This Blog is Now Inactive

With the impending opening of our new facility, The Cell - Real Fitness, I have a new website.

This site will no longer be updated.

For the latest news and info on CrossFit and functional fitness in W.A., head over to www.thecellfitness.com.au

I am also now taking bookings for one-on-one training and memberships at The Cell, email me at jason@thecellfitness.com.au to schedule a session.

All the best for 2009, and Train Hard.

On Holiday

Ultimate CrossFt Perth has shutdown for Xmas and the New Year as I'm away on holidays until the 3rd January.

I don't have much in the way of comms, so if you email me or try to call me, don't be surprised if you don't get a rapid reply. However, I will endeavour to get back to everyone as soon as I am able.

Have a great and safe holiday period and I'll catch you all in the New Year.

Another Day, Another Delivery = More Equipment

The new C2 rowers, squat racks and dumbbells arrived today!

CrossFit Running and Endurance Sports Training Certification

The Cell - Real Fitness will be playing host to Perth's first CrossFit specialty certification. Brian Mackenzie and his crew from CrossFit will be heading down under and west on the 24th and 25th October 2009 for the CrossFit Running and Endurance Sports Training Certification.

So what's your "Helen" time? It could be better in a weekend by improving your running efficiency. Maybe you want to improve your 5k, 1 mile, or 400m times? Or your marathon?

Do you hurt when you run? Do you suffer from shin splints, knee or hip pain? Improving your running efficiency may be the key to running both pain free and faster.

You will run less than 2.5 total miles over the weekend and spend 2 full days with Coach Brian MacKenzie learning the fundamentals of run technique. Learn how to utilize CrossFit and minimize oxidative overload to improve the performances of both your short distance and endurance athletes.

Brian Mackenzie is an expert in strength and conditioning for endurance athletes, and is the creator of www.crossfitendurance.com and a CrossFit Endurance Coach. He is a Level 3 CrossFit Certified Trainer and is a Level 3 POSE Certified Running Coach. Brian is the owner of CrossFit Newport Beach, and operates an internship for professional trainers. He has been a competitive Ultra Runner and Ironman Triathlete. He has competed in Ironman Canada along with several ultra marathons ranging from 50k to 100 miles including the Western States 100 and the Angeles Crest 100. Brian has successfully used CrossFit as the cornerstone of his programming for endurance athletes, while supplementing sport. His athletes train sometimes a third of what the norm train with superior results.

To register or for further details, go to CrossFit Running & Endurance Sports Training Certification, Perth.

The Cell - Real Fitness. It's Taking Shape!!!

After a bit of hard work, The Cell is starting to look like a CrossFit box. The floor and platforms are in and the 5.4m pull up bar will be going up just in time for Xmas! It still resembles a building site and there's plenty more hard work coming, but it's getting there : )

CrossFit Games Qualifier

The 2009 CrossFit Games Qualifier (Australian Region) will be held on the 4th & 5th April 2009 at the home of CrossFitFX, 2 Production Ave, Kogarah, NSW.

If you want to qualify for the 2009 CrossFit Games in Aromas, California, you must attend this event.

We are looking for the best CrossFitters Australia has to offer so we can take them to the US and show everyone how hard Aussies are! If you think you fit the bill, drop me an email at jason@thecellfitness.com.au A.S.A.P.

Back From the Gymnastics Cert

This was a great weekend and an excellent learning experience. Tucker and his crew are fantastic people and very knowledgeable coaches. 

We're hoping to get them over to Perth in 2009. They are extremely keen to come and Tucker wants to get out to Kalgoorlie and experience the bush. I've just gotta keep him away from my gun! You can take the boy outta Texas but you can't take Texas outta the boy! I'll keep everyone up to date on any Cert whispers, but in the meantime, please let me know if you'd be interested in attending a CrossFit Gymnastics Cert in Perth. 

Also, expect to see some more gymnastics progressions in the training at UCF Perth. Gymnastics can be a very humbling experience and can make massive improvements in your fitness and well being.

Here's a few pics from the weekend, with some of the bits and pieces we were playing with.

THE CREW

With the Cert Crew. L to R - Tucker (GSX), Mack (CF Boston), Gillian (CF New York), yours truly and Jase (GSX)

This man is a legend. I mean Tucker, not me!

I think he grabbed my butt!

THE RINGS

Getting inverted and tight in prep for a back lever on the rings

Spotting Steve from CFX (Commando Steve of "The Biggest Loser" fame)

THE BANDS

Learning how to use bands to assist with HSPU's

First, spotting them,

Then, having a crack myself on some paralletes.

CrossFit Gymnastics Certification

I'm heading over to Sydney tomorrow (Friday) for the CrossFit Gymnastics Certification so if you send me an email, my reply may not be all that prompt. I'll be steering clear of the computer for a few days and focusing on learning and having fun.

Short note to on the Weightlifting W.A. comp coming up on Sunday 14th December at the Midland Speed Dome. Yours truly will be competing as will one of my athletes. If you'd like any info on the comp or on getting into Olympic Weightlifting yourself, let me know.

Power Bands Now Available @ Ultimate CrossFit Perth

Power Bands are great for obtaining maximum resistance through a greater range of motion with squats, deadlifts, rows, military and bench presses. Also wonderfully effective for stretching muscles and tractioning joints.

I find Power Bands invaluable for training athletes who are trying to achieve their first pull-up. We start with a heavy band and gradually reduce the size of the band as the athlete becomes stronger. Eventually, the athlete is able to do pull-ups unassisted. I've even started using the bands in training my one-arm pull-ups.

Please note: All bands are sold singularly, not as a pair.

Mini Bands

Resistance: 4.5kgs to 23kgs 

Price: $30 each

Small Bands

Resistance: 11kgs to 36kgs

Price: $35 each

Medium Bands

Resistance: 23kgs - 55kgs

Price: $40 each

To purchase bands or for more information, please call Jason on 0417 977 699 or contact Jason via email at crossfitperth@hotmail.com 

PAINSTORM - November 2008 - Results

THE WORKOUT

Using a bar equal to your bodyweight, with a continuously running clock do one front squat the first minute, two front squats the second minute, three front squats the third minute . . . continuing as long as you are able.

Use as many sets each minute as needed.

(Courtesy of Jeff at CrossFit Brand X.)

For those that couldn't front squat their body weight, we scaled accordingly. 

THE RESULTS 

(Body Weight/Weight Used/Minutes Completed(Total Reps))

Jason 82/82/7 mins (28)

Storm 65/47.5/8 mins (36)

Paul 70/70/5 mins (15)

Steven 85/62.5/6 mins (21)

Justin 85/50/6 mins (21)

Anthony 80/60/5 mins (15)

CrossFit on MSN

Check out these links to a couple of articles about CrossFit on MSN today.

Facing Down The Gila Monsters: The CrossFit Workout Converts a Reluctant Newbie
http://health.msn.com/fitness/articlepage.aspx?cp-documentid=100218435

CrossFit: The Fast Furious Workout Craze
http://health.msn.com/fitness/articlepage.aspx?cp-documentid=100217215

Next Kettlebell Workshop - 1st November

The closing date for the early bird discount is this Friday 24th October so if you want the $50 discount, get moving!

The next Ultimate CrossFit Perth - Kettlebell Basics Workshop is 

on Saturday 1st November 2008.

Check out http://crossfitperthwhatshappening.blogspot.com   for full details.

This will be the last workshop for 2008 so don't miss out!

Storm Does Elizabeth

PainStorm Results October 2008

Great turnout to this months PainStorm. We had 12 participants and that created a scheduling and equipment problem. We ended up having to run through 3 groups. 

Results as follows:

(Names followed PC Weight, Buy In/Cash Out Pull Ups and rounds completed)

Group 1

Jamie 60kg. 25/12. 5 rnds + 1FW + 1PC

Jay 30kg 7/5 (MB). 6 rnds

Vicci 30kg 4/2 (SB). 6 rnds + 1FW

Flic 30kg 6/2 (SB). 6 rnds

Group 2

Rod 40kg 21/6. 5 rnds + 1FW + 10PC + 11K2E

Pete 50kg 30/6. 6 rnds

Paul 60kg 25/11. 4 rnds + 1FW + 5PC

Craig 60kg 32/12. 9 rnds + 1 PC

Bill 45kg 20/5. 5 rnds + 1 FW + 8PC

Group 3

Jason 60kg 33/15. 7 rnds + 1FW + 10 PC + 4 K2E

Storm 30kg 3/1. 7 rnds + 1 FW + 10 PC + 2 K2E

Kath 30kg 7/4. 6 rnds + 1FW + 10PC

Those that did it as Rx'd - Craig, Jason, Jamie and Paul. 

Sensational effort by everyone!

Introducing the Hopper Deck

The Constantly Varied part of the CrossFit prescription can be a problem when you’re away from your home base. 

The Hopper Deck is a fully operational poker deck that contains 54 WODs to take on the road with you. The Hopper Deck was developed in partnership with CrossFit Inc. and remains true to the CrossFit prescription.

The Hopper Deck contains a balanced variety of workouts that you can do in a gym, or under more austere conditions.

The Hopper Deck will soon be available in Australia for the first time. Ultimate CrossFit Perth has ordered a limited supply which is on its way from the US as we speak.

Email crossfitperth@hotmail.com to pre-order your deck. First in, first served.

Each deck will retail for $40.00.

Pick a card, any card!

Workout of the Day

If you take a look to the right of the web page, I've put in a couple of new links. 

The first will take you to the CrossFit.com main page workout of the day (WOD). The second will take you to the CrossFit Brand X forum with the scaled version of the CrossFit.com main page WOD.

I don't post a WOD myself as, apart from not having the time, I don't see the point in re-inventing the wheel. The CrossFit main page WOD is programmed and designed by Coach Glassman. He founded CrossFit and has the sweet science of programming the WOD down to an art form. If you follow the main page WOD, you will get fit, extremely fit.

The scaled version of the WOD from Brand X is designed by Jeff Martin. Again, scaling is a science as well as an art and Jeff has it sussed. If you can't perform the mainpage WOD as prescribed (Rx'd) go to the scaled versions, pick one that looks tough but manageable and GET SOME! 

CrossFit Cert Crew

The crew from the recent CrossFit Level 1 Certification held by Ultimate CrossFit Perth and the Australian Defence Force. A great crew and a sensational couple of days.

PainStorm - October 2008

Here it is

"Goodbye Grip!"

Buy in: MAX pull-ups

Then, as many rounds as possible in 30mins of:
Farmers walk 30 metres (women 24kg KB, men 32kg KB)
10 Power cleans (women 40kg, men 60kg)
15 Knees to elbows

Cash out: MAX pull-ups

(Courtesy of Davie Easton at CrossFit Central Scotland)

GET SOME - 9am Sunday 12th October at the Warehouse.

CrossFit Cert - Day 2

Awesome! What more can I say?

Today we got underway with a question and answer session with Coach Glassman. There were no stupid questions, no questions too small or too large for Coach to answer. And the answers were extensive. You didn't just get the short explanation, you got the background, the reasoning and arguments, the criticisms and the facts.

We then hit up a team workout. Nothing too tough, but the ropes came out and there was a lot of subbing going on. The rope climb is something most of us have little exposure to and I for one haven't climbed a rope since I was about 12! That'll soon change, so keep an eye on this website for some exciting Ultimate CrossFit Perth news over the coming months. Anyway, back to the cert.

The nutrition lecture from Jimi was sensational and went a long way to explaining the Zone and the CrossFit dietary prescription for me. I've toyed with the Zone before, but have never fully embraced it. I usually try to eat protein, carbs and fat at every meal, but that's not really enough. That's going to change. I'm going to give it 2 weeks of weighing and measuring and see how things go. I've started off already and just polished off a perfect 3 block snack. It's going to be an interesting experiment and I'll see whether it really is like "getting off the crack!"

Programming was another very interesting lecture from Dave and finally put to bed the questions I had about the crossfit.com WOD's and their randomness. What did I get out of that lecture? A hell of a lot. Mainly though, do the main site WOD. Don't mess with the program. Do the WOD. Simple as that.

All in all, a fantastic 2 days with an excellent group of athletes and some very fine coaches. The CrossFit crew are a great bunch of guys and girls and a group of people I'd be proud to call mates. Now its time to knuckle down, save some quids and get over to the US next year for a Level 2 Cert and take up Jolie on her offer of a stay at her place in northern California and do some training at CrossFit One World!

Oh and we played with muscle ups and kipping pull ups today. I was pretty happy to increase my consecutive muscle up PB from 3 to 4! Every additional one is a cause for celebration!!!

CrossFit Cert - Day 1

In a word, awesome!

The crew from CrossFit HQ turned up this morning at the gym and I was impressed to see who had turned out. Coach Glassman, Nicole, Jolie, Dave, Todd and Jimi. They brought some of the very best and it was sensational to finally meet the crew. Coach was simply fantastic. A very personable and intelligent man who freely shares his knowledge and experience.

The content of day 1 was excellent. We covered the 9 fundamental CrossFit movements, learning the theory and practice behind them. Coach Glassman spoke about CrossFit and the CrossFit prescription of constantly varied, functional movements, performed at high intensity.

Dave spoke at length about his introduction to CrossFit and how, as a US Navy SEAL, he realised that the age old military fitness prescription of long slow distance running and high rep calisthenics left him gassed and struggling on operations in Afghanistan and Iraq. He also mentioned how, on his first visit to Crossit HQ, he had his butt kicked by Nicole in the split jerk! Humorous story, but an excellent example. Dave also covered CrossFit's definition of fitness. What is fitness and who is fit.

We finished off the day with a dose of "Fran". That was fun, but I was disappointed with my time of 5.41 mins. My PB is 5.14 and I would have liked to have smashed that, but it wasn't to be. I was pretty gassed about halfway thru the first set of 21 pull ups. It was still enough to finish around 4th from about 36 participants so at least that's something.

I always thought it was my strength holding me back in Fran, but after today and after speaking with Nicole, I've realised that it's not really that. It's probably more cardio-respiratory endurance and stamina. I tend to gas out rather than suffer from muscle fatigue. That said, the best bet is to stick to constantly varied, functional movement, performed at high intensity, simply CrossFit. That's how you improve your Fran time and become fitter.

No photos from today. Due to where the cert is being held, no camera's are allowed.

Time for bed and back into it tomorrow.