Dennis was tired hearing his wife and three girls constantly chattering about crossfit. He ignored their invites to the gym as best he could for as long as he could. He ate what he wanted whenever he wanted. Even though he wouldn’t admit it. It was time for a change. He was sitting at 238lb, about 40lb overweight. Dennis started into the Masters class in November of 2012. Before long he was hooked and to this day is one of the gym’s most active members. He started adding in personal training outside of his Masters classes. He had one goal in mind, to get under 200lb before February 2nd, his oldest daughter’s wedding.

Well he did that and more.

After completely restructuring his diet and adopting a paleo lifestyle along with his added gym time and weekend bike rides with his wife, the weight began to drop. Rapidly at first and then slowly as the wedding approached. He was always shedding pounds consistently, though. A week before the wedding he was at 198lb.

After the wedding and the numerous compliments from family and friends who he hadn’t seen in years, he was ready to take it a step further. We began looking for competitions for him. One with a Masters division so he could test all his hard work.

Dennis took on the Wodfather Games at CrossFit 817 this past weekend. A Masters only competition with age groups starting at 40 and ending at 55+. For the past two weeks leading up to the competition, he worked his ass off prepping for the WODs. We had a plan coming into the weekend and he executed it with precision. Dennis took first in three out of five events and took first place overall in the the men’s 55+ division.

Right now Dennis is sitting at a bodyweight of 188. That is exactly a 50lb drop since November. He is stronger than ever and determined to push it even further. Dennis is a true example of dedication and hard work. He had a goal and he went out and crushed it. We are so very proud of you. You earned it.

What is the Athletic Development Program? The Athletic Development Program (ADP) is a program designed for high school athletes (ages 15-18) who seek to improve their sports performance. The ADP utilizes the principles of CrossFit while dedicating more time to teaching and building the training skills necessary for developing athletes at the high school and collegiate levels. ADP workouts consist of a combination of strength training with through power and Olympic lifting, metabolic conditioning, plyometrics, speed/acceleration work, agility and nutritional education. Planned programming from a certified coach is guaranteed to improve both physical and mental fortitude.

When is the ADP offered?ADP classes will be offeredon Monday, Wednesday andFriday afternoons from 4:30-5:30pm. The cost will be $120/month with classes kept small to ensure adequate attention is spent on each athlete. First month will be pro-rated from first class.

How do I get started? A two part Basic Barbell Course will be offered on Monday andWednesday of next week (June 10th & 12th). Both classes will be needed to join into the ADP and are included in your first month’s payment. If you cannot make both of these classes, please schedule a time with Coach Ryan Savard in which you can do a make-up. The first official class will startMonday, June 17th and will run MWF of each week.

Have questions? Please contact Coach Ryan at 214-326-0776 or [email protected].

Members: If you know of any high school age athletes, please help spread the word!

Spaces are limited. Please email today to reserve a spot!

The CF main site states the aim of CrossFit is to “forge a broad, general and inclusive fitness… a program that will best prepare trainees for any physical contingency — not only for the unknown, but for the unknowable.” The same holds true for our thinking at EDCF. We want to make you faster and more powerful. We want to build your endurance, stamina, strength, and flexibility. We want to heighten your sense of balance, coordination, agility, and accuracy. All while encompassing mental fortitude and toughness.

The term “CrossFit” is more ambiguous than most people generally think. Each gym is different and their programming reflects it, whether it is randomized chaos or targeted and progressive. I once heard that CrossFit gyms are like cars. You have your Lamborghinis and you have your pintos. There are many who do it right but a many many many more who have little to no background in strength and conditioning and are doing it wrong. Thus, giving the brand a bad perception and turning potential new crossfitters away before they get to really experience everything a legitimate box has to offer.

When I read on the interwebs and see things like “I do CrossFit five times a week” or “will CrossFit go well with my yoga and cycling schedule?” I have to sit there and just shake the head. To me that sounds like “I did fitness today at the gym” or “I was a work and did a lot of business today”. Quite simply, CrossFit is a broad term and is interpreted in a multitude of ways. There are so many movements  involved in typical CF programming. You have your power lifts, olympic lifts, supplemental lifts, bodyweight movements, gymnastics, mobility, plyometrics, running, rowing, biking, and even swimming. These are just the raw materials. You then have to factor in the training of specific energy systems. The phosphocreatine, glycolytic, and aerobic pathways (more on these later). Once you understand these, you then have to progressively and periodically build on each without taking too much away from the others.

Since last Monday, we have been applying a new style of programming known as fluid periodization. Fluid periodization is comprised of strength, power, and stamina macrocycles. We will be focusing on each for at least a three week span to single out and work specific energy systems. Once on energy system is worked sufficiently then we will move on to the next. Once through all three, you will all come out better athletes across the board. I know the programming is heavy now, and some of you might not find it that enjoyable, but believe me, it serves a purpose. For more on fluid periodization, watch this…

This coming Monday morning, we will be doing things a little differently than in the past. While we usually take on “Murph”, this year we will take on another Hero WOD (or maybe a mixture of a few, muhuhaha!).

Jen H. has also made a donation jar for the victims of the tornadoes this past week in Oklahoma. We are also accepting clothes, shoes, bandaids, sports bras, toothpaste, etc.

Be at the gym at 9am this coming Monday morning to detox from the weekend and help support or neighbors in Moore, Oklahoma.

Zach and Kelsea have been a major part of the growth of our box and its surrounding community. Kelsea has been behind the awesome designs of our current logo and recent t-shirts while has Zach stood by us since EDCF was just a concept. He even built the webpage you are looking at right now. This week is their last week with us as they are leaving us for the west coast. We are all saddened to see them go but excited for them as they open up a new chapter of their lives in Santa Cruz, California. Both Zach and Kelsea have accepted jobs at CrossFit Headquarters. These two creative minds will help the CrossFit webpage crawl out of the dark ages once and for all!

On a personal note…While I consider Zach the resident boisterous ass-hole at the gym, he has been one of my best friends over the past seven years. He has been a loyal friend and has really outdone himself in support of this place since we both moved back this way from Austin. I wish you and Kelsea nothing but the best and know you two will kill it out there. Thanks for everything!

“We are all travelers in the wilderness of this world, and the best we can find in our travels is an honest friend.” – Robert Louis Stevenson

You might have noticed that since the arrival of the new rowers (or ergs), rowing has become pretty common in our weekly programming. Love it or hate it, rowing is here to stay. Why should you learn to respect it? Well for starters, you can’t cheat the distance on the rower. Also, rowing allows us to work the three specific energy systems hard while not giving your joints a pounding. Thus making it an excellent choice for longer workouts that have a fair amount of joint loading already.

Gaining meters efficiently is compromised by poor technique. Short and choppy strokes lead to expenditure of excess energy and load your body with much greater forces than do longer, smoother, and more powerful strokes. The technique is similar to swimming where longer and more powerful strokes will propel you much further.

Sunday morning was a blast. Despite the early morning groans from having to be at the gym at 7:30am yesterday, all 24 athletes did awesome! We couldn’t have made it work without the help of our awesome volunteers. A big thanks goes out to Heather, Jen T., Jen L, Anne Marie, Rick, Marcia, Vickie, Josh, and Charles for volunteering. Here is a movement recap of No Ordinary Race for those not in attendance…

• 8 minutes to find a 3RM power clean
• Begin run (3 & 6 milers)
• Obstacle 1 – 200 m backwards overhead medball toss (20/15)
• Obstacle 2 – Slosh pipe lunges to cone + carry back
• 3 milers head back to gym
• Obstacle 3 – 50lb bucket carry to cone and back
• 6 milers head back to gym
• 2 minutes max effort kettlebell swings upon arrival (53/35)

Here are your winners for NOR 2013:

3 Mile Men’s: Chris Schaar

3 Mile Women’s: Kristen Lucas

6 Mile Men’s: Trevor Speck

6 Mile Women’s: Emile Odeski