**Reminder that the gym is closed tomorrow for Victoria Day**

Eric takes advantage of the great weather to warm-up outside

The trouble with karma is that it takes so long to arrive sometimes …

We want everything NOW.

Justice? Now. Results? Now. Oh, and forgiveness now and maybe some total memory loss too, when we’re on the wrong side of the finger-pointing.

Just like we want our pull-ups NOW, and then our butterfly pull-ups, and now our new levitating butterfly pull-ups. (There’s no such thing. I’m just f***ing with ya. Don’t email me for tips.)

Anyhow, the point here is that the answer is to have patience in the gym and in life, but that’s sooooo damn boring. Telling people to have patience is like telling them to like vegetables. (Oh, wait, we’re CrossFitters. We like vegetables, even the famed dreaded Brussels sprouts. Turns out that if you roast them with bacon, they’re delicious. Although this might be true of almost anything. Roasted bark with bacon — recipe coming to your Paleo blog soon!)

So, the trick is not to think of it as patience. It’s just breathing. Pausing. Recovering. Taking a moment to gather your strength. It’s not waiting, it’s not lingering, it’s not stupid downtime that you hate so much, like the fact that you have to sleep every night and miss fantastic things happening in the world. You were born to act and make shit happen, not sit on your ass like some fool letting life pass you by!

Oh wait, that was just me again. Never mind.

But, seriously, you have to learn to breathe or you’re going to pass out. You have to learn to pause, to have patience, to rest, or you’re going to burn out. Don’t be in such a rush all the time. Be smart. Stop. Learn. Listen. Maybe even do nothing — absolutely nothing — once in a while. It’s not going to kill you, or derail your plans for world domination. It’s actually going to help. Keep working hard, but sometimes learn to just breathe. Everything will come in due time. Or it won’t. And life will go on …

Take a break. Relax. Stretch. It won’t be the end of the world if you take a rest day.

In nature, objects that need to be lifted come in all shapes and sizes. Nothing resembles a barbell. But what you do with a barbell can transfer over into how you lift things in life.

The goal of CrossFit is to make life easier. Life involves picking things up. Pressing things over head. Squatting to reach something on a low shelf. What you learn in the gym can be used to your advantage outside of the gym.

Press, squat and lift with perfect mechanics in the gym, and watch life get easier.

How has CrossFit made your life easier?

Whether your deadlifting a barbell or shingles, chest up, flat back and weight on heels.

Some of you may have heard that a few of our trainers are leaving to pursue other ventures. While it is unfortunate that we will be losing a chunk of our great training staff, I wish them the best of luck.

On the bright side, we will soon have three new trainers at the gym – Corinna, Ron and Jeff S. Once they have all passed their certifications and have gone through the evaluation process, you can expect to see them at the gym a little more often. I am absolutely thrilled to have them join our team, as they will help our members grow to become healthier and better athletes.

We’ll also be planning a CrossFit Kids program that should be starting up in early summer. We don’t know too many details yet, but it will be limited to children of current members. We are very excited to be offering this program and will update you with more details at a later date.

Jeff MacRae from CrossFit Summerside will be coming for his second visit to CrossFit Moncton to host a gymnastics seminar. Learn proper techniques and progressions for: Muscle-ups, Kipping Pullups, Handstands, HSPUs, L-sits, V-sits, Iron Cross, Planches and much more! All skill levels are welcome! I even learned how to do a cartwheel at the last seminar. It will take place on Sunday, April 29th from 9am-5pm. Cost is $100 and you can sign up at the gym.

And finally, now that the Riverview Pool is back up and running, we’re going to be continuing our Swim WODs in May (date to be confirmed).

So, lots of new and exciting things happening at CrossFit Moncton. Thank you all for your continued support!

A big myth that floats around is that you have to run a lot to improve your cardio.

False – Running is believed to be the best way to improve your cardiovascular endurance. However, CrossFit workouts are able to get heart rates elevated rather quickly AND maintained at a high rate. Take a look at the graph below, comparing an athlete’s heart rate while doing Fran versus a 1-mile run. Time domain is similar, heart rates are similar. So CrossFit is cardio.

Which brings me to the point about functionality.

Running makes you good at one thing – running. If your goal is to run a marathon, then you need to work on running (it is a skill that needs to be practiced). And you need to log miles to build up tolerance for the beating your going to get from the 42.2km of pavement pounding.

CrossFit uses many movements, and it makes you better at a lot of things. The functional movements we use (squats, deadlifts, presses), are all found in daily life and sport, and when done at a high intensity, will improve your cardio.

Want to improve your cardio during CrossFit workouts?

Be consistent. Come at least 3-5 days per week.

Scale when appropriate. If you spend 4 minutes of a 10 minute workout starring at the barbell, it’s too heavy!

And finally, kill that voice!

**Final note** This doesn’t mean I am against running. I think running should be included in one’s training, but should not be the only way to train to improve your cardio.

Courtesy of the CrossFit Journal

For those that need an extra dose of CrossFit, check out the Vacation WODs.

Hooray for holidays!

The good news…it’s over 2 times the size and just a few blocks away!

Let me know what you think!

With the 2012 CrossFit Open behind us, we look forward to next year.

Please take a moment to ponder (or comment) on these questions:

-What was your highlight?

-Did you reach or surpass any goals?

-Were there any movements that you need to work on?

-What will you do differently in preparation for next year?

Best way to finish the Games!

Why? How is it different than any other workout we do?

Do you push yourself further for the Games?

Why do the Games WODs feel much harder than regular workouts?

Share you thoughts in the comments.

Eric gives it his best shot at a muscle-up

However, during the Games, people tend to go a little further. A few more steps into the land of hurt. Outside their comfort zone.

Please take today to relax. Recover from the beating you just went through yesterday.

-Ask a spouse/friend for a massage
-Get a good, solid sleep
-Eat quality foods
-Spend time with a foam roller/lacrosse ball
-Yoga/stretch
-Hydrate
-And chill out

Blake fighting for every rep