CrossFit NYC: The Black Box

I'm kidnapping Justin, so he won't be at the Box for deadlifts tonight. Instead, we'll be celebrating his 33rd birthday (he's catching up to Wittenstein) with nachos and margaritas. Happy Birthday, Friendly Ox!

Happy Birthday, Justin!!! Too bad you won't be here. If I'd known it was your birthday I would have come up with a special workout for you. I guess it will have to wait until you return.

Happy bday justin!

Hey Happy Birthday Justin!

225x10 wu

315x3
315x3
315x3
315x3
315x3
315x3
315x8, I was still feeling fresh so went all out.

Press 135x5

Happy Birthday, Justin!

Happy Bday Justin. Hey Icing Princess we havent seen you in a while! Come on down....

Shit, now I cant keep up the facade that Im really just a teenager still... And we will get the Icing princess back to the box, if I have to slather the kettlebells with vanilla buttercream myself.

Happy Birthday Justin! Enjoy the nachos and make sure to get some extra cheese for me ;)

Happy birthday Justin - and thanks for not calling them "kettleballs" lest we drive the wrong kind of traffic to this site.

I’m ambivalent about the marathon article. If you want to bring the average marathon time back down to what it was in the Seventies, that’s easy. Tell three-quarters of the people who now run that they are excluded for being too slow. That would bring down the average time, but it wouldn’t make the top 25% any faster, just more exclusive.

In a similar way, it is true that today’s “average” college graduate is far less educated than 50 years ago, when the rate of college attendance was probably one quarter of what it is today. Is this a shame, because academic standards are falling (on “average”), or is it wonderful because nearly everyone has at least the option of attending college? Would it be better to restrict college to only those who would have previously made the cut?

see now keith-if we would have kettlebells dipped in vanilla buttercream i know i would be more inclined to come to those rest day kettlebell workouts! and just think how it would spare the grip.

Happy Birthday Justin! I hope that you find your way into every nacho joint, Five Guys Burger, and Baconator you can today! And top it all of with some zone friendly sweet potato pie!

Come back soon Icing Princess!

I love deadlift day!

Deadlift day is awesome!
3x185
3x205
3x225
3x235
3x245 (PR!)

I tried Five Guys last week on the grand opening day. Awesome, 9 thumbs up!

Hari the beauty of being human is that we can be inconsistent. We can exclude people from the marathon if for no other reason than to open up the streets again after 4 or 5 hours. Yet we can keep allowing more people into colleges and let the standard of education slide.

My big problem with higher education is the higher cost. Do we really get our money's worth? If what you say is true, we are paying more for less. Are we really paying for education? Or are we paying for the experience or the degree or to avoid the real world for 4 more years?

I still believe that higher education confers benefits to those that partake of it but I am not convinced that those benefits justify the hefty price tag.

Happy Birthday, Justin! Come back, come back, Icing Princess! (I miss gossiping with you.)

Hari, I agree with your ambivalence on that marathon question. There's no easy answers, and I highly doubt the wisdom of discouraging people from trying the marathon, when we should be happy they're willing to move and exercise at all.

Tyler,

I agree with you about the streets, but given the ubiquitous parades and street fairs, I can’t see why marathoners should not be allowed their day—everyone else is.

On the economics of education, the cost is paid in two ways: tuition and effort. Those who get the least out of education often pay (or have parents who pay) only the former. It is usually only the serious students who also pay the latter.

There is no question that education has been marketed like “globo” gyms, offering the illusion of results without focusing on the work actually required for achieving these results.

And yes, there are many kids who show up on college campuses that clearly do not belong there. On the other hand, it is not a given that these kids are at a point in life where they would be more productive anywhere else.

Interesting article about wine:

Brochet invited 57 wine experts and asked them to give their impressions of what looked like two glasses of red and white wine. The wines were actually the same white wine, one of which had been tinted red with food coloring. But that didn't stop the experts from describing the "red" wine in language typically used to describe red wines.

http://scienceblogs.com/cortex/2007/11/the_subjectivity_of_wine.php?source=rss_feed

Happy bday Justin!

Five course meal for thought on education:
http://www.oecd.org/document/30/0,3343,en_2649_39263238_39251550_1_1_1_1,00.html

Hari/Tyler,

My thoughts about the marathon have to agree with Hari. If everyone else gets their day on the streets, why shouldn't the runners? Also, it has beomce a NYC icon. Like Allison said last week, "If the marathon were in Philadelphia, I wouldn't be running it" (may not be verbatim). Like the Empire State Building, and the Statue of Liberty (friggin New Jersey), the NYC marathon has become a pinnacle of races in the marathon communtiy.

As for college attendance, I truly do not believe that college is for everyone. First, the numbers don't match up. Even though there are new jobs every day, I don't think that the numbers are being filled. For instance, how many people are in a field that they actually got a degree for? This is because of poor planning. Whether it be that a person went for a degree in a highly specific field (technology/science) or one that was too broad (Liberal Arts), there aren't enough of those types of jobs available. Cause hey, somebodies gotta be a plumber, but I don't see a plumbing degree at Dartmouth. (I'll get more into that in a moment)
Second, is the "forgotten quarter". One of my college classes touched base about the piegon hole experience of college attendance. Everyone should go , but it's not for everyone. That is why almost across the board you see about 25% of freshman students leave after their first year. I was surprised at the number at first, until I realized that about 1 in 4 of my friends from freshman year didn't return.
Finally, I think that trade/apprenticeships schools are highly underrated. Work ethic is something that can't be taught in a classroom, and I think that's the biggest part to any job. You could be a genius, but if you're lazy you're not going anywhere. I really do believe that in the next generation or two (25-30) years the college tutuion is going to cap out and a lot of trade schools are going to rise in popularity. First we have to see how far the gap between the rich and poor gets, but that's a completely different discussion altogether.
If you read thorugh this, then thank you for putting up with my incoherent ramblings, and if you want to discuss further then find me at the Box. This is one topic that I have thought a lot about and being able to discuss it when I don't have other things on my mind would be a great pleasure.

Hari - I'm not even sure merit had much to do with who got into college in the past. Time was when the college degree was a social and economic line that would easily allow for society's upper class to maintain itself through generations. Commonplace "legacy admissions", society status being a large factor in consideration, sexual and racial discrimination being the norm, and the widespread practice of families securing spots for their children through large donations to schools are only recently fading.

Further as one looks back, the goals of education (the finish line of the marathon, as it were) have moved. Where once it was intended to provide a broad spectrum of knowledge - where learning conversational Latin and extensive study of the Classics were considered the norm - the practical needs of today's society have transformed most 4-year college programs into an facility to specialize in particular fields.

I originally came to New York to goto NYU for a Masters Program. It was going to cost about $38000 per year.

I eventually decided to take a job offer rather than do the MA, mainly because of the cost.

In the UK, college is a lot less expensive than over here. I studied Artificial Intelligence at Durham University in England and I left with "only" a $30000 overall debt. In addition, I only need to pay off my student debts in the UK, if I earn over a certain amount in the UK. For example: If I returned to the Uk tomorrow and was unemployed I would not be obliged to pay any of my student debts off. If I returned and got a job earning more than GBP 17'000 a year, I would be obliged to start paying off my student loans.

Also, regarding colleges being marketed as globo gyms and essentially offering "mickey mouse" degrees. Yeah sure there are, but there are plenty of colleges still that confer a serious benefit to those that attend them.

I know that my college education was totally worth the money. And I think that's case for all the older and more respected universities, both in the UK and USA.

I have to agree with Sam. I'm in my final month and finishing up my Master's at NYU. I've learned quite a bit from my instructors, who are all top-level executives in the publishing industry and bring a practical hands-on approach to our courses. The contacts I have made while in this program were even better than I had originally hoped for. There definitely are plenty of fly-by-night "get your Masters in less than a year" type deals out there as clearly evidenced by the many cheesy ads on the subways but there are ones that do deliver their promises. That being said, I saw an ad on the train today and I don't quite comprehend how one can get their Bachelor's and Masters while getting their GEDs all in less than 18 months.

Robzilla-interesting points-but I think there is a premise there that i don't agree with -and its about "going to a 4 year school to get a degree in something". I don't think schools are structured in the US do do that-and I don't think its a secret. Even my parents who are in their late 60s-my dad went to city college on full scholarlship and got a degree in political science and then went to law school. My mom went to college in Canada and then went to get her masters i teaching. That was a long time ago.

Sorry to jump in here-but when I was an undergraduate at Columbia College (where Hari went as well) I remebered thinking how am I ever going to use this "Core Curriculum" that they force on us in real life? One of the reasons however my parents encouraged me to chose Columbia was because of its Core Curriculum-which very few schools today offfer. So Moon-there are still some schools out ther with those goals you noted in mind.
The goal of the Core is to provide all students, REGARDLESS of their major or concentration, with wide-ranging perspectives on significant ideas and achievements in literature, philosophy, history, music, art, and science.
The two central year long courses have been around since 1919 and 1937 (i think) and they added art humanities, music humanities and asian humanities. Beleive me, on my own I would never have selected to have read things like Plato's The Republic, Aristotle's Ethics, Dante's Divine Comedy or Fielding's Tom Jones and I nearly cried (maybe I did) when I found out they also made you pass a swimming test and had to complete two full semesters fo phys ed! I think I might have failed the swim test. Too bad crossfit wasnt available for credit.

Anyway all of these required classes are taught in small seminars which gives the students an opportunity to develop intellectual relationships with faculty early on in their school career.

Basically-while these were not courses in "skills" per se such as plumbing or refrigerator repair (which would have also served me well mind you) arguably the skills and habits honed by the Core Curriculum-such as observation, analysis, argument, respect for others' ideas, nuances, and differences— actually provided preparation for life as a "thinking person" no matter what you decide to do for a living in today’s complex and changing world.

Maybe I am too old to be posting about this -but I think its unrealistic for anyone to assume that when you graduate from a four year liberal arts college you are ready to anything-other than make some money -I worked at Banana Republic as a salesperson, at Gymboree as a kids class teacher and in dinner theatre and cabaret-until you decide what it is you may want to do -which usually requires more school and yes more debt. But schools abroad from what I understand have you pick your profession much ealier on in university which sounds great-but how many of us knew exactly what we wanted to do when we were sophmores or juniors in college? Frankly I didnt know what i wanted to do that wekeend much less anything else.
Yes-I agree-college is not for everyone. Trade school is an excellent choice for many people. But those who go to college shouldnt expect to be "practcing" their major. If they want to do that-they should go to a vocational school. I don't think that element has changed much over the years. it has just gotten insanely expensive.

Moon,

I completely agree with all your points.

I prefer our current system to the one of our past. The greatness of any country, group, or institution depends on its willingness to recognize and reward talent.

happy birthday justin

DL
175x3
185x3
195x1, 195F, 195x1
185x3
190x2, 190F

Not bad with jetlag and food poisoning. My one rep max is 223#. And thanks to all who yelled, get it Grandma!!

Nice lifting Roger!

Happy B-Day Justin!

Happy Birthday, Justin

Hari - Cool. My angle is that I don't yet know if I'm behind the idea that colleges in the past put out better educations or were they just broader. In my head, education is the transfer of human collective knowledge. This pool of knowledge expands not unlike that of our universe - not growing at "borders" but within, all around us, at once. The limiting factor is the declining ratio of the capactiy of the mind compared to this pool.

An average doctor of 200 years ago likely had all the medical knowledge of the day to take care of his neighbors and probably many of their domesticated animals. 100 years ago, that doctor probably stuck to people. 50 years ago the doctor and the surgeon and the researcher were distinct groups. Nowadays the gap of knowledge between the osteopathic surgeon, the endocrinologist and the gene therapy researcher make them almost entirely different animals. Each of those are highly educated people within their fields and so might test poorly on understanding of world history or literature.

[Sidebar: CrossFit teaches that specialization may suck for individuals but for society, I believe I disagree. If I had to train for and compete in a decathlon for the best score I could get, I would stuck close to, if not exactly on, the CrossFit goals and regimine. However if I had to pick a team to get the best overall score and could swap in different team members for a particular event, I wouldn't pick a bunch of CrossFitters. I'd pick the most specialized sprinter I could get along with the most specialized shotputter, and a pole vaulter, etc.]

Looping this all back to the marathon discussion, I think you're right (although I don't see you as advocating) in that the way to get the average back up would be to lop off the bottom 3/4 of people. However I don't think "curve blowers" such as Zoe Koplowitz ( http://www.newsday.com/news/local/wire/newyork/ny-bc-ny--lastmarathoner1105nov05,0,5703008.story ) should in any way be discouraged from running. That there are few competitive American elite marathoners is not because there are 20000 slower ones. Ultimately, I think the author of the piece is a whinny asshat who should beat Oprah's time by more than just a few minutes before claiming that she ruined the entire event.

As someone who went to college and is now fully entrenched in a career that has absolutely NOTHING to do what he studied, I wholeheartedly agree with you Michelle. College did nothing to prepare me for my job – but it totally prepared me for real life. College taught me to “think.” All those aspects of thinking and living that you mentioned - observation, analysis, argument, respect for others' ideas, nuances, and differences - that’s what I learned. And that to me is well worth what I (see: my parents) paid for school.

And with that I think that college really is for everyone. Even my friends who will never learn what hard work means or that their parents’ money cannot carry them forever – they learned some valuable lessons from us working stiffs who were their roommates / friends. If nothing else, they will work to make sure they never have a regular job like I do.

Similarly, my friends who went to school and quickly rushed back home – they got a valuable, albeit expensive, lesson about the world outside of the neighborhood mall / Jersey shore bars. And I think that makes them much more thankful about the place they returned to. And maybe a little more cognizant of people outside of their peer group. I think that is worth a whole heck of a lot too.

And I agree that trade schools are going to increase in popularity - the dire need for people with these skills (who will actually get the job done well and on time) will eventually make these jobs attractive enough financially for people to go to school for them.

But what really could have helped me in college were more basic business classes, and I mean really basic. These would have saved me a lot of trouble in my formative work years. Classes like:

- How to avoid chatty people coming to your cube to waste your time
- How to stop surfing the internet even when you have a lot to do
- How to not get too drunk at office functions
- How to hide your internet surfing from the office snitch
- How to take a 2 hour lunch to workout at Crossfit without people noticing

Now that would have helped me negotiate the pitfalls of the real world!

you get out what you put into it. marathon, education, career, health.

the funny thing about the weight article is that it's apparently safer to be slightly overweight. underweight is dangerous, obesity is very dangerous and normal/healthy BMI is second best. i assume the extra weight (be it fat or muscle) provides an energy reserve to soften the blow of a shock to the system. deaths from injuries and respiratory infections were much lower with slightly overweight.

Tom- you forgot-
"how to get an actual office instead of a cube"

if you would have taken that class-you would have obviated the need for a class on the first, third, fourth and fifth items on your list. :)

oh now on a less philisophical note-i got my door gym-yay! but i am having trouble figuring out exaclty how the little back metal piece that is supposed to secure the doorgym to the door frame actually secures anything. does anyone with the doorgym have any idea what i am talking about? i read the one sentence explanation like 50 times but reading the same explnation 50 times didnt change the fact that the first time it made no sense to me and didnt work on my door frame. the doorgym does keep sliding off the door frame if i pull on it too hard. any ideas? it holds up to 300 lbs and while i am on the way to geting some nice arm muscles-- thank you -- I have not quite hit the 300 lb mark.

Deadlifts:

295, 295, 305, 305, 315

Yesterday's tabata mashup

87 Kettlebell swings
48 Knees to elbows

total = 135

Moon,

What defines a "better" education? It used to be that the university itself decided. Now, the students decide. (Students decide less at places like Columbia, which still insists on a "core curriculum," as Michelle points out.)

As higher education has gone from serving a privileged few to serving nearly anyone able to pay, it has shifted from a luxury good to an investment. To the extent that this allows the less affluent to secure skills commensurate with their talent, this is a good thing, even if it means skipping some of the more "broad based" knowledge that the more fortunate have always been free to pursue.

Finally, there is a theory in economics called signaling, which has been used to explain the entire college process. As it applies to education, the theory suggests that from the employer's point of view, the specific knowledge the student gains in college is almost irrelevant. What is relevant is demonstrating (signaling) the skill and determination to make it through college. (Sure lots of people with skill and determination don't go to college, but employers are lazy and rely on diplomas, even if they overlook lots of good people.) The diploma implies the ability to learn what the employer really needs done.

And if you don't like what the employers are offering, a diploma plus an LSAT score signals the ability to make it through law school.

oh Hari that is so true! In fact, by the time I interviewd for my job at my second law firm they basically wanted to know what law firm I was coming from-because they figured if i was coming from a good law firm, then that law firm already decided if my law school and the grades I got there were enough evidence that I could hack it at their firm-they could care less where I went to college. Where I went to college was only relevant when I applied to law school.

McClelland's argument is pretty weird. "The more we run marathons, the slower we get -- an average of 45 minutes slower over the last 25 years."

Well, who is the "we" in this sentence? Americans? Far more Americans could complete a marathon today than they could 25 years ago, so I would strongly suggest that "we" are in fact getting faster and fitter.

There's a second part to McCelland's article- that the popularization of the marathon has taken the elite sheen off the event and has discouraged elite athletes from taking part in it. Mayyybe, although the boom in interest has also made possible vastly increased prize money. But also, elite endurance athletes have also just moved on to different things -- triathlons, ultramarathons, adventure racing, etc.

Alternating Deadlifts (3x5) and Presses (5x5)

DL:
115, 135, 155, 160, 165, 175

Presses:
53, 63, 67, 72x2 72x3 Push Press, 72x2 72x3 PP

67 was previous Press PR. Wonder what I can do with singles. Nice.

Too many college words...make brain hurt!
Stop t a l k i n g!
Hmmmmmn...

DL

275x3
295x3
315x3
335x3
315x3

Brain now better.

PLUS...
my girlfriend, Morgan, came in for her second CF WOD today since she is on vacation this week. She did the squat WOD from Tues. and swore the whole time. Was sore today and was surprised to find that doing the WU made her less sore...then she started DL for the first time and thought I should stop around 85x3 but then she said "Bring it on, bitch!" so she went up to 115x3 and I think she could still go even higher but I didn't want her form to break down 'cuz she was doing so well. So I'm very proud of her for taking a risk and trying out this crazy workout we do. She said it felt great and she did it all in one of our new CFNYC tanktops. Pics to follow. Welcome her if you get a chance.

Happy Birthday, Justin! Fran & nachos for time!

KAIJU BIG BATTEL
FRIDAY, 9 NOV 2007, 8 PM
THE WARSAW - 261 DRIGGS AVE - BROOKLYN, NY 11222 - 718 387-0505

http://youtube.com/watch?v=UJc8m1VYB5Q

http://www.kaiju.com/vid_smxviii.htm

WHO'S WITH ME???

hey Court when is Morgan coming back?? Saturday?

Tried to make 8:15 class but instructor would not shut the hell up about friggin widgets and its many functions. Hit the local NYSC.

185x3
195x3
205x3
210-1 210-Fail(grip strength was shot) 210-Fail
205-1 205-1 200-1

My grip strength was fried and i had to drop down in weight to complete WOD. I gotta hit the dead hangs hard and work on the grip strength. Would have been nice if they had some chalk as well.

I saw Morgan at the Box the other day and was very impressed. Welcome to the jungle, baby!

I saw Kaiju Big Battel a couple of years ago and was also very impressed. It was sold out and I had to buy a ticket off the street for my friend. So try to get tickets in advance or expect to scavenge a ticket. I'd go with you, Moon, but I have plans. Maybe you'll bump into some friends of mine.

Welcome Morgan and Kaiju.

Morgan thats it --kick ass with the big boys and girls! Awesome numbers for 1st ever deadlifts!

DL Day
275 x 3
295 x 3
315 x 3
335 x 3 (PR)
345 x 3 (PR)
Going for 400# by December!

Moon good work man! You dug deep man. Knew you had it in you!

hey jack-i dont have ur email address-email me if u have a chance-michellefoxman@yahoo.com
thx!

Deadlifts.
275x3
295x3
315x3
315x3
320x3

Morgan - Rawk on.

Jack - ow.

Congrats on the Dead #'s guys! Way to go Jack and Moon. Very impressive. I went to the 1230 class only to realize I had to work at 2PM instead of 4. My mistake. Anyway Ill try this later this week.