15 minutes to establish a 2rm High-Hang Snatch (full squat).
-then-
4 rounds for total working time of:
8 Hang Squat Clean to Thrusters 135/95#
12 Burpee Over-the-Box Jumps 24/20″
16 KBS 24/16kg
Rest 1:1
*20 minute cap.
Tonight, several CrossFit stars will be on The Biggest Loser. It's fun to see our passion receive the passing glance of The Public Eye, but I won't be watching. I'll be coaching.
'Reality Television,' as one producer put it, is based on hyperreality: "We have to exaggerate things so that when people see it on television, it looks real." Makes sense. In the case of The Biggest Loser, Coaches Jillian and Bob are likely fully aware that their 'coaching' techniques – break-em-down shaming, hyperexercise, and caloric restriction – don't work. They're just good television. Here's some more guidance on how to make good television:
Let's talk about what's required for REAL change. The Heath Brothers do an excellent job of explaining the science of change in, "Switch: How To Change When Change Is Hard," and we review a good portion of their work in our own book, Ignite: Enrichment Through Exercise.
Good fitness coaches become behavioural counsellors, and we believe that the BEST focus on 'Bright Spots' – things that the client does well, or is already attempting to do well. From there, we move toward Future Bright Spots – not short-term tiny goals, but recognition of small successes as they occur. This dovetails perfectly with CrossFit, in which small achievements are the name of the game, thanks to the broad diversity of skills required. Though I may win a WOD on the strength of my double-unders today, your deadlifting prowess will knock me off the pedestal tomorrow. I am thereby made aware of my deficiencies without name-calling or browbeating (to which Jillian appears to have built up a massive defense herself.)
The GREATEST motivator, of course, is joy. When you LOVE it – your biceps, your abs, the narrowing shape of your 'sweat angel,' your deadlift weight, your handstand hold, your new PR, the lunchtime gang, or your rope climb video – you'll do it more often. The counter to avoidance isn't "willpower" – it's happiness.
At Catalyst, we want to first make you aware of your 'happy' spot. Then we want to show you the joy ahead, and how to get there, and finally to find joy in the pursuit. If joy carries your first bikini in 15 years, then that's a bonus (have a great trip, Liza!) If it's found after seven minutes of burpees, then you're The Biggest Winner. But it's not at the bottom of the weight-loss well, no matter how deep you go, and having someone push you deeper won't help.