SIXTY FOURTH BRO SESSION

AMRAP45

• 5 Deadlifts
• 5 Cleans
• 5 Front Squats
• 5 Shoulder to Overhead
• 5 Back Squats

135#/85#

WOD DATE AND TIME: SATURDAY JULY 2ND @ 12:30PM

BENEFITS OF ADDING CHIA SEEDS TO YOUR DIET

If you have been to your local health food store lately you might assume that Chia Pets are making a comeback. Unfortunately, or fortunately as the case may be, those terracotta figurines and their fur like sprouts are still around. They even have a SpongeBob version now. Little did we know back in 1982 when they were first introduced, that chia seeds would one day labeled a “superfood.”

Chia, as it is commonly known (its scientific classification is Salvia hispanica), is an herb indigenous to central and southern Mexico and Guatemala and comes from the mint family of flowers. The appeal of chia seeds comes from the fact that they are rich in omega-3 fatty acids, including alpha linoleic acid, protein and fiber. One ounce of these seeds contains 4g of protein, 9g of fat and 11g of fiber not to mention antioxidants, calcium and other minerals. However, as CNNHealth expert Dr. Melina Jampolis suggests, there is no actual definition of a “superfood.” This is a marketing gimmick used to describe foods that contain above average amounts of health promoting nutrients. It is suggested that chia seeds:

1. Help you lose weight. When exposed to water chia seeds become gelatinous and increase in size and weight. This gel is hard to remove from the stomach making you feel full longer. 
2. Help balance your blood sugar. The presence of soluble and insoluble fiber combined with the gelling action of the seeds will help slow the conversion of starch into sugar. Sprinkle seeds on your meal and your food will become a constant steady energy. 
3. Help keep you regular by ensuring adequate daily consumption of insoluble fiber. This will have the added benefit of helping prevent diverticulitis. 
4. Help fortify your diet with essential fatty acids usually found in fish or supplements. 
5. Help provide you with more natural energy all day long due to its higher protein content. 
6. Help prevent the signs and symptoms of aging due to its high antioxidant concentration. These antioxidants will combat free radical damage in your body. 
7. Help hydrate you. Due to the difficulty the body has separating the water from the chia gel it allows for the water to irrigate the system as it passes through. 

In 2009 PubMed published results from systematic review of the health benefits derived from chia seeds. It was concluded that there was little scientific evidence supporting the efficacy of chia seeds on cardiovascular risk factors or weight loss. Another study from PubMed dated 2011, found that chia loading appears to be a viable option for enhancing performance in endurance events lasting longer then 90 minutes. This study also concluded that chia loading allowed athletes to reduce their dietary intake of sugar but conferred no performance advantage.

Superfood or not, since they have little to no flavor you could make a case for including them in what you already eat. Just make sure to keep portions under control, calories in check and eat a balanced diet overall.

SQUATS, SQUATS AND MORE SQUATS

One overriding question prevails in fitness: What’s the best exercise? It does not matter what the goal is or who is asking the question, everyone assumes that there must be one best exercise to get them in shape. Fitness professionals are bombarded with queries such as, “What is the best cardio to do?” or “What is the best exercise to get a six pack stomach?” The answer to all of these questions is quite simply the squat. If you want to get stronger, improve flexibility or change your body composition then squat. If you want to run faster, jump higher or just maintain the highest quality of life, then squat.

The squat can and should be officially crowned as the king of all exercises. It is fundamental and essential to everything we do in life. If you sit into a chair only to get up later on then you have done a squat. If you use the bathroom then you have done a squat. If you want to maintain your independence then you must be able to squat. If you cannot pick yourself up after you fall then you certainly cannot live by yourself.

In a nutshell the squat includes the basic ability to raise and lower one’s center of mass. It is a motion essential to all of life’s pursuits. Couple that with the simultaneous expression of posterior chain strength and flexibility and you have an incredibly functional and intense movement both with and without added weights. Include the need to stabilize the spine during execution and you have found the perfect movement to challenge all of the body’s systems.

Performing a perfect squat can be years in the making but it is worth its weight in gold. The benefits gleaned from squatting are manifold. It helps increase bone density and it trains the core muscles to eliminate unwanted movement (this is actually the intended use of the core but that is a whole other topic)) and it allows for large loads to be moved quickly. Finally, the squat prompts a strong nueroendocrine response that releases hormones essential to growth, strength and metabolism.

Start by making sure you can perform a proper body-weight squat. This will strengthen your glutes and hamstrings while stretching your hip flexors which will allow for proper range of motion. Make sure you keep your knees from buckling and use your hips to develop torque and power. Train your midsection and spinal erectors to ensure an organized midline. If these muscles are weak you will not be able to support significant loads on your spine. Train heavy some days and train for speed on others. Use different versions of the squat including high-bar, low-bar and box squats. Augment your training with Olympic Weightlifting and or plyometrics when possible. Always allow for proper recovery.

Want to get strong and ripped at the same time, all while trouncing your peers on any performance metric? Get off your chair, that’s rep number one, and start squatting.

SIXTY THIRD BRO SESSION

2013 Regionals WODs Marathon

This is intended to be a 3 Person Team (or Partner WOD) and the work is to be divided evenly:

1) "Jackie"

• Row 1000m
• 50 Thrusters (45#)
• 30 Pull-ups

2) 30 Burpee Muscle-ups (Scale to 60 Burpee C2B or 90 Burpee Pull-ups)

3) 100 Wall Balls

    100 Chest-to-Bar Pull-ups

    100 Pistol Squats

    100 One-arm Dumbbell/Kettlebell Snatches (70/55)

4) 21-15-9

• Deadlift (315#/205#)
• Box Jumps (30"/24")

5) 100 Double Unders

     50  Handstand Push-ups

     40  Toes-to-Bar

     30  Shoulder-to-Overhead (160#/105#)

     30  Lunges (160#/105#)

6) 4 Rounds:

• 3 Rope Climbs
• 100m Sprint
• 6 Squat Cleans (225#/155#)
• 100m Sprint

*Just to be clear this was in fact Chris Kim's idea

WOD DATE AND TIME: SATURDAY 6/25 @ 1PM 

SIXTY SECOND BRO SESSION

Cover as much distance rucking (40lbs) for 2 hours as possible:

-Every 15 minutes: 25x push ups with ruck on.

*To carry the forty pounds it is suggested to use a backpack and add either sandbags or bricks to make up the weight. A weight vest may also be used if you have one.

WOD DATE AND TIME: Due to the Father's Day Weekend and the fact that the weather forecast looks amazing this WOD will be done on your own and can be done at anytime over the weekend. If you need to use the gym for this then we ask that you do so during regular class times either Saturday or Sunday.

PAIN -- PERCEPTION VS REALITY

Due to the intensity of CrossFit workouts people often make impressive improvements in their fitness very quickly. The overweight become lean, the weak find new strength and the de-conditioned become resilient. Of equal importance, hesitance is replaced by competence and confidence. Novel challenges become fun opportunities to express fitness rather than obstacles. Along the way people often come to the realization that limits are more mental than physical. The mind will often limit one’s potential before the body’s capabilities are fully taxed.

To truly succeed in CrossFit one must balance self-preservation versus self-annihilation. This is analogous to redlining the engine in your car. If you push your car too hard and too fast the engine will blow out rendering your car unusable. If you push your body too hard, too fast, and too often, it too will break down. To become an elite level athlete you must push yourself hard enough to improve but at the same time be cautious enough to avoid injuries.

Too often experienced athletes start managing their workouts and become guilty of “sandbagging” -- performing below maximum capacity in the name of self preservation. Interestingly enough this does not happen with less experienced CrossFitters as they have yet to learn what 100% effort really feels like. With experience comes the realization that maximal efforts are associated with physical discomfort. If working out is comfortable then the stimulus is insufficient for improving fitness.

Humans are hard wired to avoid pain for survival purposes. However, the pain referenced in this case is different. In CrossFit we are asking athletes to endure the pain in order to improve their lives and limit subsequent suffering. On a short term basis this requires over-riding the same signals in our brain typically associated with danger. Your brain is largely responsible for keeping you alive. It collects internal and external stimuli and formulates an appropriate response, sometimes known as “fight or flight.” Unfortunately, the brain has a tendency to over-react and err on the self-preservation side and this can be detrimental in CrossFit. To truly reach the upper echelons of athletic performance you must be able to ignore this signal to hold back or quit prematurely. Most athletes are nowhere near their breaking point and have plenty of room to grow and perform.

During intense exercise the brain tends to be blank and receptive. While there is often little conscious thought there is ample room to focus on the task at hand. Such focus will prevent the brain from registering potential discomfort. Try counting repetitions out loud as this will keep you focused mentally on overcoming key thresholds during your workout. Count the number of breaths you take during rest breaks to avoid prolonged pauses in the middle of your workout. Try limiting the number of breaths to five or ten at time and get right back into the mix, every repetition done is one less to go before the pain ends. Set your sights on the finish line and hold yourself accountable to your own fitness.

SIXTY FIRST BRO SESSION

3 Rounds For Time with a partner:

• 2 mile run
• 400m lunge
• 4000m row

*partition the work any way you and your partner choose

WOD DATE AND TIME: SATURDAY 6/11 @ 12:30PM