Marty, Tim (bottom pic), and Mitchell (top pic) have lost a combination of about 100lbs! These 3 have been very diligent with there diets. Do you think it's coincidence that they have lost the most in the gym? I think not. Paleo challenge coming up soon!

Client WOD

Run 400m

25 Over Head Single Arm DB Squats, 35/25#

MWOD

Part 1

Row 3k + Row sprints- 30 sec on/20 sec off x 5

Part 2

Clean & Jerk @ 75% x 1 x 3

Clean Pull @ 90% x 3 x 3

Snatch @ 75% x 1 x 2

Back Squat @ 84% x 2 x 3 immediately followed by 2 box jumps

Russian Twist 3 x 18/side

Part 3

1 Clean & Jerk (ground to over head any way), 155#

1 Round of Cindy (5 Pull Ups, 10 Push Ups, 15 Squats)

2 Cl & J

1 Round of Cindy

.... All the way to 10 Cl & J

1 Round of Cindy

Total- 55 Cl & J + 10 Rounds of Cindy

Client WOD

A1. Press 5 x 3 sets @ 75-80%; rest 60 sec

A2. Weighted Pull Ups; 5 x 3 sets; rest 60 sec

+

"Annie"

50-40-30-20-10

Double Unders

Sit Ups

MWOD

A.M. 30 min run

Noonish- Snatch 75% x 1 x 3

Snatch Pull 90% x 3 x 3

Cl & J 75% x 1 x 3

Front Squat 84% x 2 x 4

GHD Sit Ups- 65 total

P.M. 4 sets with 3 minutes rest b/w sets

3 rds

3 Muscle Ups

4 Back Squat, 185#

Run 100m

Innovate V. 27:17

MWOD's for the weekend

Saturday

A.M. Fight Gone Bad

P.M. 1RM Snatch

1RM Clean and Jerk

Sunday

30 Thrusters, 95#

30 C2B Pull Ups

Run 400m

50 Double Unders

Run 400m

30 C2B Pull Ups

30 Thrusters, 95#

Client WOD

Monday

1RM Snatch- 10 min

1RM Clean and Jerk- 10 min

7 min amrap

12 Box Jumps, 24/20"

8 Sumo Dead Lift High Pull, 95#

Sarabeth McLendon, Michael McElroy, Drew Shamlin, Matt Baird, Josh Giambalvo

It was a great fundraiser put on by CrossFit Innovate. They have really been blessed in their local community and have a very encouraging group of clients. They reached their goal of $1500 raised for March of Dimes. Great event guys!

SectionalsWOD2

Client WOD

Run 400m

50 sit ups

Run 800m

25 burpees

Run 400m

50 sit ups

MWOD

Rest

Fight Gone Bad in Tuscaloosa saturday

Clients

Ring Dips 5 x 5 weighted; rest 2 min b/w sets

+

10 min AMRAP

7 Thrusters, 115#

12 KBSwings, 53#

7 C2B Pull Ups

MWOD

Part 1

A. Speed Dead Lifts @ 43% of 1RM (175) + grey bands; 10 sets of 2; rest 45 sec

B. GH Raises 12 x 3 sets w/ red band; rest 60 sec

C. Dimmel Dead Lift @ 175 x 20 x 2; rest 120 sec

Part 2

A1. amrap COVP Pull Ups x 3; rest 60 sec

A2.amrap Ring Dips x 3; rest 60 sec

B1. GHD Situps x 15 x 3; rest 60 sec

B2. Half V-Ups x 20 x 3; rest 60 sec

C. L-Sit Hold for total of 60 sec

Sectionals WOD 1

Fight Gone Bad 30/30

30 sec work followed by 30 sec rest before moving on to next movement and 1 minute rest b/w rounds for 3 rounds

Wall Ball

Sumo DeadLift High Pull

Box Jump

Push Press

Row, Cal

MWOD

A.M. Back Squat 5 x 5 @ 75%= 275

P.M. 10 minutes AMRAP

7 Thrusters, 115

12 KB Swings, 53#

7 C2B Pull Ups

Michelle using great leg power on the thrusters!

Clients-

A. Power Clean/Hang Squat Clean/Jerk 1.2.2 x 4 sets rest 120 sec

+

"Jackie"

Row 1000m

50 Thrusters, 45#

30 Pull Ups

Tuesday Mike's WOD (MWOD)

a.m. 5k run

p.m. Push Jerk 5 x 5 @ 75% of 1RM (250x75%=approx 190#)

Power Clean 5 x 5 @ 75% of 1RM=190#

Snatch High Pulls 3 x 5 @ 105% of 1RM Snatch (185 x 105%=195#)

“That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” (2 Corinthians 12:10)

Never been accused of being too smart.. still not sure how safe this is..?

Update on my training. Here is a template of my weekly training for the next 4 weeks which will consist of High Volume and Medium Intensity. More explanation on that just ask..

I will be following 3 on/1 off/2 on/ 1 off. Basically resting on monday and friday.

Monday- rest

Tuesday- A.M. Long Slow Distance (LSD) Run- 20-30 minutes

P.M. Heavy Olympic Lifting

Wednesday- A.M. Squat (any variation) Heavy

P.M. Metcon lasting longer than 15 minutes (if last longer than 25 minutes no squats this day)

Thursday- A.M. Speed Dead Lifts and Posterior chain assistance work

P.M. MetCon with run or row involved (8-15 mintues)

Friday- rest

Saturday- A.M. run/row/bike sprints (short w/ full recovery focusing on speed)

Noon. Speed Squats or Olympic Lifting

P.M. 8-15 minute MetCon (most likely with O-Lifting involved)

Sunday- A.M. Heavy pull from the ground (any variation of a slow lift)

P.M. 2 sub 10 minute metcons w/ 5-10 minutes rest b/w

*First Micro cycle- heavy days are 5 reps or more

*Speed days mean exactly that, DON'T go heavy!

*Mix sled work in at least 1-2x per week

*Mix core work (hip flexion focused) in 2x per week

Weeks 5-7 will be High Volume/High Intensity

Weeks 8-9 Moderate Volume/High Intensity

Week 10- Low Volume/Low Intensity

Post comments/concerns/advice please...

Tabata something else

Pull Ups

Push Ups

Sit Ups

Squats

*worst round is your score

Just to keep you guys updated so you can help hold your trainers accountable. Tyler and I will be writing a detailed training program for the two of us this afternoon. Working on peaking for May 29-30 (South East Regionals). Some more info and a template of our program will be posted later today or tomorrow.

A. Power Clean; 3 x 3; rest 120 sec

B. Dead Lift; 8 sets of 2; rest 45 sec

C1. Glute Ham Raise; 12 x 3 sets; rest 45 sec

C2. Sit ups; 25 x 3; rest 45 sec

D. Tabata Row

Yep it's that time again.. 50 what???

For time:
50 Box jump, 24 inch box
50 Jumping pull-ups
50 Kettlebell swings, 1 pood
Walking Lunge, 50 steps
50 Knees to elbows
50 Push press, 45 pounds
50 Back extensions
50 Wall ball shots, 20 pound ball
50 Burpees
50 Double unders

Split Jerk; 3, 3, 2, 2, 1; rest 120 sec

+

10 sets

10 Pull Ups

10 Ring Dips

30 sec rest b/w dips and pull ups

Back Squat 5 x 5 @ 20X0; rest 120 sec

+

10-8-6-4-2 Thrusters, 135/95#

50-40-30-20-10 Double Unders

+

GHD Sit Ups 3 sets of 15

My cousin, Brady Williamson, made it home safely from Iraq last week. Jason Odom has also arrived back in to the states. If you do not know these names, they're the 2 hero's that have been posted on the wall in the gym for a while now. Thanks for all your prayers for them.

“Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training…Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air.” (1 Corinthians 9:25-27

Why do you train? why do you work? what is your purpose? What are your goals for this month/6 months/year/10 years? How are you going to attain those goals?

Pick Up your goals sheet starting wednesday and they will need to be turned in by next wednesday. In order for us to be able to better accomplish your goals, you and me both need to know what they are so we can know how to get there. Train hard and do the impossible.

Work day! Thanks to all who came out and help give the gym a make-over. It's looking a lot better but not done yet! Thanks everyone!

CrossFit Pain

CrossFit Pain

This is why I love CrossFit guys and why CrossFit is so much more than a fitness program but it is a lifestyle. This is a picture of me after the 5 x Run 400m/ 25 pullups event last saturday at the sectionals. My legs started to cramp on lap 3 or 4 and were completely cramped up on the 5th lap. I was literally dragging my right foot on the ground for about a quarter of the last lap. One of the most painful things I've experienced. Definitely a new level of CrossFit pain was reached that afternoon.

But I made it through it and performed pretty well on the final workout. This CrossFit pain teaches us that we CAN handle ANYTHING we put our mind to. I don't want people to look like this after every workout but there is a threshold that you need to be breaking down each and every time you train. Push your body physically and mentally and it will carry over to your every day life. I've seen so many examples of people who, after crossfitting for several months, are walking around with more confidence. They believe in themselves, the problems they face every day are not a big deal to them anymore, they are not scared to try new things or take risk.

I believe there is a direct correlation between crossfit training and this new positive, confident attitude that people have. After all, once you've done Fight Gone Bad, as anything else really that hard?

Train hard, push your limits, see what your made of and test what you can handle. Don't be afraid to take risk.

5 Rounds

Run 400m

25 Pullups for males/ 15 Pullups for females

Also, we'll be having a work day at the gym saturday. Probably from around noon til 5 or so. Building a new platform and maybe some other toys, maybe doing some painting so if you're available please come help out! Also we'll do a competition team workout as a break at 3 o'clock if enough people are there. Please let me know ahead of time so I can plan accordingly for the workout!

12-9-6-3 Dead Lift, 275/165#

40-30-20-10 Wall Ball, 20/14#

Tyler- 8:13 Mike 7:37

Men 1st- 5:26

Women 1st- 7:26

Final Recap on CF Games Sectionals

Well guys the weekend is over and I believe it was an overall success. Tyler and I both struggled through the final event on sunday which was the Run/Pull up WOD. We both had cramping problems (we think this is just a direct relation to not running enough in our training). But overall we both still felt very confident with our training and felt good going into the final wod. If you don't know today's final wod was:

15 minutes as many reps as possible

5 Hand Stand Push Ups

7 Squat Snatch, 95#

10 Box Jumps, 20"

Tyler felt good going in but a little concerned about his shoulders. Turns out he absolutely killed it, his shoulders were solid the whole way through and everyone was amazed and how solid his technique was throughout the whole workout. He performed 8 rounds and 4 hand stand push ups (locked out about 5 at the end but his feet fell off the wall before reaching lockout). This great performance (7th in this event) moved him from 24th to 18th overall.

I felt good also going into the last wod and knew what I needed to do to stay top 15 (I was 13 going into sunday) I finished 8 rounds + 5 HSPU's and 3 Snatches. This put me at 4th in this event and 10th overall at the end of the weekend.

I am very proud of the way Tyler and I represented. As you all know we are a team and we could never have performed this well without the motivation of each other as training partners.

Proverbs 27:17 "As iron shapens iron, so one man sharpens another"

Lastly, I want to say thank you for everyone's support. Most importantly, I want to first thank my parents, Thomas, Reagan, Mrs. Jerrye Tisdale (Reagan's mom), and Kenley (Tyler's wife). We definitely could not have done it without their hands on support. They were right in front of us on every workout and in between workouts to give us anything we could possibly need (mainly words of encouragement).

Next, I want to thank all of the supporters from Versus Strength and Conditioning from Hattiesburg and CrossFit Hattiesburg. You guys and girls were such a huge encouragement for Tyler and I.

Last but definitely not least, I want to thank all of my clients that were continually checking in and encouraging us. You have no idea what it means to me to have your support through out this journey. I was almost brought to tears after the final event with my fan base that was there just knowing how proud my clients would be and how thankful I am for Tyler and I representing CrossFit 27:17 so well. I can not thank you enough for your support.

Hopefully one night this week or next I will have a video put together we can watch at the gym and have a cookout and tell you all about the experience Tyler and I had.

Now I need your support as I continue my journey towards Regional Qualifiers. Please keep me in check on my diet, training, recovery, etc. It may seem like this is always easy for me but you guys are one of the biggest things that keep me motivated so keep up the great support!

Again thank you so much!

Day 2

Well guys and girls it's day to here in Huntsville. Some of you may have been getting up dates through other resources yesterday but a quick recap (I will give a detailed recap tonight or tomorrow). I (Michael McElroy) is standing in 13th after day 1 and Tyler Smith is in 24th. Both struggled through the 3rd workout with cramps.

Waking up this morning my quads are pretty tight but I feel like they will loosen up once I get out and moving. The final event today is 15 min amrap of 5 HSPU, 7 Squat Snatch (95#), 10 Box Jumps.

Please pray for safety and strength (physically and mentally) to push through today's final event. Thank you all for your support!

Night before the Games!

Well there's not much left to do. We have one good nights rest left before the kick off of the AL/MS/TN Games. Tyler and I have been communicating back and forth about how we're feeling. We both went to the site earlier today and got checked in and scoped out where everything is going down tomorrow. Both of us had a good dinner (I had a nice steak, sweet potato, and broccoli/ Tyler had some salmon), we both did some trigger point/myofascial release work and some stretching and about to hit the bed.

All of you know how hard we have been training for this and how much we want to represent CrossFit 27:17 well. I ask that you keep us in your prayers, pray that we have strength and courage, pray that we have good attitudes about all of the workouts no matter what the outcome is.

If you want to keep up, there is a live video feed or twitter updates on the games website.

Hebrews 12:11 is my verse for the weekend but Reagan just found another verse to help me get through the weekend.

Joshua 1:9 "Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go."

Thanks for all of your support and I will be keeping this blog and the facebook page updated.

Saturday workouts for us at the Games!

WOD 1
3 Rounds for time of:
25m Down-and-Back sprint (50m total)
10 Burpees
7 Ground-to-shoulder - 155/105lbs

WOD 2
For time:
12 Deadlifts - 275/165lbs
40 Wall balls - 20/10lbs
9 Deadlifts - 275/165lbs
30 Wall balls - 20/10lbs
6 Deadlifts - 275/165lbs
20 Wall balls - 20/10lbs
3 Deadlifts - 275/165lbs
10 Wall balls - 20/10lbs

WOD 3 - "The Corps"
MEN
Five rounds for time of:
400m run
25 Pull-ups

WOMEN
Five rounds for time of:
400m run
15 Pull-ups

3 sets:

10 KB Swings

Row 75 seconds

rest 2 minutes

+

3 sets:

10 DB Hang Squat Clean

High Knee Jump Rope 60 seconds

rest 2 minutes

+

5 fast rounds (not for time):

10 Box Jumps

10 Sit Ups

"Get Comfortable with Uncomfortable"

"Get Comfortable with Uncomfortable"-James FitzGerald

There is more to improvements in physical work capacity than meets the eye.
I first thought that exercise only made our muscles more able, our hearts sustain and our minds free. When I first started introducing people to a component of intensity, I would see changes and outcomes moreso at a psycho-social level than at the physical level.
I thought that there must have been something to the exercise that was causing this.
I have discovered over time that the point at which a person reaches a certain level of intensity is when exercise becomes a "spiritual" thing for them.
Their friends call it obsession, I call it discipline. An act in which they search out ways to get outside of the normal homeostasis a lot of folks seem to be comfortable with today.
When exercising, I have direct evidence that for those that get to limits that are safe but outside of their comfort zone, these individuals become "stronger, more confident" people on multiple levels.
Getting uncomfortable is different for everyone. For one it may mean stepping in our doors, for another it may be breathing hard for the first time since they were a child and for another it may mean teetering on the edge of performance and injury.
Whatever the case, it is important to get uncomfortable and over time create a comfort with this state of being. I can attest that it makes it all worthwhile in the end.
Recently a beginning client mentioned she was going to make the step to go to the local community gym and do her OPT workouts there as she felt confident enough after doing it in her basement.
Another example was an online client of mine who has agreed to change his life that required changes in his job in order to move forward.
And finally, one long time client had gotten to the point where she felt that it was time to compete at a fitness competition after her long journey with self perception challenges.
All of these examples are of folks that are stepping into another realm and making it happen; a realm that requires some discomfort, and that is OK.

James