Carver Crushes Strongman Workout

One of the coolest vids ever...

Intro = Friday 4pm

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MACHINE!

First of all...happy birthday Pops!!

Quick post..this week's intro class will be this FRIDAY AT 4PM. I know it's an odd time, but it's the only time we could squeeze it into the schedule this week.

We can't do it Friday because some of us will be traveling to Cincinatti to attend the Wounded Warrior fundraiser workout. We willl be meeting at 0830 at the gym on Saturday morning to carpool out there. There still will be a 0900 Pain Clinic at the gym, Trappy will be leading it. So no worries there...

You guys keep kicking ass. Thursday's and Friday's workouts will be memorable to say the least!

Hero Week

Some of the morning maniacs mid-Murph on Monday

Friday is Veterans Day, to me one of the most important days of the year as we take a moment to honor and celebrate those who have served. Crossfit does the same thing throughout the year by naming workouts after heroes who have lost their life in battle.

The workout MURPH is a classic example..

1 mile run
100 pullups
200 pushups
300 squats
1 mile run
*all done wearing body armor or weight vest if you got it.

Everyday we will do a HERO workout. None of them are easy. I encourage each and every one of you to make it to the gym as many times as you can this week. Not only give it your all when doing the workout, but take a minute to read and research about that person the workout is named after. Click HERE to see a list of the Crossfit Hero workouts.

Finally, on Saturday..myself and whoever else wants to go will be road tripping to Florence, KY (close to Cincy) to participate in a fundraiser for the Wounded Warrior Project. The icing on the cake is that none other than my good buddy Derick Carver will be there. For more about Derick, click HERE.
See the photo below for details:

Here's the tentative plans. Whoever wants to go, we'll meet at the gym at 0830. Cram in as many cars as possible and go have a great time. Let me know if you're interested in going...

Kick ass this week guys...

Week In Review..

Wifey with a 285 pull

Coach Trappy right behind her 275!

Another great week of training in the books. The first week of November we worked some different skills and movements and threw in some great finishers. Monday, we hit up the front squat then followed that up with a nasty Mudder workout on Tuesday.

Wednesday we worked the full Olympic snatch, as beginners learned this technical movement, while those with more comfort level got to load the bar up. Then it was time to hit up the finisher. We broke into teams and set the clock for 4 minutes and did relays of:
Traveling Burpees
Prowler/Butcher Sprints
Overhead Lunges (see below)


Thursday, we went back to basics and did an extended warm up to review the kettlebell basics. After the kettlebell warm up it was time to launch into the conditioning workout of:

Friday was time to load the bar up and pull! It turned out to be PR Friday as the chicks especially we're getting after it! The race to 300 is heating up and we had SEVERAL chicks pull over 225 with ease.

We ended Friday's workout with a Man Maker throwdown. Partner up, set the clock for 20 minutes and see which team could ladder up to the most rounds in 20 minutes. The Freaks got to mid-way through the 10th round when the buzzer rang!

Saturday was all about the time honored tradition of the Pain Clinic. Nothing like a good old Pain Clinic to start your Saturday morning..

Brothers from another mother...it's pretty bad when the 50 yr old isn't the mature one

Then we ended the week by welcoming 5 new folks to the group via the intro class! You guys are in for the ride of your life. 

We're now 2 weeks away from the Mudder! We'll hit it up right with tomorrow's classic slice of Mudder pie! Mo and Trappy will be wrecking shop this week. Hope you guys are ready!

Which Dog Do You Feed?

the dog you've been feeding will always win

Inside your mind an endless struggle is being fought. Two dogs are inside your brain struggling to be fed....you, their master, determines which dog gets fed. These two dogs are the FEAR DOG and the COURAGE DOG. Mark Divine, the founder and CEO of Sealfit beautifully explains the story of the FEAR vs. COURAGE dog:

At SEALFIT Kokoro camp we the story of the Native American elder who has two dogs that he takes to a dog fight every other month. He would often take his Grandson on the outing. The Grandson couldn’t but help notice over time that his Grandfather would always bet on one of his own dogs, and that when he did, that particular dog far outperformed his other dog and often won the fight.
“Grandfather, how do you know which dog to bet on?”

“Well, Grandson, it is quite simple. I bet on the dog that I have been feeding. That dog is the strongest and wins!”


He then went on to relate that humans also have a dog fight going on inside of their minds and hearts…and similarly the dog that gets fed the most wins. The two dogs in the human are the FEAR dog and the COURAGE dog. The fear dog is hungry, active and very eager to steal every morsel of thought food intended for the courage dog. The courage dog, on the other hand, is docile, loving and generous. He will take a back seat to the fear dog if you let him.


We can’t kill the fear dog because he is part of us. Hating the fear dog is the same as feeding him. Hate is energy – food for the fear dog. Rather, we should strive to control the fear dog…basically tame him by re-directing fear energy into assertiveness and discipline.


Meanwhile, we need to strive to feed the courage dog. Feeding the courage dog makes us more kind, patient, tolerant, powerful and present. We will avoid conflict and be better leaders. We won’t hesitate to lean into the hard tasks; fear will cease being an influence in our lives.
•How do we feed the courage dog?


•By taking care of teammates


•By encouraging rather than judging


•By showing compassion for yourself, and forgiving yourself for your personal disasters


•By looking for and finding good in the world


Condition your mind to feed the courage dog. Pay attention to your mind and witness it trying to feed the fear dog. Interdict, re-direct and maintain the positive courage state!


So, what dog are you feeding now? Train hard and stay focused! –Mark Divine


Take a honest moment to think about which dog gets the most food on a daily basis. Our world can be a constant bombardment of negative shit, if we allow it. From Facebook, the internet, news, magazines, reality TV, to old school gossip...we live in a 24 hour sensory overload of bad mojo being broadcasted into your mind, telling you you're not good enough. How much of this "connectivity" is dedicated to being positive and powerful?

Not only are we being bombarded from external sources of negativity, but more importantly how many times a day do you send negative messages to yourself (self talk) throughout the day? For example..

"God, I look fat"

"I suck at running/pullups/snatches/deadlifts/"

"There's no way I can do that"

"I'm too old to do that"

"This workout is going to suck, I'm going to be here all day"

"The road is too long, the weight is too heavy, I need to stop"

Any of these sound familiar? They should, I've heard them and am guilty of saying a few myself. It's the fear dog inside growling, and he wants to be fed.

How often do you let FEAR control your actions?


How often do you let FEAR determine your self worth?

How often do you FEAR manage your life?

How much are you feeding your FEAR dog?

The fear dog can be mighty...the key is to notice when the fear dog starts barking, then take action to control him by actively feeding the COURAGE dog with positivity.

Mark Divine explains it like this;

"Ensure that the mind is focused on the present and propelling us forward with Positive Self Talk. Positive Self Talk is akin to a battery that positively charges your energy, emotions and the very air around you. At the basic level, it keeps you feeling good, strong and able to set a "positive example" for your teammates (who draw strength from you and vice versa). There are some nuances:


First, you must learn to pay attention to your energy, whether it is positive or negative. At SEALFIT we use a simple question to draw focus to this: "what dog you are feeding?" This question refers to the two dogs we have in our outer mind vying for feeding: The dog of FEAR and the dog of COURAGE.


Our minds are energized with either courage (positive) or fear (negative) which manifest their influence in our lives in different ways. Our basic emotional "feeling" states can be generalized into these two broad categories.
Fear is the dominant energy in most because the outer monkey mind is generally negative in nature. It is constantly filled with negative programming from numerous sources - friends, family, news, TV, and our own self talk. By paying attention to what dog you are feeding, you will start to notice the patterns.


Next, as soon as you notice negative patterns, you must use a pattern interrupt to immediately stop and re-direct them. At SEALFIT we use Power-statements as pattern interrupts for this purpose. Power statements we use include some classics such as: "Easy Day," "Get some," and "Aint Nothin but a thing."..

Very simply...fear can criple you if you let it. It all starts in your mind. Your mind determines your actions, and your actions determine your outcome. However, you are the one who determines the source of energy for your thoughts and therefore your outcomes. It's either FEAR or COURAGE.


Fear tells you it's impossible to master a new skill
Courage gives you the desire to never quit

Fear tells you it's okay to go slow and stop
Courage propels you faster

Fear wants you soft and weak
Courage commands strength and power

It is a skill that takes practice. Notice when the FEAR dog starts to bark for food, then ignore him by feeding the COURAGE dog with positive self talk. Personally, when I'm chin deep in the suck pit (say for example the 5th round of the 7th circle Mudder workout) I use two simple words "keep fighting". I try to repeat those words over and over and over and over in my mind. Use whatever you want, just make sure it's strong, powerful, and positive language.

I challenge each of you, every time you train to only feed the COURAGE dog. Encourage one another, feed off one another's strength. In what seems to be a very dark and negative world, be the light that others need.

7 Rounds of Suck

extremely Wizard friendly...

Tuesday's Mudder workout was not a pleasurable experience. 7 rounds, 7 exercises, 7 reps..with 400 meter runs sprinkled in after every odd numbered round for "shits and gigs". This one took it out of everybody..Wes and I almost chased the vomit comet; and the C.U.W. decided "milk was a bad choice", after downing a cold glass of Vitamin D good stuff prior to class.

Tonight, we went continued to work the development of the Olympic Snatch. For those who are comfortable with the movement, we wanted them to add a little weight to the bar and start working on speed and aggressive turnover. For the beginners we separated off and just worked the mechanics with a PVC pipe.

For the finisher we formed into teams and did relays of:
Butchers
Overhead Lunges
Traveling Burpees

paying the burpee penalty for cups left out

Don't forget to pre-order and pay for the PSKC shirts and hoodies no later than this Friday. For my out of town folks, I'll ship them out to you, but you need to make your order by clicking HERE.

Finally, some homework. You guys hear us preach a lot about "getting your business tight" before and during a lift. Whether its the squat, deadlift, clean, press, turkish get up...it's no bueno to have a soggy soupy midline. The source of your strength comes from your gut...here's a better explanation. See you guys tomorrow at the 5 or 6pm!

PSCK Back at the Ranch!

In late October PSKC went to go have a little fun at Crossfit competition called Back at the Ranch. It was put on by the great crew from Practice Crossfit in Troy. For many it was their first chance to get to compete. From the photos and videos you'll see it was an amazing time and more importantly it was for a good cause.

a chilly start

The first team workout was a 1/2 mile team/buddy carry through a couple hills and creeks. After the run the team had to complete a total of 40 handstand pushups.

The individual workout was the same trail run but with 2 X 22lb bags of ice, followed up by 18 hand release hand stand pushups.

The next workout was a triplet involving thrusters, swings, and chest to bar pullups. For many of us it was the first time touching that chest to bar on the pullups, that extra distance adds up after a while.

Team workout number 3 was everyone's favorite. 2 teammates working at a time, for 6 minutes of max ground to shoulder with the atlas stone! After workout 3, you got 5 minutes of rest then each team member had to find their max front squat...starting in the bottom.

Here's one of the teams in the last minute of the stone workout:

Individual workout # 3 was 7 minutes to hit a max snatch, 5 minutes rest then a great workout combining wood chopping, stone lifting, and bag drags.

And here's a look at the team finals..

It truly was a unique experience in an amazing, supportive, and encouraging atmosphere put on by Josh Bunch and his crew at Practice Crossfit. I'm very happy the PSKC crew got a chance to go out and compete.

Often times, I take events like this competition for granted. This is what our warehouse gym is all about. Camaderie through challenge...encouragement...always striving to be better. I've been involved in the Crossfit community since 2007. The last time I worked out at a conventional gym facility was in 2009. I'm very spoiled.

Over the weekend, when I went to visit my folks I worked out at the local YMCA before the OSU game. It was there I realized not everyone really enjoys going to the gym. I watched countless people come in, sign in, plug in their headphones and away they swam in the sea of machines. No one talked to each other, no one high fived, no one smiled. No one pushed each other..the block had been checked for the day.

That's gotta suck. But on the other hand, the gym was packed for a Saturday morning. It was then that I realized that the people of PSKC are in the minority, and there's so many more people out there who can change the way they train. Take a look at all the photos and videos in this post. Where else do you see that? Do you have that much fun, excitement and friendship built at your gym?

This Saturday we're offering an hour and a half intro class at 10am. We haven't offered one in a couple weeks, and I've received a couple emails from people wanting to come join the madness. Now is the time, don't put it off any longer. Strength, health, results, and a group of kick ass people are waiting for you.

Hope to see you Saturday at 10am...