Better Know a Coach – David
ATTN Employers: Hire more CrossFitters!
Having had the unique opportunity to assemble and lead many diverse teams of employees and volunteers, I’ve come to this seemingly obvious conclusion: CrossFitters make the best employees. Here’s how:
- Checked Ego – Embedded deep in the DNA of a CrossFitter is a desire to work on one’s weaknesses. So you can back squat 500 pounds? Great, go run a 5k. On any given day CrossFitters willingly walk into their gym knowing they’ll face weaknesses head-on and come out a little better on the other side.
- Attention to detail – “Move your hands out 2 inches.” “Your left foot needs to land 1/8 of a second before your right.” The perfection of human movement exists in the minutia. And CrossFitters love it. As they develop as athletes their attunement to fine detail grows dramatically.
- Welcomes correction – Imagine chatting with an employee about a project that was adequate, but not great. You lay on some tough, but constructive criticism. Your employee is extremely grateful, if not ecstatic about your tough love. This is the relationship that CrossFitters develop with their coaches everyday. We welcome and crave the correction of the watchful eye of our coach.
- Social outlet – I love efficiency. I was drawn to the idea that I could work out and develop rich friendships all in an hour a day. It’s great. As professional adults, it becomes increasingly difficult to find new, meaningful interaction. This happens all the time and i
s encouraged at the CrossFit gym. - Stress management – Think about this: CrossFit will likely be the most challenging thing your employee does on any particular day. Imagine everything in the office being perceived as manageable and attainable? CrossFitters routinely practice new and developing skills; often times experiencing frustration and joy once the skill is mastered. I promise you “Fran” is more of a mental hurdle than anything you could throw at an employee.
- Lower healthcare costs – This is obvious. Lifestyle diseases have drastically surpassed all others in loss of healthcare dollars for companies. Seriously. What we’re doing IS NOT WORKING. Yet, every CF gym in the world has over a dozen stories of life-altering improvements in health. Get with it, employers.
- Pursuit of virtuosity – CrossFitters celebrate. Your training partner gets a personal best and you guys share in the joy. Shortly after the celebration is over, the PR’ing CrossFitter wants another 5 pounds next week. The pursuit is never over.
- Punctual – Class starts and ends at exactly the same time, everyday. CrossFitters practice and plan for punctuality every single day. Not only for themselves, but for the good of their class.
- Sharp – I was chatting with one of my clinical Psych professors one day and she explained to me that, despite our refusal to accept it, our brains
operate much like a dog in a backyard. It’s wired since birth to take the same route around the outside of the yard, ultimately wearing down the grass to where there’s only dirt along the dog’s chosen path. The brain needs intervention if we’re to create new synapses, stay sharp, and stave off depression. Many therapists will prescribe their clients take random routes to work as a way of exercising their brain & interrupting the “dog path.” CrossFit is full of new & functional movement. The brain must be engaged and sharp to practice and learn these new movements. - Networked – Looking around my most recent class I saw: 2 physicians, 2 pharmacists, 3 attorneys, 1 CPA, 1 pharmacy school student, 2 law students, and 1 educational administrator. The CrossFit gym is not only a place where people get really fit, but it’s a well-connected group of like-minded, motivated individuals. Quit sending your employees to happy hours and useless luncheons and send them somewhere that is more efficient in it’s ability to yield physical and professional results. Interested in chatting more? Shoot me an email: matt@crossfitmemorialhill.com
November Member Newsletter
REFERRALS!!!
You guys have been killing it with the referrals! Some of your fellow members are saving over $200/year with the referral program and are well on their way to a free membership. With the holidays coming up, think about throwing a referral card (worth $25!!!) in a card (or 10) for a co-worker, family, or friend. Remember, the referral program is good for both CrossFit and Bootcamp memberships. Thanks, guys!
UPCOMING EVENTS
November is shaping up to be an exciting month at CrossFit Memorial Hill! Check out this month’s events:
November 11th — Veterans’ Day
To honor our Vets, CrossFit Memorial Hill signed up as a host site for the nationwide “3 Wise Men Tribute.” The tribute is to raise money for the 3 Wise Men Foundation which serves to raise awareness and prevention for combat veteran suicide. Everyone will be doing the Tribute WOD on this day, but we’d love for you sign up, donate, and spread the word about this important issue. Please click on the graphic below to learn more and register. As a commitment to this great cause, CFMH will match the gym’s total donations up to $250. Thanks Vets!
November 15th – 6pm Location TBD — CrossFit Memorial Hill Turns 2!
A great kick-off to the holiday party season, The Hill anniversary parties are always a blast. Save the date!!!
COACH’S CORNER
Coach’s corner takes a turn for the nerdy in a series on diversifying your training and volume for maximum results. Do you like these? Click here to subscribe to our channel.
BETTER KNOW A COACH – JAMIE THOMAS
In a new series, “Better Know a Coach,” Jamie chats about his first experience with CrossFit, live music, pomade, comic books, and his inspiration. Please excuse the muffled sound as there were some weight slamming in the background, but it’s definitely worth a watch. Thanks for being a great coach, James!
FEATURED ATHLETE – KYLEE SPRENGEL
1) How did you find CrossFit? What were you doing prior? One of the box owners in Lawrence pushed me to try it when I lived there, but I resisted because I didn’t want to “get bulky” and I thought it was a fad. I played softball at a very high level growing up and volleyball in college. Two months after moving to Kansas City and my failed attempt at trying to define myself as a runner (hahaha…) I finally conceded and gave it a try. Holy crap, I didn’t realize how out shape I was. Two things hooked me instantly – One: the no-bulls**t, no-frill approach to working out and variety in the programming. Two: the community. It has an awesomely similar feeling to being on a sports team. I found my home here at CFMH in August of last year. LOVE YOU ALL! ::wink:::
2) What are you up to when you’re not crushing it in the gym? It doesn’t really matter to me what I’m doing, so long as I’m in good company. I like to try new restaurants and explore different parts of the city. I’ll go to/watch pretty much any professional sports game and you will find me repping all my Chicago teams. Except the White Sox, ew. I also love a good Netflix binge with wine and cheese.
3) It’s no secret you love weightlifting. I mean, you just snatched 160#. Was this always the case? What do you like so much about it? Haha.. I’ve always been more of the power/strength athlete. Softball and volleyball both required that quick, explosive type of movement. I found my interest in weightlifting through CrossFit. There’s something to be said about the feeling you get from lifting something heavy from the ground to over your head… Maybe it’s just me, but it yields a much more satisfying feeling than, say, testing how many burpees you can do in a minute. I also appreciate that it’s just as much about speed and hitting positions (technique) as it is about strength. Its practice requires constant fine-tuning.
4) Favorite training song? Dirty, filthy, offensive hip-hop.
5) Cheat meal? Nachos, bruh… Or waffle fries.
CrossFit Memorial Hill Referral Program
No question — you guys are the best group of fun, hard-working, dedicated, welcoming CrossFitters on the planet. We’re amazed daily at the support and love you show to each other.
For that reason, we’re looking to you guys to grow. Instead of spending money outside to bring people in, we wanted to give you guys the opportunity to save on YOUR membership while bringing new faces in the door. Here’s how the program works:
1. You give a friend a $25 gift card (on us) to CrossFit Memorial Hill.
2. They sign up for a free class here.
3. If they like it, they get $25 off their first month.
4. If they become an unlimited member, you get $10 off every month they renew.
5. Repeat.
6. You continue to get $10 off per member you refer for the life of your’s & their memberships. If you have 5 friends join, YOUR MEMBERSHIP IS FREE.
Featured Athlete – Kylee Sprengel
FEATURED ATHLETE – KYLEE SPRENGEL
1) How did you find CrossFit? What were you doing prior? One of the box owners in Lawrence pushed me to try it when I lived there, but I resisted because I didn’t want to “get bulky” and I thought it was a fad. I played softball at a very high level growing up and volleyball in college. Two months after moving to Kansas City and my failed attempt at trying to define myself as a runner (hahaha…) I finally conceded and gave it a try. Holy crap, I didn’t realize how out shape I was. Two things hooked me instantly – One: the no-bulls**t, no-frill approach to working out and variety in the programming. Two: the community. It has an awesomely similar feeling to being on a sports team. I found my home here at CFMH in August of last year. LOVE YOU ALL! ::wink:::
2) What are you up to when you’re not crushing it in the gym? It doesn’t really matter to me what I’m doing, so long as I’m in good company. I like to try new restaurants and explore different parts of the city. I’ll go to/watch pretty much any professional sports game and you will find me repping all my Chicago teams. Except the White Sox, ew. I also love a good Netflix binge with wine and cheese.
3) It’s no secret you love weightlifting. I mean, you just snatched 160#. Was this always the case? What do you like so much about it? Haha.. I’ve always been more of the power/strength athlete. Softball and volleyball both required that quick, explosive type of movement. I found my interest in weightlifting through CrossFit. There’s something to be said about the feeling you get from lifting something heavy from the ground to over your head… Maybe it’s just me, but it yields a much more satisfying feeling than, say, testing how many burpees you can do in a minute. I also appreciate that it’s just as much about speed and hitting positions (technique) as it is about strength. Its practice requires constant fine-tuning.
4) Favorite training song? Dirty, filthy, offensive hip-hop.
5) Cheat meal? Nachos, bruh… Or waffle fries.
How to choose a CrossFit gym
There’s no Carfax for fitness, but you should be just as diligent in seeking out your fitness community. Here’s a basic template for choosing the right fit.
1. The Business
Before you set out on your journey of finding a new fitness home, you must first understand CrossFit’s affiliate model. CrossFit as a training program is guided by broad, generalized training principles defined as: “constantly varied functional movement performed at a high intensity.” From there each affiliate is as similar to each other as one restaurant is to another. All serve food but each varies in quality, service delivery, and price. An experience at one affiliate is just that – one experience. So shop around.
Action step: Email or call (leave a voicemail; most affiliate owners also coach and train) all the affiliates in your area. Don’t be afraid to travel for the right fit.
2. Cost
If you’ve had $11 auto-drafted from your checking account for the last couple years for a gym membership you never use, you will experience some sticker shock. If you’ve paid $60-$70 per hour for personal training, the value you experience will be astounding.
In every corner of the economy we understand value proposition – cars, food, houses, tools, wine, nightlife – that, generally speaking, when we pay a premium we receive a premium product. Unfortunately, our health is the last thing in which we find value since we don’t see the need until it’s too late. As a general rule (see #1), most CrossFit gyms bank on 100% of their membership showing up and working out 3-6 times/week. The gym you go to now is aiming for 8%-9% of their clients showing up — ever. CF gyms spend little money on marketing & air-tight contracts, but rather rely on the results and referrals of their small but engaged membership.
Action step: Add up your total monthly cost of social expenditures (happy hours, nights out, dinners) that are deteriorating your health. Make a choice.
3. Coaching
Credentials are important. At the very least your coach should hold a CF-L1 designation or be involved in an observed internship that culminates in this certificate. Other specialty certificates are also available and great additions to your coach’s resume.
Here’s the BUT – how well does your coach distill down all those letters behind his or her name into a relevant bit of knowledge to you, today? This is what distinguishes good coaches from great coaches – an uncanny ability for pattern recognition and communication. These are things that cannot be taught in a weekend seminar, but learned through a passionate pursuit of excellence.
Action step: Chat with a coach about your particular training goals and how they believe CrossFit will help you achieve those goals.
4. Programming
There was a time in CrossFit’s history when it was not uncommon for programmers to randomly select movements, loads, and rep schemes out of a hat and have their athletes get after it. This is fun every once and awhile, but will not give you great results for the next several decades.
Well that pendulum has swung violently in the other direction. I field hundreds of emails from traveling CF’ers who are convinced with every fiber of their being that they cannot miss a single repetition of an infinitely complicated 24-week Yugoslavian single-leg squat cycle. Here’s the thing: you can find hundreds of good programs online. But what makes a great program?
Great programs are tested by the programmers. Great programs are interested in not only what’s on paper, but how their athletes will interact with – physically, socially, and psychologically – what’s on paper. Great programs can answer why just as well as they can answer what.
Action step: Ask the prospective gym’s programmer why they program what they do. Common elements of great programs will consist of: progressive overload, testing, and de-loading.
5. Systems, not Snowflakes
As a consumer, this will be the toughest pill to swallow. A great CrossFit gym will have a system whereby every new member is on-ramped both physically and (more importantly) to the culture of that particular gym. A great gym will test, re-test, tweak, and constantly evaluate these programs to be applicable to anyone that walks in the door.
You will be tempted, as you shop around, to feel exempt from whatever system the gym has put in place. Maybe you played college football or you’re a powerlifter with a 600-pound deadlift. An exception to the system is indicative of a larger issue, however.
A great system has room to accommodate a really strong powerlifter or a former college athlete. Allowing you to be exempt from their system, a gym is saying a couple things: 1. Your money today is more important than your safety and the rest of my membership. 2. Burnout is coming – a gym full of individuals not invested in the good of the community is exhausting for your coaches and for the owner of the gym. It’s unmanageable.
Action step: Don’t push back on being “on-ramped.” A coach’s insistence on this process means their system is evergreen, manageable, and scalable.
If you’re ready for some real, lasting results there’s no more efficient training protocol than CrossFit (maybe I’m biased?). I’ve never had a single person (out of the 2000 or so that have tried it out) say that it wasn’t a good workout or they felt unsafe. So try out some classes at a box near you. It may not be for you, but at least you won’t be saying so from the sidelines.
Goals pt. 2
In part II of the Goals series, we’re looking at those of you that have a lot of training time under your belt. You have a regular training schedule, you’re developing as an athlete, but you don’t quite know where to focus those efforts. This one’s for you.
Routine is the Enemy pt. 2 – Specialty Programs
In the 2nd part of this series I’m joined by my lovely wife, Maggie, to discuss how she uses our amazing specialty programs at CrossFit Memorial Hill to continue to see great performance and body composition results year after year.
Routine is the Enemy pt.1 – Volume & Adaptation
Most of us work full time, have families, travel, and socialize. We’re lucky to get in 5-6 hours of training a week. In order to maximize those hours, we need to re-think how we approach those precious training hours to avoid long-term adaptation (plateau). In a slightly nerdy Coach’s Corner Series “Routine is the Enemy,” we’ll look at diversifying your training to maximize those long-term results.
Stop the Yo-Yo (3 Steps)
Do you ever feel like your health, fitness, and wellness is a constant roller coaster ride of success and failure? Here are the three things you absolutely must have to enjoy a life of health and wellness:
1. A Crew
Think about any lifelong pursuit – family, career, travel, friendship, health – none of which exist in a vacuum. As social animals we thrive and grow in group settings. Nature shows us that isolation is counterproductive to a rich, fulfilling life.
Why, then, when it comes to our own health do we go to the gym alone, put in some earbuds, and go home to eat alone? There will inevitably be slip-ups – health is a lifelong pursuit. The difference is: when you slip up, will you have a crew to lift you up, joke about all the junk food you ate over the weekend, and get you back on the horse on Monday? Bottom line, you need a training partner(s).
2. A Plan
This September marked the 10 year anniversary of the first 4 week training program I ever put on paper. The goal? Do 10 Pull Ups and run a 6-minute mile by the end of the 4 weeks. I failed miserably. My mile was 8:11 and I think I got 4 Pull Ups. But I knew every day, no matter what, I had to get in a set amount of work. Motivation.
Too often I see people wander aimlessly through gyms with no end goal or game plan in mind. This is by no fault of their own of course; the fitness industry has, for decades, been much less concerned with results than setting a low enough price point in hopes that you forget you’re being charged and never come to the gym.
So assemble your crew, set goals, and develop a results-focused plan. There are plenty of qualified coaches out there to develop a plan for you or you can take my approach – trial and (a lot of) error.
3. A Mindset
Do you want to be healthy and fit for the next 30 days or the next 30 years? I assume you answered the latter. I can’t stress this enough: stop allowing short term, white knuckle, self-doubt peddling “experts” dictate your LIFELONG PURSUIT OF HEALTH.
It is very unpopular, as a coach in the fitness industry, for me to talk to clients about incremental, sustainable, lifelong change. Five percent at a time is not nearly as cool as “Drop 2 Sizes in 2 Weeks” and “3 Exercises for Bigger Biceps NOW,” but it’s honest.
The guy who sold you a fancy Ab Machine or published an article in Men’s Health takes no accountability for your next 30 years. As a coach, every rep I prescribe, every macro-/meso-/de-load cycle, and every day you come in the door is wrought with accountability for your next 30 years.
I promise things will not always be easy and you will slip up. It’s all good though. You know this going in and you have your people and your plan to get you back on track.