Cross Fit

"3....2.....1.... NEXT!!!"  These words will forever haunt my workout dreams.  For those of you who know what I'm talking about then you must have crossfitted at one time or another.  I recently attended an "Open House/Workout" at one of the local crossfit gyms in town and I thought I would share my experience.

My brother and I both played sports growing up, both workout regularly and are both in relatively good shape. So, naturally I thought to myself: "Sure I can crossfit, how hard can it be?" Stupid question. The short answer: HARD.

We arrived early, not really knowing what to expect. We eyed the people walking in, trying to gauge what kind of athletes showed up for these kind of workouts.  The people in attendance were all over the board: Some male, some female, some old, some young, some in shape...others, not. So again, we really didn't know what to expect.

As start time approached, the crossfit coaches gathered everyone around for a 5-10 minute warm up consisting of: high knees, jumping jacks, push-ups  arm swings and lunges. Okay, not bad so far, the heart's pumping, got a little sweat going, ready to go.

Next, they have everyone (~50 people) split up into groups of 4.  My group consisted of 2 male, regular crossfitters, one female who used to crossfit and myself.  Just looking around the room, I figured we had a decent shot at winning the challenge.  However, it was difficult to speculate because I didn't know what the exercise stations were going to be and what type of athlete had an advantage or disadvantage.  The crossfit coaches went over 6 different exercise stations that each group would complete once.  Each group had 3 minutes at each station and 1 person was completing the exercise at 1 time while the others recovered.  The exercises were: Stationary bike, pushups, box jumps, push press, sandbag clean/jerk, and body-weight squats.

And we're off! Our group starts will box-jumps (a good choice) and we are flying through them with a nice 20-jumps/person rhythm going. Next up: Pushups, and we do even better! My heart rate is rapidly increasing, I'm sweating, my legs and arms are already burning. With little to no rest in between stations, we move to bodyweight squats: pretty easy.  Again, we quickly move to the next station: dumbbell push-press.  With my legs burning, and shoulders aching from box jumps, squats and pushups; the push-presses were no easy picnic and we struggled towards the end. But we got through them with everyone in the group, still on their feet and encouraging each other on. Then we move to sand-bag clean & jerk swings. These are brutal... period.  The sand-bags may as well of been filled with bricks.  Our group members, are sucking air and milking their rest periods as much as they can before the person performing the exercise needs a break.  Finally, the 3 minutes are up and we move on to the final station: stationary bike. I'm thinking "Oh this will be cake, I bike all the time, I got this." And it was easy....to start with.  But the longer I stayed on the bike the more my legs seemed to be on fire and my heart felt like it was going to explode. and then "3...2....1, DONE!" And that's it. 30 minutes of non-stop circuit style stations. Instantly, I got that feeling of euphoria from my endorphins kicking in; typical after an intense workout. However, this was followed by a feeling of "Am I going to passout? Am I going to puke? I should lie down, no wait, walk it off...." Eventually I found my way to my water bottle outside and was able to walk it off a bit without collapsing in the parking lot.

All in all, it was a great workout and a good way to jump start your day. My group ended up taking 2nd, not bad for a rookie.  I've come to the conclusion that no matter how many days of lifting weights you put in a week or how many bike rides you go on...Nothing will get you ready for a crossfit workout. It's at another level.

A few apprehensions I have regarding crossfit and a few of these I have mentioned in an earlier article regarding crossfit is that sometimes they appear to lack a structured, periodized training schedule.  Meaning: sometimes more is not always better and you can't go all out day in, day out every time you workout.  Therefore, I would recommend mixing in a crossfit-style workout into your weekly routine maybe once or twice a week.  Another concern I have is the lack of back exercises.  I realize today's workout was just a snapshot of their program but other than pull-ups it's difficult to isolate the muscle groups in your back without some actual back exercise machines instead of relying solely on body weight exercises.  Regardless, it was a great workout in a fun yet challenging competition-style workout. It's a unique combination of conditioning meets resistance training.  I recommend everyone to stop by and try a crossfit near you at least once.  It's a great way to mix things up and get in a great workout.

It's The New You

It's a New Year, so why not make it a New You.  Everyone always talks about their New Year's resolutions and how this is going to be the year that everything changes, the year you follow your diet and fitness plan religiously, the year you finally hit your goals, the year.....

Regardless of what your goals are, if they have anything to do with your body, nutrition will play a major part. And the biggest questions is: How much should you be eating?

Your daily nutritional needs are determined by a variety of factors such as gender, age, body size (specifically muscle mass) and activity levels.  There are several ways to estimate the amount of energy or calories your body needs to support it's basic metabolic functions or your basal metabolic rate.  For simplicity's sake here is a general rule of thumb for how much you should be eating:

On days that you are working out, you should consume ~18 calories per pound of body weight if you are looking to maintain your body weight.

If you are looking to add weight (hopefully just muscle mass but you never know) you should consume a little  bit more and strive for ~20 calories per pound of body weight on days that you are exercising (3,000 calories per day for a 150 lb person) and 18 calories per pound on rest days.

For individuals looking to gain/maintain muscle and lose fat at the same time (never easy to do) you should be in the range of 18 calories per pound on workout days and 14-16 on off days.

*Another key concept to remember, is what type of calorie you are consuming. If I had to pick the most important macronutrient, I would have to say protein.  Protein is involved in protein synthesis which helps you maintain and build muscle mass and muscle mass is highly correlated to calories burned throughout the day.  Focus on hitting your daily protein goals first and then fill in the rest.  For a general rule of thumb, I would shoot for 1 g of protein per pound of body weight followed by 1.5 g of carbs per pound of body weight.

Remember, these are just general numbers to shoot for. Don't freak out if you go over or under by a little bit each day as your body will adjust.  Also, be patient; changes in body composition do not occur overnight.