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Issue 3 November 2013

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November Announcements Athlete of the Month Competitor's Corner Paleo Holiday Tips Mobility 101 Meet The Coach

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# # # Halloween 2013 # # #

Mobility 101 by Coach Sarah

There are many reasons why it is important to preform a 5-10 minute warm-up before stretching and working. Warming up helps reduce your risk of injury and the aches and pains that come with exercise. The physiological reason to warm up is to assist your circulatory system in pumping oxygen-rich blood to your working muscles. The idea is to increase circulation throughout the body in a gradual manner. A proper warm up safely prepares the body for the increased demands of exercise. Cold muscles do not absorb shock or impact as well, and are more susceptible to injury. Other benefits of warming up are: Increased movement of blood through your tissues, making the muscles more pliable. Increased delivery of oxygen and nutrients to your muscles. This prevents you from getting out of breath early or too easily. Prepares your muscles for stretching Prepares your heart for an increase in activity, preventing a rapid increase in blood pressure Prepares you mentally for the upcoming exercise Primes your nerve-to-muscle pathways to be ready for exercise Improved coordination and reaction times Allows for time to work on skill specific movements, like double-unders, form specific movements, like squats, and strength specific movements, like pull-ups A warm-up should consist of a low impact exercise such as a light run, row, air-dyne, or jump roping and should be around 5-10 minutes.

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Surviving the Holiday with our very own Paleo Queen, Tiffany!
Have you been doing a great job with the Lurong Challenge but are worried about the upcoming holidays and all the food that goes along with them? Well, dont be!! Thanksgiving is actually one of the easiest times to maintain a paleo diet! Just throw the turkey in the oven, add a few vegetables and voila youve got yourself a clean meal. Here is a quick sample menu and recipes that can help to get you started. Add the following sides to your turkey....... Brussel Sprouts Slaw: (From Paleo Comfort Foods) 1 cup toasted pecans 1/2 pound bacon, cut into small pieces 1/4 cup Dijon mustard 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice Salt and pepper 1 1/2 pounds brussel sprouts, trimmed 1. Preheat oven 325. Place pecans on cookie sheet and bake 5-8 minutes until toasted. 2. Cook bacon in skillet until crispy, set aside on a plate, and save the bacon fat in the skillet. 3. In a separate small bowl whisk mustard, vinegar, lemon juice, salt, and pepper together in a food processor slice the brussel sprouts. 4. Add sliced brussel sprouts to bacon fat in the skillet and saut until softened and slightly browned. 5. Pour mustard mixture over sprouts. Add pecans and bacon and mix all together well.

Pumpkin Pie Bars: (From PaleOMG) For the crust: 6 dates, pits removed 1 cup almond butter 2 eggs 2T ablespoons honey 1 teaspoon vanilla extract Pinch of salt For the filling: 1 (14 oz) can pumpkin puree ! cup canned coconut milk " cup coconut cream concentrate or coconut butter, melted to be just a bit soft 3T ablespoons coconut oil, melted 3T ablespoons maple syrup 1 teaspoon cinnamon " teaspoon nutmeg 1/8 teaspoon ground ginger 1/16 teaspoon ground cloves (dont measure, just splash) Pinch of salt For the toppings: ! cup pecans, roughly chopped 2T ablespoons coconut oil 2T ablespoons maple syrup ! teaspoon cinnamon, pinch of salt 1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. 2. First make the crust: Add your dates and almond butter to a food processor and pulse until it breaks down together. 3. Then add your 2 eggs, honey, vanilla, cinnamon, and salt and puree until smooth. 4. Grease an 8x8 glass baking dish with some coconut oil and pour in your crush. Use a spoon to smooth off the surface and level out all over. 5. Place in the oven to bake for 12-15 minutes or until crust is firm and cooked through when you poke it with a toothpick. Then let cool. 6. While your crust is baking, make your filling. 7. Add you pumpkin puree along with all other ingredients and puree until completely smooth. Coconut cream should be incorporated in, not chunky. 8. When your crust is cool, top it off with your pumpkin puree filling and smooth evenly through. 9.. For topping, Add 2 tablespoons of coconut oil to a small skillet to heat under medium heat. Then add your chopped pecans. 11. These will burn easily so be careful. 11.. While constantly mixing the pecans, add your maple syrup, cinnamon, and a bit of salt and continue to stir until the pecans have roasted a bit, about 3-4 minutes. 12. Pour pecans on top of pumpkin puree filling. 13. Set in freezer to cool for 20+ minutes.

Mashed Cauliflower: (From Paleo Comfort Foods) 1 head cauliflower, leaves removed, stem and florets chopped into similar sized pieces 1 cup chicken stock or broth (more for a particularly large head of cauliflower) 1/4 teaspoon black pepper 2 cloves garlic, smashed 1-2 teaspoons fresh rosemary leaves

1. Place all ingredients in a medium sized saucepan or Dutch oven and bring to a boil. 2. Reduce heat to medium and cover, allowing to cook for 15-20 minutes or so, or until the cauliflower is very tender and easily mashed with a fork.** **You may need to add more stock if everything dries up and your cauliflower is not yet cooked through. Keep an eye on things as it cooks to see if you need to add some more. 3. Once cauliflower is tender and cooked through, pour off any excess stock that remains and reserve. 4. Pour all contents into a food processor and mix. If the cauliflower seems too dry, add in some of the reserved stock.

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Add in any spices, herbs, or mix-ins that youd like.

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Announcements
Master's Class is in full swing! Join Coaches Tiffany, Lindsay & Annette on M, W, F at 10:30 & spread the word. Our athletes age 50 & older are benefitting from the modified programming & extra mobility work.

2. NEW: Forward Teens class now meets on M, W, F from 2:45-3:30. All high school athletes are welcome. No fundamentals required & membership is discounted. Just be warned that Coaches Patrick & Carrie are creating an intense, competitive atmosphere! 3. CFF Kids classes will wrap up Session 1 on Nov. 14. Next session begins Dec.5. Classes are from 4:30-5:30 on Thursdays. Also, please inquire about our daytime homeschool classes! 4. Mobility class with Coach Sarah meets Thursdays at 6pm. We can all agree that stretching, warming up & flexibility are most important to our success in the gym! 5. Don't forget Yoga class with Kiersten meets on Thursdays at 7pm. Reward yourself with some quality core training, stretching, & one of her fabulous temple rubs! 6. TWO weeks left in the Lurong Paleo challenge! Congrats to all of our participants. You guys rock! Thanks for sharing recipes, ideas & your feelings during this adventure. You MUST re-do measurements & take after pics by Nov. 10!! Lindsay will be available on the 9th from 7-8 & 10-11. Please make every effort to be there! 7. November 23- SAVE THE DATE! Following a 10am group WOD, we will share in a Thanksgiving potluck. We are in need of turkey fryers. Please let Lindsay know if you can bring one! 8. During the month of November, we will run a canned food drive in an effort to collect 1,000 lbs of food for the homeless. IF we meet our goal, all participants will get to give Kent & Lindsay a "pie in the face"! Need a little motivation? Just think about that 400m walking lunge WOD $ 9. A HUGE thank you to Herb & Jennings (with some help from Todd & Dave Steele) for the awesome logo surprise! The wall looks amazing!!! Also, thanks to the Halloween fairies who decked out our box for the holiday #

THE Coach Andy

1. How long have you been crosstting? When did you join CFF? Approximately 3 &1/2 years. Ive been coaching at CFF since September 2011. 2. Share with us your athletic/professional background. How do they relate to the gym? I played soccer growing up and Ive been lifting weights since I was a teenager. Currently, I am a professional reghter in Northern Virginia. Given the physical demands of my job, I take strength and conditioning very seriously. 3. What do you like best about coaching? Least? I feel it all comes down to quality of life. My hope is that something we say or do will make a difference on people years down the road. I want everyone to be a badass like J.R. DiCola. 4. What is your favorite benchmark WOD/lift/skill? Least favorite? Why? I dont care for benchmark WODs. I love squatting, snatches and presses. I think the applications for real life and the athletic benets are undeniable. 5. You place a great importance on being educated in the gym. Do you recommend any books/websites, etc? I recommend you listen to whatever Dave Claassen tells you to do. Seriously, no book, site or cert will ever come close to spending time with a good coach. As far as authors/ coaches, there are just too many. Jim Wendler, John Welbourne, Dan John, Greg Everett, Justin Lascek, Glen Pendlay, etc. 6. Any coaching advice you wish all athletes would follow? Stop worrying about what anybody else is doing. The most accomplished athletes dont waste their time sharing their accomplishments and failures. Be consistent and disciplined. Also, do exactly what I tell you to do. Always. 7. Share with us your nutrition habits. What is your ideal cheat meal? Favorite recipe? Biggest food weakness? I dont eat grains, processed foods or a lot of sugar. I drink bourbon and eat chocolate regularly. Both of those items increase strength and burn fat. Look it up, its science. I read it in a booka leather bound book. I have a lot of those.

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! Competitor's Corner !
" athletes plan to participate in the following CFF competitions. Contact a coach for more details & please let us know of any others out there! 11/2- Capital Throwdown 11/16- Team Supert Charlotte 12/7- Supert Rubicon & Cold War

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Congrats to all of our athletes for kicking butt all over the eastern seaboard! We've had great results in the Hopper, Supert Philly & Festivus! If you are interested in extra training for the upcoming Crosst Open, contact Coach Kent.

Athlete of the Month: Sheree

1. When & why did you join Forward? I joined CFF 2 ! years ago. Lindsay started it in her garage in our neighborhood and my sister talked me into trying it. I was scared to death! After we did our first free class, my sister said sign me up. I thought she was nuts! I was 44 and thought Im getting too old for this! But I did it, and it was probably one of the best decisions Ive made. 2. What has been your biggest achievement since you joined Forward? Sticking with it. Exercising regularly. Before I started at CFF, I tried exercising regularly and just couldnt stick with it. Knowing that Im going to be working out with athletes and coaches who are supportive is very motivating. 3. What is your favorite lift &/or skill? Why? I love a deadlift! My favorite skills are kipping pull-ups and toes to bar. I guess theyre my favorite because I can do them! 4. What is your least favorite lift &/or skill? Why? Double unders. They are the bane of my existence! I still cant string them together. I dont love overhead squats-very awkward! 5. What physical/health improvements have you experienced since joining Forward? My overall health is sooo much better since I joined CFF. Regular exercise has helped me improve my eating habits because I know when I go to the gym after eating crappy it affects my performance. 6. Name a few goals you have for the next few months. How do you plan to achieve them? I really want to get a kipping handstand pushup. I can do them with 2 mats and sometimes 1 mat, but Id like to be able to do them with NO mat! 7. What motivates you daily? Staying healthy and in shape just feels good. Every morning before school my daughter and I talk about the WOD and the lifts. I love that shes as excited about it as I am. And knowing that some of my favorite people are going to be at the box when I get there. Theyre such a great group of athletes. Were all there to motivate each other.

What would you tell a beginner who is thinking about checking out our gym? I would tell them to try a class and not be intimidated. It looks scary, but Crossfit can be scaled for all levels. Crossfit Forward has great coaches and athletes who are very supportive.