By now we have heard that static stretching is the devil. Plenty of research has shown that static stretches alone don’t provide a proper warmup, and when done before your workout, they can even inhibit ... Continue Reading
Strongman Profile: Alexander Zass Teaches Us About Isometrics
Alexander Zass was a strongman in the circus, traveling around Russia for many years back around the beginning of the twentieth century. He was born in Vilnius, Lithuania and lived from 1888 to ... Continue Reading
10 Things I Hate About You (At the Gym)
I’d just as soon that some of you not you come to my gym. Between those of you who aren’t friendly and those of you who smell like you bathed in a vat of cologne, I’ll probably end up with a fairly small ... Continue Reading
Pimp Your Push Up: 3 Common Mistakes and 5 Challenging Variations
Push ups - the purest, most powerful tool in your training arsenal. That is, provided you know how to use it! In this article, I’m going to show you: Push ups - the purest, most powerful tool in your ... Continue Reading
Goal Setting Improves Motivation in Athletes
Most of us know enough about sports psychology to know that goal setting is important. But just how important goal setting is and how to most effectively apply it are entirely different questions. Deciding ... Continue Reading
Sunday Seven: The Week’s 7 Most Popular Articles, Vol. 80
Every Sunday we post the "Sunday Seven" so you can quickly see the seven most popular articles of the week. This week's most popular posts cover female body image, CrossFit censorship, avoiding burn out, ... Continue Reading
Athlete Journal: Jess Papi, Entry 2 – 10/12/2013
EDITOR'S NOTE: Welcome to the athlete journal of Jess Papi. Jess is a blue belt at Scranton MMA and also pursuing her degree in exercise science. Read her entries every week for insights on competing, ... Continue Reading
The Overhead Press: The Difference Between Seated, Standing, Dumbbell and Barbell
Similar exercises using different modes or implements can result in varied muscle activation, joint stability, and the inability to compare one-repetition maximum (1RM) efforts between modes. That is ... Continue Reading
From Grok to Groupon: 12 Articles to Debunk Common Fitness Myths
The internet allows for easy sharing of information - but it also allows misinformation to spread quickly too. This can cause all manner of myths and dangers to be accepted as fact. But never fear! Here ... Continue Reading
A Glossary of Cycling Events: Road, Off-Road, and Track Racing
The sport of cycling has developed in many directions and it could be said that almost any means of self-propelled locomotion on two or more wheels has been tried by somebody at some time or other. ... Continue Reading
Good Movement Is Corrective: Why the Squat Might Be Better Than Screening
There’s something sexy about corrective exercises. If you’ve been a trainer for any length of time you’ll have no doubt seen it. Someone comes in and can’t do a particular thing or complains about pain. ... Continue Reading
The Strength to Survive: Cancer’s Nothin’ – I Do CrossFit
A note from Mike Tromello of Precision CrossFit: Before many of us take on Crush Cancer this Saturday, I want you all to read Cheryl's amazing story. This optimizes why we will wear pink every Wednesday ... Continue Reading
Heart Rate Variability a Good Intensity Measure
Tracking intensity levels is a great way for athletes to ensure they are getting the most out of their training. If you’re hitting the gym and tracking your progress this is pretty easy to do, but if ... Continue Reading
Examining the “Why” – Why Do You Exercise and Is It Working for You?
Why do you exercise? Do you work out to look good? Do you do yoga because someone told you it would reduce your stress? I encourage you to stop for just a moment and answer these questions honestly. Then ... Continue Reading
5 Training Lessons Learned From My Obnoxious Big Brother
I had to learn how to do a lot of things by myself when I was growing up. My mother is blind and my father drank a lot of Ten Penny. So I did my homework by myself, walked to school by myself, and learned ... Continue Reading
Mobility and Movement, Session 1: Yoga and Self-Massage for Squats
The CrossFit box where I teach mobility here in Pasadena, CrossFit 626, recently opened up enrollment into a free-for-members "Mobility Movement" program. The program is led by one of our coaches, Jeff ... Continue Reading
How to Determine Your Snatch Grip Width
This week's article is mainly for the newcomers to the Olympic lifts. One question that most people have when they first start to learn the snatch is, "How wide should the grip be?" This question is ... Continue Reading
10 Ways to Plateau, Burn Out, and Avoid Getting Strong
If you want to stop your strength gains right in their tracks, there are plenty of ways you can do so. Tried and tested by countless athletes worldwide, these are sure-fire ways to halt your progress, or ... Continue Reading
Ice Therapy Beneficial For Pain But Not Performance
Recently there has been a lot of attention given to hydrotherapy as a means of improving performance. The idea behind hydrotherapy is that cold water, or contrasting cold and hot water, will improve blood ... Continue Reading
3 Keys to Successfully Peaking for an Event
One of the hardest subjects for people to grasp is periodization. For proof just see how many athletes fail to set personal bests at the Olympics every four years. Even at elite levels, with the best minds ... Continue Reading
The Peasants Are Revolting: It’s Time for CrossFit Affiliates to Take Back Their Name
When I wrote the article in response to an inappropriate picture of Talayna Fortunato being posted on the CrossFit Facebook page, I had no agenda. My intent was merely to express my own disappointment, ... Continue Reading
Sprint Training: It’s Not Just Anaerobic
Intervals are a popular method of performing cardio. In addition to being an effective way of developing anaerobic metabolism, which is the major reason people perform brief intervals, many people do ... Continue Reading
Athlete Journal: Chris Duffin, Entry 71 – Deload Week (Or Something Like That)
EDITOR'S NOTE: Welcome to the Athlete Journal of world champion powerlifter Chris Duffin. Follow Chris as he trains and competes in various events over the coming year. Chris's journal will be posted every ... Continue Reading
Athlete Journal: Alli Moyer, Entry 4 – 10/8/2013
EDITOR'S NOTE: Welcome to the athlete journal of Allison Moyer. Allison is a nationally ranked NPC Figure Athlete, nationally and internationally published fitness model, an avid CrossFit athlete, BSN, ... Continue Reading