Dutch Lowy

Relative Intensity is what makes Crossfit for everyone. Have you heard people say that Crossfit isn’t for everyone? when i hear that, i get really mad. I don’t get mad at much but this really bothers me. Functional Movement is crossfit. If you teach grandma how to deadlift you have taught her fucntional movement. If you teach her to squat the next day or have her walk for her workout then you have introduced constantly varied. Is she breathing hard? Harder than she was when she entered the gym? Is what you as a trainer are doing makeing her life better today? That is what is important. Maybe, and i use the word maybe because i think a good coach could make it happen, she could even thrive in a class setting. You would need to build a base but at some point she should be capable of participating in a group.

What do you think?

Crossfit Norcal TD Seminar

A huge thank you to Robb and Nicki of Crossfit Norcal for hosting yet another awesome Trainer development seminar. Thank you to everyone else that attended and for taking the time to travel many miles to see me. I had a blast and can’t wait to see everyone else again soon. Remember if you have any questions or comments please let me know.
Post your thoughts good or bad to the comments below.

So it came to my attention tonight while i was watching a class that crowd control is very important in Crossfit Classes.
First a little background: My dad was my little league coach throughout my career as a little leaguer and also one of the best coaches i have ever had (don’t tell him i said that). Something that i have only recently realized (at least since beginning my coaching career and Crossfit) is how effective he was at running a practice. He would spend hours planning each practice. The planning wasn’t focused around waht drill he could do but more about how he could get everyone involved at the same time.
Practice looked like this: With usually two coaches (sometimes 3) one coach was pitching while the other was hitting infield/outfield. There was a three part progression to get into the batters box which involved 4 positions. First was hitting off a tee for positioning, then soft toss for timing which included two players (one tossing, one hitting) and finally live pitch. Then you rotate back out to the field to shag and take infield/outfield. While the batting practice is going on, coach #2 is hitting infield and outfield in between pitches. When i say hit infield don’t think one armed slow rollers. Think two handed swing as hard as you can at an 11 year old less than 60 ft away. Sorry that’s what i remember personally.
The point is, for a team of about 11 little fuckers my dad kept at least 9 on their toes for the entire two hours. There was not a significant amount of time when anyone was inactive. Anytime the ball was hit, we completed the play as if it was live. Meaning we had to hit the cut off man and make everything smooth. It did wonders for us as a team and, little did i know, it paid off when i started teaching.
Thanks Coach.

You can probably see where this is going so think about the last class you taught. Was everyone engaged or active in something. Did you have people that were losing interest quicker than an eleven year old? Next time you run into this problem, think about progressing on the next movement, topic, or retooling your class so everyone has a job. That could mean rep counter, form nazi, water boy, whatever just keep people busy. Your clients don’t pay you to talk their ear off. Get them moving and help them have fun and it will pay off for you as their trainer.

Dutch

What do you do when you are losing grip on a class?

Are you an over programmer? Do your workouts read like books? Do you need a cheat sheet to remember what the next exercise or what rep scheme you are doing? If you answered yes to any of these questions you need to come see me. I don’t like self promoting but seriously there are too many people that don’t understand the simple principles of Crossfit programming. What is it? Power!
Ask yourself when you are programming, what do i need to do to increase my power output? Should i decrease weight cause the games deadlift burpee workout will take me 20 minutes? Would i put out more power if i did 185 deadlifts in 10 minutes? What is the goal of Crossfit again?
Yes you need to get stronger and gain capacity at higher weights, but what is the best way to do that? Dedicated strength work then work it into your conditioning.

Ok, i’ll leave it at that, but you get the point. Please, next time you make up a workout have one thing in mind… Power. We will talk about what that means later.
Dutch

Post what you think a good workout is. (no named workouts please)

Now is a good time to talk about rest and recovery. When everyone is worried about the games and qualifiers. I have gotten many questions about what i am doing for workouts to get ready.
Here it is… I enjoy Crossfit (under 10 minutes) and i enjoy lifting heavy. Thats what i’m doing. I’m not stressed out and i spend plenty of time recovering

Are you so worried about your training that you aren’t spending adequate time recovering? Yes training is important and working your weaknesses is good but if you aren’t treating your body well on rest days and coming back too soon (1 rest day usually isn’t enough if you are training hard) you will see retrograde performance. I have heard people say they do well with two a days or extended work periods. I say you are either not training hard enough or lying to yourself. Take a step back and evaluate your training program. Enjoy yourself and good luck!!

Trainer Development Seminar Crossfit Flagstaff

Trainer Development Seminar Crossfit Houston 1/11

A quick shout out to everyone that attended the Trainer Development Seminar both in Houston and Flagstaff. I had a blast! Thank you to Lisa and Carlos of CF Houston and Mike and Lisa from CF Flagstaff. Here are the workouts we did at each seminar, programmed by participants of course.
Houston:
5 rounds
2 HSPU
4 Thrusters (heavy 135/95)
6 High Box Jumps (30/24)

Flagstaff
5 Deadlifts (275/185)
7 Box Jumps (30)
40 meter sprint
rest while your partner completes a round
repeat for 5 rounds and record time for each round.

Have you signed up yet? I can’t wait to meet everyone in the Crossfit community. Let me know if you have any questions or i can help in any way. Also, post some things you want to see posted on this blog. I am doing my best at being consistent with my posts so let me know what you want to see.

Dutch

Crossfit is Hard. When you are working out, it is hard not to wonder why you are doing it. What goes through your head in the middle of Fran, Cindy, or Helen? Do you dwell on the misery and feel bad for yourself? Do you look forward and think about what each rep should look like? Do you use your mind against you or do you keep it in check and let it work for you?

When i workout i am always segmenting the work. Greg Amundson wrote and article a couple months ago about breaking up each workout into sections that he can focus on completing. For example he takes the first set of 21 in fran and mentally breaks it into three sets of 7. Is 7 easier to do than 21? Of course! I have been doing this for the last couple years as well and it really helps. By not allowing yourself to rest until you have completed each section you will complete more work in less time, keep your mind focused on smaller parts and not be overwhelmed by higher rep schemes or longer time periods. Nothing makes Crossfit Easier, but this can help your mind ease the pain by conquering parts to make the whole seem less daunting.

I also try to “turn my mind off.” I pick a spot on the wall or on the horizon and let all my focus go there. No wasted energy feeling sorry for myself. In the double under thruster workout i did with Speal and John Brown in denver you can see me looking out to the mountains. It was nice to have terrain to look at and it really helped me get through that workout.

What do you do think about?