For time:

Row 1000m/ 50 Kettlebell Swings/50 Sit-ups

Row 750m/40 Kettlebell Swings/40 Sit-ups

Row 500m/30 Kettlebell Swings/30 Sit-ups

HAVE YOU CHECKED OUT OUR EVENTS PAGE?!?! TONS OF NEW INFORMATION ON WHAT’S GOING ON AT CROSSFIT HENDERSONVILLE THIS FALL! MAKE SURE YOU CHECK IT OUT SO YOU ARE IN THE LOOP!

Why Gymnastics?

Several of you have been asking “Why gymnastics?” or stating “This is WAY out of my comfort zone”. I want to remind you that life is not about being comfortable, moreover, being good at life is not about being comfortable.

In the exercise world you will see many images of “Fitness”. For example, world-class marathon runners whose legs resemble a femur-hot-dog-wrapped-in-a-skin-bun.

If you saw this man outside of his uniform would you look at him and say, “Wow. THAT guy is fit!”. While this is a wonderful and admirable accomplishment for this kenyan. One has to wonder how this endurance athlete protects his joints, reduces risk of injury, metabolizes food, has energy,  protects his bones, etc.

However, on the other end of the spectrum we have the athletes who go overboard specializing in body building, ignoring flexibility, endurance, agility, etc. And ending up like this guy…

Eww, right? Imagine this guy checking off his final level 1 skill of touching his palms to the wall with straight legs (hamstring flexibility). Okay, so this example is a little extreme but I think you get my point

What I’m trying to say, is that specializing in one thing or another is not beneficial to our overall health and fitness. It is vastly important that we train to be well rounded in all 10 domains of fitness, cardiovascular/respiratory fitness, stamina, strength, flexibility, power, speed, agility, balance, coordination and accuracy. Unfortunately, this is not easy. If it were, everyone one would do it and nearly 30% of Americans would not be obese nor would America rely on our medical system the way we do. It is important we get ourselves out of our comfort zones in order to improve; lets use the strength we gained from Wendler’s 5-3-1 program to maximally benefit ourselves.

For more in-depth information on this topic,  I HIGHLY recommend this article from the Crossfit Journal titled, “What is Fitness?” As well as reading this interesting view point I found on Crossfit Inviticus’ website.

Gimmick, or the Real Deal?
Written by C.J. Martin of Crossfit Inviticus – but stolen from Kelly Starrett of San Francisco CrossFit

K-Star of SFCF had a great post last week titled “Not a Gimmick.” The post was perhaps the best summation of why CrossFit is so efficient and effective at making folks fitter. In response to a question of why CrossFit is so popular and successful, K-Star said, “Because, it’s not a gimmick. Front-Squatting and Running isn’t a gimmick.”

The SFCF post goes on to point out that “[m]arrying together Olympic sports is a hard stinking workout, and one without a ceiling or top-end,” and then explores the elements that make up our program:

Gymnastics? Not a gimmick. Check.
Olympic Weight-Lifting? Not a gimmick. Check.
Barbell Training? Not a gimmick. Check.
Running and rowing? Not a gimmick. Check.
All these elements mixed together? Gut Check.

Brilliant. This is exactly what separates us from the rest of the fitness world. We’re cutting away the crap gimmicks and shortcuts. There is no 8-second Abs machine or ridiculous hula chair that will make you fit while you watch T.V. If you walk into CrossFit Invictus, SFCF or any other CrossFit affiliate worth it’s salt, you’re going to be expected to work hard. You’ll be provided tools to achieve your fitness goals quicker than you might with other training protocols, and you’ll be given a lot of support from the coaches and crew, but nobody is going to promise you fitness without effort.

Now ask yourself (if you haven’t already) if you’re nutrition plan follows these same principles. Our first and best recommendation comes straight from World-Class Fitness in 100 Words – “Eat meat and vegetables, nuts and seeds, some fruit, less starch and no sugar. Keep intake to levels that will support exercise but not body fat.” No gimmick there either. Meat, vegetables, nuts, seeds and fruit have been staples of our diet since we started walking upright.

Seems simple right? Then stop buying the crap gimmicks. If someone promises that a supplement will help you pack on muscle or drop a lot of weight quickly, it’s a gimmick. If someone promises you can eat whatever you want as long as you take the pill they’re offering, it’s a gimmick. If it has a label with a laundry list of ingredients, it is a chemistry experiment masquerading as food. If you heard about the product on a commercial, it shouldn’t be eaten.

Keep it simple. Apples, walnuts, fish, turkey and asparagus don’t require nutrition labels, ingredient lists, potential side effect warnings, and marketing campaigns. These are good wholesome foods that have been around forever. They are nutrient-rich and pretty darn tasty once you cleanse your taste buds of the massive quantities of sugar and salt found in most packaged foods.

Stay the course with good clean eating, stay away from the crap gimmicks, and you will find that your body is optimally fueled for the gimmick-free workouts that we’re throwing at you.