I'm excited to see the improvement our members are making, especially those in our new Executive Fitness Program. We've had four members of the Westlake/Bay Village Rotary Club participating in a new program we are putting together for people who have realized that they won't get back in shape by themselves.
Pat Graham has not missed a single session in the past eight weeks, including last Saturday morning. To "reward" him for showing up in that snow storm I put him through what was probably his toughest workout yet. Eight weeks ago he would have bet me his car that there was no way he would ever be able to do what he did that morning. Pat, Sue, John and Patrick all say they are seeing results in their strength, coordination and endurance. They feel better and they definitely look better. I'll report some specific results in two more weeks when they complete the program - and some videos too!
Speaking of last Saturday, only four people made it in through the snow storm that morning. My jaw dropped when I saw Mel walk in the door a little before 9:00am, then again a few minutes later when Chuck blew in. Mel came from Solon and Chuck from Twinsburg! I wasn't surprised when Sean showed up. He said that he was planning on driving to my house and dragging me to the gym if he showed up to a locked door on Madison. I don't think he was kidding, I'm glad we were open!
The weather forecast looks good for this weekend so I expect a good crowd this Saturday.
Expanded hours available for Unlimited Members
Unlimited members who want to workout on days that we are normally closed can make arrangements in advance to schedules times for us to open for them. Please contact one of us to work out times. You can see our current hours and membership rate on our CrossFit Cleveland website.
Paul and Nancy earn new "CrossFit Kids" certifications
Paul and Nancy really enjoyed the training they received at the first CrossFit Kids Certification Seminar held in California on March 1st and 2nd. They are among the first group of people in the country to receive the CrossFit Kids Trainer Certification, making us the first CrossFit affiliate in the region able to offer this training.
Starting in April we'll be offering classes for kids as young as five years old. I'll have more information on that very soon. Maybe we can help end the video game era and get kids to enjoy physical activities again.
For now, you can check out the CrossFit Kids websiteto learn more about what Jeff and Nikki Martin are doing at their CrossFit affiliate in California.
Self Defense Basics Class March 22nd
We are holding our first Self Defense Class Saturday March 22nd from 11:00am-12:30pm. Paul, Nancy and I will demonstrate and teach basic self defense techniques that can be used in real life situations. We include basic blocks and strikes, footwork/stance drills, escapes and defenses from grabs, holds and punches plus a few tricks you'll have to show up to see. If we're lucky, Paul will share some insights from his 16 years experience as a police officer and four years as a United States Marine. Nancy is a red-black belt in Hapkido and currently training to earn her 1st degree black belt this year. Paul is a certified Krav Maga instructor and training along with Nancy to earn his black belt in Hapkido this year also. Yours truly is a 2nd degree black belt in Hapkido.
The cost for this class is $10 for our members and $15 for non-members. Our Unlimited and Platinum members can attend at no charge. Space is limited, please email or call me to reserve your spot.
If you like what you learn in this class, you may want to check out Master Chris Price's Introductory Self Defense Course held at CrossFit Cleveland, see below for more details.
Future Class/Seminar Topics
Please let us know what types of classes or seminars you would like to attend at CrossFit Cleveland. We are planning our schedule for the next few months and would love to hear input from you.
Five lazy guys decide to get back in shape
Last time I wrote about how I started eliminating one bad eating habit at a time. The first step was to write down everything I did and ate then take a look at the list. If you do this, I think you'll be surprised at how easy it is for you to identify one or two big no-nos on your list. Start with those. Eliminate them if you can, or just cut things in half. While you are at it, why not try doubling your physical activity? It's really not that hard. Sticking with it is what is hard.
I think everyone would agree that working out with another person or in a group is more effective than doing it by yourself. Most people would agree that having someone teach you and push you to work harder will get you better results. So working out with a partner or in a group with a coach certainly seems to be the most effective approach to getting in shape. There's no doubt that kickboxing-spinning-jazzercise-type classes work for many people. You show up, do what the trainer does and go home. The problem is that if the trainer doesn't mix up the routine often enough the body adapts and results start to suffer, plus boredom sets in. You usually don't learn any new useful skills either.
When the five of us started our Hapkido training years ago we were told "just show up and do what we tell you". We did and it worked. As we trained we began doing things we never thought we could do. We worked on a lot of the same techniques but there was always something new to keep things interesting. There were black belts who were incredibly skilled and seemed like they could cripple us with their stare, but were able to train together at our own skill level. The advanced students gave us something to work towards and as newer students came in they let us realize how much we had progressed. We not only got in better shape, but we learned valuable skills that will stick with us for a long time.
It's interesting how similar my experience training in Hapkido is with CrossFit. Constantly varied functional movements performed at high intensity. The one advantage CrossFit has is that results come much quicker. You can see for yourself by looking at the gains our members have made in the short time with us. It's really incredible.
Getting back on track, I'll say that the five of us were successful at getting back in shape for a few basic reasons. We sought out someone to help us learn how to add meaningful activity into our lazy lifestyles. We did it as a group to make sure we stuck with it. Plus some/most of us improved our eating habits gradually. We became stronger and more fit while learning new skills that we could use in real life. We didn't just learn how to jump up and down, step or peddle for 45 minutes.
As our training became more advanced the physical requirements increased. I began to look for ways to improve my strength and endurance. I did my own version of interval training pieced together from things I picked up from magazine articles and other people. Two years ago Paul turned me on to CrossFit training and it turned out to be perfect for me. I didn't really 'get it' right away but as I read the crossfit.com site more and more, it all started to make sense. More on that path next time.
New CrossFit Beginner's Classes
You can jump right in with the group or start with our CrossFit Beginner classes. You will receive personal instruction in a group setting, letting you to ease into CrossFit. We scale all exercises to your level of fitness, varying the difficulty to fit your ability. You will learn our basic exercises at your own pace, then incorporate them into a workout that you can do, but just barely! Before you know it, you'll be ready to tackle the daily posted workouts with our experienced members.
CrossFit Beginner's classes will be held on Tuesdays and Thursdays starting promptly at 6:30pm. Normal class fees apply, see below for our membership rates.
Please register for these classes before 5:00pm that day by emailing me at crossfit@billrussell.com
Membership rates
You can pay for individual workouts, buy a punch card or join on an monthly basis. We don't require any term commitments or contracts. Rates are based on the frequency of your workouts. The more often you want to train, the less it costs per workout. See our Rates Page for more details. You can pay online or stop in and pay by cash or check.
Free Basic Class starts at 9:30am SHARP this Saturday.
We're having another free Basic Training group workout this Saturday morning starting at 9:30am 'on the dot.' The class is limited to the first 15 people who arrive so please be a little early. You'll need to sign in and fill out a liability waiver before you start the class.
****** Please remove your shoes before working out on the blue martial arts matting. Sock or bare feet are okay, your choice.
If you show up after 9:30am, you may not join the class in progress. If we have a larger crowd, we may begin a second session immediately following the first. Please be aware that if you are attending the free workout, you are not permitted to use the equipment on the Gym side (the side with the weights and rowers) unless you have a membership package or pay the daily fee.
You'll learn the basic exercises that we use in our CrossFit workouts. We'll teach you proper form and technique while we warm up, then we'll give you a workout scaled to your fitness level. We're located at 17140 Madison Avenue in Lakewood. We're on the north east corner of Mckinley and Madison, two minutes off the McKinley/I-90 exit.
If you've been to our free workouts and want something a little more challenging, you may want to check out our other classes available six days a week. We're open from 8:00am - 11:00am Saturday, M-W-F mornings 5:30am-7:00am and T-W-Th evenings 5:30pm-7:00pm. We have additional details on our website, CrossFitCleveland.com
Special Introductory Self-Defense Course
Master Chris Price of Four Gates Hapkido is offering an introductory course on the basics of karate and street defense at CrossFit Cleveland starting this month. We have flyers at the facility with more details. Email me if you are interested and I will forward you a copy.
Copy of weekly newsletter on our website
Starting this week, a copy of our weekly email will be available on our website. I've made a newsletter archive page here, or you can find the link on our CrossFit Cleveland home page.
Mailing List
If someone forwarded this message to you, click here to join our mailing list so you can receive future messages directly. You can unsubscribe at any time.
We hope to see you soon.
Bill Russell
440-527-0527
Thursday, May 15, 2008
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