[VIDEO] Four Years of Frustration

One of my biggest fears with this blog is to have my impact become diluted. The day I dread is the day that I say, “Listen up!” and you all are numb to it. This is one of those times that I need your attention.

I mean it when I say, “Listen up!”

Whether you’re a man or a woman, and regardless as to whether you have trouble with the following particular movements or not, I want you all to watch this video. It illustrates a journey that we all can relate to so well. Most videos on YouTube are highlight reels that convieniently exclude the work behind the scenes. This one does not. This video is four years of a regular girl’s God honest effort, dedication, and downright failure.

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All of your frustration, the F-bombs, and tears.. All of that is part of the journey. No, I’m not letting you off the hook and telling you not to care and to welcome failure with open arms. I’m telling you it’s normal. This is hard. And, if you want it,  it will test your patience.

Logan Gelbrich

A gym of characters..

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Wednesday’s Workout:

3 rounds for time of:
30 Squats
15 Hang Power Cleans (95/65)
5 Burpee Broad Jumps

Just a Blip on the Fitness Radar Screen

Macro and micro points of view are critical in their own right. Being able to toggle from macro and micro points of view is, by nature, known as scope. Scope then gives us perspective. I’d like to argue that our passion and lifestyle influence, though powerful, can give us blinders.  

Big Ben – Macro beauty!

An engineer who’s fully engaged on repairing the nuts and bolts of a gear mechanism in the bowls of London’s Palace of Westminster clock tower, known as Big Ben, has the perfect micro perspective. His point of view has respect, admiration, and understanding of the details of the most intricate of mechanisms of the structure. This view, however, is nearly interchangeable with that of any other piece of machinery. He could be looking under the hood of a car for all intents and purposes. His view of a loose bolt and rusty lever lack a great deal of scope considering his location.

Any of the countless tourists on the street down below, however, have the ideal macro perspective. They even take out their cameras to take photos of the magnificent entity that is Big Ben. The building is iconic and remarkable. To them it seems larger than life. For them, this perspective is important, especially to do such a historic landmark justice. Ask these observers about the loose bolt and rusty lever deep inside the clock face and they will respond with, “What bolt? What lever?”

You see a true understanding of Big Ben would share both a macro and a micro appreciation. I’d argue that as folks come and go in our fitness school, that a similar scope is critical.

Big Ben – Micro Perspective

For example, we ought to continue to celebrate someone’s incredible three months of transformation and improvement. There’s no doubt about that. Keep in mind, however, that life is much more than a three month trend. Three months for a 50 year old man or woman is 2% of his/her life. While we bury our noses in the work and commitment to life changing habits, I’d encourage enough macro perspective to see that this is a marathon.

Three months of fitness is just a blip on the radar screen over 5, 10, 20, or 40 years. Can you focus and devote yourself powerfully in the moment and have enough scope to see that it could all mean nothing just as quick?

A macro view is important. Furthermore, your ability to show up at a sustainable rate is critical. Look at your habits over decades. Evaluate your macro nutritional habits over a lifespan. You may just take more days off and eat a little more dark chocolate that way, especially if it means being in for the long haul.

See you at the top!

Lindsey takes on Crush Cancer (Culver CIty, CA)

 

Logan Gelbrich

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Complete the following for time:
100 Squats
50 KB Snatches (53/35)
100 Walking Lunges
** Every minute on the minute perform 5 burpees

 

 

Covering Ground with an Unreachable Standard

At Functional Fitness on the Bluffs, no one walks away with an A+.. ever.  No one. Even when Danny or I take class, the coach will make some observation from which we are to consider and improve upon. Our students then, even the advanced ones, are met with constant critique and homework to improve upon.

I’ll never forget an instance over a year ago when Danny was coaching a class I took with a ton of body weight squats. He was on me to stand all the way up on each rep, and without hesitation I complied without a challenge of his authority. It was Melanie’s second class, and we both noticed her face. She was amazed that my “good” wasn’t good enough. Danny wanted my best. He wanted the standard. And, that’s what I was held to.

If you come here each day as a coachable student, you’ll walk away with a wealth of information. If you’re just looking for a place to get a tough workout in, you be leaving much of the value that we provide on the table. The good news is that this never goes away. General Physical Preparedness (GPP) is something that doesn’t get mastered. There’s too much to learn and too much left in the tank for any one of us to think we’re done getting feedback and critique. 

Bluffs tee on the Joe Rogan show? Meh. Presidential Debate? No we’re talking..

The same is true for FFOTB as an entity. This program will constantly evolve to attempt be perfect, all the while we’ll fail and get better nonetheless. It will do so on purpose, too. We are racking our brains daily to create the best possible program to grow fitness. So, in the same way that our students will never master fitness, our school will never be complete. I guarantee there will be remarkable improvement to enjoy along the way.

That being said, don’t let seemingly unreachable expectations discourage you. Rather, embrace the chase and use it as fuel to drive you. You’ll be amazed at what ground you can cover when your “good” isn’t good enough.

 

Logan Gelbrich

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Monday’s Workout:

AMRAP 12
1,2,3,4,5…
Hang Power Snatch (95/65)
Burpees

 

 

 

FFOTB Presents: The VITALS Challenge

Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, it’s that time. FFOTB is proud to announce our next community challenge. The VITALS Challenge will set new precedent again in the world of fitness competitions. This challenge is a 6 week quest to improve in three benchmark efforts across three distinct skill sets, thus the namesake. These are your “vital signs” for gymnastics, running, and weightlifting.

Who is this for? Anyone and everyone! Challengers in the past have ranged from 18-60 years old with all different fitness backgrounds, even friends and family are welcome. Note that given that this is based on improvement, the least experienced athletes have the most to gain. Join us to see how much YOU can improve your “vitals” in 6 weeks.

The events? The gymnastics portion will consist of a max duration L-sit. The running portion will be represented with a one mile time trial. And, the weightlifting portion will consist of a one rep max clean.

The cost? Challengers will ante up $30 to participate. This includes your finals day workout fee and puts your name in the hat to walk away a winner.

The winners? The cash grand prize will go out to the most improve man and the most improved woman across all three efforts.  There will also be cash up for grabs for the longest L-sit hold. Another separate cash prize will go to the fastest mile, and finally one winner will take home some dough for the heaviest clean.

When’s it go down? Prelims are Monday October 1st and the finals are on Saturday November 10th. Participants need not be present on either day. Make ups can be arranged within the time frame of the challenge.

Whether you’ve got a glaring strength, a glaring weakness in your fitness, or both, this is the perfect event to get a pulse on your fitness and round out your skill set. Trust me, there’s nothing like turning up the burners for yourself and giving your training some serious context and motivation. Let’s do this, boys and girls!

Logan Gelbrich

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Wednesday’s Workout:

Complete the following for time:

4 rounds:
9 Deadlifts (135/95)
6 Hang Squat Cleans
3 Push Press

Then:
Beach Run