Sunday Story…Living Longer, Better

I started CrossFit many years ago (2008) to get in better shape for my antics in Brazilian Jiujitsu. It worked very well and then took over my life. The dark places a soul-crushing wod could take me served me well.

But now it’s time to shift and I want to take all of you with me. Over the last 3 or4 years, it has become increasingly obvious that crushing yourself in every workout, 5 or 6 days a week, may not actually be moving you further along the health and fitness continuum.

So, the question is simple: What do I need to do to live longer, better? It does me no good to live to be 100 if I spend the last 25 years as an invalid, unable to move and enjoy the life I am living.

The answer is this…your heart and lungs need to operate at a high level. You must maintain your strength and muscle mass. You must still be able to move quickly for very short periods. These 3 pathways are what we have always emphasized in CrossFit. Now, as we age, we need to implement them a little differently.

I still work out 5 or 6 days a week. But now I spend much more time in “zone 2” training and strength-only training. I have dialed back the “zone 5” work to once or twice a week. “Zone 5” is that dark place you might go when doing 50 thrusters or a max effort of 500m row or “Fran”.

LLB (living longer better) is a programmed, coached system designed to do exactly what it is named…Living Longer Better. I believe we should all be doing some of this and all of us should be doing more and more of it as we get more mature. I guess that’s what this whole growing older thing is about!

Reach out…I have a couple programs that will work for you.

More details next week.

 

John Mariotti

775-338-2412

www.crossfitodyssey.com

www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com