Bad Habits

It's time to 'fess up, folks. What bad habits are you holding on to in the gym? Do you not warm up properly before you begin? Do you kip in your bands on the pull ups excessively? Do you pass on choosing a plan of attack when working on the olympic lifts and instead are sloppy and unorganized? Do you always do less than your best on conditioning workouts? Tell the truth... what are your bad habits?

Once the problem has been identified, it's time to figure out how to drop it. Here are a few ideas:

1. Establish an accountability partner- if someone else knows your bad habits they can inflict positive peer pressure to move you in the right direction. Could be a coach, could be a peer- it needs to be someone. 

2. Choose one thing to focus on- Having too much on your plate for any given session will overwhelm you and you're bound to leave feeling unsuccessful. Decide on one thing, and give it your all. 

3. Know how you're going to fix it- You've identified your issue but have no idea how to get rid of it. Consult a coach or experienced peer and plan some action steps to make your bad habit go away.

4. Take the easy way out- Wait, what? I mean what I said. Coming up with a daunting challenge to get rid of a bad habit in the gym will only make it more difficult to get rid of. Figure out the easy way to get better, and by easy I mean most efficient and productive, then get better. 

5. Constantly evaluate- Maybe you're bad habit-less today, but that may not be the case a month from now. Constantly push yourself to work better and harder, then CrossFit will never get boring because there will always be something to improve upon.

Double Unders

Question: How can I improve on double unders? And should I get a speed rope?

How to improve: practice, practice, practice. Every coach in the world can share their cues on double unders and at the end of the day... you just gotta practice the damn things. This practice can (should) be before and after workouts- before because you're fresh, after because you're fatigued which is how you'll be in conditioning workouts. Make sure to have a coach (or knowledgeable peer) watch you at least once to give you a few form fixes to focus on. Watch others do double unders poorly or well- both will give you ideas on how to improve. 

And as to the speed rope... yes, eventually. I recommend getting the hang of double unders on the thick gym ropes first then transitioning to the speed rope (it's a different technique entirely involving a more subtle wrist movement.) A speed rope should be everyone's goal as it is less taxing on the arms. What brand? Find one you like with adjustable length so you can fiddle (I don't really believe in any of the magical measurement guidelines.) 

Why does my squat clean suck?

Question: I am able to clean more from the hang than from the ground, both in the power clean and the full clean - is this unusual, and should I be doing something about it?

While I'm not sure if it's unusual, especially in the world of CrossFit, I would say it is not ideal. My first guess as to why it is more difficult- you're not starting in a good position in the full clean. Nearly universal starting position for a clean: "Bar over the balls of your feet --- hips as low as possible as long as your shoulders are slightly over the bar. (The bar doesn't have to be in contact with your body until it is at your knees.)" When getting comfortable in this starting position, you should address the bar instead of puling it in to you, this eliminates the most variables. If this position isn't perfect for your anatomy, tweak it, still make sure you do the exact same position, every time. 

My second guess as to the difficulty- you're jumping too early. If you jump with the bar at mid thigh instead of deep in your pockets it will be forward in the catch, and as a result more difficult to secure. Be patient. Also, make sure your starting position for a hang clean is exact each time so that the practice is transferring into your squat clean. 

Thirdly, it is not unusual that as a lifter your tend towards either pulling or squatting. Continue to perform the full lift, pulls and squats in balance so they all improve. 

Related, and for tomorrow: Deadlift: http://bit.ly/10l6Y57 vs Clean Deadlift: http://bit.ly/10l7boH

Lessons from the CrossFit Games Open

A few of our own share their Lessons from the CrossFit Games Open. 

Do you have any aspirations to compete? 

Most important CrossFit movements

James asks: What do you believe to be the #1 priority movement that athletes should get better at to be better at Crossfit?  Or even top 3? 

I love these sorts of questions. Every coach is going to have a different answer, and every answer is sorta right. So here goes.

1. CLEAN Out of all the olympic lifts, I'll select the clean as #1. The fundamentals of the olympic lifts (stand, jump and catch and all of the nuances that make this possible) are helpful across the board in so many of the movements we use in CrossFit (here's an article I wrote on the subject.) I chose the clean over the other oly lifts because you can move more weight which means you'll get stronger- awesome. 

2. BACK SQUAT Speaking of getting stronger, in my mind the back squat is the king of all lifts when it comes to full body strength gains (others would argue deadlift, for good reason.) Other movements can cycle in and out of a responsible CrossFit program, but the back squat should almost always be a part. Wanna get stronger? Back squat then sleep and eat like you mean it. 

3. YOUR GOAT Get better at the movement you currently suck at the most and you will get better at CrossFit. Period.

Also, 4. RUNNING I really wish we coud do a lot more running at CFNYC. When it comes to "functional fitness," nothing is more functional than being able to move your own fat ass, faster. 

Go enjoy the sunshine, and get some sleep tonight. 

Running

The weather's getting nice, some days you just want to go for a run... what should you do? Here is a really simple template to consider a  few weeks' worth of runs. Balance out these three formats, and you should continue to improve your general physical preparedness, just like CrossFit espouses.  

Sprint From 15 seconds to 2 minutes, sprints need plenty of rest in between (at minumum 3Xs rest) so you can go all out each time. Try to improve your splits each time.

"Mile" This doesn't have to be a literal mile, it's the middle distance from 6 to 15 minutes. At this distance, we are running at an uncomfortable, but sustainable pace and giving it all up at the end.

"5k" Again, not the literal distance, a "5k" or long slow distance is upwards of 20 minutes and is run at an even and semi-challenging pace. You could talk if you wanted to and will sing to yourself "just keep swimming, just keep swimming..."

Have fun, don't get hit by a taxi, and be sure to take care of those feet. 

Coach Avery answers: What's wrong with my hook grip?

Question: My hand goes numb when I use the hook grip, what's up with that?

Coach Avery says: 

No, this is not normal, generally speaking. When did you start using hook grip? Has this happened before in the past?

In general, when people complain about numbness there is something nerve related going on. If this is happening regularly after or during a WOD you should not ignore it (much like pain, a different feeling from soreness which you need to learn to identify and stop doing/fix whatever is causing said issue.)

It depends on where the numbness is and how far it goes down in the hand or forearm, as to which nerve(s) are involved. For some, the initial exposure to hook grip can cause some tingles and basically the hand needs to be desensitized to using the hook grip given the amount of nerves in the hand - they're sensitive! However, after the first few exposures, most people adapt to using the hook grip and learn to find a position that is comfortable given their finger length/hand size.

I would recommend to everyone learning (or perhaps relearning) the hook grip to start practicing with a PVC (even if it feels too large, but this will encourage you to wrap your fingers around and stretch them out) and the empty bar (alot, more than you think). Once that feels fairly comfortable, progress to lighter loads for volume, before progressing to heavier pulls and deadlifts with hook grip.

You need to adjust to the overstretching of the thumb and associated tendons and ligaments in that particular position. I also used to practice holding onto the subway rail with hook grip until it felt comfortable because I initially hated it. Now I can't imagine picking up a bar without using it.

Once you feel comfortable using the hook grip in and out of WODs with sub-maximal loads for at least a month (or a few!) then progress to heavy deadlifts. If you are also someone that tends to use an alternating grip for really light deadlifts, you should plan on cutting that out. You hands and forearms need to get used to pulling in an overhand position, and it makes the switch even more difficult for some people because their grip is weak. For people that complain about their grip being weak that is generally one thing I make them stop doing right off the bat.

You could start with some basic stretches for the hook grip. Before lifting (or right now) wrap your fingers around your thumb and tilt the wrist to the side away from the thumb. You could also play with tilting in the other direction. Self massage of tight forearm muscles and around the hand and thumb may be useful. If you feel any scar tissue or adhesions in the forearms this could be causing some major tension downstream or compression of a nerve.

Hope some of this helps!