Wednesday, August 19, 2009

CrossFit Cleveland Workout news and Updates 8/12/09

Congratulations to Jason and Emily on the birth of their first child, Jasper Noland Hudson. He weighed in at 6lbs 3 ounces and is reported to have more hair than Jason! We hope to see the happy family at the gym soon. I'll post a picture once I have one.6 Reasons why your fitness routine sucks, and how to fix it - Part 1

This is the first of six articles listing some common reasons why your fitness routine is not producing the results you want, and how to fix it.

6 Reasons why your fitness routine sucks, and how to fix it - Part 1

This is the first of six articles listing some common reasons why your fitness routine is not producing the results you want, and how you can fix it.

Reason #1: You are doing it by yourself.

There are plenty of people who can stay motivated and disciplined to workout on a regular basis, but you are probably fooling yourself if you think you can get optimum results on your own. It's good to workout with another person. You'll keep each other more accountable and push yourself a bit harder than you would just by yourself. Besides, a little friendly competition never hurt anyone.

I think it's better to workout in a group environment. There is something contagious about working out with several other people. Whether you and a handful of friends set a schedule to meet at someone's house or at your gym or you participate in regular exercise workout class, you'll benefit from the energy of the group.

If you don't have anyone to workout with you can hire a personal trainer. You will have someone to keep you accountable and push you harder than you'll push yourself. The main problem with one on one personal training is that it is not sustainable for most people due to the cost. You might do it for a month or two then try to keep that same routine going on your own. Eventually you end up slacking off if not quitting all together.I think it's best if you can workout with a group and have instruction while you are at it. Instructor-led group fitness training is an ideal way to get proper instruction at a fraction of the cost of hiring a personal trainer on your own. That's what you get at a CrossFit gym - instructor-led group workouts. You receive instruction on the proper form and technique for all the exercises you perform and have an instructor there to push you harder than you would push yourself. You'll feed off the energy and competitiveness of the other people working out along side of you.

When I realized 9 years ago that I desperately needed to get back in shape, I signed up for martial arts classes with 4 of my then golfing/drinking buddies. We were sitting around one afternoon boozing it up in the Men's Grille at Lakewood Country Club when we came up with this great idea to get back in shape together. It sounded crazy to everyone else at the time but it turned out to be one of the best decisions of my life in terms of my health and fitness.

We hired an instructor (who happens to get this newsletter, hi Randy!) ) and started a week or two later. The rest is history. All of us got great results and all but one of us kept at it for years. Why did it work? First, we all admitted that we could not get back in shape without help. We had great instruction that allowed us to workout and train at the high intensity levels that we needed to get continual results. Second, we were all very competitive so we trained harder to get better than the next guy. Third, and most important, no one wanted to be the first one to quit!

Call someone right now and decide to start working out together. Remember to read the remaining five reasons to make sure you get the most out of your new fitness training routine.

Next week - Reason #2: You always do the same thing


To get more information and watch a video to hear what our people think of our training , visit our CrossFit Cleveland website.

Follow us on twitter @CFcleveland

Become a Fan of CrossFit Cleveland on Facebook




New Executive Fitness Starter Programs starting soon

There are several new Crossfit Executive Fitness Starter Program starting later this month and early September. You'll find info on the program down below my signature. I also have a flyer available online, click on CrossFit Executive Fitness Starter Program Flyer.

Group 1: Mon/Wed/Fri at 7:30am, starts Wednesday 8/26 (1 slot open)

Group 2: Mon/Wed/Fri at Noon, starts Wednesday 8/26 (1 slot open)

Group 3: Tue/Thu at 7:15pm, Sat at 7:30am, starts Tuesday 9/8 (SOLD OUT)

Group 4: Mon/Wed/Fri at 9:00am, starts Wednesday 9/9 (4 slots open)

The cost is now $270 per person for the 6-week, 18 session program. That works out to $15 per session. You can register on our website's payment page, look about halfway down for the Exec program.

Member Spotlight - Dr. Amy A.

Dr. Amy A. is an Emergency Room Physician who has been working out with us since the early days of CrossFit Cleveland.

She recently completed a strength routine during the entire month of June. Nancy reports that prior to that, Amy could not clean and jerk 65 pounds. Just last week she completed the clean and jerk workout with 65lbs, for all 50 reps! Way to go Amy. Click here to read more about her on our CrossFit Cleveland website

Previous newsletters on our website (repeat)

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, as always all the old stuff is down below.
Regards,
BR 440-915-7856 (Cell & Text)

Follow us on Twitter, http://www.twitter.com/CFCleveland
Find us on Facebook at http://www.companies.to/crossfitcleveland========================================

The Zone - links to info from previous newletters & Option "B"

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
Dr. Barry Sears on Diet Myths
Zone on WebMD

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. The Zone is confusing for some, I know that - but Option B is as simple as it gets. 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.Try it and show us your list. If you can't see the bad guys, we'll point them out for you.

Executive Fitness Starter Program

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. The cost is now $270 per person for the 6-week, 18 session program. You can register on our website's payment page, look about halfway down for the Exec program.

You will train in a small group of people (5-6max) 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. I have pictures of a few of our Executive Fitness groups on our CrossFit Cleveland Facebook page here. I'll be adding more soon.


Wednesday Five Dollar Workouts for Beginners - Off the Schedule until Fall

We'll restart this again after Labor Day, please stay tuned for start times.
We refer to the 'Five Dollar Workout For Beginners' as the "Scaredy Cat" class. These classes are for all of you who seem to be scared to death to walk 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. Or maybe you are just looking for a change of routine in your workouts. 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 you will realize that you are capable of doing our workouts. You might like them, but at least you can say you tried.
For now, the 9:00am Saturday Basics Class continues to be free for your first three visits, then they cost $5. Please be on time or you'll only be able to watch. All other workout times are reserved for our members or participants of our Executive Fitness Programs.

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. These workouts are free for your first three visits. After three free visits, we'll ask you to pay $5 per.You'll learn a few 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, http://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 Kids Cleveland. 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.
Free speaker available for your group meeting Do you know of anyone who needs a free speaker for their group, club or association meetings? I am available to speak at local group meetings on two topics. 1. "How we built a profitable business using social media and on-line marketing."In this talk I tell how we used various low/no cost on-line marketing and social media tools to start and grow our business, and what our strategy is for the future.2. "Six Reasons Why Your Fitness Routine Sucks, and How to Fix It."In this talk I outline six mistakes most people make in their attempt(s) to get in shape. I have considerable experience in this area and help many people get back on the right track when it comes to improving their fitness level.Both talks are approximately 20 minutes long and normally trigger about 10 minutes of Q&A. I have no sales pitches or solicitations, these talks give hands-on information while allowing me to promote what I do to anyone who might be interested in approaching me afterwards.Please contact me through email at bill@crossfitcleveland.com or call direct at 440-915-7856. Thanks.
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
440-915-7856

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