Drat! I fell right back asleep after posting the blog and missed gymnastics. Maybe my body is telling me I needed some rest. Oh well, until Wednesday. For now.. breakfast at Fort Defiance!

The highlight of my training week was taking competition class. It was a ton of fun to slog though the 250's workout with the team. Lots of positive energy and support from our in house badasses.

Sorry again for the late post. Internet at my house is pretty spotty right now, especially at night. I'll have it and then it seems to kick off or is extremely slow for a few hours at at time then jumps back to normal. Annoying!

also... "Let he who is without gluten cast the first kettlebell"

Sorry about the 2nd Blog Snafu. Now Fixed Just finished gymnastics class at Chelsea Piers. This one was much harder because of the down time I just took the first half of this month and that my lats were uber sore from yesteray's 250's workout. I came in about half an hour early to get my range of motion back and warm them up. Class was good, usual warm-up then stretch session which was about 15 minutes. then line drills and then they broke up into different stations. I focused on my front hand springs and back hand springs with spots. They felt harder than last time. The coaches said I need to be more flexible :X

Sorry about the late blog post, guys. I came home last night and had no internet through this morning. It kicked back on around 9:30.

Competition Class With PR, Melissa and Jess Fox we did the 250's WOD from the Regionals: For Time: 250 Chest to Bar Pull-Ups 250 Kettlebell Swings 1.5p, 1p 250 Double Unders 250 Overhead Squats I think we got to the 80somthing rep on the overhead squats before the time cap. The Pull-ups started real easy and ended up being difficult to cycle more than 5 once we cracked 180 or so. Used the rubber pads to prevent excessive hand tearing. The KB's were okay, I did a set of 32? and then a set of 20, Mel jumped in when I needed a break. Doubles went okay and I only got to do two sets of the overhead squats, a set of 10 and another of 9 I think. Enjoyed this workout with the competition kids. Excited for GYMNASTICS TOMORROW!!!!!!

I'm going to play as if I can't use it on SBK. I think I would use about 25K for my nephew's college education and another 25K as a family insurance plan in case anyone needs it. The rest.. well I'm not really sure, I think I'd want to move it towards something environmental and/or disease prevention related. I suppose I would have to do a lot more research before I invested it. Jack, With 100K we'd put in the "Jack Levavi Spa at CFSBK"

Got back from Reebok Headquarters in Canton MA last night. The North East Qualifiers were amazing this year, a much bigger event in every single way. The level of competition has gotten pretty unreal, especially there being a lot of new faces in the women's division. I think theres a good chance for Austin Malleolo (our #1 male) to podium at the games this year, he did: 21-15-9 reps Deadlift 315lbs Box Jump 30" In sub 2:56 which is pretty unreal. He was top 3 in all the event this weekend which I think is a first for any male athlete. We'll see what happens in Carson though. Also, David C, who competed at our sectional events this year (and won every event) tied for 4th place which is awesome considering it was his first regional. Anyway- After Ecuador and the Qualifiers i am SO SO SO SO Happy to be back full time at CFSBK. I've felt removed from the gym for so long, Very excited to see all the familiar faces again

Great meeting in Mass tonight for the Regional Directors. Dinner tonight was: NY Steak, medium rare about 8 oz Mixed veggies, lots of different kinds Water and then a glass of beer. The place we were at had over 100 beers on tap, the most in the world apparently. I drank it but was so focused on the meeting I didn't bother to taste it or remember what it was.

I came home from the gym starving last night. On my way home I stopped by Dubuque on Court Street and got 2 Burgers without the bun. So basically 2 meat patties with a salad "bun", onions, tomato and a pickle. Washed it down with some tap water. Later I had some frozen blueberries for dessert. I'm a fancy guy like that

Thanks for the warm welcome, boys. I've taken two Gymnastics classes at Chelsea Piers. I did them right before I left for Ecuador. I've got a ten class card which Im going to start next Wednesday. I plan on going every Wed and/or Friday at noon, let me know if anyone else is interesting. The class is all tumbling which is something I'd never done before. I found both my classes INCREDIBLY fun and rewarding. That is going to be my extracurricular focus outside of the gym

I forgot.. 5pm Class: Group Warm-Up Snatch Balance w/Carlos (75x3, 95x3, 115x1, 125x1) 135x1, 145xFx3, 145x1. 155x1 WTD Pull-Up 40x1, 80x1, 105xF Just wanted to move today after 12 days off. My Snatch balances felt a bit soft and unbalanced at the bottom, mostly a problem of me being unfocused today. WTD Pull-ups were similar, did a few sets and then for the hell of it made a jump to 105, afterwards i had to teach so i didnt get to go down in wt. Good to be back in the gym, brains feel a little scrambled after being away for so long.

It feels very very very good to be back. Ecuador was great, but I'm not going to complain about coming back to hot showers, clean bathrooms, and Paleo friendly options when eating. Also- it feels amazing to be back at the gym!

Compañeros! Finally back to civilization and on a computer. The past few days Mike and I took a Bus to a small town called Quilatoa which is in the andes and next to a large and very beautiful lake located at the bottom of a canyon. We stayed there for a night with some french folks and then mike and I hiked about 10 hours from Quilatoa to Istinlivi. The trip was pretty amazing and incredibly exhausting. The trails are sometimes steep, sometimes narrow and over large drops, sometims all mud, often up very steep inclines and never ever marked. There was a lot of guess work along the way, plenty of advice from locals and some luck that finally got us to our destination, Istinlivi. Along the way we met plenty of the local indiginous people, got chased by dogs and played a game of soccer with a bunch of 6-11 year olds at an orphanage. The Hostel at Istinlivi was amazing, the first place with warmish showers and food that wasnt arroz con pollo as the only meal option. This morning, we hopped on the flatbed of a pickup truck with about 5 other people (Very Tight) and took a fast and bumpy trip back to another town (we were supposed to hop on a milk truck headed towards latacunga but it never showed up) and then took a bus back to Latacuenga where we are now at a hostel. I think we´re going to make a journey down south to see some ruins before heading to the amazon. The people here are very very helpful and friendly. Im especially taken by the generosity and work ethic of the indiginous peoples. Having spent the last few days in small mountain villiges seeing what these people have to do for the most basic needs really puts our own lives in perspective. Im talking like 80 year old women walking 5 miles to´bring back milk and potatoes. That or like 5 year olds carrying loads bigger than themselves over very dangerous mountain edges. They do all these incredible tasks with a smile and stoic attitiude. It´s really something else. Anyway I´m enoying checking in on the blog and seeing what everyone is up to. I miss the gym, the coaches and our community very much. I had a dream that Shane opened a 5 star Paleo Restaurant and then another which was an episode of the office where the premis was that Kevin was hosting the North East Regionals and rigging the equipment so he could bet on the winner.. so yeah, Ive still got CrossFit on the mind. Also- My triceps and chest are STILL sore from murph. Finally- SCARY MOVIE NIGHT!!!! my apologies for the rambling and poorly proof read post.

DajM, How long have you been following CFSBK programming? Where are you training out of? Thanks for posting! Samir, Amazing pictures! I'm not a big fan of Cake or cake. Today's Murph 49:17 as Rx'd Felt like I had a slow but consistent pace. Tried the 15 Squats, 5 push-ups, 5 pull-ups, 5 push-ups for 2 rounds and really didn't like it. My push-ups didn't get enough recovery so I went back to reverse "Cindy" style. My Push-Ups were 3-3-2-2 for about 15 rounds of it and it worked Really well for me. Maybe took a little too much rest between sets but I never hit failure and felt like I was moving well. The second run, as it always is was quite difficult. I actually stopped to walk for about 30 ft on the first lap of the 2nd run but snapped myself out of it back to my comically slow job. Picked up my pace each lap. Getting lapped by like 5 people in the process of my last run gave me a little push. Afterwards I was pretty out of it for a while. Great day today, I'll post some thanks yous etc on the blog tomorrow but for now I'll just say that today was a big success.

I neglected to mention that yesterday on the uneven bars at Chelsea Piers I missed a flip and landed on my ribs on the low bar.. OUCH. ribs on my right side at pretty tender today..

Jess nailed the questions on the head Yesterday: Worked up to some heavy singles on the Clean with Brian. Need to start a little more forward than I had been and create a bigger chest when I catch the bar. I had one rep at like 170? Where everything came together and it felt like 135 Today: Gymnastics at Chelsea Piers with Sam Worked: 1) Front Flips and Back Flips into the Foam Pits 2) Uneven bars (hard!) Lots of things I dont know the name of where you flip around it and jumping from one bar to the other and then more flipping around. 3. Then Round offs to Back Handsprings. 4. Handstand Practice The instructor said this about me after class which I think sums it up well. You've got really great power, timing and strength, your technique is just really bad. It's nice to feel like a beginner again :)

Great AM classes indeed. I went to Reebok yesterday for a meeting about the regional qualifier. They've got a pretty awesome campus in CT and it seems like CrossFit has really taken hold of their corporate culture. They've got a nice gym which they're expanding from a 5,000 sq ft facility to 16,000 sq ft. They said it's not uncommon to have 40+ people in a class (Currently their facility is just a little larger than ours). Today they have a "CrossFit 101" seminar/WOD where 700+ Reebok Employees will get a "What is Fitness?" lecture followed by Hooverball, WODS and a tug of war event at the end. Regional is going to be a LOT bigger and more polished than any other year..

Bad Newz, Baz. Kiki recently tore her heel chord playing basketball. Maybe you two should team up to spot each other on chest and tris day. I would rather do double Fran. Only because I would have a nice sense of accomplishment afterward and feel like I got some strength endurance out of it. I would be slow and bitter the entire 5K and then be bitter and sore afterward.

Ben, Havent seen your keys. I'll keep an eye out and call you if I find them. Are you sure you left them at the gym? This year I'm going to try 15 Squats 5 Push-Ups 5 Pull-Ups 5 Push-Ups which is a strategy I've never tried before. Last year My push-ups went to hell and it really slowed me down, I think using the 5 pull-ups as rest I can crank out the push ups in sets of 3/2 in the later rounds as opposed to breaking down to singles and doubles eventually. I once did Murph "Angie Style with a Row, which was: Row 2K 100/200/300 in order Row 2K It actually wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. Doing 300 Squats in order and then sitting down to row is something I wouldnt want to experience again though..

4th OLY Session with Brian D: We worked doubles on the snatch. We feeling really stiff and sore after this week's training but I eventually warmed up into it and found my groove. Not as "together" as I felt in our first snatch session but overall It was good. I forget what I worked up to, like 140x2 or something? Today I really tried to use my damn legs a lot more. On one set I really felt that pop from my heels and the bar flew up. Can't do it as consistently as I'd like though. Afterwards.. Palo Santo with Malcolm, Laurel and Josh. Good times, then back to the gym to organize equipment. Also, Anyone looking for a job? Goods Receiver / Stock Manager - Maintain all inventory - Weekly stock take, both front and back of house - Receive all deliveries - Pack out all events - Manage all vehicles related to Silkstone, The Fat Radish & Ruschmyers - Market runs and errands - Attend weekly production meetings - Tasks as needed Must have valid drivers license and clean driving record Computer skills and proficient in Microsoft office a plus Contact Jillian at staffing@silkstonenyc.com Starts off hourly but has potential to become salary with benefits job.

Tom, The vests at Roguefitness.com should do you just fine. So I took the beginner/intermediate gymnastics class at Chelsea Piers today and it was.... AMAZING. SO MUCH FUN. It was actually a lot more advanced than I expected. After a very thorough warm-up and stretch session (like 20 minutes) we did a bunch of line drills which included handstand to forward rolls, cartwheel variants and all sorts of other combinations which I don't know the names of. Some I could do and others I could only roughly approximate. Then we did a bunch of front/back handsprings and other combinations. I even got to do a few front flips into the foam pit which was awesome. Like I said, it was actually pretty fast paced and included some higher skill movements. I did a lot of front handsprings and even a running round off to back flip (with a spot) which was very exciting. I think if I can make it in regularly I can get a handle on the basics. I'm still so excited about it!

They just announced the CF Regional Workouts: http://games.crossfit.com/features/announcing-regional-workouts Holy $HiT!

They announced the CrossFit Games Regional Workouts http://games.crossfit.com/features/announcing-regional-workouts Holy $hit!