"Champions aren't made in the gym. Champions are made from they have deep inside them- a desire, a dream, a vision. They have the skill and the will. But the will must be stronger than the skill."
- Muhammad Ali
Above is an excellent video clip showcasing French Olympian Danny Rodrigues, the first athlete in history to compete what many considered an impossible strength element on the still rings; the Victorian. In fact he is so incredibly strong, that he has two variations of the Victorian in his routine. Be prepared for a little drama in the middle of the clip.
Power Snatch Execution from Greg Werner on Vimeo.
I knew they were coming, as soon as I hit “Publish.” I knew I’d get at least one or two comments from our female readers asking if last week’s muscle building post applied to them, too. You see,Conventional Wisdom has somehow drilled into our heads the silly notion that men and women are completely different species, especially when it comes to working out. There are definite differences – anyone who’s been married will be able to tell you that! – but that doesn’t take away from the fact that we’re all homo sapiens with the same basic physiological makeup. And so an outfit like Weight Watchers will push the chronic cardio, the ankle weights, and the step classes because of some underlying, self-defeating assumption that women aren’t “meant” to lift heavy weights. It’s insane, it’s preposterous, and it’s downright insulting. Men and women have different work capacities and different natural inclinations, but their bodies still work the same way.
General RulesThe first five workouts (out of eight total):
1. The movement standards are typical HQ unless otherwise stated.
2. Each athlete will be ranked according to their time or score relative to the other athletes for that workout. Their final score for the workout will be equal to their rank.
3. The overall ranking going into each event will determine the reverse starting order for that event. For example, the athletes that win the first event will get to go last in the second event, while the athletes that come in last in the first event must go first in the second. The athletes in the lead (those with the lowest running total) after two events get to go last in the third event. And so forth.
4. After the second event, the bottom ten men and the bottom ten women (those with the most points) will be eliminated from the competition.
5. After the fourth event, the remaining bottom ten men and ten women will be eliminated from the competition. At this point, there will be approximately 55 athletes competing in Saturday's final event (for each men and women).
6. After the fifth event, the 16 men and 16 women with the lowest total points will be invited to compete on Sunday. If by chance there is a tie for 16th place, the athlete with the best single placement in any of the five events will be awarded the invite.
So I just watched this video on the Crossfit Journal called "The Road to the 09 Games" about Heather Keenan, a future Crossfit Games athlete (I was under the impression that she wasn't going to compete this year). Anyway, she was talking about her motivation and one thing that she said was, "Every time I go to eat something, it's like...is that' gonna get me closer to the games? Or like, every time I'm in a workout and I'm like feeling tired, like I'm taking a break I'm like, 'Alright, is Tanya [a fellow competitor who placed in front of her in the East Coast challenge, and won 2nd overall at the 08 games] taking a break right now?' ... It's like, grab your fucking bar and get it up, you know?"
I thought I'd just post this up to urge all of us to really think about our goals. What are we doing this for? I know many of us have set goals with Dru, but are these goals just cause he asked us to create them, or because we want to get better in one aspect in our lives. Now think, what are you doing to get closer to that goal? Is that last cookie, brownie, cupcake, or bite of rice gonna get you closer to what you want to achieve? If your goal is obesity, cardiovascular disease, weak and brittle bones, muscle flaccidity due to too much adipose tissue, respiratory depression, diabetes, psychological disorders such as depression, and renal failure, then congratulations, you have taken one step towards that goal. Sound harsh? Sure is. But hey, that last bite didn't get you closer to a long life of good health. And while that one bite, or cookie, or whatever poor nutritious food will probably not kill you (I hope and pray for), it's a step in the wrong direction, even though it may be a minuscule step.
Is that break you are taking mid-WOD because you are tired? Or because you cannot physically lift that weight? (Remember, if you can laugh or talk, then you can get another rep in...) Are we taking a water break because of dehydration, or because you want an excuse to take a quick break?
Many of us have been hitting it hard core for months now. I've seen improvements in EVERYONE. But we need to extend our discipline from the box to our day-to-day lives. Look at it this way, even if we work out 1 hour a day, 5 days a week, that is still less than 3% of the week. What does that mean? 97% of our week is spent NOT working out. So we all need to find a way to make sure that we can best maximize that 3% of hard work. We all can improve, and I can be the most guilty when it comes to messing up. Find your own goal, and decide, if that bite of food will get you closer to that goal. If not, then change it. And then grab your fucking bar and get it up.
- Andrew Valle
CrossFit boxes as a rule are not that big on formality. Shirts? On or off, go for it. Cussing? My delicate sensibilities can handle it. Grunts, groans, screaming? Hey, whatever gets you through the WOD. Blood, sweat, tears? As long as it’s not the 70s band, yeah, no worries. Short shorts, long shorts? Whatever floats your boat, man (no thongs, sorry Golden). Chalk? My life is covered in it. Make fun of Golden or Cliff? Knock yerself out (see line above). Not formal tends to be an understatement at CF West.
However, ahem, there are a few points of etiquette that should be covered. Good sportsmanship, support, and respect. That’s it. That is what we demand at CF West. Well, that and blood, sweat, and tears…but you can keep your firstborn. Seriously folks, all three points go hand in hand and are pretty much a no brainer.
