Coach’s Corner – Sam Kaplan! – CrossFit Southie

Coach’s Corner – Sam Kaplan
We’re so excited to welcome Sam to the CFS coaching staff! Sam has been a part of the Crossfit Southie Community for the past couple of years and she’s a great addition to the coaching staff! She has a lot of experience teaching, coaching and being a hard working bad ass athlete! Check out her Interview and bio below!

“I grew up in Sharon, MA and graduated from Wheaton College with a degree in Mathematics and Education. I knew I wanted to be a teacher and coach from when I was very young. I currently teach 11th and 12th grade math at Hull High School, and I assistant coach the outdoor track and field team in Hull. I also currently attend Bridgewater State University for my Masters degree in Education with a concentration in mathematics.

I competed in sports from ages 5-22, so when I graduated college I knew I had to do something to keep myself busy and in shape. My mom introduced me to crossfit and I never looked back. Crossfit has been the best thing for me. Not only has it kept me in the shape that I want, but it has been an awesome way to de-stress after a long day of teaching high schoolers 🙂

I love that I was able to find something that makes me feel the way gymnastics and track always made me feel. My love for teaching and crossfit combined when I decided to get my L1 certification and start coaching! I made a spontaneous decision in the summer to go and get it and I’ve loved every minute of coaching since!”

1. Which classes you currently coach?
I currently coach Mondays at 4 pm and 5 pm.

2. How long have you been a Crossfitter and Coach?
I have been doing crossfit for 3.5 years now. I just got my level 1 certification in August 2020, so I’ve only been coaching crossfit since then! But I have also been coaching high school track and field since I was in college. I just got my MIAA Coaching certification this past summer as well.

3. What is your favorite part of being a Crossfit Coach?
My favorite part of being a crossfit coach is helping athletes push themselves to do things they never thought they could. I love seeing people’s faces light up when they’ve hit a max rep or they finished a tough workout they never thought they’d get through.

4. What is your favorite WOD and Movement?
My favorite WOD is Holleyman (5 wall balls, 3 handstand push-ups, 1 heavy power clean). I picked this one because I remember it was my first long crossfit workout, and I can still remember pushing through it. I was at Crossfit Torque then, and I remember I had an awesome coach who pushed me to do the RX weight and pushed me through the entire workout. I’ll always remember how that workout made me feel! My favorite movement is bar muscle ups. I honestly love any of the gymnastics movements 🙂

5. Tell us about your athletic background
I was a competitive gymnast for 16 years. I competed on a club team at Arnold’s Gymnastics Academy and I also competed for my High School team. In 2012, I was the all-around state champion in Massachusetts. I also ran cross country in high school, and I did track and field in high school and college. In college I became a pentathlete and heptathlete where my best events were hurdles and high jump.

6. Small piece of advice for Newbies and Veterans
My advice for newbies is to push yourself outside of your comfort zone. You never know what you can do until you try! Something else I’ve learned after doing competitive sports and crossfit for years now is that working out is a big stress reliever (especially lately). So my advice to veterans is that you don’t always have to workout as hard as you can at RX weight. Sometimes your mind just needs to turn off and you have to workout at a level that makes you feel good! Workout for your body and for your mind!

7. Tell us a “Fun Fact” about yourself!
My fun fact that most people don’t know about me is that I was in a rodeo in Utah when I was 11 years old.

8. What do you enjoy about the CFS community?
What I enjoy about the CFS community is the family feel. Every coach I’ve had has always been so kind and helpful. Every athlete I’ve coached has been so nice and polite. I feel like more often than not, I leave the gym feeling in a better mood than when I arrive, and that has more to do with the people in the gym than the workout!

*Thanksgiving Day WOD*
Typically we love visitors, but we do need to make sure that we have appropriate numbers for the workout and have enough squares for everyone. If a family member wants to come with you please have them pay for a drop-in online and register for the class. If you want us to do it on our end please send an email to [email protected]. If a non-member shows up on Thanksgiving morning with no registration for open gym or the class, they will not be able to participate.

Turkey Day Schedule – Gobble, Gobble, Gobble, Gobble……
Tuesday– Normal Hours
Wednesday– Normal AM Schedule (5,6,7,8,11) PM schedule 12,3,4,5pm *close at 6pm*
Thursday– ANNUAL THANKSGIVING DAY WOD- 8am and 9am** Non-coached WOD 7am with Goose
Friday– 9,10,11,12pm (open gym 9-1)
Saturday– 7,8,9,10,11,12pm *close at 1pm*
Sunday– Normal Schedule

Indoors Primarily

Warm Up
AMRAP 8
12/9 Cal Bike (200m Run)
5 PVC Pass Throughs
5 V Ups w/ PVC (touch toes to PVC)
5 Overhead Squats (PVC pr Barbell
5 Front Rack Lunges (ea)

Mobility
Shoulder Rolling
Shoulder Stretching

Pull Up Bar Warm Up
5 Scap Pull Ups
10 Kip Swings (emphasize feet together, tight kip)
5 Kip Swings w/ quarter pull up
5 Toes to Bar to Target (Look across the room and find a target height for feet on the wall – aim there with each rep)

Level 2- 95|55, Regular Push Ups
Level 1- 75|35
ADV – 135|95, 40 reps on all Weightlifting and Gymnastics Movements

Extra Work
50 Bench Press*

Choose a weighty where you can get through 50 in 3 sets. Think 20-25 reps for the 1st set.
Rest 1 minute each time you have to rack the weight

Rest as needed

50 Bent Over Barbell Rows
*Same Criteria as the Bench Press