Malady of the Ignorant

I find that Tuesday nights are good nights for me to focus on writing in my blog again. It sure has been a while since I last posted in this blog. I completed the burpee challenge. I have noticed a lot of gains from doing this during burpees in workouts recently. The only drag of the challenge was posting the video online on time.

Anyways, I want to share with you what I wrote up for the people who have joined Canyon CrossFit's Technique Development Program.

What I have learned after the first day is that there are some people who are ignorant. The clients that came in today were ready. They all are ready to make some changes. They are ambitious and are now open-minded. Some people may think they are performing movements correctly and maybe my voice comes through one of their ears and out the other, but they have no idea how important it is to work hard and focus more on the fundamentals.

I am not too worried about it. There was much more success than I anticipated after the first day of this program. Sometimes it takes a while for certain people to give in ;) Just like how a lot of your started out your CrossFit Journey.

*Quick Quesion:

How long did it take for you to finally step in Canyon CrossFit? Or Start CrossFit training in general?

3 Months for me to start CrossFit. Rick has told his story a million times, he ditched two sessions before finally starting. Post your answer in comments!

*Also,

If you have not noticed, we have been growing. There are a lot of new faces that will be joining our group sessions. Rick and Ray have been working their butts off getting these people started up. Part of the reason why I created the New Late Rule was to help make sure the classes were running on time. Once you all had to do burpees, all of the sudden everyone is on time! Thank you everyone for making that adjustment, it helps us so much!

With that being said, It is time to get on your butts with signing up online. This helps me prepare for the session! More details coming soon. (especially if you have no idea what I am talking about)

Canyon CrossFit’s Open-minded Client Agreement

It is never fun to hear us repetitively correct your form or critique your lift, but I want to explain why we do it. It is easy to get lost in the proverbial forest of numbers and want to post RX or hit a new PR on a lift, but I am seeing too much trending towards quantity over quality. It is easy to revel in short term gains and ignore our weaknesses, but we are not training for tomorrow, we are training for the long term. Good form matters because without it we harm ourselves, we limit our potential and we are not seeking true improvement.

I have seen hundreds of athletes come through our doors and even more compete at various events. There is an obvious difference between people who hold technique and form as the pinnacle of their training. Grit and intensity decide competitions, but you can move a load much more quickly if you do it efficiently. Even if you have no desire to compete, it is important for you to learn how to use your body properly to stay healthy. Sacrificing form to be “better” is not worth it and in the long term you will face the consequences.

I am asking you to check your ego at the door. It is time to be open-minded and face the fact. The fact is, we all need work with our technique on many movements. Rushing through your workout and shortening range of motion of movements is not making you any better of an athlete. Lifting heavy while giving up your form is doing more damage than you may think. Egos can insidiously prevent us from doing what we can do better. This is the Technique Development Program. It is designed to educate you with CrossFit methodologies and help make you a more functional human being.

We are going to take the side of safety and tell you to “go lighter.” We want you to reach your potential and we know you can not do it unless you perfect the fundamentals. A focus on quality allows us to more efficiently move our bodies or a weight and do it safely. Gains do not come instantly. I know it is hard to be next to firebreathers and not see dramatic improvements in a short period, but that is the nature of the beast.

I encourage everyone to asses their form, fix their fundamental weaknesses and be patient.

The gains will come.

Clients’s Signature:                                                                           .  Date:

I hope everyone changes their mindset during workouts. I have noticed a big change already.


Here is a satisfied Canyon CrossFitter sharing her success story (Kathy Hollingsworth)

"‎5 months ago, my journey began at Canyon Crossfitserveral goals and always remember from day one, I just wanted to do 1 "boy" push up. I tried once and failed. Disappointed, but not... discouraged, I continued on. Tonight, my goal became reality. I could not be more grateful to Rick for not giving up on me, Andrew for always encouraging me, Melisa for trying to teach me techniques. You all believed in me when I did not believe in myself. Words cannot express my gratitude"