M/35/5’10”/190 Rx’d 6:24

5:22 (rx) 115 reps in a row to start

10:56 Rx

6:37, last 6:14.

7:59 rx

11:05 rxd 6.0 180 48

10:33 @20kg barbell

7:00 rx’d

7:10 - Rx After watching my video, I misscounted and did 149/150 reps.

M/34/175lbs 8:07 RX. I believe it’s a PR buts it’s been a couple years since I’ve done Karen!

Going back to the DIRECT trial: https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(17)33102-1/fulltext (Unfortunately, it’s paywalled) The intervention during the weight loss diet was “a low energy formula diet (825 - 853 kcal/day; 59% carbohydrate, 13% fat, 26% protein, 2% fibre) for 3 months followed by structured food reintroduction of 2-8 weeks (about 50% carbohydrate, 35% total fat, and 15% protein). Per the original trial, 46% of subjects following this intervention (which also included cessation of oral anti diabetic and antihypertensive medication) demonstrated remission of diabetes. That initial trial found a close relationship between weight loss and diabetes remission; this trial builds on this by demonstrating a particular biological phenomenon - that is, restoration of pancreatic beta cell function - stratifies those who respond and those who do not. JR Wild and Richard Feinman are correct to argue this very-low-calorie diet is also a highly carbohydrate restricted diet - in fact, that is part of the reason this study is featured on the site. With the composition above, these subjects would be consuming fewer than 500 calories of carbohydrate per day. If we assume (and this is likely a conservative assumption) they consumed a 2000-kcal 55% carbohydrate diet at baseline, this would be a more than 50% reduction in carbohydrate intake. What I find most compelling about the literature of diabetes remission is that multiple interventions - very-low-calorie diets, highly carbohydrate restricted diets, even (per Aseem Malhotra’s Pioppi diet) a heavily modified Mediterranean diet, alongside the more mainstream solution of bariatric surgery - all drive reversal/remission of a condition that much of the clinical community considers to be chronic, progressive and irreversible. It is not a coincidence that these diets all involve severe restriction of refined carbohydrate and sugar. In other words, we could just as easily frame this literature as a relatively robust data set supporting the clinical efficacy of a single intervention, applied in different ways (specifically, sufficient carbohydrate restriction, with or without calorie restriction, to meaningfully suppress insulin and drive rapid liver fat clearance) to different populations. Given the fact that no pharmaceutical intervention I’m aware of has matched the efficacy of ANY of these dietary interventions, I’d suspect we have a roster of choices to make available to drive diabetes remission. Changes to the composition of the diet (i.e., carbohydrate restriction, independent of calories), quantity of the diet (i.e., calorie restriction), and possibly exercise can be leveraged to achieve this specific metabolic state. This study helps illustrate what that metabolic state is. As other pieces have shown, liver fat and then pancreatic fat clearance and restoration of beta cell function is coincident with resolution of fasting insulin, then first-phase insulin response, then fasting glucose. As the other two commenters have noted, these biological and biomarker changes are intrinsically linked. This study also shows clearly that in some subjects, the decreases in organ fat content are insufficient to drive complete functional restoration, explaining specifically why these interventions are not universally effective, even within compliant subjects. This, to me, suggests two things - (1) the correlation between overall body weight and diabetes is not causal, but is mediated by the fact that fat gain leads to organ fat storage and (2) ANY intervention that drives rapid organ fat clearance will, in the majority of subjects, also drive rapid diabetes resolution. Current data - clinical and anecdotal - points us to a series of established interventions for #2, but I would suspect any intervention that achieves the same would also be effective. If we’re looking at future research directions, then, they would logically be to establish (A) the full suite of interventions, combining diet and exercise, that can achieve that organ fat clearance, and the markers that may help us predict effectiveness in specific subjects and (B) any tools that may drive restoration of pancreatic beta-cell function in those non-responders. It would seem we have a cure for diabetes. The question is how best to implement it, both individually and at scale.

Rx 6.40

9:53

8:15. This was almost more mental than physical.

34/m/190lb 12:49 rx

7:42 Rx. Compare to from 181103 7:55 Rx.

Did the SDLHP, Push Press & Row WOD! (subbed row for: Single Under Jump Rope) No Rower! Results there!

6:30 rx

Getting back into fitness, health, and CrossFit Long way of saying I have no excuses and I’m out of shape. Lets. Go. 35/m 12:40 as rx’d

17:12 Rx

Just under 10 minutes my shoulders just didn't have much today

18:17 Rx

9:12 Rx So so - PR from a few years ago is 7:27. m/51/5'11"/200#

Rx, 1st Karen ever...8:40

8:47 Rx, PR 181103 9:45

Oh man, there’s a reason that’s a named workout. Fran cough... Rx in 11:18 Goal was sub 10 couldn’t hold after 5 minutes. Tried 8/7 every :30

9'19" rx

45lbs barbell thrusters 9:36

5:33 (PR) Compare to: 6:37(PR) Not Rx, but I’ll take a new PR! Only have a 10# ball to use for wall balls and garage ceiling 8ft.

35/195/5’9/M Rx 7:28 (1:13 PR!)

8:15@16lbs

5:44 Rx

Rx’ed 6:44

Subbed 150 DB Thrusters w/(2)20lb DBs 8:42

No ball no wall... 2*20lbs DB thrusters 6:53

8:59 (PR)

10:56 RX Old time: 8:20... some how less fit 🤷🏽‍♂️

With 20# DBs 10:45 181103: 100 wall balls in 6:07 DBs felt more difficult to me. I hit 90 today at 6:07, 100 in 6:59.

6:54 - 16lb ball, 10 foot target.

Those of you that have done this workout know that some pain is to come! Faster athletes will complete this workout in under 6 minutes and a great goal is to have everyone finish in under 10-12 minutes. I highly recommend most people break this workout into short-manageable sets with small rest breaks (no more than 5-7 breaths). This usually ends up being more sustainable for most people and may lead to less soreness than high-rep sets. Here are some scaling thoughts: Wall-ball Shots: The volume of reps is high! For experienced athletes, I will have most of them attempt this workout as prescribed. For athletes that are new or where I think the volume will lead to excessive soreness, I will scale the reps and/or weight/height. I’m ok with being a little cautious on this one!

7:42 Rx This is a PR for me. Previous PR was 8:43 in Jan ‘17. Legs are burning!

DL's before wod then scaled Karen to 150 thrusters with 15# db's 12:29 m/49/175 I'm at the point with my left knee where I could either not go below parallel and only go a bit faster or go full range of motion below parallel and go a bit slower. Chose full range of motion-below parallel. screw the clock. me vs. me.

Compared to Virta Health ketogenic approach, this DiRECT fares almost as well. 800kcal "soup" means also less carbs (400kcal) and probably less frequent eating -both good. Re-intro of food happened along "recommendations", and interestingly the weight loss was mainly maintained. Usual care, as usual, was useless in both Virta and DiRECT. The decease is progressing under usual care, everywhere in the world. The metabolic rate is ca. 4-fold in visceral organs, which would explain nicely, why the fat loss happens first and fast in liver and pancreas after intervention (less insulin messing around). The function of pancreas is revived...at least partially. The loss of insulin secretion gradient likely fails to act as a flip-switch to suppress glucagon = suppress enough the liver glucose release. Prof Noakes referred to a real time baboon portal vein measurement, where they could conclude that liver never stops releasing glucose into circulation, but is being suppressed though. Failure here might lead to constantly higher clugose levels. Enough with speculation, I have no way of being sure of the above. Prof. Feinman is correct; the establishment likes this "soup" approach better than ketogenic intervention, it is closer to "recommendations". The "pill" here is commercial TDR, with keto there is less control for doctors. Wonder, patients given the informed choice, who would take "soup and hunger" and who "steak without potatoes" ...? JR

8:31 Rx I’m bad with high volume wall-ball shots. But my lifetime PR was 8:53 so I’ll take it!

9'18''

M/45/6'2"/180# Sub'd KB thrusters with 26.5# KB's reps as rx'd 8:57

8:31 rx 181106 - 8:14 rx

Champions Club Scaling Notes RANT So do you remember that teacher in college who would say, "now you all paid for a 4-hour class so I want to make sure you get your money's worth." I would have paid double for Professor Eaton's oblivious ass to let us out an hour early. Anyway, the thing that I always fight with on these days as a coach is the obvious, "what do we do with the rest of the session?" Honestly, nothing. Let them out early. A session is done when a session is done. Sometimes we go overtime by 5-20 minutes if we aren't getting what we want, and if the workout is Karen then the session will probably be done early. Don't be Professor Eaton. PURPOSE: test. NEW TO CROSSFIT VERSION: as is TRAINING VERSION: your workout is done when you stop. This will emphasize stamina and give you a better idea of your tolerance for discomfort. You can probably always do one more wall ball if you really wanted, so have a consequence for giving in to it. PRACTICE VERSION: 3-sec. descent on all 150, emphasize going butt back but staying on the ball of the foot. turn the timer off. GROUP VERSION: as is, read the rant. INJURY VERSION: pick one movement you can do and do a lot of it. WARMUP: Squat - obvs Push-up - elbows on wallball Kb swing - core to extremity prep Pull-ups - spend some time hanging Jump rope - always GENERAL FEAR LEVEL: 8

RX:6'26''

Globo scale: if you do not have a wallball sub 150 dumbbell thrusters 15/20lbs. If you have an appropriate weight ball but no wall throw it 10 feet into the air and catch it 150 times. If you do not have any equipment today do 150 burpees.

The most important aspect of therapy for type 2 diabetes is the role of low-carbohydrate and ketogenic diets because of the overwhelming effectiveness in bringing about improvement and remission and, at the same time, the resistance of the medical establishment to recommending it or even acknowledging published results. This paper characteristically does not mention the background on low-carbohydrate diets although we usually expect scientific papers to cite previous work by others. (It does mention bariatric surgery however). The paper is about the effects of a very low calorie diet. How low? Well, it isn't easy to tell. One might expect that a breakthrough approach to diabetes, as this was touted, would have the description of the diet as a salient feature of the report. The information is hard to find in the summary or even in the original study but from the protocol it turns out that on "Week 0-12: a commercial micronutrient-replete 825-853 kcal/d TDR (soups and shakes)...." In other words, the intervention was 12 weeks at about half the caloric level of the Minnesota Starvation experiment (https://www.apa.org/monitor/2013/10/hunger). The astounding thing is that a third of the patient did not respond in terms of glycemic control and remission of diabetes and the current paper is about how great it was anyway. Something is not right here.

Warm for 191219: GENERAL WARM-UP 3-5 minutes of rowing at an easy pace AMRAP 5 25-ft banded side step (both directions) Hold bottom of squat with a medicine ball for 30-seconds 1 set of 10 reps squat therapy 1 set of 20 glute bridges SPECIFIC WARM-UP Wall-ball shot 5 medicine ball goblet squats 5 medicine ball push press to target 2 sets of 5 wall balls 1 set of 10 cycled wall-ball shots at intended workout pace

INTENDED STIMULUS . Benchmark day! One of the most important contributions of CrossFit is that of giving an operational and elegant definition of fitness. Thanks to this we can measure it, and hence improve it. In the traditional implementation of our methodology, benchmark workouts are there to measure our fitness and give us meaningful data points of our progress. In this context, the intended stimulus is that of measuring. That does not mean that you necessarily have to do it RX or that you need to do the same scale you did in a previous attempt. It also does not mean that if you don't improve today from earlier efforts your fitness is stalling or regressing. It just means that your mindset should be that of observing where you are and how you can improve. With that in mind, let's analyze this lovely little piece. Karen was first introduced as a part of a "Wall Ball Exercise" in 030729. The objective was to get all 150 repetitions in under 6 minutes. And then do some pull-ups, for five rounds, I know fucking insane. From then, it became a remarkable benchmark. The purpose of this workout always has been that of being a fast sprint. If scaling today, put yourself in that position. Can you get this done, under 6 with a lighter ball? If you can't, weight is not your problem, conditioning and speed are so, consider using more lighter balls in your training, and build that engine. If you can, then weight up! Now, even though this is a benchmark, going in with the pressure of having to PR is super counterproductive. Chill. You are fitter than before, have fun and see what happens. And always remember Benchmark Girls are named after badass women that defied preconceived notions of what women should/shouldn't or could/couldn't do in training. Be humbled by these women and honor them with your best effort. Women like these are making the world a better place and will make it even better in the future. Here's how the original "Wall Ball Exercise" went --it might serve you as a template: 1/2 minute – 12 shots 1 minute – 25 shots 1 1/2 minutes – 37 shots 2 minutes – 50 shots 2 1/2 - 62 shots 3 minutes – 75 shots 3 1/2 minutes – 87 shots 4 minutes – 100 shots 4 1/2 minutes – 112 shots 5 minutes – 125 shots 5 1/2 minutes – 137 shots 6 minutes – 150 shots OPTION 1 For time: 150 wall-ball shots ♀ 12-lb. ball to 9-ft. target ♂ 16-lb. ball to 10-ft. target OPTION 2 For time: 150 wall-ball shots ♀ 10-lb. ball to 9-ft. target ♂ 14-lb. ball to 10-ft. target OPTION 3 For time: 150 wall-ball shots ♀ 6-lb. ball to 9-ft. target ♂ 10-lb. ball to 10-ft. target