WEEK 8/12

COACHES COMMENT:
It been an interesting couple of weeks in Australia.  It is great to be catching up with the family and friends who I’ve not seen in 3years (who would have thought setting up a business in London would take so much time and effort)… Anyhow, I’m not the type to go on holidays and forget about training, its something I enjoy, so why wouldn’t I keep it up?

Its also been a great chance for me to visit some CrossFit boxes in Australia and New Zealand to see how they do it.  The global CrossFit community is awesome.  Its nice to be welcomed into a box and have the ability to chat to owners, coaches and members alike.  Everyone is welcoming and easy to chat with.   Its actually a very unique thing if you stop and think about it.  Keeping up training on holidays can be a hard thing, nobody really want to go to a globo gym on holidays.  But hitting up a CrossFit box is something different and a chance to meet some locals.

It has also made me appreciate how hard our members actually work.  You guys have it lucky!!  The programming and the coaching at Momentum Training is world class, and the community and the general fitness levels of our members are solid!

Keep up the hard work guys and girls.  See you all in a week.

RECOMMENDED WEEKLY READING:

(more…)

At Momentum Training we are all about working hard toward making ourselves just that little bit better. That time of year is here… The CrossFit games 2015 is here to test us. 

Why does it matter and what do I care?

I (Josh) might be known for the outrageous comments and laid back approach to coaching but when it comes to testing myself and improving upon my goals I’m all in. The CrossFit Open is a time for you to benchmark your fitness level annually against the rest of the world and more importantly yourself! If you never test you will never know where you are at: I will be hosting the Open workouts on Friday nights at the box until the end of March. Working out or not come along and cheer the guys and girls who are testing themselves. Some of us may push each other and be a little over the top but this approach is not for everyone. What is for everyone is the community spirit and supporting your gym members who are there day in and day out to get through this together. Once this is done the offer is there to head over to The Fox (Pub) and have some banter and possibly talk about something else other than CrossFit. 

The Details:

The 2015 Reebok CrossFit Games season begins with the online Open. Anyone can sign up to compete in five workouts over five weeks and post their scores online. Last year, the Open reached more than 209,000 athletes from around the world.

The 2015 Open begins Thursday, Feb. 26. That evening, tune into the live Open announcement show streamed to Games.CrossFit.com. Director of the Games Dave Castro will announce Open Workout 15.1 and moments later top Games athletes will complete that workout going head to head.

Athletes will submit their scores throughout the weekend. The hard deadline for score submissions is 5 p.m. PT, Monday, March 2. Don’t be late!

P.S. YOU DON’T HAVE TO ENTER THE GAMES TO ATTEND THE FRIDAY NIGHT WODS.

Triathlete:

Day 1: Swim – : 3 x (25 m/y, 50 m/y, 100 m/y) recover 1:1 work/recover ratio

Day 2: Bike – : 3 x (400m, 800m, 1M) recover 1:1 work/recover ratio

Day 3: Run – : Repeat 200m, recover :30 until form/pace deteriorates

Day 4: Swim -:  800m @ 70%

Day 5 : Bike -: Repeat 800m, recover :30 until form/pace deteriorates

Day 6: Run  -: 5k @ 70%

Runner:

Day 1: 3 x (100m, 200m, 400m) recover 1:1 work/recover ratio

Day 2:  Repeat 200m, recover :30 until form/pace deteriorates

Day 3: 2 x 2M TT recover 4:00-5:00 between efforts

*Reference: CrossFitEndurance.com

WEEK 7/12

COACHES COMMENT:
Gone fishing in Australia.. be back in March… enjoy the weeks ahead =)

RECOMMENDED WEEKLY READING:

(more…)

Momentum Brunch @ Ozone Coffee Roasters 

When: 28th Feb, 9am – 4pm

Where: Leonard Street, Old Street – 12 mins on the 243.

The crew at Ozone Coffee Roasters have opted to give us a set menu for £10 p/p. This will be offered between 9am-4pm on the 28th February at their Old Street location click here for the details. Please get down there and support our local business and keep the community alive @ Momentum Training. Invite a fellow member you may not know so well to welcome them to the gym.

Please note there will be a free Americano / Espresso only. Any other coffees can be purchased. Along with this there will be no changes to the menu. Please appreciated that they cannot accommodate changes.

Welcome to Phase 3 2015

Currently Barbell Club is  focusing on volume. The programme goes through stages from increased reps and less intensity to decreased reps and increased intensity (Intensity being weight on the bar).

As you may realise there is a lot of shit on the internet. On the flip side there is also a lot of great stuff. Its hard to find, but it’s there. This next phase will include  a guest appearance from Joe Defranco. You may not know who he is but if you take this stuff seriously it’s a name you should know.

With new members joining the Barbell Club and an array of exercises to complete it is important that those who can read and understand the programme crack on with it. Please read the programme carefully before you come to the session to be sure you get the most out of it.

This program has variation in the lift which we will keep for 2 weeks and then change. Teaching you how to use bands / chains / hex bars. We will aim to make you more versatile and understand the program to educate you beyond a globo gym moron.

Recommended Reading:

Phase 3

http://www.defrancostraining.com/articles/38-articles/60-westside-for-skinny-bastards-part1.html

http://www.defrancostraining.com/articles/38-articles/64-westside-for-skinny-bastards-part2.html

https://www.defrancostraining.com/articles/38-articles/65-westside-for-skinny-bastards-part3.html

WEEK 6/12

COACHES COMMENT:
Row, Row, Row you boat!!  This week is all about the rower!  How is your rowing mechanics and what do you know about “stroks per minute,” “rowing intensity,” and “split times?”

Stroke Rate

On a Concept2 rowing machine the number found in the bottom left corner on the main readout (pictured here) is the stroke rate. It is a meassure of how many strokes you are pulling per minute (SPM). Essentially, this is how many times you go back and forth on the rower each minute. For the majority of CrossFitter’s this number should be between 18-30 during trainnig sessions. In a competitive scenario the SPM could as high as 30-40.

Why s stroke rate important? Think of it like driving a car, you want the ride to me smooth and efficient.  We don’t jump in the car and pump the accelerator in and out, this would be a very uncomfortable ride not to mention the fuel consumption.  The same principle applies to the rower.  You dont want the SPM to go form 24 to 14 and then back up to 20, you need it to be a constant and keep it smooth.  Learning to control the stroke rate is a great way to improve you overall performance on the rower.

Split Times

You should know exactly where the split times is displayed on the Concept2 rowers.  Its the BIG number right in the middle of the screen with the “/500m” to the right of it.  Split times are a reflection of the amount of force you are applying during each stroke. If your SPM are inconsistent, it is highly likley that your force production will be inconsistent.  This means that the split time will vary from stroke to stroke and you will have no idea how long its going to take you to get anywhere. If you are able to apply the same force consistently, your split time will remain unchanged.  If your aiming to row a 4minute 1000m you should be able to maintain a stead 2:00/500m split time.  Consistancy is the key to success on the rower.

Stroke Rate + Split Time = Intensity

So this might fu^& with your head a little, but stroke rate and split time have everything and nothing to do with each other!  A high stroke rate and a fast split time is not always the case. Think of it like gears in your car – different stroke rates allow for different efficiencies at different speeds.  You don’t got 100mph in 1st gear….  I hope not?

If your aim is to pull a 1:40/500m split time, you could do it at ANY stroke rate. You could aim to do it at 30spm or at 18spm. It will be significantly easier on your muscles if you aim for the higher stroke rate (30spm), but your heat and lungs might explode as your breathing rate goes through the roof. On the other hand you could aim to do it at at a lower stroke rates, which is typically more taxing on the muscles and require more strength.

Higher Stroke Rate* = Easier on the muscles & Harder on the cardio system

Lower Stroke Rate* = Harder on the muscles & Easier on the cardio system

* Split times are the same

In rowing, size does matter!  A bigger person in generally better at maintaining a lower stroke rates, whereas a smaller person often finds it easier to maintain a high stroke rates. Neither stroke rate is right or wrong; they are what they are.

If you want to be good at rowing you need to learn how to control your stroke rates and split times so you can stratagise your workout. If I am doing a heavy WOD that contains rowing,  I might choose to use a high stroke rate to tax my lungs, but let my muscles recover. Or if I am rowing 5000m I’m going to have a plan for my stroke rate and split time for each section (1000m) so I can predict the time it will take me to reach 5000m and not leave it to chance or burn myself out in the first 2500m.

The rowing monitor is your friend. In fact, if you master your stroke rate and split time, the monitor will be assurance that you are on target for making progress and reaching your goals. So, stop ignoring it, stop rowing like a spaz, and take control over your workouts.

What about the damper setting?  Find out more in this weeks recommended reading.

RECOMMENDED WEEKLY READING:

(more…)

Its not the first time I’ve posted a blog regarding blood tests.   I though it might be a good time to mention some of the tests availible to our members, as many of you are currently taking part in the Whole Life Challange.   A small group of the 2014 Momentum members attended a talk hosted by Gore BioScience regarding nutrition for performance and understansing the importance of vimatins and minerals, so some of this may sound familure.

Momentum Training has a partnership with Gore BioScience, The London Doctors Lab, and the London BioLab.  There are liturally 100’s of different test that can be done at these labs.  The team at Momentum have a basic understanding of many of these tests.  If we are unable to help, we don’t bullsh^% our clients,  we will refer you to either the team at Gore BioScience or to our holistic nutritionist Glen Matten.

(more…)

If you didn’t already know Annie read here (more…)

A little treat for those who love a Heavy Met-con class.  StreTch will filling in for Geoff this week – February 4th. 7:30pm – to deliver judgement day!  Rest up, eat well and try to have a good night sleep in preperation for:

Warm-up

Truster and Clean Tekkers

(more…)