AS RX'D!

WOW! That's Annie from TX right? Freaking AWEsome! You look amazing girl!

There's a CrossFit girl for sure!
Rest day....I'll have to find something to do after seeing this picture.

Annie, you were holding out flashing the abs in Dallas. Wow! Awesome work in the vid, and it was a pleasure to meet you.

Hey Pat, I hope you shaved off the beard before your oral board. You know, so they can really see the "Face of Crossfit." 3:01 Diane? You are the man!

#1 Roger that. I can handle today's workout too- as rx'd 24:00:01 !

Cert. in Charlotte. Fired up... Anyone that might want a roomate to save some cash, shoot me an email. Staying at the Sun Suites about four miles away. Under 5 minute Frans and no bud light dirnkers only(j/k). I see b-t-b tabata squats in my near future.

Oh please, anyone familiar with Mamet's writing knows he was a brain-dead conservative all along. The central canard in the piece is his horatio alger turn:

"Do I speak as a member of the "privileged class"? If you will—but classes in the United States are mobile, not static, which is the Marxist view. That is: Immigrants came and continue to come here penniless and can (and do) become rich; the nerd makes a trillion dollars; the single mother, penniless and ignorant of English, sends her two sons to college (my grandmother). On the other hand, the rich and the children of the rich can go belly-up; the hegemony of the railroads is appropriated by the airlines, that of the networks by the Internet; and the individual may and probably will change status more than once within his lifetime."

Yes David, you do speak as a multi-millionaire. And no, the US class structure is not as mobile as you suggest. How many of the rich kids you knew in college are working McJobs these days? The fact that the ruling classes are glad to accept the brightest and most motivated of the worker's children into their ranks does not mean that any all or even most of the poor can move up. Take it straight for the wall street journal, no bastion of brain-dead liberalism:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB111595026421432611.html?mod=djm_HAWSJSB_WelcomeSkip

Why do they post rest days so early but not WODs?

didn't read the article, but the title looks awesome, reading it right after, did linda today, going to the pool for some water con and fin sprints, then doing micheal on a 100m track, at the army gym. I

Wow!! Annie looks great. I don't post very often but I was wondering if it's just me or is the form on the deadlifts and HSPU lacking (more so on Pat's deadlifts)? I was under the impression that form should be more important then a super fast time. Sure there is a tendency to lose a bit of form as the workout progresses but when do you draw the line? What do you think?

Have a wonderful CrossFit Day!

didn't read the article, but the title looks awesome, reading it right after, did linda today, going to the pool for some water con and fin sprints, then doing micheal on a 100m track, at the army gym. I

That was sick. I want to go to the gym right now.

Gus, you should buy the Crossfit journal. Coach goes over this very subject. It's only $25 for the year.

Now I have another awesome CrossFit role model (got to keep them narrowed down to ladies who've had babies and in my age range) to look up to. I've been passing on "W" days right before my oly cert this weekend. Now I have got to make up Diane! Thanks Annie...Thanks CrossFit!

Pat,

You effin' rocked that out! Great job, brother! I'm going to be singing that damn song for like three days now...

Best,

Jon

took my rest day today
making up Michael tomorrow, unless my partner can get his booty to the gym then we will do Helen

I'm on a sort of a roll w these articles, I keep hitting the same ones 'the day before.' I like it, but it is also a bit disappointing as I am always stimulated by the surprise rest day offering.

FWIW, as I read this one, I found the author to be particularly gentle with 'brain dead liberals' - just explains what he believed and why he no longer does, despite his occupancy in a liberal dominated profession in the heartland of Blue America.

I was a self described 'pinko communist liberal' in college, and learned a great deal about life from that vantage point. My beliefs then were largely shaped by ignorance of the power of liberty to create wealth and therefore to raise the tide and all ships thereon.

Similarly, my college of liberal arts and sciences was pervaded by the universal distrust of the profit motive, and the nearly uncritical review of socialism's virtues as regards the welfare of man and the 'common good.' I don't recall any class that taught what liberty was, what the term meant, or pointed out that every govt intervention is a movement away from liberty. Nor was the 'freedom index' well known, though it seems fundamental to understanding how people come to live in wealth, health and therefore rise above the 'nasty brutish and short' life of our forebears.

In short, I was a pinko communist liberal college kid and then I grew up, like many others have I suspect.

One of the real delights of this program is sharing the company of so many who love liberty, resist the well intentioned oppression of ‘brain dead liberals’ and are passionate about saying so.

Paul

Wow another Annie - of TX this time! This CrossFit Chick earns my respect! Keep 'em coming!

ANd congrats to the winners! That second garage looks like my last one - no room to workout due to the woodworking shop, freezer, and (in my case) kids bikes and ETC. In my freaking awesome garage gym here in Memphis, all I need is a

Can't wait to see the makeover ...

I can vouch for the Garage Gym Store - if you are getting enough stuff to meet their minimum, Lisa will take good care of you.

Would also add that Allison at York and Doc at Crossfit Socal were equally on target.

Paul

Annie, you frickin rock, girl! Awesome job on Diane. You're a great role model to many of the women out there.

Really glad to see some new faces of CrossFit in the videos lately!

The video is inspiring. The song is not, containing lines such as 'f&%$ her in the a** with KY jelly'. Clean it up. Some folks watch these with their kids or spouses, or used to.

Funny. I've been wondering the last couple days about the garage gym contest but figured I missed the post with the winners. I guess not. Congrats to the contest winners. Enjoy.

... and if I hadn't seen this vid of a 3 min Diane, I'd have thought it was fantasy. Awesome Pat.

Where do I sign up for the Annie Calendar for 2009? I thought I was doing good on Diane by doing it in 7:56 but that dude makes me feel like I'm sucking wind. Guess I need to push a little harder...well...a lot harder.

I got 2 MU's in a row today. Nearly three. Gotta practice more. I was a happy man. Finally got two. Woo-hooo!
Love the burn.

mmmmmmm.....

Hey this is a post from yesterday which came in the middle of a huge mass of other posts. I read it and thought it was worth repeating earlier on so that more could read it. BTeague, if this wasn't your intention, then I apologize, but I think what you said was worth saying again. Great vid too.

"I just wanted to thank all of those that contribute to this site and comments page that support the military. I know that the war is not the most popular, but you will never know how much the support from the people back home means to those that are serving in the combat theaters. I have been hanging around the comments page for a few months, but have not posted until now. I felt I needed too due to all of all the support that the crossfit community has shown to fallen heros. I am on my fourth tour and have lost some great friends and it is good to know that others out there care. We are all happy to be here defending Freedom. God Bless......RLTW

Posted By: BTeague"

no wmd's. Now this:
http://edition.cnn.com/2008/US/03/13/alqaeda.saddam/

why are we there again?

Hey this is a post from yesterday which came in the middle of a huge mass of other posts. I read it and thought it was worth repeating earlier on so that more could read it. BTeague, if this wasn't your intention, then I apologize, but I think what you said was worth saying again. Great vid too.

"I just wanted to thank all of those that contribute to this site and comments page that support the military. I know that the war is not the most popular, but you will never know how much the support from the people back home means to those that are serving in the combat theaters. I have been hanging around the comments page for a few months, but have not posted until now. I felt I needed too due to all of all the support that the crossfit community has shown to fallen heros. I am on my fourth tour and have lost some great friends and it is good to know that others out there care. We are all happy to be here defending Freedom. God Bless......RLTW

Posted By: BTeague"

Nice video, Diane is just so painfully simple.

Its good to see Annie in a video and I loved the lyrics :>) more ammo for rest day. Very strong work from both Pat and Annie.

I'm off to read my new book "Mastering the Zone" :>)

Have Fun, Train Hard,

Billy

thanks to all who sevre in support of peace and freedom. to any that wonder if they have what it takes to serve in the armed forces? come and give it a try if you can.

I've long been a fan of David Mamet. Spartan; Glengarry, Glenross; Spanish Prisoner; the Usual Suspects; Homicide. He writes some of the most interesting and surprising work out there. Glad to see he's become one with the Force.

The facts are out there, but there needs to be a resolute honesty, and willingness to endure the pain of qualitative change to make full use of them. He's obviously someone capable of that. I would surmise that every play he writes changes him in some way. That's a good thing.

24 Hours to SAINT BALDRICK'S.

Just one day left until I shave my head for Children's Cancer and I have been challenged to raise another $1000.00 and I need help.

This is a great organization that is raising money for Children's Cancer Research.

I have been getting some great support from the CrossFit community and if I could just get 1/3 of those that post to donate 10 bucks I will make my new challenge.

Please help me make this happen...I appreciate the help from headquarters, Brain @ Genetic Potential, and AllisonNYC for your great support.

Check out the Website and donate if you can:

http://www.stbaldricks.org/participants/shavee_info.html?ParticipantKey=2008-38239

Thanks,

Sully

slow down and get full ROM..

Nice work guys....truly inspirational. Pat...I know you're kicking yourself for that last HSPU. Next time sub 3 for sure.

#17 I second that. Wasn't really paying much attention to the lyrics but did catch that part. Muted it after that and then had to explain to my 5 yo why after he asked. that is my only complaint about some of the videos lately. I just don't want to have to censor them for his sake. He loves Crossfit and watching the vids. Yeah, I can always mute it or just not let him watch them, but with all that we have to watch out for on TV, it would be nice to just be able to let him watch Crossfit without that same hassle.
Ohterwise, great job to both in the vid. That's what Texas will do for you!

Eleventh commandment:
Thou shalt not covet thy neighbors garage.

So great to see Annie in the video. She is one of the nicest people I've had the pleasure of meeting. Loved Pat too but he didn't share his cookies!

That was an awesome video!

I'm a bit behind so today I did Tommy V, scaled weight down to 95 on thrusters, and did towel pullups/rows with body at a 45* angle, straight legs and heels on the ground...sets of 90, 45, and 15. 26:50.00. My forearms are toast. 30 reps into the first set of 'pullups' my arms were wrecked, but then I thought 'this ones for Tommy V' and painfully pushed through a boatload more. Felt great :)

First class athletes. Low class music.

Thanks for the great display of Diane by a couple of studs.

This is not a sexist comment in any way. Just an observation. That picture, whoever it is, is amazing. Wow

Great job Pat and Annie!!!

Does anyone know where one could meet women like Annie? Also, what type of snares or traps work best for capturing them?

I'd like to see the woman put some more weight on the bar. She could have done 185 easy. Good work. Guy needs to get full ROM. Would have tossed about 50% of those reps.

Pat, I remember hearing talk of a 2:22 Diane. I guess that was the warm up for the 3:01...

Annie, Your awesome girl!

-Dutch-

"Further, it was not always wrong in previous communities in which I lived, and among the various and mobile classes of which I was at various times a part."

He is, of course, ignoring massive amounts of empirical data that show that broad swaths of Americans are a.) actually worse off than they have been or b.) not getting anywhere economically.

"I recognized that I held those two views of America...One was of a state where everything was magically wrong and must be immediately corrected at any cost; and the other—the world in which I actually functioned day to day—was made up of people, most of whom were reasonably trying to maximize their comfort by getting along with each other (in the workplace, the marketplace, the jury room, on the freeway, even at the school-board meeting)."

Translation: I went from one soft-headed way of understanding the world to another soft-headed way of understanding the world. This dude skipped over reasonable, measured progressivism on his way from knee-jerk arrogance to the worst sort of conservatism: quietism.

Congradulations to all the garage gym makeover winners, looking forward to seeing the end results!
Just did Tommy V today at my big box gym. I was pretty sure it was going to be epic and it was. I tore 3 towels in half and had to finish my last 200 pullups regular style. Im 150 lbs (male) and about 5'9 so the thrusters were abit heavy but not bad. All in all i feel pretty happy that i came oput alive. Lets see if i feel the same way tomrrow.

I just read the article and I think that its singing to the choir here and you will not see much dissent.

I would encourage people to click on the comments about the article written by the people who actually read the village voice. Its way more enlightening than the article.

On to other stuff:

I cannot put down "Mastering the Zone" I am a total skeptic when it comes to diet. I am the kind of guy who's motto is "workout like an animal and you can eat anything that you want". Well, this book is quickly opening my eyes. I am going to try the zone starting with my next meal at breakfast. Thanks again crossfit. It's interesting to note that what made me get the book, which I bought for a penny (yes a penny) at Amazon.com, was watching Nicole talk about diet and the zone on video while I was eating pizza and getting sleepy :>) its funny how life works.

Have Fun, Train Hard,

Billy

OK, I hate to sound like such a girl right now, but where did you get your workout clothes Annie? They are so freakin cute!

Annie you rock girl!

Anyone going to the Level I cert. in Kaysville Utah next month? I'm all signed up and so excited but really nervous!

Gnat

WOW! Thank you Coach, Garage Gym and all of the other sponsors. I am SO amped about winning this. Congrats to the other winners, I hope that I get the opportunity to meet you one day.

Sully, Right-on!

Nice work Annie. O.K., you too Pat. By the way you both can kick my ass!

"He is, of course, ignoring massive amounts of empirical data that show that broad swaths of Americans are a.) actually worse off than they have been or b.) not getting anywhere economically. "

Mike, your 'massive empirical data' statement is BS - http://online.wsj.com/article/SB120511125873823431.html

This does not even cover facts such the vast qualitative improvements in health care that are available now - which by the way, account for much of the present costs of health care. You can still get 'state of the art for the 1970s' care for essentially the same cost in real dollars (see Kling, "The Crisis of Abundance").

Not that I think that teeny bit of info will settle the matter for a committed progressive like you ...

Paul

#23, thanks for reposting, and Bteague, thanks for your service and for letting us know. Paul

#17 Grim and others who are sure to post. I appreciate your point of view, but my opinion is to just turn your volume down. We are privileged enough to have access to this amazing wealth of knowledge for the whopping sum of $0.00. As the saying goes - "Beggars can't be choosers." Just my .02

#25 - TQuinn & BTeague - Solid post & cheers to you both & to everyone serving.

#24 Glynster - I don't think you'll find anyone who disagrees that the intelligence that brought us into this war was not entirely accurate to say the least. Unfortunately, we are now there in Iraq and Afghanistan so it's a waste of our time to say "Why did we?" or "What if?". The fact is that the people living in these countries have been put through hell and the worst possible thing we can do to those people is to up and leave them. My understanding (and I am sure there are MANY more people out there who are more knowledgeable on this topic than I) is that both of these countries are in the midst of civil war between rivaling tribes/factions/polital parties/etc. and that the presence of the newly forming native police/military forces and our military forces is the only thing keeping these areas from breaking out into complete anarchy & civil war which will result in the deaths of many thousands of men and - more sadly - women & children. If you say, "It's not our problem - we need to bring our soldiers home" you are a heartless soul. I do not claim to be an expert on middle eastern society. I have never been there. I have never met anyone who has lived through what they have gone through. I have read two very well known and insightful books by Khaled Hosseini (The Kite Runner and A Thousand Splendid Suns) that provided a very brief glimpse into life in Afghanistan over the past 3 decades. After reading those books and observing how our government has meddled in their affairs, I am more convinced than ever that we have a responsibility to bring peace and democracy to those people.

Mike, comment 43, I couldn't disagree more with your statement about large swaths of America being worse off than they have been or that they are not getting anywhere economically. What empirical data do you have?

The information that I have is from the US Census Bureau which shows that, in inflation adjusted dollars, household incomes have been rising steadily from 1965 through to today. The only time in recent history that incomes had any decline at all was in the late 1990's to the early 2000's, who was president then? Here is the link to the US Census page.

http://www.census.gov/hhes/www/income/medhhinc.html

The money in the average person's pocket is even larger than it first appears when you consider that the number of people per household has been declining steadily for about 20 years at a rate of about 2.2 percent per decade. Here is the link to the census data for that one:

http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0922165.html

So you might be able to say, yes I have more disposable income but I am not getting as rich as quick as I want to, but you cannot say that the average persons wages are the same or getting worse. The real numbers just do not support the hype.

Have Fun, Train Hard,

Billy

155 for 21-15-9 on the DL.... thats gangsta!!!!!!!!!!!

I would marry annie tomorrow! Nice job on the workout too.

Paul and Billy-
Check out this graph:
http://crookedtimber.org/2008/03/10/interocular-transmission-test/

Then, this one:

http://rodrik.typepad.com/dani_rodriks_weblog/2008/02/mr-kristol-you.html

The problem is that you're dealing with aggregate data. On average, people are getting better. But, as the second one shows, weekly compensation for a chunk of males with High School degrees has dropped by 10%. It's stagnated (compared to average labor productivity) for those with a 4-year degree.

In the first graph, you see a similar thing. The aggregate rises, whereas for certain cohorts, they're either worse off or not doing any better. And I think those cohorts (the middle 60%+bottom 20%) count as "broad."

The WSJ article is very, very interesting. But I don't think changes in demographics explain this data, although I haven't had a lot of time to think about it. Great article though.

But, seriously, is it fire and brimstone? Do we need to start kicking up transfer payments? Of course not, that's crazy. I'm pointing out that aggregate data and the kind of anecdotes that a playwrite can throw out aren't the whole picture. Not even close.

(sorry I can't make hyperlinks!)

I agree with #31 & #41. A lot of those reps were questionable. I remember hearing coach say that form would be compromised as intensity goes up…but my question is where do you draw that line? I would have a hard time accepting some of those reps in that video. Don’t get me wrong, I was simply amazed by the amount of work performed in such a small period of time. Anybody else have some thoughts on this?

Have wonderful CrossFit Day!

amazing! another super annie! very motivational for a sick beginning crossfitter at home with pneumonia. btw...love the outfit too...hehehe...

Awesome video. Great work Pat and Annie, very inspiring!

Gus #56 and others who are questioning technique versus intensity and today's video.

Here is the link to what coach has to say about it:

http://media.crossfit.com/cf-video/CrossFit_ValenciaQnASession2.wmv

Have Fun, Train Hard,

Billy

I think Mamet is living the famous quote

Any man who is under 30 and is not a Liberal has no heart; and
any man who is over 30 and not a Conservative has no brains.

The quote has been attributed to too many people to list.

Apollo and Billy I think you have corrected Mike sufficiently. But no amount of data will change a liberals world view. Only life can do that.

Billy,

Were you the least bit titillated during Nicole's sermon on nutrition when she would talk dirty? Eff with your diet. Why I believe I will.

On my cell so this is going to be short..
Dennis Miller I believe once said, "If your not Liberal when your young, you have no heart. If your not Conservative when your older you have no brain". I'm sure I butchered it, but what the F-ever. You get my message.

I just praise the Lord that my parents brought me up w/the Love for my country & family first and foremost. Makes decisions alot easier.

Get some, Go again!

Jakers, titillated is an interesting and appropriate choice of words for that feeling that I got while watching Nicole's nutrition video.

Have Fun, Train Hard,

Billy

I love to see debate over economic data. Sooooo dorky, but I dig it.

I think what Mike was trying to say was that income for those at the "low end" (e.g. those at the 10th percentile or those with a hs degree or less) has been rising but not as quickly as income has been rising for those at the "high end" (e.g. 90th percentile or those with an advanced degree). In other words, income for those at the low end has been falling RELATIVE to those at the top (i.e. "income inequality" has been going up).

For some good support of the argument that income inequality is rising, see the following report from the SF Federal Reserve:
http://www.frbsf.org/publications/economics/letter/2006/el2006-33-34.html#sub2
(see figures 1 and 2 - pay attention to those w/o a hs degree in figure 2.)

A quick note on one of Billy's graphs: I'm reading that median income is rising (or not falling) until 2000, and then falling for a short period.
http://www.census.gov/hhes/www/income/medhhinc.html

To reiterate, incomes for EVERYONE have been rising (except for people without a hs degree.) However, those at the top are perhaps seeing RELATIVELY more growth in income than the rest of the country.

This is my take.

WOW!

Mike, Apollo, and Billy are ALL right to some degree. Both the rich and the poor are getting richer. It's just that the rich are getting richer quicker than the poor - thus, income inequality is rising.

See Figures 1 and 2 in the link below.
http://www.frbsf.org/news/speeches/2006/1106.html
(Source: San Francisco Federal Reserve.)

[ps I posted this a few minutes ago and it didn't show up. Sorry if this duplicates a previous message from me.]

Pat always has the greatest shorts. 16" of sweetness.

Also, you should see his stash of rectus abdominus literature...

Keep rockin' it!

-Boz

#59 Billy, thanks for the link. However, I wonder if reduced ROM (and possibly even bouncing DLs on Diane-style workouts) is really equivalent to the form breakdown due to intensity that coach is talking about. I'm not saying it isn't - just saying I'm still not clear on the where that line is.

25 m 5'8 160

Cool video. The range of motion for the guy was way short though. I agree with you gus. His elbows weren't 90 degrees on the wall pushups and he wasn't going all the way up on the deadlifts. With the shorter workkouts like diane and fran their should be no reason to cut the rom like that. It's only 45 reps of each exercise so I don't see any reason to cut them short. He would have had to take more breaks if he was going all the way up and down. Still very impressive though.

Did Tommy V tonight
thrusters 115lbs
60,45,30 towel pullups
My time 27:49
Bryce 33:56 subbed jumping towel pullups
justin 35:32
shain 38:21
This wod really kicked my ass. Hands feel like I punched a wall. Can't wait to try it with a real rope.

John S. comment 65

I know what you mean and after an intense workout like Mary or Angie, for example, I always look back at my performance and ask myself, "did I really go all the way down on all those push ups or did I really get the full range of motion out of all of those pull ups" the truthful answer is always, "no, I could have done better" and I always try to do better the next time around and I think that I do better but I always get the same question and I always answer the same way.

I think that when you get closer to the top of your athletic potential you can hold that form and get that full range of motion longer until you get to somewhere in the low to mid 90 percent on form while going at 100 percent on intensity.

When I look at videos like the one today, I try to look at their intensity versus their form in order to try and get an idea of where they are on that journey to the top of their game.

Have Fun, Train Hard,

Billy

That's a good song to workout to by the way. If you don't like it, mute it.

Pat, awesome job. No idea who's all coming out this weekend, but hope to see ya again!

Here's a fitness-related article from the NY Times:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/11/health/nutrition/11well.html?em&ex=1205640000&en=5a51bf1662b6acb7&ei=5087%0A
Push-ups are important. Who knew?

Yes, that was a fantastic display of strength (HSPUs are hard enough for guys) BUT those deadlifts were unforgiveable - the guy especially. There's a video circulating of the infamous 1:59 Diane, and the guy in it gets slated in comments for bouncing and not coming to full extension. However, his form was way better than in today's video.
They've clearly just generated a hell of a lot of power, but an Rx'd Diane? Not too sure about that one...

Comment #71, I couldn't agree more. The form was horrendous, worse than I've seen in over videos. The performancemenu has a brilliant article addressing this issue. I strongly encourage crossfiters to give it a close and careful read.

http://www.performancemenu.com/shorties/index.php?show=shorty&shortyID=36

Looks like it's handstand practice today-pleased to get a comment in before Jacob Tsypkin too. Last classes tonight at 5 for newbies 6 and 7 for the rest. Heading up to Scotland in the morning-via CF manchester, training at Neil Foley's Sunday morning and seeing Davie too!
I love crossfit roadtrips!

Pat, strong solid work!
Annie, your grit and determination are awesome!
Both of you are very inspiring. Thank you for allowing all of us to watch you bust it out.
Again a big thanks to the Glassman's for handing out all these resources for the masses to soak in like sponges, for free I must add. The vid's make me dig deeper too!

f: 35/5'6/60kg (132lb)

OH KIP-A-DEE DO-DAA, KIP-A-DEE-YEAAA

After reaching a milestone on Monday of 5 unbroken kips, today I SMASHED it.

12 kips, then 8, then 6

Crossfit doesn't just give you results - it bombards you with them.

oh yeah, forgot to say that my husband Jonny is fighting in Glasgow, Scotland on Sat night. He's the 4th fight (billed as 'John' Smith)

(Me & Jonny are in the throes of bringing Crossfit to Northern Ireland).

If you go to http://www.cagewars.co.uk there will be a live webcast of the event. Starts at 7.30pm GMT.

Cheers guys,

HELEN

40y/oM
75" 203#

The last rest day was ok, but the next two were full days in kit with no time for sleep, rest, food and workouts.......kind of a workout in and of itself. Combined the 3-day cycle into one monster WOD: done in order...no rest

"Tommy V"
For time:
115 pound Thruster, 21 reps
15 ft Rope Climb, 12 ascents
115 pound Thruster, 15 reps
15 ft Rope Climb, 9 ascents
115 pound Thruster, 9 reps
15 ft Rope Climb, 6 ascents
as Rx'd 9:57

Run 5 K:
26:00

"Michael"
Three rounds for time of:
Run 800 meters
50 Back Extensions
50 Sit-ups
26:15

Total Elapsed Time:
62:12

Great effort, but it's too bad that Annie will have to mute it to show her child...

Awesome stuff!Not totally sure of what to say about the music. Free speach? Nothing is free. We are accountable for our actions. The vid was a gas of athletic greatness by two people. The music jammed,but had some questionable lyrics for all. If you are raising teenage girls, it carries a different message.

Helen--congrats on the kip! I think we should plan a trip north so that you can teach it to Colm. Also best of luck to Johnny.

#52 -- "#17 Grim and others who are sure to post. I appreciate your point of view, but my opinion is to just turn your volume down. We are privileged enough to have access to this amazing wealth of knowledge for the whopping sum of $0.00. As the saying goes - "Beggars can't be choosers." Just my .02"

Fully agree, but here's my question. Every link posted to the comments or message board must be labelled WFS. The Glassmans cared enough about it to make it a rule on their website, so I don't understand why they don't seem to adhere to it on posts to the main page (makes it easier to turn down the volume if you know bad stuff is coming). Just an honest query and not looking to start any battles here. Any thoughts?

--Kyle

Grim #17 thanks for pointing it out as I was watching it with my 3 and 4 four year old and did it with the sound off--THANKS A MILLION

TO CROSSFIT ADMIN: he (grim) is right, clean it up or put a warning label on it!!! in the past this web page has had stuff for kids on it Soooo don't pull us in and then poison this stuff...you can do better than that I think

Noose

Travis from Remo POST 52 & Devidog POST 68:
sorry i missed this one the first time through: Hey Travis that whole turn the volume down thing would be great...IF WE KNEW AHEAD OF TIME...little late after kids hear the first F word. But if you know of a way to UNring a bell let me know.

Corret me if i am wrong but i don't think anyone is saying not to play the music of choice but just let us know so we can protect our children. Most parents (any good parent anyway) would never talk like that in front of their kids like that, right?

Noose

RE: #77 John, you're a bear! Combining two tough workouts like that.

Thought the music in the video was a bit soft. Prefer to listen to Michael Bolton when I lift lol.

Fit and Functional bodies...you can tell they're crossfitters.

Re: Article. Who has time for politics? Yawn.

Praise the Alternate Annie!

Can anyone fill me in on Robert Olejos? I haven't heard about him lately... hoping he's well and strong. I'll check back at the end of the day, or email me if you know.

patrick

solid work there brother. great meeting you at the cert.

annie

excellent job. way to dig in on those deadlifts. you should get back over to gsx sometime. always welcome. you really have no excuse, you're just right down the road.

Man, I call shenanigans on that gyn makeover contest. I should've won!

Yeah, Annie's togs are awesome.....
I don't possess the time to read all these posts, but from what I've learned about CF exercises, Annies form was good, and Pats' not so much.....dude's gonna blow a disc or his SI joint. And I can do HSU's like that and I'm a newbie wuss!!

F/26/170

Michael: Only my second time doing it- Both times sub 1000 meter rows.... 2 months ago 37:15, Yesterday 32:40

Today my first Fran: Sub jumpers and 45# thrusters
5:01

I mean this very respectfully: Annie, you are smokin! What an athlete. Give me some of that discipline, dammit!

No rest for me, mine is SAT/SUN

43/M/75"/200
Paincakes for breakfast
14.56 K run
Ft. Myer, VA to National Cathedral and back. Both directions of the run are all uphill as you cross the Potomac.

1:13:29

Last time (29 DEC)
slightly shorter route of 14.3 K (OK, just a couple hundred meters shorter)

1:18:22

Almost a full 5 minutes faster and I've only been running about once every 9 days! CrossFit kicks @$$!

Pat is more than just fast! That was strong work.

TX Annie, way to rep!

You both made me wish I was down in GSX for another cert.

Coach,

Way to siphon off from the Drudge Report. I saw this article a couple of days ago.

Goes to show as you grow older, you change your mind about many things. My sister was a Democrat in college. Now, she is getting somewhat conservative.

I would like people to see another article before they think about voting for McCain though.

http://buchanan.org/blog/?p=962

Why would a US Senator agree to send tens of thousands of high paying jobs overseas to Europe? We need those jobs at Boeing!

There was another article on Bill Gates asking Congress for more work visas for the people that he wants to bring in from overseas to displace the workers in the IT profession and start paying less money for them as well.

These are just a couple of articles that I have seen. Does it mean that I am for Hillary? NFW!

Great article. Although I think I could have done without some of the analogies and "pondering" that he mentions, but overall point is great.

America is a great nation- we have our problems, and there are solutions to those problems, but the absurd plans/internventions/rhetoric that the left uses to address them are so disillusioned from reality.

"Lynne"

F/29(today's my birthday!!)/150

BP 8,71# - 8, 81# - 8, 95# - 6,101# - 1,111#

PU 4 - 4 - 3 -4 -3

Mike #43

I want to see this "swath" of empirical data. If you are a liberal and are mentioning empirical economic data you've already got my attention- this is a rare occurrence. If you can post the data, I would love to see it and as the article says "when the facts change my opinions change"

#24 - You might get away with using an article for the title anywhere else, but on crossfit you should probably read it before you post.

"
"The Iraqi regime was involved in regional and international terrorist operations prior to Operation Iraqi Freedom.

...

"State sponsorship of terrorism became such a routine tool of state power that Iraq developed elaborate bureaucratic processes to monitor progress and accountability in the recruiting, training and resourcing of terrorists," according to the report.

The report cited such examples as training for car bombs and suicide bombings in 1999 and 2000, both of which U.S. and Iraqi forces have struggled to contain since the rise of the insurgency in summer 2003.
"

I'll give you one point, there were no "Al-Qaeda" in Iraq before we took interest, but they hurried right along as soon as they saw their Afghanistan bases destroyed, and realized that Iraq was going to be the next battleground. Zarwaqi was there months before the invasion and Saddam certainly didn't try to eliminate him as a show of good intentions.

And more importantly #52, we need to focus on the situation now rather than bicker over who was right in the beginning, before we lose heart and leave those peoples in a lurch like we have too many times before.

FORGOT - Went to Primal Fitness yesterday in DC (I live in KS).
They were great! Wanted to say thanks for having me and thanks for the shirt!!! P.S. - My stomach is killing me!!!

Everyone who is criticizing the video's form may be slightly right, but they may just be working up to those excercises. For Annie to be doing that weight and HSPUs is admirable to say the least. I think you have to try the workout as Rx'd to work up to doing it perfectly- give em a break people!! Did you HSPUs go as deep as possible when you did Diane for the first few times?

K, with the risk of sounding offended, since when has it been all right to be insulting towards someone about being liberal? Seriously, because some conservative talk show host decides to pander to a fringe group of Americans to make his living, people embrace this little name calling session? Grow up already, but one thing is for sure. If our nation's forefathers weren't LIBERAL enough in their thinking in designing a government based on Deism and classic western philosophy, we'd still be a British colony.

And for the record, Bush's version of conservatism is ruining our country. Please, apologize all you want for his actions, but the facts speak for themselves. Iraq was NEVER a threat to the United States, and if so, please prove it. As if they had a flotilla of navy ready to invade our east coast. And don't pander the fear card over Iraq being a threat because of 9/11. 9/11 was nothing more than a punk cheap shot that our government dropped the ball on. Invading Iraq doesn't restore honor from our government's error, especially using fear to justify the event.

Our current economic outlook? "Look at the Bush-McCain record: $4 trillion in trade deficits, $2.5 trillion in manufactures alone. One in every six manufacturing jobs, 3 million, gone. With America borrowing $2 billion a day to pay for foreign goods, we have seen a collapse of the dollar, the price of gold quadruple to $1,000 an ounce, oil soar to $107 a barrel and gas heading toward $4 a gallon."-Pat Buchanan http://news.yahoo.com/s/uc/20080311/cm_uc_crpbux/op_335495

And no, I don't think Hillary or Obama or McCain are really going to change anything. Until our nation decides to stop electing dolts to Congress who'd rather line their pockets with special interest money, pay-off election voting (that nice check tax payers will get from overseas borrowing), or crap-entitlement spending gone crazy so booze hounds can get dialysis, we're screwed whether you want to admit it or not.

And one last thing, Annie and Pat, you're awesome. Thanks for laying it on the line by displaying your athletic work. It's an inspiration to see hard work like that on display for all to see as an example.

Come on people... What kind of bubble do you think your kids live in anyways? You don't think that they hear questionable language everyday? Maybe even coming from your own mouth?

On the form issue
I think it's obvious by now that the videos that are put up on the site are NOT to be held as standards for form. This is or course sad, but it is the truth. Both form and ROM in many performances fall clearly below the standards that should be held by any serious athlete.

The Crossfit community should realize this and either look elsewhere, set their own standards, or start protesting much more loudly.

There are several problems here:
1. The videos give the wrong impression to people interested in the movement.
2. It's bad instruction for true beginners.
3. Crossfitters will hurt themselves unnecessarily chasing imaginary times and performances.
4. The *fact* that we are not protesting more already may be a sign of cultishness, or is at least interpreted as such by newcomers.

I am a member of this community, a practicing and PROUD Crossfitter.

#72, Steve,
Thanks for the link. That was an excellent read. I am always concerned about form because of multiple spine issues (broken L5 to boot). I realize I will never achieve some of the elite times, because, one, I'm simply not that good, and, two, because degraded form is simply not an option should I wish to continue with CF. I would never DL like Pat, and that's not to knock his ability. I'd simply be in the hospital if I did. He, obviously, won't. Which, I think, begs the question: Is form simply less of an issue during a metabolic workout, when the athlete has demonstrated adequate strength, prior?

The Mamet article has a provocative title, but makes little sense. I defy anyone to provide a succinct summary? This is the most garbled and opaque piece since Henry Kissinger's musings on the Iraq war.

I've read several of Mamet's collections of essays and conclude that he is a contrarian provocateur who delights in confounding his audience. Intellectual coherence has never been his strong point.

Plenty of people move from left to right as they get older. Their reasoning usually make for interesting reading. Not so in this case.

I'm not sure what Mamet is trying to say. I'm not sure he is, either.

But given Mamet's track record, I wouldn't be surprised to see him write an article entitled: "Why I'm a Liberal Again" next year...or even next month.

41yo/f/155#
make up 5k run
CFWUx2
treadmill run 3.1 miles, 1 degree incline 9:03 min/mile
28:05

great job annie and pat! you guys looked great. can't wait to meet this annie sometime soon

# 98 (James)

I agree totally, with your assessment of the current state of political affairs in regards to conservatism. In my opinion, Bush and McCain are barely conservatives.

And I agree with all liberals who say those things. I also agree with your assessment that Liberal Democrats like obama and Hilary will not help. But you should as yourself what will??

I think that the answer is a true conservative who will limit spending, and have a reasonable foreign policy. I can GUARANTEE a liberal will never do this. They will regulate the economy, price fix, whatever it takes in the name of "progress" or whatever other bleeding heart mantra they know will get them votes. Conservative pundits- as annoying as some are- realize how ridiculous liberal reforms truly are- and frankly, you should too.

And dear god, don't use our founding fathers and MODERN liberalism in the same sentence again- Madison would throw up at the sights of modern liberalism.

Our founders were CLASSICAL liberals- more along the lines of what we would call libertarians today- My heart sinks when I hear someone compare the founders with any form of modern day liberalism.

Steve (#83),
-Thanks, far as the Bear idunno...feel more like "ate by a bear and Sh#$ off a cliff"

-Michael Bolton....bawhahahahahahaha

-Looking fwd to the visit to Camden when I get back

J

Does anyone have a good workout to do on the beach? I won't have access to a gym for the next week.

Thanks,

Chris
24/M/220lbs

#46 Quinn,

The clothes are from Lululemon. I only know this cause I have the same set. :) You can find the store locations online, but they don't yet sell the clothes online. Their pants are the most comfortable though and best for crossfit style workouts. And there is my girl comment for the day.

#104 AlexR

You crack me up; you're right about modern liberals. That was a bit of a stretch on my part. I just wanted to clarify that not all people of liberal thinking are so whacked out as far left thinkers are. I support a bunch of the tenets within modern libertarianism. The only contradicting item on my personal list is to have true, hardcore reform of our entitlement system for the elderly and the weak. There are a lot of wrong people out there getting our tax dollars and a lot who genuinely need assistance who are starving from the lack of help.

And regarding Iraq; if President Bush had said, "We're invading because we're tired of despots like Saddam," well cool, I'd support that. But the whole shebang was banked on WMDs and all this stupid Congressional support that they were there when they weren't. Our country looked like a total arse on the world stage because of that debacle excuse and I feel our President should be held accountable. But he wasn't; he was re-elected.

K, enough of my soap-box. Great reading all, and thank you.

"Why I'm No Longer a Brain Dead Necon"

The world and life is largely about serenity and balance. Thus, here is some.

To this day, I want my government at the national level to do one thing: Stay out, and get out of my life and allow my state, county, city, and non-government org's to deal with our issues. So the question is, does the necon and Republican stated agenda of less government, balanced budget, increased security, and local power at the most basic level pass the lithmus test. Lets see: PASS OR FAIL.

Neocon report card:
1) Do necons support sweeping legislation at national level about how me and my gf plan for parenthood? sounds like invasive national goverment to me. FAIL.
2) Create national laws dictating what gun I can and can not own? Republicans and necons consistently push for national legislation involving federal government in this issue. rather than allowing states and counties to decide. FAIL.
3) In 6 of 7 years under President Bush and Republican dominated Congress, have the necons and Republicans balanced budget? Please. FAIL.
4) Have the neocons and Republicans made us more safe? 39 months in Iraq and I can categorically say NO, we are by far less safe with brazen Bush security. Yeah, invade Iraq and occupy it with 140,000 trrops first 4 years, smart move. FAIL.
5) Do the necons and Republicans intravene federal power into right to die issues for a woman in FL and thus contradicting a basic tenet of limited federal government? Please. FAIL.
6) As a basic tenet of Republican philosophy of small federal power, has the federal government gained massive power or decreased government powers to search, snoop, and gain access to private citizen information? The Republicans were once the Vanguard of protecting citizen rights from federal instrusion and law enforcement abuse, where did that Republican Party go? FAIL.

I'm no longer a Republican or necon. To me it is now an outdated idea and the 'Morning in America' era is officially over and vanished. At some point, some Republican must walk the talk.

No Longer Am I a Brain Dead Neocon.

JoeyG wrote on comment 99 "Come on people... What kind of bubble do you think your kids live in anyways? You don't think that they hear questionable language everyday? Maybe even coming from your own mouth?"

Joey: couple of things come to mind...My kids live in the bubble I bring them up in! It is our jobs to protect them until they are grown up. If you think it is okay to use the F word in front of children and sing songs about cheap sex that is certainly your right--as obtuse and base as it is. But where do we draw the line? Do you surf porn web pages with your 5 year old by your side because you do not want them in a bubble? And NO my kids don't hear that garbage from me. Period.

Also, Crossit has a post up http://www.board.crossfit.com/rules.php
that states "No blatant profanity - this is a "family friendly" board" REALLY?

How do you reconcile that with truth in advertisement?

At any rate, when profanity and sex and the like become so blatant and common it only serves to debase the CF currency and takes what could a great web page and turn it into something less valuable. I hope that Mr. Glassman will do the right thing and bar these things from being available or at a MINIMUM put a warning on it. The issue here is not if this stuff exists, just how we handle it and how we handle ourselves.

Noose

Comment #106 Chris

I have an excellent beach workout, its called rest day. Do it as RX'd and sub La-Z-Boy for beach towel and sub television for women. If you want to reach gold standard, tan each side for 15 minutes and then take a nap (with sunscreen of course). It may take some practice but I think you can handle it.

A 3-minute Diane?! OMG! That's killing it. The way Annie and Pat busted through those DLs was awesome. Great work and definitely inspiring.

#80 expat & #82 TimmyTheNoose - Good points. I don't think it would be too difficult to identify when explicit lyrics will be involved. Coach will have to make sure to censor Nicole too if they feature her in any wod videos - just joking - potty mouth.

#95 Chris - Too true and exactly my point. Perhaps my post did not state it as succinctly as you, but that's exactly what I was getting at.

Happy Rest Day everyone!

Johan Edstrom #100,
A couple things about the performances in the video, and the videos in general. This video was a live recording of two CrossFit athletes working out at the limits of their capacity. Both are elite athletes by broad standards, but neither workout was world-rocking by any real measure. Both athletes had imperfect ROM on several reps of both exercises, and we've seen better times for both men and women. For example, AFT's Diane was better in every way.

For those of you saying their form was so bad they're going to injure themselves, I call BS. They really did that workout and they really didn't get injured. Far from it. They both have done boatloads of deadlifts, and they were pushing through for the quickest time. Of course, we don't teach deadlifts like that and we always push people toward perfect technique (though never achieving it). Coach describes this beautifully in this month's Journal article on technique. (This Q&A session, by the way, addresses almost every issue folks have raised with this video.) And, we also have dozens of videos whose sole purpose is to teach proper technique.

About the ROM, I was yelling at Pat from the first rep to stand all the way up. He was sure that he was since the barbell was hitting the top of his hip. He even continued to defend himself after the workout, until we agreed the video would speak for itself. I'm sure he sees what I mean now. Same was true on the HSPU. In pushing the speed, he cut a few just a little short. Forgivable? Yes. Acceptable? Depends on why you're working out. Is he fitter after doing this workout? Yes. Can he do better next time? Yes. Should someone use this video as the only way to do Diane, and even they're a beginner and try to move like that? Of course not. There is no substitute for common sense.

So why should we show videos like this? Because they are real. I think Billy #67 did a great job of explaining how to benefit from these kinds of videos. Elite fitness is defined by high capacity across broad time and modal domains. Both athletes worked their arses off. Their techniques were good enough to get the job done very quickly and without injury. I think there's little doubt that the workout, as imperfect as it may have been, contributed to their quest for increased capacity across broad time and modal domains. Their performances were inspirational. I know I went out and did Diane again a couple days after. I got 8:13, so I'd be stoked to achieve anything close to what you saw with these athletes.

About the music, we never have claimed that the videos will be free of explicit language. In fact, most of the videos have cursing of some kind. Annie herself determined the music for this video, and she has two kids. I have a teenage daughter and two boys under 8. For those of you complaining that you were surprised by the explicit language about half way through the video, I laugh. This is Eminem. You had plenty of time to recognize the artist, or at least the genre, and mute it before your sensitivities were offended.

Pat's HSPU's are head to ground, with hands reasonably spaced out.

Most of his DL's are to full hip extension, back straight. Look at them frame by frame, not at normal speed.

I think some of the commentators today need to get off their form/ROM high horse.

Tony B.

Amen

tony b

well said as usual.

i think its easy to pick away at form and range of motion when watching a video and believe that we all do it exactly right when we are working out. try video taping your own workouts sometime and see what they look like. i think you will be surprised. it's a good tool for teaching yourself.

I guess my "problem" with the article is that he talks about liberalism and conservatism as concepts and not about the modern democratic or republican party.

In other words, the article means nothing in the real world.

Can we really say the modern Republican Party "stays out of people's way"?

Because they don't. Socially or economically. This has been an administration that has spent money like its nothing, putting it on the "card". And that's not just because of the war either. They've wanted to amend our constitution to define "marriage". Two small examples.

I'm young, 28. I've been following politics for maybe 10-12 years. In that time, I don't think I've seen an example of, what seems to me, this pie in the sky "conservatism". I don't think it exists. No more so than "liberal utopia". I've republicans spend money like its nothing, be heavily involved with unethical business practices, get on soap boxes and scold people about moral and family values and then get caught in scandals (how many times has Rush and Newt been married? They can start a softball team), Run up the biggest debt in our history, have emergency sessions of congress to "save a life", base government decisions on a belief that God talks through you and attempt to amend the constitution to define "marriage".

Maybe that fits in with the author's view that people do bad things, but it seems to me to be a party full of hypocrites.

I personally don't want to get into a big political debate. It's Friday, it's pay day and I am off of work all next week. Too exhausting to argue politics right now!

Tony B.

I wouldn't know Eminem if he stood next to me. However, play some REO or Boston or Zeppelin (Night Flight, when the levee breaks, etc.) and I'd catch on.

Alex, 94 and Billy and Apollo

I put up a couple of posts with the data, but they're hung up in moderation. They'll pop up here pretty soon.

HSPU http://media.crossfit.com/cf-video/CrossFit_HSPUVariations.wmv

Dead Lift http://media.crossfit.com/cf-video/CrossFit_DeadliftIntro.wmv

As far as "why is it okay to insult liberals": "liberal" (read socialist) "principles" have been thoroughly discredited through the experience of the 20th century (every program failed, 100's of millions killed). Liberalism has degraded into pure politics, the politics of envy and "equal outcomes". Doesn't work, cannot work. Pushing the liberal agenda involves teaching dependence and stupidity and trying to invoke fear and division. Liberal politicians cause train wrecks in the economy and then use them for their own propaganda, saying in effect "look how much you need us to take care of you". And then a total buffoon like Al Gore gets an Oscar. How appropriate. How could a reasonable minded person feel anything BUT contempt?

#109: what unit did you serve in in Iraq? During what period?

Here's the first graph:

http://rodrik.typepad.com/dani_rodriks_weblog/WindowsLiveWriter/image_26.png

This is not by household, so changes in that don't matter. It shows that males with HS/BS/BA are either doing worse or about the same.

Here's the second graph:

http://crookedtimber.org/2008/03/10/interocular-transmission-test/

This is by household, but it shows that economic growth varies by where you stand economically. The middle 60% and bottom 20% are growing very little, if at all, while the top 1% have more than tripled. There is also evidence showing that black middle class folks are worse off than their parents. But I don't know how changes in household demographics changes that.

Mike

This is actually one of the first articles I've had time to read and found it quite interesting. 1) To everyone that complains about the government, country, etc., why don't you get up and do something about it? I think people who just sit around complaining are useless and annoying. If you want change, make change, if not deal with it.
2) I'm speaking on my own here, but I'm sure other service members will agree, unless you have been to the war, you don't know d8ck about it. Media sucks, news blows, and there is usually zero to little truth presented about what we are doing there and progress being made. How about all the school systems opened up, the civilians becoming stronger and standing up to the terrorists, infrastructures being built, lives saved, and overall relations between Iraq and U.S. I had the honor to live with, train with, and fight along side many Iraqi soldiers. Do we need to finish up the war, YES. Otherwise every soldier's lost life was in vein. And I've been told first hand, if we don't fight the terrorists overseas, we'll be fighting them here. I'll choose the sandbox anyday.
3) For everyone that thinks this country is soooo horrible or that the government is doing such a poor job. Take a step back. Look at the countries and nations that have been around a lot longer than ours, many are third world countries. Even though I feel that some mistakes have been made, it's a learning process and I feel the government doing pretty darn good job. We have infrastructure, freedom of speech, freedom of religion, human rights, safety..... The list could go on but hopefully you see the point. No country is perfect, but I think our's is trying its hardest.

Just my thoughts of the day.

Happy CF'in, definately enjoying my day.

So the other day when I was doing Tommy V. I over heard two trainers at my home gym(it's not a typical globo, but the owner is still a former bodybuilder) talking about how much they love the documentary Pumping Iron. I was in the middle of doing towel pull ups and just rolled my eyes, but it had me thinking later. I've seen the movie and I know it had big affects on the fittness industry thus the reason why we have soo many globo gyms centered around bodybuilding machines.

Being a film major I tend to think that movies may have more power than they actually do, but I still wonder. Does anyone else think that a documentary should be made about Crossfit? A documentary that gives deep analysis as to why the average person today does not know anything about true fitness, where the industry went wrong, and why Crossfit is such an amazing fitnesss revolution. I think it would really spread the word far greater.

Jim D #118. REO has definitely made its way into several videos already. Boston too, I believe. Zep? I guess I spent so much time listening to them lying on the couch back in the 80s that I can't imagine working out to them!

music- whatever.

The author is talking about liberal versus conservative, not democrat vs republican.

Again, people use the term Neo-Con with out any sense of its meaning.

Technique- define the parameters before hand, others count reps if neeeded, and go like hell.

The weight was not high enough for either of them to ge hurt.

Every Maximal effort will have a technique break down or it is not truely Maximal effort either over reps completed or over weight moved.

There is not a video shown on this site or anywhere else that shows perfect technique over maximal effort. Tony B. is right. I say get over it.

This is every reason not to take liberalism seriously.

http://hotair.com/archives/2008/03/12/video-code-pink-vs-the-marines-and-the-daily-show WFS

america's 3 obsessions 1.politics 2.race, & 3. hollywood! oh yeah american idol..lol

maybe our obsession w/ hockey & beer isn't so bad after all!!

shawn

Canada

on the music issue. the easy (obvious?) answer is to simply watch the vids with no sound. Make mute your default position for wod demo vids. Assume a not WFS -friendly warning and you'll never be offended. You won't miss any valuable info, just potentially offensive music. All the good info is shown as text on the screen anyway.

That article was a rambling load of tripe, much like Mamet's last couple of movies, and I would presume his new play (which the article is a thinly disguised advert for).

Much like atheists in foxholes everyone is a libertarian at tax time, but when something happens and they require the kind of intervention for which we generally depend on government (health care, flood insurance), they become socialists mighty quick.

The problem now is that government in North America is taking the taxation, but they ain't providing a lot of representation. Not for the folks that are voting anyways.

Government should represent the agreement between the denominator of the population that we, and our survival as people have a shared self interest, and that there needs to be an organ of our society that is tasked with recognizing and advancing that shared self-interest.

Since the range of opinions on what that shared interest is varies across a spectrum as wide as the entire population the entire policy process is a shotgun, not a dart.

In that respect I am a believer that societies can create governments that will enact policies that will create a greater good. Not always efficiently and not always in a way that I personally agree with, but I will suck up the taxes to have good affordable schools, good roads, good universal healthcare (in Canada, anyways), and I will not crab about the fact that other people take more than I do and contribute less, because in the end it all balances out to a better place. In a simplistic example- When the people down the street who are less well off than me can get free decent healthcare they are less likely to rob me if their childs gets sick.

The *problem* we have been increasingly wrestling with since the second world war in the west, is that the political process has increasingly skewed government to serve and determine the interests of large accumulations of wealth, which in our society have become represented by large business concerns, corporations. They are equipped to influence political actors on a personal level (using cold hard cash), and wider societal opinion on a public level (using various memes in media, which they own). This perversion is neither liberal, nor conservative in it's application - it has no ideology - it's simply a social disease.

Unlike individual humans (even the ones that run them) corporate business entities have no personal ethics and will only act in their own econnomic self-interest. They are like robots run amok that have attacked the very people who built them.

Until, and if the wide range of people in our population recognize this perversion of the idea of government, and make fundamental changes to the process by which it achieved we are a doomed society.

The only upside of the last 8 years of government in the US, is that it has been so extreme, incompetent and egregious in it's abandonment of representation (without the subtlety of the previous 20 years of administration) that they have created a social, environmental and economic whirlpool that we will all have to swim very hard to get out of it.

Maybe while we're struggling we'll start to see the problem, I must admit, I'm not too hopeful about it though.

Im proud to be part of Doug Ralston's Crossfit Road Warriors! Congrats Doug, I cant wait to see the results!!

#29 - I know this is super nit-picky but Mamet had nothing to do with The Ususal Suspects. I am ashamed for being so anal but I take film way too seriously. Perhaps you were thinking of The Untouchables, which he did write.

Mamet's film and tv works:
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000519/

Dear God, Annie is a freaking machine!

#128 Shawn - LOL

I love Canada's obsession with beer.

I too found this article to be a "rambling load of tripe" as McDaddy put it, and as Daniel Friedman implied - I don't really have the slightest idea what it was saying?

Wow, what an inspiring video! Amazing to watch and what a relief to see that everyone struggles through reps just like me... lol

The article...unoriginal. Did he REALLY just summarize the country into a "market place?" I think the fact that he has always resided comfortably in one world view and is just now awakening to the fact that the world is dynamic and not so easily chunked into "good and bad" says that he's been asleep for many years. Welcome to the lessons you should have learned in freshman composition or philosophy 101! Wait, did he say something about having 12 years of schooling...? ("the only thing we remember from 12 years of schooling.") Oh, I guess he missed those important opportunities to learn critical thinking while it still sounded impressive to have an epiphany like this. This article is about as cute as a stock broker that is finally grasping fractions.

Pat, you're my favorite CrossFitter. I want the Pat "MANIMAL" Barber action figure.

Tony, best camera shots of all time. Great job.

Annie, Annie, Annie, Batman wishes he had your stomach grill. Great rig!

lovelovelove

TONY B!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! YAY!!!!!

I love what you said here and you are spot on. Especially about the vids being real!

I would only add that this workout also occurred after hours of filiming constant skills on rings/hspu/dips/Pats Red Eye flight from Ca...

Annie and pat you rock it hard guys. Keep it up! Annie it was also greatr seeing you yesterday at GSX - you never cease to amaze me.

tucker

29/f/110

michael as rx'd

18:25

pre: nswux2
post: stretching

eric 34/m/145

16:40

first day back in the gym since saturday. i've lost all motivation and almost don't even care anymore. i'm exhausted and slower then ever. it took everything in me not to quit during this workout, eric even had to yell at me on my last 800m when i stopped running. hopefully i'll be back to it soon.

annie and pat- great job you two!

Coming off a cold...
~28:00

Since when are liberals considered socialists? Why so? Since when are socialists confused with totalitarian regimes? Hmmm, I can't think of any names for right wing fringe groups other than the Aryan Nation, but should I start lumping Republicans in that lot with that sort of logic? I think not, and I hope many feel the same about liberals.

Seriously, what's wrong with personal freedom and liberty? That's what liberal means. Now, because some far left fringe groups hijacked the term and talk radio has opportunized off it, liberal now equates to socialist totalitarianism. Wow, what a slippery slope, and I'm now a straw man victim if I don't believe the logic!

Oh, and just because I don't participate in war doesn't mean I can't have an opinion on the subject. I'll always listen to ones with experience, and I think I'll stick with "War is something absurd, useless, that nothing can justify. Nothing..."- the last poilu, Lazare Ponticelli, 110

Tony B. #126

Please don't think I was criticising your selections. I love your videos. I just don't get RAP and so I turn down the volume or tune it out when I hear it. I'm stuck in the 70's and early 80's when it comes to music. My wife kids me about it all the time.

Maybe when I recover from knee surgery and I get my 38 round Cindy, you can video tape it and put Zeppelin to it!

Bill #67, I think we're on the same page. Tony B. - there are several parts of the workout being questioned here (and it's commonly brought up here on these kind of workouts). 1. Is their form something that should be avoided because it might cause injury? 2. Is ROM reduced solely to get a better time? 3. Is this an example of a near optimal intensity-to-form tradeoff for doing Diane or similar workouts? My question was more towards #3. IMO the ROM is a bit questionable but form breakdown is close to what I have on the tougher workouts and I consider acceptable since it's not led to injury.

Hope it's clear I'm not trying to knock these two athlete's in any manner - form breakdown or missing some ROM, both those athletes put in an incredible performance. Wish I was at their level.

great video. I can ususally do the deads straight thru and the hspu straight thru on the first round. The key to get faster is certainly Pat's consistency. I think if Annie had been a little further away from the wall she would have tumbled as much. Great work by both for sure.

I found Mamet's piece unrevealing. I've heard the story several times before. I was raised in a conservative environment and later developed a broader view of our world. My views do not currently fit neatly in any column and I don't really care if that satisfies anyone else because it works for me.

I think what concerns me the most about any ideology, be it conservatism, liberalism, communism or religious fundamentalism, is that so many people surrender themselves to the thought ruts that ideologies can get one set in. When the ruts get deep enough, they are unable to think any other way and the intellectual blinders go on.

As I see it, some people think for themselves, but the vast majority let their thinking be done for them. They become fearful and angry and even violent when someone or something acts or speaks in a way that runs counter to their established thought patterns or beliefs.

Ultimately, I think that to be an ideologue is to live with a haunting fear that someone, somewhere, has a mind of their own and is using it on that assumption.

Mr. Mamet's proclamation does not impress me with any insight. I don't find it that well written either, but then his movies frequently contain awkwardly forced dialogue so this is no surprise.

I did 22 muscleups for time today (was going for thirty but my wrists were too torn up to continue.
Took 9:33
4-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2
4 is a new consecutive pr!
Kabul air must be good for me.

Appropo in light of Mr Mamet's theme, and as a summation of the true reality of life in the U.S., the Freakonimics blog recently had a poll to nominate the best 6 word slogan for our fair country. The winner:

"OUR WORST CRITICS PREFER TO STAY."

QED

Mamet offers several salutary observations and does so in a refreshingly polite style (his bark is much worse than his bite). Occasionally though, his thoughts seem clouded by a type of confusion related to Hume's classic “is-ought” problem.

Mamet seems to believe that because things have worked out more or less for the better, they couldn’t have worked out, more or less, for the worse. Mamet is probably right that a particular type of liberal who follows the mantra that “everything is wrong” may qualify as brain-dead. But would he give that appellation to the person whose mantra is the converse, i.e., that “everything is right. ”

The brain-dead liberal who walks around the office declaring that our political system is wrong; that the government is wrong; that corporations are wrong; that the military is wrong, will certainly make her colleagues standing around the water-cooler want to say: “Shut the %&*# up!” But there are liberals (and conservatives too) who, when they’re feeling hopeful and energetic, may say: “things can be improved.” These people share something with those who fought for no taxation without representation, for the abolition of American chattel slavery, for civil rights, for a woman’s right to vote, for labour and health standards, for environmental laws, and against Fascism (etc.).

The most important things in life (freedom? justice? love? pursuing happiness?) cannot be won by water-cooler psychology that says “things just work out”. They take effort, and before that effort is begun, they require the courage to say: “this can be improved”.

John S #142
My opinion about your question #3 is that it was a reasonable tradeoff, not optimal. Intensity is the independent variable most commonly associated with optimizing results, so I'd rather see that workout than perfect ROM and technique with greatly increased time. I didn't see any significant form issues beyond shortened ROM. I was yelling at Pat to increase ROM and yelling at Annie to find her own pacing and not simply try to match Pat.

There's an important point here about why their ROM was a wee-bit short. I know Pat really well, and Annie pretty well. They were not consciously shortening their ROM. In fact, both believed they had great ROM while they were working out. What happens all the time is that as well-intentioned athletes naturally push the limits, there is an inevitable shortening of the ROM. This has to be fought actively and continuously.

What do I think optimal would look like for these two athletes? For Pat, just get stricter with the limits and push through at exactly the same pace. For Annie, I'd slow down the deadlifts a bit to leave a little more in the tank for the HSPU. A few short breaks in the DLs could save 3-5x that in getting those last few HSPU. But this is splitting hairs. As a trainer, I was very happy with their performances, and look forward to even better next time.

Jim #141, Understood the first time. And I hear you on the taste. Roll with the Changes is one of my ringback tones, and Keep the Fire Burning may be one of the songs at my wedding this summer. If you do 38 legit rounds of Cindy for video, you absolutely get to pick the music! In fact, almost every controversial song in a video was chosen by the athlete in the video.

#148 Tony B.

Just wanted to post something in response to your post above that you were yelling at Pat from his first rep to complete his ROM on his DL's. Please keep your occasional yelling audible on the videos - I have found it helpful, you might be surprised to learn. Specifically, in last week's video on the NY-Boston contest, as one fellow took the bar off the rack for max overhead, you were heard to say "Go hard, go hard, get aggressive!!" - As I train alone, I don't have a coach offering such encouragement - so last week used your words to keep myself going toward a PR as I enetered the 9-round of Fran.

Thanks! And thanks for the great vids.

#102, #130, and #134 - I agree! Without the ramblings he could have concluded after one page.

Music - We live in a world where we get accustomed, or desensitized, to crude language and references as adults. So, if that is the music Annie selected, fine, if that is music Tony B. et al prefer, fine, if you don't like the music and were surprised to hear it, I see your point.

Here is why: In the same forum (i.e. WOD videos posted to the site) there are videos of CrossFit Kids. Is it reasonable to assume that for a forum that posts videos of kids' WODs, that the rest of the videos in the same forum would be 'kid friendly?' There is a link, "CrossFit Kids," on the main page, so one would think that part of the target audience would be kids, right?

I can see this from both sides.

To those who support the music selection: Take a step back and try to look at it another way; don't just blast people for pointing out some inconsistency.

To those who don't support the music selection: This has happened before, so pre-screening should make sense to you. If you are new to CrossFit, well, now you know.

As for the video content: Wow! Impressive! Thanks for an example of a way to do "Diane." I would be interested in Pat and Annie's comments after the workout (i.e. what part was hardest, where they thought they could get faster, what they will do to improve, etc.)

In response to the Mamoth discussion:

I am currently in college and see a ton of people calling themselves, very proudly, bleeding heart liberals. I also have friends who are bleeding heart conservatives. On every issue they debate I see too much passion for party bias get in the way of good judgment. To be Brain-dead anything is still just being brain-dead. How can anyone look at any issue and have a legitimate analysis if they come in with any sort of bias? In my personal experience, people who truly look at issues in depth always come out thinking that all parties have it somewhat wrong and right. I don't care what you want to label yourself conservative, liberal, progressive,.....etc being too much of anything on a particular issue leads to poor judgement. I realize that I am being very general and my view is young, so if any older and wiser crossfitters believe I am wrong then please come criticize me.

Dude, video is great, BUT come on man ?? Please kill the RAP songs...i guess one mans trash is another mans gold....

lyrics:
"...But I just keep f**king you, like I f**ked her
Right in the ass with KY, yes sir!
So full of joy, boy am I absurd
Even Chingy would tell you
'Yea boi don't curr'...."
-Slim Shady

Great work Tony B!

Amazing performance Pat and Annie!!!!

You guys make me want to work out---HARD.
Video Objective: Accomplished

Inspiring enough to draw me out of the cyber hideout.

Rule # 4 - If you nitpick someone's form on the open board, you better be ready to supply a video of yourself doing the same workout.

Tired of reading comments from the Monday morning quarterback who can't can't even complete the workout featured, yet is so quick to scream...Bad Form.

47 5'10 190

I spend yesterday with Jason Mccain, formerly of a Corssfit fascility in Colorado Springs. I have been doing Crossfit for alomost a year and utilize the online references as my "Instructor". They are a great resource but, nothing compares to having an expert watch and critique your taining. I thought I was doing petty good, I am stronger now then I was a year ago, injuries I thought I had I have no longer and nutritionally I am better off. But in just 30 minutes I found out my form sucked on various exercises and therfore limitting my performace. I could not even doa basic air squat during the CFWU without him stopping me. It was a humbling experience and I felt like an uncoordinated non athlete. Hard to take as a retired SEAL with experience in Triathlons, Adventure Racing, Swimming and Biking.

But today I hit the gym armed with the prpoer technique coaching to contiue my Crossfit training. I Hope I will continue to improve and plan to utilize Jason's experience more often. I would like to attend a Cert but they all seem to sa far a away, I live in Tampa. Some day...

This is a great site and great program, I am happy I found it. Thank you to you al lthat make this happen!

MArk

3 rounds:

Run 500 m
50 good mornings
50 anchored situps

26:00

All these situps kill me! I was sore for 4 days after the last Angie. I'll be feeling this tomorrow for sure (and Sunday, Monday, Tuesday)

I really meant, in response to the MAMET discussion:
I hope nobody ignores my post because of a "brain fart"

Mike, thanks for the links to the charts that support your argument on population segments that have income stagnation or decline and you're right, the segment of the population that is losing is the high school educated segment and that can be defined as broad.

Although I also believe that it is a temporary state of affairs. You are probably poor when you only have a high school diploma and it should make you want to get a college degree. At that point you may realize that if you really want to get ahead of your peers, you will need a masters degree. If you attain a master's in business you may realize that if you really want to get ahead in life you have to be a business owner. I concede the point that if you stay at an entry level forever, you'll lose.

Alan B # 68: inequality, the rich are getting rich quicker than the poor.

I agree with that as well. The rich will continue to do the things that make them rich and the poor will continue to do the things that make them poor.

Have Fun, Train Hard,

Billy

#128 and others re: "rambling load of tripe" Mamet article:

The first rule of writing is to have something to say. The second is to say it succinctly and clearly.
"Omit needless words," Strunk and White famously wrote.

The idea that the United States and Israel are the principal sources of evil in the world is grotesque and obscene. It should be condemned at every opportunity by people of all political stripes.

If that's Mamet's point, I'll happily agree.

Mamet's article gave me hope for the future of political discussion in this country. Every respected public figure that comes out and gives a rational, personal, nuanced political statement is a blessing in a climate ruled by partisan pundits giving meaningless soundbites. It gives the majority of Americans that sits between Rush and Soros hope that their reasonable points of view are valid.

OH WOW!! I want to see more of you Annie! Great Job, you too Pat :-)

I'm only posting so I'm not confused with the other "Melissa" (#92). For flat-out athleticism, these two are given elite status in my book. This is an amazing and inspiring accomplishment for Pat and Annie. And I'm happy to find yet another fantastic female CrossFit role model!

While I disagree with the critiques of the video (see coach's video in this month's CFJ!), I also think the comments that say "let's see you do it" or that one shou