Open Monday To Raise Awareness

Monday is labour day, and although I wasn’t going to open, but after Don sent me an email I changed my mind. I thought this would be a great excuse to open on a holiday, here it is:

He asked me to join him, and his good friend, owner of CrossFit Albuquerque, to help raise awareness of the terrible disease known as Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA). It hit a little close to home, and they are both doing their part to raise money to help those in need. And although we are too late to do the workout and fundraiser, we are not too late raise awareness and join them on their quest! Don has offered to donate $100 for everyone that can beat his time! Shouldn’t be hard to beat Don, a world champion barefoot water skier (Did I say that right?). The workout will be announced on Monday. In the meantime, check out CrossFit Alburquerque.

In other news, the bison order needs to be in, and for now the list is pretty small. I will place it tomorrow. I have on it:
Tony
Larisa
Mel
Jaime
Angela
Killer
Yoko
Phil
Uncle Rob

For the rest of you, speak now or forever eat grainfed store bought meat…..

And….. I was smart enough (Lucky enough would be a better way to put it) to register a team for the taranis games. As the team portion appears to be sold out. How we’ll determine the members, I have no idea, but we will have at least one team representing Whistler.

More news and events to follow tomorrow…..

Jordan

Congratulations!

Above is a photo one of our resident Jr. A Hockey Players playing on his new team, The Cowichan Valley Capitals. Auzzie will be the only 16 year old on the team, a team that made the playoffs last year. Congratulations Auzzie, your hard work paid off, making Jr. A is a big deal. Just remember, we expect you back every summer to train with common folk like me here at CrossFit Whistler

Auzzie gettin’ bad ass with the chains!

Hitting one of the 2010 Games WODs, Amanda.

Jordan

Thursdays, they look a little different.

If you are looking at thursday, and are confused as to what in the world is going, you are not alone. The format is different, and here’s the explanation. During the open gym time you can come in to use it for any portion of the time it is opened for.

So, when it says: 8:45-11:00 and it has 20 spots it means that you can arrive anytime from 8:45 on, however, at 11:00, the class is over. So…..don’t arrive at 10:45 to do the murph. But you can come in at 10:45 for a 500m row.

Also, there is no Olympic lifting class either. And that is because…..you don’t need 6 days of training per week. And, for the most part, as much as you were motivated to learn more about lifting, no one was fresh for the session. So…… You can use open gym for it if you’d like, as you can use open gym to work on anything else you’d like. It is advised that you have some direction for your time in the gym. The coach can guide your efforts, but you should be there with a purpose. And of course, this is just for the open gym classes.

Jordan

Why do I keep pushing you to train for something?

Some of you already do. You train to be a better mountain biker, better skier, better yogi, better mother, better father, better……You get the picture. Some of those goals are tangible, some are not. Some have a time goal, others are infinite. The bottom line is that if you putting your training towards something specific can make all the difference in the world!

That is the main reason I keep pushing all of you to compete is to help you improve your level of fitness. Watch those who have come back from a competition train, they look inspired! Or those training for that competition, it is so much more meaningful. That could be you!

On the other side, some of you don’t have the time, or want to compete. Does that mean your training is going to suck? Hell NO! You could be working hard for that first pull-up! Or, making that leaderboard! What I do suggest is that if you have a specific goal, ask me how to get you there. If you are serious about that pullup, or that pushup. Let’s put timelines together, progressions to your training, and give you that same level of accountability moving forward.

The best part of my job is watching you achieve things you never thought possible. I want more than anything to help you get there, so let’s get you all pushing for something, anything!

Jordan

Injuries, a part of life

For those reading this thinking, this blog is for me…… I have bad news, it’s not. Of course, it doesn’t mean that you can’t relate it to your situation, because you can, we all can.

A while back I was watching a video by Kelly Starrett, a CrossFit Affiliate owner, with a background in Physical Therapy (Same as physio therapy, don’t know why it’s different in Canada than the States.). He was trying to relay the message that getting injured should not mean you cannot train. That wasn’t the first time I heard it, Dave Werner, my first CrossFit Coach/Mentor, who opened CrossFit’s first affiliate re-worded it a little differently. He was insisting that injuries were a chance to specialize. Bad knee, can’t squat, make your upper body stronger.

They were both insisting the same thing, but in different ways. I am going to put them both together and remind us all to find that silver lining.

1. Your body benefits from training, period! If you toe is injured, is sitting around going to help it. On the flipside, an upper body workout stimulate your bodies endorphins, help get blood flowing to the injured source. Heeling will occur quicker in the active body, than the sedentary one.

2. Injuries can be potentially harder on the mind than the body itself. Being unable to do the things you enjoy, take part in the daily routine can really get us down. Although coming to CrossFit injured is not the same, many workouts need to be scaled and modified, but you still get to be here in the group setting and participating. Try mountain biking in a cast? skiing with crutches? You can’t, but you can still do CrossFit!

3. Take the time (It’s the one thing you probably now have) to improve on the parts that are still working. Can’t use your arms, get leg focused. Legs are on the DL, build that upper body strength, get that dead hang pullup stronger. Specializing can really help your fitness, and is necessary at some point for anyone wanting to take their fitness to the next level. Injured? That’s your calling to specialize.

So yes, injuries are a part of life, we’ve all been there, and we all can relate. Before I forget to mention, if you are resting a body part, that is exactly what you should do, rest it. Don’t be in a hurry to “test” things out. Be patient young jedis. Find that silver lining, and when you come back from your injury, you’ll be ahead of the game. Better than you were before your injury.

Jordan

Registration Opens Sept. 1st

With only 100 spots available, it will be necessary to register for the Taranis Games early. In other words, waiver, and get left out in the cold. For those who printed your name on that board, that was step 1, please let me know as soon as you’ve followed up with Step 2. If you have questions, you can comment on the blog (We know that won’t happen!), or you can email or ask in person. You might find a few answers here too. And look, there’s Bangma, right on the front page!

Speaking of not commenting on the blog, if it weren’t for Don, Steve, and Bruce, I’d be talking to myself. And it’s not like I don’t mind, I do it all the time. Perhaps it’s time for me to remind you all of the deal. You want the WODs on the site, you post your results! Fair is fair….

Jordan

Yoga Reminder

Don’t forget about YOGA this weekend…… Sunday at 4:00pm. Remember Colleen will start on time, so let’s arrive on time for her. And along those same lines, thanks to all for getting out those old habits and getting here ready to roll when class starts. It’s made way better use of our time.

Interested in starting CrossFit…..Well, now’s the time! It’s been on your minds for quite sometime now, and with a little taste of fall over the last few days, we’ve had the emails and phone calls. Tomorrow at noon, is your chance to try our intro class. It’s free for first timers! No excuse to try it out, it’s on us. If you planning to come, please arrive 5 minutes early.

And for the finale, Tomorrow’s lumberjack 20 is no slouch of a workout, but scaleable beyond belief. First of all, don’t be scared. What CrossFitter would? But please, be well nourished upon arrival. Water and food would be necessary way to be prepared. Waking up, straight out of bed, no water no breakfast, will prove to be a wod that is anti-good times.

See y’all tomorrow

Jordan

Bondage Friday? Party Saturday!

I know I have most of your attention, maybe even got a few google hits that never imagined a fitness site to come up.
Right as you walk in to the gym, you can’t help but notice the chains hanging from the wall. Curious what they’re used for? You’re not the only one. Well, today, welcome to bondage friday (You can thank Susan for this one!). Not too sure if the theme’s here to stay. Regardless, if you want to find out all about the chains, Friday’s the day to experiment.

Version 2 of bondage Friday will be held Saturday night at Uncle Rob’s. Wait a minute, that sounds REALLY BAD! Perhaps it should read more like…..Ken is breaking the chains and leaving Whistler to start his firefighting career in the Toronto Area, and Saturday the night we send him off in style. Uncle Rob is hosting up in bayshores, it’s at: 2274 Brandywine Way. It’s the standard BBQ potluck, and it’s called for around 6:00pm.

Hope to see you all there!

Jordan

Yoga, full steam ahead!

I doubt Colleen reads this blog, but in case you do, just wanted to say thanks for the class today, and am looking forward to next week. Same bat time, same bat channel.

What was also refreshing is starting on time So, for those who will be arriving next week, please be there a few minutes before class starts to make any preparations you need so that you are ready to go. Which, as you all know, is not the culture that we’re used to here. But, it should be. How’s about we all start to make a better effort to be here and ready to go on time.

Lastly, you know I’ve got the competition bug! In the immediate future we have the whistler spirit run. There’s a few categories:
5 k
10 k
and a relay
4 x 2k
Save the date, sunday sept 26th. Here’s the details.

And the real deal, the CrossFit competition being held in Victoria at CrossFit Taranis on November 6th and 7th. For this one, you’ll have to register soon, as the space is limited. And I know there’s a good buzz amongst BC CrossFitters to compete, let’s not be left out in the cold.
Here’s the details they’ve let out.

Jordan

And I almost forgot……Yoga. It can mean different things to different people. The one thing it shouldn’t be, is a contest on who’s the most flexible. Relax, breath, and relax some more! If you are not breathing, you are missing the point. You can’t force flexibility, your muscles need to relax to lengthen. Breathing allows that to happen. Which, on the other end, when we need force…..we hold our breath!

Represent!

Here’s the crew that represented CrossFit Whistler today at the games. Yes, Uncle Rob and I had the hardest job, cheering all three competitors. Seriously, you should all be proud of Ken, Hamish, and Kara. They all gave it everything they’ve got! I’m sure they’ll have a thing or two to say about their experiences, and they share it with the crew. Job well done!

For those that are thinking about the event that Taranis is hosting in November, let me be the first to tell you that you don’t want to miss out! These competitions are worth the price of admission. And yes, the programming will be geared specifically to peak for that event. So, like it or not, you are all training for a competition

For Kara, Hamish and Ken. You should be proud of your performances! I witnessed a lot of hard work leading up to the event, and it showed during your wods. Enjoy a good night sleep, and a good feed because you earned it. Move tomorrow, come to Yoga, and keep the intensity light for the next few days. But, please, don’t stop moving!

Jordan