Elliot is our "Student Athlete of the Week". I can remember the first conversation I had with Elliot. He said..."I just joined The Sports Club/LA last week but, I am a gym phobic! They told me I have five days to cancel my membership, what should I do?" Of course we all know what I recommended... two days later he was one of the founding students at LALANNE FITNESS! Elliot had no history of 'working out'. Aside from the random yoga classes and a casual bike ride in the park, he was not he 'gym' going type of guy. Many of our students say something similar. They are uncomfortable about going to the 'gym' or are simply looking for a change. For Elliot, the last three months here have been very empowering. He is a changed man. He has more strength, more confidence, more fitness!

A display of confidence by Elliot!

"Workout of the Day"
"PUKIE BREWSTER"
150 burpees for time

"Wise are those who learn that the bottom line doesn't always have to be their top priority." -William Arthur Ward

The Kipping Pull-Up is a signature CrossFit movement! Eva Twardokens, an Olympic athlete and CrossFit trainer is well-known for her ability to teach the kipping pull-up progressions. Watch her coaching demonstration then try a few on your own!

John has developed an impressive kipping pull-up!

"Workout of the Day"
Five rounds for time:
10 Burpee
10 Sumo-Deadlift High-Pull
10 Box Jump
10 Pull-Up

"A life spent making mistakes is not only more honorable, but more useful than a life spent doing nothing." -George Bernard Shaw

If I had one suggestion for every one out there on a treadmill, stationary bike, eliptical machine or any other non-functional machine...it would be, to figure out how to develop some degree of intensity. First choose free-weight and body-weight based, functional movement(s) and combine them in a constantly varied pattern, executed at high intensity. We call it the "RED ZONE". If you're not in the RED ZONE than you're not working hard enough. Of course we don't jump right into this relatively high level of intensity...you must work your way into it! The three stages of performance improvement are 1. Mechanics (learning how to perform the exercises correctly!) 2. Consistency (showing up, not quitting!) 3. Intensity( think of this as a long on ramp to the free-way of INTENSITY!) Intensity is the secret to getting results! Watch this VIDEO for a better understanding of intensity! INTENSITY=RESULTS!

Marcus knows about intensity!

"Workout of the Day"
"NATE"
Complete as many rounds as you
can in 20 minutes of:
2 muscle-ups
4 handstand push-ups
8 kettlebell swings, 2 pood (75 lb)

"NO struggle, NO strength." -Maribel LaLanne

What is "Elite Fitness"? Elite Fitness is a higher level of fitness, skill and physical capability. At LALANNE FITNESS, students are placed in a category (beginner, level 1, 2 and 3) progressing as they demonstrate increases in fitness and skill. We train like athletes looking to achieve more and reach higher because each of us have recreational hobbies, sports, physical aspirations and athletic endeavors in which we want to improve upon. CrossFit is how we do that! By the way, the chances are that if you train like an athlete, you will look like one!

An ALL LEVELS class!

"Workout of the Day"
"ELIZABETH "
21-15-9 reps for time:
135 lb clean
Ring dips

"Jumping at several small opportunities may get us there more quickly than waiting for one big one to come along." -Hugh Allen

The story below is about a student that has come a long way since his first CrossFit workout at LALANNE FITNESS. A man that went from "Not-fit... to CrossFit."

Three weeks ago I signed up with Lalanne Fitness. This is a big deal for me because I told Chris when I met him that I would never buy a gym membership. Famous last words. Lalanne Fitness is unlike any other gym that I've seen. The workouts are focused and follow a get in, get out and get on with it approach.

The most interesting part of the Crossfit program and what Chris has done with it is that he uses the group dynamic in an extremely positive way. We all encourage each other to work as hard we can during the WODs--even if we don't say anything to one another. When one person is having a tough time with the WOD (usually me), the others rally around them to cheer them on. This competitive/community-minded approach makes me really want to be there....

Here's Chris perfecting his Overhead Squat!

"Workout of the Day"
Five rounds for time:
Row 500 meters
Run 400 meters

"Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself." -Leo Tolstoy

Jack LaLanne's grand-nephew espouses fitness too...
Maribel LaLanne works out with her husband's Crossfit Gym class on the Embarcadero on Thursday, August 28, 2008. Chris LaLanne, grandnephew of Jack LaLanne, the 93-year-old fitness guru who was born in San Francisco, is giving his famous relative a run for his fitness money. LaLanne, with ripped body and shaved head, has just opened his own gym in San Francisco's South of Market. LaLanne the younger trained for years with LaLanne the elder, but has tweaked his mentor's approach to make it his own.

Reporter Julian Guthrie wrote about her experience HERE!

"Workout of the Day"
TABATA SOMETHING ELSE
Tabata interval for reps:
Pull-ups
Push-ups
Sit-ups
Squats
There is no rest between exercises.
Score is total reps from all 4
intervals (32 sets).

"Believe in yourself! Have faith in your abilities! Without a humble but reasonable confidence in your own powers you cannot be successful or happy." -Norman Vincent Peale

I'm an information junkie. When it comes to learning more about fitness and nutrition, I am constantly searching for new material in an effort to learn more and understand better, in turn, educating the community and the students at LALANNE FITNESS. After 15 years as a professional trainer, I have not come across more useful, practical information than what is published in the CrossFit Journal. Check out the brand new format for this priceless resource!

"The CrossFit Journal is a chronicle of the empirically driven, clinically tested, and community developed CrossFit program. Our mission is to provide a venue for contributing coaches, trainers, athletes, and researchers to ponder, study, debate, and define fitness and collectively advance the art and science of optimizing human performance." -Greg Glassman, CrossFit Founder

Jake and crew arrive at the Embarcadero for the "Workout of the Day".

"Workout of the Day"
As many rounds as possible in 20 minutes of:
10 Thrusters #65
10 Pull-ups

"Positive thinking will let you do everything better than negative thinking will." -Zig Ziglar

Jenny is our "Student Athlete of the Week". She has an amazing presence here at LALANNE FITNESS and is doing everything she can to attain "Elite Fitness". Not only does she CrossFit three days per week at LALANNE FITNESS, she's a student of trapeze and preparing for an upcoming perfromance. She is also participating in a 3-day 60 mile breast cancer 'walk' in honor of her mother who is a breast cancer survivor. Keep going strong Jenny, you are an inspiration to us all!

Jenny in control of the kettlebell.

"Today's Workout"
"GRACE"
For time:
30 clean and jerks
(Watch THIS for an idea of what intensity looks like!)


"Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Willing is not enough; we must do." -Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Much is currently being made of “functional exercise.” A Google search returned 950,000 hits for “functional exercise.” Even a cursory review of the Internet sites featuring “functional exercise” would seem to support the notion that functional exercise is something done on/with Swiss Balls and rubber bands...

Bryan and Alex focused on the target!

"Today's Workout"
"Karen"
For time:
150 Wall Ball Shots
(#20 or #10 ball)

"It's amazing what ordinary people can do if they set out without preconceived notions." -Charles F. Kettering

My mission in life is to help people, help themselves! Every student at LALANNE FITNESS is given the tools change their own life. I extend myself to each and every one, holding them accountable, while at the same time placing the responsibility in their hands. This often leads to life changing success stories. Do you have a success story to tell?

A very successful, accomplished group of students!

"Today's Workout"
Five rounds for time:
10 Burpee's
10 Sumo-Deadlift High-Pull
10 Wall Ball
10 Pull-Ups

"You may delay, but time will not." -Benjamin Franklin

One of the most effective abdominal exercies we perform at LALANNE FITNESS is the "Knees to Elbows". This is a total body movement that requires a degree of arm, shoulder, back and hip strength. This movement is far more functional than any 'ab' machine on the market. Watch this video and then try a few for yourself!


Here's a few of our students getting their knees to elbow!

"Today's Workout"
Five rounds for time:
Run 400 meters
21 Sit-ups
21 Back Ext.
21 Knees to Elbows

"Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Willing is not enough; we must do." -Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

The deadlift’s primal functionality, whole-body nature, and mechanical advantage with large loads suggest its strong neuroendocrine impact, and for most athletes the deadlift delivers such a quick boost in general strength and sense of power that its benefits are easily...


"Today's Workout"
"Diane"

21-15-9 reps of:
Deadlift 225
Handstand push-ups

This is 3 rounds; the first at 21 reps, the second at 15, and the third at 9 reps. It's expected that you'll need to partition the sets, e.g., Deadlift 7-7-7 & Handstand push-up 3-3-3-3-3-3-3 as a first round. Interval management - work/rest timing to optimize time - is an essential skill.

If the load is too much under any partitioning scheme, reduce it. If you need help with the handstand push-up, take it in any manner you can get it. If the handstand push-up (HSPU) is clearly beyond your current capacity, substitute a standing dumbbell shoulder press (hip and leg free). Though a less functional press, the standing shoulder press is a closer simulation to the HSPU than the more functional push-press or jerk. The point is that there's a manageable substitution for this workout for everyone that preserves both its mechanical and metabolic characteristics - this will be "your Diane."

"The quality, not the longevity, of one's life is what is important." -Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Life is unpredictable. Therefore, your method of training should not be limited by a 'routine' or set pattern. Your workout should change everyday and reflect this unknowable nature of life. The 'workout of the day' here at LALANNE FITNESS is constantly varied. Not only does this develop a general physical preparation for life, it also makes for an exciting and challenging experience at each class! Check out what Maribel created with a deck of cards. This workout is randomized within our seemingly random approach to training.


"Today's Workout"
"Deck of Death"
Thrusters(Clubs)
Squats(Spades)
Push-ups(Hearts)
Sit-ups(Diamonds)
RUN 400m(Joker x4)
Ace (11 reps. adv. or 1 rep. beg.)

Shuffle a deck of 52 cards.
Draw a card after completing the given number of repetitions of previous card.
The card number is the number of repetitions(face cards is 10)of the exercise.
The exercise corresponds to suit!

"Improvement begins with I." -Arnold H. Glasgow

THE ZONE DIET:
1. www.zonediet.com
2. Wikipedia
3. "A Week in the Zone" by Barry Sears
4. www.drsears.com
5. The Zone Diet delivered


"Today's Workout"
"Murph"
For time:
1 mile Run
100 Pull-ups
200 Push-ups
300 Squats
1 mile Run
Partition the pull-ups, push-ups, and squats as needed. Start and finish with a mile run. If you've got a twenty pound vest or body armor, wear it.

"Success is steady progress toward one's personal goals." -Jim Rohn

Our "Student Athlete of the Week" is Jon. He has been one of the most consistent students we have since beginning here at LALANNE FITNESS. This has proven to be the key to his success and everyone else that is working toward ELITE FITNESS. Jon is intrinsically motivated and works very, very hard! Along with his amazing performances in class, Jon has also had a considerable drop in bodyfat while increasing muscle tone! Keep it up Jon.


"Today's Workout"
"Grace"
For time:
30 Squat Clean & Jerks
(#135, 95, or 65)

"I had to pick myself up and get on with it, do it all over again, only even better this time." -Sam Walton