CrossFit Delaware Valley

WOD 5.16.2009

Power clean 1-1-1-1-1-1-1 reps

Post loads to comments.

WOD 5.15.2009

For time:

21 Kettlebell swings
3 Muscle-ups
18 Kettlebell swings
6 Muscle-ups
15 Kettlebell swings
9 Muscle-ups
12 Kettlebell swings
12 Muscle-ups

Use a 1.5 pood kettlebell or 55lb dumbbell. If you can't do muscle-ups, sub 3 pull-ups and 3 dips for each muscle-up.

Post time to comments.

"A lot of people run a race to see who is fastest. I run to see who has the most guts, who can punish himself into exhausting pace, and then at the end, punish himself even more. Nobody is going to win a 5,000 meter race after running an easy 2 miles. Not with me. If I lose forcing the pace all the way, well, at least I can live with myself.' -Steve Prefontaine

Cool Videos!

Check out these cool videos that Jenn made from last week's 'Elizabeth'..  Fun!!

'Evolutions' Seminar - June 13th!

Sign up today for our 'Evolutions' seminar, scheduled for June 13th.  This 5-hour course is meant to be a sequel to our popular 'Elements' class.  Meant for the beginning to intermediate CrossFitter, 'Evolutions' will focus on many of the skills required for success in CrossFit.  Topics include:

-  the Snatch
-  the Clean
-  the Jerk
-  Pullups
-  Muscle-ups
-  Double Unders
-  Nutrition
-  a lot more!

The cost is $100.  Registration is here and there are no pre-requisites for attendance (although we recommend that you have at least 3 months of CrossFit experience).  Any questions, please email us today!

WOD 5.14.2009

Back Squat 5-5-5-5-5 reps

Post loads to comments.

WOD 5.13.2009

Four rounds, each for time of:
800 meter run

Rest as needed between efforts.

Post times for each round to comments.

PM WOD WILL BE HELD AT RIDLEY HIGH SCHOOL TRACK

 

A great little Paleo video...

... courtesy of Mark's Daily Apple (just redesigned!). 

WOD 5.12.2009

"Grace"

135 pound Clean and Jerk, 30 reps

Use 95 pounds, 65 pounds or broomstick as needed and post time and load to comments.

Muscle's Birthday

Let's get together to celebrate Tom's birthday (he'll be 52) on Saturday, May 16th at Barnaby's in Holmes.  7:30 start.  Carbombs for time..  :)

Obligatory ridiculous birthday pic here.

WOD 5.11.2009

250m Run
15 Box Jumps (20"/16")
5 Handstand Pushups

AMRAP in 30 minutes.  Huzzah!

Post rounds completed to comments. 

What a great group!

From a class last week:

WOD 5.10.2009

Push Jerk 1-1-1-1-1-1-1 reps

Post loads to comments

WOD 5.9.2009

REMINDER:  The workout is at 9am!  Elements Seminar at 10am.

Ten rounds for time of:
3 Weighted Pull-ups, 45 pounds
5 Strict Pull-ups
7 Kipping Pull-up

For weighted pull-ups place a 45 pound dumbbell between the legs above crossed ankles and jettison the dumbbell after third rep and continue with strict pull-ups and then the kipping pull-ups. Coming off the bar or going to ground constitutes termination of a set.

Post time and number of sets to completion.

REMINDER: Saturday WOD is at 9am!

Title says it all.   Elements starts at 10am. 

WOD 5.8.2009

Front squat 3-3-3-3-3 reps

Post loads to comments.

Some of our Buddies...

CrossFit Apex

CrossFit KOP

CrossFit Generation

One of the best things about CrossFit is the community..  Please share your best 'community' stories or anecdotes in the comments. 

WOD 5.07.2009

3 rounds for time of:

275lb Deadlift, 10 reps
50 double unders

Elements Seminar- SATURDAY!

Sign up for this month's Element Seminar today!  This 5-hour seminar is designed to teach the nine basic CrossFit moves and will include lecture and movement sessions. All material will be presented by certified CrossFit instructors and we will hold a scalable workout at the end of the day. This is a great opportunity to learn (or re-learn) the basic movements and to increase the efficiency, efficacy and safety of your workouts.

Our last Elements class was a huge success - read more about it here (especially the participant comments).  If you'd like to sign up, please visit this page.  Cost is $100 and is one of two ways to become a member of our gym (the other is personal training). 

WOD 5.6.2009

"Hansen"

Five rounds for time of:
2 pood Kettlebell swing, 30 reps
30 Burpees
30 Glute-ham sit-ups

Post time to comments.

Marine Staff Sgt Daniel Hansen died February 14th in Farah Providence, Afghanistan when an IED he was working on detonated. Daniel is survived by his mother Sheryll, his father Delbert, his younger sister Katie, and his twin brother Matthew (also a Marine).

   

Movies in Review: Bigger, Stronger, Faster*

"Is it still cheating if everyone's doing it?" is the tagline for Christopher Bell's documentary on steroids, and he is asking both himself and the nation the same question. Chris's personal dilemna is that as an amateur powerlifter, he sees other lifters on steroids, including his brother, making big lifts, and he wonders if he should partake. This dilemma leads him to question to America's enhanced need to win. The movie reaches a little in that it tries to cover the personal story of Chris and his family, his relationship with icons like Hulk Hogan and Arnold, the supplement industry, powerlifting, professional and olympic sports, steroid legislation, and performance enhancement in general all in 2 hours. However, one is left with new perspective of who uses steroids and why they use them.

Bell's own family's experiences with steroids grounds the film in middle America, allowing the film to be more than a freakshow of bodybuilding and powerlifting fanatics. Bell's personal struggle with whether to take steroids is spawns from his admiration of his childhood idols. As kids, Bell and his brothers raptly watched muscular icons such as Hulk Hogan, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Sylvester Stallone.  Hulk told kids to take their vitamins, eat their vegetables, workout, and say their prayers. Arnold Schwarzeneggger said that if you work hard and play by the rules, you can accomplish anything. However, both of these titans have admitted to using steroids to help them achieve their physiques. Sly was caught with HGH when filming Rambo. The brothers Bell all began working out to emulate their idols. Chris and his brother Mark ("Stinky") got into powerlifting, while his other brother Mike (Mad Dog) tried to get into the pro wrestling circuit. Both Stinky and Mad Dog started taking steroids to advance their pursuits, and were still on them during the filming of the doc. Chris tried them once, but went off them due to an insurmountable sense of guilt that he might be cheating. Chris centers the film around the ultimately unanswered question of whether he should go back on steroids.

We are saturated with the negative effects of steroids, mostly due to their use in professional baseball. Bigger, Stronger, Faster* takes a more sympathetic approach. Bell points out that there are no studies on the long term effects of steroid use, and that many of the claims about the dangers are overblown. Through both anecdotal and scientific evidence Bell shows that: roid rage is extremely rare in steroid users, not everyone grows hair in odd places, claims of mind-altering psychosis and suicide resulting from steroids are suspect. Bell is also careful to point out that all of the effects of steroids are reversible when a man goes off the drugs, and most are reversible when a woman goes off the drugs. He also points out that legal drugs which have been studied for long-term effects, namely tobacco and alcohol, kill many times the number of people that steroids have ever killed.

Bigger Stronger Faster* points out that the great majority of steroid users are not professional athletes, but rather gym rats, usually from the amateur bodybuilding or powerlifting communities . Bell explores what pushes that minority of professional and scholastic athletes to use banned substances to enhance their performance: American culture's unwavering commitment to winning. Under pressure to succeed, many steroid-using scholastic and professional athletes take the approach that it's not cheating if you don't get caught. Bell does well by exploring further than the professional baseball scandals of recent years. Most interestingly, he pits old sprinting rivals Ben Johnson and Carl Lewis against each, showing how both of their drug test records are suspect.

Bell goes on to discuss performance enhancements in general. Why are some things allowed while others are banned? The best example is the methods of how to get more oxygen-delivering red blood cells flowing in cyclists. Bell visited stripped Tour de France champion Floyd Landis to illustrate his point. There are 4 methods to achieve the same result. The first is taking blood from an athlete, spinning it in a centrifuge and replacing it into the body of the athlete just before a race. The second is taking a drug called EPO. The third is to take time training at altitude. The fourth is to sleep in an altitude chamber (Floyd's method). The first two methods are illegal and the last two are legal, yet they all achieve the same result. Bell brushes over the fact that the spun and replaced blood and EPO can cause death as a result of the cardiovascular system's inability to handle the newly thickened blood at rest, and I would contend that the safety concerns cause the banning of one method over another.

In the film, Bell explores how to legally get steroids. He goes to an anti-aging doctor and says he has a hormone deficiency. This doc takes a blood sample, makes the completely subjective decision that Bell does in fact have a hormonal deficiency, and prescribes him a cycle of steroids. The legal way to obtain steroids raises an interesting question: as our bodies age and decrease their production of testosterone and human growth hormone, is it acceptable to go on a carefully supervised regimen of anabolic steroids and human growth hormone to bring these hormones to their previous levels? The decrease of these hormones greatly contributes to aging in general, including loss of lean body mass, decreased eyesight, decreased bone density, and decreased immune function. These regimens are very expensive, so only a small part of the population can afford them, which will keep many of us from ever being able to seriously consider trying them. Should we use medical science to help us take back what we have lost? Is hormone replacement an artificial way to cheat aging, analogous to the way that a breathing machine is an artificial way to cheat death? Will proper nutrition and training allow us to naturally cheat aging, and continue to improve fitness even in our forties and fifties? When I see guys like Andy Petranek (42) and Jeff Tincher (40), I'm encouraged.

Everything in the body is run on hormones. You can influence your hormones positively or negatively, and your body will feel the effects. Eat like crap, release too much insulin, and get fat. Eat well, balance glucagon and insulin, and maintain a healthy weight. Don't sleep and find your mood and digestion suffer due to hormonal imbalances, and vice versa. Train high intensity exercise and stimulate production of testosterone and human growth hormone, making you lean and fit. Don't train, or train mainly in the aerobic pathway, and see your body get weak and wasted. Performance enhancing drugs like steroids and human growth hormone are either precursors for or extra doses of hormones that encourage muscle growth and repair, giving users the benefits of training faster and to a greater result. The problem is that these drugs overload the body with too much of these hormones too quickly, causing imbalances which result in side effects. These drugs may enhance parts of your life, but at what cost to the other parts? Naturally manipulate your hormones by: eating meat and vegetables, nuts and seeds, some fruit, little starch and no sugar, getting 8 hours of sleep per night, and training constantly varied, functional movements at high intensity.

Afterward:

Having spent about 6 months working at GNC in college, I had a special appreciation for the scene on supplements. Chris takes a shipment of expensive active ingredients and dilutes them into a dirt-cheap proprietary blend. Then he hires a few Hispanic day laborers to help him fill capsules with the powder and put the capsules into bottles that he could mark up and sell for $60 per unit. While exploring how to market his product, he shows how a photographer can use cameras, lighting, and software to change anyone from fat and ugly to fit and attractive in less than an hour.  

The point of the exercise is to show that the unregulated supplement industry is mostly a smoke and mirrors advertising scheme. People can never look like the models in the ads by taking the advertised supplements. In the film, the fitness model on steroids all but says that people are fools for thinking that the supplements work in the way they are advertised.

Further reading: Drug Test in Outside Magazine (probably the best article I've ever read on banned substances)

WOD 5.5.2009

"Tabata Something Else"

Complete 32 intervals of 20 seconds of work followed by ten seconds of rest where the first 8 intervals are pull-ups, the second 8 are push-ups, the third 8 intervals are sit-ups, and finally, the last 8 intervals are squats. There is no rest between exercises.

Post total reps from all 32 intervals to comments.

Keystone Affiliate Challenge II - June 6th @ CF KOP!

Guys,

Here's a note I just received from Aimee Lyons at CF KOP.  Please sound off in comments by May 15th if you are planning on attending and whether you can make the fundraiser.  Aimee and her husband Jason have promised a good game of beer pong for after the workouts!

Hello fellow CrossFit Affiliates:
My name is Aimee, owner of Crossfit King of Prussia, located about 3 miles from the King of Prussia Mall in Pennsylvania.  Based on the success of the Keystone Affiliate Challenge in February held at CF Delaware Valley, I'm writing to gauge interest in the Second Keystone Affiliate Challenge.  An event like this can only produce positive effects for us as trainers, for our clients and for the local CrossFit community. 

 

The date of the event will be Saturday June 6th. The WOD's will be scalable so anyone, regardless of your level, can participate. There will be two individual WOD's and one Team WOD; to be announced shortly after Pre-Registration on May 16th.  Spaces are limited which is why we are asking for pre-registration.  On the day of the event, June 6th, registration will start at 9 AM and the WOD's will begin at 10AM sharp.  Following the workouts at 1:00PM, we are hosting a fundraiser for the Pittsburgh Fallen Heroes Fund (this is open to everyone, you do not have to CrossFit prior to joining us for the party/fundraiser).  As many of you know, one of our own (Lisa E.) lost her boyfriend Paul Sciullo II, who was shot and killed after responding to a domestic disturbance call on 4/4/09. The fundraiser will be a BBQ & Beer for $25.  Local business have already begun to donate prizes for Raffles, Food, Beer, etc and as always, there will be plenty of games to play.
 

In order to plan the next few steps of the event we will need the following pre-registration information from each affiliate by May 16th:

Are you interested? YES or NO

How many participants will you be bringing? provide head count of athletes competing

Will you be joining us for the Fundraiser at 1:00PM? YES or NO

 

If I do not hear back from you I will NO longer include you on further correspondence. 

Space will be limited which is why we have asked for pre-registration information, if you are truly interested, please reply quickly.

Donations for the Fallen Heroes Fundraiser are greatly appreciated as well. 
 
If I missed a local affiliate, please feel free to add them into the mix.
 
Thank you for your time and we look forward to hearing from you all.
 

Best,

Aimee Lyons

CrossFit KoP Coach/Owner

WOD 5.4.2009

"Elizabeth"

21-15-9 reps of:
Clean 135 pounds
Ring dips

Post time to comments.

The White House Joins FaceBook, Twitter, MySpace

"We improve ourselves by victories over ourself. There must be contests, and you must win." -Edward Gibbon

WOD 5.2.2009

Shoulder Press 1-1-1-1-1-1-1 reps

Post loads to comments.

CrossFit Renaissance Opens!

Anyone remember Bill Shiffler?  He trained with us a few times at Medina's and has just opened his own affiliate, CrossFit Renaissance.  Check it out here.  Congrats, BIll!

5.1.2009

Five rounds for time of:
95 pound Sumo-deadlift high-pull, 21 reps
21 Ring dips

Post time to comments.

CFDV All Stars

"Love the moment, and the energy of that moment will spread beyond all boundaries." -Corita Kent

WOD 4.30.2009

2009 CrossFit Games Mid Atlantic Regional Qualifiers Final Workout:

Three rounds, 21-15- and 9 reps, for time of:
95 pound Squat snatch
Chest to bar Pull-ups

Post time to comments.

Eat Real Food

Here's a great article posted on the Crossfit Football website yesterday. Basically it shows how funky the contents of substitute foods (Egg beaters, margarine, and turkey bacon) really are and how people are better off with the good old classics that we've had time to adapt to eating. Plus, the classics just taste better. Read and comment. 

WOD 4.29.2009

Pick your pleasure.

For time:

Run 400m

21 overhead squats, 95lbs / 65lbs

21 box jumps, 24" / 20"

Run 400m

15 overhead squats, 95lbs / 65lbs

15 box jumps, 24" / 20"

Run 400m

9 overhead squats, 95lbs / 65lbs

9 box jumps, 24" / 20"

-or-

Row 2k for time.

"It's also helpful to realize that this very body that we have, that's sitting right here right now... with its aches and it pleasures... is exactly what we need to be fully human, fully awake, fully alive." -Pema Chodron

More Photos!

Here are the pictures from Colleen's camera from last weekend.  Enjoy!

WOD 4.28.2009

"Michael"

Three rounds for time of:
Run 800 meters
50 Back Extensions
50 Sit-ups

Post time to comments.

Results

In case you haven't heard, Colleen finished 7th overall at the CrossFit Games Mid-Atlantic Qualifiers..  Full results are here.  Congrats to both Jim and Colleen for representing CFDV and working HARD.  Thanks to everyone else who sent supporting emails and texts throughout the weekend.  You guys are the best!

WOD 4.27.2009

For time:
50 Box jump, 24 inch box
50 Jumping pull-ups
50 Kettlebell swings, 1 pood
Walking Lunge, 50 steps
50 Knees to elbows
50 Push press, 45 pounds
50 Back extensions
50 Wall ball shots, 20 pound ball
50 Burpees
50 Double unders

Post time to comments.

"The path to our destination is not always a straight one. We go down the wrong road, we get lost, we turn back. Maybe it doesn't matter which road we embark on. Maybe what matters is that we embark". -Barbara Hall

WOD 4.26.2009

Deadlift 1-1-1-1-1-1-1 reps

Post loads to comments.

Pictures from Day One

Here are some pictures from day one of the CrossFit Games Mid-Atlantic Qualifiers.  CFDV'ers Colleen O'Connor and Jim Wingerter represented the gym in style and some of their events are captured here.  Colleen has made it to the final event and will be running her heat at around 2pm.  Wish her luck!

Let's Go Jim and Colleen!

Wish Jim Wingerter and Colleen O'Connor luck during this weekend's CrossFit Games qualifier in Virginia Beach.  We'll try and post pictures/video throughout the weekend.

WOD 4.25.2009

Run one mile.

then

Push Jerk or Split Jerk: 5-5-3-3-3-2-2-2-1-1

Folks, following the WOD please feel free to hang out and enjoy a beer. Additionally, the Box needs a good cleaning. I'd like to sweep and mop the floor, wipe gear down, and re-organize. Bring a 6 pack, or 12 pack if you're so inclined, of your flavor.

Reminder: Let's keep Colleen and Jim in our thoughts as they torch the competition in VA Beach.

“I want to feel passion, I want to feel pain. I want to weep at the sound of your name. Come make me laugh, come make me cry... just make me feel alive.” -Joey Lauren Adams

WOD 4.24.2009

Back Squat 3-3-3-3-3 reps

Post loads to comments.

“Virtue is more clearly shown in the performance of fine actions than in the non-performance of base ones.” -Aristotle

WOD 4.23.2009

"Angie"

For time:
100 Pull-ups
100 Push-ups
100 Sit-ups
100 Squats

Post time to comments.

WOD 4.22.2009

For time:
100 Inverted burpees

Post time to comments.

"In the time of darkest defeat, victory may be nearest." -William McKinley

WOD 4.21.2009

'Annie'

50-40-30-20-10 rep rounds of

Double Unders
Situps

Post time to comments

4.20.2009

"Danny"

Complete as many rounds in 20 minutes as you can of:
24 inch Box Jump, 30 reps
115 pound Push Press, 20 reps
30 Pull-ups

Post rounds completed to comments.

Oakland SWAT Sergeant Daniel Sakai, age 35, was killed on March 21, 2009 in the line of duty along with fellow officers Sergeant Ervin Romans, Sergeant Mark Dunakin, and Officer John Hege. Daniel is survived by wife Jenni and daughter Jojiye.

     

What a Beautiful Day...

... for lifting heavy weights!  Here are some pictures of the group suffering through 'D.T.'  Remember, IBUPROFEN IS YOUR FRIEND!  :)

The incomparable Aimee Gullo

WOD 4.18.2009

"DT"

Five rounds for time of:
155 pound Deadlift, 12 reps
155 pound Hang power clean, 9 reps
155 pound Push jerk, 6 reps

Post time to comments.

In honor of USAF SSgt Timothy P. Davis, 28, who was killed on Feburary, 20 2009 supporting operations in OEF when his vehicle was struck by an IED. Timothy is survived by his wife Megan and one-year old son T.J.

Goal Setting Sessions

We're going to run goal setting sessions with each of you within the next week or so.  I've divvied up the class amongst Zach, Bill and I and you should all expect an email or call soon.  The purpose here is to write down your goals and have a strategy session to figure out how to reach them.  We really believe in good goal setting and frankly, we haven't done enough of this in the past.  Hopefully these sessions will help you map out a good plan and drive you closer to your fitness goals. 

If you have any questions, please comment or email me privately. 

Thanks, guys!!

Rob

WOD 4.17.2009

3 rounds for time of:

30lb weighted pull-ups, 10 reps
Run 800m
30lb weighted dips, 10 reps

Post time to comments

Elements Seminar - POSTPONED

Due to a flurry of last-minute cancellations, we're going to postpone this weekend's Elements Seminar.  The new date will be Saturday, May 9th from 10am - 3pm.  If you've already booked, your entry fee will just carry over to the May date.  If you'd like to register, please visit this link for more info. 

Thanks, and sorry for the inconvenience!

The Saturday April 18th WOD will be at 10am. 

WOD 4.16.2009

Back Squat 5-5-5-5-5 reps

WOD 4.15.2009

Complete as many rounds as you can in twenty minutes of:

5 Turkish get-up

5 Burpees

15 Sit-ups

Post rounds completed to comments.

Turkish Get-Up

"Exercise ferments the humors, casts them into their proper channels, throws off redundancies, and helps nature in those secret distributions, without which the body cannot subsist in its vigor, nor the soul act with cheerfulness." -Jospeh Addison

CrossFit for Martial Arts

Mimi Quinn came to us last year looking for some additional conditioning to help her with Bando, the Burmese Martial Art that she studies..  Here's a quick note from Mimi re: CrossFit:

Hey Rob,

You asked me a little while ago if I felt that Crossfit was helping me with Bando and I told you I wasn't sure yet (although I know it's making me more fit).  Well, we had a sparring session on Sunday and I'm told by both my instructor and those I sparred, that they've never seen me more relaxed, fluid, and fast in the ring.  I think I'm going to have to chalk that up to Crossfit!  Just thought you'd be interested to hear about it. 

Mimi

COOL!!!  Congratulations, Mimi - your hard work in the gym is making it happen.