Julie’s Success Story
March 31, 2014

Julie’s Success Story

It took a little convincing to get Julie to write this up, even more to get her to take a photo. I am so proud of the progress she’s made in the past year with us. She’s gotten stronger, gotten her kipping pull ups, toes to bar, and so much more since she’s joined BCF. As one of our first members, I’m so happy to see her success!  -Tanner[divider]

julie front 1   julie front 2

“I’ll never look like that. . . I could never be that strong. . . I have no muscles . . I feel stupid and embarrassed to be in here with so many athletic and in-shape people. . . ” – those are just a few thoughts that went through my head when I started CrossFit

I was always very thin growing up, but after high school I quickly got out of shape and gained a bunch of weight from eating terrible and drinking a lot of alcohol. After awhile I was very uncomfortable with the way I looked and embarrassed to be in a bathing suit in public and around my friends.

I wasn’t surrounded  by people who were healthy or who worked out, so I never thought I had to. I decided I was way too young to be that unhealthy and that out of shape. About a year and a half ago I heard about a CrossFit gym in my hometown opening up and I thought I’d give it a try even though I knew nothing about it.

Like most, I struggled at first and felt defeated after workouts. I never thought I’d be in shape like the rest of the girls at that gym.

Two months after starting CrossFit I moved to Austin and decided the first thing I wanted to do was find a gym. I was finally motivated to make a change in my health and body and didn’t want to let that determination go to waste just because I was in a new place. Although it was scary, I called a few places around my new house to get some info. After talking to Tanner who was so friendly and inviting over the phone, I decided to go visit Balcones CrossFit. I went to one class and I was hooked, no need to even visit the other gyms.

julie side 1  Julie Side 2

I’ve been at BCF for a little over a year and couldn’t be happier with my decision! Now my thoughts are ” I can’t wait to reach my goal weight, and I can’t wait to lift that heavier weight.” I’m even feeling good at the end of workouts!

For me it was a bit of a process and a journey, but once I started to see positive changes in my body, attitude, and spirit, I was hooked. I’ve come to call the members of BCF my family. Without the constant support and confidence boosters, I don’t know that I could have made myself stick with it This gym these people, have done more than just help me get fit, I’ve learned to appreciate myself, set positive goals, and never give up on them.

It can be hard sometimes, especially when you don’t see immediate results. It is very much a process but well worth the ride. Even now, I know my body is not “perfect” but every day I get a little bit stronger and one step closer to reaching my final goal.

As hard and scary as it was for me to strip down and put myself out there for the whole world to see, I am glad to do it to show that with a little faith and a lot of hard work and dedication, anyone can do Crossfit and succeed. If you go in and work to the best of your ability each day you will no doubt become stronger both inside and out.

Personally, I’m not quite there yet, but I’m so impressed with the progress I’ve made thus far. I’ve even shocked myself a few times over the past year.

Now I drink way less ( still treat myself to a cold one every now and then) and eat much healthier. I feel and look great and have a much more positive outlook an it’s all thanks to my family at BCF!

-Julie Davis

juile back 1 julie back 2

 

[divider]

Workout

A. Bench Press – Find a 1 Rep Max

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21-15-9
Power Cleans (moderate)
Burpee Box Jump
*Pick a weight that you can do for 10-12 unbroken reps

Ready to start your story?

TRY A FREE CLASS

Darla , , , , , , , , , ,
March 20, 2014

It’s Not About the WhiteBoard

I’ve often thought about forgoing the old CrossFit staple of putting names and times on the whiteboard. Sometimes I think that it is a distraction and causes us to forget the intent behind some of our workouts.  Here are a few reasons why I don’t like the whiteboard:

  1. It makes the focus all about the time or number of rounds – at all cost
    • This doesn’t mesh well with a lot of our workouts, whose intent is output, or perceived effort.
    • Allows for a loss of form or range of motion just to get a better score
  2. Skipping rest in order to get a better time
    • The rest intervals are intentionally planned to provide the correct response.  Skipping them, or shorting them compromises the intended effect of the workout

That said, I still like the whiteboard, it has some redeeming qualities that I think outweigh the negatives.

  1. Having something to push towards
    • Seeing other names, weights and times on the board provides motivation to go heavier, get better
  2. Getting to know your fellow athletes
    • Even if you don’t go to class with all of our athletes you get to know them through their weights and times on the board.  Find someone who is comparable and compete with them
  3. Tracking your progress
    • Writing your weights and times on the board is the best way to track your progress and improvements in the gym.

Use the whiteboard for its intended purpose. Find someone to compete with, but as always keep good technique and listen to your coaches!

Lynn and Marry

Lynn and Marry

Workout

In teams of 2 complete the following:

20 min AMRAP
2 rope climbs
10 thrusters (moderate to heavy)
12 box jumps (step down)
*only one partner works at a time

**while 1 partner works through the AMRAP, the other completes a 400m run with a medicine ball, switch when you get back into the gym

Darla , , , , ,
March 17, 2014

ITP Interest Meeting Tomorrow at 730pm

Are you interested in becoming a coach at Balcones CrossFit? Join us for our BCF Instructor Training Program interest meeting tomorrow at 730 pm.  You’ll learn what it takes to become a BCF coach.  All are welcome.

sara lunge

Workout

A. Back Squat 4 x 1-3 @3010 rest 3 min b/w sets

4 sets
20 air squats
15 no pushup burpees
15 kettlebell swings
15 sit ups
10 push ups
Rest 5 minutes

Darla , , , , ,
March 12, 2014

The Downside of the Biggest Loser

xrachel-frederickson-before-and-after.jpg.pagespeed.ic.o5PzbCUZwtRecently, there was a bit of controversy over the TV show The Biggest Loser.  One of their contestants dropped to 105 lbs by the end of the show. That’s not really what this post is about.

The show selects obese contestants to participate in a series of challenges, workouts, and diet overhaul over the course of 17 weeks.  Most years, the winners lose upwards of 100 lbs in that 17 weeks via extreme training and dieting.

While many may look to the show as supporting healthy habits on the surface, I must respectfully disagree.  The show does little to better the lives of the contestants and may actually hurt them in the long run. Here are my issues with the show:

1. Babying contestants through the 17 weeks.

For the most part, contestants live in a bubble.  What they can eat, their workouts, their social lives, are all dictated by the show’s trainers and producers. This type of hand holding is not going to lead to prolonged success after the show.  We don’t live our real lives in a vacuum, so the show really sets contestants up for failure later on.

2. Severely calorically restricted diets.

The Biggest Loser diet hinges on low fat, low calorie foods.  Placing contestants in a severe calorie deficit is sure to make them lose weight, but is not sustainable long term.  Your body needs more than 1100-1200 calories per day to survive. Relapses and food binges happen often, even in contest winners. Contestants don’t learn how to eat in the real world.

She gained all of her weight back and then some

She gained all of her weight back and then some

3. Rapid fat loss is toxic

Fat is a toxic. As we lose fat, we are releasing toxins into our bloodstream.  Without properly supporting our body’s natural detoxification pathways, rapid fat loss can be very detrimental to one’s health.  A more steady approach to fat loss is ideal.

4. Overtraining

Lastly, the show advertises to the public that the way to lose weight is to train as hard as you can as often as you can.  Prolonged 3 hour training bouts can lead to overtraining, and trouble with your adrenal system.  Again, a more steady and consistent approach is idea.

Yes, losing 2-3 lbs per week isn’t as sexy of a transformation as dropping 100 plus pounds in 17 weeks, but it’s probably healthier in the long run.  Learn how to eat right, avoid junk, and train steadily and you’ll be better off than The Biggest Loser. [divider]

Darla , , , , ,
March 4, 2014

What’s with your programming?

If you’ve spent any amount of time at our gym you’ll notice that our programming is a bit different than other CrossFit gyms. CrossFit as a whole prides itself on being constantly varied; we do different, fun, and exciting workouts each day.  That’s why many of us got into CrossFit, to get out of the repetitive grind of the average gym.

However, varied does not equal random.  Our program is meticulously planned out in advance.  I have the basic outline of our program for the next 6 months.  Our program is designed to progress you through the slow lifts, Olympic lifts, and speed work, across what is more or less a periodized approach.  You’ll see we build intensity across our 3-4 month blocks having our athletes ready for very high intensity workouts at the end of each block.

But, just because a program is varied daily does not make it an effective means of training.  I’ve traveled to many gyms across the country, and more often than not you’ll see workouts that we call “Any A**hole Workouts.” These workouts look like something that anyone could throw together, whether they’re trained or not. Something like 100 wall balls, 80 burpees, 60 pull ups, 40 push ups, 20 turkish get ups, 2 rounds.  And that’s an every day occurrence. They pride themselves on being “intense” or harder than anything else out there.

Is harder necessarily better?

The human body is not physiologically capable of operating at 100% output every day. Honestly, not really even 5 days per week.  So what’s the point in programming ass kicking workouts every single day? Not just hard workouts, but workouts that are designed to beat you down.  Short answer, there’s not much benefit.

If you look at an elite level athlete, say a 100m sprinter, they aren’t sprinting the 100m dash all out every single day.  So why should we do CrossFit all out every single day?

Enter pacing.

Elite level CrossFit athletes pace automatically. They’ve been doing it for so long that they don’t know any other way.  They don’t run themselves into the dirt daily.  You may say “well he did that workout sooo fast though.” Fast compared to who? You or me? Oh yes, they are faster than you and me, that’s for sure, but it was still paced.  They’re just phenomenal athletes and better than us.

We modulate pace in class through our percentage outputs.  80% means consistency.  Difficult but consistent.  You’ve heard me say many times “Don’t do your first round super fast and have no energy left for the rest.”  Forcing a pace allows us to optimally train the proper energy systems.

But what about those pesky rest intervals?

We use rest intervals for two reasons:

  1. To allow you to maintain a pace and make sure you can maintain your output.
  2. To allow you to push a little bit harder than you think you can
    • If we say work hard for 2 minutes, with a 2 minute rest, then repeat, you’ll be able to push harder than if you had to do that same 4 minutes straight.  In this way we are building your threshold so you can ultimately work harder for longer.

In the end, you have a lot of choices in CrossFit gyms.  With the explosion of CrossFit some gyms are great and some are plain awful.  We pride ourselves on having the highest quality programming and instruction. Everything we do has a purpose.  We have designed a fitness regimen that is sustainable and can give continued results for years.  Many programs’ successes plateau and falter after a few months; not so at BCF.  Stick with us for a few months and you’ll see results, I guarantee it.

-Tanner[divider]

Way too many smiles on those airdynes

Way too many smiles on those airdynes

Workout

A. Power Clean 3 sets x 3 reps

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4 Sets
3 Deadlifts (heavy, add per set)
50m Farmers Carry
200m Backwards Run
Rest 2 minutes b/w sets

Darla , , , , ,