More than just physical fitness

A student of mine named Jules recently wrote this short essay on the impact CrossFit is having on her life and I thought I 

would share.  As you can see below, it is more than just a fitness program.

     This year in August I joined a CrossFit and biomechanics class. Since starting, I have noticed many changes from my mental capacity to strength and stamina. In our Crossfit class we had managed to create a very supportive and powerful community where we all support and motivate each other. Mental sharpness is key in CrossFit. You have to be focused enough to count reps, rounds, memorize the workout and focus on your form during the workout. When you are drained and just fighting to finish, this is very hard. Overtime, I have been able to build up my focus even when I am exhausted. This has been beneficial even outside Crossfit, especially in school classes.
          The CrossFit community we as students have made is really amazing. People that, in school, wouldn’t generally socialize with each other at all come together and connect. It’s something we all love. We get so suffer together, we get stronger together, and we accomplish together. School status doesn’t matter and everyone is willing to help and cheer on each other.
          Stamina and strength is another important aspect of CrossFit. Throughout the year I have experienced increases in strength and mobility. Stamina goes hand in hand with strength for me personally. When we retest a benchmark that we did at the beginning of the year I am able to go heavier on the weight, keep a constant pace, and often shave minutes off my time.
         All aspects of CrossFit: strength, stamina, consistency, mental strength, endurance and community have been applied to other activities outside the workout. The benefits of which can be easily noticed. 

Biased Programming?

The longer I coach and program workouts for my students, the more I become keenly aware of my need to evaluate my programming for biases, holes, weaknesses, etc.  It is so easy to fall into a routine, especially when you have limited equipment available.  An invaluable tool has been the "Programming Analysis Worksheets" found in the L2 Training manual.  In my L2 course we used these to evaluate 9 days worth of programming and then program the next 3 workouts based on any deficiencies you might find in the initial programming set.  You can easily convert these worksheets to a spreadsheet file so that you can continual evaluate your programming and keep running tallies of the various programming parameters.  Remember when programming your workouts to stick with what works.  "Intensity is king" and "keep it simple stupid" are accurate when it comes to effective programming.  Use the following checklist and the Programming Analysis Worksheets to keep yourself on Track.  You can still come up with endless combinations of effective workouts if you spend most of your time emphasizing these points. Thanks to the L2 staff and CrossFit Training for reminding us not to over-complicate things.

• Couplets and Triplets 
• Complimentary Movements (push/pull)
• 10-15 minute Time Domain
• Don't avoid Heavy Days (we have to get creative with Sandbags and Tires since we don't have barbells and bumper plates).
• Task Priority 
• Full Body 
• High Power Output movements