Archive for January, 2013

Crossfit

Thursday, January 31st, 2013

So, I’ve debated it and decided to finally join CrossFit Mercer. The groupon I found is ideal: 2 hydrostatic weigh-ins (one before and one after a 90-day body composition challenge), three months of unlimited crossfit, and several seminars on crossfit, goal planning, and paleo.

I’ve resisted up to this point because my physical fitness schedule is already full: karate 5+ times per week, running (marathon training) 6 times per week, DJ Health club 5x per week, and miscellaneous classes at Gold’s 1x or 2x per week.

I will probably cut back on my running to fit this in. Focusing on total body strength and core strength, in my opinion, is a good substitute for some of the “junk” runs anyway. I’ll focus on the essentials: long runs on Sunday, and speed work on Tuesday or Wednesday. Then I’ll do another one or two runs of about 8 to 10 miles some other day. Maybe I’ll run to and from CrossFit on Friday mornings once I graduate from “OnRamp.”

I’ve been doing lots of push-ups, pull-ups, handstand push-ups (against the wall), situps, etc., on my own already. I had to focus on this more when I ripped my shin open down to the bone doing box jumps, since I couldn’t do my normal running routine for about a week. Hopefully, this helps prepare my a little bit for what’s in store. However, I’ve never focused on olympic-type weight lifting. I’ll be trying to figure out what I can lift in terms of deadlift, clean, etc. I will also obviously need help with proper form, which I expect to get from CFM.

Part of the challenge involves Paleo, I believe. I’ve had much success on the Zone diet (60+ pounds of fat loss over several years), and further success on the Tim Ferriss Four Hour Body diet. I follow those principles generally to this day, and maintain what I consider an acceptable body comp, and a great cardio-vascular fitness level. I expect CrossFit to improve my strength, and following the Paleo diet should help eliminate some additional fat. I don’t expect my body fat is very high; probably in the 15-17% range. I’m excited to have the most accurate measurement done (hydrostatic testing), instead of relying on the Tanita scale at home.