***REMINDER***
The Sports Docs (Dr. Paul & Dr. Tim) will be in from 9am-noon performing complimentary injury screening and Active Release Techniques (ART) soft tissue mobilization!
7 Rounds for time of:
10 Overhead squats (95/65)
400m Run
Post time to comments.
This time last year… Alexa wrote How to be a CrossFit Chicago Tweep.
7 Rounds for time:
7 Toe-to-bars
7 Front squats (165/110)
Post time to comments.
This time last year… Erin wrote a recipe for Calamari Romesco.
Ryan’s CFC Farewell
-Ryan Meester
Unfortunately the time has come for me to write my farewell story. My wife Tara, daughter Lyla, and I are moving back to Wisconsin after a 9 year stint here in Chicago. I wrote a pretty in depth story on my CFC experience back in 2011 (http://www.crossfitchicago.com/archives/6143) so I won’t take up precious blog space here retelling how CFC has changed my life for the better, but certainly check out the article if you want to get a sense of that because it certainly has done so.
I do, however, want to take the opportunity to sincerely thank everyone that has been a part of my experience here at CFC. From the initial invite from Cam / Lauren, to the coaches that helped transform me from a couch potato to tri-athlete in a matter of months, and the countless competitors that I’ve worked out with, each person has played a key role in the fantastic experience both Tara and I have had over the past 2+ years. In the past year, I haven’t been able to be around as much as I would have liked due to numerous things (i.e. Elbow surgery, constant work travel, new baby etc…) but trust that I continue to appreciate all it is that CFC has to offer when I can take advantage of it.
Now starts the process of finding a new CrossFit home. Nothing will ever replace this experience, but I hope to take what I have learned here and bring a little bit of the community with me. I’ll make sure to post on the blog where I end up and I certainly welcome anyone to visit if you get the opportunity.
Well… I’ve been told to never say “good-bye” but rather “I’ll see you soon.” In that spirit, I’ve set some new goals for the coming year (I’ve learned that without concrete goals in place I have a hard time staying on track) and I plan on making some trips back on occasion to check in with everyone. Hopefully by the Open next year I’ll be able to make some trips down for game day Saturdays and can be a bit more of a competitive force in the MEAT!
5 Rounds for time:
50 double unders
25 push ups
Post time to comments.
This time last year… Erin wrote Regional Training, Putting the Fun back into CrossFit.
Lemony Walnut Dip
-Erin O’Brien
Adapted from Food & Wine Magazine
Makes 1 cup
1 cup raw walnuts
½ cup olive oil
1 shallot, chopped
1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
Juice from one lemon
Zest from one lemon
Salt & pepper to taste
Preheat oven to 350F. Place the walnuts in a small pan and bake until just beginning to turn golden and toasted – approximately 10 minutes. Watch them at the end to make sure they don’t burn. Remove the walnuts from the oven and allow to cool.
Combine the walnuts, shallot, thyme, lemon juice and lemon zest in a food processor and process until the nuts are chopped. Add the olive oil and process again until the dip is smooth. Taste and season with salt and pepper to your liking. Serve with your favorite vegetables. Alternatively, you could toss roasted vegetables with the walnut mixture to coat. Enjoy!
For time:
30 Power cleans (185/115)
Post time to comments.
This time last year… Jonny wrote on North Central Regionals!!!
Anniversary Party Recap
-Bryce Wood
It wouldn’t feel right if I didn’t brag on my Old School team repeating in the Anniversary Party Throwdown. Last Saturday we celebrated the 5th year anniversary of CrossFit Chicago with three events. We started off the day with CFC Memorial Run, where we headed down Elston and Cortland passed the old 1962 Clybourn location to run through the original CrossFit Chicago 400 and 800m run route. Events 2 and 3 ran athletes through a clean and jerk gauntlet, and the final event was a team chipper with wall balls, rowing, burpees, kettlebell swings, box jumps, and deadlifts.
The Memorial run kicked off at 9 am with over 45 CFC members participating. BrettR and DanaF helped secure the win for the Old school on this finishing 1st and 3rd. JohnS and DavidM finished 2nd and 4th, but were unable to bump the Middle School team in 2nd. New Schooler ErvinG rounded out the top 5 for men.
Coach RachelF of the High School team led the women’s run event, and was 9th overall. Fellow coach and High Schooler KaceyF was 2nd in the women’s run. Middle Schoolers AlexaT and LaurenA contributed to the team with 3rd and 5th place finishes on the women’s side, and MelissaD finished 4th in the women’s group to help the Old School to a 1st place finish on the run.
In the second event the ladies went first on a clean and jerk gauntlet that started at 55 pounds and increased to 195. The ladies started a trend that continued to the men’s side with the PR bell ringing every minute or two. The Middle Schoolers nearly missed winning the event with three of the top five finishes, including an impressive 185 by ElizabethP. JessicaH hit a 165 clean and jerk for 2nd and AlexaT got another top 5 finish hitting 145 for the Middle School. High Schoolers and CFC coaches KellyJ, 155, and KaceyF, 145 helped the team get a 1st place finish.
On the men’s side, the event began at 115 and worked up to 285. ChrisS and Coach BryceW led charge tying for 1st at 275, and BrettR got third with a PR lift of 265 to give the Old School team the top 3 lifts and a win on the men side. CamL of the High School team hit 255 for 4th, and Middle Schooler ZackJ clean and jerked 235 for a new PR and a 5th place finish.
In the final event teams of three or four completed 1 round of: 20 wall balls (20/14) 20 burpees, a 20 calorie row, 20 box jumps (20/14), 20 kettlebell swings, (55/35), and 20 deadlifts (225/135). The team of DanaF, BrettR, ChrisS, and BryceW got the old school team the win in 8:32. Team CamL, 2nd, and Team KellyJ, 5th, helped the High School team with times of 10:06 and 10:30 to get the High School team in 2nd place overall, and Middle School teams ElizabethP and JessicaH tied for 3rd, both finishing in in 10:20.
All in all competition or no competition it was great to see athletes putting their best efforts out there for a fun day of workouts, and to celebrate the success of longevity of one of the best CrossFit gyms in the country. Looking forward to another year of bringing on new members, seeing new PR’s across the board, and improving the fitness and health of all members at CrossFit Chicago.
4 Rounds for time:
20 Kettlebell snatch (1.5/1pd)
15 pull ups
400m run
Post time to comments.
This time last year… Glenn wrote on Training with, Around and through Injuries.
Handling a Rip the Natural Way
-Kate Mikelsons
Ripping your callus, aka “a rip”, is inevitable in CrossFit. While there are many ways to prevent the rip from happening and an equal number of ways to treat your hands when it does happen, I personally prefer to use black tea to aid in the healing process.
Here’s why using black tea works:
“The tannins in tea have an astringent effect, producing a dry, tightening sensation, so they are useful for helping to stop bleeding. The tannins activate the thrombocytes for rapid blood clotting. The stronger the tea, the more the tannins. Tannins also have both anti-inflammatory and antiviral effects. Tea also stops infection from spreading by creating a protective layer over the exposed tissues, while helping the wound to heal.
The tea to use for wound healing should be from the tea bush Camellia Sinensis, also known as black tea – NOT herbal tea.” (from healingpastures.com)
My rip recommendations:
1. Wash your hands with soap and water. It will sting.
2. Clip flap of skin by using a sanitized scissor, blade, or knife.
3. Wet black tea bag (cool water is fine) making sure entire tea bag is soaked thru.
4. Apply tea bag to ripped area moving it around every 5 minutes for 15-20 minutes.
5. Repeat if needed
6. Since the tannins will dry out your skin, I recommend covering the rip with Neosporin before bedtime to keep it moist enough so it won’t crack.
For more in depth tips on callus maintenance, click here: http://www.crossfitchicago.com/archives/8641
Take care of those hands! A rip should never be a reason to miss a workout.
Three rounds of:
Wall-ball, 20/14 pound ball, 10 ft target (Reps)
Sumo deadlift high-pull, 75/55 pounds (Reps)
Box Jump, 20″ box (Reps)
Push-press, 75/55 pounds (Reps)
Row (Calories)
In this workout you move from each of five stations after a minute.The clock does not reset or stop between exercises. This is a five-minute round from which a one-minute break is allowed before repeating. On call of “rotate”, the athletes must move to next station immediately for best score. One point is given for each rep, except on the rower where each calorie is one point.
Add your points and post them to comments.
Compare to 17Sep11.
This time last year… was a rest day.
No More Whip Marks: Becoming Friends with your Jump Rope!
- Kelly Johnson
Are you sick of dreading double unders? Here’s your chance(s) to learn how to get along with your jump rope!
I (Kelly) will be running two clinics this week: Thursday at 7pm-9pm and Saturday at 12pm-2pm. Coach Val is sitting this round out to focus on Regionals but she’ll be back in the next round of clinics. You know the deal by now with these! These clinics will be a chance for you to have some much needed, uninterrupted time with your jump rope, a coach and new drills/equipment that will help you to improve your single and double unders. To help convince you, here’s what a few others who have taken the clinic already have to say:
‘Prior to participating in the jump rope clinic on February 27th my double under PR was a whopping zero. I had tried to get doubleunders by myself for about 2 months prior and was convinced that they were a lost cause. I never would have thought that upon leaving that clinic I would be able to string ten double-unders! Now a month later, I have a PR of 41 double unders and improving rapidly. Not sure you realize how happy I am knowing that I have the ability and confidence to knock a few of those things out during a WOD. The class progression was so simple and just made sense. I’m convinced that if you can teach me, you can surely teach anyone.’
-JB (JonathanB)
‘The clinic was truly great!!! It was so helpful. Everyone should take it. Thank you and Val so much for your help. Seriously GREAT CLINIC!!!!’
-NatalieM
‘Before joining CFC the last time I jumped rope was the fourth grade and those were just single-unders.
So I jumped (pun intended) at the chance to attend Kelly and Val’s clinic. 2 hours of technique work and implementation was what I needed.
What was so great about the way the clinic was structured?
1. Class size was small, about 20 CrossFiters
2. Individualized coaching
3. The drills/skill work
4. Time allotment for each drill
The best part: it worked. I walked out of that clinic with a PR or 20 consecutive DUs; something I’ve never been able to do in a WOD. And I wasn’t the only one who PR’d that day. I highly recommend this clinic to anyone who is struggling with DUs or needs improvement on stringing them together.’
-LaurenA
Cost will be $20 per attendee, paid in cash at the start of the clinic. For those who want to sign up and reserve a slot, you must fill your name in the proper google doc. (For those who have emailed me already; please note that your slot is reserved and your name already filled out- please fill in the rest of your info when possible. Thanks!) Please note that each session will be capped at 12 to insure I can give the proper attention to each attendee- sign up ASAP if you want to reserve a slot!
Google doc links-
Thursday, May 16th @ 7-9pm:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AgK5e6TvE0i0dEpGTGxfcTU5UGg5SnhNZUFZQktaVkE&usp=sharing
Saturday, May 18th @ 12-2pm:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AgK5e6TvE0i0dE1PcDB6MUgzUkQyUndzWklkX1RVcWc&usp=sharing
Thursday’s clinic will meet in the front lobby and take place in the new Women’s Only space; Saturday’s clinic will meet in the back room of the gym per usual. Please arrive on time, bring $20 cash and whatever rope you’ve been using. Be aware you may not be using that the majority of the time; we have other ropes to help practice with that we’ll need to measure to you for use during the clinic.
The sessions are set for two hours which may seem like a lot of time however we will have lots to go through plus give you lots of time to practice and put into use the new tips and drills you’ll learn. You are more than welcome to leave early if you can’t stay for the two hours however we ask that you can at least commit to the first hour of the clinic. I look forward to working with you! Email me at kelly at crossfitchicago dot com with any questions; make sure to sign up on a google doc ASAP to reserve your slot!
Jess agreeing on the rest day!
Rest day/Make ups
This time last year… We did the Partner deadlift workout from Regionals.
Thanks to CFC staff that made everything happen yesterday! The planning, the workouts, the party gear, and the clean up! Also, to the members, we wouldn’t be here 5 years if it weren’t for you.
Cheers!
-Rudy
2013 Anniversary Party Throwdown
-Bryce Wood
It’s that time of year again. CrossFit Chicago is getting ready to celebrate it’s 5 year anniversary. CrossFit Chicago has grown tremendously since we first opened the doors on Clybourn. As we did last year, we’re going to kick the day off with a throwdown. In order to be a part of the throwdown, you’ll need to stake your claim to a team based off when you joined CrossFit Chicago.
Old School – Original Clybourn Space
High School – Across the Hall Space
Middle School – Down the Hall Space
New School – Current Space
Stake your claim below
http://goo.gl/WwmT1
Scoring will be decided on team average for three different events planned throughout the morning. The workouts will be released next week, but a rough schedule of events is listed below, start times could vary based off attendance:
Event 1 (9:00)
CrossFit Chicago Memorial Run (1.8 miles)
Starts outside the doors on Willow
Run to Elston
Right on Elston
Right on Cortland
Right on Clybourn
Right on Wisconsin
Right on Marcey
Left on Cortland
Left on Elston
Left on Willow
Finish through Cones
Grab a piece of paper that signifies what place you finished.
Event 2 (Women’s Clean and Jerk Gauntlet) (Starts @ 10:00)
Athlete gets 30 seconds to record a successful Clean and Jerk
Athlete moves to next bar and every 30 seconds
Reverse starting order of Memorial Run Finish
1 – 55
2 – 65
3 – 75
4 – 85
5 – 95
6 – 105
7 – 115
8 – 125
9 – 135
10 – 145
11 – 155
12 – 165
13 – 175
14 – 185
15 – 195
Event 3 (Men’s Clean Gauntlet) (Starts @ 11:00)
Athlete gets 30 seconds to move to record a successful Clean
Athlete moves to next bar and every 30 seconds
Reverse starting order of Memorial Run Finish
1 – 115
2 – 135
3 – 155
3 – 165
4 – 175
5 – 185
6 – 195
7 – 205
8 – 215
9 – 225
10 – 235
11 – 245
12 – 255
13 – 265
14 – 275
15 – 285
Event 4 (Starts @ 12:00)
Teams of 4 Complete the following: (20 minute cap)
20 Wall Balls (20/14) (One Person working at a time)
After all members have completed 20 Wall Balls
Teams rotate between the following stations
20 Box Jumps (24/20)
20 Kettlebell Swings (1.5/1)
20 Calorie Row
20 Burpees
Order is up to team. Athletes cannot advance to next station until all athletes have finished the round. Athletes will signify completion of movement by kneeling. Once all athletes have completed their station, they may begin the next station. Once all four stations have been completed, one athlete moving at a time completes:
20 Deadlifts (225/135) (Women must go first)
30 second penalties will be added after the workouts completion for the following:
2 pound drop in wall ball weight
4″ drop in box jump height
10# drop in kettlebell height
10# in deadlift weight
-Post BBQ. We provide the grill and beer, you provide the meat and sides
-Friends and family welcome to watch and for the post workout activities
-Drop in anytime/don’t need to be present for all activities
Post event and time to comments.
This time last year… Alex wrote Regionals-How the Game has Changed.
Alison throwing down some thrusters!
5 Rounds for time of: (15 minute cap)
200M Run
20 Russian Kettlebell Swings (1.5/1 pood)
10 Pull-ups
5 Burpees
Post time to comments.
This time last year… Eileen wrote on the CFC CrossFit Kids Program.
Bryce’s Role Change
-Bryce Wood
As all of you know CrossFit Chicago has grown to be one of the biggest and best CrossFit affiliates in the world. We have moved from a tiny location above a Mexican restaurant to the current facility we have now. When I joined CrossFit Chicago in the summer of 2008, I don’t think myself or Rudy could have ever envisioned the success and growth we’ve had over the years.
Regardless of any sarcastic comments you may get from me on a daily basis, most of you know that I always try to be a people pleaser. As the gym continues to grow, I have continued to try to take on the same responsibilities I had with 80 members of the gym to what I do now with over 400 members, including clients outside of Chicago, friends and family, and so on. Unfortunately for you as members of CrossFit Chicago, my best is never as good as what I want to be able to give back.
The dilemma I’ve been dealing with is finding a way to do the things that I love at CrossFit Chicago, but have more focus and time to put forth a better effort for this community. What Rudy and I have worked together to find the best for myself at CrossFit Chicago is to become a nutrition and supplementation consultant for CrossFit Chicago, while still coaching 8-12 classes/week. What this means for me is more focused time to get to work 1-on-1 with athletes who are looking for ways to optimize nutrition and supplementation for performance and health gains.
What this also means is, since I will be working as an independent contractor for CrossFit Chicago, that I will be charging a membership fee for nutrition consulting. The following are some of the services I’ll offer for membership:
- Weekly to monthly bio-sigs
- Hormonal breakdown of your fat storage sites on your body
- Nutrition and supplementation plans for YOUR personal goals
- 30 minute consultations on mapping out your plan and keeping you on track
- Unlimited email support
- 10-30% off all Poliquin Brand Supplements
More details to come. Please email me if you have any questions or concerns!
Teams of Two Complete:
A – Find Max Clean in 10 minutes (@ conclusion immediately move to)
B – Find Max Jerk in 10 minutes (Rest 5:00)
C – 4 x 200M Row
Post partner and time to comments.
This time last year… Sommer wrote Have you Noticed Your Neighbor?
Thanks for your Support
-Brian Clarke
Last December, First Responders from the Chicago area joined the CFC Community in a fund raising event for Ignite the Spirit, a charity that supports Chicago firefighters and paramedics in need. The workout honored two firefighters who lost their lives earlier that year in the line of duty. With funds raised by T-shirt sales and donations – we recently presented the organization with a check for $2115.94!
I would like to especially recognize some people whose hard work contributed to the success of these fundraising efforts. First, much thanks to Rudy for opening his space free of charge. Then Jonny Vu, who helped design the T-shirts and promote the event as well as to Kelly and Bryce, who programmed and coached the workout. Over 70 people attended – many who had very little or no Crossfit background – in honor of the fallen.
It was also great to have Kelly Burns from Ignite the Spirit stop by to talk about the organization; Kevin Casey for kicking things off; and the bagpiper talent of Greg Bagdade — all of whom helped make the event extra special.
Last but definitely not least – much thanks to the incredible Crossfit Chicago community. I am amazed at your generosity and willingness to support the Chicago Fire Department. Cheers!