Running Clinic with Born to Run   May 11th, 2013

Registration is open!!  Secure your spot now, space is very limited.  Price is $55 per person.

The clinic is usually about an 2-3 hours (depending on the size of group).
We will film everyone’s running form as-is and go over the 4 basics of proper running form, posture/foot placement,the use of momentum, using the correct muscles and cadence.

We focus our efforts on form based drills to improve running form. We also use a lot of sprint based drills that become very useful in CrossFit. It ends up being a pretty good work-out too!
I also have a foot pressure plate that I will bring so attendees can see how their foot placement is being barefoot, and in shoes.

For the shoe demo everyone will be able to test out new shoes by Inov-8 and Reebok. This is a great opportunity for everyone to try on shoes that they might be thinking about and actually get to test out the product instead of standing around in the shoes at our stores.

Click on the link below to get registered!!

https://crossfitfuse.zenplanner.com/zenplanner/portal/event.cfm?eventId=B2638C9E-5880-4D64-AB0D-071C9A238B1C

FUSE Inbox Throwdown
Saturday April, 13th 2013
It’s less than an month away, so don’t delay!  Get registered today for the the FUSE Inbox Throwdown.   This competition has been designed with a level playing field.  We will need you to provide us with a couple of your ONE REP MAXES, but we will get those from you in early April.  Help us out and get signed up early.  Don’t forget to give your T-shirt size.  These are mens/unisex.  Here is the link to the page to get registered.    https://crossfitfuse.zenplanner.com/zenplanner/portal/event.cfm?eventId=2A67E81B-99ED-4BA8-A332-266C4E9A58FF 

387 Rep CrossFit Video Submission Rejected

Ouch!!

“This morning, the General Manager of the CrossFit Games, Justin Bergh, contacted Golden to notify him that his performance would be rejected. Ben Green, the affiliate owner of CrossFit Grover Beach, responded on behalf of Golden and presented an earlier video of 13.2 in which Golden supposedly reported 380 reps. In both videos, the movement standards for the box jumps and shoulder to overhead lifts were not met.”  – CrossFit Games Website

Though I agree with CrossFit HQ wholeheartedly, I can’t help but feel bad for the guy.  Like many of the posters on FB I agree that his judge and ultimately his coach share the blame.  My husband and I have often discussed the importance of imposing these standards of movement on a daily basis.  Is it really important for those of us who are not even remotely close to making it into Regionals, much less The Games?  T he answer is YES!!!!  This situation is why.  No doubt this guy is a beast, he could have very likely made it all the way to The Games.  The Games article states that the submission of a prior 13.2 showed the same issues and was also rejected.  How can you expect to do it right when it counts when you don’t do it right when you practice.  Because that’s what this is everyday right?  We are practicing these movements, hoping to improve them, get faster, get stronger, and maybe have a little fun too.  The improved fitness is an added benefit.  In a video promotion for a second box these guys are opening I noticed several of the same issues.  It’s cool that you are jumping really high, but if you’re that awesome why not STAND UP ALL THE WAY?

So how does apply to the rest of you?  Every one of you is a representative of your home box.  Everywhere you go, in everything you do.  WE LOVE THAT!!  We love that you go out and tell your friends about this crazy $*&# you do to “work out”.  We love that you drop in and visit boxes when you travel.  We love that you come into see us every day ready to give your 100% and throw down!  But just like this guy in the video, and the one behind him (he didn’t open his hips up all the way either) your “performance” reflects upon your coaches, mentors, and box as a whole.  We always like to say that you are just cheating yourself, but that is not the whole truth.  When you go out into the CrossFit world, visit another box while traveling, bring a friend in to visit yours, you are representing your coaches, your mentors, and your box.  Make us proud!  Show them that we are not a bunch of slouches, cheaters, and sandbaggers.  Show them that what you do every day matters and you take pride in it, just as I hope you do in other aspects of your life.

I’ll get off my box now…

Check out the entire article at: http://games.crossfit.com/article/golden-workout-rejected

WHOLE LIFE CHALLENGE PEOPLE

The going will start to get tough in these next 4 weeks and the temptation to ease up will be there.  I encourage you to stay focused and engaged.  Talk with each other at the gym, read and comment on each others reflections.  Be an example.  You never know who is watching what you are doing.

Dropping out and disengaging in weeks 5 through 7 becomes easier and easier.  Don’t let yourself off the hook for a job already well done. I know your already seeing results.  For many of you, staying committed to a challenge like this for 4 weeks is something you’ve never done, and is a big accomplishment.  Imagine the sense of satisfaction if you stay the course for all 8 weeks.

Keep up the great work. You’re only half-way through!
Coach TROY

Today is already February 7th, which means two things:  Tomorrow is Coach Troy’s Birthday! Woot! Woot! #38, so make sure when you see him tomorrow, he’s done his burpees!

Second, you have slightly more than a week to get registered to participate with us in the Whole Life Challenge.  www.wholelifechallenge.com/wlc2013/affiliate/crossfitfuse read about Leah’s results in our February Athlete of the Month article.

Integrity: Adherence to moral and ethical principles; soundness of moral character; honesty.

There are really only 2 types of athletes when it comes to integrity, those who have it and those who don’t. Yes, I believe that you fit in to 1 of 2 categories.   But remember, you can always change.  The first step is admitting you have a problem.

There will be CrossFitters who cut corners, go through the motions, and are okay with not fully completing a task.  There will be those that might lie just a little and only some of the time. Big cheating, small cheating, big lies, little lies, cutting some corners or just one, missing a lot of reps or a few reps, IT IS ALL THE SAME.

This topic has been discussed lots of times throughout the CrossFit community and people often say “who really cares, because that person is just cheating themselves and their results.”  But maybe, just maybe, this article will help some individuals recognize what type of athlete they are, and the type of athlete they want to become.

When I am watching athletes or coaching it is VERY easy to tell what type of person I would want to surround myself with, who I would trust, and which athlete I would want on my team. What type of athlete are you? Are you okay with it?

Type I Athletes: Fully commit to whatever the WOD is for them for that day, whether it is on-ramp, rx’d, rx’d+, foundations or a warm-up.

Type II “Athletes”: Complain about a movement or two in a WOD, try to modify the on-ramp or tone-up/tone-down their WOD and quickly identify movements that “suck.”

Type I Athletes: Complete an extra couple of double unders, pull-ups or wall balls when they have lost count or think they may have missed a couple of full reps.

Type II “Athletes”: Think that when they mess up at 48 double unders, it is “good enough” and move to the next exercise before finishing the last 2 reps, or are okay with not getting their chin over the bar on the final hard rep.

Type I Athletes: Work up to the buzzer, even if it means they will only get 20 meters of the next 200m run because there are only 10 seconds left.

Type II “Athletes”: Finish the round they are currently on and lay down with a little time remaining on the clock.

Type I Athletes: Never ever would consider lying, not even 1 single rep when the coach asks “how many did you get” before writing the score on the whiteboard.

Type II “Athletes”: Justify lying that they got an extra rep, an extra round or lifted a few more pounds because they think “they could have, or should have” or don’t want to look bad.

Type I Athletes: Ask their coach to closely judge them, give them pointers and makes necessary adjustments when given a “no rep” call for not getting full depth on a squat.

Type II “Athletes”: Roll their eyes at a coach for correctly judging them, scoring them, or giving pointers on how to get full reps. They try to ignore the coach, hide from the view of a coach and continue to “sneak” through bad reps.

Okay, okay, you get the point. It is easy to cheat… we all get tired. Someone is beating you, the class is waiting for you to finish, you are sick of doing burpees, your elbows got close enough to full extension, or you forgot what number you were on.

THE LIST GOES ON AND ON PEOPLE. It is plain and simple: it takes a great deal of INTEGRITY to be a Type I Athlete.  The reward is also plain and simple, deeply fulfilling, gratifying, humbling and satisfying.  Not to mention the physical reward of becoming a faster, stronger, more dominating badass.

I remember in 2005, when I did my first CrossFit WOD on my own with no one watching. I felt like I was going to die and I remember very distinctly how easy it would have been to cheat, stop or do a few less box jumps.  Right then and there, I had my first “aha moment” about this sport.  It was always going to be easy to cut the corners.  Upon that realization, I said a personal promise to myself right then and there.

“I will never cheat reps, cut corners or finish early no matter how bad I may want to – I deserve better than that.”  Commit today to your coach, your workout buddies, your box and yourself. Those of you who are already Type I Athletes, keep rocking on.

Found this at myathleticlife.com/2011/10/crossfit-cheaters-anonymous/

Hey guys,  this is just a reminder that there is no yoga tomorrow.  Yoga is now on Sundays at 10am!

You are all invited!

Halloween Costume Party!!  Help CrossFit Fuse celebrate our first year Halloween Style!   Optional WOD at 6:30pm party to follow.    Please bring a dish to share (remember there are several of us on the Whole Life Challenge)

Prizes for best costume, or maybe the worst…

Hook grip in weightlifting defines the method in which an athlete grips the Barbell, which is first gripped with the thumb, then the remaining fingers grip both the thumb and the Barbell. It can be used in multiple weightlifting events (i.e. in “snatch” and “clean and jerk“).

The Hook Grip

The Hook grip is considered to be a more secure grip compared to a Closed grip or Natural grip where the thumb remains outside the other fingers. Also, history of this sport reveals that athletes who use the Hook grip can lift more weight compared to those who use a Closed grip. The Hook grip may not be suitable for beginners as the thumb or thumbnail may suffer pain, although this can be overcome by regular training.

The following is an excerpt from Greg Everett’s Olympic Weightlifting: A Complete Guide for Athletes & Coaches^[1]

The hook grip is a pronated (palms facing the lifter) grip in which the thumb is trapped between the bar and usually the first and second fingers, depending on hand size. For the pull of both the snatch and the clean, this method of gripping is a necessity to maintain control of the barbell during the violent second pull and the powerful turnover of the snatch.It’s important to understand that the thumb is itself wrapped around the bar inside the fingers and not simply pinned perpendicularly to the bar. This arrangement takes advantage of the greater strength of the thumb relative to the fingers–with the thumb wrapped over the fingers as it would be in a conventional grip, it will typically reach only the index finger and have a weak purchase on it.

By wrapping the thumb around the bar directly, we create a powerful hook on the bar, which can be reinforced by the grip of both the index and middle fingers, which serve more to support the hook of the thumb than to grip the bar directly. With two fingers over the thumb rather than only a weak section of the thumb over one finger, we also create far more friction to secure the grip. In short, the Hook grip optimizes the anatomy of the hands for this application.
Particularly in the snatch, the grip will be reliant almost exclusively on the thumb, first, and second fingers. The wide hand placement of the lift results in an acute angle where the hands attach to the bar, forcing the third and fourth fingers to have little purchase.

In the case of these two lifts, the integrity of the grip of the first and second fingers in combination with the thumb is critical. In order to ensure this integrity, the athlete needs to use the fingers to actively pull the thumb around the bar rather than simply pressing it against the bar. The hook of the thumb under the bar with the fingers reinforcing it is what provides the necessary grip power. The force of the fingers on the thumb should be the focus of the athlete’s gripping effort.

Typically the Hook grip will be uncomfortable if not considerably painful initially. Consistent use will condition the offending structures appropriately over time and the grip will ultimately offer no trouble. It will, in fact, become more comfortable than a conventional overhand grip. Covering the thumbs with flexible athletic tape can reduce the discomfort and, for some, improve the feeling of grip security by increasing friction. Lifters can submerge the hands in ice water for 5-10 minutes after training to help reduce pain and speed the adaptation.

Hook grip is also used occasionally in powerlifting, for the deadlift.

References