[VIDEO] Four Years of Frustration

One of my biggest fears with this blog is to have my impact become diluted. The day I dread is the day that I say, “Listen up!” and you all are numb to it. This is one of those times that I need your attention.

I mean it when I say, “Listen up!”

Whether you’re a man or a woman, and regardless as to whether you have trouble with the following particular movements or not, I want you all to watch this video. It illustrates a journey that we all can relate to so well. Most videos on YouTube are highlight reels that convieniently exclude the work behind the scenes. This one does not. This video is four years of a regular girl’s God honest effort, dedication, and downright failure.

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All of your frustration, the F-bombs, and tears.. All of that is part of the journey. No, I’m not letting you off the hook and telling you not to care and to welcome failure with open arms. I’m telling you it’s normal. This is hard. And, if you want it,  it will test your patience.

Logan Gelbrich

A gym of characters..

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Wednesday’s Workout:

3 rounds for time of:
30 Squats
15 Hang Power Cleans (95/65)
5 Burpee Broad Jumps

Create-A-Player: “99 Awareness”

I’m, by no means, a gamer, but there’s a saying we used to have with my teammates about the Create-A-Player feature that many video games have. At least with the sports games, creating a player allowed you to choose attributes like height, weight, body type, etc. In addition, you could choose skills like speed, power, agility, and so on. One of the intangible skills you could choose from was awareness, and maxing out any create-a-player’s attributes meant the skill had a 99 rating.

With that back story in mind, we always envied “99 Awareness.” We’d talk and joke about stud athletes, Navy Seals, writers, various brilliant minds, and other notable characters and we’d often end our description trailing off with the words, “99 Awareness..”

Do more work. Faster.

You don’t need to agree with the level at which I place this attribute on a pedestal, but you can’t disagree that awareness is a valuable tool to have. Think about what would be available to you if you were always aware.

What are some things you’d know if you had “99 Awareness?” Could you translate your 12 years of experience in human resources to a treasure trove of knowledge to start your own business? If you were hyper-aware, maybe you’d have just enough tools to keep up with your training on the road without a coach. Imagine how much insight you’d have to writing skills if every time you read, you noticed syntax, vocabulary, and structure.

The list of take away benefits are endless when it comes to awareness. I don’t know about you, but if I had the choice I’d ratchet up the dial on my awareness to 99 every time.

Logan Gelbrich

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Tuesday’s Workout:

5 rounds for time of:
400m Run
10 Clapping Push Ups
10 Tuck Jumps

October Video Blog

There’s just so much buzzing around ‘The Nation’ that I couldn’t write it. I figured I could use some help too, since I can barely spell and Angel makes for much better odds at a viral run on YouTube. Check out what’s on tap for FFOTB:

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Here are some relevant links for more information on the aforementioned:

The VITALS Challenge 

Europa Sports’ SICest of the Southwest

DogTown CrossFit Presents: CRUSH CANCER 2012

We’re FFOTB strong, nationwide.

Well, that does it. Be sure to stay involved in this community and squeeze every last drop out of your experience here. As you know, I love you all and let’s stick it to Monday!

 

Logan Gelbrich

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Monday’s Workout:

‘The VITALS Challenge’ Prelims

Find Max Duration L (or chair) Sit

Find 1RM Ground to Shoulder

Then, complete the following for time:

Run 1 Mile

Eat Your Frog First

Productivity isn’t just important for Olympic lifts and ridiculous bouts of timed exercise. Ideally anything you learn while you’re enrolled in this school of fitness will aid you in real life. I mean, that’s the point right? We want to enjoy a more free, healthy, active, and fun life, and this program supports that.

Gym shades are in!

My message today has nothing to do with push ups or hang cleans, but it has everything to do with how to edge out more productivity in your life. We all have tasks to do. I’m here to talk about how the sequencing of your work can affect performance. Mark Twain once said:

“Eat a live frog first thing in the morning and nothing worse will happen to you the rest of the day.”

In true Mark Twain fashion, he gets a brilliant point across with a bit of bizarre humor. Tough tasks don’t get done, because well, we obviously don’t do them. Pushing these tasks towards the end of your list will only decrease your desire/ability to take on the task.

Here’s a short, useful video on the power of prioritizing your work:

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Maybe from now on try to guzzle down your frog first thing at work. That way you can ride into the sunset each day with ease.

Logan Gelbrich

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Friday’s Workout:

Complete the following for reps:

In 5 minutes:
Run 800m
Max Thrusters (65/45)

-Rest 5 min-

In 4 minutes:
Run 400m Max Thrusters (95/65)

-Rest 4 Min-

In 3 minutes:
Run 200m
Max Thrusters (115/85)

The Moment

After class I went home to have my normal amazing breakfast of coffee bacon and eggs, with my coffee and sat in the sun with Diesel by my side.  I am not a skilled writer, nor do I like it but I found myself in a moment that I had to scribble about.

I had an experience this morning that some of you shared, which I am forever thankful.  At our 7 AM class we had a new friend come all the way across the proverbial “pond” to join us for a workout.  A Frenchman named Tonino  came to participate in this letter jumble we all know so well as FFOTB.  Tonino is doing a film all over the globe about what makes people happy. I think it’s an amazing idea, and I am so excited to see the finished product.  I also feel so fortunate that he chose to have us in the project.

Of course, we all got a great workout in and we all are better for putting in the time.  The point of this post is not about the workout, human movement, sweating, or the coaching.  This post is all about what happens here on the bluffs every day.  It’s about what Tonino recognized about our group from Paris, no less.

The Happy Gym

I arrive on the bluff every day at 6:30 AM, and there are definitely people exercising, mostly running and walking, but definitely exercising.  The mood is somber, almost emotionless.  I would go as far as to say at 7 AM this bluff absolutely transforms.. I mean the energy, the air, the people, everything. I hear laughing, I see hugging, I hear jokes, and I see smiles. I swear to you it gets warmer, the sun even seems brighter, so much so, that regularly patrons will stop and just watch.  Our “Un-Gym” gym takes shape, each day it is a little different, but each day is continually bliss.

You see this is the thing that I believe Tonino is trying to capture in this video.  Why are certain people here so happy? I believe that we should all take it as a giant compliment that he looked to our group to capture this.  I believe that we have this in the Nation, and this is what makes it special.  It is all of you happy humans. YOU make it!

I absolutely love my life and the people in it.  I can’t say that I have a lot of money, or that I have everything figured out.  But I can tell you one thing, I am so thankful in this moment for the things God has given me.

We had a conversation after the workout over coffee at Peet’s about this very thing.  Why people seem to be so happy here as opposed to other places.  I believe that happiness is a choice.  Everyone has the opportunity to be happy, or the opportunity to be worried, or sad, or down.

In this moment I choose to be happy, and I am so thankful for the people around me because they choose the same.  Tonino, I am in awe of you for searching the globe to find people that share this same vision.  Travel safe my friend.

What are you going to do in this MOMENT?

Danny Lesslie

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Saturday’s Workout:

Dynamic Duo PR Challenge Prelims

With a partner, complete 3 rounds for time of:

15 Front Squats (135/95)

300 Yard Shuttle

-Switch-