In addition to the Goal Board at the gym, we've recently added an Excuse Board. It's basically a numbered list of excuses we hear before, during and after a workout, or when someone comes back after a little time off. It's meant to save you time and everyone else the agony of hearing it, again and again. Instead of saying "I'm too sore from blah blah blah....." simply say #4 or say #7 instead of "I'm feeling too X to do this today". We'll all get it, and you won't sound like such a wimp;>)
I got the idea from Greg Glassman when I first met him. He said everyone, even his best athletes, would grumble prior to doing certain workouts. He would simply interrupt them and say, "hey that's #3, now get to work." Okay, now I'm rambling again...
Here is what you'll find this week
. Member Spotlight - John Gilbert
. Lakewood Health Fair Saturday - Free
. The Zone - results, tips & the "option B"
. 3000 Club Competition changing next month
. Expanded hours - (feedback requested). Nothing to do with fitness - Cassi's fundraisers
. Access to past email newsletters
This month's Member Spotlight - John Gilbert
John started working out with us this past summer. He is a regular early morning worker-outer, and I mean early. He's there most days at 5:00am sharp. Of course I don't get to see much of John since I don't know how to wake up before 5:00am, but I can tell you that he's really a great guy.
You can read the whole story about John on our CrossFit Cleveland website
Lakewood Health Fair this Saturday, January - Free
We are one of the local vendors supporting the Live Well Lakewood Free Health Fair this Saturday, January 24th from 9:00am until 3:00pm. It's being held at the Garfield Middle School at 13114 Detroit Avenue. Dr. Michael Roizin and Joy Bauer will be giving separate talks and signing books. Call 216.529.7695 or visit LiveWellLakewood.org for more information.
We'll have a display table during the event and deliver a brief CrossFit presentation/demonstration at 12:30pm. A few of our members just might display extraordinary feats of physical fitness for the crowd.
The Zone Diet - Results, Tips & Option "B"
Katie Rawlings is nearing two months straight on the Zone and liking her results. She's definitely leaning out and increasing her strength. I'll get some stats from her this week and publish them in next week's email. Katie says that the Zone has totally changed her eating habits and is really a new way of life, not so much a "diet". She posts a lot of her results on Facebook, look for them there.
BTW-Katie has a new nickname stemming from her initials, K.L.R. Anyone care to guess what it is? Email me your guess, so at least I'll know someone is reading these emails.
Enough about KLR, Staci and I are back to weighing and measuring portions at each meal. We got a little casual and started 'eyeballing' portions instead of weighing. Staci says we definitely tend to eat more than we should when we 'eyeball' things, so we have the scale back out at almost every meal. Of course we have a few cheat meals per week. Last Saturday I had an awesome Patty Melt and sweet potato fries at Arturo's in North Olmsted, washed down with a spicy bloody mary and a cold beer. It's okay to cheat once in a while, mmmmmmm.
If you have no idea what I mean by weighing/measuring/eyeballing, read a few of the back issues and check out the earlier links to learn the basics of the Zone Diet.
Here's a link to the Nutrition Forum on the CrossFit Discussion Board running on the Main Crossfit Website. There are threads on lots of subjects, not just the Zone. Be careful though, you just might spend the rest of the day browsing.
There is a "Zone Links" section below my sig. I will keep a running list of all new links each week.
Option B:
If you're not ready to start some new diet plan like the Zone, try this. Write down everything you put in your mouth for the next 7 days. Everything. Then take a look at the list. You'll see the bad guys, most people have two or three biggies. Pick one and eliminate it completely for 30 days. Pick two others and cut them in half.
I did that 8 years ago when I was 40 pounds heavier than I am today. That, coupled with a new exercise plan got me on my way.
Club 3000 competition changing in February to W.O.W.
(repeat from last week in case you missed it)
It seems as if Katie is the only one doing the 3000 competition this month, probably because L-sits really suck. She picked them mainly for that reason, and because she wanted to get better at them. That made me think, why should someone else pick the exercise you should do 3000 reps of? Why shouldn't you pick it/them yourself. That's what we're going to do starting next month. You'll pick your own exercise or a combination of several that you will do 3,000 reps of. Or maybe 1,000 or 1,500. Put it on the board and go for it.
The only catch is, you gotta pick something you suck at or that you hate doing. No cherry picking like I normally do. Don't pick something you are good at, pick a weakness or something you really don't like to do. We all have them, and we know what they are. Let's call them "Suckers". For me it's pullups and heavy thrusters. I suck at high rep pullups and I hate heavy thrusters, hate'em hate'em hate'em.
W.O.W. stands for Work On your Weakness. I know there's a 'Y" in there, forget about it. Work on your weakness means pick exercises that you either don't do very well or that you just hate doing. Even better yet, pick the ones that scare you. I said before that I hate heavy thrusters. The truth is they scare me.
More on this next week, just start listing out your suckers now.
Who knows, maybe I'll change the name again next week, from W.O.W. to the Suckers Competition.
Expanded Hours - Feedback Requested - Please
We've added 5:00am workouts on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays and new 5:35pm workout on Monday evenings. If we get a decent response, we'll open earlier in the afternoons and staying open later in the mornings on weekdays. Please let me know if you would attend 7:00am or 7:45am workouts in the mornings and/or 4:00pm or 4:45pm workouts in the afternoons.
You can see all of our times on our CrossFit Workout Schedule page.
Nothing to do with Fitness - Help Cassi go to Africa
Our own Cassi Veres is having a couple fundraisers to help her with the travel expenses for an upcoming trip to South Africa. No, she's not going on a safari. She's going, along with 4 fellow staff members from the Hospice of the Western Reserve, to observe and experience hospice care in the Western Cape Region of South Africa. Cassi has worked as a licensed social worker with Hospice of the Western Reserve since September 2005. She will be living and working with the social workers of Helderberg Hospice in Sub-Saharan South Africa from March 10th to the 26th.
If you care to help, you can attend a Spaghetti Dinner ($6/plate, 50/50, and basket raffles) Sunday the 25th at The North Olmsted Community Cabin from 3-7pm and/or come watch Sean's acoustic guitar duo, Poster Child, playing Saturday the 31st of Jan. 5-9pm at Merry Arts Pub and Grille in Lakewood. Ten bucks gets you in, draft beer included. I think I have to see and hear that!
If you don't know Cassi, you can catch her most evenings at the CrossFit gym. She's been around since the early days in the Metroparks.
Previous newsletters on our website
You can read all the past newsletter emails on our website. I've made a newsletter archive page here, or you can find the link on our CrossFit Cleveland home page.
That's all for now, all the old stuff is down below.
Regards,
BR 440-915-7856 (Cell & Text)
========================================
The Zone - links to info from previous newletters
The Zone is the eating plan recommended by CrossFit founders Greg and Lauren Glassman and their crew of senior CrossFit trainers and athletes. We are not nutrition experts by any stretch, we're just making a suggestion that if you want to see better results in your attempt to get to your ideal weight, try the Zone.
Some people find the Zone confusing in the beginning, but it's really quite simple once you get it. The Zone balances three macronutrients - protein, carbohydrates and fat at every meal and snack. The tricky part is learning how to create and maintain the balance.
Here are links from previous emails.
Zone Wellness Pyramid CrossFit Journal Issue 21 on the Zone Diet
"The Top 100 Zone Foods"
"Zone Meals in Seconds"
Zone Quick Start Guide
CrossFit Discussion Board's Nutrition Forum
Executive Fitness Starter Program
The next program starts Tuesday March 10, 2009.
This program is designed for those of you who are out of shape and want to get started on an exercise program that really works. If you finish, I guarantee that you will be stronger, faster and just plain feel better. You will lose weight, but how much is really up to you. You don't have to be an executive, just someone between the ages of 18 and 80 who wants to get back in shape but doesn't know how to start.
You will train in a small group of people (5 max) three days per week. A CrossFit Certified trainer will instruct and manage your group at all times. You will learn the correct way to perform our Level I and Level II functional exercises using proper form and technique. All exercises will be scaled to your current ability and fitness level. If that sounds hard to pull off, it is. That's why we get the 'big bucks'! There are several recommendations on my LinkedIn page if you care to check them out.
New name for Wednesday evening beginner class
I've changed the name of the 7:00pm Wednesday beginner class to the "Scaredy Cat" class. These classes are for all of you who are scared to death of walking into a Crossfit gym. I'm not trying to be insulting here, just accurate. I'll admit that if I were new to this whole thing and peaked in a window and saw people doing the crazy shit we do I'd probably run away myself. But once inside I'd see a whole lot of normal people working out at their own level and getting in the best shape of their lives.
It's okay to admit that you don't have a clue how to to exercise properly and effectively, most people don't. These classes will focus on teaching you how to perform our fundamental exercises using proper form and technique, all in a safe enviroment. We will include a light workout that I guarantee everyone can do. After one session the light will either go on for you and you will get it, or you'll hate us and never come back.
Your first Scaredy Cat class is on the house(no charge). After that, we can talk about other options.
The 9:00am Saturday Basics Class continues to be free for everyone, just be on time or you'll only be able to watch.
CrossFit Cleveland video promo on our website
Stewart Ryan has been working on this promotional video for months and it's almost ready. This is not the final version, but I posted in on our website anyway.
Thanks to everyone who gave testimonials in the vid, especially Sean, Katie, Jessica, Michael and Amy. I don't mean to leave anyone out since everyone was terrific. However, Mr. Graham "stole the show" . He may become a Crossfit video legend with his closing comment, watch it all here on the CrossFit Cleveland home page. The final 'cleaned-up' version will be posted soon.
Hoodies and Long-Sleeve T-Shirts
The new hoodies and long-sleeve t-shirts are now available at the gym. Hoodies are $30 and the T's are $20. Both have our new CF Cleveland logo on the back and a small RAW Fitness logo on the front.
CF Cleveland Trainers - email addresses
I've added email addresses for Nancy, Paul and Staci on the CrossFit Trainers page on our website. In case you didn't know, all four of us are partners and co-founders of CrossFit Cleveland.New Members get one Foundations Class at no charge
New members receive a one-hour Foundations Class at no charge when they sign up for any membership package. We'll teach about a dozen of our standard exercises to prepare them to join our group workouts. We stress proper form and technique for all movements.
If you joined recently, you are also eligible for this class. Just let us know and we'll schedule you.
Free Basic Class starts at 9:00am SHARP this Saturday.
We're having another free Basic Introductory group workout this Saturday morning starting at 9:00am '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. If you show up after 9:00am, you may not join the class in progress but you are welcome to stay and watch. 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 have additional details on our website, www.CrossFitCleveland.com
CrossFit embroidered apparrel
We have two CrossFit logo designs that can be embroidered on pretty much any piece of clothing you have. Just go to the HomeTown Threads store located inside the Wal-Mart in North Olmsted and tell them you are a member of CrossFit Cleveland. The charge for embroidery is $12 per piece. You can buy stuff from them or take in your own clothing, new or already worn. Pretty cool, huh?
We also have the original Raw Fitness T-shirt available for $15 each.
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.
CrossFit Kids
We have a new website for CrossFit Cleveland Kids. Paul and Nancy have been working on it for the past several months. You can check it out here. Contact Paul or Nancy to register your child in an upcoming class. They can be reached at 216-407-3521.
Copy of previous newsletters on our website
You can read all the past newsletter emails 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, January 22, 2009
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