Ab Mat Sit-up

Strong core, simple as that. The AbMat, when placed under the lumbar spine with the higher portion towards your hips creates this beautiful environment for the abdominal muscles to move through their full and available range of motion.

AbMat Sit-Up Setup

  1. Sit on the floor with the AbMat placed beneath your lower back, higher part under your lumbar.
  2. Legs are bent with feet on the floor.
  3. Sit tall.

Performing the sit-up

  1. Lay back over the ab mat reaching hands over head
  2. Reach to touch the floor overhead, extending your core over the ab mat
  3. Drive up leading with your arms, engaging your core.
  4. Touch your heels or the floor by your feet.
CrossFit Mudtown AbMat Sit Up

100 (then 200 and beyond) Classes Stronger!

There’s some new signage at CrossFit Mudtown that many of you have seen. To recognize the hard work and dedication members put in day in and day out we’ve added two signs that showcase those who have reached 100 classes attended and 200 classes attended since they became members at CrossFit Mudtown. You’ll find the signs upstairs above the shoe cubbies. This is a HUGE honor and we are so proud of the members (and future members) who have achieved this status!! These people have made their fitness a priority and worked hard to get where they are.

Here’s the current list of athletes at the 100 classes stronger level:

Brad Castro
Clay Childressclay signing poster
Jennifer Childress
Caleb Crosby
Alisha Crossley
Patrick Crossley
Tyler Destefano
Josh Fisher
Heather Harris
Nick Irvin
Jennifer Kimble
Julie Macon
Scott Patterson
Kristen Skinner
Will Slappey
Nicholas Smith
Heather Warwick

And Jennifer Kimble has reached the 200 classes stronger level! Scott Patterson and Nick Irvin are not far behind her.

We can say with all honesty that each and every one of those members have improved or reached a goal in some way. Whether it was hitting a strength PR, a weight loss goal, doing a pull-up or muscle-up, or just feeling better after a workout. They put in the time and marked something off their goal list.

We stress the importance of showing up, putting in the work, and allowing yourself to be a coachable athlete. Setting goals is a great start but you need to put in the time to achieve those goals. We all have things we would like to get better at, but if we do not invest the time we are not likely to get the results we are seeking. The road to fitness is endless, it’s all about journey. Making time to get to the gym is hard. Life is hectic and when you throw in family, work and extracurricular activities, it can seem impossible to find the time. Exercise has an amazing effect of improving your self-worth and more importantly your health. We encourage you to “make the time” and have pride when you enter the 100 (or 200) class club!!

Good luck on all your goals, and remember goals are achieved when you invest the time!!


A year in review

As we wrap up our 1-year anniversary celebration of CrossFit Mudtown there is so much to reflect on! We have not only grown as a gym and community but each of you have grown in some way through CFM. So many new friends, new PRs, new adventures, and more. We can’t wait to see what year two holds for us all. To remind you of all your greatness and achievements I wanted to recap the year month by month, event by event, PR by PR. Hopefully after looking over all you have done it will inspire you to go bigger this year!! Thank you for allowing us to do what we love and for being a part of our community!
Year in Review 2015-2016Jacki with equipment

March
– We sign CrossFit affiliate papers. Snag a building in Cahaba Heights. Order a ton of equipment. The gym is coming to fruition!
April 
– The doors of CrossFit Mudtown officially opened! So many people helped make this gym a reality! From painting, stopping in to help move things in, watching our children, and just 12916809_1083710945025936_1588528137596754785_obeing there to say ‘it looks good!” we appreciated the support.
– We ran our first official workout that was open to the public at CFM. Everyone did Cindy.
May
– CrossFit Mudtown continues to grow its members and classes are starting to fill up!
– Conducted our first OnRamp beginners class.
June
– We held our official grand opening party that included a workout to anyone who wanted to join in on the fun! We did Fight Gone Bad and had support from family (who all traveled), old members, new members, and (old and new) friends.IMG_1076
– Jacki also competed in the Wodlife Summer games and it was her first competition as a Muddy!!
July
– We continue to grow and new members are joining almost daily!
– The Vestavia Chamber of Commerce conducted a ribbon cutting ceremony welcoming us as a new business in Vestavia Hills.
AugustIMG_2698
– Nine athletes competed at the local competition Mayhem in the Mountain at Oak Mountain State Park. We had 3 teams, and 1 individual compete. Lainey, Alisha, Kelly, and Melinda led the ladies of CFM in a team. Danny, Nick I, Patrick, and Nick S were on a RX team and Clay, Leroy, Evan, Brian were on a scaled team. I was our RX individual athlete. Despite the heat we had more support than we could ever ask for! We had a tent set up and it was packed with friends and family throughout the day.
September11899913_955476481182717_2846005154654608815_n
– We ran a kids workout for Kaidyn’s birthday and the coaches set up an obstacle course in the main work out area! The course included box (plate jumps) jumps, zig-zag sprints, tumbling, burpees, and much more!
– The gym sponsored a fun family event in Cahaba Heights called Back 2 School in the Hills. We had people try out equipment and chat more about CrossFit.
– A group of us participated in a service day hosted by the Vestavia Chamber. We picked up trash along Cahaba Heights Rd.
October11220124_994898123907219_4685619963478229132_n
– The push up challenge left everyone at CFM with sore shoulders and better push up form! We challenged the members to do 3 ,000 push-ups this month. These push-ups could be done in any number amount anywhere you wanted! The winner of the challenge was Brian Warwick, but everyone that signed up completed the challenge!!
– Halloween was fun with a costume and pumpkin wod! After the workout we continued the fun upstairs with a party and pumpkin painting for kids.
– Jacki and a member of CrossFit Irondale competed in the Grid Iron games hosted by CrossFit Gardendale. They placed first in the competition.IMG_3539
November
– CrossFit held its first annual Lift Off event focusing on a 1 Rep Snatch, 1 Rep Clean and Jerk, and 1 Workout. This was set up like the CF open and we had many of our athletes register and participate.
December
– While the kids were on Christmas break we held a Mudtown kids class again! This workout included sled pushes and DL. The kids learned about healthy food choices using myplate.org. They enjoyed heathy fruit and cheese snack after the lesson.
– Coach Billy rowed 1 million meters in 2015!!! With the help of some friends he finished up his year-long goal at CFM!
January
– Kristen Skinner and Nick Smith competed in their first Olympic Lifting competition in Georgia. Nick placed 1st and Kristen 2nd in their respective weight classes.
– There was also something in the water at CFM because Jacki and Melinda announced they were pregnant and Nick Irvin announced he was going to be a daddy! (again)12646955_1037560482974316_7262504215491174071_n
February
– We had several athletes compete in the Wodlife Winter games this year. Jacki was on a team with a few girls from CrossFit Chelsea and CFM had 1 team of 4 compete. Danny, Clay, Brian, and Tyler did an awesome job representing CFM! Once again the CFM crew traveled and we were supported very well!
– We also had several athletes compete in the Tuff Love competition hosted by CrossFit Irondale with proceeds benefiting Christfit. Jacki and Sloan (from The Farm) Competed on an RX team as did Coach12745635_1045400088857022_4786589160218959246_n Danny and Coach Billy. Danny and Billy both hit huge PRs on the hang snatch and hang clean. Tyler and Brian did an awesome job battling through the WODs as did Clay and Nick! How can we all forget Clays “trip” that lead him to the scare of a lifetime!!
March
– The OPEN!!!! CrossFit Mudtown had over 35 members register and complete the Open this year and we could not be prouder! For 5 weeks we excitedly (some) waited for Dave Castro to dish out our poison. So many of you reached PR’s or completed movements you had never done before! There was lots of screaming, tears, and more high fives and hugs than we can count!!
-While the kids were on spring break we held another Mudtown kids class! The kids enjoyed a fun workout and healthy snack!
– The Assault Bike Gang was formed. Ride hard and fast my friends!!
– Mudtown Barbell was formed (hoping to get this on the regular schedule soon)
AprilIMG_5303
– Member appreciation week was April 25-30th. It was fun to see all our members being treated special and participating in everything we had going on that week.
– We hosted our 1st anniversary party and 1st Annual Muddy Awards. This was such a fun night and we can’t wait to do it again next year!

Wow! What a year. Looking at the goal board so many people have improved or were able to check something off their goal list this year! From getting a HSPU, PU, or DU, to hitting a new Clean and and Jerk PR, or a new FGB score, big goals were met.

We hope you all have had as much fun as we have and will continue on this crazy awesome ride we call functional fitness! Cheers!!


May Featured Member: Nick Irvin

Nick gets it. He shows up, works hard, encourages others. Basically just helps make the gym community thrive. We’re so proud of how far he’s come, even before his time at CrossFit Mudtown. He set out on a journey three years ago to become a better version of himself. He started doing CrossFit, cleaned up his eating and decided to surround himself with people who encourage and believe in him. He lost 80 pounds. He lifts like a beast. And he’s got an amazing goal of rowing 1 million meters in 2016. Keep up the amazing work you do Nick!

Member since: June 2015

How did you hear about CrossFit and what was your first experience/WOD? In the spring of 2014 I was attending a HIIT class offered after work.  I started reading about it and stumbled across this CrossFit thing.  I dropped in to another gym in Birmingham on a Thursday afternoon and was hooked. I don’t remember the WOD, except it had pull-ups. I flailed away on a band and spent the weekend trying to extend my arms again.

How many days do you CrossFit? What classes do you normally attend? I try to get in the gym 5 days a week. Mostly 6 a.m. but I like to drop in to an afternoon every once in a while.

Favorite CrossFit movement/workout? Just about anything with a barbell. Even thrusters.

Least favorite CrossFit movement/workout? Toes to Bar.

What motivates you/keeps you coming back to CrossFit Mudtown? Quality. Coaching, community, programming. I believe in surrounding yourself with people who bring a positive energy to life.  I found it in spades here.

Favorite thing about Birmingham? It’s home. I was born and raised here.

What accomplishment are you the most proud of (outside and inside of the gym)? Three years ago Amanda and I jumped in to this thing called clean eating, which was the beginning of a radical change for our family’s health. Outside of the gym, I’m proud to say we eat clean, we talk about nutrition, and our kids are more educated about food than I was as an adult. That movement in health and nutrition opened my eyes to the possibility that I could still be active and fit, and ultimately brought me to the gym, where I’ve been able to lose close to 80 pounds, pull my chin over the bar, and pick up heavy things. Fast.Nick Irvin muddy awards

What is your favorite meal? Ribeye- medium rare.  Probably something green to go with it. And a chocolate chip cookie (or several).  You’ve got to live, right?!?

What are some of your interests outside of CrossFit? I love being a husband and father, so I try to spend as much free time as possible with Amanda and the kids.  So lazy days around the house, coaching kids soccer, and the occasional game of CandyLand in the living room floor make for a pretty cool weekend.

What do you do for a living? By degree I’m a Chemical Engineer. I manage an R&D function at Southern Company responsible for developing new ways to power the world.

What is one goal that you are currently working on? 500 lb deadlift is next up, but I can’t leave out the million-meter club.