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Quality Over Quantity For CrossFit

man in judge shirt looking for quality over quantity when woman deadlifts barbell

A phrase I love is quality over quantity. Yes, I know CrossFit is filled with AMRAPs and all about completing movements in the shortest amount of time. And for a metcon, speed and quantity is definitely important. But is it better than solid repetitions that reach full ranges of motion?

At the end of the day, we do CrossFit for fitness, not to impress other people by winning. And when it comes to fitness, we can’t cut corners.

Why quality over quantity matters

Spend more than 3 seconds watching any group metcon at any CrossFit box and you will see people who would receive a ‘no rep’ in competition. 

I get it, most CrossFitters have a type A personality. To an extent we are all competitive, and we want to push ourselves, we want to win. So of course when a coach yells ‘3, 2, 1, GO’ we are going to try to move as quickly as we can. Is every single rep going to be absolutely perfect? No, of course not. But, you should always strive for quality over quantity.

Today at Buffalo Nickel CrossFit we are doing box jumps. So as our example we’ll use box jumps. The most common ‘no rep’ on box jumps is failing to fully extend your hips and knees when you land on the box. 

Now, I don’t think the large majority of CrossFitters intentionally don’t lock out their hips. They are simply trying to make better time or get more reps in. But does your time or rep count really matter if you aren’t doing the movement to the standard everyone else is?

It’s like saying you ran a mile in under 4 minutes, but you really just ran 1200 meters (¾ mile) and rounded up the distance. Sorry buddy, not a mile, and not a true mile time.

Cheater cheater, pumpkin eater

As large as CrossFit is, it is still a small and tight knit community. Your city or town might have tons of boxes, but your reputation will follow you even if you move boxes. As a coach and box owner, I don’t want members who purposely shave reps, or don’t complete movements.

Why I want box members who prioritize quality over quantity

  • One bad apple can spoil a bunch.
  • You are telling everyone your ego is more important to you than your reputation.
  • If you ever do compete you will have to relearn all the movements you cheat on, or go through the embarrassment of being ‘no repped’ in a public setting.
  • And I don’t want a box I attend or own to be known for being cheaters.

If your ego is so fragile that you need to cheat on reps to “win” and that makes you feel better, by all means go right ahead. Just know your reputation of a cheater will carry from one box to another. If your CrossFit life and personal life meet, it will follow you there too. Everyone will know you as a person who doesn’t prioritize quality over quantity, and is likely to cut corners in other areas of life too.

Rx ain’t Rx if it ain’t Rx

My personal favorite…people who mark they did a workout Rx, when it wasn’t Rx. 

For those who don’t know CrossFit slang for doing something exactly like it is written is ‘Rx’. It basically means ‘as prescribed’ hence the ‘Rx’ abbreviation. 

Now, if a new athlete checks Rx, there is a good chance they just haven’t been informed what that means. But, once again, let’s take the WOD we did at Buffalo Nickel CrossFit today.

Kelly Rx:

  • 5 RFT
  • 400m Run
  • 30 Box jumps 24”/20”
  • 30 Wallballs 20lbs/14lbs

So if a person modified any part of this, like did 4 instead of 5 rounds, used a shorter box, or a lighter wall ball, any of these would be a reason that the WOD would not have been done Rx. To be Rx you must do the work EXACTLY as it is written: quality over quantity.

By setting a high standard and then holding yourself to it, you will become better. If you can’t do Kelly Rx and modify it by using a lighter medball weight, it should drive you to get stronger, and do it Rx.  

Personally, I love when I get into a WOD and it slaps me across the face. It acts as a motivator! Remember, the chase is the fun part for me. 

You better pack a lunch

I used to work with an amazing human being, Russell Miller. I was in my early 20s and Russell was in his 50s. We worked at an equine farm together doing general maintenance and grounds-keeping. Russell was one of those people who could make anyone laugh. He was constantly messing with people in a fun and joking way, and he would take as good as he gave.

After we worked together for a while we both would mess with each other, and I would tease him about being so old, he would say something like, “Boy if you want a piece of me you better pack a lunch”.  He was telling me if I wanted to fight him and win, I better be ready to work for it.

When there is a tough WOD I still think to myself, this is going to be long….you better have packed a lunch. It makes me smile to this day and helps motivate me to push myself. The fight isn’t going to be easy, but you just might beat the old man. 

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5 Tips for CrossFit Workout Recovery

woman in workout clothes doing tips for crossfit workout recovery in a park

Have you recently gotten started on a journey to health and fitness? Have you just started doing CrossFit for the first time? If so, you probably are surprised at the newfound level of “pain” after your workouts! You’ll be in serious need of tips for CrossFit workout recovery.

When I talk about pain, I don’t mean crippling pain. I mean that kind of muscle soreness that comes from an intense workout. When someone is just getting started with their fitness, it’s common to use “pain” as a reason to skip workouts. The problem with that idea comes when one missed workout turns into two. Then that turns into three, and then four, eventually wrecking your fitness goals.

So, you should learn to deal with the soreness. How do you deal with it, stay on track and reach those goals? Here are five tips for CrossFit workout recovery to help you get to those results you want.

1. The best tip for CrossFit workout recovery: go to class  

The absolute best thing you can do when you’re sore is to keep going to class. By continuing to work out, you will keep your muscles moving. This actually prevents stiffness.  

When you get to class, let your coach know how you’re feeling and talk about possibly lowering the intensity of your workout. Choosing to lower the intensity will keep you moving and keep you on track towards those goals while minimizing the risk of injury.

2. Hydrate, Hydrate, Hydrate!

It’s super easy to drink a ton of water while you’re dripping in sweat but the real challenge comes when you get home.

There are a lot of formulas out there that can help you figure out exactly how much water you need to drink daily, in order to optimize your workouts. 

However, one of the easiest ways to monitor that hydration is to pay attention to your urine. When you use the restroom, your urine resembles the color of lemonade. If it’s any darker, then it means you may be dehydrated. If it’s too clear, it could mean over-hydration.

3. Eat lots of whole foods and lean protein

As easy as it is to grab a protein shake while you’re on the go, it should not be used in lieu of actual food. You are helping your body to heal itself, and the soreness, when you choose to eat clean, whole foods. 

Consuming the proper ratio of protein, carbohydrates and fat will help you to build lean muscle. You’ll quickly see the results you’re working towards. Your diet is so important to your progress.

4. Zzzzzzzzzz…. 

You may not believe this, but one of the best tips for CrossFit workout recovery is sleeping! Your muscle fibers tear down during your workout. During sleep, they repair themselves.

On top of keeping muscle soreness at bay, a good night’s sleep will also help you train harder the next day!

It’s important to note that not all sleep is created equal. Napping throughout the day, falling asleep to the TV, and alcohol induced sleep will not adequately provide you with the peaceful, natural sleep that you need.

5. Post CrossFit workout recovery products

There are some great and some not so great workout recovery products out there. When choosing, go for a product that helps replenish electrolytes and essential nutrients so that the body can recover and repair itself. 

If you are wondering what a great product option would be, or what nutrients you need and don’t need, have a conversation with your coach the next time you’re at the gym.  

Why workout recovery is key

With all of that being said, you should push yourself at the gym and train hard. But what you do after you leave the gym is also very important.

When you aim for great recovery between workouts, you will see the results you want in a shorter time and help reduce that awful soreness.

So now that you have tips to follow for really great recovery, go hard on that next workout!

By Kari Reed

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Digging Deep For Mental Fortitude

woman working on mental fortitude through exercise in park

Mental fortitude: this is the mental and emotional strength when we’re facing a difficult or adverse situation. It’s a strength of mind that allows a person to encounter danger or bear pain with courage.

Gaining and maintaining mental fortitude is just as important as physical fortitude. For the majority of people, life will require more non-voluntary mental fortitude than it will physical. Most of us are not placed in a dangerous situation that demands us to physically rise to a courageous level.

But I think you could argue just the opposite for mental/emotional situations. In life all of us will deal with experiences where mental fortitude is needed. The death of a loved one, a person teases us and makes us upset, our commute to and from work. These are just some examples. 

Just like we gain physical fortitude with exericse, we can develop our mental fortitude the same way.

Mental fortitude and working out

There are certain workouts (not your typical bro-sesh) that push you to a different realm. This realm isn’t so much a physical place as it is a mental one. It’s known a few different ways: the pain cave, happy place, or sometimes referenced with the comment embrace the suck.  

If you have ever been on an athletic team or had to go through military or first responder training then there is a good chance you have entered this world.  

This happy place is a requirement for these types of people. They are expected to do more than the average human. So, they must be pushed into the pain cave to find out just how strong they are. This is one reason why some people from these careers and lifestyles are so inspirational. It’s as though nothing rattles their cage. That’s a trait we all want. 

But did you know that going through an intense workout does the exact same thing for all of us normal people too? Going to that pain cave and forcing yourself to push past those limits you are uncomfortable with helps to build your mental fortitude.

How does it help me – the average person?

For that question let’s use one of my favorite benchmark WODs: Karen. For those who don’t know, Karen is 150 wall balls for time. 

This means that 150 times, you take a medicine ball that weighs between 14 and 20 pounds, hold it in front of you, squat down and up. As you come up, you throw it to a 9 or 10 foot target. The goal is to catch it on the way back down. This feeds you into your next rep.

If you have never done it, just looking at it on paper is enough to make you sweat. But after you do it you realize, sure, it was awful – but you survived. The more you do it, the faster your times get and the easier it becomes. So let’s break that down.

You gain a successful view of yourself

You go from thinking wow, that’s a lot of reps, I don’t know if I can finish to wow that’s a lot of reps, I can’t believe I finished that.  Eventually, you get to ok 150, here is my game plan for doing that. You start to see that you are successful at completing it and that starts to build a positive self image.

You start setting goals

Maybe you do it on purpose, or maybe you don’t even notice. The first time I did Karen my goal was just be able to finish. After that it was to get a faster time than I did last time. My next goal was to take as few breaks as possible. I was shooting for a break after 50 unbroken reps. Then it was to try to get 75 unbroken reps. Now I try to get 100 unbroken reps. I’m still trying to get there.  

Maybe your goals are less formal. They might be more on the spot while you are mid rep. You might decide to do 5 more before taking a break or to go for another 30 seconds. But, you are mentally setting goals for you to achieve which is great.

Visualization

When you do a wall ball, you have to visually picture where you want that ball to go before releasing it. You are visualizing the perfect rep before you even do it. This technique is used by everyone from life coaches, military, CEOs, Olympic athletes and more. They visualize the outcome they want, over and over.

This makes them believe what they want is possible, and then it allows them to reinforce themselves that they can do it. It sounds cheesy but being able to see your target, even if it doesn’t exist yet, allows you to know what direction you need to take your shot. This massively increases your chances of success.

Practice and simulations

Visualizing what you want is awesome because you can do it any time and any place. But eventually you have to put the rubber to the road. 

If you want to get better at a sport you don’t just go scrimmage, you practice specific drills. You use a simulated drill to act out a situation that may come up during the real life thing to help you practice what the proper reaction is.

A good coach won’t allow Karen to be the first wall ball WOD you do. They will give you smaller rep counts and allow you to practice and build up to 150 reps as fast as you can. Maybe your first time you are scaled to 75 reps instead of 150, but a good coach knows this will be enough and it simulates the real deal. It helps prepare you for when you do 100, or 150. And it does so in a way without crushing you, it builds you up, it doesn’t break you down.

We want to know what your pain cave workout is! And tell us how you mentally decide you are going to push through a tough workout.

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Building A Circle of Support

building a circle of support eating a meal around a table

So you have decided it is time to change your lifestyle and become healthier. Maybe you have already begun to exercise, and eat healthy.  Or, maybe you have been considering it and have finally made the decision that it is time to start. A key part of a fitness journey is building a circle of support, so you’re excited and go to share your goals with your family and friends.

Hopefully, all of them will be happy for you and will have positive things to say. But what happens when they don’t? Or even worse, when they react negatively instead of positively like you had hoped?

This can be disheartening and make you second guess your decision. Understand your health is your responsibility. Your motivations are a deeply personal thing. While there are many things in this world that someone else can do for you, taking care of your health is not one of those things.

Still, you want their support. What can you do when those who are close to you are not in the same boat when it comes to health?

Building a circle of support is about communication

Yes, it is easy to get upset with them and argue about who is right or who is wrong. At the end of the day, will this help do anything but solidify each of your mindsets? 

Understand that this person might think they are showing you they care about you. People like to take care and spend time with those they love and care about. 

When you tell someone that you are not eating the foods you did in the past, or will be spending an hour at the gym a night, there is a good chance they hear something different. 

To them you could be saying you no longer want to eat with them (eating together is one of the most social and vulnerable things you can do). Maybe they hear that you no longer want to spend time with them due to being at the gym for an hour.

For many people, food is love

We all probably know someone who considers food to be a reflection of love. That person in my life was my dad. Food was a direct expression of his love for you. He would spend hours preparing and cooking food. He wanted to make sure you not only had plenty to eat, but that you had leftovers too.  

So, when he would offer you something he knew or thought you liked, it was his way of saying he cared about you. When I would say no thank you, to him I was denying his love. This might seem a bit extreme but think of it this way.  

Our caveman/animal brain has evolved, but not past the point of realizing that food is a life source. We only share it with those we care about. By doing so, that part of our caveman brain is saying, “I care about you enough that I will sacrifice something that could possibly keep me alive”.  That is pretty wild to think about!

So listen to them. Calmly assure them that while you are wanting to be healthier, it doesn’t mean you love them less. Yes, there might be some changes but they need to understand that this is important to you and you want to better yourself.

Next, invite them to join you

Building a circle of support doesn’t have to involve new people. You can incorporate your family and friends and pull them into this journey with you.

Ask them to try cooking a new healthy recipe with you. Or, invite them to go to the gym with you and workout together. They may not want to, but they will see you are wanting to include them. 

Sometimes friends and family see you changing and feel afraid you will leave them behind. They have known you for years and they have liked/loved who you were. When they see change happening it scares them.

Inviting a friend or family member to get healthy and active with you can be beneficial for both of you. It can help keep you motivated, and it can help them start becoming healthier. Plus, if there is something you both enjoy doing it together will be so much more fun compared to doing it alone. 

Ideas for building a circle of support with people you love

  • Join a recreational sports team together. This could be soccer, volleyball, ultimate frisbee…
  • Order a meal service and cook a healthy meal together
  • Go to the new local healthy restaurant that just opened
  • Train to run a 5k together
  • Take a weekly hike/walk
  • Join CrossFit together (duh…)

Whatever you decide, inviting them to join you in whatever you are doing will always be better than not inviting them.

Lastly, realize that it is your life and your decision

Maybe this person who says they care about you actively opposes you being healthier. They pick a fight when you are about to leave for the gym. Or they try to convince you to eat unhealthy foods. The worst are those who are trying to get clean and overcome a drug addiction and their “friends” keep trying to get them to use again.

Hopefully, by now you know you need to take your health seriously and do what is best for you. Allowing someone who is supposed to care and love you convince you that being unhealthy is the best decision is selfish and manipulative. Do not give people this power over you. Build your base of health so strong that it can not be broken by anyone.  

You have total say in how healthy you want to be. Maybe you just want to tone up a little, or maybe you want to make fitness your profession.  Whatever it is, when you make that choice don’t let anyone stop you until you reach your goal.

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8 Magic Fat Loss Pills (Part 2)

boxes of healthy magic fat loss pills food in container

Part 2, here we go. If you read part 1 then you will know you were supposed to drink some more water before bed, and then get to bed on time. Hopefully you did one or both of those things and started today on the right foot! If you did not do those things, don’t worry.  Today is a new day, and we are starting fresh. I want you to pick 1 or 2 of these magic fat loss pills off this list and do them today! 

Magic fat loss pills at Buffalo Nickel CrossFit

The whole Buffalo Nickel CrossFit team is here to help you. So, if you have questions please let us know. We would love to help you have the body and/or life of your dreams!

Calorie deficit

Food gives our bodies energy. A way of measuring how much energy we take in and how much we burn is through calories. Consuming less calories than you actually use in the day will result in weight loss. 

Please understand this does not mean starving yourself of nutrients and food completely. Your body still needs energy to function properly.

This can be tricky and there’s an overwhelming amount of information on this topic. So, take my advice and do research. Or, get a nutrition coach to help figure out the right foods and quantities. 

High quality sleep

You have heard it before and you will hear it again. The average adult needs 7-9 hours a night. Sleep allows your body to rest, shut down, and reset. 

This does not mean getting in bed at 10 but staying up for two hours watching TV, or playing on your phone. Your body/mind are easily trained. This is why you feel sleepy but then when you get in bed your mind knows there is a couple hours of stimulation coming, so it perks up. 

Try to make your room a good sleeping habitat (cool, dark, comfortable, quiet), then get in bed and focus on your breathing. It will help you get to sleep and stay asleep. In my opinion, good sleep is the most underutilized tool for health.

Hydration

Drink water! 

Water is the only truly healthy drink that also offers 0 calories. Juices, pops, teas, energy drinks, coffee, and more might provide some energy, or are a good treat once in a while.

But water flushes toxins, boosts metabolism, improves skin/hair, helps blood pressure, makes a healthy brain, regulates body temp and more. Want to drink more water but don’t know how?  Here is our article on 5 ways to get more water.

Sufficient protein

The body needs protein. Plain and simple, humans must have protein.  And good quality protein in the right amounts is important for maintaining strength and muscle tone. 

For the most part your protein should be lean and minimally processed (white meat poultry, eggs, certain seafoods, some red meats). If you are vegan or vegetarian I would suggest looking for a yellow pea protein powder as opposed to soy products. 

Most if not all the world’s soy is genetically modified. Concerns about this are (luckily) becoming more important to people. However, there are alternatives available.

Nutrition dense foods

Have you ever eaten a large quantity of food only to feel hungry again a short time later? Chances are this was because that food was not rich in nutrients. 

Here is the kicker too, most times “foods” that don’t offer many nutrients are cheap to buy. However, you are not fulfilled when you eat them, so it leads to eating more. Eating more means you have to buy more, therefore spend more, so are they really cheaper? 

Not to mention they don’t give your body nutrients, and years of little to no nutrients can result in some pretty major health problems that cost 100 times what some good healthy food would have cost.

Stick to healthy, nutrient rich choices to fuel your body.

Strength train regularly

Lift heavy objects a few times a week. Heavy is relative. For some people and some movements heavy will be 10lbs. For others it will be hundreds of pounds. 

We have covered some of the benefits of adding weights in your workout here. Usually when people hear the phrase “lifting weights”, they picture some massive bodybuilder who has such big muscles they can’t touch their shoulder. 

But weight training does not need to be super heavy to be effective! Adding it in even a few times a week can be super beneficial.

Increased heart rate

Do things that get your heart rate high. Not just kinda sorta high, but red lined. 

Sprints, jumps, full body movements are great at getting and keeping that heart rate up. Make yourself sweat and breathe hard. 

Once again, like strength training, cardio done a few times a week will help metabolism, keep muscle tone, keep bone density up, increase balance, coordination, brain health and general athleticism.  

The key magic fat loss pill: consistency/patience

You will not and should not lose tons of weight in a short period of time. Be patient. 

You spent 20 years getting out of shape, expecting to get in shape in 30 days is delusional. I will tell you right now, if you are expecting to see a change before a couple months you will be disappointed. Especially if you are not consistent. 

You have to do all these things daily or almost daily to see any real change. Now, you will probably feel change after a few days, but this process works from the inside out. So you will feel it, then see it. Not the other way around. 

To help keep on track, celebrate small successes. Maybe it was your first day in 10 years where you did not drink pop, be proud of that. Use that as encouragement to help motivate and inspire yourself to continue down the healthy path.

These magic fat loss pills can help you

Stick with it! You can do this. Remember that it is our goal to make you happier and healthier. One of the things we offer is nutrition mentoring. We can give you awesome one on one coaching to help you understand nutrition. You can improve your lifestyle to work FOR you and not against you.

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World Class Fitness in 100 Words (Part 2)

fitness in 100 words group of healthy women

So as a follow up to part 1 of this post, I wanted to break down each aspect of fitness in 100 words. The great thing about the mindset is the simplistic takeaways. The lack of specialized words or terms makes it very easy to read, and actually comprehend.  So trying to stick with that same theme, let’s dive in to take a look at these parts.

Eat meat & vegetables, nuts and seeds, some fruit, little starch and no sugar.

Choose healthy foods that provide your body with lots of nutrients. A bag of chips doesn’t have many nutrients in it. Lower amounts of starch means you don’t need them with every meal.

I know what you’re thinking, and yes, fruit does have sugar. The “no sugar” that this is referring to are things like candy, or sweets with high levels of sugar and no other vitamins or benefits.

Keep intake to levels that will support exercise, but not body fat.

Measure your foods for optimal fitness.  If that doesn’t work for you, just try not to overdo it. Eat healthy foods, when hungry.

Practise and train the major lifts:

Deadlift, Clean, Squat, Presses, Clean and Jerk and Snatch.

These are multi-joint movements that train large (and more than one) muscle groups at a time. Compound lifts are shown to be the most effective at developing muscle and gaining strength. Vary the weights and reps you use when training these lifts.

Similarly, master the basics of gymnastics:

Pullups, Dips, Rope Climb, Push Ups, Presses to Handstand, Pirouettes, Flips, Splits and Holds.

If the major lifts build your large muscle groups, then these train the smaller ones. These exercises are great for helping you stabilize and balance, rather than move large amounts of weight.

Bike, Run, Swim, Row, etc… hard and fast.

It’s crucial to do enough cardio. Aim for easily repetitive movements that can be done intensely without major risk of injury. Focus on sprint intervals with these, not distance.

Work out 5 or 6 days per week. Mix these elements in as many combinations and patterns as creativity will allow. Routine is the enemy.

The majority of the week you should be combining these lifts, movements and exercises in endless ways. There should be an underlying structure to how they are combined. But, try to stay out of a strict routine. Don’t get in a rut of doing the same things over and over. Get creative with how you incorporate workouts into your life.

Keep workouts short and intense.

Intensity is king. Common knowledge would say longer is better. However, this is not true. There is a reason sprinters look like power houses and marathon runners look like twigs.

Regularly learn and play new sports.

Learn new movements and create lots of neural pathways. Teach your body and your mind how to do lots of things!

Fitness in 100 words: a simple philosophy

There you have it. That is fitness in 100 words (plus a little extra).  Ready to get fit? Book your free intro today.

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