MUSCLE-FITNESS.

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Damn that
whiteboard.
As I siaggci ignominiously
liom siaiion io siaiion ai
Iciianck Iiincss in Sania
Monica. Caliloinia my
lungs scicaming loi iccupci
aiivc oxygcn. my palms blis
iciing bcloic my cycs iis
iLc wLiicboaid iLai pusLcs
mc Laidci. laiiLci. Lcavici.
WLaicvci piidc I walkcd in
wiiL Las long sincc bccn
ciusLcd by a paiLciic.
laboicd sci ol 50 pullups.
Swcai is liicially pouiing
liom my biow. iLc siing icn
dciing my cycs icaigas icd.
One foot :n front of the other - :t's
work as plod toward a ,,-pound bar-
bell. As make an effort to f:nd a steady
pace on my thrusters (front squats
w:th an oerhead press at the top),
get l:ght-headed and drop the bar.
Legs heay, :s:on blurred, drag
myself out for an 8oo-meter run. On
the way out, the wh:teboard gently
rem:nds me that 'm st:ll only halfway
through the workout. Ehausted, aloof,
barely ert:cal - won't remember
a s:ngle one of these 8oo meters io m:n-
utes from now. On my way back :n, the
board beckons once more, th:s t:me
po:nt:ng out that the workout w:ll con-
clude :n the same sad:st:c fash:on :n
wh:ch :t started - w:th ,o pull-ups.
Eentually, merc:fully, complete
my last pull-up and collapse to the
floor, a soaked, qu:er:ng, bloody
mess. Folds of sk:n are r:pped from my
hands, my lungs are struggl:ng to f:nd
the:r cadence. But th:s :s what s:gned
up for. 1h:s :sn't about work:ng up
a l:ght sweat, or gett:ng a few pump
sets :n. 1h:s :s about f:tness for per-
formance. 1h:s :s about gett:ng better
kf[Xp# and the omn:present
wh:teboard, wh:ch catalogs
my workouts for better or for
worse, :s my new accountab:l-
:ty c-ar. This is CrossFit.
A growing Iitncss
scnsation. CrossFit -
thc systcm that takcs
IunctionaI training to
thc cxtrcmc - isn`t
Ior thc wcak. FoIIow
aIong as an D= staIIcr
pIungcs into thc Iray
(+)
MUSCLE&FITNESS May 2008
By Eric VcIazqucz | Photos by MichacI Dartcr
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MUSCLE&FITNESS May 2008
Beyond Aesthetics
CrossF:t, unl:ke trad:t:onal gym prac-
t:ces, :sn't just about cffb`e^ good. t's
about actually Y\`e^ good. Vh:le :t's
b:lled as a core strength and cond:-
t:on:ng program, CrossF:t :s des:gned
to bolster io d:fferent doma:ns of f:t-
ness: card:oresp:ratory endurance,
stam:na, strength, power, fle:b:l:ty,
speed, coord:nat:on, ag:l:ty, balance
and accuracy.
CrossF:t does th:s :n a pun:sh:ng, :f
:mmethod:cal, manner s: days a
week w:th a brutal three-on/one-off
schedule. 1he workouts are random-
:-ed - neer d:d the same rout:ne
tw:ce :n s: weeks - and can :nclude
any and all comb:nat:ons of plyomet-
r:cs, spr:nts, Olymp:c l:fts, gymnast:c
moes and kettlebell work. On occa-
s:on, CrossF:tters een f:nd them-
seles turn:ng back the clock w:th
archa:c, brute-strength moes such as
the 1urk:sh get-up. 1he bottom l:ne:
V:th CrossF:t, you're neer comfort-
able. Yet th:s hapha-ard style of pro-
gramm:ng may hae more of a payoff
than you m:ght th:nk.
1he reason :t works :s known tech-
n:cally as undulat:ng per:od:-at:on,
says d] Sen:or Sc:ence Ed:tor ]:m
Stoppan:, PhD. Bodybu:lders hae
always known :t as the Ve:der Pr:n-
c:ple of Muscle Confus:on. By keep-
:ng your body guess:ng, you allow
yourself to cont:nue mak:ng ga:ns.
V:th CrossF:t, those ga:ns come
not only :n the form of new lean mus-
cle mass but :n complete athlet:c:sm.
1hough :ts lack of structure may seem
more geared toward the f:tness gener-
al:st, there are myr:ad benef:ts to be
had by more phys:que-m:nded :nd:-
:duals l:ke you and me.
CrossF:t :sn't really for the spec:al-
:st, says Andy Petranek, a former
L.S. Mar:ne and owner of Petranek
F:tness, where put myself through
the paces for s: weeks last fall. But
a spec:al:st - whether :t's someone
look:ng to bench more or run a faster
,K - w:ll st:ll ga:n someth:ng :n those
areas wh:le s:multaneously :mpro-
:ng :n other ways.
And how do CrossF:tters measure
:mproement? Vell, 'll tell you how
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they don't: w:th the look:ng glass.
CrossF:t gyms - Petranek's :ncluded
- are consp:cuously deo:d of m:r-
rors. 1hey don't want you focused on
how good you m:ght look, they want
your focus where :t belongs: on the
work. f your thoughts are on anyth:ng
else, you won't make :t - per:od. Peo-
ple qu:ckly learn that ego has no place
:ns:de the walls of a CrossF:t gym.
Petranek's thoughts on an:ty l:ft:ng
follow thus: 'e been known to k:ck
people out for do:ng curls, crunches or
lateral ra:ses, he adm:ts. 1here just
:sn't room for that type of tra:n:ng
here or :n the CrossF:t ph:losophy.
Don't worry, though - wh:le mus-
cle groups aren't spec:f:cally targeted
the way they are :n trad:t:onal pro-
grams, they don't eactly get oer-
looked, e:ther. Delts are blasted by
oerhead squats, thrusters and hand-
stand push-ups, and b:ceps get more
than the:r fa:r share of work through
ar:ous ers:ons of pull-ups. You
work your abs to some etent eery
day, whether :t's through dreaded
knees to elbows (see photos on page
i,o) or full s:t-ups, or just as stab:l:--
ers :n any of the heay full-body l:fts
that fall under the curr:culum.
Vhen f:rst started tra:n:ng th:s
way, had a real problem w:th do:ng
abs maybe only once a week, Petranek
says. But after a few months of
CrossF:t, my abs had neer been
stronger or looked better.
Aesthet:cs, then, are just a pleasant
byproduct of your phys:cal :nestment
:n the total:ty of CrossF:t.
Doing the Impossible
So no m:rrors. !o :Pods. ]ust a stop-
watch and that unholy wh:teboard.
Howeer truculent your relat:onsh:p
w:th these two th:ngs may be at the
outset, you'll come to loe, apprec:ate
and :ns:st upon ha:ng them close for
eery s:ngle workout.
1here's a compet:t:e element to
CrossF:t, Petranek says. People are
constantly mot:ated to outdo them-
seles or outdo the person net to
them. 1here's always room to :mproe
and get better. You see your old t:me
(+-
MASTERING
THE KIP
LEARNING THE KIPPING PULL-UP
WILL HELP YOU MAXIMIZE YOUR
PERFORMANCE TIMES WHILE ALSO
HELPING YOU CARVE NEW DETAIL
INTO YOUR LATS
Despite all of its muscle-building
benefits, the pull-up is one of the most
dreaded and thus avoided exer-
cises in the gym. Most of us, however,
are slaves to traditional dead-hang
pull-ups, where you perform the
exercise in a slow, deliberate manner.
Some of us call it a dead hang
because at full extension, thats
what we are: dead.
But since CrossFit is based on
volume and performance, adding
a little calculated body english to the
exercise is not only helpful but its
recommended. Far from cheating,
kipping pull-ups allow you to
complete far more reps than their
stricter cousins and in far less time.
So what you sacrifice in form, you
more than make up for in total vol-
ume. The swift cadence also forces
you to engage more of the growth-
prone fast-twitch fibers in your lats.
CrossFit Santa Monicas Andy
Petranek explains and demonstrates
how to properly execute a kip.
1)
THE SWING
Hang from a bar and swing
your shoulders forward and
your legs back, so that your body looks
like a bow. Then swing your shoulders
back and legs forward, so that your
body forms a reverse of the first bow.
Practice this until you can swing in and
out from the bar repeatedly without
bending your elbows.
2)
THE KICK
Kick up your knees when
youre at the back of your
swing to move toward the bar. Timing
here is critical if you dont do it at
the right time, youll lose momentum
and power.
3)
THE PULL
Pull your body toward and
chin over the bar. A kipping
pull-up isnt counted unless your chin
clears the bar. Without hesitation,
push yourself away from the bar with
your arms to begin the whole process
over again.
>> For a video demo of Andy doing the
kipping pull-up, visit petranekfitness.
com and click on Videos.
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MUSCLE&FITNESS May 2008
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and Crace. One lady, Fran, :s part:cu-
larly daunt:ng.
1he only workout that str:kes fear
:nto my soul :s Fran, Petranek says.
1he f:rst t:me d:d :t, just wasn't
r:ght for about three hours. t's just
a s:-m:nute workout, but :t knocks
me on my can for hours.
Fran :s one of the benchmark rou-
t:nes that :nole complet:ng sets :n
a ai-i,-,-rep sequence. n th:s case, you
go back and forth between ,,-pound
thrusters and pull-ups :n superset
fash:on, complet:ng ai reps of each,
then i,, then n:ne. Quads, glutes, delts,
traps, tr:ceps, hamstr:ngs, b:ceps, lats,
forearms - obl:terated. S: m:nutes
and out. Fran just upped your workout
eff:c:ency Q.
Other workouts are named after sol-
d:ers who hae fallen :n defense of our
country. 1he Murph, for eample, :s
named after Lt. M:chael Murphy, a
decorated !ay SEAL who was k:lled
dur:ng counterterror:st operat:ons
:n Afghan:stan :n aoo,. H:s sess:on,
wh:ch he n:cknamed Body Armor,
:s :ncluded :n your one-week :n:t:at:on
course here (see Hell Veek on page
i,a). ]1, ]osh and Badger are just a few
of the other rout:nes that fall under
CrossF:t's Heroes category. t's only
natural that braery :s someth:ng of
a prerequ:s:te for these sess:ons.
1he workout that the Santa Mon:ca
gang :s lumber:ng through :n these
photos :s called the F:lthy ,o. 1en up-
tempo eerc:ses, each more demand-
:ng than the one before :t, each
requ:r:ng ,o near-perfect repet:t:ons.
1oday, Petranek leads the way and f:n-
:shes :n ao:, - best:ng h:s pre:ous
record on th:s by nearly e:ght m:nutes
- then crumples to the floor, strug-
gl:ng to catch h:s breath.
>> To the edge of the cliff. See:ng
Petranek work:ng to r:ght h:mself
after the F:lthy ,o, 'm rem:nded of
one of the slogans you'll f:nd on Cross-
F:t 1-sh:rts: @[fk_\`dgfjj`Yc\% Eery
t:me set foot :nto Petranek F:tness
and took :nentory of the wh:teboard's
workout of the day (VOD), contem-
plated turn:ng around, go:ng home
or your buddy's t:me on the board and
you want to beat :t. You can't really
get that on a da:ly bas:s w:th typ:cal
workouts.
>> Baseline. As quant:f:able :mproe-
ment :s the cornerstone of CrossF:t,
:t's :mportant to hae a sol:d start:ng
po:nt. 1he basel:ne rout:ne - wh:ch
Petranek has all of h:s new students
perform - :ncludes a ,oo-meter row,
o bodywe:ght squats, ,o unsupported
s:t-ups, ao push-ups and io pull-ups all
done :n success:on for t:me.
>> Ladies and Heroes. 1he basel:ne :s
ch:ld's play when compared to 1he
Lad:es. L:ke hurr:canes, the most
destruct:e tra:n:ng sess:ons are g:en
names such as Ann:e, D:ane, Helen
MUSCLE-FITNESS.COM
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and f:r:ng up my D\R. Maybe :t was
the specter of the board that made
them more off-putt:ng, but eery rou-
t:ne looked :mposs:ble. Before do:ng
the Dan:el VOD, hadn't done more
than ao pull-ups :n a s:ngle day. 1he
board on Oct. 8, aoo,, read:
DANIEL
50 pull-ups
400m run
21 thrusters (95 pounds)
800m run
21 thrusters (95 pounds)
400m run
50 pull-ups
mag:ne my d:smay when saw
that the workout began Xe[ ended w:th
,o pull-ups. But 'm just as compet:t:e
as the net guy, and gutted :t out.
posted a class-worst t:me of ,,:,i and
couldn't stra:ghten my arms for a week
(ser:ously). But f:n:shed :t, and to
th:s day :t's one of my proudest phys:-
cal ach:eements.
CrossF:t helps people blow past
mental and phys:cal boundar:es,
TIME SUPPLEMENT DOSE MAIN BENEFITS
7 a.m. Caffeine + green tea 600 mg Strength, energy
11 a.m. Whey protein 1 scoop (20 g) Muscle preservation, energy
11:45 a.m. Creatine 5 g Strength
Taurine 3 g Power
Arginine 5 g Blood flow
Beta-alanine 1 g Endurance
Leucine 5 g Muscle preservation
Noon CrossFit
1 p.m. Creatine 5 g Strength, recovery
Whey protein 2 scoops (40 g) Muscle growth, recovery
Most CrossFitters take the
holistic, whole-food approach
to fuel their training. But
a solid supplement stack
doesnt hurt the cause when
youre competing against
yourself at a breakneck pace
day in and day out. Heres how
I built my supplement sched-
ule around my noon classes
for Weeks 36, with the help
of M&F Senior Science Editor
Jim Stoppani, PhD.
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MUSCLE&FITNESS May 2008
CROSSFIT SUPPS
CROSSFITTING FOR THE FIRST TIME? THESE SUPPLEMENTS CAN HELP FIGHT FATIGUE AND HOLD ONTO MUSCLE
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MUSCLE&FITNESS May 2008
HELL WEEK
>> Petranek offers some guidance on several of the
workouts, based on experience.
THIS ONE-WEEK CROSSFIT PROGRAM
WILL GET YOU STARTED ON YOUR WAY
TO GREATER STRENGTH AND STAMINA,
ONE PUNISHING WORKOUT AT A TIME
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Workout Directions
HELEN
Beginner Use a 16-kg kettlebell and
do jumping pull-ups
Intermediate Use a 20-kg kettlebell and do
twice as many jumping pull-ups
Advanced Use a 24-kg kettlebell and
do unassisted pull-ups
FRAN
Beginner 55-pound thrusters and
jumping pull-ups
Intermediate 75-pound thrusters and do
twice as many jumping pull-ups
Advanced 95-pound thrusters and
unassisted pull-ups
THE MURPH
Beginner Do half of everything (50 pull-ups,
100 push-ups, 150 squats)
Intermediate Break the pull-ups, push-ups and
squats into 20 rounds of 5-10-15
Advanced Perform as written, completing the
prescribed number of each exercise
before moving on
>> To continue your CrossFit crusade on a daily basis, visit
crossfit.com or petranekfitness.com. For exclusive action
footage from our photo shoot, featuring the CrossFit Filthy
50, visit muscle-fitness.com.
Each time you lace up your shoes for a CrossFit workout,
youre getting ready for battle. Unrelenting and high-inten-
sity, each session will help you redefine your physical limits,
leaving you looking better if winded for the effort. This
one-week sample, provided by CrossFit Santa Monicas
Andy Petranek, gives you a healthy initiation into this type of
training and offers some benchmarks for success. Take
note of the beginner times, but see how long it takes you to
work up to the advanced-level marks. CrossFitters gener-
ally train on a three-days-on/one-day-off schedule, and this
workout follows that split. Beginning with the baseline rou-
tine, youll progress into increasingly tougher workouts,
each with its own unique demands and payoff.
Average Time (minutes)
Day Workout Beginner Intermediate Advanced
1 Baseline 8:00 4:017:59 4:00
500m row or more or less
40 squats
30 sit-ups
20 push-ups
10 pull-ups
2 Helen 12:00 9:4611:59 9:45
3 rounds: or more or less
400m run
21 kettlebell
swings
12 pull-ups
3 4 rounds: 17:30 11:3117:29 11:30
400m run or more or less
50 squats
4 Rest - - -
5 Deadlifts:
8 sets x - - -
10,8,6,4,
3,3,3,3 reps
6 Fran 9:00 5:018:59 5:00
thrusters/ or more or less
pull-ups
superset:
3 sets x
21,15,9 reps
7 The Murph 40:00 32:0139:59 32:00
1-mile run or more or less
100 pull-ups
200 push-ups
300 squats
1-mile run
(,+
MUSCLE&FITNESS May 2008 MUSCLE-FITNESS.COM
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Petranek says. And :n a class sett:ng,
someth:ng may look :mposs:ble, but
you see eeryone else go:ng through the
same th:ng and you th:nk, Hey, ay|e I
:oo|J Jo |aa|. Ve want people to go r:ght
up to the edge of the cl:ff.
1o quote the good people of Ad:das:
mposs:ble :s noth:ng. At least not :n
CrossF:t.
CrossFit Culture
At t:mes, CrossF:t can seem an :mpen-
etrable fratern:ty of strong-m:nded,
f:ercely compet:t:e f:tness -ealots. But
ult:mately, that's a pretty shallow per-
cept:on. Dur:ng the s: weeks
spent at Petranek F:tness, shared the
gym w:th hardcore deotees (f:re-
breathers), prod:gal CrossF:tters,
beg:nners and een epectant mothers
- eeryone :s on equal foot:ng once the
clock starts. Classmates root for one
another and shout encouragement
through the bleakest moments of phys-
:cal ehaust:on. M:sery truly does loe
company here.
1hough once cons:dered an under-
ground f:tness cult - th:nk F|ga| C|o|
meets Po|ag Iroa - CrossF:t now has
a deep-rooted and eer-grow:ng follow-
:ng. V:th more than aoo sanct:oned
aff:l:ates worldw:de, CrossF:t :s spr:nt-
:ng out of the shadows of the f:tness
per:phery and :nto the ma:nstream.
CrossF:t Qatar, anyone?
Br:an Decker, who CrossF:ts at S:erra
F:tness Cym just east of Los Angeles,
completely re:nented h:s phys:que at
age ,8, go:ng from a doughy ao, pounds
to a rock-hard i,, at 8 bodyfat. And my
d:et was pretty far from str:ct, he adm:ts.
was always unhappy w:th my body-
fat numbers, but CrossF:t has enabled
me to keep :t under io cons:stently.
Decker represents the much broader
swath of CrossF:tters who apply the:r
newfound athlet:c:sm :nto other careers
or hobb:es. 'm an alp:ne cl:mber, and
can do routes of ao hours or more
w:thout gett:ng wrecked because of
CrossF:t, he notes.
Seeral groups of our homeland
defenders, :nclud:ng some of the bad-
dest men on the planet - the !ay
SEALs - hae made CrossF:t the:r
eclus:e form of phys:cal tra:n:ng.
You can :s:t nayseals.com and see
what these el:te operators are putt:ng
themseles through today.
But CrossF:t :sn't the eclus:e
property of dues-pay:ng members.
CrossF:t aff:l:ates - l:ke F|ga| C|o|'s
1yler Durden - hae a s:mple credo:
1h:s doesn't belong to us. Anyone
can d:rect h:s or her web browser to
crossf:t.com or an aff:l:ate s:te for the
VOD, :deo demonstrat:ons of
unfam:l:ar eerc:ses and :ntens:ty
t:ps, all for free.
CrossF:t :s an open-source model
- anyone can do :t, at home or at
a gym, w:th m:n:mal equ:pment, says
Decker, who also de:ses workouts on
h:s own that he can do at a local park.
You don't need a tra:ner or coach
because eery b:t of help you could pos-
s:bly need :s aa:lable onl:ne.
f you're one who str:es to best the
man net to you, just f:nd a gym to call
home. n the end, CrossF:t :sn't really
eclus:e at all. t may, :n fact, be more
|a:|os|ve than most other forms of eer-
c:se around.
Fitness Earned
1h:s :s f:tness earned: !o one f:n:shes
a CrossF:t workout wonder:ng :f they
made any progress. 1he ache from yes-
terday's sess:on and the burn from
today's are e:dence enough of that.
CrossF:t workouts are comprehens:e
- cales to cla:cles, so to speak. Epe-
r:enced CrossF:tters are etreme ath-
letes. 1hey aren't :n :t for the pump or
the phys:que perks - they're after
strength, sk:ll, prec:s:on - but they end
up leaner and more muscular for the
effort, anyway.
got through workouts that was
certa:n would leae me search:ng for
the door (or the trash can). After be:ng
eposed to CrossF:t, really wonder :f
there's any form of eerc:se couldn't
handle. n only s: weeks, dropped
from i,6 pounds at io bodyfat to i,,
pounds at , bodyfat and :mproed
my basel:ne workout t:me from :,, to
:o8, nearly half a m:nute better than
d:d as a CrossF:t rook:e.
Tale |aa|, wa||e|oarJ. M&F
For |ae ao|aor's jo|| worloo| jooraa|, as
we|| as ex:|os|ve v|Jeo jro oor F|||ay ,o
ao|o saoo|, v|s|| os:|e-j||aess.:o.
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