Anivair

So I make Ghee the way most Indian people make it: put butter in a big pan on low heat and let it go. it will melt and then it will bubble once and then it will bubble twice. You let the water boil out (rather than just separating) and let the milk solids go brown. Let it cool a bit and it will settle. Then just strain it through some cheesecloth. It's easy and makes a nice nutty caramel-like flavor. This takes about an hour.

Good eye, dude. Wendler's boring but big was the other protocol I was reading when I worked this out. He'd be pissed at me for taking a cue from him rather than just doing his program, but I can live with that.

You're both right and I neglected to mention that the supplemental work will include a lot of rows and KB swings. I just didn't mention them because they're not lifts.

Tell me about it, dude. I feel like a tourist.

Having taken a bit to address some ideas and working out my schedule, I think I'm aiming for this (a variation on Pavel): Monday – heavy squat, form work Tuesday –off Wednesday –heavy BP/OHP, light Squat Thursday – off Friday – off Saturday – heavy Deadlift, light BP/OHP Sunday – off Bench and OHP will alternate weeks. form work will be a very light (50-70% for 4x10-12) on whatever feels like it needs work. Since it's on a heavy squat day, either the light squat day will serve double duty or we'll throw in some very low weight high rep form work on Saturday. Lifting workouts will usually end with a short metcon (no more than 8 minutes) but I'm actually leaning toward skipping that bit and just adding in a ton of walking and some animal flow on the off days to leave the lifting days straight lifting.

I actually do this pretty regularly, just to keep myself honest and make sure I'm not sliding into slop, but I'll get it looked at again. Worth mentioning: I've also had some hip issues lately. And by hip I mean sciatic nerve scarring, so it may be that a 1RM is easy for me, but after a few reps my form starts to suffer not due to the weight but the repetition. I've been working it out and seeing a therapist for it lately. It's helping.

Hey, thanks! that's one I had not seen before. I was leaning toward Pavel's protocol as well so I'll take a look at this. I think some work in the 8-12 (or even more) range at lower weights will also be of some benefit in making things stable (because assistance muscles) so we'll see how that goes.

So I've been following the jassafit.com programming for a while (it looks a lot like Wendler) and I have been making gains, but I'm not feeling stable on multiple reps. For example, my 1RM for a squat is 365 but ask me to do 3 reps at 300 and I'm not sure I can finish. I even feel unsure of myself at 70%. Same with my press. I'm wondering if it's just a combination of too infrequently lifting and going to heavy weight and low reps too fast. I squat (or press or bench, etc) once every 4 workouts. Those happen 3 days a week, so any given lift happens every week and a third. If we miss a day for whatever reason, now it's 1 2/3 weeks (sometimes 12 days) between lifts. I'm used to feeling stable on these. A coach I trust (Jeff Turner if anyone knows him) suggested more volume and less sets at max weight. Anyone have any good program suggestions? I'd feel better not writing my own program).

So it's been too long since i did a challenge here and it shows. For about a year I've been saying that the ring around me is baby-fat (and it was). But let's face it: my daughter is coming up on one and a half and I'm still not myself. it's time to stop blaming the baby and just admit that I got out of shape and have been too lazy to get back in shape. Which ends now. So we go back to my basics. Paleo eating, good sleep, meditation. In the mix: a heavy lifting rotation. I've been biffing a few of my heavy days lately and I don't know why, so investigating that will be a big part of this. Food: ye olde paleo food. I'll make the following allowances: a little sugar in a lot of tea. By which I mean something like a teaspoon in 3 and a half pints. Because that's about how much I use. It's just to take the edge off the dryness of it. I doubt it will impact me in any way. Also, I'll kick back a tiny bit on Tuesdays (it's a game night) for things like sushi rice and ... actually mostly just rice. Sleep: man, having a daughter means that sleep doesn't happen a lot, and not for the reasons people think. it's mostly that she goes to bed and THEN I get to do all the house work (laundry, dishes, etc). So I've been getting to bed around 11 and getting up around 7:30. that's okay, but I'd be happier if I were hitting bed closer to 10:30. I do sleep well, but I need to make it a priority. Meditation: man, if I can't do five minutes a day I just don't care enough. Exercise: I've been following the JassaFit progression. basically that looks like this: lift 3 days a week, one lift a day, cycling through press, squat, bench, dead (yes, that means that the 4 lifts take more than a week). You do these for a cycle at 50%, a cycle at 70%, a cycle at 85% and then a max effort day (reps are 10's @ 50%, 5's @ 70%, 3's @ 85% and obviously just 1 and max). The 85% says have been crushing me lately. I'm bothered by that. other than that, each day has a circuit that is usually fast and hard (something like some BW rows, some dumbbell presses, some mountain climbers max reps in 8 minutes or something normal like that). Exercise supplemental: Every day that I can I'm looking do take a walk with my daughter and do some animal flow just to move. Worth noting: I'm doing a lot of lifting and my new year's resolution was to get strong, so here I am in the warrior halls. And that's it. Let's let that go and see how it works out. Comments? Questions? Concerns? Jokes about my mom? Shoot!

I feel like the real secret to successful crossfit is not allowing your form to suffer. You go till your form breaks. Once you can't do a thing right, you can't do it.

I find that a good jump is all ankles for that sort of thing. Practice makes perfect with jumps. Jumping is actually something I'm really good at. Maybe I'll do a video sometime.

they did not that day (I imagine they have suggestions, I just wasn't in a learning-double-unders place). That said, here's a pretty good link (the link blows, but the video is good). he also makes a great p oint: double unders are only one thing you can suck at do with a jump rope. So far I have learned to suck at attempt singles, doubles, skipping rope, and a variety of other neat stuff. I usually fail at these things, but I'm getting there.

Yesterday's WoD had no running, but it DID have jumping rope (double unders). it was probably the hardest WoD I've ever done. Cardio, man. it gets me every time. Warm Up: normal stretching, tabata exercises (air squats, push ups, leg flutters, lunges) (and to be fair, they weren't tabata, they were just timed like that). Skill Work: Back Squats. I did a heavy set that topped out at 205. not bad for 8 months off. WoD: 30 double unders (I did 50 singles)20 hollow rocks (I did 14 and I hated it)10 goblet squats at 65#5 rounds for time. (I did 4) 17:35. I'll take it. I was wrecked after, but I got a LOT of good encouragement from the (relatively small) group. This morning ... well..... Also And the ever popular mash up:

I think I've got the anxiety figured out. It's about the WoD. If I knew on some fundamental level that I'd not be asked to, say, do a lot of running, I might feel better. I really hate running. I think that's it.

@Machete: I agree about the cert. And it's worth mentioning that even if CrossFit DID allow you to train after a weekend long course, that's still a misnomer (because that weekend is more like a test to see how well you picked up all the stuff you've been learning till then) and that it's actually a lot more training than most places require. Do you know what i need to do to train you in the state of Ohio as a professional trainer? Charge. There is no certification required at all. personally, I think trainers should have at least something to prove that they did the bare minimum (I was certified by ACTION which is a fast and free online test (the open course of the fitness world). Is that a gold standard test? No, but then the value of a trainer isn't about how well they test, it's about the things they learn before and after that and how much they learn on their own and their experience, so that suits me just fine.

That is largely what I'm here for, so I'd be glad to advise if I can.

Yeah, if CrossFit is a financial burden, then skip it and do your own thing (the mainpage CrossFit Football workouts are great if anyone cares). Also, check out Ido Portal and Erwan LeCorre. they are both really good at well rounded movements (especially Ido. His push up clinic is baller). You can find a lot of this stuff online.

That video is like 90% correct. And you're not wrong about CrossFit not always being benign. The good news is that I know a LOT about this subject, so let me dig into it and I'll try to answer this question in the simplest way possible. a: crossfit is not always good for you. The idea behind CrossFit is good. The implementation is not always good, like with anything else. If proper attention is paid to correct form and proper rest, i think it's just fine. YMMV. b: CrossFit doesn't exactly ignore traverse planes any more than, say, Weightlifting does. Most sports do, in fact. And you're 100% right that you need to address those planes. Most CrossFit boxes will not. A good one will. I don't think those planes need to be addressed all the time, but I think adding in a little Ido Portal or MovNat to your regimen will help all people. No one workout is everything. For example, Starting Strength is a great lifting protocol, but it also only addresses one thing. it addresses it well. It can get you 90% of the way there, but that last 10% matters. I think that part is personal responsibility, though. CrossFit never said, "We will make you 100% fit with no weaknesses". they just said, basically, that they will kick your ass into shape and they will. The rest is on you. All that said, you're still right. CrossFit is not a good thing. Smart CrossFit is. Making that one thing your whole life is not ideal. Making it a part of your fitness is good.

My calves are in great shape, but I really have no endurance. they have always been prone to cramping (no idea why). I just don't get why this cramp pain is sticking around. Might be because I'm sick.

I'm curious, too! I think it has to do with not making a fool of myself. Or maybe it's just the intensity of the workouts. If I'm working out alone, I can take breaks and go at my own pace. here, I'm sort of defaulting to crossfit pace, which is high. It's not terrible anxiety, but it's there. This is a busy week and I'm still getting over my daughter's cold, so I may not be able to hit the gym again till saturday. We'll see. Also, my calves still hurt bad. What the hell?

No lie, the crossfit girls are excellent.

That looks legit. And I agree with him that the most important thing is good form. Last night's workout might have destroyed me if my deadlift form wasn't very good and if I let my wall ball form lag (keeping your head on the ball is really important. If you receive that ball with your neck all craned up looking at the veiling you're going to jack your thoracic chain up bad). I'm not sure if I agree that crossfit will lean you out regardless of diet. i think that might just be him.

Some notes: I am still anxious before these classes. Why? I'm not sure. Yesterday there was a water boil advisory so there were a lot of bottles floating around. That was cool. Some little girl (like 13) took my second water bottle. I was only too happy to let her have it. Seriously. Cramps in both calves at once. that's what I get for running. Running is for the birds. Today I'm pretty sore. that is expected. Some magnesium before bed helped. Some sick daughter did not. So now that I've decided that I think this gym is okay, I feel obliged to share details. The true identify of CrossFitAnon is CrossFit Reynoldsburg, which is, shockingly, in Reylondsburg, Ohio. I don't live there, but I do work almost exactly across the street, so it's really easy to get to on my way home. So far my plan is to go 2-3 times a week (2 and a home session or sprints and supplemental lifts, but I might go 3 if that doesn't appeal).

They only have 1 Deadlift day a week, I just never miss it. So far. In two weeks. Speaking of which, today was a good one. Skill work was a Deadlift test. I'm not testing, so I just got to do a normal Deadlift set. I hit 365 and no lie, I only stopped because I ran out of time and barbspace. Not bad. WoD was as follows: 10! Wallballs and ring dips (I did box dips because rings were sparse) 4 200m sprints with a 1 minute rest in between. How did that go? Wallballs were fine. Dips went better than I thought. The running was awful and both my calves cramped. I still finished in 14 minutes. So tired.

Aww, now I want to see what he said .... Also, I wonder if it's a coincidence that every time I get motivated to go to a class, it's deadlift day .....