Rollin’ with the homies

Scarlett playing hide the lacrosse ball

Sorry that this post is late. The rain and wind last night made a transformer on my street explode in a parade of lights. It looked like Tinkerbell was wrestling with a lightning bolt.

We exercise. We get sore. We get tight. Rinse and repeat. I’m no scientist (I don’t even play one of TV), but I do know how to Google and fortunately know how to read, albeit at a 7^th grade level. There is something you can do to help soreness, get stronger and more flexible, but first we should talk about why you get sore.

Delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS not to be confused with Douchey Obnoxious Man-Sandals) is caused from high intensity exercise, i.e. CrossFit. This exercise causes tiny microscopic tears in your muscle fiber resulting in a little bit of muscle inflammation. Don’t worry as this is pretty normal, but chronic inflammation without proper myofascial release and stretching can lead to the thickening of the fascia and soft connective tissue. Thickening of the soft tissue can cause pain and irritation which results in muscle tension and more inflammation. Hence the downward spiral of your muscle pliability and flexibility. This is only exacerbated (word of the day June 8, 2002) by sitting at a desk 8 hours a day and sitting in traffic for another 90 minutes.

Remy smiles during the WOD and frowns on the foam roller

Myofascial Release means the release of the soft connective tissue that surrounds the muscle and other parts of the body. We can accomplish this in a few different ways. We can get a massage every day after our workouts. If this is the route you want to go, I would highly recommend Kathryne Pierce 310-465-6363. She has experience with working on people who have intense workout schedules and knows where you get sore. The best part is that she’s only $60 for an hour. Just ask for the CrossFit special. If you can’t afford a massage daily, then there is a poor man’s special. The foam roller and lacrosse ball can accomplish myofascial release almost just as good as a massage. The only difference is that a massage is relaxing and the foam roller/lacrosse ball can feel like Satan is stabbing you with a pitchfork, but the end result is the same.

Myofascial release is important because it breaks down the scar tissue thus breaking the downward spiral of muscle pain and tightness. If we let it go too long, what happens is that our muscles start to pull on our skeletal system which causes our framework to come out of alignment. Think of those guys at the gym who do bench press 3 times a week walking around with shoulders hunched forward. On a smaller scale, fibrosis, or thickening of the connective tissue, can lead to joint pain. For example some knee and hip pain can be caused from tightening of the IT band which runs down the side of your leg. The IT band begins to pull on your hip and kneecap causing them to come out of alignment or causing undo stress. If your knee pops, it could be from the kneecap sliding out of the patellar groove and popping back in again. Too much of this and you develop pain which means less working out which means grumpy time.

This is Chad's "Thank you Forrest for a great workout" face

Over the next few weeks we will be working on several different foam rolling and stretching techniques as our training is gradually becoming more intense. Come in early and leave late to make sure you are foam rolling and stretching. You will see an improvement in strength, speed, flexibility and range of motion. It will also help decrease muscle and joint pain. Now that the weather is getting colder, it’s a great idea to make sure you are keeping your muscles and soft connective tissue pliable and flexible. Try to step back from your desk and stretch a little bit at work or while you are at home watching TV. CrossFit isn’t just about the stopwatch, it’s about elite fitness, so nut up or shut up and get on the foam roller!

WOD 12.8.2009

Hang Power Clean 4-4-4

400M Run
5 Rounds
20 1 arm OHS
20 Ball Slams
400M Run