I guess it would be prudent to address the big elephant in the room. I’m forever grateful to crossfit for providing a starting point for the application of a very simple and effective approach to maximizing general physical preparedness. For those of you who got into it before it reached supercritical mass you’ll recall its purity, novelty, and esotericism were unmatched by nothing else on the fitness frontier. Over the years we’ve seen the product filter through the ranks and trickle down from the top to the bottom as its feet grow bigger than its shoes. I’m certainly not faulting the management as this is a natural part of evolution, i.e. to migrate from a grassroots nature to the corporate establishment. It is also part of evolution for a hungrier lion to depose the pack leader. Such is life as nature endeavors to build a better product. In this case, better wods, a more sound and realistic approach to training and coaching. More specifically, it’s time to stop following and start leading. This has been the case for some time but officially jettisoning the crossfit mantra lightens the load significantly. One thing I don’t want to do is follow the trend of other (de)affiliates who have lambasted crossfit for their burgeoning shortcomings as they make their departure over the burning bridge. I could write an encyclopedia by riding the emotional wave but it’s an exercise in futility. I can’t move forward by going backward, especially as a bullet train. The bottom line is this: I look mom in the eye, kiss her on the cheek, say thanks, pull out the machete, and cut the umbilical cord only to see her float away into obscurity while I’m ready to sow my seeds of destruction. With black clouds of doubt in tow I charge the hill in front of me, fueled by confidence and motivated by excellence, I charge. The clouds drift away and I’m left to deal with the consequences head on. I’m prepared. An army is a great place wherewith we get lost in the ranks, swallowed by the herd, and stifled by the machinations of movement. Take the overpass of individuality and get on the highway of freedom if you want to arrive at self-actualization. It’s a lonely and desperate highway fraught with obstacles, potholes, and naysayers but well worth the journey. Buckle down and knock ‘em over.
I really respect and admire your knowledge,self- confidence and courage. At the end of the day, one can only ask of himself if he lived to his fullest.
Thanks gents. It's good to know that life still exists somewhere in the cosmos. Dave, I would be interested to know what you did the previous day. Remember that a wod is just an arbitrary place in time when done by itself. This wod was based on compounded the previous day's insidious destruction. The 97 #er took more of a toll than anticipated; hence, 185#. Otherwise 225 would've been a more challenging weight, both for its weight and being sabotaged by the rower. I rowed on 10 in order to focus on generating consistent power with fewer strokes. Times were 148, 150, 148. One would think that doing muscle ups after squats would be a no brainer but unless you are a feather weight you don't realize the inclusion of the lower body and how it toys with the synchronicity of the movement. My final time was 11:46 BUT what I learned is that I should've attempted the last set unbroken like the previous two. In an attempt at strategy I planned on and broke at 3 and then missed number 4. I had to wait 30 seconds and then hit 4 and 5. This was a critical error and in a competition could've cost me. A better strategy would've been to wait 10 extra seconds before grabbing the rings in order to front load my energy reserves and then suck it up and hit five in a row. That still would've been faster than the 30 second penalty. These little nuances are imperative for those aspiring to compete. It's been a while since throwing the big bell around and after a discussion regarding its instrumental value I decided to give its day in court. One caveat is the difference between having it slick or taped with grip tape. The grip tape allows for more total reps but slick makes the grip stronger and depletes the reps faster. Which is better? I don't know. What I do know is that it compounded the lingering soreness in the posterior chain with sniper like precision. Instead of programming something from the opposite direction I decided to stay the course but adjust fire accordingly. Only when the ship is completely sunk can we begin to raise it. Sometimes we have to starve ourselves to stimulate our appetites. If we can't get out then we go further in.
I guess it would be prudent to address the big elephant in the room. I’m forever grateful to crossfit for providing a starting point for the application of a very simple and effective approach to maximizing general physical preparedness. For those of you who got into it before it reached supercritical mass you’ll recall its purity, novelty, and esotericism were unmatched by nothing else on the fitness frontier. Over the years we’ve seen the product filter through the ranks and trickle down from the top to the bottom as its feet grow bigger than its shoes. I’m certainly not faulting the management as this is a natural part of evolution, i.e. to migrate from a grassroots nature to the corporate establishment. It is also part of evolution for a hungrier lion to depose the pack leader. Such is life as nature endeavors to build a better product. In this case, better wods, a more sound and realistic approach to training and coaching. More specifically, it’s time to stop following and start leading. This has been the case for some time but officially jettisoning the crossfit mantra lightens the load significantly. One thing I don’t want to do is follow the trend of other (de)affiliates who have lambasted crossfit for their burgeoning shortcomings as they make their departure over the burning bridge. I could write an encyclopedia by riding the emotional wave but it’s an exercise in futility. I can’t move forward by going backward, especially as a bullet train. The bottom line is this: I look mom in the eye, kiss her on the cheek, say thanks, pull out the machete, and cut the umbilical cord only to see her float away into obscurity while I’m ready to sow my seeds of destruction. With black clouds of doubt in tow I charge the hill in front of me, fueled by confidence and motivated by excellence, I charge. The clouds drift away and I’m left to deal with the consequences head on. I’m prepared. An army is a great place wherewith we get lost in the ranks, swallowed by the herd, and stifled by the machinations of movement. Take the overpass of individuality and get on the highway of freedom if you want to arrive at self-actualization. It’s a lonely and desperate highway fraught with obstacles, potholes, and naysayers but well worth the journey. Buckle down and knock ‘em over.
ReplyDeleteWell said. I commend you for your professionalism and respect you for the courage you demonstrate in forging an alternate path. Bring on the work.
ReplyDeleteI really respect and admire your knowledge,self- confidence and courage. At the end of the day, one can only ask of himself if he lived to his fullest.
ReplyDeleteI follow you through the net consistently and I tried out this WOD today.
ReplyDeletedave. 193bw. rx. 16:41
Thanks gents. It's good to know that life still exists somewhere in the cosmos.
ReplyDeleteDave, I would be interested to know what you did the previous day. Remember that a wod is just an arbitrary place in time when done by itself. This wod was based on compounded the previous day's insidious destruction. The 97 #er took more of a toll than anticipated; hence, 185#. Otherwise 225 would've been a more challenging weight, both for its weight and being sabotaged by the rower. I rowed on 10 in order to focus on generating consistent power with fewer strokes. Times were 148, 150, 148. One would think that doing muscle ups after squats would be a no brainer but unless you are a feather weight you don't realize the inclusion of the lower body and how it toys with the synchronicity of the movement. My final time was 11:46 BUT what I learned is that I should've attempted the last set unbroken like the previous two. In an attempt at strategy I planned on and broke at 3 and then missed number 4. I had to wait 30 seconds and then hit 4 and 5. This was a critical error and in a competition could've cost me. A better strategy would've been to wait 10 extra seconds before grabbing the rings in order to front load my energy reserves and then suck it up and hit five in a row. That still would've been faster than the 30 second penalty. These little nuances are imperative for those aspiring to compete.
It's been a while since throwing the big bell around and after a discussion regarding its instrumental value I decided to give its day in court. One caveat is the difference between having it slick or taped with grip tape. The grip tape allows for more total reps but slick makes the grip stronger and depletes the reps faster. Which is better? I don't know. What I do know is that it compounded the lingering soreness in the posterior chain with sniper like precision. Instead of programming something from the opposite direction I decided to stay the course but adjust fire accordingly. Only when the ship is completely sunk can we begin to raise it. Sometimes we have to starve ourselves to stimulate our appetites. If we can't get out then we go further in.