We will be operating July 1st with holiday hours:

8am
9am

1pm

5pm
6pm

Have a great day everyone!

We have been using the percentage based lifting protocol for a while now at CrossFit Edmonton and have some really great success. With many new people in our program these days I thought I’d give us all a refresher of why we do it and also when we do it.

The particular template we have adopted was developed by Micheal Rutherford out of Shawnee Mission, Kansas where he runs a successful gym and CrossFit affiliate. Coach Rutherford has been in the strength and conditioning industry for many years and is highly accredited by his peers including Robb Wolf (NorCal Strength and conditioning) and Greg Evert (Catalyst Athletics). Coach Rut (as he is referred too) along with some of the other mentioned coaches also spoke at the first Black Box Summit, which was a CrossFit affiliate-run event that Chad got a chance to attend and spoke very highly of on his return.

The reasoning for adopting his strength template was to give our clients a more focused and planned approach to strength training.  For each workout there is a specific amount of weight assigned by way of a percentage of your 1Rep Max to each set. This allows you to map out a targeted plan for that session. It gives you a training goal and removes the subjective tinkering we’ve all done to the ladder approach “just lift as heavy as you can, every time”. A successfully executed workout is one that lets you know your heading towards your goals and a unsuccessful execution allows you to dial in more closely a goal that is appropriate for you.

Now this is all fine and dandy for someone who has a solid idea of what their 1 Rep Max is for the various lifts, but what about the beginner, someone who doesn’t know their 1 rep max value? The beginner will approach the work out similar to how we used to, in that, over the assigned amount of sets the individual will lift up to a weight that feels close to a max in 1, 3 or 5 reps . Then a coach will help estimate a 1 rep value for you.  For example if the work out was a Back Squat with 5 sets of 3 reps prescribed to it, a beginner will lift their first set based on what a coach may suggest and then increase the weight each set until the weight feels substantial. With the help of a coach you will be lifting a weight that is appropriate for your level as your heaviest set.  If this all seems complicated, don’t worry, the details of the design is not important to you coming in and doing the work out, as always a coach will be there to guide you through each step.

With the benefits and the logistics laid out loosely we can now discuss how to maximise your strength gains. The percentage based strength program is threaded into our monthly planning in a particular way. To maximize the results of this method, it is important that you attend the specific classes in which the strength thread is prescribed. The following is an example of a 3 week cycle in which the target is to lift a previous 1 Rep max or set a new 1 Rep max.

Percentage based strength program- 3 week cycle

Percentages for 5,3 and 1 rep work outs are:

If your still with me at his point, the importance of knowing this is to allow you to see forward what days will be strength days and allow you to plan your attendance accordingly. This is important because to best obtain your strength goals you must complete the 5 and 3 rep workouts leading up to the 1 rep test day. But don’t worry, you will still see great results in your fitness by attending the classes that you can when you can. This system is for the individual who hasn’t seen the types of gains they once did and is interested in dialing in the strength training a little more. If this is you then feel free to ask Auty, Suzanne or Brian any questions.

Bill cranking out some weighted ring dips!

Just a reminder post that tomorrow the guys from CrossFitters for a Cure are joining us for the workout. Please come by and participate in the WOD and donate to help support the cause. You can get full details from the original post below.

Thank you.

Auty going for a little extra height on the box jump.

Every once in a while I think back to how I first found CrossFit. What was my first workout and what did I think of after doing that first workout. Then I start to think about why I came back for more. Why do I continuously come back for more and what keeps me sticking around. No mater what, and no matter how insane some people say CrossFit is, the answers always put a smile to my face. Maybe I’m just crazy or maybe I just get it, but there’s definitely something here as far as I’m concerned.

However, there’s plenty of people out there who never do either. They never start (possibly because they hear stories and see pictures like the one below) and if they do, they don’t stay. What gives? What sets us apart from the rest? What’s your story?

How did you first hear about CrossFit? What made you decide to actually give it a try? And more importantly, why do you keep coming back for more?!? Please share you stories in comments.

And this is when the husband says “Why the F@<& do you keep going back to that place!?!?!”

This was taken from Greg Everett’s newsletter at Catalyst Athletics:

There is a lot of confusion surrounding the differences in executing a power snatch or clean vs the full squat variation of the lift. Here’s the good news – There’s really no difference. The mechanics of the lifts are identical – the only difference is the height at which the lifter receives the bar and arrests downward movement. For a lift to qualify as power, the athlete must stop with the thighs above horizontal. It doesn’t matter how high the bar is turned over and either fixed overhead or racked on the shoulders; if the athlete continues into a squat or any depth below horizontal thighs, it is not a power snatch or clean.

In all cases, it’s critical to understand that the bar is received above the bottom position and the athlete squats with the weight to some degree. One of the most common mistakes beginners make is trying to “catch low”. This creates problems like incomplete pulls, the bar crashing on the lifter, disconnection between the lifter and the bar, reduced ability to absorb the downward force, less opportunity to correct instability, and more difficult recoveries.

In most workouts, we typically perform power cleans/snatches as they have a faster cycle rate. This has lead to decreased capacities in a squat versions for many people and even a fear of the movements in some. What has been your experience with the squat movements and which do you prefer? What’s your reasoning?

Brett’s vest is only 20lbs and he needed 25… Crossfitters are genius!

On Saturday June 19th at 9am, Alex and Matt Stonkus will be visiting CrossFit Edmonton on their cross-canada tour of CrossFit affiliates for CrossFitters For a Cure. The following has been taken fromt their blog:

CrossFitters For A Cure is a charitable event. The purpose of this event is to raise funds and bring awareness to the Alzheimer’s Society. CrossFitters For A Cure’s participants will travel across Canada, from Quebec to British Columbia, visiting over 30 affiliates. The following challenge has been issued to the participating affiliates and their athletes:

“We will come to your gym and complete the proposed WOD. We are asking the participants of this event to raise/donate money for the Alzheimer’s Society. Donations can be made through the link on our website cfforacure.wordpress.com or cash donations will be taken with contact information so tax receipts can later be issued. A ‘CrossFitters For A Cure’ t-shirt will be given to the athlete that achieves the greatest result during the workout as well as the athlete that raises the most money for the cause, if donating online please print out the confirmation sheet and bring it to the workout.”

In the spirit of competition, perseverance, and community, our hope is to raise a total of $10,000 for the Alzheimer Society. We are confident that with the support of the CrossFit community this event will be a great success. All proceeds will be donated to the listed charities.

Alzheimer’s is a current and growing problem in Canada. Every five minutes someone is diagnosed with dementia, with the total number expected to double in 30 years to 1.25 million. There currently is not enough trained professionals or funding to deal with these increasing numbers, this puts additional stress on family members to provide care themselves. Currently family members spend 231 million hours providing unpaid care. We hope that Crossfit for a Cure will not only raise money to support Alzheimer’s research, but also raise awareness about the issues of the disease.

The disease has touched our own family and the toughest part is watching the person you have know for so long slowly slip away and there is nothing you can do about it. We hope that we can see a cure in our lifetime and every dollar donated brings us one step closer to that goal.

There are 4 options for donations:

1. The athlete donnates directly to the Alzheimers Society Of Canada through our blog (in left hand column) and either e-mail us a copy of the receipt or print out the recipt and bring it to the event.
2. The athlete brings in the cash donnations and then pledges them to the Alzheimers Society of Canada to be donnated shortly thereafter.
3. We will take the cash donnations and the athletes information and donnate on their behalf once the event is completed and a receipt will then be mailed to that athlete from the alzheimers Society.

The 4th option is to bring in cash to CrossFit Edmonton and we will donate it on your behalf. You will not receive a receipt for this option but CrossFit Edmonton will then match all donations up to $500!

Options 1 and 2 are preferred but everything will help. Please take the time to donate to this great cause and also donate your time by joining us on Saturday June 19th at 9am for the WOD.