Steve P in mid-kip

The order for the Prather Ranch beef has been placed and we'll be getting it delivered to CFO on Wednesday, Feb 24 at 6pm.  Mark your calendar!

And related to the Prather Ranch order...I placed an order for one too many boxes.  Please let me know if you'd like to purchase the extra box by responding in comments or sending an email to us at info@crossfitoakland.com.  We'll do it on a first-come, first-serve basis.

Kombucha is a fermented beverage thought to have originated in the Far East, probably China, and has been consumed there for at least two thousand years.  In China it was known as "The Tea of Immortality" during the Tsin Dynasty in 221 BC. Today in the US, kombucha has become increasingly popular and is being sold at most health food stores nationwide.  Kombucha is made by combining tea with sugar and yeast.  The result is a sweet, fizzy beverage that tastes like a mix between champagne and sparkling apple cider.  Kombucha is delicious and super refreshing!   

Drink up!  It's good for you.
The kombucha "mushroom" which looks like a pale beige pancake, is actually a symbiotic colony of yeast and bacteria (SCOBY) making kombucha an effective probiotic (supporting the beneficial bacteria in your gut).  The mushroom acts on the sugar to produce small amounts of glucuronic acid, a powerful detoxifying substance.  The liver produces this acid to help neutralize toxins in the body however, toxins from chemicals in foods and the environment can overwhelm the liver.  Kombucha can be a powerful aid in cleansing the body and enhancing the immune system.    

Make it yourself.
WARNING: The "scoby" or "mushroom" is not pretty so be prepared to be a little grossed out.

Instead of paying 3 dollars a pop for bottled kombucha, you can easily make your own at home.  First, you'll need to get a starter culture.  For buying a culture there are lots of places on the internet where you can purchase one.  Here is one. 

3 quarts filtered water
4 bags of organic black tea
1 cup white sugar (the culture consumes the sugar, you do not)
1/2 cup komucha from a previous culture
1 kombucha mushroom

large gallon glass jar
paper towel
rubber band

Bring water to boil.
Add sugar, stirring until dissolved.
Add tea bags, steep for 10-15 minutes. Allow tea mixture to cool.
Remove tea bags and add 1/2 kombucha from previous batch.  
Pour mixture into a gallon glass jar, add culture, place paper towel over the top of the gallon glass jar and secure with a rubber band.
Place in a warm, dark place away from contaminants and insects for seven to ten days.
After fermentation is complete two cultures will appear in the mixture.
Remove the cultures and filter kombucha into a glass container.
You may need to pull gently to separate the mother from the daughter culture. You can use this to make other batches or give away to a friend. 

Refrigerate and enjoy!

Last week, Steve D asked this great question: why do humans need to stretch? 

Our bodies were made to move.  We were not meant to be in a seated position for most of the day.  We were meant to climb, jump, run, hang from trees, twist, reach, dig--all sorts of things that most people don't do in everyday life now.  As CrossFitters, we do a lot of functional exercise when we are in the gym, but for the rest of the day--what are we doing?  Many of us spend a lot of time driving, sitting, and moving forwards only.   How often in everyday life do you reach overhead?  When do you walk backwards, crawl, or scramble over rocks?  Though we do some of these movements in the gym, on the whole our bodies are not doing what they were meant to be doing most of the time.  Because of this, our joints lose some of their range of motion, the connection between our brain and our muscles gets rusty, and our motor coordination becomes inhibited.  Stretching can help to counteract the effects of everyday life on our bodies.

Stretching increases flexibility, increases blood flow to the muscle, and brings the muscle back to its original length.  Having flexible muscles reduces the risk of injury and allows for better recovery after workouts.

Remember, static stretching is done after a workout or after you are very warm.  Dynamic mobility exercises are best before a workout.

On a more interesting note, tomorrow is Manwell's birthday!!  Post birthday wishes to comments.
 

Journey and Justin working their way through Angie

We'll be holding our monthly Community Day workout on Saturday, Feb 13 at 11am.  This workout is free to all, whether friends or family, whether CFO members or not.  Regardless of your current level of fitness, you'll find just the right mix of fun and challenge in our Community Day workout.

And as if that Saturday weren't busy enough, we'll also be holding our Sports Saturday rugby clinic.  More details to follow on the clinic later this week.

Two papas performing pull-ups (how's that for alliteration!)
 

OK, so here's the list of people and the number of boxes that I've passed along to Scott at Prather Ranch.  If there are any mistakes or omissions, speak now or forever hold your peace.

Tamara 2 boxes (1 box shared with Hung)
David S 1 box
Leigh 1 box
Vee 1 box
Tad 1 box
Leka 1 box
Freddy 1 box
Patrick T 1 box
JP & Audra 1 box
Sam L 2 boxes
Stas 1 box
Daniel & Candace & TomC 1 box
Lau 1 box
Felipe 1 box
Hannah & Dawn 1 box
Maria & Connor 1 box
Ross 1 box
Mini 1 box
Lydia & MJ 1 box
Scott & Sherrill 1 box

Funny, huh? I thought so.  I think like a good deal of humor, it is funny because it contains at least an element of truth.   I am pretty sure I would have ordered one of those for my first few months (ok, year) at CFO if it had been available.  Of course, the irony is that many people avoid starting a new fitness program that will get them in shape because they don’t want to be judged for being out of shape.  Huh?

Speaking of starting a new fitness program, you may have noticed that there have been a few new faces around CFO this past month.  We've had some transfers from other affiliates and our inaugural on-ramp class for beginning cross-fitters graduated on Saturday and some of our newest members are already attending regular group classes!  I have also spied many familiar faces lately that have returned after extended absences (you know who you are).

Who's the guy with the sweet push-ups?

It takes somewhere between a little and a whole lot of courage to walk into a new and intense environment like CFO for the first time and maybe even more to walk back in after being gone awhile.  Happily, CFO really is a place of no judgments (at least until we get to know you over the years), so the blue tarp is only necessary if you are going to throw some paint on the gym walls.

Post words of welcome (and welcome back) to comments.  And of course, introduce yourself to any new-comers you might run into in class.

Jason Khalipa doing the workout we're going to do on February 17

For those of you looking for an additional CF-related challenge, I want to give you a heads-up on the Weekly Challenge that Jason Khalipa is posting on his CF Santa Clara blog.  Jason is posting the challenge workout every Monday, and is giving challenge participants until midnight each Thursday to post results and send in video of that week's challenge workout.

This week's CF Santa Clara challenge workout:

For Time:
Row 250m
21-15-9 Reps:
Thrusters @ 115#/85#
KB Swings @ 1.5pd/1pd
Row 250m

And take note of Jason's time in the power clean/burpee workout in the video above.  We'll be doing the very same workout (developed by Austin at CrossFit Unlimited) in two weeks.

Hannah driving out of the bottom of her bench press

At least one time a week, if not many more times, I get asked about whether you should go all-out on a workout like Sunday's Part B workout (4 rounds of 400m runs with 2 minutes of rest in between) or whether you should leave a little in the tank in earlier rounds, trying to average out your performance over the whole workout (i.e, all four runs).  Although I'm using yesterday's workout as an example, it applies to any interval-style workout we do.

I've always believed, and have also observed and experienced repeatedly, that the greatest gains in fitness come from not trying to manage your workout, but from letting the chips fall where they may.  Managing reps, rest, and the like is appropriate on game day (or the NorCal Sectionals) where the only objective is winning, but your quickest path to getting yourself ready for game day--and really fit--is to avoid the management mindset.  Fitness comes by pushing the margins for failure outward (whether it be muscular, anaerobic, aerobic, psychological, or whatever), and that can only happen if you actually know how and when you fail.

Forget about smoothing out those rough edges!

Jon Gilson, a far finer writer than I, and Robyn's dream coach to boot, published an outstanding article on this very topic:

http://www.againfaster.com/articles/managing-your-way-to-mediocrity.html

Read it.  Now.

(I've also reprinted it in its entirety below.  Just click on the "Read more" link.)

Think you know which foods are big no-nos?  Full-blown allergies are discovered early on and will most likely get you a trip to the ER but what about foods that don't stop you in your tracks?  Mild food allergies and sensitivities are easily masked or often have delayed responses that don't surface for hours to even days later.   Food allergies that go unnoticed can trigger chronic inflammatory responses in the body.

Signs to watch out for:
Abdominal bloating or cramps, headaches, gas, diarrhea or constipation, chronic fatigue, unexplained weight loss, congestion, and runny nose are all common reactions to provocative foods.  Remember, symptoms will vary tremendously so don't overlook subtle signs. 

Common problem foods:
The most common substances to which people are most sensitive are wheat and other gluten-containing grains (oats, barley, rye, spelt, kamut), eggs, corn, citrus, dairy products, shellfish, tomatoes and other nightshades (peppers, potatoes, eggplant), peanuts, yeast and soy.

How to check for allergies and sensitivities:
Make a list of foods that you think you may be allergic to, or reacting to. Remove all of these foods from your diet for at least 2 weeks. Be sure to read labels so you don't ingest any hidden sources of the eliminated foods.

On day 15, eat one of the eliminated foods first thing in the morning, alone without anything else. For the next few hours pay close attention to how you feel. Did you  become bloated, get a headache, or experience other symptoms that you didn't have the previous 2 weeks? Record your responses.  If no symptoms ensue, then you're probably good to go.  For the next few weeks, alternate between suspected foods and safe foods (introduce a new food every 5-7 days).  If you felt better when not eating the eliminated food and had symptoms when you reintroduced the eliminated food then you can presume that you have a mild food allergy.

 Share experiences of identifying and eliminating problem foods to comments.

In spite of the pain they incur, the foam roller has become a popular recovery tool at CFO.  Pressure applied with the foam roller releases adhesions ("knots") that form in the muscles--this is called self-myofacial release. 

Foam rolling can improve function and performance, and restore proper alignment to your body.  Stretching your muscles after you roll them is even more beneficial.  After you roll the muscles out, they are more receptive to stretch and restore their proper length.  

For those of you who do not know how to foam roll, here are two great videos about foam rolling your lower body.  After you gone through these moves, spend just a few minutes stretching your quadriceps and IT band, and notice how much better you feel!

Post any questions or stretching requests to comments.

Foam Rolling: Part I from Patrick Cummings on Vimeo.

Foam Rolling Part II from Jon Gilson on Vimeo.