Akross The Middle

Vegas & The IPL World Power Lifting Championships

Make Ridiculous Goals

Last Wednesday Nick & I left for Vegas with a few simple goals... Make sure we got a qualifying lift in each category (squat, Bench, Deadlift) and to perform a triple BW deadlift.

We not only accomplished both but also learned A LOT! In the process Nick won his division and is the IPL Power Lifting World Champiion for the 198# Raw Division! Nick also qualified for next years competition and I suspect, has now found what he wants to specialize in... Either way the planning has now begun and I suspect that it will be a damn fun year with a lot of big accomplishments. 

While there is a lot more to this story, the most important thing is that we left with two goals, and we accomplished both. Next year we will be going in a hell of a lot smarter and much more prepared... That is if Nick doesn't move his gym the month before the competition ;) 

Can't tell you how proud I am to not only call myself your Coach, but also for your performance on Thursday. Competition and the spotlight can cause a lot of people to crumble or quit. Not you my friend... 1600 is within reach next year!

If you see or know Nick, make sure you tell him that he sucks at benching and needs to improve! 

CONN

Nick Conn, Friend, Client, Competitor, Coach & Owner of CrossFit Goodland will be competing at the Men's & Women's World Powerlifting Championships from November 30th - December 4th! As of right now Nick will be competing on December 1st. The competition will be held in Las Vegas at the Golden Nugget! 

Nick has been a client of Akross The Middle Athletics for nearly 6 months now and we have been able to accomplish a tremendous amount of improvement and strength in the fields of Olympic Lifting & Power Lifting in this short period of time. Most recently, Nicks biggest and most impressive accomplishment has been balancing not only preparing for this meet, but also owning a box and Completely moving his gym last month!

It has been and will continue to be a pleasure and incredible opportunity to work with and call myself Nicks Coach! I look forward to sharing in all of the success that is sure to come! 

Make sure to wish Nick some luck over the next week or two. We're planning on bringing home the gold and maybe a few Vegas stories...

Game On Brotha!

 

Something Special Is Happening At CFTO

For some time now I have been in discussions with the owners at CFTO about bringing a special program to the athletes at CFTO! Well... The time has come; ATM Athletics and CFTO have officially partnered up and our 14 week Olympic Lifting Cycle begins next Monday! 

Earlier this evening I got a great opportunity to meet with many of the athletes, present the program and answer their questions. The program will lead us right into the CrossFit Games open in late February. The opportunties of the program are limitless, its just up to you to commit and take full advantage! I look forward to seeing you find the success that I know you are all capable of finding! 

 I have worked with a number of CFTO athletes on a regular basis for well over a year now and I must say that in addition to having the opportunity to do this, it will be an honor to have this chance to both provide elite program design & coaching to every athlete at CFTO, but to also have the chance to interact and coach each & every athlete at CFTO. Enjoy the holidays... Come Monday, its on!!!! 

Some important info from CFTO about the program:

What this Means to You We’re still doing CrossFit, of course.  And we'll continue to train and condition everyone in every dimension of functional fitness as usual. Olympic Lifting will be an emphasis. The benefits of this emphasis will be measurable improvements in strength, speed, flexibility, agility, coordination, and balance. How This will Affect Classes Each week throughout the 12-week cycle, several classes will include an emphasis on Olympic Lifting or on the exercises and capacities that support Oly Lifting. There will be a steady progression to the programming that is intended to peak in mid-February, which will be ideal timing for our athletes who want to participate in the CrossFit Open and the Games. You don’t need to do anything to participate. Just show up as usual. Who's Coach Major? The Olympic-Lifting programming and coach-training for this cycle will be provided by coach Matt Major, owner of Akross the Middle Athletics. Major is an experienced Olympic Lifting coach who has helped CrossFit athletes reach the CrossFit Regionals and the Games. Do More: Be sure to attend classes the weeks of November 28 and February 13, because we'll do a series of benchmarks to measure your progress.   To supplement your training or to make up for any missed sessions, you may also wish to take part in any or all of the bi-weekly Workshops we'll be offering.  These biweekly Workshops will be held every other Wednesday at 7:30pm, after our normal classes. The cost will be $20 per workshop, and we’ll need a minimum of 6 to hold the session. To ensure high-quality coaching and individual attention we’ll cap attendance at 10 participants. If there is adequate demand, we’ll repeat the workshop the following week. Workout with Major: Coach Major will workout Tuesdays at 4:30pm, and he’ll be available during that time to answer questions and coach others.  At times, Major may also coach the 5:30 and 6:30pm classes on Tuesdays as well.  - On a side note, it has always and will always be my policy to support each athlete completely! If you ever have a question, concern or just want some advice... DO NOT hesitate to call, text or email me at anytime! I also have a garge gym where I train all of my personal clients that you will have access to as needed. Carpe-Diem my friends... Seize this opportunity!

Olympic Lifting Workshop This Sunday August 14th with CrossFit Newbury Park!

This Sunday from 1-3PM in conjuction with CrossFit Newbury Park, ATM Athletics will be teaching what is sure to be a fun group of dedicated Crossfit'ers! The workshop will focus on introducing the Snatch and some of the core foundational exercises that will not only provide them with the knowledge to find success at the snatch, but also set this great group of athletes on a path to success! My hope is for this workshop to be the first of many with this great group! 

*Because of the high demand for the workshop we were forced to find a larger location... A big thank you to CrossFit Thousand Oaks for allowing us to use their facility this Sunday!

A few words from ATM Athlete and Owner of CrossFit Newbury Park, Cristina Harper...

CrossFit Newbury Park was officially established in September of 2010. CrossFit Newbury Park is affiliated with Newbury Park Physical Therapy where currently all the classes are being conducted. We are a small but unique CrossFit because many of the athletes that take the CrossFit classes are former patients of NPPT. I say former because they have all come a long way through their perseverance, strength, passion and just the general bad ass-ness they all exude! CrossFit Newbury Park is all about taking an athlete and helping them remember how great it is to be fit and strong but have fun at the same time. There is one statement that can describe CFNP - “Never a Failure, Always a Lesson” and it is so true!

Oly I Crew Rages At Goodland

Oly I Concludes At CrossFit Goodland

Earlier today I was able to celebrate my love for Olympic Lifting with an inspiring group of energized lifters! While we learned that hosting Oly Meets on Saturday morning in Goleta during the middle of Summer is a tough sell, we also learned that this committed group came prepared and ready to set multiple PR's! 

Over the course of 5 weeks I had the pleasure of hopping in the car for the quick drive north to Goleta to Coach an impressive group of 8 Olympic Lifters from CrossFit Goodland; where my good friend and client Nick Conn is Owner and Head Coach. This group was one of the most prepared groups I have coached which is both a tribute to them as individuals but even more so a compliment to Nick and the quality environment that he has built and molded at the Goodland. 

In addition to that, without question---> I can easily say that there was not one second where I wasn't having a great time, from top to bottom and side to side, you have built something special and unique bro. No matter what, don't let go of or try to change what you've built, you've done it the right way and I'm here to support you any way I can! 

A few things to take note of, J.T. started a new tradition by bringing a cucumber (yes I said cucumber) wrapped in tinfoil which was for Nick who was suppose to wear his new singlet. (use your imagination) Luckily (depending on how you look at it) it did not arrive... So we had to do something with that cucumber, thus the Goodland Oly I MVP trophy was born and luckily there was no question that little Christine Na and future Olympian :) was today's MVP and proud recipient of this massive cucumber!!!! Little Na not only clean and jerked her BW today but is also fast approaching an 85% BW snatch

Once again, thank you all for stepping up and being the first at the Goodland to take Oly I. You guys were a great group and each and everyone of you made some impressive improvements! And finally, a BIG shout out to big Ted, it was so great to have you in the workshop and work with you again, even better than that though, it was a great sight to see you improve SO MUCH in the few short weeks we had together. Great work my friend, I was impressed!

Stay in touch everyone, I look forward to working with you all again soon!