#coachcontent

By: Corinne Pettigrew, PhD, CF-L1

Hesitant to scale a workout? You shouldn’t be.

Don’t want it to seem like you’re taking the ‘easy way’ out? You’re probably not.

Scaling is an important component of CrossFit. In fact, athletes are oftentimes encouraged to scale. Here are some reasons why: 

Adapt a movement to an athlete’s limitations (endurance, strength, skill level, flexibility, mobility, body awareness, etc.) while still preserving the workout’s intended stimulus (included targeted movements, if possible); Develop/perfect basic movement patterns for supporting more complex (or more heavily loaded) movements (for example, mastering the technique and points of performance of an air squat before attempting a heavy front squat); Continue to safely develop an athlete’s work capacity and skill level, ultimately contributing to an athlete’s long-term progression.

Schedule a time to meet and discuss how we can help you, if recovering from an injury, new to fitness or just had a baby. Scaling isn’t just for beginners. It’s for anyone who needs progressions for developing movement patterns, for overcoming soreness or injury, or to just get moving after a bad night of sleep or tough day at work.

Two quick examples: One of my workout partners had shoulder surgery a few months back. He was a force to be reckoned with before the surgery, and soon will be again - but in the meantime, he’s been smart about his return to CrossFit workouts. Before being cleared to use his shoulder, he worked on building up his aerobic capacity (runs, bikes, air squats, lunges, sled pulls). As he’s gradually been cleared to integrate upper body movements, he’s done so deliberately and safely: slowly adding individual movements, but scaling the weights to build strength and mobility (e.g., PVC-only as he builds of the shoulder mobility; barbell only until he gains confidence under weight; banded pull-ups for weeks on end, despite wanting to do kipping pull-ups). 

I was fortunate to be able to workout through pregnancy. When I returned to the gym afterwards, I knew I needed to start slow. I hadn’t lost too much strength, but had lost a fair amount of aerobic capacity. Instead of skipping group classes, I scaled. I started light, reduced the load, and worked at a lower intensity for weeks, as my body adapted and recovered.

Bottom line keep moving and moving properly, let us put that plan together.

In both examples, scaling allowed the athletes to slowly, and safely, return to their prior capacity. But as mentioned above, scaling has the same effect for athletes that are starting out, or working on new skills. It allows you to build the foundation on which more strength, good movement patterns, and fitness can develop. An athlete will never be judged for scaling appropriately. However, coaches will likely intervene when athletes opt not to scale when they should – the coaches have your safety in mind.

                            By: Corinne Pettigrew, PhD, CF-L1

A friend convinced me to try CrossFit in 2011 – I was a graduate student at the time, and for months and months I said I was interested but couldn’t swing it financially. In reality? I was intimidated – it was something brand new, out of my comfort zone, and I didn’t want to be the person who had no idea what they were doing.

I hear it often when I tell someone that I CrossFit: Them: Oh that’s cool, what’s it like? Me: Well, it’s a ton of fun – a great community atmosphere, group workouts that range anywhere from 5-45 minutes, a mix of cardio and strength, and anything we do can be adapted to anyone’s skill level! Try a Free Class!

Them: Oh that sounds fun! I’ve been wanting to try CrossFit but I can’t because … {inset excuse}.

These excuses include: 1) I’m not in good shape/I’m not athletic/I’m not strong enough. I would first have to get in shape/get stronger. 

Untrue. CrossFit is highly scalable, meaning each and every workout can be adapted to a person’s current abilities. In fact, our coaches will never push you to do a movement or lift a weight that you’re uncomfortable with – they’ll instead make sure you have an appropriate alternative (scale) that matches your current skill level. And these scaled movements will target the same stimulus as the prescribed movements, so each workout has the same effect for everyone. This is most clearly elucidated by the following description of “What is CrossFit?”, from crossfit.com: “While CrossFit challenges the world's fittest, the program is designed for universal scalability, making it the perfect application for any committed individual, regardless of experience. We scale load and intensity; we don’t change the program. The needs of Olympic athletes and our grandparents differ by degree, not kind.”

Also, getting in shape is more than just exercise: the foundation of this is nutrition. At PUSH511, we have an extensive nutrition program with options ranging from one-time consultations to continued nutrition coaching to help you make healthy lifestyle changes. 

2) I’m too old. Untrue. Individuals of any age can learn new skills, why would this be any different? And most importantly, see #1 above, regarding scaling workouts to an individual’s skill or ability level. The same applies to older adults. Want an example? One of our athletes started CrossFit when he was ~53 years old; four years later, he’s one of our most impressive athletes and has qualified for CrossFit Regionals twice. Another of our older athletes was convinced to start CrossFit with by his son; since starting, he’s seen substantial improvements in some of the blood-based labs. Besides, physical activity is also beneficial for cognitive and brain health (see these prior posts), so what do you have to lose?   

3) I don’t have time. We get this, we really do – everyone is very busy with work, life, and everything in between. But you can’t (or really shouldn’t) ignore the importance of a healthy lifestyle and physical activity, whether it’s CrossFit or your own exercise routine. Health plays such an important role in your quality of life both now, and as you get older. Consider making the time. Invest in yourself and your health – do it for you, for your family, for the next generation. 

4) I have a previous injury/I’m injury prone. You’re not the only one – many people are dealing with past injuries or ailments, or trying to overcome current injuries. See #1, above. 

5) I’m scared/intimidated. I get this, I was too. At PUSH511, individuals who are new to CrossFit first go through our Foundations program. Over the course of 9 one-hour group classes (over 3 weeks) or private sessions, we introduce you to the most commonly programmed movements, teach you all about good form for achieving these movements, and talk about how these movements apply to everyday life. And this is hands-on training: you’re not sitting in chairs, lecture-style; you’re actively practicing these movements under the guidance of your coach, and establishing good movement habits early on. And P.S., this includes a session on nutrition. 

6) It’s expensive. This one’s true, but it’s all about perspective. Consider it an investment in your health, and in your future. Put that way, it’s priceless. You can do your own head-to-head cost comparison against other options that intrigue you – but come in for a free class, give it a try. See what the fuss is all about, and decide for yourself.

By: Bradley Anderson CF-L1, Adaptive Training, Kettlebell Training

How do we maximize our longevity?

CrossFit.

How do we ensure that we can continue to do what we love (presumably CrossFit) for as long as possible?

When aches & pains inevitably arrive, take action to remedy them IMMEDIATELY. This seems an obvious conclusion, but it is sometimes a difficult one in the context of an already full schedule (or a hard head).

My background:

I am a CFL1 certificate holder and have been coaching and actively participating in CrossFit since 2012. I have been practicing CrossFit since 2008 and have had my fair share of aches & pains. Ignoring them and allowing them to mature into adult aches & pains has sidelined me in the past. I would like to pass on this wisdom earned over the past 10 years from those experiences: it takes less time to address an ache or pain as it arrives than it does to recover from an injury it may cause.

We are fortunate that the CrossFit community has wealth of information and services available to us on this very topic: Aches & Pains and how to address them. See below for a curated list of my favorites.

I believe that:

"ALL HUMAN BEINGS SHOULD BE ABLE TO PERFORM BASIC MAINTENANCE ON THEMSELVES." DR. KELLY STARRETT

If you are the kind of person that loves to explore, fiddle, and reverse engineer then these resources are a great place to get started:

https://www.mobilitywod.com/ http://www.triggerpoints.net/

I encourage you to do and learn as much as you can yourself. Knowledge is power and often times a discovery made while diagnosing an ache or pain will set you up for gains. For example, while diagnosing knee pain I discovered I had a imbalanced motor pattern between my adductors and abductors while squatting. A dramatic improvement in performance followed that discovery:

If you prefer outside help:

http://unboundmt.com/ http://www.howard-county-chiropractic.com/about-us.html https://lmchugh74.wixsite.com/lizamchughpt https://truesportsphysicaltherapy.com/ https://www.ccandpt.com/about

Part 2 - The Members Passion

By: Corinne Pettigrew, PhD, CF-L1 

We recently surveyed the PUSH511 community to learn their WHY. To get at this, we asked three open-ended questions: 

(1) What motivates you to do CrossFit? 

(2) Why do you choose to CrossFit at PUSH511?

(3) In your opinion, what makes the PUSH511 community special?

35% (N = 55) of the PUSH511 community responded (42% Women, Overall 62% are 30-39 years of age). Read on, learn what drives and motivates the PUSH511 community.  Peek inside a day at PUSH511.

(1) What is your WHY - What motivates you to do CrossFit? 58% – Impact physical health: to get in shape/stay in shape, to feel healthy, to impact overall health/live a healthy lifestyle, to lose/maintain weight, because they’re impressed by what the body can do. 

CrossFit is a physical activity program, so perhaps this isn’t surprising. But the emphasis on a healthy lifestyle is notable. Try A Free Class!

51% – Self-improvement (i.e., gainz): to make themselves better, to learn new things, challenge/push themselves (set and meet goals) – and accordingly, see gainz/results. Importantly, this also includes self-confidence. 

Athletes can commit as much effort (or not) as they’d like to CrossFit workouts, and to developing/perfecting the skills involved in various movements. It seems a good chunk of the community appreciates this challenge 

24% – Community: the friends/social aspect of group CrossFit classes, the accountability and motivation that comes from working out with others (who ultimately become your friends), the push these friends provide, the team atmosphere.   Meet the Members of PUSH511.

If you can find the community that you love, that makes ‘fitness’ enjoyable, working out won’t be a chore. The community theme was extraordinarily common throughout these survey results. 

18% – Mental health: in other words, stress relief and stress management. (Think: work-life balance.) Having a physical, social, and mental outlet (as one tends to find through CrossFit) can have an incredible impact on multiple aspects of overall health. 

Other responses: vanity/the way it makes them look (13%); constantly varied workouts/never bored (11%); increased energy (9%); fun!; avoid injury; decrease pain.

(2) Why do you choose to CrossFit at PUSH511? 75% – Community: the people they workout with become friends; the welcoming, friendly, and supportive community. 44% – Convenience: class times and location. Notably, many who mentioned that they initially joined PUSH511’s due to location further indicated that they’ve stayed because they’re happy with the community, workouts, coaches, etc. 27% – Atmosphere: the positive, supportive atmosphere/environment. 25% – Quality of coaching: knowledgeable and caring coaches with a strong emphasis on techniques and skills. Other responses: competitiveness (5%); referred by others (5%); programming (4%); puppies (4% - yes, PUSH511 is dog friendly!).  Meet the Dogs of PUSH511.

(3) In your opinion, what makes the PUSH511 community special? 71% – Community & friendships 51% – Positive, supportive, and inclusive atmosphere 25% – Quality of coaching 13% – The thoughtful, caring, kind, gym owner, Ardyth Hall! To include some quotes, Ardy “cultivates a supportive community” by being a “caring gym (and business) owner”; “…she created a space for anyone and everyone to thrive.” Other responses: healthy competitiveness and inspiration from others (16%); programming (13%); the extras, including the Beast Cave, clinics, happy hours, puppies and babies, competitions, and coffee.

Intrigued? Come meet the beloved PUSH511 community (and dogs, and kiddos; and have a cup of coffee while you’re here). Drop-in for a free class (no experience required!) or set-up an appointment to discuss your goals.

Part 1 - A Passion for Coaching

BY: Corinne Pettigrew, PhD, CFL-1

Ardyth (Owner of PUSH511) recently challenged the PUSH511 coaches to think about their WHY: what drives them to stand in front of the white board, to provide athletes with feedback, to devote their time to coaching? This post summarizes the WHYs of nine Coaches. Responses were easily grouped into four broad categories: the first three related to athlete development, the fourth more ‘selfish’.

Learn more about the team of PUSH511

IMPROVE FITNESS: The first category is directly related to improving the athlete’s performance in the gym. Your coaches expressed a unanimous desire to share their knowledge, to inspire athletes, to build the foundation that allows athletes of all levels to improve performance. By working on skills, by drilling good form, by pushing athletes to do more, your coaches facilitate the speed with which athletes learn and (safely) progress. Over time, this enables athletes to achieve their short- and long-term goals, whether it’s that first pull-up, Rx’ing Cindy, squatting to depth, or ten unbroken muscle-ups.

ENRICH LIFESTYLE: Performance inside the gym is one thing, but your coaches recognize that lessons learned in the gym can also be applied to the athlete’s everyday life. By helping to challenge athletes, by helping them accomplish their goals, your coaches hope to enable athletes to gain a better understanding of themselves, what they are capable of, and to enhance self-confidence. Your coaches want to see athletes transfer lessons learned in the gym to their everyday lives: for stress reduction, and for healthy, enriched lifestyles.

Schedule a time to talk about your Why.

IMPACT LONGEVITY: The third category is not immediately measurable, but takes the form of prevention. Your coaches want to help instill skills and habits that allow athletes to lead active, productive lives, applying functional fitness for continued, multifaceted health now AND in old age. There’s an emphasis on ‘multifaceted’ because your coaches identified a number of long-term health outcomes – not only physical health and current fitness level, but also cardiovascular health, mobility, brain health, nutrition, and injury prevention over time.

‘SELFISH’ REASONS: Lastly, the ‘selfish’ reasons. It goes without saying that your coaches coach because they enjoy doing so. Watching an athlete achieve a goal or a PR because of a cue provided is incredibly rewarding. But your coaches also want to be role models – both by learning new skills to teach others, and pushing themselves in order to inspire others. In short, your coaches want to have a positive impact on the athletes of PUSH511 – but probably not nearly as much of an impact as the athletes have on each other.

Special thanks to the following coaches for contributing their WHYs: Ardyth, Becky, Bradley, Corinne, Jarrett, Joe, Josh, Krista, & Sean.

By: Brian Ellis, CFL-1

OK, so I have a problem and it is shoes.   I might be a little fascinated (or maybe obsessed) with shoes. I am not a sneaker nerd. I’m not the guy to talk to about the hottest Jordans or where to get the limited Yeezys.  But what I have a knack for is gym and running shoes.  So, with all this extra “knowledge” running through my head, let’s talk about the best shoes for the gym. 

Drop in to PUSH511 for a Free Class & check out Brian’s shoe “problem”

Running shoes are great…. for running. However, they are not the best shoes for CrossFit activities. I am not sponsored by any shoe company and I will not say you have to get the newest Nanos or METCONs.  But I would like to talk about what you should look for in shoes for the gym.  First let’s talk about why running shoes are not the best for weight training.  There are many workouts in which we are throwing around weights weighing a significant percentage of our body weight.  Running shoes are designed to reduce the impact of your body’s force on the ground traveling in a forward direction.  This movement is generally not how our bodies and weights are moving during a workout.  The cushion and sole height of running shoes do not provide the proper platform to lift from.  If you have ever felt unstable under a heavy load, think about the shoe you are wearing. As a result, you could be lifting better with a different type of shoe.

So, what do we want in a shoe for CrossFit? First, a semi hard sole with minimal drop is best (drop is the difference in height between the heel and the toe).  Second, a shoe which will allow for greater lateral stability.  Finally, a shoe with durability.  The best and usually most inexpensive shoe (which I trained in for years) is the Adidas Samba.  The old classic indoor soccer shoe.  Actually, a lot of indoor soccer shoes fit these parameters really well.  These types of shoes are good for lifting, running (short distances), rope climbs, box jumps, etc.  The Reebok and Nike CrossFit specific shoes also fit these parameters.  As the weight in your lifts go up, a pair of weight lifting shoes are the best but for most general-purpose lifting, a hard-solid sole shoe works great.  

Overall, I would generally say, three pairs of shoes are the best combination.  Running shoes, for well, running.  Weight lifting shoes for those Olympic lifting days and the days with heavy lifting mixed with burpees and such. The third a pair of general workout shoes such as a CrossFit specific or indoor soccer type shoe.  If you only own one pair of shoes, I recommend the latter pair.  These will perform the best across the board for all workouts.     

By: Brian Ellis, CFL-1

We have all been there.  Staring at the barbell with a new PR on the line. The adrenaline is up and there is a good chance a small crowd is there to help you get through it.  The way you breathe through could determine if your high fiving everyone or bailing the bar.

Come on in for some heavy breathing in a Free Class

For this post, we will be talking about how to breathe for the one to three rep max effort sets.  When you are not moving a crazy amount of weight just breathe normally.  There are techniques but those will be covered in another post, so back to our topic. 

When you watch advanced weightlifters with their bright red faces, they are using a technique called the Valsalva maneuver.  This maneuver is essentially “breathing out” without exhaling.  Instead, take a deep breath and hold your breath as if you were exhaling, while bearing down through the movement.  This holding of the breath stabilizes the core through the movement, creating a stable platform to lift through.  The typical word for this is bracing.  Bracing is key to many of the movements done throughout the gym, but let us talk about the best way to brace for the heavy weights. 

In order to best brace, we need to discuss belly breathing.  Instead of filling the chest, we want to breathe like a baby does, yes you are encouraged to regress here. To best practice this, lay on the floor and place your hand on your stomach.  As you inhale, push your stomach out, your hand should rise and then hold it, tightening the stomach muscles.  This braced position is how you should approach any heavy lift.  To practice, once you can hold the belly breath on the floor, stand, achieve the “belly out” braced position and drop into a squat.  Then stand back up.  For those who use a weightlifting belt, you will be pushing out against the belt.  

As for exhaling, there are a couple of different approaches, so choose which one works best for you.  One technique is to hold your breath until the lift is complete.  This will ensure a tight core throughout the whole movement.  The other technique is to exhale after the sticking point in the lift.  In my case, I use both.  When performing a max lift for deadlifts, I generally breathe after completing the lift.  As for the back, front squats and bench press, I breathe about half way up.  My sticking point in these lifts is just after getting the bar “out of the hole” or the bottom position.  Once I have started up I know I am going to make the lift and the exhale is a mental cue that helps me achieve the lift (usually accompanied by a guttural sound).

So, before your next max effort, PR lift, before you engage the barbell at all, belly brace.  Next step into the rack or to the barbell.  Lift off, all while holding your breath.  Execute the lift, and exhale either back in the rack or just past your sticking point.  If you are doing more then one rep, at the top of your lift re-belly brace and go again. Treat every rep as an individual cycle: set up, breathe, hold, exhale, and repeat.  When done, turn and high five your crowd.