SPARTAN PERFORMANCE                                     CROSSFIT SUFFOLK

Skill Work:

Kipping

Glute/Ham Sit-ups

Back Extension

Kettlebell snatch

"L" Sit

Mobility work

 The End Of The Whole30 Challenge….or Is This Just The Beginning?

It went by quickly.  Yesterday was the official ending of this Whole30 Challenge.  We already have received feedback about losing weight.  This is great if you were attempting to lose weight, but I'm more interested in performance. 

This was Sal's second Whole30 Challenge and just like the first he lost weight and his workout performance has reached a new level.  Sal had the fastest "Murph" time for the group of athletes who performed "Murph" without a vest.  Sal's lifts continue to go up in weight while his conditioning workout times decrease.  Sal and his brother Greg have "the secret":  consistent training (5-6 days a week) and eating what the human machine is designed to be fueled with.  It's simple, but it's not easy. 

Greg has experienced results similar to Sal's.  While Greg eats extremely well he did not participate in the Whole30 Challenge this time around.  Interestingly enough Greg usually does slightly better than Sal in the workouts, but in recent weeks, Sal, the older of the two, has had better performances.  This is no small accomplishment since Greg has been one of the top performers in recent months.  There isn't enough data to make this an official scientific finding, but it's an interesting observation nonetheless.  The strictness of the diet is the difference.  By the way, Sal has to drive his daughter to school in the morning and he runs a business with his father.  Sal is in and out of the gym in no more than 45 minutes on most days.  Outstanding job Sal!

I'd like to hear feedback from other participants.  What worked for you and what didn't?  Will you continue to eat according to the Whole30 guidelines, if not, what do you plan on re-introducing into your diet?   How were your workouts affected?

As for me, I can tell you I'm done with milk, lactose-free or otherwise.  I haven't craved any dairy product for that matter except for my beloved heavy cream in my coffee which will resume forthwith.  I'll probably still use organic butter for some cooking.   With every 30 day challenge it becomes easier to discard the food that is detrimental to higher performance.  Speaking of performance, unfortunately it is difficult to tell how my performance is affected since my poor sleep habit far outweighs whatever dietary improvements I've made.  Perhaps a 30 Day Sleep-At-Least-7-Hours-A-Night Challenge is on the horizon.

We welcome your comments!

—-George–