Category: Uncategorized

Hey everyone!  Here’s a quick tip on a fast breakfast that is many times one of my handful of go-to’s for when I have to be up early and don’t want to cook anything.  It’s very easy and can be modified to fit whatever your macronutrient ratios/caloric intakes should look like!

 

1 cup (or half of the container if you buy the 17.6oz containers) of full-fat Fage Greek Yogurt (11g fat, 9g carbs, 20g protein)

~1 scoop of protein powder (or about 20g worth–or more, depending–of whey protein)

-1 bag of frozen mixed fruit (3 servings @ 16g carbs/serving = 48g carbs)

 

Grand total:  11g fat, 57g carbs, 40g protein

 

Preparation:  I take the frozen fruit bag out of the freezer and set it on the counter the night before.  Then I simply scoop it all into a container and go!  It’s super simple, requires almost zero prep, and it’s a hearty breakfast that holds me over for a few hours (thanks to the dietary fat), starts me off with a good amount of protein, and gives me a fair amount of carbs to use in my morning training session.

 

Again, this is all able to be individualized, so make this fit YOUR ideal food profile.  I wanted to offer this selection because I think there’s no good excuse for having a crappy breakfast simply because of time constraints; the prep time for this is barely more than opening up a wrapper on some junk bar you’d otherwise have, so take the extra 30 seconds to put this together and feel the difference between a great start to your day versus a poor one.

 

I hope that helps!  If anyone else has any other great and balanced meal or snack ideas, send them to me and I’ll toss them up for everyone to see!

 

RLTW <1>

 

–Coach Phil

It’s been a great year here at CFD through 2016, and I’m wanting to take a moment to reflect on our fifth year together serving the Dubuque and surrounding communities in pursuing fitness goals. We have added some new coaches to the CFD coaching staff, expanded our knowledge base, improved and expanded services, grown our member base, and overall continued to excel in quality and expertise in the strength and conditioning industry. I am proud of how far we have grown together and look forward to another successful year!

For many of us, this time of the year can be really hectic with inclement weather, family coming and going, holidays, and crazy schedules. Training tends to take a back seat for the masses, yet there are many of you still sticking it out even when the commitments get tough. For that, I thank you and applaud your dedication as you continue to stay the course. If you feel as though you’ve faltered, don’t stress! This is a great time to regroup and get after it again once you’re on the other end of holidays and all the craziness that goes along with this time of the year. We will be ready to get back after it whenever you are!

As far as our holiday schedule goes here at CFD, there are no changes to the schedule since both Christmas and New Years fall on a weekend, so we look forward to business as usual these next couple weeks. If you haven’t saved the date and/or bought a ticket yet, the 5-year CFD anniversary party is scheduled on Friday, January 20th. A link to the Facebook page and then a link to purchase tickets can be found by following this link. I hope to see you all there!

To my CFD friends and family, have a happy and safe holiday season and new year!

RLTW

-Coach Phil

Check out this recipe that I use to prep my meals for lunch!  Inspired by my brother Paul, this is a simple chicken disk that you can either throw in the oven or put in a crock pot and it turns out awesome every time!

1 package of frozen chicken breasts or thighs (I prefer thighs)

Taco seasoning to taste (I just lightly cover the top of the chicken)

Salsa to taste (again, just toss it on top).  You can even add in some cayenne or some hot sauce if you want to spice it up a bit more

That’s it!  You either put it in your crock pot for about 4-6 hours or else set your oven for 350 degrees for about 2 hours or so.  If I’m putting it in the oven, I set my kitchen timer to count down from 99 minutes, then when that goes off, I start my rice cooker.  When my rice is done, so is my chicken–portion to the needs of the individual and put away!

This is a really great way to prep lunches for a few days for very little cost.  No need to thaw, there’s almost zero prep, and it takes very little time out of your day.  There’s really no excuse to NOT plan ahead with your meals, and this is a pretty foolproof way to make that happen…enjoy!

–Coach Phil

A benchmark that comes up frequently as a goal here at CFD is getting pull-ups, and there are always questions flying around about how to go about getting them. I’ll give you guys a breakdown on my thoughts of how to progress someone safely and effectively to getting pull-ups.

First of all, I would argue that you have to break it down into two pieces: Absolute pulling strength and body composition. You can get someone to pullups by either 1: increasing the former, 2: improving the latter, or 3: both. I’m going to address body composition first, then we’ll get into improving strength

Body composition

What are the best exercises to losing fat? Any guesses? A lot of people say cardio, more people are starting to learn that weight training improves body composition, some say anaerobic activity does…they’re all right, in a way….and wrong. You want to know why? Because the absolute BEST exercise for losing body fat, HANDS DOWN, is Fork Raises. An appropriate modification is the Spoon Raise.

Seriously though, I mean fixing your food profile! I didn’t say eat less, and I didn’t say eat more—food profiles are individualized and SOME people need to eat MORE food to put their bodies in a state where their bodies can AFFORD to lose FAT. Some people do simply need to eat less food—they overfeed. There is not a single prescription that works for everyone though, and there is a process to figuring out what works for YOU.

To give you an example of how it can make sense to have someone who is not eating ENOUGH food to lose weight, I’m going to give you an example of someone:

Person A, a female, has 30 pounds of excess fat around her midsection. Person A also eats very little food (let’s say 1100 calories/day for an adult female). Fat is a storage form of fuel, and Person A’s body, being malnourished and regularly underfed, is going to want to hang on to those fat stores, because she is regularly underfed and that’s what her body is going to want to do to survive—hold on to that precious storage. Person A will not be able to hold onto tissue that is more metabolically expensive like muscle, because she simply doesn’t eat enough food to ‘pay the rent’ for something that is expensive to stick around. She underfeeds, her body regularly catabolizes muscle for energy because it’s expensive stuff to keep around and is reluctant to burn through those precious fuel (fat) storages because, well, would you if you were starving and weren’t sure when you’d be rescued? Maybe a weird analogy, but hopefully it’s a new way of looking at why starving yourself isn’t as obvious a solution to a problem like stored fat that doesn’t seem to want to go away…you’re training your body to KEEP it, not use it!

I’m getting a little sidetracked here, but my point is to demonstrate that typically a huge limiter to getting pull-ups is fixing body composition, and sometimes, without guidance, people can do more harm than good by ‘dieting.’ There are plenty of examples of people who fit the description of ‘Person A’ (male and female), and who constantly think that the solution is to further starve oneself, when in fact the approach may be much different than that! Further discussion into nutritional specifics should be left to another blog—I’ll get back on topic with pull-ups!

Absolute strength

Yes, absolute strength—the way to get better at pulling is to get better at pulling, not by strapping bands on yourself and learning to violently throw your hips. It is my strong opinion as a strength and conditioning coach having worked with the general population for years that allowing dynamic kipping movements before a client has the pre-requisite strength to do a movement strict is a recipe for disaster. We are simply going to talk upper body pulling strength protocol here—any of these movements are basically fair game to start improving upper body pulling strength. Granted, just like food, exercise selection can be largely individualized. One person may need to develop awareness and strength in the back and lats more whereas one person may need to develop the ability to be stronger when flexing at the elbow (biceps). Pulling involves the entire body!

Ring rows: when done right, ring rows are a fantastic tool to safely work upper body pulling strength. Granted, a ring row happens along the saggital plane whereas a pull-up occurs along the frontal plane, but you’re still pulling—utilizing lats and biceps to pull the body towards an END range of motion (don’t cheat yourself out of those last couple inches!). Keep your cheeks squeezed and maintain a position of global extension in the entire body so as to isolate the upper body pulling muscles; don’t allow yourself to throw the hips or ‘swing’ through the movement, using momentum to initiate or finish the movement. Get tight, and PULL!

Bar and dumbbell rows: So many variations here, but just like the ring row along the saggital plane, you can pronate, supinate, single-arm, double-arm, snatch grip, prone, incline, etc… Again, stay tight, don’t use momentum, and PULL!

Lat pull downs: The great thing about pulleys is that they offer resistance that is even throughout a range of motion (unlike bands). It is for this reason I think they are superior. Seated, kneeling, single- and double-arm.

Curls: bicep curls, hammer curls, preacher curls, pronated/supinated/neutral grip, etc…Curls for the girls! Biggest thing here is making sure that the bicep is doing the work—I see a lot of people who need to develop the biceps and when given curls they pick a weight that’s too heavy and ‘swing’ the weight up. If in doubt, stabilize that elbow on something and make that bicep work!

Scap and pulling accessory pieces: Powell raises, DB external rotations, Trap 3 raises, bent-over reverse flies, band pull-aparts, and scap pullups are all great tools to strengthen the shoulders, stabilizer muscles, teach initiation with the back, etc.

Tempo work: Tempo can be applied to virtually every single movement above, and this is where you can really make some progress. Whether it’s a tempo pull-up (31A3 tempo = assist up, chin over bar hold for 3, eccentric/negative for 3, 1 sec hang, repeat), or any of the other movements done at a tempo, but manipulating time under tension (TUT) you can really start to focus on weak areas of your pull. Is your weakest part the very first pull, but if you have assistance through that can you finish the rep? Can you only get about 3” from the bar and get stuck? Get assistance through the tough spot, then control the eccentric as slowly as you can back through it. Lots of options here, and again, it can be very individualized.

So there you have it—those are my thoughts on how to deal with tackling pull-ups. It’s not very complicated, it’s a matter of both improving your absolute pulling strength as well as improving body composition (if that is hindering you). Fixing your food profile and regularly working on pulling movements are conceptually easy, but the journey to achieve your first pull-up may take years. Stay the course and have a plan—you’ll get there!

RLTW <1>

—Coach Phil

---

Not a member? Sign up for an Intro Class.
RSVP

It was recently asked of me my thoughts on eating while traveling and around holidays.  I think it’s a great idea to touch on some of the obstacles here and some potential fixes to things many people commonly have troubles with.

Here are my thoughts:

• Have a plan.  If you go into a day without a plan, you’re setting yourself up for failure.  This goes for every single day, not just around traveling or the holidays.  What’s your breakfast going to be?  How well does that satiate you until your next meal, or do you have a training session coming up after this meal—if so, how long until then and are you fueling for the work?  Do you prep your lunches ahead of time, and if not, WHY NOT?  Do you have a plan for dinner when you get home?  Failure to plan is planning to fail—this couldn’t be more true when it comes to your fueling protocol.
• Even more important than having a plan is EXECUTING the plan!  It’s easy to make excuses about how it ‘didn’t work’ to stick to your plan, but again, I would argue that virtually every time that happens it’s due to a failure to make it work.  Don’t use the common excuses that you decided to go out to eat with co-workers, there was donuts in the break room, or whatever other reason you might have to fall off your plan.  I’ve had last minute lunch plans come up when I’ve already packed a meal, so I ate my pre-made lunch and met my friend(s) out and had a coffee.  If you hang out or work with people who will give you a hard time for executing a plan, that can be a topic for another discussion, but I would suggest making a stand or finding new friends!

Easy right?  Well, we’re all human and sometimes things just simply don’t go to plan.  The point I want to make first and foremost is to try to have and execute a plan whenever possible.  If you stick to a plan 90+% of the time, I think you can make an argument that you have a little bit of room for slippage when a special event or exception comes up.  If, however, you rarely plan your meals, you rarely have an idea of what your food profile really looks like, and you have a very undisciplined, loose approach to eating and fueling your body, your concern needs to be creating and executing that plan 365 days of the year rather than asking about what ‘food hacks’ can be bestowed to you around the holidays.

So, let’s say you stick to a good plan most of the time and you’re wanting to do the least amount of harm while out with friends or around the holidays.  Here are some suggestions you might want to try that I like to use—granted, this is all user-specific, but for the most part I find these approaches to be helpful:

• Eat your protein first.  The order that you eat your macronutrients can drastically affect how much you can eat and what your ratios will look like when you’re full.  Whether it’s cookies and snacks that are available before the main meal at your family’s holiday gathering or chips and appetizers at a restaurant, filling up on stuff like that usually means you didn’t leave as much room for your healthier ‘mean meal.’  Fill up on meat as much as possible and there’s a good chance you’re not going to be able to overdo the other stuff (or at least not nearly as bad!)
• To take number 1 a step further, you can even preface your meal with a protein shake.  If you’re like me, when met with a pizza and an empty stomach, I can do some serious damage.  However, if I put down, say, 30-40g of protein in a shake before I even start, I end up eating less pizza and my overall macronutrient ratio isn’t AS BAD.  I think a common approach is that when people know something isn’t good for them, they go off the deep end and have a ton of it.  Having less of a bad thing isn’t as bad as having more of a bad thing—everything you eat has an impact on your body, so ‘trick’ yourself into having less of it.  Is it perfect?  No way!  But a 40g protein shake and 2 pieces of pizza isn’t nearly as bad as eating 3/4 of the pizza.
• Don’t do some excessive fast prior to eating a big holiday dinner because you’re trying to ‘save up’ caloric intake.  So many people I know don’t even eat breakfast before a thanksgiving meal at 2pm because they want to be able to really mow down on some food.  Just…..don’t.

Again, these pointers are not a free pass to eat bullshit and act like you got the OK from your coach to do so.  Everything you put in your body is going to have an effect on it, and every choice has consequences.  Nobody is expected to eat 100% clean all the time, but a MAJORITY of your eating habits need to be more or less dialed in and with a plan and purpose if you’re going to justify your deviations from that plan.  Your food profile and training regimen largely depend on one another in order for you to find success, so above all, make sure you are viewing food as fuel—because it is!

I hope those pointers help—I’m sure a lot of more regimented, dialed-in athletes and coaches will have a few eye rolls with this one, but I’m going into this with the assumption that you otherwise have a handle on a solid plan with your food and can afford some slack in your diet from time to time.  This is an attempt to offer pointers that have less of a negative impact around times of deviation from the plan.  First and foremost, though, you have to have a plan in place that you regularly execute.

Keep up the great work everyone!

RLTW <1>

—Coach Phil

---

Not a member? Sign up for an Intro Class.
RSVP

 

How long have you been a member at CFD, and what made you want to get started?

I have been a member of Crossfit for a little over a year. I went to the intro class because a friend of mine was going and didn’t want to go alone. I wasn’t thinking that I would end up joining and loving it. Honestly, I didn’t love it right away; the first couple of months were very challenging. There were days when I got done with a class wondering if it was for me or not. I have always been good at things right away and never have had to work as hard as I did here. I think that is what I like most about Crossfit; it’s always challenging no matter what level you are at.

What changes have you seen in yourself since your very first day?

I have seen quite a few changes in myself since I started at CrossFit Dubuque. Besides the obvious things like being able to lift more and able to do things I was never able to do before, I have gained a sense of confidence that I didn’t have before. The sense of accomplishment that I have gained from CrossFit has carried over into other areas of my life.

What did you do for fitness prior to CFD, and what do you like most about CrossFit?

Before Crossfit, I was doing classes at my local gym. It was mostly strength training and cardio. I had been working out there for a couple of years, and was starting to get bored. I like that the workouts at Crossfit are always different, and the members are some of the best people I have ever worked out with. They encourage me to push myself and they sometimes believe in me more than I do in myself.

What type(s) of workouts are your favorite?

My favorite types of workouts are ones with squats and pull-ups. I like the workouts that have so many reps or rounds to do before you’re done. That means I’m in control of ending the pain.

What type(s) of workouts do you least like to see come up?

My least favorite workouts would have to be anything that involves rowing, wall balls, and burpees. Which happens to be a lot of workouts.

What are you goals going forward?

Looking forward I would like to work on my nutrition. I lack a little self-control around sweets.

What advice do you have for someone just starting out at CFD?

What I would say to someone starting out is don’t be too hard on yourself. I always had to remind myself when I started that the people in the classes have been doing this a long time, and have worked really hard to get where they are. Don’t compare yourself with others. Look to them to inspire you instead.

I would like to thank the coaches for the nomination and for all of their support in helping me to become a better athlete.

---

Not a member? Sign up for an Intro Class.
RSVP

Hey everyone, I wanted to throw together a quick little compilation of some supplement information for you all—I hope you find it all useful!  I’m not going to cover every single thing I sell here, but just a few that I think deserve a mention.  If you have any other questions about anything specific, reach out and let me know!

Vitamin D

Especially now that the weather is changing and daylight is a lot more limited than it used to be, it’s important to get in your Vitamin D.  The best source is from the sun, but if you’re stuck inside all day and you’re like most of us who go to work when it’s dark and get home when it’s dark, you’re very likely missing out on this very important vitamin.  During the summer months, I don’t expect to sell much D3, but once it starts to get darker earlier, this is the time of the year to supplement what you’re missing out on getting naturally!  Vitamin D is responsible for keeping your bones strong, for higher muscle function, and prevention of many diseases, including cancer.  Did I mention most of us are deficient as hell, especially during the winter months???

Omega 3 fatty acids

Without going too much into it, our modern diets are a lot more inflammatory in nature than they used to be—with our meat sources given cheap feed and a lot of processed grains in our diets, the ratio between Omega 6:3 used to be about 2:1 and is now estimated to be around 15:1.  Of course the best course of action is to really pay attention to the quality of your foods (grass fed beef, wild caught salmon, etc), but boosting your Omega 3 intake is another way to supplement (notice I didn’t say fix) those essential fatty acids.  Keep in mind, not all fish oils are created equal, and you tend to get what you pay for—if you’re buying cheap fish oils at the store, you’re very likely getting what you pay for…a crappy product!

ZMA

Zinc Magnesium is a great supplement that help in muscle synthesis (among other benefits), plus not to mention that I hear from a lot of users that it helps you sleep well (I can personally attest to that!).  As a relatively inexpensive supplement, it’s a great bang-for-your-buck mineral to take.

Creatine

Speaking of bang-for-your-buck, creatine takes the cake hands down.  Not just for the gym-goers, as the most known benefits include increased lean mass, enhanced muscular performance, etc…but it’s even shown in the elderly to help with improved cognitive function.  Not only all of that, but it’s CHEAP and safe!  If you’re going to take only one supplement, it should be creatine.

Glutamine

Glutamine is an amino acid that has shown to help gut function and your immune system.  With as much new information that has been coming out about the relationship between the gut and your brain, we’re going to see in the next few years how imperative it is to have a healthy gut and how that will directly affect resiliency, bioavailability of foods, performance, and even cognitive and neurological health.

I’ll end by speaking a bit on post workout fueling.  It would be best for me (as far as selling supplements goes) if I pushed post-workout supplements on everyone who walked through the door.  However, I need to say a few points about it:  In my opinion and based on my experience and education, I think the best thing that a recreational gym-goer can do post workout is eat a good meal.  This is especially true if you are working on improving body composition (fat loss).  Supplements are just that—they are there to help supplement your food profile, whereas the food profile is going to be the MOST responsible for your progress towards your fitness, health, and body composition goals.  All of the products in the world won’t fix poor food choices.  If you really want progress, start paying attention to what you’re putting in your body every single day (your FOOD), and reach out for guidance.  I say this because I’m not a product pusher wanting to make a buck selling someone something they don’t need—I say it because I ultimately want you to succeed, and the answers are found in your food and lifestyle choices far more often than they are in your supplements!

To clarify, recommendations are largely individualized, though you probably can’t go wrong with supplementing with some extra protein—most people could use more of that macronutrient upon examination of a lot of food profiles!  But, just because an elite level athlete pounds a bunch of post workout sugars doesn’t mean that’s an appropriate prescription for the general population.  Know what and why you’re doing what you’re doing, and ask guidance as needed—that’s what we’re here for!

Keep up the hard work, everyone!

>RLTW <1>

—Coach Phil

The hoodies are in!  If you pre-ordered a hoodie, they are ready for pickup today anytime after about 10:15—cost is $45 each due at the time of pickup.  If you missed your chance at getting one, reach out to me and I can put in another smaller order after Thanksgiving, so it’s not too late!

Also, save the date for Friday, January 20th.  We will be celebrating 5 years of business and I couldn’t be more excited to go into our 6th year of working with such an amazing community.  Stay tuned for an event page as well as ticket sales—Cost will be between $15-20/head for dinner and great company at the Best Western.  It’s going to be a fun evening!

That’s all for now—have a great Thanksgiving with your family, stay safe, and I will see you all soon!

RLTW <1>

-Coach Phil

Hey all, I thought I’d share a quick announcement and some client blog ideas with you all!

First of all, Dr. Dan is hosting an 8:30am Classic Test Run session limited up to the first 25 people who RSVP.  This time slot will be on Thanksgiving Day (Thursday, Nov 24).  He will be running through some workout ideas that you will see again for the 2017 Classic competition here at CFD!  (Please accept my apologies for the confusion if you signed up prior to this post—it was originally listed on the schedule as 9:30 by mistake!)

I also had a couple suggestions on blog topics, so I thought I’d address one here briefly as I think it could be useful with the upcoming holiday seasons.

Q:  What are some good workout suggestions to do while you’re traveling or otherwise away from your regular gym?

A:  This is tough and very individualized, but in general you can go a couple different ways with this.  First of all, what has your training looked like up until this point?  Are you in need of simply taking some time off, because sometimes the right Rx is to simply take it easy and give your body a chance to recover.  At least consider if this is a good option for you!

Otherwise, if you’re trying to stay active and get as appropriate a workout in as you can, there’s a few ways you can think about it and break things down.  First of all, it’s difficult to do any sort of upper body pulling without any equipment available.  Pair that with the fact that most people have some muscular imbalances regarding upper body pushing vs pulling, and you can be working on a strength while neglecting something that is already weak when you start to have limited equipment.  I think that’s what ultimately got me interested in things like TRX training systems, because it allowed you to get some really solid upper body pulling stuff in when you have very limited equipment availability (we would strap them to T-walls in Baghdad and work out that way if we had to!).

With that said, try to balance out your pulling, pushing, squatting, and bending.  If you have zero equipment, it can be tough to pull (as I mentioned above), but with minimal equipment, there’s no excuse to not balance your strength pieces as best you can.  If you’re limited to a hotel gym with a few sparse dumbbells, you can get in what you need to get in at the bare minimum.  It may not be as sexy as you like, but it’s all about working with what you got.

Squatting:  goblet squats, split squats, rear foot elevated split squats, lateral squats, lunges, split squat jumps, DB hang cleans, thrusters, etc etc….

Bending:  good mornings, RDLs, single leg RDLs, swings, power cleans/snatches, etc…

Pushing:  standing press, seated press, push press, pushups, bench presses, tricep extension, arnold presses, even cuban presses for some rotational work, etc..

Pulling:  Pullups f a pull-up bar is available, otherwise with DB or BB: single/double arm bent-over row, play with pronation/supination, reverse DB flies, prone rows, cable rows, bicep curls, face pulls, and don’t forget all the fantastic scap work like powell raises, trap 3 raises, external rotations, etc.

Once you realize that your movement selection isn’t as limited as you may have originally thought, you can start to get creative about how you piece things together.  With minimal equipment, you can still have a lot of variety in what and how your workouts look and feel.  Always take a step back and ask yourself if what you’re doing is balanced and what is best for you though—people have a tendency to hide from their weaknesses, which is ultimately why it’s best to have a coach!  Of course, the best thing for you to do is to be on a program that accounts for your travels and your individual needs and schedule.

I hope that helps—have a great Thanksgiving week, stay safe, and I will see you all soon!

RLTW <1>

—Coach Phil

Hey everyone, here’s a reminder of our holiday schedule (I posted this weeks ago, but I think it’s been lost in the mix since then!)

Wednesday, 11/23 we will not be hosting any class after 1pm (no 4, 5:30, or 6:30pm).  All classes up to and including the 1pm class will be unaffected.

Thursday, 11/24 there will be no classes at all that day so that we can all spend time with our families during Thanksgiving.

Friday, 11/25 will be a 9:30 and 1pm class ONLY; there will be no 5:15am, 6:30am, 4pm, 5:30pm, or 6:30pm classes that day.

Let me know if anyone has any question moving forward–see you all soon!