The Catacombs Endurance Team Speaks
By
October 16, 2015
Front squat
7-7-7-7-7
Then,
8 min AMRAP
5 Thrusters (125/85)
10 Burpees
As many of you know, we just wrapped up our premier Catacombs Endurance Team with it culminating at the Durango Double last weekend. Since Catacombs opened its doors, one of our primary goals has been to offer an event-focused CrossFit Endurance (CFE) program to the community, so we want to give a huge THANK YOU to our partners (the Durango Running Company, the Durango Running Club, and the Durango Double), to the running coaches (Brett Sublett and Scott Shine), and to the Catacombs Endurance Team athletes for making this a reality.
This all started at the end of July, with a group of 10 athletes coming together to use the principals of CrossFit Endurance (CFE) to train for either the trail or road 1/2 marathon. In a nutshell, the program prepared these athletes by combining specific running, strength, and CrossFit metabolic conditioning workouts. The central philosophy... allow athletes to obtain equal if not greater performance results while simultaneously decreasing the chance of injury and getting all the other benefits of participating in CrossFit. The program delivered this and more. Rather than projecting on our the athletes' experiences, we thought the best way to share would be to let Endurance Team offer their own reflections...
I thought it was a great program...really helped prepare me for the pain! And the camaraderie was awesome at Catacombs...really fun friends were made! The program gave me the knowledge about form, technique and better understanding of my areas of improvement in running. I was surprised that I was able to run that far without collapsing and dying, but also with the difficulty of the course. The regular training days/times helped be stay on schedule for the race and the track workouts really helped me with breathing and recovery. The only thing that could be better is to do it again, maybe in the spring? -- Scott Shadid
I really enjoyed the structure and team aspect of it all. Made some great friends!! The racing wasn't new to me, but it really mixed it up to train with you guys! I love sharing the pain and I pushed myself more when we worked out/ran together. Great coaching with the running, especially the track workouts. And as much faux bitching as I did...I really do love the endurance workouts. I would definitely to do it again. It really makes you feel part of something bigger than just yourself to have teammates all working towards the same goal. To see how well everyone did, see the improvements we all made, cheer each other on...the like...aw...shucks. Leaves me with warm fuzzies all over the place. In that bad ass kind of way... -- Jen Hargrove
I really enjoyed being part of CFE. It was everything I love about CFC but with the benefit of being on a smaller team and developing friendships. I enjoyed the awesome coaching from Brett and Scott, their perspective on running, form, breathing, etc. was appreciated. It was great having the opportunity to talk about nutrition, gear, and race preparation. I was surprised that in the end I understood the importance of the track workout. The camaraderie was my favorite part and I will miss it but look forward to seeing everyone at workouts soon. I can't wait to sign up for round 2! Thank you to everyone! -- Amy Aarnold
I couldn't be happier that CFC offered the endurance team. It is exactly where I want to take my training. Great partnership with the Running Club. Looking back at it now, the focused training is what it takes to elevate your fitness. The track workouts in particular are where I believe the most improvement was made. I gained valuable insight on my running form from Brett and Scott that I constantly keep in mind every time I run. The training log was helpful to remind of the miles that I should have been running! The CFC-E workouts were hands down the hardest workouts I've ever done, thanks Tracie. Different than just high weights or hard movements, they were workouts that reminded of racing, where you need to pace yourself, but also aggressive and willing to dig deeper than you thought you could. All that said, fitness is only half the benefit, I really enjoyed meeting some like-minded people. People that help get you through the suffering, and enjoy a drink after it's all said and done. I would definitely do it again. -- Daniel Murray
Great program, highly recommend you do it again. Highlights for me were: 1) Team within the team, like-minded folks that all had the same goals in minds and were all certifiable bad asses so there was little to no complaining during the workouts. 2) Partnership with DRC and the coaching we received from Scott and Brett were the difference makers for me. Definitely do it that way again. 3) The swag was really cool, thanks for all the new/sweet gear. -- Tom Helms
I really enjoyed being on a team and seeing the same awesome people at all the workouts. It helped me feel way more dedicated to training. Plus the coaching was so great and I feel much more connected to the running community in Durango. I think it would be fun to do it again next year for an event like Imogene where everyone would run the same event. I would definitely be interested in doing it again! -- Teresa Jennings
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