Wednsday, April 28th, 2010

Monday was John Allen's last day at the Field House before he set off on a journey cross country to follow his dreams of entrepreneurship in California. I would like to wish John the best of luck, making a move like that takes a lot of courage and determination. But getting there is only the prelim, the real adventure begains when you arrive.
Good luck John!

The Importance of Girls Going Heavy
Written by Dani Dufrene of>>>http://www.crossfitinvictus.com/
(Originally published on February 5, 2009)

Sorry guys, this one is for the ladies.

I realize that not all of our CrossFit gals are opposed to going heavy; however, it is common for women to feel less comfortable going heavy than participating in met-con WODs. Women who were not engaged in
team sports growing up have rarely been exposed to weightlifting. I
know I wasn’t. I grew up dancing and dabbling in long distance running.
Before CrossFit I certainly never lifted heavy loads overhead.

I think because going heavy is less familiar for women, we have a tendency to either avoid it all together (strategically making heavy days our rest days) or to not push ourselves to our full potential. I
believe that is a great disservice to our overall performance both
physically and mentally.

Why I think it is important to go heavy:

Going heavy builds confidence and is very rewarding for women. There is something extraordinarily empowering about being able to perform a body weight overhead lift or twice your body weight deadlift. It
reassures you that when you are out in daily life you can hold your own
– lug several bags of groceries into the house, then balance them on
one knee while you open the door; squat down and scoop up your kids one
in each hand or change the water jug at the office.

It helps build muscle and increase bone density. Muscle burns more calories than fat. The higher your lean body mass is the more efficient your body is in burning calories. As women get older
their bodies produce less estrogen, which helps to keep bones strong.
The strain that is placed on your bones during weight bearing exercise
promotes bone strengthening and can help fight against osteoporosis.

What it feels like to go heavy:

You will have to dump the weight at some point in time. If you are successful in all of your lifts you are not pushing hard enough. Some women are afraid to test their limits, because they think
they won’t make the lift. That should never be a concern. If you can’t
make it – you dump it. But you will never know if you don’t try.

You might feel a little dizzy or light headed. If you get dizzy or light headed it is to be expected and you may be able to lessen the effects if you focus on your breathing. The dizziness is
due to a lack of oxygen and won’t be as much of an issue if you make
sure to take a deep breath at the beginning of each lift.

The last rep of a set should be questionable. When you are truly going heavy, it is work. It should not be performed with the same ease as the weight you use in a met-con WOD. You should have
to fight. If you are doing 5×5 it should be a gamble whether or not you
make that last repetition. If not, add some weight.

WOD
"Lynn"
5 Rounds of:
Max reps,
Body weight Bench press
pull-ups

When doing the Bench press, pick a weight that allows you to get between 8/12 reps.

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Comment by Lindsay on April 30, 2010 at 11:14am: Nice - thanks Rex ;-)

Comment by Rex Oliver on April 30, 2010 at 9:31am: Lindsay, check out Jerry's pic on the bench he is fully engaged in Squosing

Comment by Tom Moore on April 29, 2010 at 8:48am: "Keep your friends squoze. Keep your enemies sqozer." -Michael Corleone

Comment by Lindsay on April 29, 2010 at 8:25am: Good article! I'm going to try to do better at adding more weight and stop being afraid of it!

Aaaannnnndddd for the record - I still need a definition of SQUOSE... :-P

Comment by Jim Lanier on April 29, 2010 at 7:46am: Way to go John! Follow your dreams Bro. Fulfillment comes from stepping out there. Your folks are a great example. Godspeed!

Comment by Jeff Bryan on April 28, 2010 at 10:43pm: Man I better pay more attention. I don't even know where my squozen is or how to stretch it to keep the fuzz out.

Comment by Field House Gym on April 28, 2010 at 10:01pm: Ha Rex! Keep it SQUOSE!

Comment by Rex Oliver on April 28, 2010 at 9:53pm: John be safe in your travels and remember only at FHG can you practice the art of
SQUOZEN

Comment by Nicole on April 28, 2010 at 9:31pm: I wish you well John.....
Thanks for the article Nick, it's a good reminder for us. I do get frustrated with the heavy stuff but I think I have done my share of dumping the weights. If we women can carry babies in our bellies for 9 months at a time we sure as hell can throw the weights around (ok, maybe I can't throw them as heavy as some but it's all in the attitude, right?). Plus, it helps me be more efficient when it comes to the yard work and throwing the groceries at Jeff when he just doesn't listen and do as I say :).

Comment by Jeff Bryan on April 28, 2010 at 6:02pm: Good luck, God Speed, John. Just make sure you get a big enough place for us all to come visit and catch a WOD at CrossFit San Francisco! We'll miss you. P.S. If you could make sure that your new place is earthquake proof that would be great, too (they worry me).