HyperFit USA

Clock Whores

We first started doing CrossFit back in late 2004 and affiliated in early 2005. The single greatest innovation the program advocated was the time clock. The clock measures what each specific workout is and creates a unique performance data point. I introduced the concept to my clients to help them shift perspective on training. The paradigm shift was profound, and resulted in shifting the training from not just working hard; we were working very hard, and being able to measure their specific performance in every workout. Before I was introduced to CrossFit we were doing functional movement that was constantly varied. The workouts we were doing were intense in the sense of a lot of work done but adding the clock added a new dimension to our training. I think of it at as a person following a moral code before they were introduced to the theory behind it. The concept of timing all the training shifted the concept to performance measurement as the means for getting results. The results from changing to actual performance metrics in every workout were and are fantastic. The change in view point resulted in people changing focus from narcissistic superficial appearance based fitness goals to a performance-based “How much can I do” model of training. The results are a stronger motivation to train and surpass superficial promises in the typical gym brochure. People began to focus away from judging people’s fitness on their appearance and replaced it with a real measure of fitness, actual physical output. The focus has become more centered on how much weight, how far, how fast and the results have been astounding. All of the superficial goals are being achieved by having legitimate performance benchmarks to strive for.

The essence of the time clock as a performance measurement is to have exercises with ranges of motion standards, specific weights and repetitions so the performance can be measured and repeated again to track progress. The idea is to measure overall work capacity in specific repeatable measurable terms. (The scientific method) The program itself attracts people who are by their very nature competitive and like to see things done in real terms. The typical “I feel better” is replaced with “I am performing better” and as a result, “I am happy with my training.” A person being able to deadlift more or run faster or do more pull-ups help people to self-actualize their performance in terms of best effort yesterday versus best effort today. The idea of personal best and competing specifically with yourself is the essence and core of HyperFit USA’s application of CrossFit philosophy in our training.

The dark side of the clock

Over the years of doing CrossFit style training and scoring the workouts some strange idiosyncrasies have come to light. The unfortunate aspect of human psychology is we tend to compare ourselves to others. Sibling rivalries for parental attention, co-worker pay raises and who has the better car are all typical societal measures of one ups man ship. The nature of our classes and the clock ticking off in the background leads to some unfortunate behaviors which run contrary to good health and training. The basis of our training is group classes. Group classes begin with a structured warm up, equipment set up, skill set with an expectation of ROM and technique expectations and finally the WOD (Workout of the Day). The WOD is begun with what has become a staple in the CrossFit training communities a: 3, 2, 1 GO and people begin the workout. The workout is where the magic and some of the horror begins.

The upside of doing group classes is a camaraderie, the intensity and general communal feeling that comes from group suffering/successes. The bond between people because of mutual respect for toughing out a hard workout develops friendships that go far beyond the normal saying “Hi” at the globogym. People find that they have a lot more in common with the people in the classes than they do with many of their professional peers. The community of people created as a result of the training goes far beyond the normal gym.

The downside of doing classes and having public performance measurement can cause people to feel pressure to perform in ways that borders on obsession. It is healthy to be competitive and want to have someone that will push us to bring out our best. It is unhealthy to derive one’s self image from how we stack up relative to others. That sounds all well and good and is really symptomatic of “mine is bigger” western society. How does this behavior manifest itself in something as simple as a gym? Our very nature as human beings pushes us to measure score and evaluate our success in terms of other people. Over the years we have had several members that were so competitive with others that they would skip repetitions, cut range of motion short, or in the worst case I can think of they actually lied about their score. I am going to use a derogatory term in the hopes that it will catch on and hopefully prevent people from undermining their own training: Clock Whores.

Definition of a Clock Whore: Person who is so obsessed with beating the clock/others that they will prostitute themselves and sacrifice important and vital components of training such as range of motion, repetitions or other performance metrics for a “better” time.

These people actually miss the whole point of the training. The point of physical fitness training, from my perspective, is to improve oneself both physically and mentally, not necessarily in that order. The people who have taken the time clock or score beyond the extreme and compromised range of motion, number of repetitions, etcetera are doing so at the expense of the utility of the training. If someone judges their performance solely based on their status relative to others it reflects a distinct lack of self-esteem. The idea of the style training is to develop self-esteem to increase capacities in many, many different modalities. A person who compromises training in order to beat others harms their self-esteem. People know inherently when they are doing something wrong and there is a price to pay when they go against what they know is right.

Spotting Clock Whores: I imagine it is the same a proctoring an exam – The person who is constantly looking for the instructor is suspect. Another suspect behavior is always partnering with the same person when they score their workout. If some only does a full range of motion when the instructor is looking, then they are suspect. These behaviors are not hard and fast. On more than one occasion I have been called out by my instructors, rightly so, for ROM violation because I was exhausted. (The call outs are done with much joy and aplomb.)We all have issues when we get tired, it is part of the training. I have asked Tamer on more than several occasions what rep he was on because I had no idea where I was. The real difference is the consistent corner cutting. It takes time to become apparent, but when it is, it is like the giant elephant in the room no one acknowledges.

Why am I bringing this up?

A person’s performance is PERSONAL! We want all of our members to improve, have perfect form, go faster, get stronger and get the results they want. The strict adherence to performance standards is the key to your success. The competitive environment should bring out the best in our natures, not be a showcase for our flaws. Occasionally, bad behaviors become apparent and harm the entire community. Members know when someone else is cutting corners or bragging about a performance they really didn’t earn. If the chin doesn’t get over the bar, then it doesn’t count. Claiming a score on Fight Gone Bad or a Fran time that cannot be repeated when the camera is on is a clear identifier. It harms the integrity of the program as a whole.

We want people to keep records of results to help them track their progress, not to compare to others. We have opted against performance boards in the gym in favor of the forum and personal training logs on our web site. Our goal is the improvement over time based on your efforts in terms of mechanical efficiencies (better form), faster times (higher metabolic capacity) or an overall strength gain as well as the rest of the physiological markers and is the basis of training at HyperFit USA. The culture we have developed is to strive for perfect mechanics as well as fast performances. We stress perfect mechanics because bad or marginal repetitions contribute to chronic injuries over time. Part of perfect mechanics is developing full range of motion and correct biomechanical body alignment. Our clients often hear “and make the repetitions right” rather than going fast. Forcing a square peg into the round hole to get a faster time is like intentionally hitting your thumb with a hammer; you are tough and stupid, thanks Jeff Martone for that one! It does someone no good to work to get a fast Fran time at the expense of shoulders back or knee soreness (chronic injury).

We post videos and pictures on our web site so people may see what they are doing. The camera usually goes for really good stuff or really bad. In either case, let both be a lesson for personal improvement for each of our people. When someone is doing something right, be like them, when someone is doing something wrong, learn from them.

Striving for perfection is the journey along the only road you make worth traveling. There is no end, but the ride is great.

We are all quite fortunate. We are a healthy group with improving health markers, performance and goal achievement. We have good friends, family and support systems and clearly plenty of food to eat. Everyone isn’t so lucky. There are thousands of organizations that work to benefit charities that  provide resources to people less fortunate than us. Whether it be hunger, disease, violence or many other challenges there are many worthy charities that do a lot with a little and could do a lot more with a little more. If I have learned anything about success its that no matter how hard I work I couldn’t do it alone and I may never be able to repay those that have helped. So I try and pay it forward. It may be hard to find the direct link from giving to health but it sure makes you feel good and whats the point in being wealthy and healthy if you’re a selfish asshole. So I’m challenging you ( and rewarding you with bonus points) to pay it forward. Find a charity that means something to you and give them some of your valuable time and or money. I really don’t care how much of either and it doesn’t matter whether it’s time and money or time or money. Just find a group that cant pay you back and be cool. I don’t care and don’t want to know who or how much you gave  just take the next week and give to a charity. If you do, be it $1 or 1 million, you get 3 points. Its your time and/or money do with it as you wish its between you and them. Just take some time over the next week and be cool to a group that could use your help.

Be cool give time and/or money to a charity =3 pts

Please don’t ask questions about this, if you do you are missing the point. Seriously you can figure this out. Here are a few of the charities the FC has given to over the past year. Add to the list or add to the total.

Susan G. Komen  for the cure

Pelotonia

The Disposable Heroes Project

31 Heroes Project

Operation Homefront

Special Operations Warrior Foundation

Are you an athlete or an obsessive exerciser? Before we get into opinions on athletics and sports lets define some terms.

An athlete performs real life, athletic, purposeful movements (running, jumping, lifting, throwing, hitting etc.) to an objective/definable standard. They don’t perform to a subjective look but rate their performance by measurable standards (weights, reps, times, distances, scores, etc). Athletes train to improve performance, prevent injury and accomplish measurable goals.  They seek the advice of coaches and apply that advice along with a lot of hard work, discipline and determination to their training. The effect of all this is generally a pretty healthy person. Seeking a challenge and committing to a meaningful goal and hard work helps make us better individuals.

The obsessive exerciser is pursuing subjective, hard to measure goals (skinnier, bigger, etc.).  Their goals aren’t as much about health or performance but more so about the feeling of the short-term gratification. They train primarily out of fear of failure (how ever they define it). They rarely are satisfied, as they don’t know what it is they are pursuing. They often experience over use injuries and lose training focus and move on to the next thing to obsess over.

The athlete however will continue to train, day in and day out, working on weaknesses and strengths until they reach their goals, then they will set new ones. They know it’s ultimately all on them to get it done, that a test is just a test not an ultimate statement of value or accomplishment. They know what wolf they are feeding.

There is a little of both in all of us. The cool, calm professional gets it done while sometimes our compulsions leads us up to and over the edge.

Tonight at 8:00PM 12.3 will be announced. At 8:01 the wolf feeding frenzy will begin.  We will do a practice run on Thursday and judge everyone on Saturday at Friendship CF along with them and CF OKM. After that its back to training for 12.4,12.5 and anything else we decide to tackle, not obsessing about 12.3.

Name: Leslie Scott
Hometown: Columbus, OH
Occupation: Secondary Langauge Arts Teacher grades 7-12

How long have you done CrossFit: June 1 2011
Background/sports played: Softball, Tennis

Favorite lift/movement: Snatch
Least favorite lift/movement: Pull up
Favorite WOD: Any of them that include my friends!
Least favorite WOD: Any that include 3 rounds of running

I like…strength inside and out.
I eat…and enjoy meals with my teenagers.
I do…not give up…ever.
I am…not afraid to push myself and those around me.

Something people would be surprised to know about you:
I have taught English on the Island of Moorea, near Tahiti and will never be the same, the people were amazing and changed me forever.

Name: Matthew Stone
Hometown: Columbus, OH
Occupation: Family Nurse Practitioner

How long have you done CrossFit: 8 months
Background/sports played: I have played a little of everything growing up (water polo, rugby, soccer, baseball) but mostly lived off Ice Hockey (high school, College DIII) and lots of skiing.

Favorite lift/movement: pull up, hang clean, deadlift
Least favorite lift/movement: Overhead Squats
Favorite WOD: Helen, RJ, Matt’s going away party WOD
Least favorite WOD: Crossfit Open WOD 12.1: 7 minutes of Burpess = pure hell

I like…traveling, going to concerts, listening to good music, and eating a good steak.
I eat…Mostly like a dinosaur hunter with some pizza and beer thrown in the mix.
I do…pretty much anything at least twice. (even if I hated it the first time).
I am…a nerd at heart.

Something people would be surprised to know about you:
I can speak German.  The first time I ever skied was in Switzerland and ever since it has become an addiction.

Resturant Week

There are tons of great places to eat in Columbus and after this weekends freak show they are all “trained” in the art of exceptions to the typical menu items and substitutions. I even heard that the world famous Thurmanator was created with the past weekend in mind. How better to fill a hungry belly than with 24 oz of ground beef, bacon, ham and 3 cheeses (hold the bun for me that shit will kill you). Eating out is a great way to connect with friends, relax, have a good time and oh yeah eat (fuel your body). Many times eating out can be a test of your goal to eat healthy and be a responsible athlete. Over the years I have found a few great local resturants that make sticking to the plan easy and delicious.  What follow is a list of my favorite places. They are local, awesome and supportive of our goals and community.

1)   Tasi’ Cafe- This is my favorite place for breakfast but they make great stuff for lunch and dinner. They routinely have Paleo specials but will caveman it up just about anything

2)   Rigsby’s- Great for lunch or dinner. I like the Arctic Char for a paleo option  but don’t ever second guess getting some traditional  (non Paleo) Italian cuisine and following it up with the two person ( 1 me) ice cream dessert, well worth a cheat.

3)   Northstar Café (any location)- They like to throw a lot of rice and tofu in the mix but are open to Paleo adjustments. Go for the Sweet potato hash cooked in olive oil over buter

4)   Market 65- Get your Greens! Awesome local salad spot. Tons of fresh ingredient options and tons of green. The salads are huge and filling- Get some for lunch or early dinner

5)   Milestone 229- This place is shaping up to be one of my favorites. They are right on the river about 2 blocks from the gym. The bar and scenery are great and they get what we are after. Check out the Blackened mahi mahi with collard greens instead of rice. They cook the greens with Tomato butter (boom sauce) get it with out if your strict or take it as is.

From now until the end of the challenge you can collect 1 bonus point for each location. Once you go to a location you cannot go back to that location and score more points.  You cannot get a point each time you go to Tasi (Shellie and Ken would crush you) nor can you get a point for multiple Northstar locations.

Ex)

Friday

Pre WOD Paleo Breakfast at Tasi’ – 1 Pt

Post WOD Paleo Lunch at Milestone 229-1 pt

Sunday

Brunch at Tasi’- delicious but no more points

Non Paleo Dinner at Rigsbys- delicious but no points

Cheat Meal Winner

The Executive Cheat Meal Council will be reviewing the Facebook page for quality cheat meal contest entries. Get them posted we will  announce the winner in a few days.

Yes, 10 minutes of progressively heavier snatches is no day in the park but really shut your snatch! You are capable of 20 times more that you think you are.  Most of you couldn’t do 100 pull-ups, push ups or squats when we started,but you can now because we asked and expected it of you.  Maybe that expectation gave you some belief or maybe you were just embarrassed to quit, what ever the reason, in the end we put a challenge in front of you and you made a choice to rise to it and face it. Along the way, some haven’t risen to the challenge, they listened to all the negative self talk in their head, accepted their excuses and when it got too tough they quit. We have a term for those people and you know what I’m talking about. You are not one of those people.  You have all tackled some knarley shit. Many times I have sat back and said” shit, I didn’t think they could do that” but you did and this is no different.

It may not be the most balanced test of physical fitness but it sure as hell is a worthy mental toughness test and you rise to those. Before you start second guessing your choice to compete or set low expectations for yourself remember why your doing it. Your doing it to see what your best is, you’re doing it to get better. Who cares what anyone else thinks. You’re doing it because your part of something a little bigger than one work out.  Call it a community, a team, a movement what ever.You have the ability to inspire those around you to pursue some awesome. So when you stare at the bar and don’t think you can do it just remember this:

Leslie got 52 reps, that may not get her to the games but its 22 reps of a PR.  Out of respect for Leslie I’m not even going to swear ,F@#$ing awesome! Not sure about you but that makes me want to do something cool. You also have friends getting shot at so we can have the freedom to talk about snatch and other friends right now doing this so one day they can have the privelage of getting shot at so we can continue to work out in the street and rant about snatch.

So maybe your not as prepared as you want to be but your as prepared as your going to be. Take a deep breath, think positive, see your sucesss and go for it. We will be drilling and performing 12.2 in every WOD Thursday and Sunday from 2-5PM and by scheduled appointments. If you are smart you will go to Olympic lifting tonight and Sunday from 12-2 and get to work.

The past has already happened, it doesn’t exist

The future hasn’t happened it doesn’t exist

All you really have is this moment, embrace it!

Doubt can be ended by action alone.

▪ C2’s will be open for use Monday thru Friday 6am-7:30am. If you can’t get up, sorry.

▪ There are no reservations. First come, first served. We will limit rower usage to 25-30min AT MOST. Warm up and wait your turn if people are using them all.

▪ Other than grunting and sweating (and maybe vomiting), DO NOT be a distraction to classes or training sessions during this time (i.e. talking really loud and being a jackass)

▪ Use your session on the rower as your workout for the day. Multiple workout days are okay a couple times a week.  But, if you row in the morning, please rest and come back in evening for class. Try to avoid “stacking” a bunch of classes all together. For example, you come to gym and do Run WOD, then class WOD, and then Oly lift. And you wonder why your body has broken down or that you get no real quality training sessions?

▪ We will be posting a board on the wall by the C2’s with the week’s rowing workouts. There will probably be 4-5 options, plenty of variety for whatever your goals are for that training session. Please write your name and results on the board for others to see and try to beat. This will be very fun and competitive. If you come in and see Joe Blow hit a 500m in 1:22.1 , and that’s what you were planning on doing, try to beat his score! Set goals for each other.

▪ If you suck at rowing and your technique makes people vomit, seek the advice of people at FC who are more experienced. And it only takes a couple of minutes to watch some videos online of coaches and instructors demonstrating rowing technique. LEARN THEM. You don’t have to break a world record, but learn how to put yourself in a better/healthier position before you hurt yourself.

▪ Please refer to the paragraph above if the following terms are foreign to you : split time, stroke rate, damper setting, catch, drive, finish, or recovery. They are EXTREMELY IMPORTANT in having an understanding of what the hell you are doing on the rowing machine.

With the Run WOD class coming back, and these Rowing time slots, please take advantage. Use them to supplement a class WOD for that day, or like I said above, train in the AM and come back in the PM. Believe me, if you commit to one training session, it’s probably all you need for that day most of the time. Give your best on a 5x500m interval session for time on the rower and tell me if you need to do anything else more difficult for the day:)

So far you have made it six weeks and we have seen a lot of improvements –weight, body comp and performance. You have improved your diet, recovery and training habits. Now its time to see how you do after falling off the wagon.  Lets see who can consume the biggest, most deliciously non-paleo or zone cheat meal in the history of gluttony. Here are the rules. You have 90 minutes from first to last bite to. Consume as much food as possible You get one negative point free attempt, so make it worth it. Take a picture and post it to facebook after Sunday the Coaches and Executive Cheat Meal Council will choose the winner. The winner will get 5 bonus points. The losers will enjoy themselves for 90 minutes and feel like crap for 12-24 hrs

A “cheat meal” is defined as a once-a-week meal (breakfast, lunch or dinner) wherein you can eat and drink whatever you want without regard to the paleo or zone rules. A cheat meal begins when you take the first bite/drink and ends 90 minutes later.

Example one:  Mitch goes to Betty’s and has a couple of beers and an appetizer, then he wanders over to Rigby’s and has a giant bowl of pasta and a few more beers, then he heads over to Jeni’s and has a banana split, leaves there and goes to the Short North Tavern for a nightcap of several more beers.  Did Mitch have one cheat meal or four cheat meals?   Answer:  As long as it lasted no more than 90 minutes Mitch had one cheat meal because he was continually eating and drinking while he wandered through the Short North.   In other words, his eating and drinking was a single, continuous event without breaks lasting no more than 90 minutes, so it counts as one meal. If it lasted longer than 90 minutes it’s multiple cheats (negative points)

Example two:  Mitch has a couple of recovery beers after the 4:30 WOD.  A few hours later, Mitch heads home and takes his family out for pizza and then takes them to Dairy Queen for ice cream (soft serve rules and is the maker of men).  Did Mitch have one cheat meal or two cheat meals?  Answer:  Mitch had two cheat meals because the recovery beers were not connected to the pizza and ice cream and it likely lasted longer than 90 minutes.  In other words, he took a break between the beers and the pizza/ice cream and was not continuously eating/drinking.

You DO NOT have to eat out (That’s next week) you can cook it yourself, order take out or go to a restaurant. My advice – Go ugly early, this weeks sectional wod will be a bit harder and you want to be fueled optimally.

Sectionals Update

WOD 12.1 Was a success we had 38 athletes compete for Fit Club and 61 Total Athletes competing along with a lot of athletic supporters (this is how I taunt you into competing next time). We even had our kids class do the WOD with scores ranging from 102 to “This many”-That’s a lot of burpees.

WOD12.2 Is announced Wednesday night at 8PM. We will follow the same format as we did this week with the Saturday Event location being the Arnold Fitness Expo. Register by sending and email to Arnold@roguefitness.com. Again, you need to register ahead of time so do it now.

We will do the WOD Thursday at the Gym. This will be different than the Burpee Apocalypse, in that it is likely going to be a little bit more technical. So only Coaches will be judging your WOD.  If you do the WOD and don’t have an approved judge score it I WILL NOT VALIDATE IT. We will be available during WOD times on Thursday and depending on how things work out MAYBE Friday. Please not just drop in and ask a judge to score you outside of these times we are happy to help you get the best score and will work with you.  All other times are by appointment only.  If you are able, you should go to the Arnold, check it out and do the WOD it’s a good time.

Arnold Week- Every year we have celebrated the Austrian Oak with Anold inspired WODs and challenges. Look for some good stuff for Durability and for those not competing Friday will be a nice nugget of pain.

This area of pain divides a champion from someone who is not a champion. That’s what most people lack, having the guts to go on and just say they’ll go through the pain no matter what happens. I have no fear of fainting. I do squats until I fall over and pass out. So what? It’s not going to kill me. I wake up five minutes later and I’m OK. A lot of other athletes are afraid of this. So they don’t pass out. They don’t go on.”

- Arnold

Anyone who has ever tried a WOD has a bit of a love hate relationship with it. Two  of the best things are the  competition or sport side of it and the community/team aspect of the whole thing.  Both are front and center each year for the CrossFit Games Open Sectional.  Regardless of your goals (games, regional’s, completing the open Rxed or testing your limits) this is a great opportunity to compete with like minded ( hat’s more PC than crazy right) people in  fun atmosphere and by fun we mean a run down, abandoned warehouse with loud music, cool people and a few cold beverages .

Each week we will follow the same format with a different location for the Saturday  Event. Here’s how it will work this week. Each Wednesday at 8 PM the WOD will be announced. We will practice it on Thursday during class. If you are absolultley not able to make it to the event Saturday we will judge you during the WOD Thursday. If those times do not work for you , you will need to make an appointment with a coach. Immediatley following the WOD you will enter your score on the games site. I have to validate all the scores by Sunday at 8 PM and I don’t want to spend my whole night validating scores so be responsible and get it done.

Saturday February 25^th 1:00 PM at Fit Club

1:00- we will have a brief meeting and heats will be assigned

1:15 ish- Heat s will begin

After the event we will have a few beverages (not Halloween) in the garage. Some of us will be going to Milestone 229 to get some food and dranks.

So here it is WOD 1 (12.1 technically)

Workout 12.1

Complete as many reps as possible in 7 minutes of:

Burpees

This workout begins from the standing position. The Athlete will move from flat on the ground to touching an object with both hands that is 6 inches above their max reach. Score is total reps completed.

Yup, thats it. A little disappointing if you ask me but thats it, just burpees, should be simple enough fall down and jump up for 7 minutes

 WOD Video link