Healthy Living

Can CrossFit Make You Sexy?

Confidence, no matter how it’s “packaged,” is sexy. But how do you increase confidence? For a lot of women, it gets down to how we feel about our bodies. For me, an amazing confidence booster is knowing my body is powerful enough to do whatever I need it to do, so I’ve always worked out.

Lately though I’ve noticed a change. Call me crazy but it might have something to do with this trippy thing called aging. These days, no matter how much I work out, I can’t seem to get strong. I mean really strong–the kind of strong where you can open a vacuum-packed pickle jar in seconds, chase a guy for days, lift 20 gallons of water, or change the tires on your car while also holding your car up. (Okay, maybe not that strong but you get the point.)

My point here is that I can’t even do a single push up, and it’s seriously messing with my head, to say nothing of my sexy. In fact, I can’t get through a yoga class without collapsing face first on the mat, arms and legs splayed open like a bug on a fly swatter.

I found help recently in the form of CrossFit Bootcamp (AKA Grunt School) at Arrowhead Crossfit. ArrowheadCrossFit is owned and operated by Cash Reynolds and his wife, Dr. Natalia Reynolds. (Full disclosure here: Cash agreed to put me through the CrossFit 12-session Grunt School in exchange for my reviewing the experience here, but as always, I write whatever I want.)

I’m more than half way through Grunt School as of this writing. Already, my entire body has toned (especially my arms and upper back), my posture has improved, and my jeans are looser. Friends tell me a certain cockiness has slipped into my stride. Also, I was in the supermarket the other day and opened a whole shelf of baby food jars just because I can.  And I’m not even finished boot camp yet.

So what is it about CrossFit that makes it unlike any other exercise program? One unique aspect is the focus on high intensity, super-efficient routines that exercise your body in the way it was designed to move (known as functional exercise). Each CrossFit session is different for a boredom factor of zero and a challenge factor of, well, infinite. The workouts are done at a gym—in my case, Cash’s gym, ArrowheadCrossFit, an inviting, fun space filled with pull up bars, barbells, kettlebells, hanging rings, and other equipment.

CrossFit was started in the 80’s by a former gymnast, Greg Glassman. It’s taken off recently probably because it took that long for people to burn out and give up on all stuff that doesn’t work.  In addition to its emphasis on intensity and variety (muscles can’t adapt to exercise that keeps changing and that maximizes fitness), CrossFit is very social. You’re never isolated on a machine or mindlessly following some instructor. You’re training with highly motivated, committed people who track their progress along with yours. Yes, it’s demanding but it’s also a lot of fun—especially if you’re training with your significant other.

Cash was also trained as a gymnast. He arrived at CrossFit after spending years training, studying, and writing about fitness. He doesn’t sell any supplements, believing good food and the right exercise are the best medicines. He’s living proof the approach works. By using a combination of a low glycemic diet and CrossFit training, Cash has been able to keep his Type 1 diabetes under remarkable control while achieving uber-strength. (Some examples: Cash deadlifts 500 lbs, back squats 455 lbs, and runs a mile in 5:50 and a marathon in 3:15.)

I confess, when I first started Grunt School, I was intimidated. I mean, Cash looks like he eats apartment complexes for breakfast, how the hell would I keep up with such elite training? I sought out his wife, Natasha, for reassurance. She’s been doing CrossFit for two years and is model slim. I kidded with her that she looked like she couldn’t lift a chocolate bar. She gave me a sly smile and bounded over to the high bars to do a few pull ups, an exercise a lot of guys can’t do. After I picked my jaw up off the ground, I gulped hard. I wouldn’t have believed it without seeing it. Natasha later explained she couldn’t do a single push up when she started.

Suitably inspired, I got to work.

Skill and technique are critical to success and Cash guided me through each step, ensuring I was moving properly and not risking damage. Each workout involves two activities chosen for their complementary effects fitness-wise and done at a level of intensity and efficiency guaranteed to bring the toughest to their knees.

It turned me into a whimpering mewling baby crawling across the floor begging for a hot bath filled with epsom salts and a Swedish massage. But then, after a day of recovery, I’d notice a shift. It was as though, after each session, my metabolic machinery were fine tuning itself as the sinews and muscles of my body incrementally strengthened and my energy and endurance ratcheted up.

It’s a very cool feeling. I asked Cash if most people experience this kind of thing.

“Every person I’ve trained has reported increased strength, mobility, energy, motivation, stamina and endurance,” he said. “I’ve trained two Navy SEAL teams, a division of navy seamen, two basketball camps, a wrestling team, and about 60 individuals,” Cash added.

Most of the effect is obviously from CrossFit, but I’ve got to believe some of it is Cash–he’s no ordinary teacher. He puts his all into training people—attention to detail, thorough explanations, patience and enthusiastic support, and a nuanced understanding of body function and form so you come to understand your own body better than ever. I had to wonder what kept him going.

“It’s purely passion,” Cash said. “Passion for teaching people how to increase their self-esteem and improve their physical being, which I believe is the foundation for everything else. People stand taller, walk confidently, feel better, and are proud of what they’ve accomplished. That is the greatest payment I could ever hope for, and I freaking love my work.”

I can’t say I freaking love CrossFit yet—it’s more like CrossFit is the challenge I love to hate. I do love the results so far though.  The big test will come on the last day when I’ll see how I do with the dreaded push up. I’ll report back then and let you know. Wish me luck!

PS: If you’re looking for a great gift idea for Christmas (it’s a blast doing it with your partner or a friend) or you’re determined to keep your New Year’s resolution at last, Cash is offering $100 off the introductory training (Grunt School, which is 12-sessions) until the end of January, 2010. Here’s the contact info:

Tel: (480) 444-2310
Email: cash@arrowheadcrossfit.com
Arrowhead CrossFit
15525 N. 83rd Ave
Peoria, AZ 85382
http://arrowheadcrossfit.com

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Life On the Toilet

I know this isn’t exactly polite conversation, trust me, it’s necessary. You’re about to read the “inside” history, the story of my stomach. For all those with unremitting digestive problems, read on: there is hope.

It all started so long ago, it’s like talking about a ghost. When I was young, I spent my spare time reading, running around, and eating to calm my anger (divorcing parents), my restlessness (no boyfriend), and my angst (acne). I believe it’s called “emotional eating.” Eventually running around turned into moping around or watching TV. I started to pack on the pounds.

Given the endless rounds of boy fantasies and infatuations I tortured myself over, being chubby was out of the question. I embarked on a serious weight loss program and in true Pammy-Push-It-To-Extremes Fashion, overdid it. This was at a time when the word, “anorexic,” was not bandied around as the highest form of a compliment you could pay a woman. All we knew was that when the singer, Karen Carpenter, died she was awfully skinny.

For those who have ventured on this path, it is well known that the journey out of anorexia is cast with a thousand hazards. Ending up with a raging case of bulimia (eating and purging) is one of them. Bulimia, in turn, does wonders to a digestive system.

Fast forward through a decade and every variation on psychiatry and therapy, to 1988. I finally meet a therapist, Viola Fodor, who at last helps me get on the train out of Eating Hell.

Still I was left with the consequence of years of crazy eating: poor digestion in all its many noisy, groaning forms. Most women can relate to getting constipated when they travel. For me, life had become a never-ending trip.

I was telling this sad tale to my new naturopathic physician recently, Dr. Donese Worden. Don’t get me wrong. I didn’t offer it up unprovoked. She has a detailed questionnaire with an entire section dedicated to bowel movements: frequency of, size, shape, color, smell, floater or sinker? I guess that’s what natural docs do, they ask the questions no one else wants to. (Sex came up later but that’s another post.)

Naturally, I was repulsed. But I was also relieved to be bearing my soul about the things that really bothered me. Dr. Worden jotted notes as I took her through the litany of my toilet tribulations. I have gas every time I eat, boo hoo. I can’t poop regularly, sob sob. I have to eat cups of fiber to “go,” moan, moan.

Dr Worden patted my hand reassuringly. She had a plan, the first step of which was to test my blood for food allergies. This would tell me which foods were causing inflammatory reactions with all the related symptoms of indigestion and poor nutrient absorption.

In a couple of weeks, I got my results. About twenty foods were listed as problems. They were things I ate everyday, eggs, peanuts, chili pepper, wheat, garlic, and even sugar (omg). Being desperate, I immediately set about eliminating all the items from my diet (even sugar).

Within a day, I noticed something new: silence after a meal. The stillness was almost eerie after years of being followed by “quacking ducks,” or “dying ducks” as a friend once put it. I was elated. Everyday seemed to bring improvement. Then one morning, I was inspired to write the following note to Dr. Worden:

Dear Dr Worden. You are a great doctor. For the first time in my life, I don’t fart. This morning I pooped a Chihuahua. It even barked at me. I don’t know how to thank you for restoring my digestion to health.

My friends say it’s a sign of old age when all you want to talk about is your poop. I say poop on them. They’re envious because they’re full of poop now and I’m not. Anyway, I have to go now. I have to poop again.

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