In Episode Three of the Always Forward Podcast, Hosts JP and Phil "In the Morning" break down the difficult topic of how to Define and Measure Fitness.  In the gym, you hear the coaches talking about stimulus and affecting the right pathways, this week's podcast will break down some of the aerobic and anaerobic pathways used during your fitness experience.  Lastly, JP and Phil take on the Fitness and Wellness Continuum you have read us talking about here on the blog. 

This week's HOT TAKE is going to bring some interesting discussion.  Please make sure and comment about your take on this week's HOT TAKE!

We are LIVE on iTunes now.  Please click the iTunes logo and it will take you directly to our page.  Please make sure to Subscribe, Rate and Review our Podcast. 

This episode of the Always Forward Podcast has been brought to you by Boxstar Apparel.  Find more information about Boxstar Apparel at www.boxstarapparel.com.
Make sure to listen to the podcast for your code to get the Always Forward Discount. 

Cookout at Dr. Swanson's Place - June 29
MCF Athlete, Dr. Raul Swanson is hosting members of our gym (6/29) at noon for a cookout and swimming.  He will be providing the meet for the meal, you just need to bring a side dish and your smile as this community continues to come together.  Prior to the cookout at noon, reminder that Saturday's Workout at 10:00am is a Bring a Friend day in which you can bring a family or friend who are interested in trying MCF out for free

Always Forward Podcast
https://www.mossycreekfitness.com/podcast.html
Hosting this past weeks Episode, Coach Phil and Coach Jamison join up with Guest to talk about our guiding core values and the Always Forward Mantra.  Coming up, they will be talking about three daily habits.  Podcasts are currently being published through the blog and on our website on Mondays.  We will be distributing audio only versions through normal podcast locations soon. 

FNX Supplement Orders
MCF places FNX Supplement orders every Friday on behalf of our athletes request.  If you are interested in any supplements to help you perform better or recover faster, please see one of our coaches or MCF staff.  More information about FNX can be found at their website https://fnxfit.com/ You can reach out to one of the coaches, or see the order sheet in the lobby by the FNX display. 

Bristol Burnout - July 27th
www.speedwaycharities.org/events/bristol/bristol-burnout/
The Bristol Burnout is an excellent team competition being held at the Bristol Motor Speedway on July 27th.  Three workouts will be help with the top 6 teams moving to a championship workout.  MCF already has members signed up to compete, and we are looking for more to hit the competition floor as well, as to come out and cheer on our athletes.

Jacked and Tan - July 27th
http://crossfitktown.com/jandt/
The annual Jacked and Tan Classic put on by Crossfit KTown.  "You need be neither jacked nor tan for this event! So find a partner and get registered for the best damn same sex partner competition held in the 37921 zip code on a Saturday in July!" (CFKT)

We want to wish a Happy Birthday to our MCF athletes who have birthdays coming up next week.  If you see these folks in the gym, or just wish to reach out, please wish them a Happy Birthday (and be prepared for a couple birthday burpees to celebrate)

Bradley Thompson - 7/2
Debbie Stepp - 7/2
Lindi Thomas - 7/3
Brooke Emmert - 7/4
Christine Smith - 7/4
Andrew Masengill - 7/6

If your birthday is this week and you don't see it here, check your Wodify Account settings or talk with one of our staff to update your record. 

So many personal records happening this week.  We are proud of our athletes and their growth at Mossy Creek Fitness.  Keep up the great work!

Amber Day - Back Squat
Andrew Nance - Back Squat
Angela Clapp - Back Squat
Bethany McNabb - Back Squat
Brooke Hodgson - Back Squat
David Burton - Helen
David Crabtree - Helen
Derek Bowers - Helen
Drew Dalton - Back Squat
Evan McNair - Back Squat
Jacob Geldrich - Back Squat
Jamie Norman - Back Squat
Josh Brown - Back Squat
Kelsey Jenkins - Helen
Kim Durfey - Back Squat
Kollynn Hurst - Back Squat
Ksenia Naydenova - Helen
Leah Belcher - Helen
Leslie Moore - Back Squat
Luke James - Back Squat
Luke Norman - Back Squat
Maria Vicens - Back Squat
Sarah James - Back Squat
Sierra Zurek - Back Squat
Sydney Chrisman - Helen
Tanzi Farrow - Back Squat
Tommy Clapp - Helen
Travis Jenkins - Back Squat, Helen
Will Dalton - Back Squat, Helen

If you hit a personal record (PR)  this week and you don't see it here, please talk with one of our staff to check your record.  Always keep track of your WOD results in Wodify so we can see your progress.

We would like to ask you to help celebrate the growth of our Mossy Creek community.  During the month of June, Mossy Creek Fitness welcomed 9 new members.  If you see any of these new members, make sure and say hello and help share the community that is MCF.

If you are one of individuals listed below, welcome!  We are excited that you chose us for your journey on the fitness wellness continuum.  Please go below in the comments and give us something you think we should know about you. 

6/27 Dustin Chambers
6/27 Jessie Riddle
6/19 Joseph McCain
6/15 Whitney Cureton
6/10 Siera Courtney
6/4 Nila Parrot
6/3 Adam Richard
6/3 Jes Williamson
6/3 Brianna Griffith

Welcome to Mossy Creek Fitness!

So you found this thing called fitness, and you are devoting all of your time to the process. You are making sure to come to the box in time to get signed in, and warm-up the body in preparation for today's WOD.  You see today's workout is one that is in your wheelhouse and you are in the right mindset to set a PR. 

If I don't need no stinkin' rest describes you in the last example then you may need to rethink your mindset .  I have heard random things around MCF when it comes to rest and they sound a little something like "you won't ever grow if you take rest days, or rest days are for people who (fill in the blanks). 

Rest days are important!  In the section on recovery, we will talk about some of the things that you can do on your rest day. Rest is imperative to allow for the opportunity to recoup from the stress of the workouts and life.  It allows time for the muscles to repair, inflammation to reduce, and ligaments, and tendons to relax. This allows you to come back stronger and better when heading back into the box for another WOD. 

Work/rest cycles are different for every individual, but they do need to be factored into every athlete's training schedule.  Some of the most common options would be a 3 on 1 off rotation, 5 on 2 off, or 1 on 1 off. 

When we say take a rest day, we don't mean to simply go into your living room and watch television, although there are times in which that may sound like fun.  Rest days are considered recovery days.  To help in this area, MCF is partnering with Amber Day of Benchmark Physical Therapy to discuss the difference between active and passive recovery methods. 

Active Recovery
"The first three letters say it all - act".  The concept is to decrease the overall load from your typical WODs at MCF.  This might include a hike, a walk, paddle boarding, kayaking, a bike ride, or coming to MCF to get in some foam rolling.  Active recovery keeps you moving, and provides a vast amount of benefits.  Some of those benefits are preventing injury, maintaining heart rates between workouts, reducing  lactic acid build-up to limit muscle soreness, and improving mood to avoid crashing after higher intensity workouts. 

Passive Recovery
This form of recovery requires little to no effort, and usually entails the aid of a trained/skilled professional such as a physical therapist, or massage therapist.  Some examples of passive recovery would include soft tissue massage, myofascial release, joint mobilization, passive stretching, dry needling, cupping, and other modalities such as electrical stimulation and cryotherapy. 

• To help our athletes, many of these techniques are now being provided at Mossy Creek Fitness.  Amber Day, PT, DPT, with Benchmark Physical Therapy, can help you with your passive recovery days with modalities such as
  • Dry Needling - Involves insertion of small gauged needles into various regions of the muscle(s) that may be responsible for pain/mobility restrictions. 
    
  • Cupping - Involved the placement of suction cups onto various body regions to promote blood flow, improve mobility and reduce pain.
    
  • ASTYM(TM) - tool assisted soft tissue massage that has proved to regenerate soft tissue dysfunction and resorb scarred tissue, which may be responsible for mobility restrictions. 
    

Passive recovery should be used as part of a total perspective and not the only recovery technique.  Active and Passive recovery techniques should be integrated to the wellness continuum to ensure your body recovers from your fitness journey. 

So your journey has resulted in an injury, and this set you back.  Now is when we look at  rehabilitation versus recovery.  Rehabilitation is an an active process in which we work together with a skilled physical therapist in an effort to get you back on track in the quickest, yet most effective manner possible.

Rehabilitation can include any of the passive treatments that are listed above, the difference, is that the process begins with the development of an individualized treatment plan to meet your bio mechanical faults.    A long way of saying we will get you back on track! 

Maybe you need to ask your self a couple of questions to see if this is where you stand right now.

• Do you have a nagging pain that prevents you from performing certain movements?
• Have you taken time off from the gym altogether?

During your evaluation, an assessment will be conducted to determine what your limitations might be during your rehabilitation period.  This assessment will determine the most appropriate course of treatment that will include an exercise plan to keep you active during this time.  This may simply be a modification of your current activity, a home exercise progression plan, manual therapies, and corrective actions.  All to ensure that you are able to safely and effectively transition back to what you love doing most.  Whether it is Crossfit, BX, or just doing the things of daily life. 

Amber Day, PT, DPT, with Benchmark Physical Therapy, offers a variety of services for those athletes looking to recover with a wellness visit, or after an injury to rehabilitate.  Depending upon the services necessary, there are cash options available, as well as a variety of insurance plans taken. 

Benchmark Physical Therapy offers services at their Mossy Creek Fitness location on Tuesday from 4p-7p and at their Jefferson City location on Broadway Boulevard from 8a-5p Monday through Friday.

Contact Amber at [email protected] or by calling (865)471-6890

Episode Two of the Always Forward Podcast welcomes back hosts Jamison Price and Phil Rhodes.  In this episode, our hosts talk about the Power of Habit, and more specifically three daily habits.  JP and Phil will divulge what these three habits are, how they can integrated in your daily lives, and how it helps our path on the wellness continuum. 

This Episode has been brought to you by Boxstar Apparel.  Find more information about Boxstar Apparel at www.boxstarapparel.com

Cookout at Dr. Swanson's Place - June 29
MCF Athlete, Dr. Raul Swanson is hosting members of our gym (6/29) at noon for a cookout and swimming.  He will be providing the meet for the meal, you just need to bring a side dish and your smile as this community continues to come together.  Prior to the cookout at noon, reminder that Saturday's Workout at 10:00am is a Bring a Friend day in which you can bring a family or friend who are interested in trying MCF out for free

Always Forward Podcast
https://www.mossycreekfitness.com/podcast.html
Hosting this past weeks Episode, Coach Phil and Coach Jamison join up with Guest to talk about our guiding core values and the Always Forward Mantra.  Coming up, they will be talking about three daily habits.  Podcasts are currently being published through the blog and on our website on Mondays.  We will be distributing audio only versions through normal podcast locations soon. 

FNX Supplement Orders
MCF places FNX Supplement orders every Friday on behalf of our athletes request.  If you are interested in any supplements to help you perform better or recover faster, please see one of our coaches or MCF staff.  More information about FNX can be found at their website https://fnxfit.com/ You can reach out to one of the coaches, or see the order sheet in the lobby by the FNX display. 

Big Orange Brawl - June 22nd
http://bigorangebrawl.com/
Hosted on the grounds of the famous World's Fair Park in Knoxville, Big Orange Brawl brings a premier fitness competition to the feet of the Sunsphere.  This event features individuals RX and Scaled events as well as a team competition.  Registration HAS CONCLUDED.  We are looking for individuals to come out and cheer on our athletes.

Bristol Burnout - July 27th
www.speedwaycharities.org/events/bristol/bristol-burnout/
The Bristol Burnout is an excellent team competition being held at the Bristol Motor Speedway on July 27th.  Three workouts will be help with the top 6 teams moving to a championship workout.  MCF already has members signed up to compete, and we are looking for more to hit the competition floor as well, as to come out and cheer on our athletes.

Jacked and Tan - July 27th
http://crossfitktown.com/jandt/
The annual Jacked and Tan Classic put on by Crossfit KTown.  "You need be neither jacked nor tan for this event! So find a partner and get registered for the best damn same sex partner competition held in the 37921 zip code on a Saturday in July!" (CFKT)

We want to wish a Happy Birthday to our MCF athletes who have birthdays coming up next week.  If you see these folks in the gym, or just wish to reach out, please wish them a Happy Birthday (and be prepared for a couple birthday burpees to celebrate)

Happy Birthday to Zach Ballard - 6/24
Happy Birthday to Jim Vines - 6/24
Happy Birthday to Kieran Braun - 6/25
Happy Birthday to Ali Gatlin - 6/27
Happy Birthday to Kim Durfey - 6/28
Happy Birthday to Nicholas Bible - 6/28
Happy Birthday to Jonathan Price 6/29

If your birthday is this week and you don't see it here, check your Wodify Account settings or talk with one of our staff to update your record. 

So many personal records happening this week.  We are proud of our athletes and their growth at Mossy Creek Fitness.  Keep up the great work!

Amber Day - Deadlift
Andrew Nance - Deadlift
Angela Clapp - Thruster
Bethany McNabb - Thruster
Bo Whaley - Thruster
David Burton - Deadlift
Derek Bowers - Thruster
Donny De La Cruz - Deadlift
Evan Anderson - Thruster
Iris Trent - Hang Power Snatch
Jacob Geldrich - Thruster
Jamie Norman - Deadlift
John Ballinger - Deadlift
Maria Vicens - Deadlift
Ronda Blevins - Thruster
Tanzi Farrow - Deadlift
Tommy Clapp - Deadlift, Thruster
Valerie Crabtree - Deadlift

If you hit a personal record (PR)  this week and you don't see it here, please talk with one of our staff to check your record.  Always keep track of your WOD results in Wodify so we can see your progress.

There are a lot of things going on at MCF, all intended to make your fitness experience a positive one.  To make sure that you are fully aware of all of them, we are using the blog to ensure you know everything available to you.  One of the most recent additions is the Kids Zone.  Especially in the summer, it may be necessary to bring your kids with you to ensure you maintain your fitness regimen.  The Kids Zone will provide you an option. 

Directly beside the iPads used for logging in, we have constructed a play area for kids of all ages.  In addition to kids being able to use this space at any time, MCF is also providing a schedule of times in which the room is monitored.

SCHEDULE
Monday - 8:00am, 4:30 pm, 5:30 pm

Tuesday - 8:00am

Wednesday - 4:30pm, 5:30pm

Thursday - 8:00am, 4:30pm, 5:30pm

If you are using the Kids Zone there are a few items that we ask that you take into account.

1. You've filled out a waiver for your child.  *If you haven't completed this yet, please come a little early to compete before dropping your child off.
2. Use the iPads in the lobby to check your kids into the Kids Zone, or you can use your phone prior to coming in. 
3. Bring everything in that your child may need to minimize any disruptions to you during the workout, and to make sure your child has a positive experience in this environment. 
4. Please have your items identified in a manner that will keep them accounted for during the experience.  We wanted to make sure that everything is returned to you when you complete your workout. 
5. Make sure that our staff know any important information about your child.  If they have allergies, special considerations, or needs we need to know.  Just like our coaches like to know about anything that you have going on in your fitness journey, our Kids Zone staff want to know about your kids journey. 
6. The Kids Zone can be used by kids at any time the gym is open (classes or open gym).  If it is not on the above schedule you have to be comfortable with leaving them in this environment while not being actively monitored. 
   
7. Lastly, the Kids Zone is a service provided by MCF at no additional cost to you.
   

If you have any questions about the Kids Zone experience, please do not hesitate to reach out to any of our staff and we can get you more information. 

Hosted by: Jamison Price and Phillip Rhodes.  Special Guest Scooter Houston

ANNOUNCEMENTS

//E P I S O D E O N E\\
Mossy Creek Fitness has some great things coming up.  Stay tuned for more this coming Monday.   

FNX Supplement Orders
MCF places FNX Supplement orders every Friday on behalf of our athletes request.  If you are interested in any supplements to help you perform better or recover faster, please see one of our coaches or MCF staff.  More information about FNX can be found at their website https://fnxfit.com/ You can reach out to one of the coaches, or see the order sheet in the lobby by the FNX display. 

Big Orange Brawl - June 22nd
http://bigorangebrawl.com/
Hosted on the grounds of the famous World's Fair Park in Knoxville, Big Orange Brawl brings a premier fitness competition to the feet of the Sunsphere.  This event features individuals RX and Scaled events as well as a team competition.  Registration HAS CONCLUDED.  We are looking for individuals to come out and cheer on our athletes.

Bristol Burnout - July 27th
www.speedwaycharities.org/events/bristol/bristol-burnout/
The Bristol Burnout is an excellent team competition being held at the Bristol Motor Speedway on July 27th.  Three workouts will be help with the top 6 teams moving to a championship workout.  MCF already has members signed up to compete, and we are looking for more to hit the competition floor as well, as to come out and cheer on our athletes.

Jacked and Tan - July 27th
http://crossfitktown.com/jandt/
The annual Jacked and Tan Classic put on by Crossfit KTown.  "You need be neither jacked nor tan for this event! So find a partner and get registered for the best damn same sex partner competition held in the 37921 zip code on a Saturday in July!" (CFKT)

We want to wish a happy birthday to gym members who have birthdays coming up next week. If you see these folks in the gym make sure to wish them happy birthday in person! 

Happy Birthday to Laura Evon - 6/16
Happy Birthday to Jackie Loveday - 6/19
Happy Birthday to Angela Whitehead - 6/20
Happy Birthday to Rual Swanson - 6/20
Happy Birthday to Coach Phil - 6/21
Happy Birthday to Brooke Geldrich- 6/22

If your birthday is this week and you don't see it here, check your Wodify Account settings or talk with one of our staff to update your record. 

So many personal records happening this week.  We are proud of our athletes and their growth at Mossy Creek Fitness.  Keep up the great work!

Bethany McNabb - Bench Press
Iris Trent - Bench Press
John Ballinger - Bench Press
Jordan Taylor - Bench Press
Kelly Houston - Bench Press
Kelsey Jenkins - Bench Press
Kerrie Moody - Bench Press
Leah Belcher - Bench Press
Luke Norman - Bench Press
Maria Vicens - Bench Press
Tanzi Farrow - Bench Press

If you hit a personal record (PR)  this week and you don't see it here, please talk with one of our staff to check your record.  Always keep track of your WOD results in Wodify so we can see your progress.

It doesn't get easier, YOU JUST GET BETTER

Warming Up:
So we get it.  The fun part of coming into class is the lifting stuff and putting it down.  As coaches, we think so as well.  I mean who wouldn't.  The opportunity to come in and see how much you have grown over the last week, month, or year.  A heavy squat that makes it feel good when you can get past a spot we couldn't before.

So why is the warm-up the single most important component of the workout everyday?  The physiological effects of the warm-up are widespread and extend to every aspect of your workout and can deliver increases in strength components, cardiovascular workouts, as well as gymnastics movements.  A good warm-up allows blood flow to muscles to increase, increases temperature of the muscles and adjust pH so that your body is primed for you to workout.  Image, a short aspect of training that could prime your body to do the movements more efficiently, and more effectively while also decreasing the risk of injury. 

Here at MCF, we love our athletes, the community that you bring along, and we desire to keep you active and healthy during your fitness journey.  By encouraging you through the warm-up, we look forward to seeing how you grow and develop, so please come in on-time and prime those muscles for the fitness you wish to pursue. 

Signing In:
Why should you be concerned with signing in to class everyday?  This may seem to be a small and insignificant thing, and in your daily scheme of things it certainly is, but this small action has the potential to provide such a greater opportunity for you at Mossy Creek Fitness.  Behind the scenes, MCF looks at this information to ensure that we are responsive to our community.  This kind of data can be used to ensure that we have classes being offered at the right times.  Whether we need to add an additional coach and offer other times.  By seeing trends in the sign in process, this can also influence and allow for changes in programming due to limitations on space and equipment.  Lastly, the act of signing in provides data to provide for strategic planning.  It helps make informed decisions on what equipment needs to be purchased next, and where the gym is going to be next week, next year, and even 5 years from now. 

Wodify has multiple ways to try and minimize the impact to your time.  By downloading the app on your mobile device (iTunes) (Google Play), you will be able to do while you are on the way to the gym (only while you are stopped safely with the new law prohibiting use of phone that goes into effect 1 July 2019).  If you are running later than planned, you can stop at the iPads in the lobby, or you can see if the coach can log you in.  Lastly, when you get to the point of putting in results you can still log in. 

*The 5:30 am class is the only outlier to this.  You must have a reservation from the evening before to sign in on your mobile device. 

And Results:
Before you look back at previous posts and call me out as a hypocrite for saying the whiteboard isn't our primary concern...let me make my argument.

The whiteboard in Wodify is a key place to keep all the information related to your performance.  While we are not using this as a motivational tool to compete, it does provide us information related to the progress you are making at MCF.  To ensure the needle is constantly moving in the right direction, seeing the trends in your performance is necessary. 

If you don't look at Wodify that often, get in and take a look at the information that it provides.  You will find the charts under performance results for each movement where you can see your lifts, or specific metcons, and how you have done with them over the time here at MCF.  You can get an understanding of how your perform in specific conditions, with varying workout stimuli, or simply how you felt during a given day.  One example that I have used personally, is to simply put an emoji :-) or :-( when I did good or bad.  Or simply stated in the notes section that this particular weight felt heavy, could have gone heavier, or simply failed due to mindset. 

In addition to seeing the needle move in the right direction, the numbers that you enter into the workout today, may play an integral role in the workout we do in the future.  An example of this would be the back squat strength component that was part of the schedule for Monday.  The 3/1/3/1/3/1 was an alternating rep scheme that changed the percentages of each of the loads.  The loading was based upon the listed 1 rep max in Wodify.  To ensure you receive the stimuli programmed in this workout, you would have had to accomplished a little preWOD math that would have brought out a scientific formula for success.  Some days loading is easy, straight forward, while others want to keep your muscles guessing. 

The principles of Crossfit are that we perform constantly varied functional fitness performed at high intensity.  To do that, we need to see you inputting your results, and using those to help drive you forward. 

Adding results are the same as signing in.  You can do this on your mobile device, the iPads in the lobby, on your computer when you get home (although you will have to remember it for that long after a WOD), or by asking a coach to help.