Started as a maverick gym in Santa Cruz, CrossFit has spread worldwide, becoming the principal strength & conditioning program for police academies and tactical op's teams, military special operations units, champion martial artists, & hundreds of other elite and professional athletes worldwide. Why? Because CrossFit works...FAST.
CrossFit delivers a fitness that is, by design, broad, general, and inclusive. CrossFit's specialty is not specializing. Daily life, like many sports and professions, (and even combat) requires broad levels of fitness. CrossFit's program is designed for universal scalability making it the perfect application for any committed individual regardless of experience. The needs of Olympic athletes and our grandparents differ by degree not kind.
Click Here and Here for two great articles if you think CrossFit is too hard for you or beyond your ability.
To find out more about the principles and belief behind CrossFit, click here.
"The mouth is probably the dirtiest place in the human body," said Dr Steve Kerrigan from the Royal College of Surgeons in Dublin, Ireland. "If you have an open blood vessel from bleeding gums, bacteria will gain entry to your bloodstream. When bacteria get into the bloodstream they encounter tiny fragments called platelets that clot blood when you get a cut. By sticking to the platelets bacteria cause them to clot inside the blood vessel, partially blocking it. This prevents the blood flow back to the heart and we run the risk of suffering a heart attack."
So fact one, we know were eating more sugar in general and more fructose in particular. We also know that fructose is metabolized differently than other sugars. Glucose, for example, can be used as is by virtually every cell in the body; fructose can only be metabolized in the liver (and in sperm cells). If we eat too much glucose, the metabolic process stores it away as glycogen–if we eat too much fructose, our livers convert it to fat and, typically, store it in the liver. Why? Because glucose metabolism is tightly controlled and fructose, in simple terms, jumps the main control point in the sugar metabolism pathway. . .
There is a lot of information in this book that appeals to me as a former musician and a current writer/blogger. However, there is also a lot of information that appeals to me as an athlete and coach. Being creative, according to Tharp, is about forming good habits and rituals. Being creative is about work and consistency and skill. These traits are no less important for athletes and coaches, in my opinion. . .
Brian Nesmith returned to The Shed for an early morning Fight Gone Bad workout this week. It was good to have him back even if it was only temporary. We expect big things from Brian in the future as he starts his own affiliate!
Workout:
Go hunt easter eggs (or the easter bunny). Whichever suits you best.
At DCF we do feel that natural foods are the best way to go, and any supplementation is ancillary with few exceptions. One of them is Fish Oil, or more specifically Omega-3 Fatty Acids.
Why are our diets so lacking? First of all, if you eat wild tuna, mackerel, sardines and salmon regularly (almost every day) you probably aren't lacking. These fish are full of 'fish oil' (hence the name). But if you also eat wild game meat (Buffalo, Elk, Deer, etc) you are probably in the clear as well. Grass fed beef also is a winner when it comes to Omega-3s. These meats are are not fed with grain or corn, therefore their meat is has about the same amount of Omega-3s as the fish!
You read that correctly. Grass fed beef and wild game meat is full of the best type of fat, and is probably as healthy as eating fish. So if you aren't a big fish fan, start ordering buffalo instead, and get to Trader Joe's for some pretty decent grass fed beef. Coincidentally, our hunter-gatherer (see genetic) ancestors only had access to wild fish and game, therefore their diets were chock full of these good fats.
All that being said, fish and grass fed beef are hard to get every day. And if you don't cook and eat grass fed beef right away it can take on that "gamey" flavor everyone hates. That is where Fish Oil Pills come in. Go out, buy some fish oil pills and take a few with every meal. Reap the rewards without dealing with "fishiness" or "gameyness".
Today's articles focus on Omega-3s and brain function, but the benefits don't stop there. Look through the archives for a ton of more articles on Fish Oil and Omega-3s.
"Researchers found that cumulative health care costs were 21% higher for those patients with severe periodontal disease than those with no periodontal disease."
Maybe we can start getting the major healthcare providers to start taking dental into account (for their own sake). -jj
Here at Diablo CrossFit, we promote all health and fitness, and that includes your food mashers (teeth). Don't ask me about what supplements to take, argue with me about flax seed oil vs fish oil, or ask how linear periodization works for building muscle in men, if you don't brush and floss your teeth regularly (that also includes going to your dentist). Start with the basics, sleep, drink water, take care of your teeth, then we'll talk. -jj
Spending wads of cash on healthy foods and supplements could be a waste if you are neglecting your dental health. Now go floss and brush those chompers. -jj
A hang power snatch starts with the bar in the snatch grip (arms wide enough so the bar is about where the top of your zipper usually is), standing up so the bar is 'hanging' from your arms.
Bend the knees, and stick your butt back allowing you to explosively jump and shrug, taking the bar to full lockout overhead. Ideally, the arms should not aid in the movement. Only the jump and shrug should bring the bar overhead.
He is leaving us for a while to complete the training course a the Sacramento Fire Academy (one of the toughest I hear). He should be stopping by periodically to get a workout in or to say hello.
Hopefully we were able to give him a little edge when he enters the CrossFit training now being used at the Sacramento Fire Academy.
"In this workout you move from each of five stations after a minute. This is a five-minute round from which a one-minute break is allowed before repeating. We've used this in 3 and 5 round versions. The stations are:
The clock does not reset or stop between exercises. On call of "rotate," the athlete's must move to next station immediately for good score. One point is given for each rep, except on the rower where each calorie is one point."
We did 3 rounds. If you think your tough enough, you can try a 10' wall ball target and 85lb SDHP like some of the guys did today (do to a slight clerical error).
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Article:
Following Wednesday's article, I wanted to throw out a cancer prevention method that most people neglect . . . flossing.
Gum disease linked with pancreatic cancer in study
"They found that men who had periodontal disease had a 63 percent higher risk of developing pancreatic cancer than men with healthy teeth and gums. Men who lost teeth within the past four years were especially likely to develop pancreatic cancer, they reported in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. . ."
"Most convincing was our finding that never-smokers (with gum disease) had a two-fold increase in risk of pancreatic cancer," said Dominique Michaud of the Harvard School of Public Health, who led the study. . ."
"Nonetheless, this study is not proof, Michaud said.
"More research is needed both to confirm this finding in other populations and also to explore the role of inflammation in this particular cancer," she said. . ."
I do like it when the researchers admit that the study doesn't prove anything, just that there is some kind of relation.
I don't know about everyone else, but I am going to start carrying floss on me more often. I already started flossing more after hearing about it from Coach Dan John, and then Super Athlete / Dental Hygienist / Everyone's Favorite Exercise Model - Eva Twardokens wrote an article about it in the Performance Menu.
