New to crossfit... FIRST Crossfit Warmup tomorrow!!!!!!! i plan on doing the warmup for 3 weeks or so until it is easy even to continue on to the WOD's w/o too much breath lost haha... Anyways, my main reason for this post is to express my concern for whether crossfit is a good program for muscular development and body sculpting... or is it merely a difficult cardio workout that keeps one in good cardiovascular shape... I am not saying that I don't think it works, Im simply looking for answers as to whether Crossfit will help develop my muscles and trim some more fat or what... Thanks! Id appreciate many comments!!!!!!!!! Good luck Crossfitters..

ask and you shall receive

Nivek - sending u a pic of wat crossfit has sculptured my body to be...haha

Christ I've been doing the towel pullups all wrong, I was using both hands gripped over both segments of the towel. Well next time I'll go do the way in the vid and experience the difference for myself.

RE: Michael Yon. I find his reporting riveting and seemingly (no one really knows the truth unless they live it) more truthful than anything I get from 'regular' media.

My question is: If we (the US forces) are not in Iraq are these bombings still going on?

cool video. My towel chins never looked that fun.

That's freakin impressive...

Pretty impressive! How do these rate, in difficulty, compared to regular pull-ups? It seems like I've seen these listed as a sub but they look plenty difficult!

Seeing the guy stumbling forward while doing the squat brought back some unpleasant memories for me. Immediately after doing the same thing coming out of the squat I ordered some Pillars of Power. Now I squat with no fear!!

rob miller=pulling/grip beast

Michael Yon is a national treasure. Great article.

Thanks for all the videos, they're great and very helpful. Keep it up, it's appreciated.

It looked to me like maybe the first kind of pullups being done behind the video's title page might best approximate climbing a rope. I assume those are the "seesaw" pullups referred to in the FAQ?

ddcordwood - yes, they are.

I've seen post #1 before.

Yon's article is stunning. Makes me long for the day we can get our men and women out of harm's way in a land where up is down and down is. . .well down.

Rob, excellent work man. Hope all is well out there!

#1 I'd hate to say this, but if you use the word "sculpting" and "trim", then perhaps Crossfit is not what you are looking for.

#1 - crossfit is complex enough that it's going to be hard to get the info you are after by merely making a post to a discussion board - although it seems like a lot of us start out that way. Crossfit is going to make you strong, in a variety of aspects of that term. Practiced well it's designed to give the ability to generate power and the power endurance to apply it. It's not intended primarily to make you look good - although it will do that, just check out the guys/gals in the vids. This isn't a sculpting/trimming kinda thing - it's a work your ass off to be more physically capable kind of thing. Read some of the journals, like the free "what is fitness" piece, to get more detail. Nivek, congrats on starting.

So many towel pullup variations, think I'll try a new one next time. Awesome video, massive grip!

Hmmm... It seems that my question about sub-ing rope-climbs for climbing wall campusing have been answered with a picture of Rob Miller cranking towel pullups. Well if it works for Rob...

Darn it: towel pulls it is...

way cool video, stunning article. putting towel muscle-ups on the list...

Thank God for a rest day....now I have nothing to do except a road march.... (fist pump) How is everybody doing? Not really in respects to workouts or soreness...just your lives.

I figure I've become obsessed with Crossfit, I might as well get to know the people who scream, suffer, and succeed in the same respects that I do. Hey, a t-shirt idea!! The 3 S's....eh?

Good article.

I like towel pullups from now on.

Michael Yon is probably the best reporter over here. Here's a link to his embed articles he did on 2-4 Infantry last year - they are super.

http://www.michaelyon-online.com/wp/index.php?s=Kurilla&x=22&y=8

Yon is especially refreshing after watching Wolf Blitzer last night on CNN tell how "particularly nervewracking" it was to fly in a helicopter in Iraq. He was very impressed with himself for doing something hundreds of Americans, Brits, contractors, and KBR empoyees do every day. What a cherry.

Yon, on the other hand, has put feet on the ground over and over again where the gunfights and IEDs are. He paints a much more accurate (usually but not always more positive) picture of what's happening here.

#5 - That's a great question. I think that now that the genie's out of the bottle, yes the bombs will continue until the balance of power settles in Iraq, and will arguably be more intense if CF departs. However, the particular bomb cited in the Yon story (and others) in which many children were killed by a suicide bomber - I would suspect those types of attacks would reduce. The AQ recruiting network is based on deception, paying destitute families to send their children to 'religious schools' in exchange for a fee that might feed the remainder of the family for months. One of the common complaints of Jihadis when they arrive is that they end up working for "thugs" vice religious believers. The "thugs" are then more than happy to send these destitute would be servants of God to their deaths, frequently drugged, and also completely unconcerned with the children of Iraq. It may be harder to recruit these types if the CF departs.

The unanswered and I think unanswerable question is what will the scale of death to Iraqis be if we stay compared to if we leave, and the calculation changes a lot depending upon when and how and why we leave. The more stable and functional the Iraqi security forces are, the better the chance that the place won't become the punching bag between Iran and the Arabs; that's a punishment Iraqis don't deserve. We "win" if we leave a stable, functional 3rd world govt when we go. I and many of the troops don't want to leave until we have given the Iraqis a chance to defend the 99% from the 1%. As Gen McCaffery (ret) said, "given present resources and a 10 year window we'd have a 95% chance of success."

Unfortunately, Americans are not going to stay with it that long at the present intensity level.

Ron - you didn't ask, but your thought about getting the troops home, which many of my closest friends (and wife) share, brings to mind the following train of thought. I consider it my shot at getting into the long running dialogue on rest days.

It seems to me the person who is trying to sort out whether to support a pull out or a press for victory, a person who is principled, who is vitally concerned about our nation, the Iraqi people, and our troops in harm's way, must ask/answer these questions:

1 - Will a rapid withdrawal cause instability (civil and then regional war) such that it will increase the probability of future conflicts and deaths to US troops (as the Somalia situation seemed to have done)? For example, if after our departure the situation goes high order and the Saudi's are threatened, isn't it likely that any administration would intervene to prevent the Iranians from capturing or destroying the Saudi oil fields? Yes, this could happen even if we don't withdraw, but I judge it more likely if we throw in the towel and leave. What's the cost of increasing the risk that regional escalation may happen? Is it foolish to even invite the possibility by withdrawal? If you believe after a study of the issues that regional conflagration is more likely to happen if we stay, OK, fair enough, but I've yet to see an explanation for that opinion.

2 - What is the US obligation to the 99% of Iraqis who have not become part of the terrorism and insurgency, but who are suffering from the instability and vulnerable to regional power players? Iraq's history is that it is the punching bag between the Persians (Iran), Arabs and Turks. Can we in good conscience leave before the GoI is stable enough to deter outside aggression? Obviously, I believe abandoning the Iraqis to their fate is unconscionable.

3 - Do we have the ability to make it better by continued US presence in Iraq? If not, then one could argue that immediate withdrawal leading to the inevitable consequences now (whatever they may be), is better than continued futile Soldier/Marine deaths. I have close friends, whom I deeply respect, who believe this. I think we must stay at least as long as the GoI is asking us to. In December the GoI asked that the UN Security Council extend the resolution authorizing the Multi National Force's continued operations in Iraq for 2007 (UNSCR 1723). The GoI can ask the UNSC to send us home any time. They want our presence here. In the context of "can we make it better" I would note that the point of the 'surge' (as suggested in the Iraq Study Group report) is to work with the GoI to provide security for Baghdad residents (and Anbar to a lesser extent), to defend the 99% against the 1%. This will buy another year of GoI and Iraqi security forces maturity. If successful, US troops would be withdrawn to the periphery, providing the logistical and emergency support Iraqis are only beginning to gain.

Safely perched in a Camp in Baghdad, I reject the assertion that the surge is a Neocon waste of American troops' lives; this is a rational, carefully thought out effort focused on counter insurgency 101 and on building a GoI that can self sustain.

It is not based on a justification of why we are here, what mistakes were made in the past and by whom. The questions above serve to focus on the critical issue of "what do we do now and why?" I regret that the dialogue cannot find a focus on that issue; we allow the dialogue to be hijacked by those who cloud the issue with blame, anger, frustration, and the inevitable political agenda. To date, few politicians even address all of the above questions, and if they do, it's a cursory pass at best.

That said, like you Ron, I feel the grief of the American and Iraqi deaths each day.

What's the name of the song used in the video?

"Unproven claims successfully disguised as facts in the media can be persistent obstacles to finding the truth. Once something is put in print, it becomes referenced as fact by other people who seldom check the source."

Great point.

Apolloswabbie,

Excellent posts.

Funny, I missed the reporting on the event Yon described on NBC. The MSM must have been too busy covering the Left's clamour to go on record in opposition to the surge-AKA a defeatist statement from our elected officials that will only embolden the enemy and endanger American, Coalition and Iraqi lives.

Another good Yon post. Thanks.

Two things...first off, I'm relatively new to crossfit, but the results have been amazing. It's just nice to find a program that cuts through all the BS and offers a tough, dynamic workout. Secondly, because I've only recently started out, I'm looking for some good workout music to listen to in the gym. Any suggestions?

Lay Lady Lay? What a remix.

Homeade WOD
run a stadium
clean and jerk 50 lb sandbagx8
stadium
rotational put back 50 lb sb x8
stadium
zercher sb lundewalk 50 lb x8
round 2 x7
round 3 x 6
then a stadium between 21-15-9 push ups
stadium between 21-15 9-crunch-obl crunch-v sit

Yet another great instructional video. Thanks! You should archive these all somewhere, are they on the exercises page? (stupid question, I should just go look...)

Reading Yon's reports, I have no doubt that the extremists would continue such attacks after we pulled out. It seems to reason they would increase the attacks to cause instability in a weak government until they (the extremists) are powerful enough to sieze control and power. It puts the Iraqi's right back where they were from the start. Troop pullouts would definitely be seen as a victory for the extremists.

Now two days behind (life happens), but rather pleased about that because only now to I really know how to do a towel PU. Although 180 of them is still likely way out of my league, especially if the WOD is to be a met-con exercise, I'll bet that I can do 15/round strict, or 25-30 jumping/round now that I've seen the video of Rob. Like many others I was doubling the towel over and using a hand-over-hand technique, one I just am not strong enough for as of yet.I echo the thanks of all above for the excellent videos, and would like to add thanks to Coach and Lauren for supporting the additional bandwidth necessary to host/post them.

Brief thoughts re: rest day today...My experience with difficult problems of any sort is that the first challenge that must be met is to uncover and then ask the RIGHT QUESTIONS. While solving the problem at hand may continue to be maddening, it is well nigh impossible if you are not answering the right questions. Agree or disagree with his conclusions, apolloswabbie #25 has given us three pertinent questions to be answered today. While it is possible to have an on-going discussion here, in Congress, on Meet the Press, etc regarding the question of whether we should have gone to Iraq initially, that question today is largely academic and political, and should be a sidebar conversation to the real conversation, the policy conversation which is based on our situation TODAY. In order to have THAT conversation one needs to start with the right questions.

appolloswabbie has done the heavy lifting for us on the front end. One of the best rest day posts in my 14 months of CF. Thanks.

Darrell

Howdy,
Work
{MUx1 (bar; regular, thumbless grip; kip) and trot (360')}x31.
Duration 29:00.
Bdw. 86kgs. clothed).
HR upon completion 165, after one minute of seated rest-120, another minute-110...

The article makes a good story.
I agree that you have to see things first hand to apply it to your own understanding, but even doing that you are going to be at the mercy of your own opinions and prejudice.

I know that most of the media stories are constructed for your consumption, wether true or not. Bread and circus!

Ps.. building and sculpting is going great. Thanks for the vids they help so much.

Funny story... I took my 4 year old son to DC to see the dinosuar at the Smithsonian two weeks ago. When we walk out of the museum and on to the lawn I saw all the anti-surge protestors. It just so happened I was wearing my Crossfit "Infidel" shirt that day. Needless to say I got a lot of stares and comments thrown my way.
As a country I believe we are starting to slide down a slippery slope. I urge everyone out there to write their representatives and let your opinions be known. (Not matter where you stand) Always remember that you pay their paychecks and they need to know that they can lose their jobs at any election. And if they don't know your opinion then you have no reason to complain when they vote a different way.

I wanted to say a word about brainwashing and cognitive dissonance. As anyone old enough to remember the Soviet Union should know, Communists spent a great deal of time and effort developing means of cultivating unthinking ideological purity on the part of members of the apparatus. Regardless of the ruthlessness of the leadership, you have to have people willing, in large, organized groups, to carry out your plans. Coercion and subterfuge were essential, because the ideas themselves were stupid, and matched no observable reality. They didn't work, and that fact was proven repeatedly.

Think this through. Let's assume that you had a warm and loving relationship with your parents, who took care of you as well as they knew how, sheltered you, fed you, sacrificed for you. If I, as a "programmer" want to convince you to hate your parents, how would I do it?

There are two basic steps. One, is to teach you to deemphasize the value of rational thought and observation. In Korea, from what I've read and recall, they would show prisoners a set of lines, one of which was manifestly but not blatantly longer than the others. If prisoners would do nothing other than admit to their very friendly handlers that all the lines were the same, they would receive rewards, which might vary from better food and clothes, to a cessation of torture.

The other thing was to get prisoners to admit the United States wasn't perfect. "You know, you treat the blacks unfairly, don't you?", said the commissar of a dungeon in a totalitarian state. "That means you aren't perfect, doesn't it?". Initially, the prisoners would resist the inferences, not knowing quite where they were going, but sensing that it wasn't good. Often, they would wind up admitting that, yes, the treatment of blacks in the South, in some states, in many locations, was inconsistent with the principles articulated in the Declaration of Independence. "Ah", says the handler, "so you admit the United States is flawed?" "Flawed, yes", says the prisoner, "but still eminently good." "How can you countenance such obvious injustice, such racism, such EVIL?" says the commissar. "We treat everyone here equally. We have no unemployment, we have no injustice."

And on it goes. The objectives are twofold: 1) to repeat the core message over and over and over and over, in simple forms, that are free of specific content,except to the extent that examples can be produced of the supposed "evil" of Western Capitalism; 2) to create a situation where the prisoner is too tired to continue to fight to see what is in front of him. To produce so many manifest contradictions that the prisoner starts to think he's the one that's insane, which of course is a point that is drilled in repeatedly by the handler.

It's all much more subtle than good cop/bad cop. It's something that's been researched, tested, refined, and implemented. And echoes of it are showing up all over the internet. It's exactly the same, vague, contradictory nonsense, and the only way to avoid being seduced is to insist on clarity of thinking, factual references, and to place the whole conversation constantly in a larger context.

It occurred to me this morning as well that we might have more common cause with the Muslims than we thought. If in fact it is true that the Communists intentionally penetrated, among others, the Islamic faith, with the goal of seducing it towards Communism, or at least a greater form of Collectivism, such as we see in Iran, then when we see an Islamic suicide bomber intentionally targetting Muslim CIVILIANS, we can reliably posit a perversion of the Islamic faith, as that type of attack would historically have been a grave sin.

In that both the citizens of the Middle East, and the West have been targets of sustained and cynical progaganda and internal subversion campaigns, perhaps there are alert Muslim leaders still out there who can be shown how this has happened, and that all of us have common cause in fighting for our souls and identities. Given that the Communists were likely behind the development of Arab terrorism, perhaps Islamofascism should be renamed Islamocommunism. That would seem to fit the case of the Iranians better.

There are several points to be made about the history of Islam. There is no doubt it was aggressively expansionist for a number of centuries. However, this has to be placed in the context of the period. ALL of the kingdoms of that time were corrupt and violent, and Islam likely represented an improvement over, say, the Sasannian Empire. They had clear rules for the conduct of war.

In fact, it is likely that Muslims were heavily involved in the creation of one of the finest movements in European culture, that of chivalry, which affects many of us to this day. Here is a somewhat randomly chosen, but apposite, link: http://www.nimatullahi.net/nurbakhsh/discourses/chivalry

If you study Sufism, particularly--which was a mystical strand within Islam, that, depending on the period and place, was somewhere between central to the faith and persecuted--they have a great many noble ideas, and it is clear enough that Islamic civilization was the most fair and advanced in the Western world for many hundreds of years.

In no way do I intend that as an apologetic for the many "sins" of the faith, but it seems to me we need, at some point, to begin building more bridges. Not all Muslims have always been bloodthirsty savages. There have been many people and groups within the faith who would be fully amenable to supporting our efforts to help them.

Tnank God it's a rest day legs still trashed from the last 3 days of training

Rob, you're huge. Good luck with the climbing bro. Did the Muir free ever go?? I might be on Dihedral in the first week of April.

Paul

Awesome video. I never knew towel pullups had so many varieties. Nice work Rob.

Making up Jackie today...

Watching all these videos makes me want to move to Santa Cruz and join the CF hub. Too bad it will be a cold day in you-know-where before I move to the left coast.

MikeOH- What's wrong w/the Left/Best Coast? Other then Left wing whack jobs and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi(one & the same...)? Outside of that and tax's, I love my native Cali.

apolloswabble,

Good questions and very direct to the actual meat of the matter.

My thoughts on them:

1. Our continued presence won't necessarily incite more regional instability, but is sure as heck will if we keep going about things the way we have been. I've said it before: I think that the privatization of our military effort is one of the largest strategical mistakes that we have made. The net result, and you can probably give more insite into this, is that our presence is characterized by massive ineffeiciencies and corruption along the supply chain... We really begin to look exactly like the French in Algeria... distant, unattached, and permanently occupying,

This doesn't just go for our perception amongst the Iraqis. It is also the well-documented perception among other nationalities in the region. It's a huuuuugee problem. Perception and reputation hold much more value in many of the cultures in the region than we can even begin to guess at here in the US.

2. I think we OWE stability to the Iraqis... It IS germane that we are largely responsible for the current situation there. We may want to "get past it" in the US, for the sake of political simplicity, but it will forever characterize our relations throughout the Middle East.

3. Can we actually have a positive effect??? I think we are way off base with our current strategy.
- De-privatize the military effort
- redirect contract funds to increasing troop presence... A minimum of 1 soldier to every 30 citizens will be necessary to pacify Iraq (I believe). 1 to 20 is my expectation for what it will take to provide enough stability to help establish a lasting government.
- Less spending on non-necessities/ more spending on up-armoring, etc..
- Involve regional states in economic development... Clear, Hold, and establish trade zones. This includes Iran... Nothing turns an enemy into a friend faster than economic interdependency.

Having said all that (a somewhat trunkated version of all of my thoughts), I don't think we have the political will in this country to pull it off. I think that the general public is largley sick of the whole debacle and rightfully so. Without getting into a discussion of whether or not we should have engaged in this fight, it has been poorly managed from the get-go.

The "Surge" in my opinion will only accomplish 3 things:
1. More troop deaths
Either:
2. A 2-year reprieve for President Bush, so he doesn't have to face the music.
3. A constitutional crisis in our country.

I just don't believe that 20,000 or even 50,000 additional troops will be enough.

Zach

#26- Jason, that's Ministry's remix of Lay Lady Lay.

Please keep the videos coming! Especially for those of us doing CF on our own- they're invaluable. Thanks!

Three observations jump out of Yon’s The Hands of God, and one oozes out.

1. Horror

The ooze is the horror. It is the maximum that an individual, low order primate can inflict on his community. It is mindless and heartless. It is the vacuum that may be leading people to conclude the problem is winning hearts and minds.

Schools and jobs and infrastructure and kindness will indeed solve the hearts and minds problem – give it three to ten generations.

Suicidal soldiers are immediate and immune to deterrence. The most successful anti-Kamikaze tactics reduced the Pacific Fleet’s loses to just quintuple the rate before Kamikazes. That is, until the atomic bombs settled the problem.

The solution to terrorism is decapitation – eradicate the leaders.

Horror is the enemy’s hearts and minds program. It is a concerted, as opposed to random, effort. The important individuals susceptible to it work in Washington, DC. If an individual has fallen victim to this terror, the odds are 36 to 1 that he is a Democrat. Why is this? Lieberman didn’t, so he was ousted.

2. The first thing that jumps out is Yon saying, “we hear the explosions every day. Every single day. Seven days per week.” Send in Charlie Eppes! It’s not Poisson.

Assume in the last year Iraq suffered exactly 365 one or two man terrorist attacks. Let’s hypothesize that each was the act of one or two individuals, disgruntled, going postal. What are the odds that they would occur one a day? The chances are about the same as all of them deciding to act on the same day – about zero. The hypothesis is too improbable, and must be rejected.

Telephone calls come in one per minute, or one per second, or whatever, depending on the exchange. That’s on the average. In fact, they are bunched, with long quiet periods, even taking into account the time of day. Drive by shootings come in bunches. Sometimes three a day, sometimes long, quiet periods. Terror attacks in Iraq are one a day, every day, round the calendar.

Terrorism in Iraq is not random. It is orchestrated.

Terrorism works through the media. There can be no terror without the media. Terror is designed to keep the horror on the front pages and in the prime time news hour. The problem is the designer.

Is Yon the only one in the media to make this observation? Why?

3. Jumper two: Yon says, “Once something is put in print, it becomes referenced as fact by other people who seldom check the source.”

The popular media is like a mindless blog, characterized by lack of originality and laziness. The professional media subscribes to LexisNexis. There they get over 4,000 news sources, and 3,200 newspapers according to the brochure, electronic and ready for cut and paste. Why, if a reporter had to find original sources, he couldn’t submit more than a few inches a day. It’s a lot easier to mess around with what the New York Times or Reuters said, or, if she writes for one those two, what the New York Times or Reuters said last week. Even Fox News does it.

This is how myths become facts. Proof by repetition. Military can’t win; civil war; hearts & minds, Plame was outed, FISA prohibits warrantless searches, etc. This is how he who controls the vocabulary controls the argument.

Yon is an exception.

4. Jumper three: Yon calls his piece, “The Hands of God”? Why?

I agree with Bingo that sometimes you just have to know the right question to ask and sometimes you have to persist asking many people the same question until you find someone that knows the answer. I'm not talking about finding someone that has an answer that you like the sounds of because many times the right answer isn't something that we want to hear.

I wish that we had a Michael Yon in Afghanistan, because contrary to popular beleif the job isn't done there and it hasn't been "easy". If Iraq is becoming like Vietnam with the "Sandy, Swamp" reference (I heard a Senator the other day use those words instead of saying the dreaded Q word), then Afghanistan is becoming like Korea, the Forgotten War. Just because it isn't in the news in the US very often doesn't mean that nothing is happening over there.

I think that another very good question was asked today by Fivejumpchump in post #20. He asked how we all were doing, in respects to our lives. When was the last time anyone stopped and asked you (you as the whole) how you were doing and actually wanted to hear the answer? When was the last time you stopped and asked someone how they were doing and listened? As everyone runs through their busy days, they rarely stop to say 'I Love You' to the ones that they love or to really know how their loved ones are doing.

So, fivejumpchump, I am doing better today than I was last night. The fact that I have only gotten 4 hours of sleep a night (if I'm lucky) for the past 6 months has really worn me down. I am really looking forward to my husband coming home, I miss him a lot. I hope that next week is better than this week. I have enjoyed the workouts this week though, as they provided a nice stress release.

I hope that you all have a good day today.

Kate

#1- my personal experience is this:
was former athlete, but mostly just conventional weight lifting for last 10 years. like most, did just enough cardio to stay functional while playing recreational sports.
started crossfit in july. trained hard. consider myself a slightly above average crossfitter based on posted times. not even close to some of the beasts on this site, but when i go to my "conventional gym"... i just know that i am the fittest person in the place. not the biggest. not the strongest. the fittest. there are probably only a few guys that would try half the crossfit work outs.i am muscular, but lean. think NFL defensive back, not middle linebacker. not triathlete or marathon runner, but not bobybuilder either. i think crossfit will lead to a strong athletic physique. i know crossfit leads to the confidence to say "i'm the fittest person in the gym."

someone in my office is sending a care package to her 25-year old nephew in iraq (marine helicopter pilot). what should i contribute to the package? what do they need most? thanks.

jknl,

Don't know if this will help or not;

I've gone through some stress-related insomnia recently. It doesn't happen EVERY day, but when it happens, it's for a number of days straight.

A client of mine had a similar experience a number of years ago, and he spent a good amount of money visiting and working with specialists... he was down to a few hours of sleep a night for months on end.

The one thing he reccomended to me that has been helpful is to cut back dramatically on the amount of time that I spend in bed at night. I have a 5:20 AM alarm, 6 days a week, but even if it is 10PM, if I'm not tired I stay out of bed... play video games, read at the kitchen table, etc... I try not to spend any time in bed that is not "productive"... IE sleeping or on the way.

If I sense insomnia coming on, I go with this method for a few days... I may only get 2 or 3 hours sleep on the days that I deny myself time in bed, but it ultimately has conditioned me to conking out when I lay down....

Of course, there are tons of methods for addressing the actual stress, and the ultimate solution will probably be the return of your husband, but this may help with the insomnia.

zach

#51 Zach-
Thanks for the advice about the insomnia. I do the same thing you suggested and it usually does help, or I should say, it has helped in the past, but this is the worst that I have had. It has lead me to do a lot of reading about sleep itself and stress and the impact on our bodies.

I agree with you, that once my husband comes home a huge weight will be lifted, it always is.

Kate

Michael Yon's article, coupled with the posts of appolloswabbie, Barry Cooper and Kate have made this rest day particularly interesting. My own observations: I think it safe to say that no one anticipated that in the wake of Sadaam, Iraquis would blow each other up with the cruel heartless ferocity that Yon describes. Given that sad reality, our troops in Iraq are in much the same position the British found themselves in Palestine in the '30's and '40's: caught between two groups who resolved to kill each and anyone else who got in their way. Perhaps, then, the endgame strategy is for Iraq to become more of a confederation of a Sunni west, a Shiite south and a Kurdish north, resembling the 3 Ottoman provinces that the English glued together into Iraq at Versailles in 1919, governed by a power-sharing government along Lebanese lines. Thanks to Kate for reminding us that the real, real bad guys are still in Afganistan, holed up in the tribal areas on the Paki border. Hopefully, some day we will bring them to justice.

#50 Tiburon-
A Bit of advice about care packages, don't send alcohol, fireworks or pork products. Chocolate melts, but individually wrapped chocolate tends to arrive better, m&m's are another thing that arrives pretty good. Canned fruit with the poptops, soup to go, lifesavors or altoids, breakfast bars, beef jerky, homemade cookies (except for peanut butter which will arrive as a pile of crumbs). If you do send cookies make sure that the tupperware or rubbermaid is taped shut to keep out the ants. Magazines of what ever the person's hobbies are. A note from you just saying that you are thinking of them and a little bit of news from their town is always nice.

Also, when filling out the customs form I always put down Books or Toiletries, because that allows for the extra weight of some things and any sloshing that might be heard, and lets face it less likely for the care package to be tampered with.

I hope that helps.

Kate

Yon's stuff is great. REAL is the first word that comes to mind.

On the Afghan front, I got an email from a friend who is on Vintage Valley Blue Star Mom's mailing list. She recently read a message from Afghanistan somewhat similar to the story Mr. Yon wrote about.

*******************************************

Hi everyone.

I'm still alive but freezing my tail off. We got 8 inches of snow last week and it reached 5 degrees below zero that night. That's not why I'm e-mailing though.

You may have heard about a suicide car bomb attack in Kabul last Thursday. It was at one of our FOB's (Forward Observation Bases) about 27 miles from here.

But the real story is why no one was killed.

We employ several thousand Afghans on our various bases. Not to mention the economy that is fed by the money these locals are making.

Some are laborers and builders, but some are skilled workers. We even have one Afghan that just became OSHA qualified, the first ever. Some are skilled HVAC workers.

Anyway, there is this one Afghan that we call Rambo.

We have actually given him a couple of sets of the new ACU uniforms (the new Army digital camouflage) with the name tag RAMBO on it. His entire family was killed by the Taliban and his home was where our base currently resides. So this guy really had nowhere else to go.

He has reached such a level of trust with US Forces that his job is to stand at the front gate and basically be the first security screening.

Since he can't have a weapon, he found a big red pipe. So he stands there at the front gate in his US Army ACU uniform with his red pipe.

If a vehicle approaches the gate too fast or fails to stop he slams his pipe down on their hood.

Then once the gate is lifted the vehicle moves on the 2nd gate where the US Army MP's are. So he's like the first line of defense.

Last Thursday at 0930 hrs a Toyota Corolla packed with explosives and some Jack Ass that thinks he has 72 Virgins waiting for him approached the gate. When he saw Rambo he must have recognized him and known the gig was up.

But he needed to get to that 2nd gate to detonate and take American lives. So he slams his foot on the gas which almost causes the metal gate to go up but mostly catches on the now broken windshield.

Rambo fearlessly ran to the vehicle, reached thru the window and jerked the suicide bomber out of the vehicle before he could detonate and commenced to putting some red pipe to his heathen ass.

He detained the guy until the MP got there.

The vehicle only exploded when they tried to push it off base with a robot but no one was hurt.

I'm still waiting for someone to give this guy a medal or something. Nothing less than instant US citizenship or something.

A hat was passed around and a lot of money was given to him in thanks by both soldiers and civilians that are working over here. I guess I just wanted to share this because I want people to know that it's working over here.

They have tasted freedom. This makes it worth it to me.

JOHN W. HUNT, CPT, US ARMY
Operations Officer
Bagram Afghanistan

**********************************************

-jj

#50 tiburon, please dont send dental hygine items. Well wishers have sent so much that we could all use a new toothbrush everyday for the next several months. There's also a local surplus of jolly ranchers. Messhall food runs towards grease and starch so quality protien items like jerky and tuna packets are always welcome. If your personal ethics allow it, girlie mags are popular. DVD's and CD's travel well and laptops /portable players are everywhere. I believe Marines have a relaxed standard for PT clothes so a cool (crossfit) T shirt would score points. FYI amber colored listerine looks a lot like whiskey and food coloring in vodka looks a lot like scope mouthwash. ;-)(oops, there I go with the dental hygine stuff)
#39 Barry, are you suggesting that the commies infiltrated islam? If so I'd love to dig deeper, could you send a reference? K-

Great video! Thought I'd learned most of the different types of pullups by now. Thanks for adding a few more to the list.

Wish I had caught that video last night.
2,4,6,8,10...2 of: Regular, Reverse, Close, Wide, Towel pullups
(250 total)
Followed by 2 min max pushups/situps... then reverse pyramid max-10, 20... until 0.
78 pushups in 2min
62 situps in 2min

I'm new to CrossFit, but I know enough exercise science to trust that it is going to make me look better. That and I've been doing similar training, though nowhere near as intense, for a few years now.

A little parable:

After I broke my 18 year-old lifting belt on the 7 heavy deadlifts the other day, I was reminiscing on the way to the garbage can. I still remember the rare 'find' of a good, wide belt for 24-32 inch waists.

Then I looked at the notches, mainly the different ones I've used over the years. I realized I'm never going to have a 28-inch waist again. Nor do I want one. I don't want another belt either. I finished the workout unsupported and it made me focus on form. Seemed like the CrossFit thing to do.

Now my two cents:

Thanks to CrossFit I am going to have an even more powerful, more muscular midsection to transmit functional strength and protect me from injury.

If vanity is a goal, bear in mind what you are trying to look like. If you insist on having huge, ripped pecs and a wasp's waist, CrossFit may not be for you. I used to have a 6% bodyfat male model-type body. Women seem to prefer the way I look now with the extra 20# of muscle, even at 10-12% bodyfat. Maybe it goes better with my nose? Anyhow, CrossFit+healthier eating are going to make me more powerful and leaner than I am now.

If you like strong-willed, self-confident women [or men, i guess] that mean business, CrossFit will make you look better. If you're just trying to impress college 'chicks', the bench press is over there...next to the preacher curl...

Great video again!

However, a note or question on substituting for rope climbs:

Isn't a rope climb a power-generation exercise more than a strength exercise? Actually, it must be because I can fly up a rope while I have never been a strong pull-up guy.

The one thing towel/rope pull-ups cannot simulate is the ability to use power to create momentum. The rope climb seems 'easier' than the towel p-u because it is easier to accomplish, i.e. the mere task of getting up the rope can be easier than 15 towel pull-ups. But with the rope, you can always go faster, making the exercise 'harder'.

Seems to me that subbing any kind of pull-up for a rope climb would be like subbing walking lunges for a run. You may still be working hard but your missing an opportunity to place a different kind of demand on your system.

Interesting discussion board as usual. Where do I find what the CFT test consists of?

Wow, JJ, excellent forward, thanks.

Barry, that post was so dense, thanks. I would tag onto several of the points but would just echo for now the idea that it's refreshing to hear from anyone that will look more than skin deep at Muslims; has something to do with the "repeat themes until believed" and cognitive dissonance issue you and Jeff G brought up.

I've brought it up before, but it was likely missed but here's a link to a 'moderate' Muslim on TV, and if any of the xfitters would like an in depth explanation of same, try Khaled Abou el Fadl's "The Great Theft" which makes Islam accessible to a Westerner like me.

http://switch5.castup.net/frames/20041020_MemriTV_Popup/video_480x360.asp?ai=214&ar=1363wmv&ak=null

I appreciate the responses to what I posted earlier.

Zach - thoughtful post, would you explain "privatization of our military?" May be best to continue dialogue via email at this point. Concur that political will is lacking. Given that we couldn't raise the sort of numbers you are talking about in time to make a difference even IF the will was there - how can we give the Iraqis the stability we owe them? By saying we have to either get to 20-1 or make no increase in troop numbers at all, it 'sounds' like illogic. Pls explain how a surge will cause more troop deaths - in general, more troops is equated with less risk. Finally, the 2nd point (Bush facing the music) is not germane to what we should do.

Lastly, since I wound up with time to spare today, I enjoy all the Yon posts and appreciate finding them here. And Jeff G, I had an image of the "Hands of God" as being the Iraqi father who grabbed the suicide bomber, with his hands, to stop him from killing others; in that way, the hands of god. Not sure of course, but that's my only thought. What was yours?

I look forward to a check for responses tomorrow. And Kate, best of luck finding relief, I would imagine you need the mental rest to give N all that you can.

Paul aka Aswab

I've been doing CrossFit for a few weeks now and am really enjoying it. You can get in a quick workout that is physically challenging and related to my profession. I keep hearing about the CrossFit warmup but cannot find it anywhere. Can someone tell me where to find it or send it to me?!?

#61 - Tony, check out the FAQ section, question #1.8

#61 Tony,

Check the FAQ link on the crossfit homepage. The warm up is a work out by itself. The first time I did it I barely made it through 2 rounds.

The article (and #55 jj's post) reminds me of last January when I was at COP North. One of the LN contractors overheard a plot by other LN contractors to attack the COP from the inside. This LN went straight to the Americans and turned the other guys in, who later admitted to the plot. We had to Evac the guy quickly because his life was in danger every minute he stayed at the COP so we got the next helo to take him out. Normally an LN needs an escort but once the crew heard the story they agreed to take him. Last I heard, he had made it to the green zone and, rumor has it, they were working on getting him into the US. Guys like that make it hard to even consider pulling out. I think ASwab is right that the guy who stops the attack is the real "Hands of God" in all these examples.

I think the attacks will continue as long as there is media there unless we do like Zach says and send many more troops rather than 21K. Does anyone get the sense that the "surge" is really just a cover to push blame on the Iraqis so we can pull out next year (right before the election)?

As above, two days behind.
25 Wall ball hits (12#)
100 ft. walking lunge
15 rope pull-ups ("borrowed" rope from cable pull)

13:45

Wanted met-con today, and any more than 15 rope PU would have turned it into the rope/towel equivalent of "Angie" for me.

Amazing how productive a conversation can be when you are focused by good questions. Interesting that many of our more talkative rest day contributors have avoided this particular conversation, in that it doesn't really leave room for anything but practical application.

Hmmm...practical application...sounds rather crossfittish, eh?

#53 John wopat-
I appriciate what you wrote. I also thought I would tell you that N has gone to the principal and told him her thoughts on the online gym course, and he is checking into the possibility of her changing. She should know soon if she can switch out or not. It turns out it was supposed to be an optional class for the kids that hate gym class. They should still make gym class mandatory, in my opinion.

#60 apolloswabbie- My husband has been tax free for 8 years now, if that gives you any idea about how much he has deployed recently! We manage, just sometimes it gets you down. Releif will come when he comes home. I always tell the new wives that each deployment is different from the last and you can't compare them. This one, unfortunately, has dragged from the start.
Oh and by the way, N is my daughter, L is my son, and J is my husband. :)

Kate

Rhabdomyolysis (Rhabdo) is a real danger, my wife developed rhabdo and is now in the hospital. She will be ok but had I not recognized the symptoms it could have been fatal. She developed rabdo from doing to much crossfit to soon. I guess the reason for this post is just a reminder to the crossfit community to train hard but be aware Rhabdo can happen.

My wife is wanting to do crossfit, but doesn't have the strength for most of work-outs (Small frame and new to fitness)and is intimidated by them. She has asked me to help and I don't want to discourage her, any suggestions?

Thanks.

Thank God for Rest Day. I believe Coach is a Bear's Fan. Why else would we have three days of leg burning exercises?

I keep hearing that the Iraq war is becoming another Vietnam. I believe that is true. But not the way the media thinks. I believe the politicians are the ones who are dictating the war just like in Vietnam. Looks like we never learn. If you want to win you need to hit them hard. But it seems that the political war chess game is dictated by the big three media outlets which taint public opinion.

Was the Iraq War the right thing? Yes for the long run, no so in the short run. But the American public has a short attention span. The politicians a shorter one. So it will be one tough job to continue the fight. Especially if the next President is a Demo.

Here is a side note to all those individuals who believe the West is to blame for Muslim anger. If you study history Muslims enslaved non-Muslims throughout the ages. If you did not convert you were deemed infidel. This was still true in the 1800's. If you read up on the Arab/Israeli Wars for the past 50 years you will notice the same them. Today, the theme continues. Is fighting Muslim extremists a worthy fight? I believe so.

#68

You can adapt the workouts to fit your wife.
- Pullups: use rubber banding to assist or jumping p-ups.
- use a lighter weight bar with no wieghts for Oly lifts.
- adjust the reps per exercise until she feels comfortable
- etc

did "Jackie" today
as rx'd 7:31
41 yom

#68

Goto http://forum.brandxmartialarts.com/ and try the WOD forum. There is a scaled down version. Great site.

Hey-

Big weekend coming up here. We host the Sectional Championships on Friday&Saturday for HighSchool wrestling - which means 32 downstate teams fighting to qualify for the State Championships; and we host the Glenwood Invite on Saturday for 16 Middle School wrestling teams and the Chatham Kids Open where we'll have around 300 little kids wrestling on Sunday. I'll be the Head Scorekeeper at the Sectionals and then coach the little kids at the open, ... also lots of setup and moving mats.

Good luck in your training,

-K

Good Bouldering session today. DB snatches after.

First day of crossfit is tonight. Plan on completeing the crossfit warmup for a few weeks until its simple... Then moving on to those lethal wods

Male
222lbs
6'3

1.7 mile run from Unit ONE to Gab Gab Beach
500 meter swim
1.7 mile run from Gab Gab beach to Unit ONE

59:12
Not exactly a favorable thing to do after Jackie.

#68 My wife has started CrossFit also. She doesn't have the strength or endurance to do the WOD's so I have her doing a modified CF workout. I started her out slow and I'm not pushing her too hard. She's been doing the modified CF for 3 months now. In another 2 months she should be ready to follow the WOD's. When she started she couldn't even do a squat. Now she can squat with 40 pounds. She's also lost 30 pounds but she still has a lot left to lose. She couldn't do a Burpee when she started but she can do 10 now. On box jumps she's gone from 3" to 9". Deadlift from 20 pounds to 100 pounds. I'm being very careful to bring her along slowly so she doesn't become injured or discouraged. She couldn't walk a mile when she started but now she can do intervals on the treadmill for 30 minutes. She's 46 years old and is getting close to being in the best shape of her life. Just remember the ability to begin a CF type lifestyle and to continue it is more of a mental mindset than it is a physical drive. Meeting the physical rigors of CF is easy compared to maintaining the mental desire to do it.

ChristineinIl-Thanks, I'm adding it to my IPOD.

Tiburon #50, Jerky is always a big hit as are cookies. Oreos and chocolate chip cookies. Not peanut butter--it generates too much phlegm (not good in the desert.) And it depends on the person, but the guys I send stuff to usually ask for books (not horror) and nature photos. They used to ask for Koolaid (no joke) but don't anymore for some reason.

Ref #68. I think the CrossFit community would do a great favor to itself if it would self report serious injury as a result of CrossFit training. It is important to determine what injuries are preventable through better training, scaling back, etc. and what injuries are inherent to the exercise: how many people have not gotten bloody shins from doing dead lifts?

I would applaud a notation with each exercise video listing common injuries associated with the exercise and how to avoid them.

Wow! I tried this abnormal things and they enjoyed kicking my butt!!! It'd be great if I could even do a good correct one.

#55
Wow!!! How does one respond to that? When someone potentially sacrifices their life to save yours? Joseph Campbell, Prof at Sarah Lawrence College, had some great insight to this and discussed it in the series "The Power Of Myth." Still, when you witness an act of such cosmic significance, it's difficult to grasp.

warm up
row 250
80# sh press x 10
80# ohs x 10
row 250
80# sh press x 10
80# ohs x 15
row 250
80# sh press x 10
80# ohs x 30

Diane
21-15-9
225# dead.lift
hspu
moderate pace 8:50

rest

Hazel
(just couldnt let Mon. time stand)
run 1200 m
63 kettlebell swings x 1.5 pood
36 pull ups
9:58
swings forehead height

Kate, 8 years, holy smokes. In that amount of time I've only had 24 months deployed, 2 more to go.

I loved the quip from daughter N - "will I need sneakers?" LOL

Aswab

Try these links for truth about Iraq that you won't see in US media

http://www.ichblog.eu/content/view/417/2/

http://www.ichblog.eu/content/view/428/2/

http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/breaking-news/world/middle-east/article2249474.ece

http://www.rawstory.com/news/2007/Marine_congratulated_men_for_murder_of_0208.html

#50 Tiburon -
Hickory Farms Sausage/Cheese/hot mustard boxes - don't worry about the pork - that's a Desert Storm leftover rule.

A log of Copenhagen

DVDs

"The Politically Incorrect Guide to Islam and the Crusades" Regnery Publishing

"Gates of Fire" by Steven Pressfield

Duncan Doughnuts Coffee

# 86 Kewayatin -
Nice try, but I think we have in fact heard these stories.
The last one causes some strange questions to come to mind:
- why would marines dig a hole to simulate a bomb crater? It wouldn't fool anyone since there's no explosive residue.
- why would they put the guy they supposedly murdered in the crater? The story says to make it look like he set the IED off. Not a lot of IED bombers immediately run out of their covered position, jump in the crater they just created, and start shooting.
Not saying these guys are innocent, but the story sure sounds fabricated.

100x 2pood KB snatches in 7:14
40 towel pullups - I was truly inspired by the video!

Paul, #61

>>I had an image of the "Hands of God" as being the Iraqi father who grabbed the suicide bomber, with his hands, to stop him from killing others; in that way, the hands of god. Not sure of course, but that's my only thought. What was yours?

You may have it. In the Good v. Evil paradigm, you’d be right. But I don’t like casting the conflict as a religious war.

In my natural, materialistic view, I saw the scene as the horror of a subhuman who thinks he’s doing the work of Allah, being blunted by the father’s ultimate selfless act. So I wondered if Yon was taking a dig at the religious lobotomy that creates bombers.

I would hazard a guess he may have been referencing multiple things, with the bloody handprints on the wall intended as the explicit visual reference: the hands of the person who stopped the bomber, the hands of the bomber, the hands of his "handlers", the hands of God into which the victims are thrown, the "hands of God" as the influence behind their murderous activity for the homicide bombers, the hands of God as the ultimate arbiter of the destiny of the Iraqi people. Possibly even the hands of America, upon which much depends, for the Iraqis.

The beauty of symbols, to me, is you don't have to pick any one meaning. They can change, shift, and move as needed. This is also, of course, what makes them prone to abuse.

the CF PR crew did 120 Pull ups/120 dips

holy god, whoever is in that video is a beast

There it is...I CALLED IT!!!

.
Kewayatin... ,in his wisdom, has shown us all what is too come.

Now that the leftists have taken over the Legislative Branch...look for more of this kind of dribble with the owness not just being dumped on "The West" or "The Neo-Cons" or "The Bush Administration"....nope...now they are comfortable with slandering the "line" troops.

Make no mistake...we are who they always wanted to talk crap on, but it would have been poo-poohed.

They can not help themselves.

Makes you proud to serve a country that is filled with these haters.

More on what I was saying several days ago with Leftists and the Islamo-Fascists merrying up...

http://littlegreenfootballs.com/weblog/?entry=24368_Howard_Dean_and_the_Radical_Imam&only

I feel I am in a quaisi-dream state with what is going on...it is like 10% of our country truely wants the worst for us.

Joey,

I can see how that would mess with your attitude. The same patterns of unthinking hysterics are coming out again into view, after varying periods of visibility since their last extensive use in the latter half of the Vietnam War.

What is different is that conservatives have the leftist positions dialled in. We have a viable news outlet in Fox; and Bill O'Reilly, Ann Coulter, and a host of others writing logical coherent, factually accurate, and culturally and geopolitically contextualized books.

I think the need for concerted and clear ideological counter-warfare on the part of those who actually have America's interest at heart is increasingly well understood.

We see the ideological children of Soviet propaganda dancing in the streets today, but as far as I am concerned, they are attempting to climb ropes of sand if they think that their lack of ideas, and lack of focus on American security isn't going to hurt them severely, and soon.

It was my intention to address the links above specifically, but I only had time to glance at the first and last. I think this triplet of Facts/logical consistency/overarching context as an analytical tool will work. Let's use it on the two I did look at.

The first criticizes the use of American air power. Let's look at context here. In the original invasion, absent precision guided munitions launched from the sky, largely accurately, what would have been the alternative? Much greater destruction, such as accompanied such campaigns in the past.

With respect to the present, compared to the number of Iraqis being killed by other Iraqis, how does the use of our Air Force compare? It's not even close. Given that the issue, within the context of the conflict, is essentially negligible, we can reliably infer we are dealing with a red herring, and attempted distraction.

With respect to the Marines, a question, and a comment occurred to me. First, was the man they killed guilty? Did they have reasonable cause to believe he was guilty? It matters.

Second, the fact that they are being tried, rather than being evidence of our inhumanity, actually serves the cause of those arguing for our moral superiority. The case is being brought to trial, and reported in a newspaper. That obvious fact seems to be getting missed.

I could continue that analysis, but that will suffice for now. The question that unfortunately always has to be asked, today, is: is this person genuinely interested in advancing American interests, and simply of a differing opinion, or are they just trying to sabotage our efforts because they equate the conflict with George Bush and Republicans?

Support the Troops but …

• Dis the mission for which they and their families are sacrificing everything.

• Deny them reinforcements.

• Deny them a more effective mission.

• Spit on them at rallies.

• Deny friends funding to take over the mission.

• Bow your head while the Imam's pray for our defeat.

But Support the Troops.

I've been contemplating the question: "in what does nobility consist?" I have answers, and would encourage others to ponder it as well.

For some of you, the question might be: "why am I unable to countenance any sort of validity to this question?" That one is worth pondering as well.

What should we want for the future? Where are we going? It is still up to us, at least in part.

#25

4 - What do we owe to the 71% of Iraqis who want US troops to leave within a year?

Source:
http://www.worldpublicopinion.org/pipa/articles/home_page/250.php?nid=&id=&pnt=250&lb=hmpg1

What is this about dissing the troops?
Everyone suppports the troops.Name one American who is against our soldiers,individual men and women serving their country.Its ridiculous.The mission is something different.The troops are pawns deployed on a mission by higher authorities.They are seperate and distinguishable.I can see why some would want to blend them together...."If you diss the war then you are dissing the troops,blah,blah,blah"
#94
you may feel you are in a quasi dream state beacause you are off your meds.get back in your bunker.your problem is you have so many enemies and so little time.your paranoia and hatred reveal insecurity.

Hi. I'm a Sailor, attached to a Special Operations unit in Africa. I've done a tour in Iraq, as a designated marksman for a Mobile Security element, and as a combat veteran, I would like to say I agree 100% with apolloswabbie's post #24.