CrossFit Reload

Nick D’ Angelo is the winner of The Reload Nutritional Challenge! Our decision was based on pictures, performance and overall athletic improvement. Nick has increased proficiency in skills and lifts. He strives to maintain good form and  focus throughout workouts. Congratulations Nick! Great job by everyone else!

Yes you found us! We know you are bored with your current workout regimen. You have reached a plateau and are discouraged that you haven’t achieved your true potential. CrossFit Reload will help you break out of the monotony of your current regimen and introduce to you to an exciting new approach to fitness. What is CrossFit? CrossFit is the “Sport of Fitness”. It is a program designed to prepare you for any physical challenge that you encounter because it focuses on improving your 10 physical skills. These physical skills are;

• Cardiovascular/ respiratory endurance
• Strength
• Stamina
• Power
• Speed
• Coordination
• Balance
• Accuracy
• Flexibility
• Agility

Our workouts are meticulously programmed combining the elements of Olympic style weight lifting, core conditioning exercises and body weight functional movements that help you get stronger and leaner faster from core to extremity. Workouts are performed at an intensity that proves to be more effective than other workout modalities. But don’t take my word for it! Give us a call and set up a free trial class to see if this something for you. It will be!

Worried about getting tricked into lifetime contracts? Not here. There are no contracts, no witty sales pitch and no sexy models to trick you into decade long memberships. So what happens after you try a free class and are eager to join? Simple, you will need to take 2 fundamental classes that will introduce you to the CrossFit foundational movements and lifts. Upon completion of these classes, you will be incorporated into regular classes but your workouts will be adjusted to fit you athletic baseline. As your fitness and endurance improves so will the intensity of your workouts. The key is to get stronger in a safe manner. We have a highly trained and experienced coaching staff to assist you with your fitness needs. Just email us at jdaddona@optonline.net and give it a go! See you soon!

We are in week 3 of our nutritional challenge. I have noticed a few athletes not holding their end of the bargain. Understanding that it is very challenging to set time for your fitness and preparing meals ahead of time. I get it! I have a family, a career and I run a gym. I know sometimes it would be easier if I just took a day off from working out to catch up with the rest of my life, but I refuse to let these obstacles get in the way of reaching my goals. I know that when I put on a bathing suit, I will regret slacking on my regimen. Please remember you signed a contract promising that you will not give up on yourself no matter how hard this challenge became. And yet there are those athletes who plunged into this challenge and are seeing tremendous results! Kudos to you and great job! Those who have followed the challenge are looking leaner, improved in performance, strength and simply are just looking hot! Keep it up and let see who’s the badass that will win the challenge!

Today we embark on our Nutritional Challenge. This gives us the opportunity to correct flaws in our dietary consumption and optimize our fitness regimen. Why do this? Because we want to be healthier and we want to look good. Athletes often fail nutritional challenges because they give in to temptation or do not do the required preparation to succeed in the challenge. First and foremost you most accept that it is your responsibility to be ready for this challenge. It is not your spouses’, friends or coach. Prepare meals ahead of time in order to avoid “falling off the wagon”. If you have a busy schedule, take advantage of our Cross Cuisines paleo food delivery service. The internet and websites provided in the Nutritional Challenge contract are filled valuable information regarding Paleo style eating and will answer questions you may have. Take advantage of them! Avoid pitfalls such as processed salads dressing and seasonings which are high in sugar. Adhere to the “caveman mentality”. If a cavemen didn’t eat it, then you shouldn’t either! I’ve heard athletes say, “well I cheated on the weekend but started back up on Monday.” If you are looking to lean out no form of cheating is acceptable. You will only be sabotaging your fitness goal! Make sure you have taken a baseline picture with minimal amount of acceptable clothing. Weekly pictures should be taken with the same clothing and at the same place the picture was taken  in order to have some control in the comparison. Announce to family and friends that you are part of a nutritional challenge which is very important to you. That way, you will have their support  instead of them tempting you. Absolutely refrain from alcohol. Not only will this eliminate empty calories, but drinking alcohol will inhibited your self-control. Visualize your end goal. A leaner you. You will perform a baseline workout on the first week of the challenge and at the end of the challenge. If you modified in any way, you will use the same modifications. At the end of the 30 day nutritional challenge we will pick a winner based on pictures and performance. The winner will receive one month of membership for free. Good Luck Reloaders!

Congratulations to Carly who took 3rd place in this weekend’s strongman competition. Carly’s efforts are as a result of dedication, consistent training and focus. She comes in to the gym ready to work hard. She does not complain although occasionally may roll her eyes at me and the workout, but she understands the importance of training without being selective of favorite movements or lifts.

We are often asked, “Is CrossFit for everyone?” We swiftly reply, of course brother! We understand that CF(CrossFit) can be scaled to meet any individuals physical need. Don’t believe me, google Kyle Maynard. He’s living proof! The reality is that CF is not for everyone. If you genuinely do not posses the true desire to improve your physical being, than you are just wasting your time. CrossFit is not just fitness, it is a lifestyle. You can’t come in to the gym 1-2 times a week and feel that you are ready to tackle Rich Fronning in a wod. Or eat and drink like shit, workout out 5 times a week and say” yep that 6 pack should be visible soon”. Or modify every movement in the workout and expect elite performance. You need to really make a commitment and follow through with it. You must develop self-discipline to be able to carry out your goals. Most importantly you need to hold yourself accountable! Those hard bodies at the games didn’t happen by coincidence or good genes. That is the product of great dedication and physical and mental discipline. Whether your goal is to lose body fat, gain muscle, improve performance, live healthier, live longer….it is up to you to make it happen! Stop making excuses and pony up! Get your nutrition in check, be consistent with your workouts, hold no one else but yourself responsible for your holistic fitness. Make CrossFit right for you!

So, the first workout of the Opens, known as 13.1, is officially over… Did you participate? How did you do compared to what you wanted to do or thought you could do? I can tell you that I did exactly what I thought I was going to do, but not what I had hoped I would do… Deep down, I
KNEW I couldn’t snatch 75lbs but I HOPED I’d get at least one! But you know what, it’s okay. I did the best I could, gave it my all like everyone else that competed and coughed for about 4 hours afterward!

I am excited to see what 13.2 will be (for those of you who haven’t figured it out yet, that’s the second WOD of the Opens)… And so should ALL of you! Even if you didn’t sign up for the Games it doesn’t mean you can’t come out and do the WOD with us or even just cheer on your fellow Reloaders as they give it their all out on the mats. The box was electric Saturday with the competition nerves and it will only get more amped up the more people we have competing and cheering. Oh and Dan brought beer

13.2 will be announced Wednesday night at 8:00. Two of the elite women CrossFitters will then do the workout, live online! Get yourself pumped up and get ready to see how you stack up on Saturday. Get you family and friends, whether you are officially registered or not, tell them to come Saturday and watch this crazy thing you do called CrossFit!

-Coach Chrissy

Just a quick note to my CrossFit Reload Family. Just want to let you know how important you all are to me. I’m very blessed to have you in my life. Love ya!

The squat is one of the simplest foundational movements of CrossFit. It is a multi joint movement and it’s mastery is critical for proficiency in olympic lifts. Our coaches usually incorporate warm up squats in order to do just that warm up your glutes, hamstrings and quads. It provides mobility for joints supporting the mentioned muscles. Overall the basic air squat prepares your olympic lifts. So why do you avoid it? Take the opportunity to review the standards of a squat. Back should be in a neutral position and not rounded. Strive to keep your chest upright with you weight  favoring your heels. Unless you are a newbie, you should be squatting below parallel and having your knees tracking in alignment with your feet. Your feet should be externally rotated approximately 30 degrees out.You should be actively pulling yourself down not dropping yourself down. If you are not following these standards then you should be practicing the squat outside of the gym. Regularly engage in max holds at the bottom of the squat. The better squatter you are, the better lifter you will become.

photo courtesy of CrossFit Merge.

I cannot stress enough the importance of following direction and being prepared for a workout. If not it causes havoc, creates unnecessary high risk situations and throws off the tempo of the class. As coaches we have 1 hour to get athletes warmed up, review the workout, demonstrate the workout, run the wod and provide a cool down with a stretch component. Please always listen to instructions, even if you are an advanced crossfitter. You don’t want to be changing weights or running for a jump rope in the middle of a workout. The time to ask questions is when the workout is being reviewed not when the time clock starts. Make sure you have created your work station with the required equipment. When you hear that 3…2…1.. you should be in your zone ready for battle, not yelling “I need to chalk up”. Strategize how you are going to move fluidly through every lift or moment. We know that some of you can’t make it in on time and we are ok with that, but it is your responsibility to go through some type of warm before you start the workout. Lastly, we have some fundamental classes that have been scheduled right before or right after class in order to accommodate new members . Keep in mind the your voice carries throughout the gym. We love to have you hang out  but try to keep your voice down or make use of the club room.

http://youtu.be/qx8xYvrOfQw

A little humor courtesy of CrossFit Chicago