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September 30, 2007
CFO Fundraiser & Party Sat Oct 6!
Join us this Saturday, October 6 for our Oyster Race fundraiser and party. The potluck and party begin at 6pm. If you wanna come early and watch a bunch of us participate in a little CrossFit Total contest, then show up at 5pm.
We'll have a DJ, open mat, and all kinds of other fun stuff going on. And as always, friends and family of all ages are welcome.
See you all there!
Posted by Mike Minium at 9:00 PM | Comments (5)
September 28, 2007
Fight Gone Bad at CrossFit One World
A great workout for a great cause: Fight Gone Bad for Athletes for a Cure
Fellow CFOers Lau and Loren are headed down to CrossFit One World in Union City tomorrow (Saturday, Sept 29th) to take part in the Fight Gone Bad workout and fundraiser that benefits the Athletes for a Cure foundation.
I'd like to urge as many other CrossFitters as possible to join in on the fun with Lau and Loren. The more the merrier, and even if you don't want to work out, you can join in as a cheerleader.
The whistle blows for the first round of Fight Gone Bad at 3:00 p.m. and the workout will be followed by a potluck.
For more information on the event, check out the post here:
http://crossfitoneworld.typepad.com/crossfit_one_world/2007/09/fight-gone-bad-.html
In addition, Lau put some information up on our community bulletin board regarding the workout, so check it out if you're interested in joining the two of them for Fight Gone Bad.
And Lau and Loren (and anyone else who joins them), represent CFO and post a 300 score!
Posted by Mike Minium at 10:38 PM | Comments (0)
September 27, 2007
T's Have Arrived!
We have just received our first run of CFO t-shirts, men's and women's (extra long) styles in kelly green, turquoise, pink, and black! We printed three:
MESS YOU UP
SMOKE YOU LIKE CHEAP CRACK
SUCK IT UP
T'S are $20!
Posted by Nicole Okumu at 8:14 PM | Comments (2)
September 26, 2007
Fab 40!
Theresa T taking the guns out of their holster
For those of you who don't already know, Theresa turned 40 yesterday. Theresa's a model of consistency, hard work, and positive attitude. She's worked for--and achieved--awesome results (multiple kipping pull-ups, dead-hang pull-ups, bar muscle-ups, etc.) in the few months she's been here.
The only problem with Theresa's stellar gains in fitness is that she's really gonna have to come up with something special now for her 41st birthday (can you say ring muscle-ups or bodyweight overhead squat?).
Theresa and Jacques are going to be doing the Filthy 40 during the 7pm class this Friday night. Let's have as many people join them as possible (either at 7pm or throughout the day).
Filthy Forty:
400M Run
40 Double-Unders
40 V-Ups
40 Burpees
40 Kangies
40 Push-Ups
40 Squats
40 Vertical Jump
40 Double-Unders
400M Run
Post to comments birthday wishes and congratulations for our very own Theresa T!
Posted by Mike Minium at 9:24 PM | Comments (14)
September 24, 2007
Yet Another CrossFitter Getting Dead-Hangs!
Vanessa wanted to try and get one dead-hang pull-up earlier this morning during her goal training session. She apparently didn't realize her own strength, though, and went ahead and got three!
Congratulations, Vee, and keep up the hard work!
Posted by Mike Minium at 8:35 PM | Comments (8)
September 23, 2007
Nero and Lightfoot
We would like to thank and acknowledge Justin Nero and Charles Lightfoot (both Oakland Firefighters) for their continued support of CrossFit Oakland. Both Charles and Justin have been doing CrossFit consistently for the last year and have been champions of the program, and CFO in particular--making themselves available to talk to prospective and current FF's interested in training with CFO.
These two also happen to have very entertaining pre-workout banter. Friendly competition--the stuff of great performance!
Post a snippet of your competitive banter to comments.
Posted by Nicole Okumu at 6:31 PM | Comments (4)
September 22, 2007
Saturday Mornings at CFO
The Saturday 9am Class
Even with the first rain of the fall, we packed 'em in for Isabel.
Great work to all who made it this morning!
Post any insights you gained during today's workout regarding the snatch (what you did well, what you need to work on, etc.).
Posted by Mike Minium at 9:40 PM | Comments (3)
September 21, 2007
Rope Training
The jump rope is a tried and true method for improving conditioning and coordination. If you have never jumped rope before, you can expect a challenge. The rope can be very frustrating to a beginner. You will not become proficient with the rope overnight, but like anything else, if you keep practicing you'll progress and reap competitive advantages in speed, agility, balance, coordination, explosiveness, leg, knee, ankle, and foot strength.
Buddy Lee used the jump rope as a key part of his training to develop into an Olympic athlete and the Nation's #1 ranked wrestler. He has now been brought into the CrossFit fold and will undoubtedly help to improve all of our technique and hopefully help lay the foundation for more complicate roping technique.
Check him out:
http://media.crossfit.com/cf-video/CrossFit_BuddyLeeIntroDoubleUnders.mov
Post your record number of double-unders to comments.
Posted by Nicole Okumu at 8:16 PM | Comments (3)
September 20, 2007
It Must Be the Socks
Look, no skin!
Knee-high tube socks can be indispensable when it comes to pulls from the floor (deadlifts, cleans, snatches).
Post to comments your favorite CrossFit workout gear.
Posted by Mike Minium at 9:40 PM | Comments (13)
September 19, 2007
44th Annual Golden West Open!
Pyrros Dimas--Weightlifting Hero and Olympic Champion
After many months of rumination CFO is FINALLY getting a weightlifting team together in preparation for the the 44th Golden West Open. The Open Meet is scheduled for Sunday, November 4th, 2007. It will be held at FIT in Los Altos, which was the site of the 2007 NorCal Championships in May. You can get entries and other info at the Golden West Open Weightlifting website. You can also get Info and Entries on the PWA Schedule Page.
Golden West Open Weightlifting
http://www.goldenwestopen.com/
Pacific Weightlifting Association:
http://www.lifttilyadie.com/PWA/pwa.htm
Post to comments if you're interested in training and participating in the Golden West Open!
Posted by Nicole Okumu at 5:15 PM | Comments (3)
September 18, 2007
The CrossFit Oakland Cocktail
Chad, our CFO UC Berkeley Student and Bartender Extraordinare
Chad, pictured above, has graciously agreed to tend bar for our CFO Oyster Race Fundraiser & Party on Saturday, October 6, beginning at 6pm.
Here's your chance to put on your party planning hat.
We want to create a cocktail known as The CrossFit Oakland.
Post to comments your choice of alcohol and ingredients for The CrossFit Oakland.
Get creative. The more drinkable the entry, the better.
Posted by Mike Minium at 8:16 PM | Comments (11)
September 17, 2007
A LITTLE OAKTOWN FUN!
CAPTURE THE FLAG CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
OAKLANDISH CUP
FRANK OGAWA PLAZA
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 18TH
8:15 P.M. RULES REVIEW
8:30 PLAY
DIRECTIONS:http://www.oaklandnet.com/directions.htm
WIKIPEDIA ON CAPTURE THE FLAG:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capture_the_Flag
Posted by Nicole Okumu at 6:30 PM | Comments (0)
September 16, 2007
Connie Gets Her First Dead-Hang Pull-Up
The title of this post pretty much says it all.
Keep up the strong work, Connie!
Posted by Mike Minium at 10:50 PM | Comments (14)
September 15, 2007
Say Cheese!
Be prepared to have your photo taken by roaming CrossFit paparazzi seeking the opportunity to catch you at the height of your Crossfit induced afterglow! Look for the growing collage of faces on the bulletin board in the back of the gym.
Posted by Nicole Okumu at 3:06 PM | Comments (1)
September 14, 2007
Rest Day = Goal Training Session
Because of the recent interest in goal setting, vis-a-vis the CFO skill assessment guidelines document and the skills testing we did last Saturday, we've decided to devote every fourth day of training (the national site rest day) to training for your specific goals.
So if you're after that 2.5x bodyweight deadlift, this will be the opportunity for you to work toward getting it (can anyone say 5x5?). No muscle-ups, no problem. Go hog-wild with the muscle-ups on the rest-day workout. And, of course, we're here to help. We can lay out a workout for you that you can use for these goal training sessions.
We'll be piloting this concept for the first time this Sunday, Sept 16. Hope to see all of you there!
For reference:
Posted by Mike Minium at 11:01 PM | Comments (3)
September 13, 2007
Party Time!!!
Posted by Nicole Okumu at 2:45 PM | Comments (1)
September 12, 2007
Capoiera Clinic with Shira Yaziv
Shira playing Capoeira
CFO is pleased to announce that we're offering a Capoeira Workshop taught by Shira Yaziv later this month, Sunday, September 23 from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
All are welcome, regardless of fitness level or familiarity with Capoeira.
About Capoeira
What is Capoeira?
Capoeira is an Afro- Brasilian art with martial art, acrobatics, music and dance elements.
Capoeira’s history began 500 years ago by African slaves who were brought into Brazil. Even though they were displaced by force to another continent, the African people retained their native rituals, instruments, and soul. They used Capoeira to fight for their freedom against their masters. When slavery was announced forbidden by Queen Elizabeth, the government terminated all evidence and facts about the slavery; as a result, the history of Capoeira remains unclear. However, the assumptions are that Capoeira was used as a martial art and disguised with music and dance.
Lately Capoeira has become very popular all over the world and is practiced as a folkloric art.
About Shira:
Shira Yaziv first began training Capoeira in January 2000 in Haifa, Israel. She has traveled the world to explore and study different styles and approaches of Capoeira from top Capoeira schools and masters. She has been teaching and giving workshops to adults and children for the past 6 years.
The cost of the workshop is $35 for CFO members, $40 for those not a part of CFO.
To reserve your spot, either post to Comments, call us at (510) 595-9348, or email us at info@crossfitoakland.com. You can pay via credit card or by check or cash (just stick it in the envelope for Shira's clinic on our Events whiteboard at CFO).
Posted by Mike Minium at 6:15 PM | Comments (391)
September 11, 2007
VAT
Visceral Adipose Tissue (VAT) aka the Beer Belly
It is not the “spare tire” (subcutaneous fat) that makes the apple shape insidious, but the visceral fat, a deeper layer of adipose tissue that cushions the abdominal organs. In studies of patients in whom visceral fat was measured directly by CT scan or dual photon xray absorptiometry (DXA), excess visceral fat emerged as an independent risk factor for diabetes and heart disease.
Visceral fat is directly linked with higher levels of total cholesterol and LDL (“bad”) cholesterol and lower levels of HDL (“good”) cholesterol. One theory is that the chemical by-products of fat metabolism are emptied into the vessels of the abdomen and are circulated to the liver, where they influence the production of blood lipids. Visceral fat has also been associated with insulin resistance. In that condition, the body does not respond adequately to insulin, the pancreatic hormone that enables glucose to enter the cells. The glucose level in the blood rises and with it, the risk of diabetes.
-Nutrition Notebook
Sure cure for VAT elimination: CrossFit as rx'd + Zone adherence.
Post the most outrageous VAT elimination strategy you've run across to comments.
Rest Day WOD
After some rowing skill work, do the following, courtesy of CFNYC:
Using 65#, perform a max-rep set of:
Overhead Squats
Back Squats
Front Squats
Rest 3 minutes and then perform a max-rep set of:
Shoulder Presses
Push Presses
Push Jerks
The bar does not touch the ground, except for during the 3-minute rest period. No resting allowed. Once the bar stops moving, the set is terminated (e.g., if you're on OH squats and the bar stops moving, move on to front squats).
Posted by Nicole Okumu at 10:00 PM | Comments (7)
September 10, 2007
Olympic Lifting Clinic with Jim Schmitz
Jim Schmitz, U.S. Olympic Team Weightlifting Coach 1980, 1988 & 1992, President of USA Weightlifting 1988-1996, and author of Olympic-style Weightlifting for Beginner & Intermediate Weightlifters will be doing another Olympic Weightlifting clinic at CFO on Thursday, October 4 from 7:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.
The cost of the clinic is $100 for CFO members and $125 for non-CFO members. The clinic, as before, is limited to 6 spots and will be filled on a first-come, first-serve basis.
To reserve your spot, either post to Comments, call us at (510) 595-9348, or email us at info@crossfitoakland.com.
***Look for the Envelope***
Also, we've provided an envelope for payments specifically for this clinic on our Events whiteboard at CFO. You can drop a check (made out to CrossFit Oakland) or cash into the envelope to take care of payment. And as always, you can pay online with your credit card. Just drop us an email and we'll invoice you.
Posted by Mike Minium at 10:09 PM | Comments (4)
September 9, 2007
Convergence
Robb Wolf, Nicki Violetti, The Okumus and Adrian Bozman
Norcal Strength and Conditioning Coaches, Robb and Nicki, were just finishing up their WOD at CrossFit San Fransisco with Adrian on Saturday afternoon when we drove by to say hello.
If you're in San Fransisco and in need of a WOD, check out CrossFit San Fransisco (http://www.sanfranciscocrossfit.com/), which is located through the gate behind the Sports Basement on Crissy Field in the Presidio.
Nicki and Robb of NorCal Strength and Conditioning in Chico are responsible for--The Performance Menu http://www.norcalsc.com/pmenu/index.php--an internationally acclaimed nutrition and fitness journal of NorCal Strength & Conditioning and Catalyst Athletics. The journal contains features on nutrition and fitness and provides extremely useful information on performance nutrition.
Who's up for a field trip workout to SF? Post to comments if you want to head out for an open-gym workout in SF on a Saturday afternoon.
Posted by Nicole Okumu at 8:02 PM | Comments (406)
September 8, 2007
Workout Humor
Jim Carrey, as Vera De Milo, teaches you some workout routines, weightlifting and bodybuilding.
After today's skill testing, we thought you might like some motivation from Vera to get you on the way to achieving your 1-month, 3-month, and 6-month goals.
Posted by Nicole Okumu at 8:54 PM | Comments (0)
September 7, 2007
Put those CrossFit Skills to the Test!
CFO members!
Dogtown Grappling Club is underway upstairs at CFO and James Maiz is offering a FREE INTRO CLASS for CFO members, who can also take advantage of ongoing classes at a discounted rate ($80/month-Tuesday and Thursday 5p.m. to 6p.m.).
Kids Grappling classes are also being held Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 5p.m. to 6p.m.. If you're interested in learning more or want to sign up for classes contact:
Dogtown Grappling Club or email dogtowngrapplingclub@gmail.com
Posted by Nicole Okumu at 10:23 AM | Comments (2)
September 6, 2007
Yet Another CFO Athlete Making Progress
Melissa before taking on Helen
Melissa is another of our athletes that's been making serious progress in her training at CFO.
Melissa started training with us in early 2007 and has steadily increased her fitness level.
One of her recent achievements was doing all 200 of the prescribed push-ups in the workout Murph. That's a lot of push-ups!
In addition, she's made small improvements here and there in areas that are critical to fitness but may not be noticed by the casual observer. The example that comes to mind in this case is her overhead squat. When she first came to us, she simply couldn't get her shoulders back into the proper position one needs to have them in order to perform an overhead squat. Now, though, through regular practice, she's loosened up her shoulders enough to be able to perform overhead squats. It's still a work in progress but she's made huge strides in this area.
Next up for Melissa: kipping pull-ups. And I have no doubt she'll get 'em.
Keep up the strong work, Melissa!
Open Gym: No Mas
We've decided to cancel our 3-nights-a-week Open Gym sessions due to the underwhelming response. If there's enough interest for it in the future, we can revisit the idea. But for now, it's done with.
Posted by Mike Minium at 9:40 PM | Comments (7)
September 5, 2007
Got Snatch?
Franklin lifting at Carl and Sandra's Physical Conditioning Center (Santa Fe NM)
As many of you know I have been working on developing my Olympic lifting techniques and thus find myself trying to look for snatch and clean and jerks in all the wrong places. What you see in the clip is a snatch of a light barbell to assess my form. Well what do you think: looks good or could use improvement?
Post you thoughts to comments.
Bonus: A little Love For CFO @ CF NYC BLACK BOX.
Posted by Franklin Okumu at 10:08 PM | Comments (11)
September 4, 2007
Test Your Skills... This Saturday 9 a.m. and 10 a.m.
Scott Mendelson's 1016LB Bench Press
On Saturday, September 8 at 9 a.m. and 10 a.m. we will be doing a Skill Level Assessment/Test so that each of you can gauge the parameters of your fitness that need work and attention. We will be providing everyone with a handy goal sheet that outlines 1 month, 6 month, and 1 year goals for fitness and nutrition and will help each of you develop a plan of action to achieve them.
Take a look at the Skill Level Sheet on the sidebar of the CFO main page to get an idea of the kinds of skills we'll be testing. If you have a particular set of movements that you want to assess, let us know. We will be running stations and will try to get as many skills assessed as possible in the two hour sessions.
If anyone wants to help out please post to comments along with your first hit on goals for the year!
Posted by Nicole Okumu at 8:35 PM | Comments (3)
September 3, 2007
Congratulations BFD Recruit Academy 2007!
Commencement Ceremonies
CFO was honored to be a part of the 2007 BFD Recruit Training Academy, a sixteen-week training program for firefighter/paramedics serving the City of Berkeley. The Berkeley Fire Academy consists of rigorous classroom and manipulative training with hoses, ladders, water supply, hazardous materials, wildland firefighting, emergency medical services, confined space operations, auto extrication, live fire training, rope rescue and Berkeley geography.
We would like to thank the recruits and their trainers for their perseverance and effort during our training sessions and hope that CrossFit will serve you well in the field.
Rest Day WOD
Bench Press 5-5-5 reps
Shoulder Press 5-5-5 reps
Finisher:
3 Rounds for Time:
Row 500m
15 Box Jumps
Posted by Mike Minium at 8:03 PM | Comments (5)
September 1, 2007
Roman Who?
Czech Decathlete Roman Sebrle
Continuing with the track and field theme Franklin initiated with his post from last week on American sprinter Tyson Gay, I thought I'd spotlight one of the best all-around athletes in the world whom most Americans are likely completely unaware of.
His name is Roman Sebrle, from the Czech Republic. He's a decathlete and holds the distinction of being the current Olympic champion, the current World Championships champion (having just snagged the gold in Osaka this past week), and the world record holder in the event. In fact, with his world record mark of 9,026 points, he's the only decathlete in the history of the sport to score over 9,000 points.
The decathlon takes place over two consecutive days, five events on the first day and five events on the second day.
Day 1 Events:
* 100m sprint
* Long jump
* Shot put
* High jump
* 400m run
Day 2 Events:
* 110m hurdles
* Discus
* Pole vault
* Javelin
* 1500m run
Talk about a nice mix of speed, power, endurance, and technical skill.
But perhaps you think the decathlon is lacking in some way as a test of all-around athleticism. If so, post the events you'd have contested in the decathlon to comments.
Posted by Mike Minium at 10:00 PM | Comments (8)