Jevon Ikner

New Blog

2011-12-09T13:02:00.000-06:00

Switching Blog Sites

New Blog!! Moved to Tumblr!!

jevonikner.tumblr.com

Switching Blog Sites

2011-11-15T22:11:00.002-06:00

New Blog!! Moved to Tumblr!!

jevonikner.tumblr.com

Movember

2011-11-10T21:50:00.001-06:00

During November each year, Movember is responsible for the sprouting of moustaches on thousands of men’s faces, in the US and around the world. With their Mo’s, these men raise vital funds and awareness for men’s health, specifically prostate cancer and other cancers that affect men.

Once registered at www.movember.com, men start Movember 1st clean shaven. For the rest of the month, these selfless and generous men, known as Mo Bros, groom, trim and wax their way into the annals of fine moustachery. Supported by the women in their lives, Mo Sistas, Movember Mo Bros raise funds by seeking out sponsorship for their Mo-growing efforts.

Mo Bros effectively become walking, talking billboards for the 30 days of November. Through their actions and words they raise awareness by prompting private and public conversation around the often ignored issue of men’s health.

At the end of the month, Mo Bros and Mo Sistas celebrate their gallantry and valor by either throwing their own Movember party or attending one of the infamous Gala Partés held around the world by Movember, for Movember.

Mark your calendars for the 2nd annual Mustache Showdown!!!

Dec 3rd!!

WLCF Women's Challenge WOD #1 Leak

2011-11-09T18:26:00.002-06:00

Brutal Recess in Austin

2011-11-07T22:41:00.002-06:00

BODYTRIBE'S BRUTAL RECESS COMING TO WESTLAKE CROSSFIT

When: Saturday December 3rd

Time: 11am -5pm

Where: Westlake Crossfit

Cost: $90

Sign Up Here

Not So Enchanted

2011-10-31T22:29:00.000-05:00

Trying to stay Paleo while Camping

A full week has past since I started the Essential 21/30 Program. Things have been great so far, the only real difference thats noticible for me at this point is my increased energy level throughout the day. Im equating this to my higher consumption of Fats and regurlar use of Univera Xtra. Limiting my consumption of fruit is not necessarily challenging for me, it just forces me to become more aware of how much fruit Im eating as Im only allowed 4 servings. Through these 7 days Ive managed to get 2 X's on the Essential accountability board. Both these X's come after a weekend camping at Enchanted Rock and are a result of having a few brewskies. A friend called me out after seeing these X's on the board and I told him that my goal was to not have anymore than 3 x's for the challnge. To this he replied " Why set yourself up for failure?" . After thinking about this, I realized he was right, the only reason I gave myself a three X grace was to lower the bar for what I was willing to hold myself accountable to. Unacceptable, I made a committment and I need to hold myself to the level of my committment.

I don't even like Bass beer...Im back on it!

Essential 21/30

2011-10-25T20:45:00.000-05:00

Yesterday marked the 1st day of the Esssential 21/30 Nutrition Program. This is a 30 day nutrition program founded by Coach Jarrod Freshour and Coach Eric Burnett of Westlake Crossfit. I decided to start this challenge for a few reasons. One, it's been 6 months since I have been on a STRICT nutrition plan. I typically only adhere to said nutrition plans when Im gearing up toward certain competitions, and since injuring myself and didn't have this reason. Now with that being said, I am still committed to eating clean and healthy competition or not. The main things I mean by strict is absolutely no "cheat meals" , alcohol and fats with every meal (including snacks). Well the 21/30 plan starts off with a "STRICT" 21 days - which means I will again have to bypass the occasional bun with my burger and not have any social drinks. These are probably the two biggest adjustments for, along with eliminating cheese. This 21 day strict will be essential in restoring the body away from metabolic derangement. The 2nd reason I'm doing this is for the reason of being able to relate to what our members may be experiencing as they embark on the same journey. The 3rd reason is to help get me back to preparing my own food, right now about 75 percent of my weekly meals are eaten "out. The challenge should be fun and I'm excited to see where this takes my overall wellness!

Breaking Through the Mental Barrier

2011-10-20T08:04:00.001-05:00

Courtesy of Rogue Fitness

By Josh Bridges

The mind is a powerful thing, it can help you get through tough times, or it can cause you to crumble like Greg Norman in the ‘96 Masters. The strong learn how to handle and control their mind when it starts to rant, rave and tell you to stop what your doing. The weak let it take over and OWN them.
Is it possible to develop strategies to break your mental barrier? Absolutely. I prevent this little boss in my head from taking over in a couple of ways.
“One more rep.”
When that voice inside your head is screaming at you to “put down the barbell” or “get off the bar,” you fight back with one more rep. Completing just one more rep when everything inside of you is telling you to stop is a sure way to grow your mental muscles, and the next time you might do two more reps. Over time, this builds and you begin to control that voice.
Small Goals.
When I am in the middle of a workout, I always have small goals in my head. Small goals add up to big goals. For example, if my workout calls for 30 heavy thrusters, my first goal might just be to get to 5 thrusters. When I get to 5 and still feel good, I start thinking, “good, I’ll do 5 more without rest,” and when I get to 10 and start to feel fatigued I might just talk myself into “two more.” But at 12, I might use the “one more rep,” and then do it again. After a few “one more rep” goals, I am at 16 or 20 . . . and all of a sudden I might be close enough to 30 to either take a quick break and knock out the rest in one set, or even finish it off by chipping away on more rep at a time.
“Break through that wall.”
My old wrestling coach used to yell at us when he saw us start to break mentally, “Break through that wall, it’s the only way to get strong.” He would say it over and over again. We would barely be able to stand up on the mat, but we never wanted to lose the mental battle, so we would fight and fight until we physically could not stand any longer. That became so deeply engrained that now when things get rough I can still hear his voice yelling “Break through that wall.”
Your body can handle more than your mind thinks it can. Don’t let that little boss in your head beat you; go out there and show it that you are the boss!

Overcoming Obstacles in a Huge Way

2011-10-11T20:05:00.000-05:00

Kim Bergeron gets feutured in the Athlete's Spotlight. Kim has been at Westlake Crossfit for just over 9 months and has experienced tremendous results all in part to her commitment and consistency. Kim has had to overcome a few obstacles along but has proven she is up for the challenege. She is an inspiration to our family in a HUGE way! Keep it up Kim !

Fight Gone Good

2011-09-21T11:40:00.002-05:00

Congratulations to everyone who participated in Fight Gone Bad 6. We had over 30 athletes participate! It's fantastic to have so many of you want to be part of a phenomenal cause and willing to put yourself through a grueling 17 minutes to do so. Through your help and effort, Westlake Crossfit raised $7,911 , which was part of over 2 million raised world wide for three amazing causes. Thank you again, it was such a pleasure to participate alongside you all.

I'd also like to thank Peyton, who not only came out and provided refreshments to everyone but also decided to donate a share of her earnings to the cause! Nothing better than an entrepreneur with a BIG heart!

Personal Power

2011-09-12T22:48:00.002-05:00

Perhaps the single most important aspect of becoming empowered is the ability to take responsibility. Taking responsibility is more than taking the initiative , its the acceptance that we are responsible for our own lives thus we can create our own circumstances. For one to genuinely believe this , one must believe that as humans we-by nature have the ability to make conscious decisions. Being that would seem like an undisputed fact..lets move on. The very second we fully accept responsibility it empowers us to create our desired circumstance. (Make things Happen) Being proactive is the key here..if you wait to be acted upon then you forfeit your ability to act.

Stephen Covey writes-

" It's the nature of reactive people to absolve themselves of responsibility. Its much safer to say "Im not responsible" if I say "i'm responsible ," i might have to say "I am irresponsible"It would be very hard for me to say that I have the power to choose my response and that the response I have chosen has resulted in my involvement in a negative, collusive environment, especially if for years I have absolved myself of responsibility for results in the name of someone else's weaknesses"

By saying were not responsible , we make ourselves powerless victims. The ability to positively affect any situation will never come as a result of being critical or accusing. Instead focus your efforts on the very thing you have control over...you! Think..how can I work on my own weaknesses? How can I be a source of encouragement and support? Be a person of pro-activity , people feed off this kind of response and circumstances become fueled by positive energy creating positive changes.

Project Empower 321

2011-09-07T21:40:00.004-05:00

Westlake Crossfit Co-Owner Jevon Ikner and ActiveAtx Founder Jesse O'brien have come together to give birth to a movement. A movement inspired by the will to help individuals who struggle with weight and health issues who may feel they do not possess the resources to make the changes necessary to empower themselves through healthy lifestyle choices.

Here is the story of a young lady whom was asked to be a part of Project Empower3-2-1.

I love Crossfit! Crossfit has enchanged my physical and mental state of being and has increased my confidence, especially in the area of athletic ability. It has changed my thinking regarding exercise and fitness from "You're crazy, I can't do that" to "I'll be able to do that eventually".

I NEVER in my life would have described myself as an "athletic" individual. I was also always one of those people who felt awkward going to a gym because I didn't necessarily know what I was doing and I didn't want to be "the fat kid" there. Crossfit offered me a chance to explore my athletic abilities in a way that wasn't intimidating. The coaches truly do understand how to break down every move to make it work for each individual regardless of fitness level. Each coach has been motivating and supportive through the workouts to where it makes me want to finish and makes me believe that I can; they know how to push within reason and when to stop. The Crossfit community itself (consisting of the coaches and it's members) is an all around supportive community. NONE of the members or coaches have ever made me feel bad, embarrassed, or less than them because I wasn't up to their own fitness levels. Instead, they're right there encouraging you to finish every step of the way. The positivity is contagious!

Thanks to Crossfit and the variety they offer, I haven't gotten bored and I've been with them for six months. Within six months I've gone down 2 1/2 dress sizes; gained muscle; loss fat; and loss 25 pounds (more if we take away the muscle I've gained). Most importantly, I can say I'm an athletic individual and I'm on my way to being fit! Thank you to everyone who helped me get to where I am today, I can't wait to see who I am tomorrow.

*Coach Jesse donated his time and energy to work with Erika 3x /wk for 3 months, Erika is now a current member at Westlake Crossfit going on 3 months

If you are a coach in the Austin area or a person who feels like they have nowhere else to turn, please email us with your story and why you feel like this would be a good fit for you.

There are many trainers who have always voiced a goal to gie back to the community or help an individual in need. That is the goal of Project Empower 3-2-1. Our goal is set guidelines and determine a fit between a motivated trainer and a person in need. This is a probono service used to empower both parties and to Pay it Forward.

Project Empower 3-2-1 is a movement inspired from Project India.

Fight Gone Bad 6

2011-09-06T15:47:00.001-05:00

On Sept. 17, at Fight Gone Bad 6 to be held at CrossFit gyms all over the country, a non-profit called Sportsgrants will be raising money to keep those scholarship coffers full. Thousands of CrossFitters will be enduring 17 minutes of pure grit and dedication in honor of those who have sacrificed their whole lives to service. I'll be there. Please check out my page and support my 17 minutes!

Participate in Fight Gone Bad 6 on Sept. 17, 2011, to help the families of wounded and fallen service members. Sign up for the fundraiser at http://sportsgrants.org/fgb6/sowf and make a donation by visiting HERE.

Fight Gone Bad 6
Saturday, September 17th
8:00am - 11:00am
@ Camp Mabry (map)
More Information & Register

Little Dawgs Training

2011-09-02T13:32:00.002-05:00

Prowess little Dawgs is a training group comprised of young athletes ages 8 - 11. They recently learned how to deadlift. Although the word may be scary to some, the deadlift is nothing more than the most mechanically safe and most efficient way to lift an object off the ground. These little guys obviously are not old enough to start testing their boundaries through heavy weight training but developing a solid foundation in terms of learning how to keep the body in ideal position for movement through body awareness is a huge asset at this age.

Prowess Dawgs meet Monday and Wednesday @ 3:15

For more info contact Jesse@westlakecrossfit.com

How Bad do You Want It?

2011-08-29T15:19:00.002-05:00

How Bad Do You Want It from Greyskale Multimedia on Vimeo.

P.A. Kids

2011-08-24T10:19:00.004-05:00

Prowess Athletics Kids classes start up with it's back to school schedule starting Monday August 29th. Prowess Kids program is engineered to help young athletes ages 8 to11yrs old gain body awareness and develop a foundation to help assist functional movements. Our program will elicit gains in coordination , agility , balance and flexibility.

When 3:15pm M/W
Where : WLCF

For more information, contact Coach Jesse Obrien at 512-680-7783 or email Jesse@westlakecrossfit.com

Only 3 Spots left!!!

School's In at Odyssey

2011-08-21T17:19:00.001-05:00

Back to School Special with all Odyssey Outdoor Training Camps starts Today!! Get out to one of our locations and experience what everyone is talking about! We are offering 12 sessions for a low cost of $50 for the Month of August! Call 512-744-3880 to GET STARTED !!

Pics from Odyssey Outdoors Training

Go Go Sarah

2011-08-16T21:18:00.001-05:00

This month Westlake Crossfit has chosen to highlight Sarah Singh in it's Athlete Spotlight. Sarah has been an awesome representation of what were all about here at Westlake Crossfit. She embodies a team mentally and is driven by determination and effort. In addition to these things, Sarah was the first female athlete at WLCF to complete a muscle up. Sarah dedicated herself to accomplishing this goal by putting in the effort and dedication needed. Setting a goal is one thing, taking the necessary steps is another. Way to go Sarah! So So proud of you and know the best has yet to come!

Life as Rx

2011-08-14T23:13:00.001-05:00

This past weekend the Westlake Crossfit crew spent the weekend in Dallas and participated in the LifeasRx'Tour competition. For many of our athletes, this was their first exposure to competition atmosphere as competitors and they ALL did fantastic! I couldn't be more proud of our athletes in that they met the challenges head on and had a blast while doing so. I definitely sense that a bunch of athletes got bit by the bug and can't wait to do more competitions. We had a team and 1 female / 1 male finish in the top 20!! As for myself, this was my first time back on the competition stage since the injury. Although I was on a team and didn't do much, it felt fantastic getting back out there! Looking forward to Fight Gone Bad in September!

More pics from Event

Achilles Blog: Great Support equals Empowerment

2011-08-02T19:38:00.001-05:00

Fam visiting grandpa in Antigua

The way you talk about yourself and your life—your story—has a great deal to do with what shows up in your day-to-day experience. Your thoughts create filters through which you view your life. If you think of yourself as a Victim, you filter all that happens to you through the lens of DDT, and you find plenty of evidence to support that viewpoint. That’s why the orientation you adopt is so important: it exerts a powerful influence on your life direction. - David Emerald

Its been a bit of time since I checked in with news on the recovery process with the rupture to my achilles. This is due mainly to the fact that I sometimes forget about it =). Not really, however the recovery process has gone extremely well. I'm a little shy of 4 months post operation. My treatment has consisted of visiting the folks at Austin Sports Therapy once a week. This session usually consist of some deep tissue massage work and ART. They also give me a few exercises to do on my own to restore range of motion and help restore proprioception. On the training front, I have been routinely joining classes at Westlake Crossfit while making necessary adjustments to meet my current condition. Whatever I think I can do, I do a little less. I have noticed a bit of a hit to my metabolic conditioning and lower body strength. This was pretty tough to deal with initially, however the week before I left for vacation I could really sense things were coming back. In fact, yesterday I had my best training session in 4 months. It was the first time I did a WOD and didnt think about anything related to the achilles while doing dynamic movements that incorporate the lower body. Still on the road to recovery and it will be steady and well thought out. This great recovery process has very little to do with me but rather more to do with the incredible support, services and encouragement I've received from family and friends. Its amazing what a circle of empowering, motivated and supportive individuals can lead to. Oh yeah, and an amazing dog!

What is Odyssey Outdoor Training?

2011-07-25T22:01:00.002-05:00

Beachin w Lynne

2011-07-18T11:58:00.003-05:00

"Lynne" at the Beach from Jesse OBrien on Vimeo.

Commit

2011-07-12T23:16:00.000-05:00

I believe commitment to be the most important single factor in achieving success. Commitment sparks action. Commitment is tied together by a belief and persistence and doesn't care about excuses, only results. Commitment holds up in tough and challenging times and stays flexible with its aproach.

What are you committed to? Or do you just have interest and do things when circumstances allow it ? Commit to what you truly believe in and the result will be success.

The successful person has the habit of doing the things failures don't like to do. They don't like doing them either necessarily. But their disliking is subordinated to the strength of their purpose
- E.M. Gray

Hang on your Own

2011-07-08T10:18:00.001-05:00

Success. Why is it that when most people speak about success they associate it with financial and social prowess? Almost anyone that offers advice on how to be successful will preface their spiel with a story about how they created a business that's worth million of dollars. At this point I realize that they are not interested in helping anyone be successful, but rather they are interested in helping others reach success as they view it. Nothing wrong with that , after all the intentions are good right? Just so happens that in the western world, success and money seem to go hand and hand. " Learn success from the worlds richest business leaders" how about " learn success form the worlds most caring people" - you think the latter title would attract attention? Success is a personal matter and can be expanded to many aspects of life. Ultimately your view of success will be closely tied to your priorities in life. Family , money , attention , charity, - are just a few areas that can be priorities for people. Some can be weighed more heavily for people than others , some can not even be of any priority at all. The point being is, take the time to determine your priorities and don't let anyone impose their definition of success on you.

Return to Running

2011-07-03T12:49:00.000-05:00

So this morning I did something I haven't done in 12 weeks. It's been 12 weeks since surgery to repair my ruptured achilles, and today was my first shot at attempting to run. Now , I don't LOVE running and I don't HATE either. Sometimes running is somewhat euphoric for me but often its pretty dreadful as well. With that being said , having it not be part of my fitness repertoire has been pretty tough for me. You know the old saying of not really appreciating things until there taken away from you or however it goes. Anyways , at this stage in my recovery process I though it was time to get out and open up the stride. A few things I wanted to take into consideration. The first being that I am still strength deficient in my injured leg, predominately in my calf. To give you an example, I can not do a single leg calf raise on my left foot. So with this being the case, I knew I would have to go with a heel strike running method. I also decided to go with running shoe with a generous heel raise as to keep the foot from going into dorsiflexion. I also wanted to take into consideration that my joints (knee , ankle) were pretty weak in that they didnt seem to have the stability as on my right side. To adjust for this, I made sure to run on a smooth surface. So with taken these precaution, it was time to put foot to road. In short, it felt fantastic! No pain at all, a littel rough running with a heal strike but nontheless it was successful in keeping me from putting strain on the healing tendons. I ran 1.5 miles at a very conservative pace. I'll continue to treat recovery by being steady and smart, but its great to have running back in the mix!

Go Further

2011-06-29T23:06:00.001-05:00

I hope to use fitness as my vehicle not only to enhance the physical aspects of an individual's life, but to create awareness of potential. Potential to overcome challenges and not turn away from rocky roads. Potential to breakdown barriers created by fear and uncertainty. Potential to understand the contrast between self-glorification and self-fulfillment.

Modern Life

2011-06-28T09:02:00.002-05:00

Westlake Crossfitters Handstands Outbound

2011-06-23T17:22:00.001-05:00

“Our lives are not determined by what happens to us but by how we react to what happens, not by what life brings to us, but by the attitude we bring to life. A positive attitude causes a chain reaction of positive thoughts, events, and outcomes. It is a catalyst; a spark that creates extraordinary results.” – Author unknown

Getting Shook Down

2011-06-20T21:14:00.001-05:00

So we are 2 weeks into our Summer Shakedown Challenge and things are going ok. The first week I accumulated 84 points. If you know anything about the challenge, you know thats a great score for 1 week. Well fast forward a week and I find myself around some of my favorite restaurants that are not so paleo friendly. Because my diet is a lifestyle, I never get to the point where i feel I will just completely abandon making good food choices. With that being said, so far Ive made some good choices and a few not so good choices.

The Good...

Beef , Chicken Pico and Avocado

Mixed fruits and Eggs

The bad...

Been craving this for 8 yrs. This is Brazilian barbecue sandwich from one of my favorite spots (Coffee Shop)

Not even gonna get into what went on in this place..its like an Italian Whole Foods.

A Trip Home

2011-06-19T22:22:00.001-05:00

Mac loved to hunt and loved dogs.

Today I had the opportunity to learn about and see someone I'd never met before or seen for that matter. Mac Ikner , my grandfather. My grandfather passed away before I was born, that's all I knew about him for 31 years. This was my Dad's father. My Dad passed away when I was 20 years old, up until that point I can only remember small bits of my Dad speaking about his father.

While visiting my family and friends in New Jersey and New York, one thing I wanted to do was to learn more about my Dad's side of the family. My Mom and Dad divorced when I was a small child, and although both remained a part of my life growing up, I never really seemed to know much about my Dad's family. My Dad remarried and had two kids, my brother and sister. Today I went to visit my Dad's widow and his kids - my brother and sister. Ive always up until this point limited my contact with them because of the pain associated with that fresh reminder of my dad not being here for my little sister and brother to experience his wonderfulness. For some reason , this one thing has made a coward out of me and has been unbearable. After visiting with everyone today, I am ashamed at myself that I let my selfishness get in the way of being more involved with my family. Can't explain how fulfilling it felt today to spend time with everyone and learning about my heritage.

Grandmother and Grandfather

Achilles Blog: Full Stride

2011-06-15T22:33:00.000-05:00

Full Stride? Not quite but feeling really good about the recovery process being 9 weeks post operation. So where am I at this point? I'm walking fine , I'd say my stride is about 95% close to normal. I still have limited strength and limited range of motion. Tendons are healing together strong as evident during the Thompson Test. I'm biking , hiking and swimming all with no pain at all. My training sessions have slowly progressed into implementing more movements. I'm now able to squat and row. In fact yesterday was the most intensity I've applied to a workout in over 10 weeks. Felt fantastic but was also telling into just how much conditioning Ive lost in the form of work capacity. I still believe I will be able to run at the 12 week post operation mark. This isn't just some arbitrary number but rather a number based on how I've felt, the recovery process as well as doing a ton of research and question asking. This 12 week time is far removed from the 8 month time frame I was given from my specialist. What does this say? It says that as individuals we rely way too heavily on just accepting things as true based on who and where we hear it. I'm not saying there's not people out there that have more insight into areas than others. What I'm saying is that we should take the time to dissect , pick apart and analyze things for ourselves. Especially when it comes to things that mean the most to us (health ,family,spirituality) these things have great rewards and consequences. When it comes to determining whats best for YOU, YOU should ultimately decide what action you take, not let someone Yes its a lot easier to just take someones word but that leaves us to live a passive lives. Majority of individuals are led in certain directions based on someones agenda other than their own. They may have the best intentions when telling you what THEY think is best for you but ultimately you need expand that idea and navigate your own journey through central responses not peripheral responses. What I'm trying to say is be a master of you, don't let others be a master of you. Is this easy? No. If it was everyone would do it. It takes courage and responsibility to question and delve into things.

Friday Fun

2011-06-10T20:05:00.003-05:00

Hollywood , Here I Come

2011-06-05T20:05:00.000-05:00

So I landed a role in Body Tribe's latest DVD "Brutal Recess". You can watch me doing a few Burpee Variation on the dock at Commons Ford. What is Brutal Recess?

Brutal Recess is accepting that freedom means responsibility, and to embrace our freedom of movement, our freedom of strength, we must embrace intensity. It’s the fun of accomplishment. We’ve stolen from all the great movement arts: fighting, dance, yoga and even child’s play and tumbling, and liberally sprinkled them into our workouts, usually in the workload or GPP phases. Get your heavy foundation lifting going and then challenge your stamina and range of motion. This 2-disc set contains footage from lectures, workshops and workouts across the country featuring the following topics…

+ Ritual in Movement: The power to change your own world
+ Be a movement artist… not a follower, but a creator!
+ The philosophy and program design of Bodytribe Fitness
+ The Brutal Recess intense mobility concept keeping the joints and muscle active for a lifetime.
+ Getting weird with kettlebells, clubs and macebells

Although I wasnt impressive enough to make the dvd teaser..check it out anyway.

Hustle Hard

2011-06-01T23:51:00.003-05:00

www.prowessathletics.com

Odyssey Outdoor Training

2011-05-27T08:51:00.001-05:00

Westlake Crossfit is proud to introduce Odyssey Outdoor Training , a broad based , all inclusive fitness program. We have training groups set to kick off in and around Austin starting in June. For times and locations visit here.

For more info on how to get enrolled call 512-744-3880

Odyssey Outdoor Training is an adventure in fitness. Our program takes you outside of the four air conditioned walls of the typical gym and puts you in the beautiful and challenging gym of nature. There are no IPODS or television sets at Odyssey, only you and your fellow athletes putting yourselves to the test and in the process getting stronger, faster, healthier, and having a lot of fun doing it. We guarantee there will be no repetitive, boring, typical boot camp routines. Our program is constantly varied and revolves around developing a functional fitness that will benefit all aspects of your life. So come on out, kick your boots off, and embark on the Odyssey! Visit our website for more info!!!

Achilles Blog: Healing Well

2011-05-16T08:59:00.000-05:00

My incision from surgery is healing really well. I'm really surprised by that , I thought for sure it would be more noticeable. Just another testament to the incredible job Dr. Elenz did. My healing achilles is roughly 1/4 of an inch thicker than my other achilles. I imagine this mostly due to the scar tissue. Im excited to start acupuncture and therapy this week.

Went out for trail ride over the weekend , about 4 miles or so over flat terrain with small brush. Achilles felt great , no issues at all. Didn't realize how little ankle flexibility is required to ride a bike. Anyway it felt good to do something a bit more dynamic to strengthen the leg which is starting to build back some muscle.

Celebrating my dumping of the boot with a dinner at Botticellis. Really good Italian food. Sit in the back at the beer garden and enjoy some live music while you dine. We had the pleasure of listening to Westlake Crossfit member Scarlett Olsen.

Achilles Blog: Own Two Feet

2011-05-10T23:13:00.000-05:00

This past Sunday I spent the whole day bootless. Not really sure why , just know I didn't feel like putting on the boot. Felt really awkward but painless. Because of my limited range of motion at the ankle , I have to walk with my foot flared out. You can even see it somewhat with me standing in the pic. Outside of this epic adventure I'm being extremely diligent in wearing the boot when I set out. Don't wear it at all when I'm in the crib and have no issues moving about. I'm continuing to train while keeping weight of the injured flipper. I was worried about training my good leg too much as to create a huge discrepancy , however after talking to a friend about it - he mentioned that you can train the good leg and the body will actual strengthen the weaker leg as a response to create balance. Looked into this and it turns out to be true.

So Im 37 days post surgery. I haven't started rehab yet , just icing , elevating and keeping off it as much as possible. Starting next week Ill start acupuncture treatment as well as going to see a Occupational Therapist. I go back to the Orthopedist next Friday and I imagine Ill set a date soon after to start physical therapy. I'm not sure Ill do this in house as I may go to place that specializes in sports rehab. It's been extremely hard not to do any rehab work myself as I feel I'm ready. Had a good conversation with a highly trusted professional and he steered me away from doing such, as I was ready to dump the boot and start working on strengthening and increasing my ROM. Im glad we spoke as he made me privy to some things about the healing process that makes sense. Nonetheless , once we start therapy we plan on being aggressive with our approach. The plan is to have pretty close to 100 % by July 27. Thats when I leave for Antigua where there known for some of the best Windsurfing Conditioning in the World. Definitely don't want to miss out on that.

Rx Strength

2011-05-06T00:36:00.002-05:00

Prowess Athletics is proud to introduce RX Strength , a strength program designed to optimize your strength gains. With a progressive and technique driven approach , athletes can expect to focus on lifts such as deadlift , squat ,presses, bench press and cleans. This class is a great compliment to Crossfit Classes!

Who: This class is offered to all athletes of all fitness levels

When: Monday & Wednesday 5:15pm / First cycle starts May 9th to Jun 1st (8 sessions)

Contact 512-744-3880 for more info

Achilles Blog: Small Giant Steps

2011-04-29T10:22:00.002-05:00

Wow , what a morning. Today my cast came off and got replaced with a walking boot. The process of removing the cast was relatively simple nonetheless somewhat scary. Not sure how that loud tool with the rotating saw is design to cut through fiber glass but not skin works. As you can see from the picture above (taken from the front) some major atrophy has occurred in my left leg. Ill take some measurements later this afternoon to get some numbers but I would imagine Ive lost at least an inch in my calf and maybe the same in my thigh. The Dr. confirmed that I'm healing great and things are on track for a timely recovery. He advised I use the walking boot along with one crutch. The boot keeps my foot pointed downward as to keep tension of the healing tendon. You want these tendons to heal as tightly and securely as possible before stretching them.

When I got home , I ditched the crutch and boot and actually stood on my two feet for the first time in 27 days. Can explain how awesome that felt. Im guessing the Dr. Elenz wouldnt have advised of me taking a few steps with no protection but I couldnt help myself. I took about ten steps unassisted..no boot..no crutch. I walked on my own for the first time in 27 days!!I had never been so aware of every single step needed to walk as I was this morning. I also was able to shower , the feeling of water splashing down on my face was euphoric. I realized that these moments felt so great because I was completely aware and dedicated to the moment and it doesn't take for someone to be without something for a period of time in order to experience this state of complete awareness and purity, we can train ourselves to do this with each passing moment. My , what a life that would be.Yes , these steps were awkard , risky and taken gingerly but they were taken. One at a time slowly moving toward my destination. Many of us have waited for the ability to take a giant confident no risk step in life thus never taken a step at all. Realize your situation , decide what you want and where you want to be , determine if its worth the risk , if so , take that step , no matter how small , take it!

Easy Does It

2011-04-28T22:04:00.002-05:00

Breakfast: Same Ol Same Ol... Eggs Bacon Sausage Peppers Tomato and Advocado 2 oz univera extra concentrate , 4 krill fish oil pills

Snack: 2 Block ( Sweet Potato) Protien Shake w glutamine (almond Milk)
Baby Food

Lunch: (Grove) Miso Salmon Salad -mixed greens, haricot verts, cucumbers and panko crusted (didnt eat the o-rings)

Snack: Apple w Almond Butter

Dinner: Bison Burgers , Spinach salad w Blueberries and Almonds ,Grilled Portebella Mushroom

Monday

2011-04-27T21:23:00.000-05:00

Breakfast : Sausage , Bacon , Tomatoes , Peppers , Eggs , Advocado

Lunch : (El Sazon) Salad Plate w Beef and Chicken add Advocado

Dinner: Ground Buffalo w Onions , Small sweet Potato , Blackberries w Coconut Milk.

Training Log....
5 x10 seated Clean and Press KB's

50-40-30-20-10
Push Ups
Sit Ups

10x10 Pull Ups

*Feels good to be getting after things a bit more aggressively . Cast off Friday , Im hoping I can start to bare some weight on the foot. Everything feels good , I'm optimistic about healing quicker than they originally said nonetheless I remain patient.

Sunday

2011-04-27T21:14:00.000-05:00

Food Log...

Breakfast : 1 oz Univera extra Concentrate , 4 whole Eggs , 10 - Strawberries , 1/2 Avocado , 6 Turkey Bacon Slices

Lunch : ( Whole Foods ) Pulled Chicken , Beef , Pico de Gallo , Guacamole , Lettuce , Beans

Dinner: (Lion and Rose ) Chicken Spinach Salad , No Dressing

Snacks: Made 2 Whey Protien Shakes w Blueberries , Blackberries , 1/2 Apple and Almond Milk

Friday / Saturday

2011-04-23T17:03:00.000-05:00

Friday - Training ....

30 Muscle Ups for Time...
9:42 About double the time it usually takes me for this workout. Largely due to the fct that cast throws off my kip , so they where mostly strict Muscle Ups.

Breakfast : 4 Whole Eggs , Bakes turkey bacon , whole avocado , 15 blueberries

Snack : whey protein , spinach , glatamine , coconut milk , water

Lunch : Double Cheesburger , french fries , ( P Terry's ) shit was great!

Dinner: Baked Organic Chicken Breast w Onions , 5 Strawberries , 10 Blueberries , 1/2 Avocado

Breakfast: 2 Cups Coffee

Lunch : (Maudies) Fajita Plate w beef and Chicken , Onions , Peppers , tomatoes , guacamole + 4 tortilla chips

Late Post

2011-04-21T00:11:00.001-05:00

Training Log...

"Lynne"
5 rounds
Max BW Bench Press
Max Pull Ups

Food Log

Breakfast - 4 Eggs (2 Egg Whites) ,Whole Advocado ,4 Slices Apple Farm Turkey Bacon , 3 Fish Oil Pills , Glutamine

Lunch "Salad Plate" Beef , Chicken , Avocado , Onions , Peppers , Tomatoes , Lettuce

Snack - Apple and Almond Butter

Dinner - Pecan Crusted Salmon , Spaghetti Squash w Spinach , Cucumber Salad with Apples and Grapes...and yes that is a Stella (there might have been 1 or 2 more to follow that one)

Achilles Blog: Tested

2011-04-19T23:06:00.001-05:00

Alrighty...today was the first day I felt impatient and bothered by my injury. Im sure it has something to do with being in front of people being able to train at a high level of intensity. I really miss being able to do that and to think I'm quit a ways from being able to go there with myself. I am soemwhat relieved to know that once I get the cast off , I wont have to worry about sweating. Meaning I can incorporate routines that will get my heart rate up. In the meantime..patience Daniel son..patience.

Food Log - Cutting down calories bc of my decrease in activity.

Breakfast - Sausage , Bacon , Eggs , Onions , peppers , tomatoes and avocado.

Lunch - Protein Shake ( Weak.I know...I should have prepared for my day being so busy )

Dinner - Baked Roughy Fish and Asparagus , 5 - 1000mg Fish Oil Pills ( Im experimenting with gel tablets...Im finding I prefer Norweigen Carlson Fish Oil liquid form better)

Keep it Rollin

2011-04-18T21:52:00.001-05:00

Breakfast - Quiche ( Bacon , Tomatoes , Eggs , Onions , Cheese , Almond Flour Crust )

Lunch - (El Sazon Salad Plate ) Grilled Chicken over Lettuce , Onions , Peppers and Avocado w Salsa

Snack - Protein Shake w Coconut Milk , Spinach and Cocoa Java Ice Cream a friend left in fridge :)

Rollin through the grocery store on dubs. These things go pretty fast but the best part is the loud siren it makes when backing up.

Dinner: Grilled Steak cubes w grilled onions, 1/2 Avocado , Spinach and Small Sweet Potatoe

Sunday Primal Log

2011-04-17T22:55:00.002-05:00

Breakfast: 4 Whole Eggs , 4 slices of Turkey Bacon , Whole avocado , 1 cup Coffee with Coconut Milk

Lunch: (Whole Foods)Pulled Chicken / Beef , Lettuce , Guacamole , Pico de Gallo and Peppers ... This is my favorite dish from WF..served at the Taco Bar..ask for the 2 Taco special in a box - no tortilla!

Dinner: Bison Burger with avocado , spinach salad with blueberries, tomatoes and Almonds. Olive Oil Dressing.

Glad to have little Bella back with me. Shes pretty amazing!

Saturday Update

2011-04-16T23:24:00.000-05:00

Training Log....

Bench Press 5 x 10

Ring Rows 5 x 10

Ring Dips 5 x 10
___________________________
Tabata Sit Ups (Butterfly)

3x 1minute Prone Iso Holds

Steak Avocado and Eggs w Fresh Fruit (Austin Java) Would have liked a whole Avocado and some blueberries but this worked for a Brunch.

Bison , Peppers , Onions and Salsa with plantain and Yucca. Had about double the serving pictured above. Great meal!

Achilles Blog: New Lighter , Sleaker Armor and Battle Wound

2011-04-15T12:29:00.002-05:00

Heading in for first follow up post surgery. Looking forward to see the new battle wound and getting some new armor!! Representin my boys over at Atomic Athlete!

Two and half inch incision starting just above my heel , was surprised as to how "small" it was. Just eight stitches!

After removing all the stitches , which did not hurt at all - we placed some protection tape on wound before applying the cast.

Few layers of cotton and fiber glass before the final layer.

Of course I had to represent my boys with Yankee Blue - Gonna be a great year for the Bronx Bombers. Dr. Elenz said that I had some strong and healthy tissue which should help things heal rather quick. Was pleased to hear I'm only in the hard cast for 2 weeks. Its already much more pleasant being in the cast as to the splint I previously had. Looking forward to returning back to work Monday!

Achilles Blog: 3 Days Post - Op

2011-04-11T14:26:00.002-05:00

So it's been three days since I had my surgery to repair my ruptured achilles tendon. Surgery went well and Dr. Elenz and the staff at Austin Sports Medicine have just been tremendous throughout this experience thus far. After surgery , which took about an 1hr & half I was allowed to go home. Thankfully I had an awesome friend stay with me for the night as I was a little loopy and immobile. Not sure I could have manged otherwise. For the first two nights after surgery I was having difficulty sleeping mainly due to the uncomfortableness of the dressing and having the meds still in my system. The pain has been moderate but seems to get better with each day. Rest ,Elevation and Ice is my life code for the next 10 days as Im given very specific instructions to stay put during this time. After 10 days (Friday) I get to replace this heavy and cumbersome dressing for a lighter more sleek fiberglass cast - definitely looking forward to that. My workout comes in the form of taking a bath- this is by far the most strenuous and technical thing I have ever done. Simply grueling and I bet somewhat comical. Besides that , which takes up a huge chunk of the day I'm spending my time doing business related task , reading and movies (Documentaries). Ive been really fortunate to not have to spend too much time alone thanks to some really awesome friends. Thanks again for everyone's help...food, company, support..all has been greatly appreciated!!

Also have been creating some cool challenges for myself such as seeing how many single leg hops it will take for me to get to the kitchen and back. So far the fewest has been 10. Think I can beat that. Did a fast as possible attempt to take the trash out..didn't go to smoothly. Life is grand! till next time..

Achilles Blog

2011-04-06T10:31:00.002-05:00

Ok , so Sunday April 3rd I suffered an Injury known as a Ruptured Achilles Tendon. The injury occurred in the midst of a workout routine , specifically performing box jumps. There were no symptoms or signs of concern leading up to the injury , in fact I felt extremely good and spent adequate time warming up including applying the lacrosse ball to my calves for a good amount of time. With about 2minutes left of a 15 minute workout while landing from a box jump I experienced a bizarre feeling as if someone had kicked me in the back of my lower leg. My initial thought was " What in the world just hit me?" I soon realized that there was nothing that "hit" me but rather I had serious injury. I had a strong feeling that it was my achilles that tore and after feeling for my achilles tendon and realizing it wasnt there , my feeling was confirmed. I held out hope that it was just a partial tear despite knowing deep down it was a full tear. The orthopedic Dr had confirmed that it was indeed a full tear. He said that surgery would give me the best chance at restoring strength and function albeit may never be 100 percent. So surgery is Friday and thus the long road to recovery begins. From what I'm told , 6 - 8 Months of Rehabbing is expected. Time to stay resilient and patient. Yes I'll be limited physically for a bit , however fitness is much more than physical capabilities. Fitness is inclusive to Mind and Spirit aswell , and this injury provides a chance for me to improve upon those aspects. As strange as it may sound , Im looking forward to that.

I am so grateful to have such an amazing support circle, can't tell you all how much your help ,concerns and well wishes mean. I'll keep everyone posted post operation.

Coach Jesse Travels to India

2011-04-05T09:01:00.001-05:00

Project India from Westlake Crossfit on Vimeo.

300 Wrap

2011-04-03T23:49:00.000-05:00

This past weekend Westlake Crossfit held it's first annual 300 Challenge. The event was a great success with ovr 35 athletes participating. Congrats to all the athletes and a special thank you to everyone who helped out!

Pics of the Event

Gym Rats

2011-03-28T22:25:00.002-05:00

Westlake Crossfit from Matt Parrish on Vimeo.

Floored

2011-03-22T22:58:00.001-05:00

Big thanks to everyone who helped lay down the new flooring , we now have roughly 2000 sq ft of usable gym space. Hard to believe we started out with just 800 sq ft. More proof that bootstrapping is effective , just start in the direction of your dreams - no matter how small the step. Remmber that constraints give birth to innovation. Many successful businesses and people (John Paul Dejoria , Michael Dell , Steve Jobs John Mackay )had to deal with some form of constraint , however they found a way to become forward thinking and become innovative. In many of these cases , that innovation formed from the constraint is the very essence of their business. Example Dell Computers dealt with some financial constraints in the beginning stages that didnt allow them to build computers ahead of time to deliver them, Ah Ha ..the innovation came in the form of Dell deciding to get the money from its customers first and then build and deliver the computer with their requested specs. That is the very essence of the Dell model. Again instead of meeting this constrain and standing still , Dell became innovative and moved forward. For more information of bootstrapping visit bootstrapaustin.org

A Week in the Box

2011-03-20T13:42:00.002-05:00

Buff-ing Up

2011-03-10T18:09:00.001-06:00

400lbs of grass fed organic buffalo meat.

Buffalo meat can be a great alternative to beef. Having less fat and cholesterol along with higher protein , iron and omegas creates a better choice for those of us that are health conscious. Buffalo was the primary meat source for American Indians up until the 1880's when the nearly became extinct. The breed is no longer endangered and are said have a population of 250,000.

Buffalo is raised on open grass land and graze on natural grass. Because they are not fed manufactured feed, there is no current concern about mad cow disease at this time. I was also told that unlike sheep and beef, they don't defecate in their own water source.Lets just hope the powers that be don't ever see big business in buffalo meat or you can rest assure that they , like the cows will start to become mass produced and raise in poor conditions.

270# PR

2011-03-03T17:18:00.004-06:00

Felt like I had more but was experiencing a twinge in the left knee. 275 has been a goal of mine.

Rockies

2011-02-27T17:49:00.002-06:00

Had a chance to get out to the Rockies for a few days of riding. We ended up checking out Copper Mountain and Arapahoe Basin. Both offered great experiences in their own ways. Copper the more developed and popular of the two was pretty tight , the runs were long with opportunity for tree runs. The resort village at the base was pretty groovy aswell. Conditions on the mountain were above average. A-basin , a smaller less frills mountain offered some steep trails with not so many tree runs , although the ones they offered where awesome. The conditions at A basin were a bit better than Copper largely due to the few inches of freshies the mountain received. All in all , we had some great days of riding. Looking forward to getting back out there to see what Vail and Keystone have to offer.

Tough Mudder

2011-02-22T11:01:00.001-06:00

Couple of weeks ago I participated in the Tough Mudder Challenge - a 10 mile course with 18 or so obstacles. This event boast itself to be the "toughest 1 day event" ..I wouldnt go that far. More like a fun mud run with mildly challenging obstacles. For me , these challnges were more mentally challnging than physically. Jumping of a cliff into ice cold water freaks me out a bit. Other obstacles included climbing 10 ft walls , jumping in ice water "literally" , climbing mud hills , trekking through mud pits , did I say jumping in ice water? Yeah the theme for this event is cold water and mud. Theres was something that was pretty physically challenging...the monkey bars. The idea was that the individual had to make his/her way across 30 ft of slippery and muddy monkey bars. I fell into the ice water with about 2 bars left to grab..still fired up about this.Not really..but would have liked to have made it across. The most surprising part about this challenge was how live the "live wire obstacle" was/ This obstacle claimed to contain wires with volts of electricity running through them in which you had to run through. For sure there just joking? Thats what I thought until I was floored by a wire with electricity running through it. I had never felt anything like that before...it was if my body just froze. I fell face first into the mud and Im sure provided some entertainment for all the spectators whom seem to have set up around this particular obstacle. All in all it was fun and something new..not sure ill do it again but had a great time with my teammates. We all needed one another to get through and we all finished. Good stuff!

Acceptance

2011-02-16T20:57:00.000-06:00

(Big Bend Backpacking)

A recurring thought for me this week has been the importance of patience and acceptance. The most important aspect of patience is that it allows the natural process of things to unfold. Natural -meaning of Nature ....Nature always delivers things at the appropriate time..it gives exactly what is needed when its needed. So my lesson learned is to try and stay in harmony with nature - Not speeding up and not slowing down. The next question is ..How do we know when were in harmony with nature? Good question!! Well for me it's an acceptance of things of which you have no control. Even the things that seem to not agree with our human plans - knowing these things occur for the good. Bob Sack once suggested to me that "all human suffering is a result to us taking things so personally" hmm food for thought. In the words of Marcus Aurelius " We always own the option of having no opinion" Jesus says it best with this passage "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?"

So this week I challenge you...when you feel yourself getting worked up..ask why? Is it that you are taken something personally? Is what is occurring in accordance with the natural process of things? Then why resist it?

Going Live

2011-02-11T19:11:00.001-06:00

Had a chance to see this artist last night and was thoroughly impressed with the show. She closed with this kid cudi cover , thought she killed it. Really listened to the songs lyrics , pretty dope.

Born to Run

2011-02-08T06:31:00.000-06:00

Christopher McDougall explores the mysteries of the human desire to run. How did running help early humans survive -- and what urges from our ancient ancestors spur us on today? At TEDxPennQuarter, McDougall tells the story of the marathoner with a heart of gold, the unlikely ultra-runner, and the hidden tribe in Mexico that runs to live.

Fly like a Butterfly

2011-02-01T17:04:00.000-06:00

The Pull Up has been a movement individualls have sought out to improve upon since the introduction of the strict pull up. But have we? I'm all for evolution withing training principles but not at the sake of keeping the intentions of a exercise intact. A GPP practitioner shouldn't look to abandon a movement in thinking that all pull ups are created equal. Instead one should be familiar and posses the ability to do Strict , Kip and Butterfly. All in my opinion have their place within training.

Deadhang Pull Ups - Main purpose is to develop Upper Body Pulling strength and Scapula Stability.

Kipping Pull Ups - A more dynamic version of the deadhang pull up. Incorparating a controlled horizontal swing to help gain vertical momentum. Core control ,accuracy and coordination play more of a role here than with the prvious mentioned dead hang pull up. While the strength gains are not seen as so with the dead hang. Scapula strength and control are extremely important and instrumental with this movement. However..one should not spend too much time with these without the ability to Dead Hang.

Butterfly - Should only be implemented by athletes who have more than adequately shown ability to perform the deadhang pull and the Kip. Even then, one must be extremely careful with this movement because of the elements of stress brought on to the shoulders and elbows. It would seem as though the main purpose of this movement is to beat the clock. Competitive crossfitters in that case would benefit from the butterfly.

Again , each of these movements serve different purposes thus in my opinion should be looked at that way...as different movements. Theres no need to have this universal opinion as to which is better or deemed acceptable.Its more important as to know when and how one should implement these movements into their training.

An Intro to MetCons

2011-01-24T09:39:00.002-06:00

When we deal with new athletes , they usually have a bias toward one of two levels of conditioning. 1. Muscular Strength or 2. Cardiovascular Ability. Very rarely do we see athletes that posses a decent level of metabolic conditioning. That is the ability to produce maximum intensity for a prolonged period of time. We usually find that an athlete unfamiliar with Metabolic conditioning can either work very hard for short period of time or either work at a very low intensity for longer periods of time.

Aurthur Jones writes..

At first glance it might well appear to be literally impossible to expect anything more from an athlete; after all, a muscle
certainly cannot work with maximum intensity for much more than approximately one minute… and even then, the
output will rapidly decline during the activity, simply because the athlete will be exhausting the working muscle fibers
much faster than the resting fibers can recover.
In order to perform aerobic work (steady-state work) it is necessary to limit the level of intensity… the percentage of
simultaneously working fibers must not be too high. An athlete must always have enough resting fibers ready to take
over and continue the work as they are needed. If the percentage of working fibers is too high, it is simply impossible
for the resting fibers to recover rapidly enough to take over the work as quickly as they are required.

So the question remains , how can it be possible to see increase in strength and cardiovascular condition? The answer..metabolic conditioning. Metabolic Conditioning is the ability to work at a very high level (close to 100% of intensity) for a period of 20 minutes or so. Certainly one could not work a specific muscle in this manner , thus one needs to work the whole body. Traditionally , strength training was a result of working a muscle to failure then resting for 3-4 minutes as to allow muscles to recover. This is great for its purpose but does nothing for cardiovascular gain. It simply does not allow an athlete to keep an elevated heart rate for an extended time. Metabolic conditioning along with strategic programming allows an athlete to perform a movement to near muscle exhaustion and then move to another exercise allowing for the athlete to continue to "work" thus using a different muscle group as prime movers allowing previous muscles to somewhat recover. Set this up in a manner ranging from 10 - 20 minutes and you can experience metabolic conditioning. To experience the gains we are speaking about , an athlete has to be careful of not resting for the sake of resting , instead find a balance that allows for an athlete to perform repetitions with desired form while bringing him/herself to near muscle exhaustion and maintaining an elevated heart rate. Starting out , a trainee may only be able to do this for very short period of time , very short. Asking the body to meet these metabolic demands for a newbie will inevitably result in a shock of the body resulting in sickness. This place should try and be avoided , thus one should gradually introduce these demands by allowing newbies to have a rest between exercises. As time goes on this rest time should be decreased as to the point that there is no designated rest. Again keep in mind , that demanding a "fast pace" does NOT suggest we strive for uncontrolled and undesired movement patterns.

Crossfit for Two Please!

2011-01-16T23:45:00.000-06:00

Unchartered Territory

2011-01-13T18:46:00.002-06:00

So, recently Ive had a few friends decide to walk into unfamiliar territory. One friend in particular has decided to take on the task of completing her first half marathon. I have gotten the chance to follow my friend Leila's journey via her blog and text updates. Throughout her journey and a few other friends new ventures , something became apparent to me...exposing yourself to new experiences and creating challenges for yourself are the keys to expanding your reality tunnel. Timothy Leary , I believe coined the phrase "Reality Tunnel" ...It suggest that reality is mediated by the individuals experiences in life - which in turn creates a belief system. "We don't see things as they are , we see things as we are" - Anais Nin. Expanding ones "Reality Tunnel" would mean at the very least , temporarily leaving the familiar behind. This is what I believe scares people , not the unknown - but losing what we "think" we know. When we stop looking at challenges as burdensome obstacles and look at them as ways to broaden our very existence, an amazing thing occurs - we no longer try to avoid them but instead seek them out and welcome them openly. Step into that unfamiliar territory and don't wish not to encounter a challenge , but rather meet that challenge eagerly. Tough Mudder - here we come!

Good luck to Leila this weekend , I know she'll do great but the real awesomeness was in that she set off on the journey and stayed the course!

Say Wha?

2011-01-08T13:07:00.002-06:00

Don't Frees

2011-01-04T20:55:00.001-06:00

(Minimalist Madness Zilker Park)

Recently I have been hitting the trails running in the Vibrams. After spending the last 2 months running in the Nike Frees 5.0. - (another self proclaimed minimal shoe) I notice quite a difference. When running in the Frees- No matter how much I focus on forefoot running , its pretty challenging to maintain. Although the Frees don't have a thick heel commonly found on most running shoes, they do have a bit of an elevated heel. This elevated heel make it challenging to run on the forefoot...especially for a new forefoot runner. I have only been running forefoot/POSE for roughly a year. I relate my heel striking in the Frees to two things...One , the heel from the Frees just gets in the way when striking. The second , of which I think is more likely the culprit is that Im resorting back to habits picked up throughout the years of being a shod runner. Running with an elevated heel and still being able to manage a forefoot strike will still in my opinion lead to some lost of biomechanical efficiency that you get with barefoot/flat because your foot wont be able to naturally compress toward the ground without ramming into the cushion of the shoe. My experience with the frees does not at all mimic that of barefoot running. With that being said I would not suggest someone transitioning into barefoot running through the Frees. I would say go barefoot ...just take your time getting used to it.

WCF Logo Animation

2010-12-29T10:54:00.001-06:00

Created by Corner5 Media (Bren Wilson)

DOMS

2010-12-22T21:39:00.004-06:00

Many of us, if not all of us in the Crossfit world have experienced "real" muscle soreness. You know the kind that leave you feeling like you've been beat with a bat or two . Or the kind that makes getting out of bed seem like a NASA mission. We all to some degree have experienced these symptoms , but understanding why and how to treat these pleasures are important.

The soreness we are speaking about here is known as DOMS (Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness) . DOMS is usually noticeable about 8 hrs after a workout but usually peaks somewhere between 24 and 48 hrs. DOMS can leave an athlete feeling a great deal of muscle tenderness and stiffness. To keep it simple these symptoms are caused by the body healing its self through an inflammatory response system triggered by damage to muscle fibers. Crossfit athletes are more likely to encounter DOMS because of crossfit's constantly varied attitude. Muscle fibers being exposed to new stress factors are more likely to become damaged and therefore needing to adapt.

Treating DOMS is tricky...one might think that popping an anti- inflammatory would do the trick. But this can actually be a very bad idea !! Popping anti-inflammatory can lead to a muted recovery process thus leaving an athlete not benefiting from the inflammatory response that builds more adequate muscle fibers.

So how do we treat DOMS? Proper rest and recovery of fatigued muscle groups should be practiced. DOMS is something that has to run its course...a solid program will keep an athlete functioning on a high performance level while experiencing great gains!!

Reebok and Crossfit ?

2010-12-19T11:31:00.007-06:00

What are we to think about this relationship? Although its not clear as to what extent this dynamic exist ...its pretty evident that mutual interest is being shared by both parties. Upon initial thought , one thinks we have an example of big business taking control of a growing business to enforce its objective - MAKE MONEY! Understandably , this mind set would create concern for the CF community as anyone who has been around the CF community for some time has witnessed CF being a Company that's stayed true to its brand. Crossfit has had multiple opportunity to "sell out" , to put financial interest over interest of quality and community, it never has. Instead , Crossfit gave eager entrepreneurs the duty of growing the community. With a self proclaimed "Darwinian/Free Market" approach, we watched over 1500 affiliates spring up , website designers , apparel companies and equipment companies . Reebok obviously sees an opportunity to tap into a demographic they have lost touch with..the fitness community. A big question remains as to what degree will they do so? Will we in the near future see Reebok open state of the art Crossfit boxes all over the world ? Will they become the leading distributor of equipment and merchandise for Crossfit? The alternative , of which I believe to be more likely will yield an dynamic synergy. One in which Crossfit will continue to be in the drivers seat. Glassman has not caved in before and we can expect that he wont now.

Beautiful

2010-12-16T21:52:00.011-06:00

This is just one part of a 54 part video series from Anthony de Mello. Ive often tried to verbalize these ideas to people but it never seems to sound this soothing. Enjoy!

Ive read two of his books "Awareness" and "The Way to Love"

Oly - Art

2010-12-09T21:24:00.001-06:00

Jarrod Clean & Jerks 265 from Westlake Crossfit on Vimeo.

The clean and jerk is one of 2 Olympic lifts. The lift is comprised of two movements - The clean , brings the bar from the ground to the shoulders. To get a max load into this position most athletes will perform what most call a "squat clean" . In the weightlifting community the word "clean" alone represents the full movement. The aspect of the lift is the "jerk". This movement allows for the athlete to attempt to bring the bar from the shoulders to above head. The split jerk as done above typically allows for maximal load to be moved into position.

Making Changes

2010-12-08T09:06:00.000-06:00

Over the last six weeks we have seen Chris make some dynamic changes in his lifstyle. Chris showed amazing consistancy in his attendance and put forth great efforts during sesions. Chris also made a huge commitment to the Paleo Diet. It no wonder Chris has seen the results he has...

In six weeks Chris Lost 10lbs , reduced his body fat % from 23.2 to 17.4 and lost 10.25 total inches. Chris also improved on his baseline workout by 3:50! Great job Chris! Keep up the great work!

Mo- Showdown

2010-11-30T20:33:00.003-06:00

Who: Members of Atomic Athlete, Westlake Crossfit, The Tribe and any other willing and able athlete to come out and throw down.

What: The event will be between 60 - 90 minutes in duration depending on the athletes fitness. There will be running, sandbags, barbells, kettlebells, rocks and other types of instruments. It is one long continuous event.

When: Saturday December 4th at 9am - event will start at 9:30

Where: Zilker Park next to the Volleyball courts

Why: To raise money for Prostate Cancer and the Livestrong Foundation, and show off your mustache while doing manly acts of strength

How: Donate $15 or more to Atomic Athlete's Movember page HERE and we will put you on the list. Show up on time to warm up and sign the waiver because this is a mass start event that will start at 9:30. Participation is limited so sign up early.

The Journey

2010-11-21T19:26:00.003-06:00

Training has to be more than an physical act. Training is about the journey. When we do or don't achieve our goals in the gym , its important we analyze the journey. The physical act of lets say accomplishing a PR plays a subordinate role to the actual process that allowed one to do so. Discipline of proper training , eating , recovery , etc trump the actual act itself. If we lose sight of this , then in my opinion we miss the essence of why we do what we do. The journey is where all the growth comes from , the PR is just a physical reflection of the growth. On the contrary , if one doesn't reach his/her goal , we still look at the process as to correct the cause. Ultimately our athletes strive for excellence with an understanding that excellence can never be attained thus never creating a fealing of "arrival".

Modern man is conditioned to expect instant gratification but any success or triumph realized quickly, with only marginal effort is necessarily shallow. Meaningful achievement takes time, hard work, persistence, patience, proper intent and constant self-awareness. The path to such success is punctuated by failure, consolidation and renewed effort. It is wet with the tears of emotional breakdown. Personal reconstruction is art. Discovering one's self, one's talent and ambition and learning how to express it is a creative process so may not be rushed. What's the hurry? Pressure to succeed according to a particular timeline comes from outside. If the goal is selfish self-improvement there is no schedule, no deadline. One's rate of progress is influenced by the intensity used to address the task. Hard, intelligent work speeds us along the path. Neurotic obsession and compulsion may steepen the trajectory but usually lead to illness and injury. In the end, the process takes as long as it takes -- you can't push the river. We are in it for the long haul and demand the same of the athletes we train - Gym Jones

Impossible is Nothing

2010-11-11T20:33:00.004-06:00

When I was twelve yrs of age , I remember walking on a campaign trail with my late father whom was running for city councilman at the time. Not sure how the conversation began exactly , however I remember speaking about things being impossible. I had spoke words to my father suggesting certain things were just impossible , to my surprise , my father focused all his attention to me and looked me in the eyes and told me "Impossible is nothing" and that " just because it hasn't been done yet , does not suggest it can not be done." Being the little know it all 12 yr old - I replied " I know something that's impossible , its impossible for someone to balance themselves on one finger" Search around on youtube long enough and you will easily see I was wrong.

We place limitations on ourselves far before (if at all) external limitation play a factor in our pursuits. While I certainty don't consider myself to have ever accomplished the impossible , I certainty never thought that I couldn't. Thanks Dad.

This is one of my all time favorite quotes..it comes from the book "A Return To Love" by Marianne Williamson

"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, 'Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?' Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others."

Core Facts

2010-11-09T21:58:00.001-06:00

Unfortunately the term core strength has become synonymous with having a "six pack". In fact mention the word core to someone and they immediately start doing crunches. This is a direct result of marketing gimmicks designed to appeal to the average Joe's desire to have a flat tummy.

In reality the core is comprised of many different muscles that run the length of the torso and trunk. Most of these muscles are underlying and not visible but yet have the biggest impact on your core strength. Because your core is in essence the catalyst for all movement, having a well developed core will greatly enhance the efficiency of all your movements. Crossfit exercises allow athletes to improve core strength through movements that require midline stabilization. The next time your doing a movement practice maintaining rigidity of the torso and pelvis. This can be done anytime anywhere..in fact i have my clients practice this while driving by straightening the torso squeezing shoulder blades and tightening the the midsection all while squeezing the glutes. Try this while walking..you literally will feel like a machine..the tightness and control you feel over your body is remarkable. So the next time you feel like doing a 1000 crunches to strengthen your core...think of doing some overhead squats instead!!

True Champions

2010-11-04T20:02:00.006-05:00

Recently I've been granted the privilege of training two amazing individuals whom happen to be married , Eddie and Elinor Reese. Eddie and Elinor have been married for 42 yrs! Amazing huh? Well I think so. Eddie and Elinor attend training sessions together and the dynamic between the two is simply amazing! Elinor has spent majority of her adult life as an philanthropist and humanitarian , in fact Elinor spent time helping Mother Theresa with her deeds in India. (An amazing story in itself). A few months ago Elinor invited me out with her and volunteer group to feed the homeless , I had a first hand look at all the effort that goes into this seemingly simple act of service. More profound was seeing the impact it had on the people whom we helped. That feeling from genuinely and freely giving leaves no doubt that , that is what we are meant to do as humans. Eddie Reese is incredible in his own rigth - Eddie or Coach Reese is Heads Mens swim coach for the University of Texas. Eddie has been head coach at UT for over 30 yrs and has coached his teams to 10 National Championships! Not sure guys can grasp that 10 National Division 1 Sports Championships...incredible! Eddie has also coached 3 mens Olympic Teams including Michael Phelps , Brendan Hanson and Aaron Piersol to name a few of the world class athletes hes coached. As you can imagine being in the company of two individuals of this caliber is quite a blessing. I feel like I should be the one writing the checks to them. If theres anything I take away from these two and there most definitely is - its Humility ,Simplicity and Integrity. Thank you both for being a great source of inspiration!

Inspired by these two , I have decided to start a coat drive. Westlake Crossfit with the help of Mobile Loaves & Fishes will be collecting through Dec 1st. Please bring new or used coats to Westlake Crossfit. If you have coats that need to be picked up please email me at Jevon@westlakecrossfit.com

Looking Back to get Ahead

2010-11-01T22:33:00.003-05:00

Almost exactly to the day one year ago , I posted the following blog. Not sure what led me to look back at this , but this comes at a much needed time. Feels good to reassure myself of what truly matters to me.

Things I try and live by...

1. Live with purpose. A purpose driven life is the secret for fulfillment and helps fuel us with persistence.

2. Build your philosophies on solid principles. This will determine your attitude in life which in turn will determine your actions in life.

3. Find ways to contribute to those who need help.

4. Always Always be grateful for things you have.

5. Nourish your relationships. Often remind the people you care about just how important they are to you. Tell the people you love that you love them every chance you get. Most importantly show them!

6. Always think win/win. Synergy has the ability to create great things. when both parties feel their need are being met, the dynamic of the relationship tends to be empowering.

7. Take responsibility. True change can never come about until you first accept responsibility.

8. Don't be afraid to admit when your wrong. Too much pride can lead to destruction.

9. Avoid negative people and negative thoughts.

10. Listen more than you speak. Take the time to genuinely understand others and their perspective. Remember , we have all lived and have had experiences that shap our perceptions of things. Don't be so quick to throw your perception on others.

11. Laugh everyday!!! Find humor in things !!!

12. Be honest in your dealings. Honesty creates pure relationships with people and allows relationships to grow strong and fruitfull.

13. Be passionate in what you do. Life is filled with obstacles, if your not fueled with passion ..its very hard to have the strength and motivation to keep going when things get tough.

14. Forgive!!! We all make mistakes. Learn to forgive others and yourself for mistakes.

15. Be aware of the ego. The ego does everything in its power to keep us from our true self which holds unlimited love for us to share.

16. Don't wait for the "perfect time" Take a single step toward your goal. No matter how big or small..do whatever you can right now that will lead you in the direction of your dream.

17.Take care of your mind , body and soul.

18. Don't be so concerned with what others think that it becomes the prime motivator in your life. You will be trying to please everyone..this is impossible and lead to insecurity.

19. Commit to something bigger than yourself. Yes we are important and the things we do have tremendous purpose but lets not every forget that there is a higher power that we were created to fulfill His will.

20. Be proactive. The change you see in yourself and in the world..go out and be it!!!

21. Welcome challenges. Don't be discouraged by difficult situations , they provide ways for us to grow and become stronger.

22. Be childlike. Being childlike doesn't mean being childish..don't take yourself too seriously ..have fun ..ask questions...go explore and don't judge!!!

23. Don't live in the past...it's ok to look back into the past and recall great moments and to learn from mistakes but embrace the present and be excited for the future!!!

24. Be HAPPY with yourself !!....No amount of money..no relationship or any material thing will make you happy if we are not truly happy with ourselves. Only a true understanding and acceptance of who we really are can do so.

The Journey

2010-10-29T22:58:00.004-05:00

Baja California Timelapses from Mike Flores on Vimeo.

"Life is complex. Each one of us must make his own path through life. There are no self-help manuals, no formulas, no easy answers. The right road for one is the wrong road for another ... The journey of life is not paved in blacktop; it is not brightly lit, and it has no road signs. It is a rocky path through the wilderness." - M. Scott Peck

Getting Back

2010-10-21T21:21:00.004-05:00

I must admit that I sometimes loose focus of why I decided to get into the health and wellness field. The day to day intricacies of running a business can lead to me loosing focus of my A-1 agenda ..To Empower People. Well this week I was given a few reminders as to what it is that fuels my efforts. I have been blessed with the opportunity to work with some incredible individuals and I can assure you that you all encourage, motivate and teach me just as much as what you say we do for you! Thank you

"My one year anniversary at WCF is coming up in November. Thanks to the coaches and motiviation from my workout crew I've lost 20 lbs, am down three sizes, and am the healthiest I have ever been. At the same time I know there are still PR's to set and a lot of room for improvement, but that what makes crossfit exciting! The sky is the limit. So if anyone asks, I'll be the first to say crossfit "works"!" - Wendy

"I just passed my 1 year anniversary. I can see the weight increases in the gym & in my logs everyday and it keeps me motivated (ok, so some of my friends would call it obsessive, whatever! :) Today, I saw my body composition numbers over the last 12 months: 28 lbs gone, 17.5% body fat gone, 39 lbs of fat mass gone - 5 lbs of muscle added in just the last six weeks. Most importantly, there is never a day of boredom in the box and I'm in the best health I've ever had! "The J's" are not only the most knowledgable trainers I've met, they are motivating, encouraging & fun! Our WLCF community is an awesome group of people - all of this makes 6:00 am TODS worth every minute! Thanks everyone for the support! Yes, Crossfit Works!"- Heather

"I enjoyed a milestone today doing Kipping pull-ups without any bands for the whole workout! When I started 18 months ago I was doing jumping pull-ups. It's great to experience the progression and finally do something that seemed impossible for a long time". - Mackenzie

Game On

2010-10-14T17:11:00.006-05:00

I recently had some exposure to some talk about "gaming" workouts. It seems as though this certain individual feels theres no place for "gaming" in workouts. This is pretty odd to me for a few reasons. One , if we look into what "gaming" actually means , one could sum it up to creating a strategy to illicit a better result. (Whether your going all out or pacing your still "gaming"..no?) However , more specifically I believe what is meant by "gaming" is creating a strategy other than going balls to the walls throughout a workout. From a personal perspective , the idea that one "games" a workout is a bit silly. In my experience athletes attack different task with different approaches. There's a huge difference between 100m and a 5k. The fact I don't sprint my 100m pace for my 5k doesnt mean I am gaming it. In fact there are some physiological reasons that may limit me from doing so. The idea behind "gaming" is to understand your body and its capacity. The end goal is to increase work capacity. All while staying efficient , safe and capable. A workout is just about mental control as it is physical efforts. One is asking for trouble to recklessly throw himself at a workout. Again these workout are about exploring - finding what works for you. Ripping into a wod full throttle may work for you , pacing or "gaming" may deliver equally impressive results for another. Again , ultimately our goal is quality stimulus to improve work capacity over time. As a coach . if I want to take away an individuals ability to "game" ...I simply create less variables..such as do 20 squats on the minute for 20 minutes. Im telling the athlete what to do when to do it and for how long. So anyway my point is...lets not criticize the athlete who has a planned approach to his/her wods. Not everyone has elite fitness levels , confidence and awareness of their capacities and need to do a little "gaming" to figure these things out.

A look inside

2010-10-13T22:30:00.004-05:00

For anyone that's ever wondered what battles and struggles crossfit coach's go through, check out my boy Jarrod Freshour's blog. Jarrod is a fantastic athlete and well respected strength and conditioning coach. He has decided to chronicle 30 days of journal upkeep primarily focused on nutrition. Click here to stay tuned in.

"Today was actually a good day! Slept like a rock and woke up rested.... At 5am I had 1 1/2 cups of coffee, black, 1 tablespoon of butter (I know I forgot about the milk solids in it. Im getting ghee this evening), 1tablespoon of bacon fat, 2 whole eggs, 3 egg whites, 2 pieces of bacon, 1/2 cup of broccoli, and 1/4 of avocado. Then at 10am, for a snack I had a nectarine and a hand full of mixed nuts. My workout at 11am: 1 mile run, 200 double unders, 1mile run, 200 situps for time. 30:03. The workout felt pretty good. The situps were easier than usual but the second mile was pretty tough!"

Bull Creek Trail Run

2010-10-12T17:30:00.003-05:00

Join us this Saturday for a trail run along Bull Creek. This trail is said to be on the difficult side , the run is roughly 5 miles and has areas where climbing will be involved.

When : 8am
Where : Meet at Bull Creek Dog Park

Ten things that may surprise you about trail running.

1) Not all trail runs are ultra adventures. Trail runs can be short in both time and distance.
2) It's OK to walk. Not every step has to be at "race pace."
3) Trails look different if you run them in the opposite direction. Honestly. You enjoy different vistas, notice rocks in different places, forget that hills that were downhill one way are uphill from the other direction.
4) Trails look different with the change of season. A bare dust-strewn trail can look very different under a fresh coat of snow, or covered in piles of freshly fallen leaves.
5) If you take your eyes off the trail, you often find yourself on the ground. Stay focused on the trail underfoot unless you stop to take in the vistas.
6) Trails aren't all uphill. Sure, there can be some ups and downs, but there are some relatively flat, gentle trails. Especially prevalent along rivers, or canals.
7) Uphill running can be challenging. Who says going out for a 30 minute explosive, uphill, gut-busting trail run isn't fun...after you're done gasping for air! Throw in some hill runs or repeats during the winter months to mix up your training.
8) A good pair of trail shoes enhances your experience on the trails. Road shoes are primarily built for sustained foot plants not for the constant pace changes on the trails - there's variation in footing, in gradient, in obstacles encountered.
9) Apparel is important too. Run in clothing appropriate for the conditions - what they are and what they may become. Winter temps can be fickle!
10) Softer surfaces have much less stress on your joints.

BettySport and WCF

2010-10-04T20:57:00.001-05:00

When: Thursday, October 21
Time: 6-9 pm
Where: Bettysport (916a West 12th Street)
Come to Bettysport for a night dedicated to Westlake Crossfit! We will give you great information on sports bras, shoes and apparel. We will fit you for everything that you need and make sure it is comfortable and functional for your active life. You will receive 15% of your entire purchase that night and we'll provide some food and drinks! Feel free to bring your family and friends as well.

About Bettysport
Bettysport opened its doors in October of 2004 with the vision to offer women the highest of quality in fitness apparel, footwear and accessories. We found that to be the best quality doesn't always equate to the highest price. You don't need to spend a fortune to find workout apparel that will last through countless sweat sessions, but you do need to know what to look for. And that's where Bettysport comes in....

We do the research and wear testing to make sure the styles in our stores meet this expectation. Everything we carry will last through your toughest workouts and give you the look you can wear with confidence from the gym to the coffee shop.

Good Fight

2010-09-29T20:11:00.002-05:00

Thanks to all the WLC volunteers who helped with this years FGB! Also , congrats to all the competitors who fought the good fight. What an awesom event , WLC worked alongside a few local affilliates to host such a great event. Thanks and respect are in order for Crossfit Central , Crossfit Round Rock , Crossfit Austin , Fit and Fearless and Crossfit Texas.

Worldwide , Crossfit Affilliates were able to raise over a million dollars for Livestrong Foundation , Wounded Warrior Project and The Crossfit Foundation.

Rock Bottom

2010-09-24T08:13:00.003-05:00

Anyone who as had some experience trying to perfect the snatch knows just how intricate of a movement it is. There are a plethora of movement patterns that need to fire timely to create an efficient movement. And thats not to mention the abilities it takes in order to do so. Check out what Greg Everett has to say about the "Snatch"

"The snatch is a tricky lift, but often athletes end up making it harder than it needs to be by neglecting some basic details that are extremely easy to take care of. It's surprisingly common for people to miss snatch after snatch during their recovery from the bottom position simply because they're in too much of a hurry to stand up.

The priority in the receiving position of the snatch is to establish stability. There is absolutely no need, as there is in the clean, to use the elasticity of a bounce from the bottom to recover. If you can't stand up from a dead stop with your best snatch weight, you have a lot of squatting to do.

As anyone who has tried snatching knows, there is very little room for error in positioning overhead. If the bar is not in a nearly perfect position, you don't have the proper body structure under the weight, and/or your balance over your feet is off, you simply will not be able to support the bar (this if course is more and more true as the weight increases - pretty much anyone can hold a light weight in the wrong position).

All this is to say, don't be in too much of a hurry to stand up after you get the bar overhead. Let yourself settle into the bottom position and stabilize before you go anywhere. The best place to stabilize is the bottom of the squat, except in very rare cases in which you might be able to sneak your feet forward a bit to get under a tipping bar. The vast majority of the time, standing up will simply magnify any existing instability. That is, if the bar is forward, attempting to stand up will just push it farther forward.

In the bottom position, think of pushing straight up against the bar while allowing the weight of the bar to push you straight down into the bottom of the squat. Establish this vertical alignment of forces in your mind and you'll find that you do it physically much more easily.

Sometimes all it takes to solve someone's biggest snatch problem is to make them stay in the bottom for a 2-count. If they actually do it (I'm talking to you, Tamara), suddenly they stop missing lifts. If this turns out not to work well, consider it a diagnostic tool--in this case, it indicates that the problem is occurring sooner in the lift, e.g. the athlete is not adequately finishing the turnover or the like, and then that can be addressed specifically.

As fast as the lift is, remember that it also requires a great deal of patience."

That time

2010-09-20T20:47:00.002-05:00

Fight Gone Bad from CrossFit Central on Vimeo.

Westlake Crossfit, Crossfit Central, Fit and Fearless Crossfit, Crossfit Austin, Crossfit Texas, and Crossfit Round Rock welcomes you to participate in the 5th Annual Fight Gone Bad. Fight Gone Bad is a fundraising event in which Crossfit affiliates worldwide put on a single workout to raise money for charity. This year, Fight Gone Bad opens its arms to benefit three charities: LIVESTRONG, Wounded Warrior Project and the CrossFit Foundation.

About Fight Gone Bad:
Fight Gone Bad began as a fundraising event in 2006. From those humble beginnings and with the support of the CrossFit community, we’ve proven what a small, totally committed group of people can accomplish. The first four editions of Fight Gone Bad have raised a combined total of more than $2 million. Fight Gone Bad 5 takes place on Saturday, September 25, 2010.

Confront Comfort

2010-09-11T22:18:00.003-05:00

Stepping away from your comfort zone can be a terrifying experience. Thoughts of trying something new can undoubtedly send your heart rate racing. We fear rejection , injury , and failure. So despite our desires to grow and acquire our goals , we become complacent. Complacency is the enemy of creativity , growth and success and it causes us to settle for far less than what were capable of.

One must understand that having expectations of different results while doing the same things just isn't possible. I believe Albert Einstein said it best with his definition of insanity- " doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results " . Yet so many of us let fear keep us in this cycle , and although fear is necessary part of human existence , it holds many of us back from living fulfilled lives.

"Miraculous things happen to those who consciously choose to overcome their fears. As they begin to move forward in a new life journey, many find deep, long lost, feelings of inner strength and renewed self-confidence. They gain certainty in their skills, abilities and even downfalls. They have the good fortune of learning more about themselves, their wants, needs and desires, thus opening new doors of opportunity and enjoyment." - Dr Rita Louise

Be a champion in life

2010-09-07T17:37:00.003-05:00

See Thru

2010-08-29T20:33:00.006-05:00

We are fortunate to live in a health conscious city that offers a bevy of ways to seek out your fitness goals. With that being said , that choice should be well thought out and taken seriously. In any competitive marketplace you will experience different claims and agendas about said establishments. In the world of performance based training, there are a few things I believe to be essential in terms of a successful program.

Many people make the mistake of identifying a "hard" workout with an effective workout. Working hard without working smart can be counterproductive aswell as dangerous. I often ask people about their training and almost everyone's initial response is about how hard it is..I usually responsd with "great! , what is the purpose of your training sessions? Is their adequate coaching going on or is there just someone yelling at you to keep going , push harder? Was their attention being set on proper warm up and cool down? What was your adaptational response to your sessions..and were they inline with your goals? Has anyone talked to you about nutrition? Most of these question tend to get answered with a "no".

Be smart in choosing a performance based program ... don't let high volume workouts with silly exercise names be the catalyst for your decision. Dig a bit deeper into the very essence of the program. Their will always be a coach / trainer out there with more knowledge but having a coach dedicated to learning is invaluable. You "HAVE" to have a quantifiable objective and check points to make sure your advancing toward your goals...don't fall into the trap of haphazardly training. A solid training program should gradually look to increase an individuals adaptation threshold through a steady approach , not quick shock value. Smart training is designed not to make you feel like your gonna die after each session but rather to provide sessions that steadily look to create stress factors that cause the body to adapt.

Yum Omelette

2010-08-27T09:29:00.001-05:00

Pear & Kale Omelet By Greg Carver

Whole eggs are a staple of the paleo diet. I love them, and rarely get bored of fixing or eating them. I’ll eat them boiled, fried, baked, scrambled, poached and even raw. A great source of inexpensive protein, they also contain all the carbs, fat and micronutrients necessary to nourish developing chicks – meaning they’re nature’s perfect food.

If you’re struggling to find new ways to prepare eggs in the morning, try this simple kale and pear omelette.

Pear & Kale Omelette

several kale leaves, finely chopped (washed and patted dry, tough stems removed)
1 sugar pear, finely diced
1/2″ piece of fresh ginger, grated
4 free-range eggs, beaten
2 T organic virgin coconut oil (for frying)
2 oz coconut milk (for whipping eggs)
black pepper

Heat a skillet to medium and add the coconut oil to melt. Beat the eggs in a bowl with an ounce or two of coconut milk to make them fluffy. Finely chop the kale, dice the pear into small pieces and peel the ginger.

Add the kale and then the pear to the skillet, and cook for about 2 minutes. The kale should wilt a bit, but retain its colour. Grate the ginger into the pan and season with some freshly ground black pepper.

Whip the eggs one more time and add them to the skillet, pouring them over the kale, pear and ginger mixture. Immediately lower the heat, and use a spatula if necessary to lift the sides of the egg mixture to avoid sticking. Cover the skillet and allow the mixture to gently set over low heat.

This omelette does not require flipping, but can be folded prior to serving. I had mine with local black kale and Ontario sugar pears.

On a final note, please support old-fashioned egg laying and production methods. The recent salmonella scares and subsequent egg recalls in the U.S. are the result of our increasing demand for cheap food and reliance on factory farming. Refuse to be part of the problem!

FGB5

2010-08-22T21:06:00.002-05:00

Fight Gone Bad began as a fundraising event in 2006. From those humble beginnings and with the support of the CrossFit community, we’ve proven what a small, totally committed group of people can accomplish. The first four editions of Fight Gone Bad have raised a combined total of more than $2 million.

Fight Gone Bad 5 opens its arms to benefit three charities this year: LIVESTRONG, Wounded Warrior Project and the CrossFit Foundation.

Fight Gone Bad 5 takes place on Saturday, September 25, 2010.

In this workout you move from each of five stations after a minute. This is a five-minute round from which a one-minute break is allowed before repeating. The event is in the 3 round format. The stations are:

Wall-ball: 20 pound ball, 10 ft target. (Reps)
Sumo deadlift high-pull: 75 pounds (Reps)
Box Jump: 20″ box (Reps)
Push-press: 75 pounds (Reps)
Row: calories (Calories)

The clock does not reset or stop between exercises. On call of “rotate,” the athlete/s must move to next station immediately for good score. One point is given for each rep, except on the rower where each calorie is one point.

We encourage everyone to sign up and workout for this awesome cause , the event will be held from 8 am to 11am at Westlake Highschool. Please regester under our Affiliate page at www.fgb5.org.

We will be holding a practice run this Saturday 8 - 10..anyone interested please rsvp to jevon@westlakecrossfit.com

Move Natural

2010-08-15T16:55:00.002-05:00

This morning I was inspired to get out and be within nature after coming across this video. I decided to go to an area that was extremely isolated from the modern world , or at least within its boundaries it would seem to be. Much of my training has been comprised of lifting steel bars in various ways. Of course I see the benefit in training in such a domain , however its important that we go out and run , climb, crawl, roll, throw, jump , carry, and discover our biological nature.

Movnat founder Erwin Le Corre writes

“I meet men all the time who can bench 400 pounds but can’t climb up through a window to pull someone from a burning building,” Le Corre says. “I know guys who can run marathons but can’t sprint to anyone’s rescue unless they put their shoes on first. Lots of swimmers do laps every day but can’t dive deep enough to save a friend, or know how to carry him over rocks and out of the surf.” . . .

There was something mentally and spiritually moving from my experience this morning.

Six Times

2010-08-12T21:44:00.001-05:00

Six Times from Patrick Cummings on Vimeo.

Affiliate Love

2010-08-10T14:32:00.003-05:00

Picture Courtesy of CFCentral

This past weekend I was privileged to receive an invite to a regional affiliate gathering hosted by Crossfit Central. This was a chance for myself and roughly 50 other affiliate owners to hear from and converse with some of the "veteran" affiliate owners. I walked away from this experience with a great deal of insight brought on by others experiences. More importantly , I walked away knowing that our region has a handful of affiliates dedicated to empowering others through means of fitness and community. This goal met with a synergistic mindset has the ability to create dynamic change world wide!

Learning from Failing

2010-08-05T07:54:00.004-05:00

Untitled from Westlake Crossfit on Vimeo.

Failed attempt at 200lbs , what would have been a 5 lbs pr acts as a learning tool. I see an early arm bend happening here as well as never reaching full hip extension which led me to jump forward..however the biggest issue on why I wasnt able to complete the lift seems to be that I didnt completely turn the bar over on my last pull. As you can see the bar was never secure.

Thrive - Austin

2010-08-04T08:25:00.003-05:00

Looking to get some massage - active release technique work done? Check out Holly Odom over at Thrive-Austin.

After a week off from training and a 90 minute session at Thrive , I'm ready to get back on it.