Or Educational...?

How do you like your blog postings? Completely random or educational?

Post to comments how you would like to see your CFO blog.

-PBJ

***If this gets more comments than GIJoe...How would a week of the CF Ladies sound???  If not, Pennywise will haunt your dreams forever***

Your going to have to read for this blog post, I don't have a cool video either but it's worth the 5 minutes.

I'm sure every one of you has been exposed in some way or another to the term "Mental Toughness". But what does it mean? And how are you supposed to apply it? Especially over long periods of time, and if you don't think you have it, then how do you get it?

Every human is a product of his/her environment and experiences which could explain why some people are mentally tough and the others feel it is genetics or unattainable. The truth of the matter is that mental toughness can be learned and eventually mastered. 

Attaining an “Iron Mind” starts and ends with practice. Why would you spend hours upon hours in the gym to perfect your Olympic lifting, running, double unders, or muscle ups? Because when it comes up in a WOD, you want to be ready for it. So what changes when we need that psychological capacity to keep going and it’s just not there? No matter how hard you try you can’t bring yourself to continue in that moment of weakness. It all goes back to practice.

By visualizing yourself completing a task successfully, you have given yourself more confidence because your brain thinks you have already done it. When Olympic sprinters were hooked up with devices to monitor neurological activity, the same signals were sent from the brain to the body when they visualized the event and physically completed it.

However, visualizing success is only half the puzzle. What happens when we fail? To truly beat the system you must also visualize yourself in the most vulnerable positions as well. During a WOD if you can’t seem to do another rep and you keep trying and keep trying but nothing seems to happen, the mind will switch from iron mind to freak out mode in an instant. It’s not game over; it’s never game over. Imagine yourself in those types of situations and visualize your recovery. Think about the negative emotions racing through your head and combat those with a positive plan to recover. It’s really that simple, now just do it.

Nobody wants a tin mind

Thanks for reading,

g-spot

He missed 9000 shots, missed 26 game winning shots, lost 300 games 

“I failed over and over, that is why I succeed”  Michael Jordan, NBA 6 time World Champion

            The Olympic Weightlifting Program will start this thursday the 2nd at 7pm!  If you would like to know more about the program I encourage you all to come by.  Also if you are not able to make it on Tues and Thursdays at 7pm and Saturdays at 9, shoot me an email at Erik@crossfitoahu.com and we may be able to work around your schedule.

            The two month program will cover in depth the Snatch and Clean&Jerk.  Also we will be working strength components to help improve the Olympic lifts.  The opportunity to compete will also be presented in October but is not mandatory.  

See you guys on Thursday and come ready to lift!

Dirty

In case you haven't been in Aaron C put a sick piece of art up this weekend as you can see in the picture. I was just wondering what you thought his name should be? Let us know what is back story is too. Why are his eyes crazy and why does he have a crown. I can't wait to hear your stories in the comments

-BP

P.S. I case you didn't hear CrossFit Oahu was voted the best gym in Honolulu! You can check it out HERE. As promised we are going to have an Ultra BBQ this weekend on Saturday. We will be grilling from 900am till noon. Bring your meat, drinks, or other paleo treats to celebrate. A WOD followed by a BBQ what could be better? See you there.

Update Aug 29-

I am bumping this to the top so we can get the 150 comments by tonight. If the GIJoe post reaches 150 comments by Sunday, we get a FULL WEEK of HERO workouts!!

Keep'm coming and the blog will resume our reguler scheduled program on Monday.

-BP

G.I.Joe was the staple of Saturday morning cartoons for those of us growing up in the best decade ever....the 80's!!!  It taught us valuable life-lessons like not to touch downed power lines and not to take candy from strangers.

Post to comments your favorite G.I.Joe character.  Bonus points if you come up with your own original callsign.

SPECIAL NOTE:  If we collect 50 comments by Sunday, we will program in a HERO WOD next week.

-Pretty Boy

Time to make good on our promise....

Post to comments a HERO WOD you would like to see next week.

-Your Friendly Neighborhood Crazy Eyed Raven

**ADDED BONUS:  If the GIJoe post reaches 150 comments by Sunday, a FULL WEEK of HERO workouts!!**

After such a hard workout, many of us tend to dismiss the importance of stretching. Stretching helps to improve muscle balance around a joint and increases the blood flow to the muscles allowing for a reduction in muscle soreness the next day.  Flexibility is an important aspect of fitness and allows for a greater range of motion (ROM).  With an increased ROM the chances of sport or activity related injury are reduced.

There are different types of stretching and they are to be performed at different times during activity.  The most common people know are passive stretching when gravity or someone assists you in lengthening the muscles.  This type of stretching should be reserved for after activity when the muscles are not “cold”. It should be held generally about 30-60 seconds, repeated 3-5 times.

Ballistic stretching has a bouncing component with no hold and can be detrimental by causing micro tears in the muscle especially if not warmed up properly.

Dynamic or active stretching should be done before activity.  This should be incorporated into a warm-up to get the muscles ready for activity.  A walking lunge or arm circles are examples of a dynamic stretch.  The muscles are actively being stretched by their antagonistic muscles and are then contracted in its lengthened state to provide a functional ROM.  These stretches should closely mimic the movements being performed if not the actual movement itself with no external load.

Another type of stretching that can be used after training is PNF (proprioceptive Neuromuscular facilitation) stretching.  It is done better as a partner-assisted stretch where there is an active contraction of the muscle being stretched followed by a passive stretch assisted by a partner, rope, or band.  PNF stretching has been shown to make quick gains in improving ROM.

All it takes is to dedicate about 10 minutes of stretching before and after exercise to prepare the body for work and enhance recovery to decrease your chance of injury and be able to make it to the gym for another round.  Take care everyone.

-Shaun

•                Offers a natural and nutritionally-balanced diet based on what dog's have eaten for thousands of years

•                Healthier coat and skin

•                Better digestion and stool

•                More energy and a healthier immune system

•                Cleaner teeth and gums and fresher breath

•                Improved behavior and disposition

•                Weight control, both in gaining weight or losing excess fat

•                the ripping and chewing involved in eating raw meaty bones develops the jaw, neck, and shoulder muscles of the dog. Commercial dog foods will never assist in this important muscle development.

•                Carbohydrates are often the cause of allergy and digestive problems; carbs make up a small part of the raw food diet as opposed to commercial foods, which feature carbs heavily as ingredients

•                Free of preservatives, sweeteners, additives and fillers found in commercial food

Here is what Mark’s Daily Apple has to say about The Raw Diet :

Consider the wolf, a dog’s closest relative. Wolves are hunters and scavengers, relying primarily on animal protein. They are not, however, accomplished chefs. Check out a wolf’s den. No pots, no pans, no range stove. Not even a salt shaker. They were on the raw diet before it became hip. You won’t see wolves feasting on Purina; they eat raw meat, and lots of it.

A Primal diet for dogs should consist mainly of organ meat, raw meaty bones (like chicken carcasses or turkey necks), and muscle meat, naturally and humanely-raised if you can swing it – just like us! Really, any animal product is acceptable. Wolves ate a wide range of animals.

• Turkey:necks, backs, wings, drumsticks, gizzards, hearts


• Chicken:carcasses, backs, necks, legs, wings, organs, eggs


• Whole, oily fish:sardines, herring, anchovies, mackerel


• Beef:stew meat, ground chuck, organs, marrow

You can read more at http://www.marksdailyapple.com/the-primal-diet-for-dogs/

Here is what Wikipedia had to say about The Paleo Doghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raw_feeding

From the CrossFit Journal

CF Journal from November 2003 which contained an article titled “Dog Food: Carnivore or Cornivore?”  The article profiles Athena, the CrossFit mascot who eats a well-balanced diet of raw chicken legs, fish oil, and a little grass.

“Take any dog food manufacturer’s claimed caloric requirements for a dog and place an amount of naturally available biomass equivalent to that load of sixty to seventy percent carbohydrate and place it on a tarp.  Now find a dog that will eat that much grass and vegetation.  It would take a goat.

The premise of a dog requiring a high carbohydrate diet is patently absurd.  the industrialization of food has produced faire that neither man nor dog should eat.”  - CF Journal, November 2003

Straight from the Sea!

Special Birthday meal of Aku (tuna)

True Hunters and Gatherers

Chewing on the bones helps strengthen her neck, back and jaw muscles.

Happy and Active dog.

Soft and shiny coat.

Eating a Paleo diet helps with her training. Protein is good for her muscles!

Opal’s diet consists of whole fish (head & scales), beef, pork, chicken, lamb, turkey & eggs. She loves all fruit esp. whole apples, peaches, watermelon and strawberries.

Interesting Fact – The Oldest dog to live was fed Kangaroo and Emu and he lived to be 27 years old! He was a red heeler bull terrier cross from the Outback.

September 1^st will be the start of our Epic Paleo Challenge. This would be a great opportunity to get the whole Ohana involved and do the challenge together! This means including your pet! Why wouldn’t you want the very best for every member of your Ohana.