Dutch Lowy

The Crossfit Games are gonna be fun. I have gotten many, many questions about them and what i am doing to prepare. Here is the answer as i am less than 2 weeks out from our qualifier.

I have been doing a hybrid of o-lifting and Crossfit. Running as little as possible (although i ran a mile today) and focusing my metcon training under 15 minutes. I train when i feel like it and relax when i don’t. I am doing what i enjoy and enjoying what i do. I know this is not what Crossfit preaches but i am going to be honest with you…If i did shit i hated everyday just to get better at crossfit, i would never workout! It is worth it to me to do what i enjoy and keep training. This doesn’t mean i do easy stuff or things that are enjoyable. I love to be challenged and there is something about Crossfit workouts that suck you in. Its like being addicted to a drug.

In addition i feel that what i enjoy will allow me to achieve a high enough fitness level to not only compete in the games but do anything else i want. What do i do??
I lift heavy shit and do metcons usually shorter than 15 minutes. I usually lift everyday. followed by something i either saw on someones site or got from a buddy. I don’t have a set program. More than likely if i did, i wouldn’t follow it anyway. I don’t like being told what to do.

The last thing i want to add about my training is that i am committed to Crossfit style training and really want to win. I will not, however; jump off a cliff if i don’t win. I have been competing in something for just about 23 years and feel satisfied with what i have accomplished. I truly think the future of the Crossfit games is going to be driven by the coaches ability to develop an athlete.

My games predictions…
I think number one for the next 3 years possibly 5 will be a new comer. If the new comer doesn’t win… Speal will. He is legit. Strong and Fast.
I am not even going to guess about the events but the qualifiers are very interesting. We will see if they chose their tests appropriately by the athletes they send.

What do you think? Do you know the dark horse?? Who is he?
Ladies feel free to post your thoughts as well.

I posted a couple weeks ago about everyone needing a coach. If you want a coach, i am willing to offer my services. I truly feel that people will only be as good as they want to be. If you want to be the best you will continually seek knowledge and experience. Are you still doing this? If you think i can help you please let me know how and i will do everything in my power to help. If you don’t know what you need help with but know there is more for you to know let me know and i will do all i can to help.
Dutch@crossfitatm.com

Option number 4: Beginners join the group immediately. This one only works for smaller gyms with classes below 5 people. Crossfit ATM has been using this since we started. It has worked well for us for a couple reasons. Reason number one is time. Our schedules didn’t allow for individual meetings with every new client. this allowed us to streamline the intro process. It did get a bit difficult at times but i feel because of the relaxed atmosphere at our gym it was never an issue. Later on we standardized the first workout people did so we would have a better understanding of their abilities. The workout was, depending on what the trainer decided, 10,9,8..1 of push ups, pullups, situps, squats. It was usually scaled down by way of reps and possibly modifying pullups and pushups. They will do this during a regular class so they get to meet everyone and get involved in the community.

The 4 options i mentioned above have all been put into action and worked. It is up to you to decide which you will use and stick with it.

The last thing i want to talk about is that over aggressive newbie that only wants intensity. Their mechanics suck and they are a danger to themselves and your other clients. My suggestion here is to first have a focused conversation with the client about the importance of consistency and mechanics. Try to get them to understand that with the advancement of skills comes an increase of performance.
If this approach does not work you should get a little more aggressive with your talk. Help the client to understand that they pay you for your knowledge and guidance as a coach. If they will not be receptive of your coaching then they are being unsafe and disrespectful to you and your profession. It is up to you to give them one more warning then you may be better off without them in your gym. They should respect your decision and start to be more coachable. Your clients will also respect you for taking a stand on your principles.

Option number 2 is doing a set amount of personal training sessions before allowing an athlete to join the group.  I have seen people use 3 sessions or 5 sessions.  These sessions are used to teach the fundamental movements before introducing athletes to intensity and group sessions.  These sessions are also used as an evaluation period for the the coach to make sure the athlete is competent enough to join class.  This is also a time when the conversation about nutrition comes up.  This can take up an entire session just to show the importance of it.

Drawbacks:  The personal sessions can be costly and keep people from signing up if all they want is group training, 3 sessions is not enough to create good movement from bad with 9 movements, there is no group dynamic to introduce people to the community, there is no guarantee they stick around for the classes.

Option 3 is doing one intro session where the potential new client is introduced to Crossfit and then put through a baseline workout.  The baseline is used as an evaluation to place the client into a leveled class or at least have a better idea of how they will peorform in class.  This will also give the coach a chance to touch on scaling especially if you can classify the person by their performance in the baseline.  The idea here is that a group dynamic will speed progress as opposed to one on one sessions.  The new athlete should be motivated by others to better themself.  They are also helped along by the current group participants.

Drawbacks:  There is no intro to basic movements which makes it harder to teach a class of varying levels,

If you haven’t seen Nicki Violetti’s blog yet… Go check it out… I’ll wait…

A couple days ago she posted about how a few affiliates started and how they got their first clients.  I am honored to be included in that list.

I want to take the next step, mostly prompted by Chris’s question, but also because there is a huge variance in what happens in different gyms.  After you got all these new clients… What do you do with them?

There are a couple different routes that i have seen work.
First suggestion ( and they are not in order) is to have an “on ramp class.”  An on ramp class would consist of 4-6 weeks of intro sessions.  It would be a scheduled class and a pre-requisite for joining any current class.  In the onramp class you are introduced to just about every movement we do in Crossfit, from rope climbs to hand stands to snatches.  This is not the time to perfect these movements but a great opportunity to introduce them and give a short explanation of why its important and what it will help with.  There is a short met con included at the end to review skills that have already been learned as well as slowly introduce people to intensity.  Notice i said slowly.  The cool thing about on ramps is that everyone is on the same level and there really aren’t as many egos coming out.  There is an atmosphere of learning and fun that only stimulates the community.

Some drawbacks include: it is a limited point of entry (there is a start date that could be up to 3 weeks away.  What if someone wants to start immediately??), You really have to be engaging as a trainer to keep a wide range of abilities interested in your content, It is important to have your best coaches teaching this class so your people have a great foundation.

I will get into the other options tomorrow.  I am getting kicked off the computer tonight…

I emailed Nicki to get her thoughts on this post as she has seen HUGE success with the on ramp class.  I am posting her comments below to make sure everyone gets to see them.

Once your clients know the On Ramp (or similar) is your point of entry they spread the word about it.  They tell their friends that “the next one starts next week”, etc.  Also, we cap our On Ramp classes at 10 people…and they regularly sell out…If someone is inquiring about the class and they know this they will eagerly sign up for the next one, even if it is 2 weeks out. We offer limited spaces and there is a sense of urgency to get into the classes.

Also, as Mark mentioned, there is always the PT route.  We typically don’t have folks join the On Ramp mid flight because there’s usually not space to add anyone…but folks will often choose to do some privates just to get going before jumping in the next On Ramp.