Crossfit London UK staged another of their phenomenally successful Olympic lifting masterclass 2. The sessions are led by Commonwealth Gold-medalist Giles Greenwood assisted by Foz Rahman and Andrew Stemler.

The sessions focus on the elusive “double knee bend” and add an extra layer of skills to those learned in the i-Course or the  Crossfit London UK Olympic lifting level 1 masterclass

Danielle prepares to clean

After 3 hours of intensive coaching, and despite bruised legs from all the thigh-bouncing, all the participants were cleaning and snatching like pros.

Class of 2010

There are many reasons why you should consider using a personal trainer, and a few interesting ones can be found in  ” the influence of direct supervision of resistance training on strength performance”, a paper written by  Mazzetti et al. (published in  Medicine and science in sports and exercise, 2000).This paper evaluated the hypothesis that , in highly motivated, moderately trained men, direct supervision of training sessins is important for maximal strength performance adaptations.

Surprise surprise, they discovered that  in the supervised group, the magnitude and rate of training load increases were better.

However, its not clear if the results are due to “motivation” or to spotting. I know I will try a heavier weight only if i can drop it safely or if there is someone spotting.

If you need some personal training and fancy working with London’s 1st ever level 2 Crossfit Trainer, who also has all the normal industry qualifications and is Poliquin and Chek certified, drop Andrew Stemler an email on

Andrew@crossfitlondonuk.com

Crossfit London UK
www.crossfitlondonuk.com
The Blackboard Gym
Arch 9 Gales Gardens
Bethnal Green
E2 OEJ

Hit the “Getting Started” button
http://crossfitlondonuk.com/getting-started/

If you didn’t get to the Crossfit London Kettlebell masterclass yesterday, then you missed out on the opportunity to train with me, (boo hoo) and the fantastic Sally Dixey. And you missed out on making some great contacts. These events give you the opportunity to meet like minded people; this is often as valuable as the skills you will learn on the day!

At Crossfit London UK, we try to stage as many mini-seminars as possible so people who cannot access us all the time can get those essential skills at a reasonable price. These masterclasses also allow us to focus in greater depth on some of the  i-Course skills.

We try and make the teaching process very explicit to give you progressions you can use to help you train yourself as well as others; these courses are great to help you improve your own skills, or even train others. My people think we are very good teachers! Certainly we use lots of unusual household items (and kitten imagery) to help you learn.

"On reflection, is this position right?"

Sally Dixey threw in her own selection of useful household and day to day objects, and chipped nail polish.

Sally's "chipped nail polish" tip helped all the boys....boom boom

Keep an eye out for Sally’s regular ‘Kettlebell Hell’ class on Thursday evenings at 7.30pm.

Get yourself booked on to the next Masterclass or i-Course.

Hit the Getting Started button for more information, or to get yourself booked in.

More photos on the CrossFit London Flickr page, here.

Forward rolls and cartwheels as a fun warm up…

“DT” – A hero workout!

• 12 deadlifts
• 9 squat cleans from the hang
• 6 push jerks (rxd 70kg)

In honor of USAF SSgt Timothy P. Davis, 28, who was killed on February, 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.

Some beginners followed after with a kettlebell, overhead squat,  lunge combo.

Crossfit London Beginners, woo hoo!

Followed by a POSE mini clinic complete with POSE conga…

…and here is the great group who POSEd so beautifully, led by Lee Saxby, BBC hero and POSE 4 level coach.

Thanks to the lovely Kate for the fab photos

Now thats what I call a Sunday!

If you have spent anytime looking at the endless stream of personal training in London websites, you may have picked up a few messages and themes. To help you out in choosing a personal trainer that is right for you, we decided to start identifying those features that we think makes a personal trainer credible.

High up on on our list is whether they are successful enough to own their own studio, or even be allowed to train others in a gym.

Sure, it’s possible that you actually want to meet your personal trainer in a park or at your home, but would you really use an accountant, solicitor, doctor, who didnt have their own studio or office, even if  it’s a home based one? It does show a poor lack of commitment and an un-willingness to invest in their own professional standing.

I recall that even when I met clients in their homes or at parks, I  also had a base at the (very flashy) Andaz Hotel in Liverpool street, and  a fully equipped gym in my house: my cellar had a Concept 2 rower, a bench press, a GHD. My garden housed two squat racks, 30 kettlebells, 10 olympic weightlifting bars, and 1,000 kilo of weight.

Interestingly, the sessions at my house were cheaper than at the flashy Andaz, which gave my clients a bit of choice too.

So you must have  trainer who has the credibility of a physical base, even if they just rent space at a gym. Fom  a personal safety point of view, just having people turn up on your doorstep can be a teeny bit risky. Gyms will check out trainers before they offer space to them, and will come under the informal scrutiny of other trainers “on the floor”.

There are, of course, many respectable trainers who are to all intents and purposes homeless. It’s just that I would want one with base that I could go to!

Needless to say, the trainers at Crossfit London UK have  a permanent base in Bethnal Green in their dedicated Crossfit Gym  at 9 Gales Gardens E2, which is some 3 minutes away from the heart of the Capital by central line.

This is just one of many points we will be discussing: there are many other factors you should  take into account, which we will be discussing  in future articles.

But, if you already think that a Crossfit London UK Personal Trainer could be for you, click the getting started button. By the way, our prices for a single  personal training session including gym entry , are £50 for an hour. ( nothing else to pay, no need for a long term contract, just book online and train) There are other packages which make this amount cheaper, but we thought we would mention the most expensive 1st.

[Update: Have fixed the internet. Ring guide is now available for download. Enjoy!]

One of the essential components of any strength and training regime is Ring Training, for many, many reasons.

However, you rarely see these at your local gym.

One of the biggest barriers is that most fitness instructors in “yer local gym” ( “health Spa”)  have never seen a pair of rings, let alone taught anyone how to use them.

Obviously you need to hit the Getting Started button on this site, and start training with CrossFit London (or get yourself a place on the next i-Course), but, in the meantime, this free ring training guide may help you learn some of the basics.

The fantastic Crossfit London UK Free Ring Training Guide. Click here to download

Just click on the picture above to download your guide!

More?

If you are equipping your home gym, then this the section for you!

It’s absolutely essential, in order to train at home, that you get a pair of portable gymnastic rings. The stuff you can do on them is fantastic: dips, pull ups, holds, and the infamous muscle up!

As much as I hate media references, James Bond actor Daniel Craig uses them to get his ‘license to kill’ body (gosh, I can actually taste sick in my mouth for having written that!)

Daniel Craig ring trains

and the cast of the ’300′ used them in their controversial training programme.

Cast of the 300 used rings

So, buy them direct from the USA. It is cheaper and easier than you think! I think it’s less than $70, and you get access to the Ring Training forum too

Click here to buy them directly from the US manufacturer

[Full disclosure: we make a tiny amount of money if you buy rings from the manufacturer using this link]

Andrew showing off...again.

Andrew Stemler was London’s 1st Crossfit level 1 & 2 Certified trainer  and has been teaching Crossfit in the capital since 2005. He became the 1st British affiliate under the name of Crossfit london back in 2005. He started the first  UK Crossfit gym in his back garden in Stratford back in 2006

He is a passionate advocate of  Crossfit,  but his boundless enthusiasm is moderated by 50 years worth of life experience.

Andrew is simply one of the best teachers available in London. Whether you get to learn from him in a 121 session, a Crossfit London class, or one of the many seminars where he is a sought after presenter, this is the person who will boost your skill set through the roof: he doesn’t pretend to be the trainer of elite sport people, he simply takes normal people and gets them to olympic lift, handstand,  and muscle up on rings, along with a whole hoats of  other must have skills: he is a patient teacher of the real basics like the squat and the deadlift, and his years of practical hands on teaching are matched with a very engaging sense of humour, a firm grasp of the academic and theoretical principals which underpin  human movement, and the courage to teach the fundamental skills.

His Grasp of human body mechanics is impressive. He is not only a level 5 sports masseur ( he is supposed to say “therpist: but hates the word), but has attended numerous cadaver  sessions ( in short he has dissected at least 2 more dead  bodies than most trainers you are likely to meet).

He also has the skill to see through time wasting “controversy”, and often teaches you “both sides” to enhance your understanding

To fix up your PT session with Andrew, Or attend one of Andrews Classes, click the Get Started button or email him if you need to find out a bit more on andrew@crossfitlondonuk.com

At Crossfit London, we love learning and teaching New Stuff. So come on  down and add to your fitness tool box. You don’t need to train at the Crossfit London “Blackboard Gym”. You don’t even need to like Crossfit. These Sessions are open to all.

Indian Clubbell Workshop

sat 15/5/2010 level 1 2-5
sun 16/5/2010 level 2 2-5

We are delighted to announce that Mike Simpson from the Sheffield Indian club Swingers, has agreed to lead  a specialist  indian club swinging masterclass at the Crossfit London UK Blackboard Gym in Bethnal green

Indian Club usage has  all but disappeared as a fitness skill. As dedicated Physical Culturalists,  Crossfit London and the Blackboard Gym is delighted to reintroduce these skills to Londoners. Whilst we teach some basic club moves, Crossfit London trainers are always up-skilling and acknowledging experts with more skills and experience then them in specialist feilds, like club swinging.

Come and access some fantastic skills that you will treasure for the rest of your life.

Will will add some extra materials to this page soon, but for an overview,  according to Mike Simpson, swinging has a natural rhythm and movement that stimulates both the mind and the body while giving you a good workout. Many martial artists have used club swinging techniques in the past as a way of exercising and improving striking, flexibility, holds and co-ordination for weapons training.

Indian club swinging also has other claimed benefits such as:

• Balanced development of the shoulders, arms and back.

• Increases flexibility and strength in the wrists, elbows and shoulders.

• Improves the range of motion in these joints.

• Improves co-ordination, timing and skill with the hands.

• Can be used to counteract some natural imbalances in the posture as a result of being right or left-handed.

• Can complement other types of training to increase strength, endurance, stamina and aerobic fitness.

• Some physiotherapists use light clubs to treat some shoulder injuries.

• Some claim that Indian club swinging can be used to improve the general health and well being of the practitioners

Check out the Sheffield Indian Club swingers here

To Book your ticket, hit the getting started Button

sat 15/5/2010 level 1 2-5
sun 16/5/2010 level 2 2-5

The Crossfit London Kettlebell Masterclass

saturday 10-04-2010

saturday 22-05-2010

This unique Kettlebell masterclass will get you on top of the current Kettlebell fitness craze. We will teach you the essential skills you need  to both  kettlebell, and the bonus ability to bore your friends at parties with your new knowledge.

For over 5 years, Crossfit London has been teaching people just like you how to use Kettlebells.

We have taught  elite athletes, the police, soldiers, leading Personal trainers and recreational fitness centre users how to Swing, Snatch, Windmill and Turkish get up with this unique bit of kit,  and, nowin a Bethnal green gym  we are going to teach you too.

The unique thing about CrossFit London is that we only allow people to teach, who CAN TEACH i.e. know their stuff and can actually communicate. Our events are always supervised and led by great presenters. . Salley Dixey is simply one of the best kettlebell teachers in London.

You can book  your place by hitting the “Getting Started” button.

OLYMPIC WEIGHTLIFTING level 2 Masterclass

Sunday 7 March 2010, 12.30pm to 4.30pm

Led by Commonwealth gold medalist Giles Greenwood, assisted by Andrew Stemler.

Do you want to boost your Olympic weightlifting training through the roof? Fancy some accessible, do-able, high performance lifting tips but don’t have access to regular tuition or an international level trainer? If so this is the masterclass for you.

This 3 hour masterclass assumes that you have a basic snatch and clean and jerk. This would normally mean you have attended an i-Course, or a similar introductory session.

Put it this way, the session will probably warm up with some Snatch Balances: if you don’t know what they are, this will probably be too advanced, but, if you do, or you’ve had, say, three hours of tuition, with a few hours of practice, you are probably ready. If you have lingering doubts ask by, emailing Andrew.

The session is predominantly skill focused, so you will train with loads that suit you.

Women always welcome.

Check out the photos from the last masterclass on facebook

All this for just £35… wow, get two places.

BOOK YOUR SLOT BY HITTING THE GETTING STARTED BUTTON

Deadlifting Workshop

Sunday  2nd May  12pm – 4pm (£30)

Sponsored strength athlete, and deadlift record-holder Chet Morjaria teams up with CrossFit London for this speciality workshop on the deadlift. The first one sold out in mere days, so we persuaded Chet to put on a second date. Book quickly!

Learn performance enhancing tips and techniques, along with comparisons and guidance on both ‘conventional’ and ‘sumo’ style deadlifting.

This session is suitable for beginner and intermediate lifters.

Come along prepared to lift heavy stuff off the floor!

Click here to book your place.

We are delighted to announce that this event is being sponsored by Chet’s sponsor Boditronics, a leading sports nutrition company increasingly used by the country’s top athletes.

Check out www.boditronics.co.uk for more information.