FAQ

Q: WHAT SHOULD I EXPECT DURING MY FIRST TWO WEEKS?

A: Expect a very moderate pace. We want you to learn the basic mechanics of everything FIRST, then be consistent in those mechanics, then bump up the intensity ONLY after mastering the first 2 key points. Expect to be sore. REALLY sore. There is no way to get around it. This is normal and proof that you are working hard breaking down muscle fibers during your workout. It is during your rest periods between classes that your muscles will build up even stronger. You can help speed the recovery process by drinking plenty of water, getting adequate sleep (7+ hours a night), and taking natural anti-inflammatories such as turmeric or fish oil. Whatever you do, don’t stop training just because you are sore. It is good to come back and take the next workout light if you need to, but the main thing is to keep moving to flush the lactic acid out of the muscle. Keep your head up and know that with practice, consistency, and determination, you WILL reach your goals.

Be sure to download the Zen Planner and SugarWOD apps and start using them now. The Zen Planner is our member management software and you will be able to sign into class and management payment info within the app. SugarWOD is where you will find all the fun stuff! You will be able to see the daily workouts, track your progress and encourage other athletes within this app.

Feel free to try out any class at any time to get a good feel for how each class works with your schedule. It is our goal to keep coaching and instruction consistent throughout the day despite having multiple coaches but each class has its own groove and sometimes one clicks best so try them all!

Q: DO I NEED TO BE IN SHAPE OR KINDA FIT TO DO CROSSFIT?

A: Heck no! It’s our job to get you in shape!!! Most of us start with absolutely no fitness background or very limited experience in exercise outside of running on treadmills and some bootcamp like videos. You can start with us after years of not stepping foot in a gym or doing anything that even remotely looks like exercise. We’ve got you! We have a workout programmed each day specific for beginners. It basically is a modified version of the regular workout so you are learning all the same movements and using the same muscle groups but they are scaled in weight, reps and length. We even take those more difficult lifts and break them down to just working on the progressions. One of the biggest regrets we hear from our athletes is that they wish they had started the first time they thought about it. Don’t have that regret. Start now!

Q: DO I NEED TO EAT HEALTHY TO DO CROSSFIT?

A: Nope! But the cool thing that happens is you will slowly just naturally start choosing better foods simply because you will discover that eating a large pizza at lunch does not feel too great during your afternoon workout. When you are ready to truly start seeing some changes in your health and your physique you will already be surrounded by a community ready to support you with encouragement, recipes, group accountability, nutrition challenges and a nutrition coach on staff. It’s no lie that nutrition is the foundation of a healthy lifestyle…but it most definitely isn’t a requirement of CrossFit.

Q: IS IT CALLED THE CORE OR CROSSFIT MOCKINGBIRD?

A: We are both! CrossFit Mockingbird is our CrossFit affiliation. The Core is our umbrella company in which we can hold CrossFit, yoga, and nutrition classes. Feel free to use both names interchangeably to represent who we are. We have a tendency to consider The Core as the location and people group and CrossFit Mockingbird as our team name.

Q: CAN I BRING MY KIDS?

A: Yes! We have kiddos too and have built our Core around making CrossFit possible for busy families. We have a kid room full of toys and TV for the little ones and a kitchen with a large table for the older ones to do crafts or homework on. Our 8:30am, and 4:30pm classes have babysitters available to watch ages 0-3 for $2/hour/child. Kids ages 10+ can join mom or dad in the workout too with a additional athlete membership.

Q: WHAT DO I DO AFTER MY FREE TWO WEEKS ARE OVER AND I WANT TO JOIN?

A: Before your free two week trial is over go over the different membership pricing options and contact Coach Jess with any questions or concerns. From our membership page you can choose the membership contract that works best for you and then add your payment info. Easy peasy! Of course you can always get Coach Jess to walk you through it too!

We only accept cash if you are paying for the entire contract at one time and there is no discount included. We take VISA, Mastercard, and American Express. If you use your bank account as your payment info we will waive the account set-up fees as a thank you for saving us additional credit card processing fees.

Q: WHAT KIND OF GEAR DO I NEED TO DO CROSSFIT?

A: Technically you only need your body but part of the CrossFit culture includes cool shoes, wrist wraps, grips, etc. The shoes you wear really does matter quite a bit. You want a shoe with a flat sole. Reebok Nanos, Nike Metcons, Nobulls and Converse are all good options but there are many available. Once you have all the mechanics down for your lifts and are ready to go heavier you may want to invest in a pair of lifters as well. The next important investment will be a jump rope. We provide ropes at the box but most everyone has their own personal rope measured to their height and speed preferences. We can always point you in the right direction for all your gear needs but a good place to start is the Rogue website.

Q: WHY CAN’T I TAKE MY SHIRT OFF DURING A WORKOUT?

A: We understand that it can get really hot during a WOD and that shirts feel heavy but we want EVERYONE to feel comfortable at The Core and there are people who may struggle with their own body image who will be keeping their shirt on for the sake of covering the areas they are not confident showing off and if they can workout wearing a shirt then the girl or guy next to her willing to bare it all will survive in a shirt too.

We do allow for shirts to come off during Open Gyms , competitions, and small group training sessions where there is no concern of a new potential athlete feeling uncomfortable. We want everyone to feel comfortable when they are uncomfortable from the workout and this is one small request we make for the sake of the whole community.

Q: DO I HAVE TO COMPETE?

A: The simple answer is no. The large majority of our athletes do not participate in CrossFit competitions. Competitions are super fun and we love to support our athletes but they are not our main focus at The Core. Longevity, feeling energized, being capable and strong, and living fully are more important to us. But some athletes find that they can use friendly competition to better their mindset and focus on a goal. We have a daily whiteboard where athletes can see where they rank in each day’s WOD. Some love it and really try to push for those top spots, others couldn’t care less about how they compare with others but want to see how they are comparing with how they performed years or months ago. You can be as competitive as you choose to be!

Q: IS CROSSFIT GOING TO MAKE ME BULKY?

A: No. This is a legitimate question and concern for mostly women. We understand that the athletes in the CrossFit games look totally jacked and more muscley than many women want to look. But be assured that is not an outcome that comes easily. Those athletes are PROFESSIONAL athletes. They live, eat and breathe fitness and nutrition. It takes a LOT of work to put on that much muscle. What can possibly happen if you have excess fat on your body is you will develop muscle under that fat initially which may make you feel like your clothes fit tighter. BUT MUSCLE BURNS FAT!! So the best way to prevent feeling “bulky” is to focus on cleaning up that diet and losing body fat through diet and building lean mass. And lucky for you we’ve got everything you need to do that!