I was having a meeting with Graham from the Spartan race group about our future links when we walked past the  Potters Fields Park and walked into the set up for tomorrows Reebok Crossfit PR Stunt.

I got to cuddle the organiser,

me and Steve from Stockport

get a photo of Graham,

Graham from the spartan Race

and they let me handstand against the container:

just hanging around, not creating trouble

Then, whilst hanging around in a handstand someone shouted out, “do it one handed if your so tough”: voila! hence the top photo!

But I do want to say, thanks to Reebok from all at Crossfit London UK. They have come in to help and we will support their initiatives as much as we can, Im in the 2pm Wod,  I know Christian is in the 7pm wod. Get your T-shirts on and “represent”

A fabulous mixed group of “normal people”, trainers, and physical therapists got together in Bethnal Green to try out the world famous Crossfit London i-course: the one-day course that gets you practicing most of the essential Crossfit basics (squat, clean, snatch, ring work, handstands, muscle ups)

As always, a phenomenal Crossfit London team, led by Andrew and Steven, with superb support from Kate, Phil, Alex, Kirsty and Sevan; taught, inspired, problem-solved and target-set for an anxious-to-learn audience.

The Crossfit London i-Course is an ideal way of covering those basics, and can be a great way of preparing for your CrossFit Level 1 Certification. For “normal people” without regular access to a Crossfit gym, it’s a great opportunity to get some feedback and pointers from the Crossfit London multi-skilled team.

Well done everyone, especially to Sammy for coming first in Thumb Wars, Jo for a great handstand push-up performance, and Tracy for that pull-up with a band demo. You are on the road of the righteous!

Some great effort in the L-Sit practise

A special muscle-up festival from the “big tough boy group”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G7u17QtsUiw

Wondering what all the fuss is about? Book your place in the May i-Course and come and find out!

Wednesday night is adult gymnastics night .

For adults, not snotty, spotty teenagers who can fling themselves into any position and bounce out smiling.

This gymnastics class is designed for terrified adults beginners who want to learn how to handstand, handstand forward roll, muscle up, lever and back flip (to name just a few cool moves). We teach you to be a basic gymnast, and more importantly we teach you how to spot others and keep them safe.

So, if you can fight off the tears of terror long enough to book yourself into these interesting (fun, supportive) sessions, and add some Crossfit London gymnastics to your skill set, we will see you there.

Kate is lifted through her back flip by Stefan and Sophia

And by the way, bloody well done to both classes tonight!

Well, the i-Course was going well; we were a good way through the cleans, when disaster struck…the building was plunged into darkness (semi-gloom really, but that doesn’t sound so windswept and exciting!), and nothing we could do would get the lights back on again…not swearing,  not moaning, not blaming shody workmanship, so…leaving the calm, and very cool Sally Dixey teaching the kettlebell swing and snatch in the bracing outdoors of Gales Gardens in Bethnal Green (but at least the all day rain held off for a few minutes), the intrepid Andrew Stemler dashed off in his (yet to be washed) car and got hold of a jolly bright light, and saved the day…hoorah!

A fantastic well done to Steven, Kate and Twyla for entertaining the troops during the lunch time, with rousing songs and face painting, while nervously waiting for the emergency lighting to appear…phew!

The afternoon was fantastic with a few of the attendees getting muscle -ups…wooo hoooo. Lots of shadows too!

Brian's first muscle-up

It was a bit cold , so thanks to all the attendees who tolerated cold butts for most of the day…

i-Course attendees, February 2010

This course is such fun you you still learn in the pitch black (this really is a fearful fib). But this is typical British spirit…( not the  invading other peoples countries and nicking their natural resources, thing) but jolly well getting on with stuff.

Chin Chin, pip pip!

Book your space on the next “guaranteed to be  a bit lighter” i-Course, by hitting the “Getting Started” button

http://crossfitlondonuk.com/getting-started/

Notice that the Crossfit London neck scarfs are back…. big time!

Diane, 21, 15, 9

100kg Deadlift/Handstand Press ups.

Just a little note, following a meeting  I had this morning: we set upper limits for our workouts, not lower ones, so its possible for your granny to do this workout with Shopping Bag Deadlifts and wall push ups. Every move we teach can be made accessible to everyone. Thats why our beginners programme is so exciting, as it gets you training, and gets us supporting you.

Another succesful Crossfit London i-Course.

Well done to all who attended!

if you click on this link you can see the photos on Facebook

As Crossfitters we talk endlessly about “constant variation”, “training for the unknown and unknowable”, and “general physical preparedness”. To top it all, there is that underlying ‘smugness’ that comes with knowing that our training makes us ‘bulletproof’.

But if we are honest, are we really as well prepared as we could be? Do we really have enough variation in our workouts? Are we actively working on all aspects of our health and fitness?

Here are 17 areas that I will almost guarantee that most Crossfitters (and non-Crossfitters) could improve on:

1. Taking rest days

You know the body only adapts when it is at rest, don’t you? Without adequate rest, the body remains in a state of stress that is incompatible with the positive gains in strength, overall fitness capacity, and fat loss that most of us are after. Think more training equals better results? Think again!

This is why we at CrossFit London insist that our athletes take an enforced week’s break from training every 12 weeks (point 10).

2. Mental preparation

This is a particular bugbear of mine as a psychologist. I watch in amazement as athletes seem to pay more attention to knee length socks, Vibrams and whether (or not) to wear their t-shirt than they do to getting their mind ready for the challenge.

And what do I mean by mental preparation? I mean setting goals, getting into a performance enhancing ‘ready state’, and developing their mental toughness.

I will write more about this topic over the coming weeks, but consider this: how much faster, stronger, and fitter would you be if your mind worked with you, rather than against you?

3. Running (properly)

Ok. I’ll admit it. I loath running. Never had an interest in it. Very much like Gimli, Son of Gloin I consider myself “very dangerous over short distances”, but balk at the idea of doing anything over 400m 200m 100m.

It turns out, unsurprisingly, that I suck at running! I didn’t even know how badly until I took some coaching from the London POSE crew (Lee Saxby and friends). Actually learning the skill of running (note: POSE is not the only system for this) made a huge difference to both my attitude and capacity.

I shan’t pretend that I have had a ‘road to Damascus’ experience, or that you’ll see me at a 10k anytime soon. But now I have something to work at that will both reduce my chances of injury, as well as improve my overall performance.

4. Getting upside down

Why do we teach handstands, headstands and other inverted techniques in CrossFit? Aside from their strength enhancing properties, they develop a level of body awareness that many of us have overlooked. Remember the 10 components of fitness? I’ll reckon that co-ordination and balance don’t turn up much in your programming. And they should.

I was lucky enough to spend some time at the Fire Service College in Moreton-on-Marsh last week. There they set up situations whereby trainee firefighters go into specially constructed collapsed buildings (complete with wrecked furniture and walls) in the dark, with water, smoke, and noise piped in from all around. Does it freak them out? Hell yes! Does learning body awareness help? Yup.

Do something every day that scares you. You will see the benefits.

5. Lifting heavy, often

I won’t go over ground that has been covered in much more detail, better than I can describe, in other places. Put short: almost everyone could benefit from being stronger. There are no situations that I can come up with where being stronger is a disadvantage in life. Male, female, young or old: everyone will benefit from increased strength.

How do we get stronger? We lift up heavy things. That is why CrossFit London incorporates regular strength-biased training into our CrossFit programming.

6. Practising outside the gym

Oh yes. That. Sure you do your three to four sessions per week. Hold your chest up proudly when talking to your friends and family about your “super tough” training. But what are you doing for the other 108 hours of the week (assuming you sleep 8 hours/day)? Did you find somewhere to “grease the groove” on your deadhang pull-ups? Did you pop an L-sit in the meeting room before anyone else arrived? Did you accumulate 60 seconds worth of handstand holds before bedtime?

Probably not. But you could have…

7. Moving unusually shaped objects

Wouldn’t life be great if everything was barbell shaped? Easy to grip, evenly balanced, drop-able without causing damage? That’d be swell.

Tell that to your mum the next time she asks you to move the piano. Meantime, go flip a tyre, hump sandbags (not that way, dirty mind), carry logs, move a sofa. Real life will thank you.

8. Unilateral exercises

One handed kettlebell swings, farmer’s walks, single leg deadlifts, pistols, one armed press ups, sandbag carry, kettlebell snatches, and so on.

9. Getting enough sleep

This one is getting a little more play in the blogosphere recently. It turns out that nutrition and exercise are only two legs of the tripod of health. Sleep plays a very significant role in rest and recovery, fat loss, as well as disease prevention. Try reading “Lights Out: Sleep, sugar and survival” by TS Wiley. Sobering thoughts for those of us who grew up on Thatcherite Britain on the message of “work now, sleep later”.

Melissa Urban (of Urban Gets Diesel) covers the topic pretty well in a post from earlier in the year.

What’s the punchline? Aim for eight hours, folks. And take it seriously. It may well save your life.

10. Learning the theory

Do you know why lifting heavy weights at low reps for three to five sets builds strength quickly? How about what happens to the shoulder during a “skin the cat”? Why maintaining lumbar curve during the lift protects your back? How gymnastics forms the foundation for CrossFit? How the Zone or Paleo diets differ? How are they similar?

I’m not suggesting that we all turn into biomechanics or nutrition nerds, only that understanding combined with practice generally improves quality. Plus one day soon someone is going to call you on your knowledge…

11. Helping others/being inclusive

Maybe you’ve got a muscle-up. Perhaps you can rattle off 50 unbroken double-unders. Deadlift 2x your bodyweight? Good for you.

But for every one person like you, there are a host of others who are just starting their CrossFit journey. And they need help. Their coaches will provide support, technical guidance, appropriate ‘motivation’ and a keen eye on technique. This will get them so far along the line.

But you – their peers – you have big role to play, too. You are part of the team, the pack, the social grouping. You help set the tone for the gym and the community. You provide motivation through having “been there”, from being able to pass on “what worked for me”, or “how I overcame my fear/lack of motivation”.

Everyone has to start somewhere. How are you going to help someone with their first steps today?

12. Listening to the advice of others

You don’t always know best. Get over it.

No-one is saying that you have to act on all of the advice you may receive. You should listen, though.

13. Rowing (properly)

I stark contrast to running, I looooove rowing (on the erg). Fast and powerful or slow and steady, I’ll sit on there ’till my ‘glutes go numb. I was lucky enough to be coached through the proper technique by a very accomplished rower during my student days, and it has made a world of difference. Aside from my improved capacity to generate power through the stroke, my efficiency has increased greatly. I’m still knackered at the end of a session, though.

And then I see what passes for ‘rowing’ in the gym, and I weep.

Get some coaching. Before your spine ejects your kidneys from your lower back.

14. Dead hang and mixed grip pull-ups

In golf the famous saying goes, “Drive for show, put for dough”. Everyone is very impressed with your gymnastic kip (perhaps you have a butterfly, too? Kudos), but remember this: it is an entirely different movement to the deadhang. The former is a power movement, focusing on cycle time to increase reps, while the latter is all about strength and body control.

Try popping into a classic weightlifting gym and challenging someone to a pull-up contest. Think your kipping is going to cut the mustard in front of a strength crowd? Think again, sunshine.

Get to work on those deadhangs, with no kip. Make it a strength exercise. Shift your grip around and challenge your muscles in new and inventive ways. Add some weight if you need the extra resistance. Your kip will thank you.

And yes, like Kelly Starrett of San Francisco CrossFit says, you suck at snatch grip chin ups.

15. Static, gymnastic holds

So you want to build some crazy strength, co-ordination, balance and agility? And you don’t practise static holds like the front and back levers, the planche, and the free standing handstand?

16. Focus on quality over quantity

As coaches we try to strike the best balance between technique and “the numbers”. By ‘balance’, I mean 100% solid technique with some minor, permissible degradation in form towards the end of a hard pushed workout. If form is still 100% at the end of the workout, then perhaps the individual didn’t go full out.

Here is my plea: without the correct technique you will be less efficient, more inconsistent, and inevitably injured (soon). We know you want to improve you numbers. Perhaps you think that you could bust a new deadlift PR with a little extra effort and a slightly rounded back.

Don’t. Get the technique right and the numbers will take care of themselves.

Trust me.

17. Food variety

Make. Your. Food. Colourful.

(US Translation): Make. Your. Food. Colorful.

Before you start training in Crossfit, it can seem very confusing. Especially if up till now you have been a ‘mono-structural’ trainee. By ‘mono-structural’ I mean you go to the gym to run, or cycle, or row, or strength train and in general conversation you would describe yourself as a ‘runner’ or a ‘cyclist’ or a ‘rower’.

Perhaps you have become very comfortable as a specialist, but you are beginning to realise that you can do little outside your specific sport.

At CrossFit London we encourage you to learn new skills, some of which will make you feel uncomfortable. But, like many before, you will will find that at the age of 20/30/40/50 you too can do a handstand, hang upside down on a pair of gymnastic rings or snatch and clean-and-jerk like an olympian.

Some of these moves you may not  yet understand, but the important issue is that we will teach them to you.

So Crossfit is about learning and adding to your skill set.

It is also about improving your performance: stronger, harder, faster. So we get you to work for shorter times than you may have been used to in the past, but with greater intensity. We will get you to sprint shorter distances rather than jog long ones. In reality this means the “workout” component of  a crossfit session is probably over in 10 to 20 minutes, but gosh they are tough! It’s in this toughness that you develop as a  human being; one that can react and survive in a crisis.

To put this on a personal basis, I ‘poottle’ to work on my bike most days; a round trip of 10 to 20 miles, depending on how many times I sneak home. According to a niaive reading of government advice, this poottle means I’m fit! Certainly I’m fitter than a sedentary person who goes from the coach to the lift, from the lift to the car,  and back again.

But that the same a saying reading the Beano [a comic, for those of you young enough not to remember] improves your literacy and cognitive capacity!  Sure I can imagine someone being so illiterate that Dennis the Menace could be their  cultural icon. But once you can read a few issues,  surely it’s on to something a bit more sophisticated, perhaps some Enid Blyton? But also, how about some writing and adding up…

So CrossFit is really physical literacy; rather than reading, writing, and arithmatic, it’s gymnastics, weightlifting and monostructural efforts.

But let’s really help you…

Here is the basic list that we would like you to learn and master

• Pull ups
• Dips
• Muscle ups
• Handstand push ups
• Push ups
• Runs 400m
• 800m
• 5k
• 10k
• 15k
• 1k with 10kg
• Thrusters
• Air squat,
• Overhead squat
• Front squat
• Deadlift
• Push press,
• Push jerk
• Wall ball (10kg wall to 10ft target)
• Box jumps
• Row 250, 500, 1000 2k
• Snatch
• Clean
• one leg squat
• GDH sit ups
• GDH back extentions
• Hang power clean
• Walking lunges
• knees to elbows
• Rope climb
• Double unders
• Body weight bench press max
• Burpees
• Kettlebells

What we do is to pick and mix from this list and give you some on a day-by-day basis. Check out any of our WODs (workout of the day) to find  out what this means in practice.

Its great fun learning them.

Come along and give us a try. Hit the get started button

The Crossfit London i-Course is the ideal way to begin to master those essential Crossfit skills; skills we think that everyone should have, but most so-called, fitness instructors are incapable of performing them, let alone teaching them!

On this course we will introduce you to some great basic gymnastic skills: the L sit, the handstand, the handstand push up, and the infamous muscle up, along with the Olympic Lifts, including the foundation Crossfit moves of the squat (air, overhead, and front) the presses (strict, push, and push jerk) and the deadlift and sumo deadlift high pull.

We sprinkle pull up/press up and dip progressions and show you some, frankly, nasty core exercises.

This is a day of learning,  not “beasting” , taught by  four of the UK’s leading Crossfit trainers: Andrew Stemler and Steven Shrago from Crossfit London Uks famous Blakboard Gym, Colin Menniss from TSG4 ( the Metropolitan Police Territorial  Support unit), and a host of others

Apart from the skills you learn, these events turn out to be really “nice” days. You get lots of pointers, and lots of help.

Held at the Crossfit London HQ at Arch 9 Gales Gardens, E2 0EJ. The Gym is just 45 seconds from Bethnal Green Tube, and easily accessible from Central London.

The dates  are in the side bar to the right of this post, along with our other courses

The course runs from 09:30 till 16:30 and is the only one of its kind aimed at “normal” people. The cost is £100 for the day with a 15% discount for service people (armed forces and emergency services) and you get a free copy of the Elite Fitness guide, the only exercise “E-book” tough enough to cover the range of this course ( Worth £12.99)

To book your ticket,   and get your discount  click the get started button

Crossfit London i-course 8 Nov 2009

But to make the message absolutely clear, this is a course designed for normal people so that you can go away and build effective skills into your regime. We demand no loyalty to Crossfit or its methods, We simply want you moving properly and effectively. This course will help you do this.

Just a little point. Crossfit London UK supports all of the “services”. including the military and Police forces, and we are delighted that some of our members and instructors  are  currently in both the civilian and armed forces.

The photos for the December i-Course can be seen here

Rest or Practice Gymnastics

After learning the bent arm, bent hip, bent leg press to handstand, we want to learn and practice a straight-arm, bent hip, bent leg press.

This press to handstand, like the bent arm – bent hip – bent leg press, is “training wheels” to the more elegant “stiff-stiff” (straight arm – bent hip -straight leg), “hollowback” (bent arm – straight hip – straight leg), and the toughest press to handstand, the “planche press” (straight arm – straight hip – straight leg).