Not Enough Cooks in the Kitchen?
Tuesday, March 09, 2010
| Posted by Becca
Something I hear a lot from people is that eating healthy isn't fun or appetizing and that eating healthy gets boring and repetitive. I used to be in that rut, too. I can't even tell you how many evenings I ate a burger and steamed cauliflower, or a turkey burger and green beans, before I had finally had enough. Last fall I decided to take a six week beginner cooking class and it completely changed my opinion on cooking and my relationship to food.
By gaining cooking skills I also gained an appreciation for food and an enjoyment of preparing food. I know beyond a doubt now, that healthy meals can be fun and great tasting, too. I took my class at Chefs, Inc. in West Los Angeles, but The New School of Cooking in Culver City also comes highly recommended. Both schools offer multi-week courses as well as one-off classes on various cuisines.
In addition to, or instead of, cooking classes, great cookbooks can also make a difference and spice up your culinary life. Check out this blog from Food Renegade on their Top 5 Cookbooks. I also recommend How to Cook Everything by Mark Bittman.
Melissa and Jennifer show off great overhead positions.
Today's Workout
TABATA Mash-up:
Push Press (95#/65#)
GHD (or Ab-Mat) Sit Ups
Sumo-Deadlift High Pull (95#/65#)
One round of this workout would be 20 seconds of push press, 10 seconds rest, 20 seconds sit ups, 10 seconds rest, 20 seconds SDLHP, 10 seconds rest.
You will do a total of 8 rounds. This is a 12 minute workout in total.
Your score is your grand total of all your reps.
Pass the Butter, Please
Monday, March 08, 2010
| Posted by Andy P
I love butter, and I use it all the time. I also love olive oil. Canola oil... not so much. I see it all over the place and have often wondered whether it is a good, healthy substitute for my more traditional choices. After reading " Canola Oil is Another Victory of Food Technology over Common Sense", I must say that I'm glad I've stuck to my traditional fats and oils.
This article did well to reminded me what a good idea it is to avoid any food that was created, produced and manufactured within the past 100 years. Its hard to comprehend the amount of food that has been created with zero regard for human health and wellness, but instead, economics and money. Note to self - add canola oil to that list.
Hey Tracy... Welcome!
Today's Workout
“SmackDown!”
- At the start of class, one person draws a card from the CFLA SmackDown deck.
- The chosen card corresponds to a workout - that is the class’ WOD.
- NO card is a “safe.”
- BEWARE of the dreaded “Double Downs!”
Competition & Tapering
Friday, March 05, 2010
| Posted by Andy P
Every quarter we hold a CFLA Challenge. And this coming Sat/Sun (March 13-14) is the CrossFit Games Sectionals. What do you do in the days/week before a big event to ensure you are ready to perform your best? Here are a few of my thoughts.
- Take an entire week COMPLETELY OFF from workouts. This doesn't mean do nothing. Warm up. Stretch. Practice skills. Do things that are short, quick, but not too intense.
- Go to bed. Get lots of rest. Store it up for the week.
- Eat well and drink plenty of water
- Make a plan for the day of the event. What time you're getting up. What gear you need for the event. What your going to eat throughout the day. How you're going to warm up, and what time. What you'll do between events. Try to visualize the day - how you're going to perform AND how the day is going to go.
If you have things that you do to specifically prepare for a big event, please share in comments!
Jennifer in a post-WOD resting position. This is NOT what I mean by rest 
Today's Workout
5 Rounds of:
Row - 2 minutes for distance
Rest 3 minutes
What’s the Plan?
Thursday, March 04, 2010
| Posted by mtanwyck
Everyone did a fantastic job on Saturday at the Cindy baselines! Way to show up! The next question is how do you plan to WIN? The first step to a mind blowing performance in anything is knowing where the performance gap is. No judgment, just what there is to work on. What was the hardest part for YOU? Was it a single movement? Keeping up a good pace? Was it the mental stress? If you entered this challenge I assume that you have your eye on the prize - so create a plan and don't let anything get in the way. Any one of you is capable of it, just look at what you do each and every time you step through these doors. If you don't know where to start - ASK! That's what we're here for.
Look ma, no hands!
Today's Workout
As Many Rounds as Possible in 20 min of
150 single unders
12 DB walking lunges (40/25)
200 m run
12 dips
Don’t Feel Like It?
Wednesday, March 03, 2010
| Posted by Andy P
I was reading Seth Godin's blog the other day (which I read regularly for his take on life, business and the world we live in), and he had written a post entitled " I don't feel like it." Though he's not giving fitness/workout advice, you could literally slip "CrossFit" into his sentences and it would all make perfect sense.
The parallels between training at CFLA and life are abundantly clear... this is a great place to practice doing those things that are hard, that you don't really feel like doing and creating a habit of "doing it anyway..." Thoughts?
The push-up: something we all need to practice for "Cindy"
Today's Workout
Front Squat 3-3-3-3
-rest-
Complete as many rounds as possible in 5 minutes of:
5 Thrusters (95/65)
5 Pull-ups
Doing It
Tuesday, March 02, 2010
| Posted by Becca
Doing CrossFit is the real thing. It frees the mind if you just let it and you just do it. CrossFit is pure and simple in that it is simply about getting things from point A to point B. It is about having a list of tasks and doing the tasks. You have the option to leave all the strings and cobwebs of life that we attach to the things we do, and just perform the act and be the movements. Because in the end, what do you have to ask except, did you do it? Or did you not? You can make up a story about why you did or did not do it. You can have a list of reasons that you did or did not do it. But really, all the remains is what you did. Did you do more than last time? Did you do less? Did show up to do it in the first place? It doesn't matter who did better or who did worse. It doesn't matter what you think about what you did. You just did it, now it's done, and you can come back and do more.
Jenna gets focused.
Today's Workout
For time:
9-6-3-6-9
Power Cleans (165/110)
High Box Jumps (32”/24”)
Weighted Pushups (25/10# plate)
Squishy at the Bottom
Monday, March 01, 2010
| Posted by Andy P
Are you "squish at the bottom" of your squat? You know... You accelerate as you move down toward the floor and when you reverse direction, your chest and upper torso keep moving down while your legs, butt and hips stop and start moving up, causing your former "good squat position" to disintegrate. Or, your body looks like a piece of wet spaghetti as you go down in the squat and it's simply a miracle that you don't get smushed by the bar and weight as it tries to continue it's gravitational momentum down as you're trying to change direction and stand back up?
If this sounds like you, remember, a strong squat begins with your breath. It's your "12th man"... the thing that is responsible for maintaining tension in your torso, helping you to transfer the weight from the bar down into your legs, and transfer the force production from your legs back up into your shoulders. When you squat, you should NOT be breathing. Inhale, hold your breath, tighten your gut as if you were about to receive a punch. Then squat. Only release your breath after you're finished ascending.
By the way, if you don't believe me that you shouldn't breathe when squatting (or moving any appreciable weight for that matter), try to get your car/truck/suv rolling by pushing it - hard. Try it twice - once while holding your breath and once while exhaling. What do you find?
Lulu's CrossFitting at CFLA
Today's Workout
4 rounds for time of:
800m Run
8 Clean & Jerks (135/95)
Sleep Tight
Friday, February 26, 2010
| Posted by Andy P
Have you ever had the experience of waking up in the morning, refreshed, even after getting only 5 or 6 hours of sleep? I have - and hadn't really ever thought about it, until I got a new iPhone App called Sleep Cycle.
Evidently, a big part of how you feel when you wake up depends on what part of your natural cycle of sleep you are in when your alarm clock goes off. Sleep cycle actually watches you sleep by using your iPhone's accelerometer to monitor your movement in bed... and then initiates its wake up alarm within a 30 minute window before your "drop dead" wake-up time... when you are most likely to not be in a lighter sleep phase.
The two things I like about it best? I wake up much more easily in the morning, even on those weekdays that I'm up at 4:45 am, and as a bit of a data geek, I love looking at my sleep graph!
Darren & Andrew - battling rowers!
Today's Workout
Spend 20 minutes working on muscle ups, false grip, transitions, turn-out and multiple rep muscle ups.
Workout
3 rounds for time of:
6 dead lift (295/195)
6 HSPU
Soda, soda, everywhere…
Thursday, February 25, 2010
| Posted by mtanwyck
There has been some talk lately about applying a soda tax to sugary beverages as a way to help support the nation's healthcare overhaul as well as a way to address childhood obesity. What do you think about this? We do it with cigarettes. Is this an appropriate way to deal with a clear problem as it relates to the health of our children and our nation? Should the government use taxes as a way to urge you to make choices that you may not be disciplined enough to make on your own? Should a tax like this apply to all sugary beverages, fruit juice included? Think about both sides and post thoughts to comments.
Odie staking his claim
Today's Workout
For time:
100 mountain climbers (2 count)
90 jumping lunges
80 KB swings (24 kg/16 kg)
70 unanchored sit ups
60 20" box jumps
50 pull ups
40 DB split jerk (40/25)
30 burpees
20 DB squat clean (40/25)
10 TGU (40/25)
CrossFit Games Sectionals - the season is NOW!
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
| Posted by Andy P
To get to the CrossFit Games this year, athletes must qualify... first at Sectionals, then again at Regionals. The Sectional "season" has begun - all 25 will be complete before the end of March. You can see the WODs and results at the 2010 CrossFit Games site.
Our Sectional will be at Drake Stadium, March 13-14. Many of you are registered to volunteer. Thank you! If you can't come to volunteer or would rather just come to cheer on the athletes, we invite you to come as a spectator. The cost is $50 for the weekend, and will be well worth the price of admission to see the 250 athletes from central/southern California going at it for 2 days.
 
By the way, we've just released the T-shirt design for the event. It is a play off of the original movie poster from National Lampoon's Vacation and was designed by Janee Meadows, a local artist and CrossFitter. It's available for purchase here - men's : women's.
We hope to see lots of you from CrossFit LA there to cheer on our athletes (Ingrid, Zach, Kenny, Louie, Tanya, Leslie, Armen, Michael, Shirley, and Jonesy)!
Drake Stadium, UCLA
Today's Workout
3 rounds for time of:
400m Run
10 Squat Snatches (95/65)
- note: choose your weight wisely - for each missed snatch, drop for 5 burpees on the spot
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