Another Scientific Win for the 12-minute AMRAP — Powered by Vuori
December 1 |
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Good morning and welcome to the Morning Chalk Up. Ben Roberts was overseas when the pandemic hit the US, but came home and soon learned that he could use his CrossFit Kids Certification to help out his Chapel Hill community. And, the 12-minute AMRAP gets some more scientific support.
Keep those story tips, quotes and PRs rolling in. Send them to [email protected].
“Blessed is the season which engages the whole world in a conspiracy of love.”- Hamilton Wright Mabie
COMMUNITY
Coaching Kids in a COVID Lockdown
When the pandemic of 2020 hit, many people were forced to change their lives. For Ben Roberts, it meant moving home and leaving an exciting new fitness opportunity in the Middle East and returning to a statewide lockdown in North Carolina. But despite his disappointment, he was determined to make an impact in the fitness community in any way he could.
One big thing: As the pandemic grew worse, Roberts saw a growing need for kids to be able to get outside and be active after being locked up in their homes all day. With the help of one of his former athletes, he began to formulate a plan.
The program was called “CrossFit Kids in the Park” and has given more than 40 kids ages 5-12 a chance to get outside, socialize, and move around.
While based in the methodology of traditional CrossFit, Robert’s main goal was to make sure the kids were able to focus on good movement, proper body mechanics, and most importantly, teamwork.
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CROSSFIT GAMES
MEMBER EXCLUSIVE
Another Scientific Win for the 12-minute AMRAP
Researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital say 12-minute bursts of intense exercise can provide major health benefits for the general population. Their research was published earlier this month in the Journal Circulation.
The details: The study looked at 144 middle aged men and women and found that bouts of vigorous “cardiopulmonary exercise” led to positive changes in circulating metabolites, which is important for reducing insulin resistance, stress and inflammation, and ultimately for increasing longevity.
CrossFitters Test Their Fitness at the Spartan Games: Battle of the Fittest
This summer, Spartan Founder and CEO Joe De Sena wanted to answer the call for more live competitions from athletes and the passionate fans of fitness during the COVID-19 pandemic. So, he gathered 24 male and female athletes in a rural farm in Vermont in early October to battle it out for four days with a $100,000 prize purse on the line. Spartan also documented the competition calling it the “Spartan Games: Battle of the Fittest, presented by Harley-Davidson” which will debut on December 2 in a four-episode weekly series broadcasting on the Spartan Games YouTube Channel.
One big thing: Among the athletes competing in the competition that is billed as the “hardest extreme fitness competition” are CrossFit Games veterans Samantha Briggs, Kristi O’Connell and Emma Chapman.
The details: De Sena gathered some of the top athletes from across different fitness disciplines at the Riverside Farm in Pittsfield, VT, the birthplace of Spartan. Those athletes included Olympians, professional athletes, ultra runners, mountain bikers, triathletes, obstacle course race (OCR) champions, functional fitness, and other strength and endurance-based athletes.
To spice up your holiday season, Fitness Santa is bringing you 12 days of Crossmas, that’s 12 straight days of fun fitness giveaways from some of your favorite brands absolutely free.
From December 1 – 12, we’ll be doing Instagram live giveaways each day at 5:00 PM PT, totaling 78 prizes from:
Ivy Turner struggled with her weight and physical fitness her entire life and hit a “low point” two-and-half years ago. “I realized I was going to be one of those obese people in a wheelchair pretty quick if I didn’t do something about it,” said the 61-year-old retired nurse.
One night, Turner was scrolling Facebook, looking for some diet and exercise help and an ad popped up for Southwest Strength in Melita, Manitoba, about 40 miles from the farm where she lives. “The things they were saying really appealed to me. They were talking about catering to your individual abilities and working with you one-on-one and also in groups,” she said.
Though Turner had “never been more terrified” in her life, she decided to give coach Nathan Corrigal a shot. She made an appointment and they sat down and talked about her goals. “I told him I have absolutely no physical fitness and he said, ‘That’s fine. We’ll just start from where you’re at and keep building from there.’ He was just so sincere,” she said.
Here's a pretty simple and straightforward rowing workout from Dark Horse, but that doesn't mean it isn't challenging. The key is trying to climb each hill while staying on target. Want to row better in met cons? Train these skills and watch your performance improve.
Vuori's buttery soft Dreamknit™ Fabric makes for sweatpants you'll never want to take off, and the coziest gift. Available in both Men's Ponto Performance Pants and the Women's Performance Joggers, these are the pants that can take you anywhere and everywhere. Get 20% off your first purchase at Vuori.com today!
On this episode of the Two Brain Radio podcast, Chris Cooper lays out his favorite books of the year. Interestingly, his list isn't simply a rundown of new books, rather, he reviews books that he's returned to again and again and sent to other gym owners around the country. This is a great list!
For the last 20 years, the "Hatch Squat Cycle" has been known as one of the most brutal and effective programmed squat cycles for building leg strength. On the Brute Strength blog, learn more about the legendary coach, Gayle Hatch, and study the method behind this program.
Chalk Up Highlights is our section dedicated to celebrating our community’s wins in the gym. Follow @ChalkUpHighlights and submit your highlight to [email protected] to be featured.
Morning Chalk Up’s own, Andie Gonzalez Farias hits a PR back squat at 240 pounds.
COMMUNITY
In our community round-up today, we are focusing on two holiday fundraisers and some outstanding performances by athletes from CrossFit Kanga in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia:
Port CrossFit Turkey and Gift Card Donations: Members of Port CrossFit in Port Jefferson Station, NY held an interesting fundraiser over the past few weeks. They challenged themselves to lose pounds and inches on their bodies and asked family and friends to donate per pound and inch. In total, they raised nearly $2,000 and used it to purchase 20 turkeys and 51 $25 grocery store gift cards to donate to the Comsewogue School District food drive.
A.B.A.T.E. Toy Parade: CrossFit Brown and Gold in Gillette, WY will be a drop-off location for “Stuff the Bus” on December 12, 11 AM to 1 PM. Stop by and donate new toys for children of all ages. The A.B.A.T.E Toy Store has been helping children in NE Wyoming for over 30 years. ABATE will be accepting new unwrapped toys for the toy store during and after the parade as well. All the toys collected during the toy drive stay local, and their goal is to make sure everyone has a memorable holiday season.
CrossFit Kanga Members Take On Spartan: Last weekend, CrossFit Kanga in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, had 26 of its members take on a Spartan race. About half each did the 10k and 21k and 3 did the Ultra — 50k with 60 obstacles. Two of the Kanga Ultra runners place first in their age division, Dion Walmsley, a two-time Games athlete in the 50-54 division and Hazel Beasley, in the 35-39 division. The Kanga crew trained together for three months for the race. Congratulations all!
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