-Boz

Tuesday, March 25, 2008

Elbows UP!



Hey Gang,
I wanted to take a moment to share this picture of Coach Boz from last weekend.
Yeah, that's 270lbs on the bar. Boz weighs 165ish. One of the reasons he is such a monster (besides natural talent, freakish strength, work ethic etc) is that he does a lot of little things right. These small efficiencies aggregate and become increased functional application of talent, freakish strength, work ethic, etc.

In this photo, note how straight his back is on the catch position in the hole. Most importantly note how high his elbows are. Keeping elbows up in that position allows him to keep tension in his upper back and ultimately his back straight. As you approach the margins of your strength, power, and capacities the little things really add up.

Technique is nothing. Application of technique is everything.

Nice job Coach Boz!

Coach K

Saturday, March 22, 2008

Let's make a Boxy time. Chingque?



Spring is officially here, and that means more adventures in Plyo-Boxes! And we say, why stop at 20 inches when something like 26 will do?

While this height might intimidate those SFCF athletes under 6'5", we know that there is still value in stepping up onto such a tall box.

Notice that the extreme hip flexion required to get his foot on the box forces Michael to generate a ton of force at pretty much the end of his hip range of motion. Throw a 50lb dumbell in his hand and you've got some serious work being performed by a single leg.

That's cool. Chingque?

Coach k

Friday, March 21, 2008

All you need to know

"Civilize the mind and make savage the body" so that one day you too may be



-Boz

Thursday, March 20, 2008

Beware of the Big "C"


In an ideal world, we would all have access to the freshest produce and most minimally processed food stuffs available. The reality of the situation is that we overwork, undersleep and often times grab what is most convenient to satiate our hunger pangs. When shopping for sustenance, the more health conscious of us will look for the "hot button" words like, "organic," "all natural," or "minimally processed," and feel they have taken one step closer to adequate nutrition. Truth is the container of soy milk you just purchased, while containing less fat, more protein and all sorts of other proported health benefits is probably better than soaking your Cheerios with Red Bull, it may also contain a seriously dangerous "NATURAL" ingredient: Carrageenan.

What is Carrageenan? It is a "natural" gum made from seaweed extract that helps preserve foods.

From HowStuffWorks.com:
Two gums that are pretty familiar are gelatin and corn starch. If you look at processed food, you see all sorts of other gums like carrageenan, xanthan gum, cellulose gum, locust bean gum, agar, and so on. Food scientists (not cooks -- food scientists make processed foods) use these substances for four main reasons:
1. They thicken things: Ice cream, marshmallow fluff, pancake syrup, etc., all benefit from thickening.
2. They emulsify things: They help liquids to stay mixed together without separating.
3. They change the texture: Generally, a gum will make something thicker or chewier.
4. They stabilize crystals: A gum might help prevent sugar or ice from crystallizing

That's right, food scientists make these processed foods so they can bake a cookie in Texas in January and have it fresh for the New Englanders in May. Foods containing Carrageenan: deli meats, toothpastes, apple cider, hot dogs, most ice creams and prepared sauces and jellies (among many others).

Carrageenan has been found to cause colitis and anaphylaxis in humans, but it is often present in baby “formulas” and a wide range of milk products, with the result that many people have come to believe that it was the milk-product that was responsible for their allergic symptoms. Because the regulators claim that it is a safe natural substance, it is very likely that it sometimes appears in foods that don’t list it on the label, for example when it is part of another ingredient. Check your box of Girl Scout Cookies!!

The health conscious know to avoid high fructose corn syrup and transfats...add Carrageenan to your list. It is processed, it is a chemical and there is nothing natural about it.

Your assignment: Look at the labels in your refrigerator. Throw out anything containing this product. Post your results to comments.

Coach Kevin

Wednesday, March 19, 2008

No Bums 'Round Here

An interesting visitor stopped by during the weekend's running clinic. Looking for bridge-dwellers, but finding only us, Officer Shannon stopped in for a few pullups. Fully geared (pistols, tazer, vest etc) he estimated he was about 50lbs heavier...still managed an easy 15 pullups. Hopefully we will see him again soon!




Austin from Crossfit Unlimited also set a PR in the Snatch that same lunch break...200lbs!! Here's one of the first attempts and a textbook bail. Very nice footwork displayed here. Musta been all the POSE drills:




See you at 6
-Boz

Tuesday, March 18, 2008

What a bunch of POSERs!



Thanks to everyone that attended this weekend's POSE running clinics!
The feed back so far is that we need to have another round very soon.
Special thanks to JD Cafaro for his amazing cooking.

Most importantly, thanks to Brian and Melissa McKenzie for the fantastic coaching and for not making too much fun of my running.

Anyone else notice a little new calf tightness?

Coach K

Monday, March 17, 2008

Happy St. Patrick's Day!


Corned beef. Cabbage. Potatoes. Ahhh...childhood. Add a few Guinness (or green beers)and you can call yourself Irish. Enjoy the day, go see the parade and if you've had so much to drink that you're doing Irish Yoga - you need to go home.

For those of you not indulging, I'll see you at 7.

Coach Kevin

Sunday, March 16, 2008

"Don't be that guy..."



Yeah, when the arms bend the power ends.
or.
Pulling with the arms before reaching full hip extension is not ideal.
or.
Hey, that doesn't look like a great shoulder position.

No.
It just looks bad. And, after all, it's not how your crossfit that matters, but how you LOOK crossfitting that matters.

Actually, Josh Cunningham is one of our best and so we feel slightly less guilty of making fun of his "flexing dog pooing" position.

The real question is (since Josh doesn't always move like this), at what point in the work out did this become ok?

The answer,it's not. Don't be that guy, or at least don't get caught on camera.

Coach K

Wednesday, March 12, 2008

Death by Dumbells

Tonight's workout was brought to you by The Fitness Conduit, your source for great Dumbell workouts and other solid bits of training advice. Next time you are stuck in a hotel gym somewhere, remember to check in to Coach Rut's blog for a healthy helping of dumbell delicious-ness...




Warming Up.




Marching towards the inevitable...


In other news, SFCF is expanding the evening class schedule! Stay tuned for the news to come...

See you at 6,

-Boz

POSE Clinic Details


Clinics will happen rain or shine so bring a couple of changes of clothes and a rain jacket!

Location for both clinics will be at SFCF. See www.sanfranciscocrossfit.com website for directions.

Saturday: 9:30-4:30 Lunch provided (but bring water and snacks)

Sunday: 9:00-4:00 Lunch provided (bring water and snacks)

Contact Kelly @ 415-350-9761 for questions.

See you then!

Coach K

Monday, March 10, 2008

Mental Athletes



As it turns out, memory is not unlike your fitness; it must be trained, stressed, challenged and used in order for it to function optimally and continually. There is no greater example of how finely-tuned memory can become than the incredible feats of the contestants at the National Memory Championships.

Check out The Memory Gym and see how fit your gray matter truly is.

Coach Kevin

Sunday, March 09, 2008

Sport and Fitness



A quick word on Crossfit, Fitness, and Sport.
We want all of our athletes to play sports, run, swim, paddle, ski, surf, or whatever.
We believe that the kind of fitness for which we strive (broad, general, and inclusive) prepares a sort of ready state from which elite performance is possible. Whatever your sport is, we know absolutely that Crossfitting can and will improve it.

Duh Coach K, that's why we Crossfit.

But taken for granted within the above truism, is the very revolutionary idea that we must train for sport. That while we may gain physical benefits from our favorite outdoor activities, simply doing a lot of our sport will not make us fit.

I spend a great deal of time explaining to the injured runners in my physical therapy practice that they have to train to run. "But I run!" they say. "Isn't that fitness enough?" No, and that's why you are injured, slow, overweight, don't recover quickly, and not fast, quick, strong, or powerful.

The rest of the world gets fit so that they can play sport. We, the royal unenlightened we, do sports to get fit.

But not you. You Crossfit. That's why you will never be considered a weekend warrior.

So be sure to understand that sport is not enough. And, that it is not an accident that you destroyed that that other team playing dodge-ball. After all, you trained.

Coach K

(kayaking does not make you fit, but paddling with 315 lbs. of weight in your boat is a step closer)

Friday, March 07, 2008

The Way it Should be



Remember, there is no substitute for hard work. Even if there were a shortcut to better health and fitness, the benefits of having to 'sing for your supper' extend beyond the final rep of your workout. Hence, there are no substitutes for hard work...well except for the Hawaii Chair.

-Boz

Thursday, March 06, 2008

Yeeeaahh BUdddaayyy!

Strength is built through a lot of hard work and dedication. There are few people I know as dedicated to their training and nutrition as SFCF's own, Coach Bozman. Check out what he was doing yesterday in-between classes...that's commitment!


The Walk-out...



In the bucket...




Light weight!

Coach Kevin

Wednesday, March 05, 2008

Solutions

Here Larry presents a solution to the 'what-round-am-I-on?' problem.





Unfortunately it didn't solve his 'cumulative-fatigue-leaving-me-in-a-heap-on-the-floor' problem.



Have Fun,

-Boz

Tuesday, March 04, 2008

Tunnel Vision



It happens every workout. During a hard effort, your world becomes a little smaller, you stop being able to hear anything but your breathing, and your vision becomes focused solely on the object or task directly ahead of you. And this works...if you are a simple, mindless piece of meat (or textured soy protein Kevin).

But you're not. You are a thinking, calculating, scheming, sentient athlete. And, you've got to know where you are, what's going on around you, and how much you've got left in the tank.

What are we talking about? Situation awareness.

Fortunately, being able to think clearly under physical duress if very much a practiced skill. And, this is one of the reasons your coach makes you count your own efforts and keep your own scores.

So the next time you feel your world getting a little smaller, look around and notice that everyone else is in looking out of the tunnel as well.

Coach K

Sunday, March 02, 2008

Genetic Potential



Being involved in the Crossfit community has allowed me the pleasure to train and witness some amazing athletes. The common denominators they all shared were work ethic, good coaching, proper nutrition and good genes. The former attributes can be learned, taught, instilled and disciplined into anyone given proper time and dosage. The latter, well I am sad to say, you have to be born with. But, this is nothing to stop us all from reaching our own personal potential and exceed our own expectations. Eat right and Crossfit, you will be more than you ever thought possible and you will appreciate those that can do what you cannot even more.

One more piece of advice I recently read, "If you want to be an Olympic Champion, choose your parents wisely."

Mr. Erving apparently had the genetic potential to be a professional athlete; my wife sure can appreciate that.

Coach Kevin