Upcoming events and schedule changes:

Monday May 27th:  Memorial Day Murph: This memorial day we will only have one big class at 9am. Come celebrate Memorial Day by honoring a hero, Lt. Michael Murphy, and taking on one of the most popular CrossFit Hero workouts. All other classes on Memorial day are canceled.

Friday May 31st: Moving day prep: ALL CLASSES CANCELLED. We will be tearing the gym apart in preparation to move it all on Saturday June first. I hate cancelling classes, but there is just no way around it in this case. We will be taking apart the pull-up rig, taking down the whiteboards and taking up the flooring among other things to make moving day easier.

As you all know we will be moving to the New CrossFit Brownwood on June first. Our first classes there will be Monday June 3rd. Our new location is the large warehouse on the back corner of West Texas printing. There are two large bay doors (ones that our facing our current gym) that are part of our new gym. Sometime in the next couple of weeks I will have signs up on that corner building, so you won't miss it. We have done a lot on the new building to get it ready for us, but there is still a lot of work to do. If it appears that I have been a little pre-occupied in the gym the past few weeks, it is because I am spending every available minute trying to get  ready for the move. Please know, however, that if you need anything at all, help with your diet, help setting goals or just need a little help with your overall fitness, we are still here and available, just let one of us know.

We have a lot planned for CrossFit Brownwood once we move and get settled in. The move to the much larger gym is just the beginning.

Here are some updates on what is going on:

The building:

• I have the bathrooms roughed in and almost completed
• I have installed new lighting and added the necessary outlets for fans and coolers.
• New 20' climbing ropes and rings have been installed in their own area out of the way of the main floor. (we will have 2 inch carpeted foam under all of the rings and ropes)
• I will be completing the waiting area/kids area sometime this week.
• Astroturf will be installed sometime next week (hopefully)

We have two work days planned for anyone that would like to help and be a part of getting the new gym finished out.
Saturday May 25th starting at 9am: If you can come out at anytime during the day we will have something for you to do. We have some painting to do, basic construction left to do, flooring to put down, some new jump boxes to assemble, a little cleaning and other various tasks that anyone can do.
Saturday June 1st starting at 9am: The big moving day. If you have a few hours to help us move we would really appreciate it. We are looking to possibly have a cooker going for a little BBQ lunch at the new gym when the work is done.

The Schedule:

We will be making some minor changes to the class schedule and adding a couple of time slots in June. We will wait until we get settled in before making any major changes. I will have the June changes and additions out to everyone in the next few days.

Look at that smile....

Name: Christi J.
Age: 34
Occupation: Business Owner
When did you first start CrossFitting? March 2012
When did you first start at CrossFit Brownwood? March 2012
Favorite WOD: "Fran"
Least Favorite WOD: "Annie"
Tell us about your sports and fitness background: I played basketball every since I could walk. Lol. I ran track and was cheerleader since 5th grade. I don't have any fitness background but I'm learning.
How did you first get exposed to CrossFit? Take us back to your first WOD…what was it and how did it feel? Haylee Ratliff got us into Crossfit and I can't thank here enough. The first real workout I can remember is FGB and I thought I was going to DIE. I think I used the 15# bar and the smallest box. I could not do push ups at all when I walked in.
What sort of changes have you seen in your body, health and fitness since starting CrossFit? There are TOO MANY to list. I never thought my body would be capable of what it's doing now. I could barely squat due to a knee surgery that was not properly worked after surgery. I still can't squat as low as I would like but I get to where I'm supposed to be for it to count. I feel like I can accomplish anything even though it may take me a while.
What sort of changes in your life have you experienced out of taking on something like CrossFit that were totally unexpected? How people see you. Some people think you are weird and others see you as a Strong woman. I love feeling strong.
Please share with us any favorite CrossFit/CrossFit Brownwood memories: Just being with family everytime I walk into the door. My funniest is when Brad almost fell off the rower Bc he did not strap his feet in.
Any advice for people just getting started? Stick with it and don't EVER give up.
What are your hobbies, interests and/or talents outside of CrossFit? Running, watching our kids play sports.

Want to be in the spotlight? Follow this link and fill out the form.
Athlete Spotlight

From civilizedcavemancooking.com

Most of you have at least heard of the Paleo Diet. It is a healthy approach to eating that we regularly recommend (if you want help with getting started with a healthy diet, set up a time to come in and meet with us). Shelby and I try to maintain an 80/20 approach to Paleo and have seen great results in and out of the gym with it. We just feel better eating good, whole foods. Meat and vegetables, nuts and seed, some fruit little starch and NO sugar.
The problem most people have when trying to take on the Paleo lifestyle is food choices, recipes. It can get really old eating chicken breast and broccoli everyday. But you don't have to. There are hundreds of sources out there for good (I mean really good) Paleo recipes. One website Shelby regularly uses is Civilized Caveman Cooking. Full of great information regarding the Paleo or caveman diet and tons of recipes. If you don't believe paleo can taste good just try the Paleo Brownies. There are several variations of Paleo Brownies, Shelby regularly makes the Avocado based recipe but here is one that I will be talking her into trying next time. Blueberry Espresso Brownies, could it really get any better than that?
If you try it this weekend let us know how they taste.

Recipe from civilizedcavemancooking.com

Servings: 18 Brownies
Prep Time: 10 Minutes
Cook Time: ~30 Minutes

Ingredients :
1 Cup Coconut Cream ConcentrateMELTED
3 Eggs
1/2 Cup Raw Organic Honey
1 Cup Blueberries
1 Cup Pecans, crushed
1/4 Cup Organic Cocoa Powder
1 Tbsp Cinnamon1 Tbsp Ground Coffee of your choice
2 Tsp Vanilla Extract
1/2 Tsp Baking Soda
1/4 Tsp Sea Salt Process
(Brownies): Preheat your oven to 325 Degrees F
-Place all of your ingredients for the brownies together in a mixing bowl except the blueberries
-Use your hand mixer or stand mixer to mix all your ingredients until well blended
-Once ready, fold in your blueberries by hand so you don’t crush them all
-Pour your batter into a greased 9×13 baking dish (grease with coconut oil) or into greased individual mini muffin pans
-Place in the oven and bake for approximately 30 minutes.
-At about 25 minutes, do the toothpick test and judge how much longer you need
-Remove from oven, let cool
-Once cool, use some melted Coconut Cream Concentrate and drizzle all over your brownies
-Cut and Enjoy

 
Grayson showing some hip extension at 5:30am.

Today we start a new 6-week Strength Workout of The Day (SWOD) cycle. Not too many changes with this cycle, but there are a few you need to be aware of.

1. I have been talking about adding a bodyweight/gymnastics strength option for those that wanted to focus on that area for a while, but decided against it this go around for a couple of reasons. For one we are moving to our new facility in a month. Our new gym will have the room and equipment to better accommodate having multiple things happening at once and there will be an area dedicated to our rings and ropes which will make it easier for those following a bodyweight strength program. Secondly I decided we all need to work on some bodyweight/gymnastics strength skills so I mixed some in with our SWODs for everyone.

2.  This 6-week cycle only has two levels instead of 3 like I have said we may go to. We have Level 1 (formerly Basic in the last cycle) and Level 2 (formerly Int/Adv). The Level 1 SWOD is a basic linear progression program with the focus being on the 3 main lifts; Squat, Press and Deadlift. The Level 1 SWODs are similar to the Basic SWODs in the last 6-week cycle, we just added skill work (light weight) on the Olympic Lifts and added gymnastics strength work. Level 2 is a more advanced program that has a good mix of Olympic lifting as well as the 3 main lifts and variations.

So how do you determine which level you should be following? The same way as last cycle with an added requirement. If you fall into the Intermediate or above category on the Basic Strength Standards Chart AND you have experience with and are comfortable with the Olympic Lifts (Clean and Jerk and Snatch) you can follow the Level 2 SWODs. If you have not worked on the Olympic lifts much and are still trying to learn the basics and figure out what all of the variations of the C&J and Snatch are, you  need to follow the Level 1 SWODs for this cycle.The Level 1 program this 6-weeks has a good mix of skill work on the Olympic lifts and variations, so you will be learning them while working on basic strength. The Level 2 program is written assuming you already know the Olympic Lifts, variations and skill building exercises and are ready to start working the weight up and getting heavy with them.

Remember the whole purpose for having different levels in our SWOD programming is to ensure everyone can make progress from week to week. The Level 1 SWOD programming is deigned for a person who has only a year or so or less of regular lifting experience. You can continue to see progress on with the Level 1 SWODs for a long time before needing to switch things up. That is the reason for the Level 2 program, to switch things up so you can continue to progress.  The Level 2 program isn't necessarily better, nor does it mean you are better because you fall into that level. It is just different programming to help those who have reached a level of strength and lifting experience and will no longer make gains on the Level 1 basic program. There is no prize or reward for being a Level 2 SWOD member. There is no place on our record board for reaching Level 2. You should want to stay on the Level 1 program for as long as you can continue to make gains in your lifts. And with this 6 week program both Levels will be getting some Olympic lifting work in which is a win for everyone.

How to determine your starting weights for the Level 1 lifts:
If you are following the Level 1 program you need to do your warm-up sets by progressively getting heavier each warm-up set, and then do your working sets (3x5) all at the same weight. If you know your 1 rep maxes for your lifts you should be starting this cycle doing your working sets (3x5) at about 65% of that 1 rep max, for all 3 sets of 5 reps. If you know your 5 rep max for a lift but not your 1 rep max you should start this week doing your working sets at about 75% of your 5 rep max. If you do not know either your 1 rep max or your 5 rep max ask your coach how to determine what weight to start with.

Notes for both Levels:
This 6-weeks you need to be brutally honest with yourself. Each week you need to be adding weight to your lifts, but only if the prior week you were able to do all of your reps to full range or depth and with good technique. If your form completely breaks down on a lift one week, you should not try to add weight to that lift the next time you do it. Add weight if you were able to complete all of the reps of each set to full range/depth and without compromising your form.

Here is what you should be trying to add each week:
Deadlifts: 10lbs each week
Squats: 5# each week
Snatches/Pull-ups/Presses/Cleans: 2.5-5lbs.