Jan 2012 Fundamental grads !!

Yeah you could be built like this - if you show up and do the work

If you decide that Top Gun CrossFit is for you, and we think you will, then your next step is to join our fundamentals classes.

Our next fundamentals class begins Monday January 30.  This is a 2 week course.  The 6 fundamentals classes are held Monday and Wednesday @ 730 PM and Saturdays @ 10 AM.  Each class lasts for about an hour.

THE FUNDAMENTAL CLASSES FOR FEBRUARY ARE FILLING UP FAST !!!  WE HAVE JUST A FEW SPOTS LEFT.  CALL OR EMAIL TODAY TO RESERVE YOUR SPOT.

Once you complete your fundamental classes, you’ll have the option to join for 3x week or unlimited.  This is a 3 month commitment that we require of our new members.  We believe 3 months is a fair time to give it a try – we think you’ll stick with us

We will teach you proper form for the deadlift, squats, presses, cleans and snatches and put you through a quick workout.

If you have any questions, please contact us.

Steve Loeding

www.topguncrossfit.com

612-747 7137

Sharing and Caring Hands provides shelter for families in need – not just during the holidays but year round.

I realize it’s kinda late but I’ll need to drop off the items on Dec 24th, so we have 5 days to do this – so, let’s do it !!!

So, we are having a Christmas charity drive – there will be a big box at the gym to put in the following items

- Food (non-perishable)

- Clothing – jackets, sweaters, sweatshirts, hats and gloves

Toys – kids and especially teens

As in years past, for every item donated I will do 5 dreaded burpees (yes Wells – I know how much you love to see me suffer).  But do this through the kindness of your heart, not the joy of seeing me do burpees.

Here is a link for more info

www.sharingandcaringhands.com

Classes resume Friday – be the FIRST to get your WOD done at 6 AM. 

Remember - Turkey is good for you !!!

Where does accountability fit into CrossFit ? 

1.  Showing up 3+ times a week, on time, with your game face on.  You have not joined a global gym – you’ve joined a training facility where you are given the tools to succeed – but you need to show up to use them.  Set aside days / times when it’s your CrossFit time and mark it down – be consistent in your attendence for best results.  Be accountable for your attendance and fitness.

2.  Counting reps and sets – unless you’re the only one at the class, the CrossFit Trainer is not going to be counting your reps or sets.  It is up to you to keep track of how much you’ve done, and how much you have left.   Use pen and paper if needed.  When you’re asked how much you’ve done, the correct answer should not be in the form of a question.  If you don’t know, it’s back to 1.  And don’t ask the person next to you – they usually don’t know either.  Keep track of your progress – be accountable for your weights, reps, times, etc.

3.  Proper form and full range of motion - going to 3/4 on a squat is not the same as going parallel – we’ve all experienced the difference.  If you don’t know if you’re parallel, ask a fellow athlete or trainer – we’ll tell you.  Wall balls don’t count if you’re not parallel and you don’t hit the target.  Pull ups don’t count if your chin doesn’t get over the bar.  Push ups don’t count if you don’t straighten your arms at the top or if you’re going 1/2 way down.   Not going full range of motion is not cheating others – you’re cheating yourself.  Be accountable for your form.

4.  Signing into class – simple, easy, and yes, actually necessary and useful.  The owner needs to know which classes are at capacity, which classes have none, one or two people and could be dropped, when it is possible to add a specialty class.  Plus we want to know who is showing up, who needs a reminder, and it allows us to recommend the proper membership to our clients based on attendence – why pay for something you’re not using and why short change yourself if you want to come more often ?  Be accountable for your attendance.

5.  Knowing what is around you.  When it’s a crowded class, dropping barbells from overhead is simply asking for trouble.  Swinging kettlebells with someone in your line of fire is a recipe for disaster.  Walking through the maze of people working out – either forcing them to stop or being hit by metal objects.  Be aware of your surroundings.  Yes, it’s crowded and chaotic – keep your head on a swivel.  Be accountable for your health and safety.

6.  Making sure dues are paid ontime.  CrossFit gyms are generally very small, run on a shoestring budget and don’t make much money.  There are bills to pay – rent, trainers, online tracking sites, advertisements, clothing, gear, taxes, insurance.  We gladly pay these bills because we love what we do and we love helping people get fit and achieve their goals.  We hope you love us enough to pay us !!!  Be accountable for your dues.

7.  Know your limits - just because the numbers are up on the board doesn’t mean you have to do them.  Yes, we will push you – you sometimes have to push back.  You know your body, you know how you feel on that day, you know what you are capable of.  A workout that is designed to take 10 minutes should not take 30 – you’ve missed the point of the workout.  Lower the weight, reps, sets, whatever, to get the proper benefits from the workout.  Be accountable for your own limitations.

8.  As CrossFit owners and trainers – we also must be accountable.

      A.  We must be there on time (unless we notify you ahead of time – hey it happens)

      B.  We must give you the proper instructions to be the most efficient at the movements being used in the workouts and prevent injury.

      C.  We must give you a program that builds high levels of fitness and allows you to succeed and reach your specific goals

      D.  We must foster a community – we strive to make you feel welcome and accepted, and it’s our job to make you feel valued.  We must make this a facility that you love to come to.

      E.  We must understand your current fitness levels, limitations, and yes, fears.

      F.  We must provide you with the equipment you need in order to do the workouts and to continue to expand your fitness levels.

     G.   We must give you value for your money

     H.   We must listen to you, the athletes, and do what we can to meet your expectations, wants, and needs.

Accountability is a must for a small training facility – from the athletes but especially from the owners / trainers.  If we are not meeting your expectations, please let us know.  We love having you here and value your input.

We make goals, we don’t do resolutions. 

We know you’ve heard about CrossFit and you’ve been checking out different places to train.  If you’re curious about our training facility, contact us.  Our next free day will be in late January – next beginner classes start last week in January / first week in February.

Why a CrossFit gym ?  We have knowledgeable trainers, tough workouts that push you mentally and physically, a strong community, and expectations.  Our trainers care about your success and your goals. Compare that to a regular gym where you are just a number, no one cares if you show up or what you do, and trainers are $50+ an hour – and you’ll be on a treadmill or a bosu ball.  We believe that women should be doing the same exercises as men – including deadlifts, squats, presses, the Olympic lifts, pull ups.

knowledgable trainers lead classes

So contact us to get more information and then make a reservation for the FREE trial class.  You’ll see what makes us different (and better !!!)

If this doesn’t get you amp’d up for your next workout, nothing will…

http://www.mensjournal.com/everything-you-know-about-fitness-is-a-lie

Some great quotes….

Not that I haven’t wasted time at the gym like everybody else, sweating dutifully three times a week, “working my core,” throwing in the odd after-work jog.

 I signed a 10-page membership contract at a corporate-franchise gym, hired my first personal trainer, and became yet another sucker for all the half-baked, largely spurious non-advice cobbled together from doctors, newspapers, magazines, infomercials, websites, government health agencies, and, especially, from the organs of our wonderful $19 billion fitness industry, whose real knack lies in helping us to lose weight around the middle of our wallets. Not that all of these people are lying, but here’s what I’ve learned: Their goals are only marginally related to real fitness — goals like reducing the statistical incidence of heart disease across the entire American population, or keeping you moving through the gym so you won’t crowd the gear, or limiting the likelihood that you’ll get hurt and sue.

 Too many of us drift into health clubs with only the vaguest of notions about why we’re actually there — notions like maybe losing a little weight, somehow looking like the young Brad Pitt in Fight Club, or just heeding a doctor’s orders. Vague goals beget vague methods

So we sign our sorry names on the elliptical-machine waiting list — starting with a little “cardio,” like somebody said you’re supposed to — and then spend our allotted 30 minutes in front of a TV mounted a regulation seven to 10 feet away

After that, if we’ve got any remaining willpower, we lie flat on the floor, contract a few stomach muscles with tragic optimism, and then we “work each body part” before hitting the shower.

 Forget that your trainer knows literally nothing about these sports; he’ll gladly prescribe a whole suite of cool stability-ball “functional fitness” and “core-training” exotica with rubber bands and wobbly Bosu platforms. Maybe it’ll even be fun. After a while, though, when you still can’t tell if anything ever makes a difference, you’ll get bored all over again, quit all over again,

I like to believe that I march to a different drummer (ask Meghan / Bada Bing).

I don’t believe in following the herd.  Eventually the herd gets picked off one by one and dies.  And usually the herd has nothing to show for itself.  There is no individual.  They do whatever everybody is doing, thinking that’s the way it should be done.  And in the end what do they have to show for it ?  They are “sheeple” and to me, they are boring.

I’m a police officer – a different job, to be sure.  There is a protective dog mentality to police work – we are not the herd, we protect the herd.  We are calm, alert, and when the time comes, we are aggressive and take action.  We sometimes live life on the edge, confronting the worst that society has to throw at us.  We feed off the adrenaline and enjoy the hunt, when the hunt presents itself.  Much like CrossFit competitions.  Yeah, we’ll train, but when the competition asserts itself, we’ll attack.  I’d rather go down fighting.

I ride a motorcycle – to work, to functions, and just for fun.  Motorcyclists are a bit different.  We love the freedom, the open road, the individualism.  We are a close knit group, especially the Harley riders.  I feel kinship with other Harley riders – we’re a bit elitist but we love riding, we enjoy the companionship and we love talking motorcycles.  Just like CrossFit – people have the perception we are elitist, but I do love the CrossFit community and talking CrossFit to those who know CrossFit.  Community is a great bond and should never be overlooked.  I have made so many friends from CrossFit and I’m thankful for everyone of them.

I’m a dreamer – I have big plans, cool ideas, I dream of my future in terms of goals.  CrossFitters are the same way.  We have big plans, big goals, and great ideas.  Everyday we work towards fulfiling those dreams, ideas, and goals.  We are creative – how are we going to accomplish all of those things ?  We plan, we try, we rethink, and come up with alternatives if needed.  We are creative – who else would come up with the workouts we create ?  It doesn’t matter if you’re trying for your first muscle up or training for competition – we dream of the day we accomplish our goals.

I enjoy challenges and learning new things.  If I never found CrossFit, I doubt I would ever learn to snatch and clean + Jerk.  I don’t think I’d ever push myself to the point of exhaustion, where I didn’t think I had anymore, but I dug deeper and finished.  Where I’d be lying on the floor, debating whether to quit, but in my heart, I could never let myself and fellow CrossFitters down.  I know I never would have entered the Chicago Urbanathlon 10 mile race – I did so because I wanted to prove I could do it ( btw – I hate and I suck at running ) – but CrossFit has shown me that if I want it, I can do it – I just have to work at it and dig down to finish.  I learned to push past what I thought I could do to what my body / mind was capable of doing.

I just do not want to be like everybody else – simply going through the motions, doing what is expected, thinking good is good enough, never testing myself, and then looking back and thinking ” I could have done so much more “.  I don’t want to be one of the “Could have, should have, didn’t” crowd.  I don’t want to be a lemming, running off the cliff cuz that’s what everyone else is doing.  I want to live life on my terms - I want to set my goals, reach them, and know that I am part of a great community of people who feel the same way.

CrossFit has changed the way I look at fitness and life.  I have become very close friends with people I most likey would never have met before, it has made me push my boundaries and has allowed me to make others better – which, really, is the crowning achievement – making others better.  Can we all say we’ve done that ?   I can, and it’s a great feeling.  I gives me great pride to know I’ve had a positive impact on somebody’s life.

Thank you CrossFit.

Steve Loeding aka Maverick

Top Gun CrossFit

No machines here...........just good honest hard work.

Imagine a place that you love to go to everyday. A place where you know everyone and they know you. A place to push and be pushed, mentally and physically, to make you better. A place that you can build character and strength. Imagine a place that truly cares about your well being and makes sure you are performing at your best. Imagine an escape from the everyday grind as many times a week as you like. Imagine a place where  a certified trainer pushes you further every day without paying them extra, they just do it.

This is NOT your regular gym.  You are not paying to use our equipment – you are paying for training.  We will make you stronger, faster, better.

We have a 6 day fundamental course to teach you the power lifts, the olympic lifts, and the other movements we use in a workout.  This way you feel comfortable when joining our regular CrossFit classes.

We have seperate lifting days, olympic lifting days, as well as metabolic conditioning days.  We believe that getting strong is just as important as pushing your conditioning.  We know the skills in the olympic lifts will transfer to many other movements.

This is our gym.  This is our community.  And we want you to join us.

Newest members - Brandon, Dan, Dana, Roslynn

We raised over $2400 for the Wounded Warrior Special Ops program !!!

You guys rock !!!  Tell all your friends and family who donated they rock too !!!

15 Pushups (HOD)
15 Knees up Crunches / V-Ups
2 Hill Runs (alternate: 50 Mountain Climbers)
10 Jump Squats

• Deadlift
• Squats
• Presses
• Clean and Snatch

At the end of each class we have a WOD based on the movements you’ve learned that day. Classes are limited to 5 people in order to keep instructor to student ratio small. These fill up quickly so reserve a spot today or contact us for more information!

Come in this week on Thursday Sept 29 @ 630 PM or Saturday Oct 1 @ 9 AM for a free trial class !!!

Down the road, in a gym far away
A young man was heard to say
“No matter what I do, my legs won’t grow!”
He tried leg extensions, leg curls, leg presses too
Trying to cheat, these sissy workouts he’d do!
From the corner of the gym where the big guys train
Through a cloud of chalk and the midst of pain
Where the big iron rides high, and threatens lives
Where the noise is made with big forty-fives
A deep voice bellowed as he wrapped his knees
A very big man with legs like trees
Laughing as he snatched another plate from the stack
Chalked his hands and monstrous back
Said, “Boy, stop lying and don’t say you’ve forgotten!
Trouble with you is you ain’t been SQUATTIN’!”

- Jeff “MADDOG” Madden

SLOW Run 400m (loosen up joints) then 3×10  Pull-up, push-up, squat

WOD

Team Circuit - Similar to our last team circuit but hopefully we have more people this time around.

First team to 5 rounds wins
Partner 1 runs 250m while partner 2 works a station, then switch after run.

Stations:
Wall Balls
Ring Rows
Push-ups
KB Swings
Burpees