A quick note on the training blog (below): As you read the posts below this one and see what our training is like, please don’t let the workouts scare you away!  Keep in mind that the workouts posted are for our top level athletes.  Everything we do is scaleable to the point that we can work with anybody, including you, regardless of what fitness level you are currently at.

If you are new here, we hope you’ll spend some time on our pages, reading About Us, our Programs, How To Join and FAQ.

If you have any questions about what we do or how to get started, please don’t hesitate to contact us as we would like to help you in any way we can!

Click here for details on Upcoming Events & Seminars.
(April 3-4, 2010: The Big CrossFit Champions Move)
(May 1, 2010: Warrior Dash)
(September 4, 2010: The Intelligent Exercise Design and Max Effort Black Box Seminar)

Click here to purchase CFC Merchandise Online.

When most of us walked through the doors at Crossfit Champions, we came in to make ourselves better. Each of us had our own ideas of how we could do that, most of them being based on appearance.  As we spent more time within the walls of CFC, most people have come to realize that our original goals are just a side benefit on the way to truly being healthy and fit. It’s no longer about having the physique of a magazine cover model, but the strength and mental fortitude to complete any physical tasks that are thrown our way. Our superficial goals have been replaced with physical achievements and ways to improve them. The way we’ve learned to track our physical progress is by our times now, instead of a mirror. This is what has led us to the problem.
Here at CFC we are picky. We want you to go fast, hard, heavy, maxed out, full intensity always trying to get a better time….. But we don’t want this achieved by losing integrity. What I mean is not letting the hunger for a time 10 seconds faster than the last time, or beating the person who you’re always competing with, or not being the last person in the class to finish, determine your mechanics in the workout. We want FULL range of motion on every rep from start to finish. All of you have been taught how deep to go on a push up or squat and how to achieve a fully open hip or active shoulders but for some reason when it’s 3,2,1..GO that all gives way to going faster and getting a better time. You will never develop your full potential without maintaing good mechanics along with the intensity. I’m sure there are a lot of you reading this thinking this doesn’t apply to you because you’re never going to be a level 3 athlete, or you’re just doing this because it is a good workout for you and you like it better than 24. You are wrong, good mechanics are a must for everybody from people working on getting a full depth squat with a box and the wall to those that are trying to knock 10 seconds off a benchmark WOD . Another reason Crossfit is good is the mental strength it develops in people, most of you have witnessed first hand by doing things you never thought possible. It comes from constantly working, grunting, sweating and sometimes even bleeding your way through the WOD on the board that any outsider would call ridiculous and impossible and knowing you did that. So why would you want to cheapen that by not doing a movement to it’s fullest standard and depriving yourself of that feeling of accomplishment, because you know you cheated yourself. The correct way isn’t always going to be the fastest and easiest.

So treat every movement like a skill and work on them. Take advantage of your warm up instead of just rushing through it, take your time and work on your ROM while maintaining good mechanics. Sit in the bottom of the squat, get comfortable with being there. Also use the skill days to hone any movement you’re having trouble with, either the ones prescribed for the WOD or take a rest day from the standard  WOD and do some specific skills work whenever you want to. Times before and after classes are another great opportunity to get some extra skill work in. Never hesitate to grab any trainer and ask us questions about a movement or have us check if you’re doing something right, that is why we are here.

So make sure and maintain the integrity of the movements throughout your training and you will unlock your full potential. The fastest performance doesn’t equal the best, “the magic is in the movements”.

For those who were not aware, the challenge was between Paul Thomas and me and the score was based on the best performance on the CFC WOD’s. Well after about 25 Work Outs of the Day the end result was Paul 15, Jose 10. So I would like to congratulate Paul on his victory.

During the course of the competition I had an outstanding opportunity to sit down on several occasions and get to know Paul Thomas and what brings him to CrossFit Champions and perform so well.

Paul is a native Houstonian who graduated from Cycreek High School and later went on to attend Rice University. He was always involved in sports throughout his youth, beginning with competitive gymnastics from age 4-7. As a gymnast he trained 3 times a week under the watchful eye of his coach Jim Colhane.  By age 10 (5^th grade) he left gymnastics and focused on football throughout the rest of his youth.

He stated, later in his high school years his small size kept him from being picked up on athletic scholarships for Division 1 schools. That did not stop him because he was also accepted academically into Duke and Rice University. Of course he chose Rice where he later red shirted (walked on) to the Rice Owls football team, where he earned a sports scholarship. He earned a starting position as a half back his sophomore year.  During his athletic endeavor with the Rice Owls his workouts consisted of conditioning and excellent strength training under the watchful eyes of trained experts. In his Jr. Year he received the Academic All Conference Award with the Rice Owls, but later his tenure with football was stopped short after he suffered an ACL knee injury his senior year.

After earning his Bachelor’s from Rice he went on to complete Graduate School at SMU in Dallas where he continued with athletics through rugby.

Paul is now a 33 year old successfully self employed individual who spends his time still training and is involved in his church with the “Leader Trek” program.

Paul found CrossFit 2 years ago and states that it’s the group and individual discipline along with the attitude of the push for maximal effort that keeps him wanting more.

He is now preparing himself to compete in the CrossFit Games Sectionals for 2010. His reason for this is because he wants to test the competitive waters and his abilities against other CrossFitters from around Texas.

So how does this tie into the title, “Performance as a Result of Our Actions”? Here is how. The way we perform during a CrossFit WOD is truly based on the actions you take throughout the day prior, during and after the workout. I am talking about NUTRITION, REST, SELF DISCIPLINE, MOTIVATION, MECHANICS, and CONSISTANCY AND INTENSITY.  I do not have such an extensive strength and conditioning sports background like Paul.  My athletic competitive sports route under a coach ended in high school and anything sports and fitness related afterwards relied on my own self motivation. A side by side comparison would reveal that Paul should have swept the competition we agreed on, but I was able to take him on 10 out 25 WOD’s.  One reason is that our strength and weaknesses differ from one another but relying on our strengths alone will not help us excel at CrossFit.

I discussed this with CrossFit Champions Coach Matt Munson and he also stated that anyone with the discipline to maintain great nutrition (paleo, zone), good rest and push past their limitations can excel in every workout.

What does this mean? What I am getting at, is that any CFC athlete who really wants to improve their performance can do so.  They just have to make no excuses and improve about 80% of those factors that happen before or after the WOD’s. We can all do the easier part of it, the 20% which is the WOD itself.  So the next time you see a great time or score on the white board that you would like to be able to achieve just stop and talk to that athlete. Don’t be surprised if they are a working 9 to 5′er like your self with a family, and can give you some great pointers on how they maintain their performance in the gym.

As for the CFC Athlete to Athlete Challenge, I lost fair and square so, Paul and I are working on scheduling a Saturday where I can model his design shirt.  Until then lets help get Paul prepared to represent CrossFit Champions at the CrossFit Games sectionals this year.

Most everyone here knows I am a proud, single mom with 3 kids; a full time job; a devoted Crossfitter and Crossfit Instructor. I’m hardly home and feel as if I never slow down! I would bet I’m not the only one. I guess my question is: How do you balance it all and remain sane?

When I first really started working out again several years ago, (at one of those globo-gyms) I had an 8 month old baby, a 3 year old and a 6 year old, I was recently separated and going through a divorce, and a full time job on the night shift. Rough times. I did notice, though, when I walked through those doors I felt as if the weight of the world was on my shoulders. Completely stressed out. But when I walked out I felt like I could at least go another day. Shortly thereafter, I joined Crossfit and am much better for it. I not only felt like I could go another day, I began to feel the stress I had put myself under dissipate. I guess my point is, there is a balance between your physical and mental well being. If you are not feeling well physically (which I wasn’t a few years ago) how can your mental well being be any good?

Well, for the last few weeks I have felt worn out and just plain exhausted…physically exhausted. I didn’t understand this and couldn’t attribute it to anything because I am still working out as much as ever, still work full time, still a mom, eating right for the most part…I didn’t think anything had changed; but it had. I was transferred to another job assignment at work about a year ago and I really had hopes it was going to be a good change. Fast forward a year later and I don’t think I’ve been this unhappy at my job in a long time, if ever. I come to Crossfit everyday to work that off and leave it behind for a while and it was working.

Now, I’m wondering if my mental health is out of shape? I hate to admit it, but I’ve kind of had a bad attitude at work. Not a good thing in my line of work. This has carried over into my personal life with my kids and I can feel myself snap at them for silly stuff. Bad mommy, bad mommy! It’s not them…its me. I want to do it all and be darn good at it! I want to be Super Mom! I would love to be home waiting on them to get off the bus in my apron, with fresh baked cookies and milk on the table for them to snack on in a clean and tidy home, a nice hot dinner cooked to perfection, helping with homework, taking them to their extracurricular activities…Right. The reality is; I have put too much pressure on myself to be the perfect mom in an attempt to make up to my children for my lack of being there. Add all that to a job that I’m stressed out over and I think you get my meaning. I don’t want them to resent me and I just want them to know I am always there for them, even if I’m not physically there. My kids have been my life for the last 5 years and probably THE most important thing to me.

I think being mentally exhausted has completely affected my physical well being in my pursuit of trying to do it all! I know I can’t, but I was sure trying to. I don’t like to admit when I can’t do something, but I’m going to have to this time so I can finally relax and get on with it. I’m going to try and do only as much as I can with my priority being my kids. Make sure they are #1 and then if I need help…gulp/sigh/suck it up…ask for it. I think I’ve been afraid to ask because other people have their own problems and worries. I really didn’t want to add to anyone else’s list of “things to do.” But maybe, just maybe, that’s not at all how it would be viewed.

“Fight Gone Bad”

Three 5-minute rounds, with a 1-minute break between rounds. In this workout you move from each of five stations after a minute of max effort. The stations are:

Wall Ball Shots (m:20lb,f:14lb)(m:10ft target,f:8ft target)(Reps)
Sumo Deadlift High-pull (m:75lb,f:55lb)(Reps)
Box Jumps (20in box)(Reps)
Push Press (m:75lb,f:55lb)(Reps)
Row (Calories)

The clock does not reset or stop between exercises. On call of “rotate,” the athlete(s) must move to next station immediately for good score. One point is given for each rep, except on the rower where each calorie is one point. Your workout score equals the sum of all your reps and calories from all rounds.

Post score and thoughts to comments.

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CrossFit Champions Is Moving!

Its Official.

Both parties have signed the lease and the deposit has been put down.  The official day 1 at our new location will be April 1, 2010.  This move will take CFC from just under 3000 sq.ft. in building to 6000 sq.ft.  And, due to layout differences, we will be increasing our total workout space by about 2.5x.

Stay tuned for more details on help with building prep and the official moving party!

New location (right around the corner):

Treeline
17575 North Eldridge Parkway, building C
Tomball, TX 77377
(map)

For time:

Run 800m
5 ?
10 ?
20 ?
40 ?
80 ?
40 ?
20 ?
10 ?
5 ?

Post time and thoughts to comments.

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Have you signed up for a paintball team yet? For what you ask?  To benefit William Serrato of the CrossFit Clear Lake family!  We have 1 10-person team formed already and are wanting at leaset 1 more full team.  Team members don’t have to be CFC members.  The sign up sheet is in the lobby.

More on William and his family HERE.

15 Deadlifts (m:245lb,f:165lb)
Run 400m
15 GHD Sit-ups (or 30 Ab-Mat Sit-ups)

Post time and thoughts to comments.

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Hey all,

Don’t forget, CFC Instructor, Robert, and the Jaxon Lane Band will be playing live music at Swanny’s Grill (Swanson Golf Center, 6224 Theall Rd., Houston, TX 77066) from 7:00-10:00pm.

Swanny’s is a family friendly environment so feel free to bring the kids out as well for good music and good food.

Hope to see you all there!

Matt & Pam

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Wounded Warrior Wine!

The Tackitt Family Vineyards has established the “EOD Wounded Warrior Wine Boxes”.  The boxes include 3 bottles of wine and are $175.00 with half of the purchase price going to the Foundation. We also have single bottles available for $50.00 with half of that going to the foundation as well. Sorry, Shipping is not included. You can purchase the boxes at www.tackittfamilyvineyards.com and select wine store. You can read about the foundation at www.woundedeodwarrior.org.

“Yeah, but what do I feed my kids because they won’t eat that.”

or

“Yeah, but it’s going to be hard to now cook two different ways in the house, because my kids won’t eat that.”

or

“Yeah, but my kids only eat such and such. I mean you don’t understand, I’m talking tears and tantrums and all day/night fights if I try to make them eat this or that.”

My response; Are you freakin’ kidding me?! Your kids will eat what you damn well tell them to eat!

Now, look, I try to be understanding when it comes to making a sometimes difficult switch from the crack to real food, but the above questions/statements really, really piss me off.

After you have learned what you learned that made you want to make the switch to healthier eating and ditch the poison that fills the typical American diet and the factory food chain, you would still allow your kids to keep eating the junk?

Seriously?

Would you let them ride around in a car without a seatbelt on? Would you let them ride a motorcycle without a helmet? Would you let them handle your firearms without any instruction on what to do when they see a firearm and no trusted adult around? Would you instruct them to talk to strangers as often as possible?

You see where I’m going here?

The health and welfare of your kids is your responsibility! You would take that matter seriously in all areas except nutrition? You would do everything you can to protect them and raise them well and make them aware of the dangers of the world, in all matters except the actual substances they put in their bodies on a daily basis?

Health and wellness starts with food. And your kids are relying on you for proper guidance whether you like it or not.

Sourced from: MatthewMunson.com (© Copyright All Rights Reserved 2010.)

“CrossFit Total”

Back Squat, 1 rep max
Shoulder Press, 1 rep max
Deadlift, 1 rep max

3 attempts for max weight for each movement.  Your ‘CrossFit Total’ score is equal to the sum of your max lift from each movement.

Post individual lifts, and CrossFit Total, and thoughts to comments.

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Marilyn Cook – CrossFitter!

Long overdue testimonial for Crossfit Champions:

Some time ago Matt and Pam asked me to write a testimonial about Crossfit and what it means to me.  Then, a few weeks ago, Matt asked again on the CFC website for people to comment on the benefits of Crossfit in general and CFC specifically.  Well, I’ve finally come through with my promise to write something, so here it is.

To really share with you why I love Crossfit so much, I really have to go back 5 years to a 49-year-old, 311-pound woman who finally worked up the courage to do something about losing weight and getting fit.  At that point in my life I didn’t dream of one day being able to do a 200-lb deadlift or run a half marathon.  No, my dreams were much simpler. I dreamed of walking across the parking lot without getting winded and playing outside with my kids.  I had never heard of Crossfit, and I probably would have run the other way if I had. So I started out with a commitment to work out 3 times a week at Curves.  That was the beginning of a whole new life for me, but even after I’d lost 130 lbs and ran my first half marathon, I knew that I was missing something.  Lots of people were amazed by my accomplishments, but I realized that I was still putting limits on myself.

And so it was that I decided to find out a bit more about the little gym on Spring Cypress with the intriguing messages on the sign out front.  I first began an email correspondence with Pam.  The workouts posted online completely intimidated me, but she told me that it would all be scaled to my fitness level.  And so I showed up for a free workout on a Saturday morning in January, 2009.  The very first person I met in the gym was Mary Sall, probably the most encouraging person on the face of the planet and someone who still fills me with inspiration and hope.  (Love you, Mary!) That first workout included burpees (something I’d never even heard of) and a bunch of other exercises that had to be performed in a circuit for as long as it took the person in the middle to do 10 burpees. I was certain that every other person in my group would kill me because it took me so long to finish my 10 burpees, but everyone was welcoming and encouraging. I went home in pain, but I couldn’t wait to see what workout we would do the next Saturday.  After 3 Saturday morning workouts, I decided to take the plunge and signed up for Elements.  My friends and family thought I was nuts to put myself through such torture when I had already achieved so much, but I knew I wanted more.

And so here I am a year later, having lost another 20 lbs, and leaner and more fit than I ever thought would be possible for someone like me.  I certainly haven’t “arrived” yet, but I know that I have made progress that I never would have imagined.  For me, the physical benefits of Crossfit are obvious.  I often hear things like, “I wish I had your arms,” or “I can’t believe how lean you’re getting,” or simply, “You look amazing!”  I won’t lie.  I love hearing those things.  But really, the biggest benefit of Crossfit for me has been mental.  The most recent example of that aspect happened this past weekend when I was set to run a half marathon in Austin.  I trained hard for this HM – incorporating Crossfit and Crossfit Endurance workouts along with my Saturday long runs into my training schedule.  I wanted to improve my previous HM pace by a minute per mile, which is a pretty challenging goal.  The forecast was favorable – about 45 degrees at the start of the race, sunny and no wind.

But in the early hours before dawn, it was clear that this would not be a good day for race PR’s.  Instead this would be a day to test the mental toughness of even the most seasoned of competitors.  It was windy.  I’m not talking about gentle breezes here.  I’m talking about the kind of wind that blows down barricades and wreaks havoc along the course.  In fact, after a 15-minute delay in the start of the race, the announcement came over the loud speaker that many of the traffic barricades had been blown over and that the windy conditions made the race course unsafe.  We were facing a long delay in the start of the race.  There I was standing in a crowd of people trying to stay warm and wondering when or even if the race would start.  As I stood there, I started thinking about the PR that I was hoping for, and started telling myself that with these conditions, I certainly couldn’t expect to achieve my time goal. I should probably adjust my expectations.  I even contemplated pulling out altogether as the delay kept getting longer and my muscles were getting colder. The race hadn’t even started yet and I was already quitting in my head.  But then I heard Pam’s voice saying, “You’ve got this!  Don’t give up!”  I knew I would have to dig deep and find that place in my head where I didn’t limit myself.  The delay lasted almost an hour, but then we were off.  With each passing mile, I told myself that I was strong and I could do it.  My previous pace for a HM was 13:45, my goal pace was 12:45, but I ran even faster – 12:35 per mile.  As I crossed the finish line, I could almost hear all of the folks at CFC cheering for me.  So thank you, Matt, Pam and all of the CFC athletes for helping me to find the athlete inside of me and helping me to say, “Yes, I can!”

Row 1000m
100 Push-ups
50 Pull-ups

Post time and thoughts to comments.

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CrossFit Kids classes back in March!

Our good friend Robert Mery is on board with a solid CrossFit background and years of experience working with kids.

Not only are CrossFit Kids classes back on the schedule in March; the schedule of kids classes will be expanded and with more separate age groups.

And…that’s just the tip of the iceberg!  The Kids program will be expanding into a full blown CrossFit driven youth athletics program.  Many details to come, but we are just too excited to not let you all know about this now.