Without a Box?

"Plan your work and work your plan"

~ Vince Lombardi

THE CHALLENGE:
So I'm "box-less" for the next three weeks. Kinda sucks but that's part of moving, traveling, and life in general. Needless to say most Crossfitter's aren't quitters. So I'll try to describe the solution to my current problem to non-crossfitters that may read this. This basically focuses on improving my weaknesses. Maybe it will help you make improvements in your routine as well.

ON BEING WITHOUT A BOX

"Accept challenges so that you may feel the exhilaration of victory" 

~ Patton

Basically, there are two ways to look at being without a box:
1) Fix the problem - I'm not about to roll over and simply accept the problem, take a few weeks off, and get back into the swing of things at a later date. I hope you dont if you ever find yourself in this situation either. Besides, we all know how that mindset goes: "I'll do it tomorrow," tomorrow comes, and before you know it tomorrow becomes next week, next week next month, etc......address the issue now. I've been crossfitting on my own since returning to Europe. It's not as cool as going to a box and knowing everyone. There is no community when you WOD on you own. I miss that, but at the end of the day It's all about bettering ourselves.
2) Don't fix the problem - Be lazy, inactive, and feel like crap.

ADDRESSING THE PROBLEM
Equipment:
If you plan to WOD on the road you should carry the following when traveling (at minimum): A jumprope, lacrosse ball, 65# resistance band, AbMat and gymnastics rings. Oh, and a kettle bell if your driving somewhere. You can do a grip of WOD's if you have that gear, which probably tally's up to less than $200. Finding a place to run costs nothing, same applies to ledges for box jumps, stairs, and there's likely a park around with a good pull-up bar. Think of the possibilities!
Programming:
So you've got all the equipment, what to do with it? Rather than go into detail I'll give you a screen shot of what I've programmed for myself the coming month.

Address your weaknesses! Mine are double unders, Oly lifts, and HSPU's. Force yourself to do them! I need to mention that the Olympic lifts, (and other lifts) aren't going to be done with a bar & plate set. I'm gonna perfect my technique with a PVC pipe and a gopro (for analysis) until I get it down flawless. Boxes are awesome, but being away from one helps you focus on what you suck at. Go check out sitegonebad.com and watch some clips on how to improve. Youtube is a great tool!

Technique --->Consistency--->Intensity!

Minimalist reviews

I'm kinda bored at the moment and it seems like a fun blog topic. This is my review of two of the most popular minimalist shoes in Crossfit and what I think of them.

Inov8 195's

Pro's: lightweight, very breathable, true to size, no odor buildup, great for rope climbs, running, etc. I'd rather do a trail run in them than a WOD. Very flexible, kinda like wearing moccasins.

Cons: they look ugly, the sole is beginning to separate after 7 months of wods 3-4x a week, and the laces always come loose or untied during box jumps and double unders. Frustrating mid wod....

Reebok nano 2.0's

Pro's: a slightly raised heel, nice for lifting. Great breathability. Comfy sole with good grip on most surfaces. Good for running, laces stay put on box jumps and double unders! The extra toe protection feels more comfortable on burpees than the 195's. Oh and you can order custom colors for them too. They look bitchen!

Cons: not true minimalists, they are a little heavier than the inov8's but not enough to notice. I got mine in the same lime green as the games athletes and I'm a little worried they will get dirty quick. They are tough to get ahold of, seems like reebok sells out fast - I was lucky to get ahold of a pair!

My Thoughts

If you are moving from inov8's to nanos and are unsure about the sizing order the exact same size. Both run identical sizing. Their prices are so close I won't make it a pro or con. The inov8 is a great shoe, but I like the reeboks better, it's a true Crossfit shoe with extra reinforcement where it belongs, great flexibility while offering good support. Let's just see how long they hold up!

Nano 2.0's

195's

Dropping in

The issue with crossfit and "dropping in" at different boxes is that you aren't getting the ideal programming. But since I can't exactly pack up my weights, kettle bells, and pullup bar in my suitcase it's gonna have to do. So for the last month plus my wods have been done at the following boxes:

Crossfit Vienna - cool box in the basement of an apartment building. Really friendly coaches and a well laid out box. But since it's in a basement I can't imagine how easy it would be to incorporate runs into wods. Rumor is they might find a new location that is a little more friendly to a Crossfit box. Coming from the states and being the product of an American education figuring out the metric system has been a bit of a hassle. Oh well, I will adapt.

Crossfit Carpinteria - I'm so stoked my hometown finally has a box. I did a weeks worth of wods there and know they will build a good community, lots of "carpas" locals have already sipped the kool-aid. Kevin is a solid coach who knows his stuff. Lots of bodyweight wods to start since everyone is still in their "onramp" phase! They have only been open since mid June and have a good following!

Crossfit quad cities - a very well laid out box (check out their YouTube "cribs" video). But the weather here sucks this time of year. It takes a different kind of fire breather to go as heavy as these guys do! They love heavy kettle bells and burpees! Yayyyy burpees!

Quad Cities Crossfit (Iowa)

 

10 @ 1.5 pood = not fun & NOT a impressive time

A new DL PR @ Carpinteria Crossfit!

A lack of updates

So I haven't posted a blog in a while. If you read this blog every day (unlikely) Sorry.
Now that my apology is out of the way here is why:

1) beyond the whiteboard - I haven't been logging my workouts on this site since I found a better way to do it. This site is more accurate for logging info over time, in fact it fulfills the "broad time" aspect of crossfit to a tee. Plus you can compare your benchmarks or other favorite workouts to everyone else that's on the site. Definitely the way to go for anyone tracking their WOD's. I will continue to post up the WOD's that I think are worthy of this site.

2) travel & family - Since I've had to come back for a month due to a unexpected SNAFU, and a few other reasons (I'll leave it at that) I spent a week at home in CA. I've been busy, simple as that.

Ok, I promise more updates to come!

Dodgers!

Not a Dodger Dog, this is a "Doyer" Dog: Dodger Dog topped with chili, Jalapenos, onions, and nacho cheese

An cool option if you want to "eat healthy" at a Dodger game

Turns out the Carpinteria Carnival was in town. Awesome Tri-Tip Sandwiches!

Tee Time!

I got to see my dog! Molly Tamale

Another Crossing

Another Trans-Atlantic crossing today! I'm not sure why I posted the exclamation point on that sentence since I'm not looking forward to it. By the time this is posted I'll already be in the air. It's gonna be a long day.....Vienna (6am) to Amsterdam to Detroit to Chicago....Yikes. At least it's on KLM which gets some pretty good reviews. Even if the last leg is on Delta. Delta Sucks. In any case, so much for recovering from my earlier jet lag! I guess it takes a day to adapt to every time zone you pass through so I'll be starting from square one again. And I can think of a lot of other places I'd rather be than Detroit. Even if it's in the airport!

I'm not leaving Vienna for long, I've got to come back to the states for a short intermission. I will be home for a bit during my stay as well. Gotta see family, get a few Island Brews, and check out the new Carpinteria Crossfit Box! The rest of the time I'll be in the midwest.

WOD
No workout today, yesterday, tomorrow, whatever day it is....

Mobility

Not much on Vienna in this post. But I've got to start by saying "Kelly" I hate you! I'm referring to Monday's workout here. Our hamstrings still feel like rubber bands! Simply put, stairs suck after that WOD. And it seems like they are everywhere in the city. Kinda funny really, walking up and down stairs at the pace of an senior citizen. You get a few funny looks, even from the seniors. But I dont see this as an opportunity to gripe. Instead, I see it as a issue I need to learn more about, I need to really put some focus on mobility. 

Since I'm on the topic of soreness, we are still without our Progenex - ordered some from the Euro site yesterday, hopefully it ships soon! We ordered the more muscle, apparently its backordered in the states, not sure about Europe. In the meantime we've been taking some protein shake I found at the local stop & rob. It tastes like garbage! I'm sure there's a supplement store around here since the stuff at Apotheke's lack in selection and just aren't what we are looking for.  

WOD 

-From the CF Vienna Site:
Warm-up WOD:

3 rounds of 10 pull ups/10 push ups/10 OHS/Samson stretch
Then 
5 Rounds of the following: 
(2 teams of 3 people) partner 1: suicide sprints/ Partner 2: KB Swings 32/24kg,/ Partner 3: rest
rotate movements when athlete is done running. 
Cool down with skill work.

Total time was 5:46

Blog Of the Day

Crossfit Frenzy

I will use a lot of Crossfit terminology I'll start you out with the most basic: WOD = Workout Of the Day. Hope was a WOD done by Crossfit gym's around the country to raise money for St. Judes Children's Hospital cancer research. Heidi and I did it at Crossfit Bakersfield.

Power snatches

WOD: "Hope"
Three rounds for reps -
Burpees
75 pound Power snatch
Box jump, 24" box
75 pound Thruster
Chest to bar Pull-ups

Jon - 179 reps RX
Heidi - 169 reps scaled

"Hope" has the same format as Fight Gone Bad. 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. The clock does not reset or stop between exercises. On the call of "rotate," the athlete/s must move to next station immediately for good score. One point is given for each rep.