Welcome to the Fall Edition of Cfdc's Frequently Asked Questions*!
Read below to see the answer to your frequently asked questions involving programs, training, and #more.
Cfdc INTRAMURAL OPEN
Question: "uh, what is this shit?"(ºº)
Answer: The open is the workout that is released every year thru crossfit.com.
It's the one time of the year that we perform a workout that we don't write ourselves. It's fun and relatively harmless, you can modify it just like you would modify any normal workout.
Question: "What are the rules for the intramural open?"
Answer: there aren't many.
BASICS - Just show up at any class time and perform a version of the workout & submit your score thru Sugarwod (make sure you put AM team or PM team in the notes)
BEYOND THAT - there are ways to earn extra points (like get a top 3 score, get the best-dressed award) and there may, from week to week, be extra ways to earn points for your team
ALSO - each Friday night, we'll have a special power hour where we get together and hang out. some people will do the workout at that time and others will just be there to be seen in non-workout clothes and heckle other exercisers (that's my plan at least)
Question: "How do you guys do the "Friday night lights/night of champions thingy" where everyone shows up?"
Answer: We'll run heats from about 4:40 until 6(ish) every Friday night. It will be first come first serve and you'll sign up for a heat time on the whiteboard when you get there. Once again there will be lots of folks that are just coming to hang out. Tell your significant other/roommate/animal companion that you 'have to' stop by the gym for this thing; "it's only for like 30 minutes" is usually a great way to get the hall pass
Question: "What the deal with the dressing up during the open workouts?"
Answer: We just think it's funny to workout in non-workout clothes. Each week there is a theme. Dress up for a chance to win 1000 EXTRA (okay, 3) points for your team by being ordained 'the best dressed':
WEEK 1 THEME - Micheal Jackson (billie jean or black & white michael? your call!!)
WEEK 2 THEME - Harry Potter (Expelliarmus!)
WEEK 3 THEME - 90's Hip-Hop/Grunge (we'll see what teen spirit REALLY smells like!)
WEEK 4 THEME - Halloween part II (please someone workout in a ghost costume!)
WEEK 5 THEME - Dress up as your favorite member/coach!
Question: "Hey can I do the workout at 7 PM on a Sunday, like someone meet me up at the gym, because I will be out of town visiting my Grandma but I'm only back here on Sunday and I have to fly out for work on?"( ¶¶)
Answer: No
Question: "no, but for real, I can't do it Friday. Is there another time that I can do it?
Answer: There is open gym on Sunday's from 1:30-3:00. That's an option. Unfortunately, because of our kid's program as well as personal coaching, we won't be able to accommodate any other times. And hey, if you miss, you miss - no
Question: "so what do the winners get?"
Answer: Party for the winning team when it's all over and fingers crossed that if the PM team loses, chad will let his hair grow for 3 months.
Cfdc KIDS!
Question: "My kid has soccer, ballet, and then there is tutoring, and we're going to #Aspen for Thanksgiving. We really can't commit to the 4 Saturdays in a month. Is there a way to just drop in?"(§§)
Answer: you can pay a drop-in ($30) instead of a membership but it will be more expensive than the membership after 3 weeks attendance ($79/month for kids membership). Maybe that's not a big deal to you, but just want to make you aware of that. Also, you can't just show up for the kids class - you'll have to preregister so we have enough equipment, snacks and educational material
Question: "can I workout while my kids are in the kids program?"
Answer: if you are a member at Cfdc you can!
Question: "On Saturdays, I usually do the group class and then go into the small room after class and roll out and stretch my piriformis and as well as do some flossing of my internal pudendal nerve. Are you saying that the small room is now reserved for kids from 9-11 on Saturdays?"(∞∞)
Answer: Correct
Cfdc PEAK
Question: "Can I just do Peak and not Crossfit?"
Answer: sure - if those class times work (m-th @ 9:30 + t,th @ 6 am), go for it.
Question: "Are you guys going to offer other class times? like Friday morning? like in the PM sometime?"
Answer: our plan is to continue to expand the program to those EXACT (wow) class times but only when our current class times are near to capacity. Be patient, we want the same thing that you do!
Question: "Why do the workouts repeat themselves?"
Answer: if you look closely they are not actually the same. They are similar but there are subtle differences in the form of progression. The reps, loads, tempo, and movements evolve from week to week so you can actually see improvement and practice more often. Outside of "GPP" programs (that's what CrossFit is known for - the high variation), this is a great way to program and it's how I was originally taught in strength and conditioning back in the early 2000s
Question: "What's the big difference again between the two?"
Answer: there are some movements that you'll see in peak that don't work great for CrossFit (single arm/leg, moves that don't move large loads long distances like some of the stability and core work we do), lots of days we are incorporating tempo work and isometrics, and generally it's a different pace than the Crossfit programming we write"
Question: "Is there something wrong with doing Crossfit only? Why would you
incorporate something like this?"
Answer: no way, they are both great. Variety is a good answer. Also, balance is a nice word to use. In a perfect world, you would be paying close attention to your sleep and recovery as well as be intimately attached to what you are training for (aka your priority in life) and the answers to those questions could dictate a really specific response to how often you are going high intensity/anaerobic/crossfit (¢¢) and how often you are going at a moderate intensity/aerobic/peak.
Cfdc's RAMP-UP
Question: "you guys don't let people try a workout first? I have money and I will pay you. Is my money not good enough for you?" (££)
Answer: Thank you so much for your excitement to train but we actually need to see if you are a good fit for the gym and that starts with a sit-down consultation. It's free and actually explains what you are getting as a consumer. Being thrown into a group class doesn't do that, for us at least.
Question: "how do I know if I'll like it if I don't try it first?"
Answer: Well we could give you lots of examples where trial periods don't exist (physicians, attorneys, plumbers, carpenters, etc), or we could tell you that the group that you're curious about has been around longer than any group training program in Dallas, but we'll say this: we're so confident in our coaching and the experience that you'll have, that at any point in this first month you aren't vibing it, we'll give you your money back 100%(¡¡)
Question: "I'm sure this is great for beginners, but I'm a level 5 certified CrossFit wizard(`™™) and coached at Crossfit Nihilist for two years and I can do a pistol. I don't have to go through the Ramp-up right? I can just hop in?"
Answer: the ramp-up is a three week period where we take exactly what YOU need and, more importantly, use these individual sessions as a way to develop a coaching relationship with you. We use this relationship to continue to take care of you in class and outside of class. Regardless of your experience and acumen, we don't skip this step for anyone because we want to have a relationship with everyone.
Training/Healthy Living...in general
Question: "How much is, like, sleeping and eating right a part of the overall equation of being healthy? Can't I just train extra hard and that gives me a little hedge or pass for some other indulgences in my life?"
Answer: You might be surprised by my answer, but it really depends. I'm convinced it depends on how old you are, maybe a dash of genetics, and how stress plays a factor in your life. When you are in your 20's there's a chance that might work: train really hard, eat like 70-ish%, and recover on sunday with netflix all afternoon after a night of binge-drinking and eating 'oily' food. There comes a point, I don't know when that point is for you, but at some point it will arrive, where you have to work MUCH harder and that increased attention doesn't come thru increased intensity but thru factors such as sleep and nourishment with high-quality food choices at the right quantities to support your activity level but not excess body fat. THUS, the smarter of us humans will "put the hay in the barn" before it's actually winter(¥¥)
Question: "Are bananas bad for you?"
Answer: Uh, no. Further, my guess is that bananas are not THE decision in your life that you need to obsess about. It's the complex carbohydrates and the industrial oils that seem to be overconsumed (also alcohol) be western society at large. Also eating while watching TV(ˆˆˆ)
Question: "That keto diet is hottttt right now. Should I do intermittent fasting and then only eat 10 net grams of carbs?"
Answer: eating lower carbohydrates than the typical western diet and adhering to periods of fast are both good ideas. It's impossible to answer that question without more information. I don't know what your current nutrition looks like. For example, if you are eating 400 grams of carbohydrates a day it's probably a terrible idea. The best advice I can give you is to make really small changes in the habits that you form and do this long term. That won't feel like a die(t) and is sustainable. Going from 0-100 (keto and IF) probably isn't something that is sustainable, but once again, context is necessary here.
MORE QUESTIONS?
Let us know @cfdallascentral or via email at Dallascentralcontact@gmail.com !
References
* - These answers are meant to educate and, hopefully, entertain. The responses reflect our opinions and based on our experience only
ºº - this was, verbatim, the way this question was asked
¶¶ - also a real question
§§ - yep, you guessed it, a real question
∞∞ - not a real question but close. also your "internal pudendal nerve" is basically your butthole, so that's funny.
¢¢ - I'm well aware that this is a simplification of the bioenergetics that the metabolism uses to produce and consume adenosine triphosphate (ATP). We'll make a general assumption that fast glycolysis is happening more often in 'workouts for time' and therefore we'll make a broad and sweeping generalization that high intensity would be lumped together with that categorization
££ - yep, real question. Turns out when you've taken a pre-workout supplement and assume you are working out and you can't, you get pretty upset about it!
(¡¡) - for real!
™™ - I actually am a crossfit level 4 coach, on level 1&2 seminar staff for a decade and have been doing crossfit for 15 years. I can tell you that there are still things I have a coach for and am working on. So if I need these sessions and I actually have more experience than you, then do you really think I'm going to buy why you're above this?
¥¥ - not sure if that's the right analogy, but basically make good choices before your life depends on it - that's a good rule
ˆˆˆ- that's just my hypothesis, but when you are not paying attention to what you are eating (i.e. you are watching tv instead) my guess is we consume MUCH MUCH MORE food than we normally would if we were just, you know, only eating.