5k Pushups. CF Message Board Hook Up. Fall Classic. Strong+. July 4th. 44s 400m. Lance. TWA 6.24.24

4 GENERATIONS OF CROSSFIT!!
On the far right of this picture are Diablo members, Matt (Dad), Spencer (Son), Hanna (Mom, kneeling) & Sydney (daughter – white tank). In the center of the picture are Larry & Christine Michaelsen, the Patriarch & Matriarch of the Michaelsen clan who rallied the entire family for a CrossFit workout at CrossFit Believe in Missouri at their recent family reunion.   
This is 4 generations of CrossFitters, including: 7 kids, a myriad of grandkids and 1 great-grandchild.

“Knowing what must be done does away with fear.”  Rosa Parks

IN THIS EMAIL
  • 5000 Push Ups?
  • A Bit About Diablo
  • Fall Classic
  • Strong PLUS
  • July 4th Plans
  • 44s 400m. Less Pain Walk More. Lance.
5000 PUSH UPS? – UPDATE  As I shared last week, on June 1st, I committed myself to a silly social media push-up challenge that has suddenly become a significant mental and physical burden: 10 push-ups x each day of the month – 10, 20, 30… etc. I one-upped the challenge by adding squats into the mix.

Today is day 23 or, 230 push-ups and 230 squats. My cumulative total is almost 2500 of each. Here’s my observations and suggestions for anyone crazy enough to do this next month (see below):
  • Procrastination is NOT good. I get a big chunk of the daily requirement (100-150) done in the morning and spread the balance out throughout the day. 
  • It’s better to take 15-20 minutes at various times of the day and knock out a chunk of reps, because the first set is the hardest – I’m not warmed up.
  • Soreness, albeit a small amount, is now a factor. I noticed some early morning soreness after I crossed the 200/day threshold – mostly in my glutes from the squats.
  • I’m getting jacked – well, not jacked, but I notice my t-shirts are definitely tighter around my chest and arms. Hypertrophy is happening. I’ve added more protein & creatine to my diet to help with recovery. Kinda surprised by this, since I’m 61 years old.
  • I’ve cut my CrossFit to 3x a week and I cherry-pick workouts (more than usual) that won’t require much chest, shoulders or squats.
So about “5000”.  As it turns out, at the end of June, 30 days, I will have completed 4650 push ups and squats. Thats a big number, but its only 350 reps away from 5000! I never should have added them up. It would be really nice to end on a nice round number. So, on July 1st, my plan is to knock out the remaining 350 push ups and 350 squats. #dontdoit
 
MAY AS WELL…DO IT!  Watch out for our Diablo version of the Push-Up / Squat Challenge on SugarWod coming in July. 

A BIT ABOUT DIABLO  Founded in 2005, Diablo CrossFit has a long history with many stories. We got started in a backyard, moved to a park in 2006, then went indoors in 2007, eventually moving to our current location in 2009 . Every week or so, I’ll share an interesting or funny (or scary) story or experience from our history that contribute to Diablo’s lore and legacy.

This week: “How It Started: A CrossFit Message Board Hook Up”.  
Yvonne and I moved back to the Bay Area (Walnut Creek) from Texas in May, 2005. I had been doing CrossFit on my own since Dec 2004, mostly in globo gyms. Unfortunately, there were many workouts I could not do because of equipment and noise limitations. So, in June 2006, I reached out on the CrossFit message boards and offered to help start an affiliate in Walnut Creek (see the pic below).

OG & CrossFit Oakland founder, Mike Minium, tagged Jeremy Jones and Rob Barnum, who were working on setting up an affiliate in Walnut Creek. My friend, former partner, and original founder of Diablo CrossFit, Jeremy Jones, responded quickly. Jeremy and I traded emails and soon arranged a meeting at the first location of Diablo CrossFit: Jeremy’s backyard in Concord. Jeremy was a mechanical engineer, and an amateur MMA Fighter and Instructor. He had many years of experience in the fitness business. 

Jeremy & Rob had already chosen the name, and Jeremy posted a blog for Diablo. But, Diablo was not yet affiliated with CrossFit. At the time, Jeremy was working as a full-time engineer, and Rob was launching a movie production business (more on that later) and I was a Regional Manager for an investment management company. We ALL were passionate about CrossFit and simply wanted a place to do it and we wanted to share it with others. 

So, after some great conversations and back of the napkin planning, we agreed to share responsibilities and affiliate with CrossFit. And, almost 18 years to this day, Jeremy Jones signed the CrossFit affiliation agreement to make Diablo CrossFit legitimate.

JULY 4TH HOURS:  8AM – 12PM  – “1776”
Class Times: 8A, 9A, 10A, 11A

“1776”:  7-rounds starting every 4th minute (28min E4MOM):

  • 1 Rope Climbs
  • 7 Dumbbell Devil Press #35/50
  • 7 Box Jump Over
  • 6 Pistols

NEW  – STRONG PLUS CLASS!  Beginning THIS week, Diablo is replacing our Tue / Thu evening Strong Olympic Lifting class with “Strong+”.   Strong+ is a Olympic Lifting Training for competition! Any Diablo member can participate, but you’ll be asked to also register with USAW (USA Weightlifting) and commit to an official USAW Weightlifting Competition. Fortunately, Diablo CrossFit will be hosting our annual USAW event, the Fall Classic, on Saturday, October 26th! Coach Corey is taking the reigns as the Diablo Strong team manager and will be directing our Strong+ programming & class. 

TOTALLY UNOFFICIAL PRsAllDay CROSSFIT AFFILIATE PODCAST 

PROGRAMMING 
June Focus: 
1. Overhead Squats 2. Clean Complex    3. Skill: Muscle Up Progressions
CRAIG’S LIST:  
  • Washington Post: 16 Year Old Breaks 42 year old American High School Record in the 400m:  44.66! Sets his sights on Paris Olympics.
  • Research: Stop Back Pain – Go For A Walk. “Walking 3x a week ‘nearly halves’ recurrence of low back pain according to a recent study published in the Lancet.
  • NetFlix: Lance – a personal examination of the rise and fall of Lance Armstrong. This was hard to watch but I’m really glad I did. Yvonne and I lived in Austin, Texas at the same time as Lance during his epic run of Tour de France victories. He was an icon in Austin – and around the world. When his world collapsed due to revelations of doping, it was devastating news. Lance is a fierce competitor and an incredible athlete, in the same category as Tiger Woods, Michael Jordan, and Micheal Phelps – with a “win at all cost” attitude. Lance was particularly harsh toward his former teammates when the whole doping scandal was revealed – but now in his 50’s, he takes full responsibility for his actions and has many regrets. But, one thing I learned which left me sympathetic with Lance is that ALL of the elite cyclists were strongly encouraged to participate in doping programs at very early ages by a handful of Doctors who were influencing training protocols. Lance, and many others were indoctrinated into blood doping & EPO at very early ages in their careers. That sucks. And Lance’s legacy was ruined as a result.
Make it an awesome week!

Craig