Crossfit

Myth-Busting: Cracking the Crossfit Code

It’s been just over a year since I started Crossfit training. To say I was in a bad place mentally when something prompted me to finally get along to my local box is something of an understatement. A dead man walking is putting it a bit strongly, but isn’t that far from the mark.

So given my relative experience, or more the fact that I’m no longer a complete Crossfit beginner, it feels like an opportune time to reflect on my experience to date, assess my progress but mostly to see if any of the myths surrounding “the sport” have been dispelled.

work trip nutrition
Nutrition

On The Road – 3 Ways To Stay Healthy On A Work Trip

When I travel for work my diet and training routine invariably suffers. 5am starts often call for a Maccas at the airport which, in turn, usually means a second coffee and some kind of baked delight is required by the time the nine o’clock meeting rolls around.

survive winter blues
Lifestyle

5 Lifestyle Hacks To Beat The Winter Blues

As the Antipodean winter well and truly begins to bite, everything can seem that little bit harder and less fun.

You know this time of year only too well and you don’t particularly like it. Skipping out of bed for a 6am beach training session at 11 degrees becomes a very different proposition to when it’s a balmy 16 degrees. The work-year seems to finally be kicking in with a vengeance, keeping you back at the office until some ungodly hour (like 5.30pm). Masterchef is back on TV. Yep, winter is here, alright.

So here are some of the key things I’m doing to keep my body and mind on track and avoid a descent into seasonal negative nelly-dom.

CrossfitTraining

Bumps in the road – 3 signs that you’re training too much

A wise man once told me that progress is not lineal. And so it has proved in Super Fit Dad-land as the burgeoning juggernaut of PBs, progress and self-satisfied improvement has careened off the road and screeched to an abrupt halt. The wheels, it seems, have well and truly fallen off the wagon.

What has happened to precipitate such an almighty decline in performance? And has it really been that bad? Let’s look at the symptoms for clues.

Training

It’s Complexicated – 4 Barbell Complexes For Time-Poor Dads

Assuming you have access to a barbell – in the garden, the garage or the gym – then barbell complexes will probably offer you the best fitness return on time invested that I can think of.

Their beauty, despite the name, lies in their simplicity and time-effectiveness. They are virtually idiot-proof and can have you in and out of the gym in half an hour which gives you plenty of time to swing by the shops on the way home to buy some nappies and a little treat for Tired Out Mum.

You pick up the barbell (or unrack it) and perform a set number of reps of multiple exercises without putting the bar down. Then repeat. For Super Fit Dads it’s the next step along from the trusty kettlebell, requiring just a little more space and a little more money to buy your barbell and weights.

Lifestyle

Dadbods..? You have to be kidding.

#dadbods is trending hard right now; a strange phenomenon whereby, all of a sudden, portly is prized, podgy is pleasant and pot-bellied is perfect. I’m not buying it, however.

Training

Testing Times – term 1 progress report

Progression, it’s said, is the key to success.

So, with this in mind, whilst I approached testing week at my Crossfit box with confidence that I would, most likely, have progressed somewhat from my relatively lowly starting position, I might fall short of where I had hoped to be. Which was a stupid idea because I hadn’t actually given much thought to where I’d hoped to end up.

Training

What the Dickens? PRs everywhere

It was the best of weeks, it was the worst of weeks, to paraphrase someone, somewhere, sometime. I forget who.

When other things were turning quite bleak and the gravity of a situation was hammered home in the most unceremonious of fashions, a few rays of sunshine appeared on the horizon to offer satisfaction and a sense of progress.

Workouts

5 Easy Kettlebell Workouts in 20 Minutes or Less

The kettlebell: much feared and with good reason. Well, sort of.

Introduced to the West by a pretty heavy Russian Spetznaz dude (Pavel Tsatsouline) and a whimsical, but ferociously strong, American guy who is older enough to be a grandpa but can still do one-handed pull-ups (Steve Maxwell) – so the story goes – the iron ball and handle is actually the perfect accoutrement for anyone wanting a super-quick, super-intense workout.

In short, this piece of kit was made for Super Fit Dads (and Mums).

Lifestyle

Transform Your Life Today – 5 High-Reward / Low-Effort Lifestyle Hacks

There are no quick fixes, right? No such thing as a free lunch? 

Wrong! Well, sort of. There are some pretty minor lifestyle tweaks that everybody can apply to their daily lives which will translate into some major health benefits. By no means an exhaustive list, these are the hacks that have worked most effectively for me.

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