“Courage is like a muscle. We strengthen it by use.”- Ruth Gordo
COMPETITION
Three Key Takeaways from Wodapalooza Day 1
After a year hiatus due to the global pandemic, Wodapalooza is back and in a big way. More than 2,300 competitors are set to compete in Miami, FL this weekend at the historic Bayfront Park, while the elite men, women and teams kicked things off on Thursday.
2021 CrossFit Games rookie, Ellie Turner, won both events on Day 1 and is the surprise leader heading into Friday. Not only did she win both events, but she looked utterly unfazed at the end of the Echo on Fran event, which she finished a full 15 seconds ahead of second place finisher Bethany Shadburne.
Though a surprise, maybe it shouldn’t be. Turner proved just how committed she is about being one of the best in the sport when she moved from Australia to Montreal, Canada last month to train in-person with her coach Michele Letendre, who calls Turner “the future of Australia.”
“Ellie has got some crazy potential…I think she’s going to be there for a long time and I really think she’s going to make her mark,” Letendre told the Morning Chalk Up shortly after last summer’s CrossFit Games.
Hindsight being 20/20, Letendre was clearly seeing straight.
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Sam Dancer is leading workouts at Yerbae today and Saturday at 10:00 AM ET.
Hangout with Annie Thorisdottir at the Yerbae booth from 12:00 – 1:00 PM ET on Sunday.
RPM Training is hosting daily group training workouts where you can try out ATOM, their new at-home training system.
NEWS
Hyperinflation Devastates Lebanon, Turkey, Affiliate Owners Determined to Keep their Gyms Alive
Five years ago, Ramji Kamareddine opened 9616 CrossFit in Lebanon, and within three years he had a flourishing 200-plus member gym. But the last two years, the country has been hit with hyperinflation, mostly due to political corruption, which has made running a business next to impossible, he explained.
Before the inflation crisis in Lebanon started, Kamareddine’s members paid the equivalent of USD$100 a month, he explained. Today, even after he raised his rates, their fees are worth just USD$15 a month, making it difficult to cover rent and electricity, which he has to pay for in US dollars, let alone adequately pay his coaches.
Further, raising his rates caused half his members to quit, as their salaries, which are paid in Lebanese liras, have not increased along with inflation. But had he not raised his rates, members would effectively be paying just USD $3 now, he explained.
“Every day (inflation) keeps getting up, getting up, getting up…We’re not even able to maintain our gym, or to fix anything in our gym. It’s really bad. And everything you have to buy, (you have to pay for it) in US dollars, while (members are) paying you in Lebanese liras, which is not enough to do nothing,” Kamareddine said, adding that if it weren’t for CrossFit LLC waiving his affiliation fee in recent years, he definitely would have had to drop his CrossFit affiliation.
In 2014, Rachel Frederickson won the 15th season of The Biggest Loser, the infamous weight loss show that ran from 2004-2017. When she stepped on stage during the finale, she weighed in at 105lbs. She had lost an astounding 155lbs, 60% of her initial weight of 260lbs. The cameras panned to the faces of the celebrity trainers that reflected the complex feelings shared by many viewers at home. It was as if, in that moment, collectively we understood that this was not ok. The show was not celebrating health, it was celebrating thinness. Frederickson was awarded with $250k in prize money. At a scant 105lbs, she fell into the underweight category for her height. People who are underweight (BMI <18.5) are at a greater risk of poor health outcomes than people who are of normal weight or overweight (BMI 18.5-34).
Unsurprisingly, the show cancelled soon after following a damning NIH study on former contestants that showed that they gained most of the weight back, sometimes gained back even more, and were left with resting metabolic rates that were considerably lower than they should have been.
The studies themselves are quite interesting and provide some insight into how human metabolism works in the context of extreme weight loss. But I believe there is more to be learned in the aftermath of the original The Biggest Loser.
Every week, our team of journalists publishes exclusive stories available only to RX members, covering topics from professional coaching, the latest affiliate trends, feature stories on CrossFit Games athletes, and more. Here are a few RX stories we published this week. Start reading for just $1.
Former CrossFit Games Teen Stars Determined to Prove They’re Ready to Compete with the Best at Wodapalooza
The Wodapalooza roster this weekend in Miami, FL boasts a handful of athletes who finished on the podium at the CrossFit Games as teenagers and are hoping to prove they can make the transition to the individual division this summer.
The teen star line-up includes 18-year-old Olivia Sulek, a three-time teen competitor who was second at the Games last summer and first in 2018, two-time teen champion Kaela Stephano, two-time podium finisher Paige Powers, 2018 competitor Faith Ferguson, and 2020 qualifier Anikha Greer.
Why it matters: Much has been made of athletes like Haley Adams, Emma Cary and Mal O’Brien, all of whom transitioned seamlessly from the teen division at the Games one year into the individual division the next. But it’s important to remember that they’re the exception to the norm. The more common story is that it’s a very difficult road for most 17-year-olds to turn 18 and qualify to the Games the following year, which can be discouraging and humbling for any athlete who had early success in the sport.
Day 1 in Miami proved just how difficult the transition can be. Power leads the teen stars in 16th overall, while Greer sits in 18th, Ferguson in 26th, Sulek in 30th and Stephano in 36th.
Every Friday, we’re bringing you an exclusive workout challenge programmed by a CrossFit Games athlete or coach that you can take on at home or the gym. You can post your times or scores in the comment section.
In honor of her final CrossFit competition in her career this weekend at Wodapalooza we asked Kristin Holte to come up with something special for the community. A way for her to say thank you for supporting her through her amazing eight-year CrossFit Games career.
The 2019 “2nd Fittest Woman on Earth” won’t be leaving the CrossFit space entirely though. She will be concentrating her efforts in the release of her training program, Kriger Training of which she gives us a little taste of.
RX:
2 Rounds
AMRAP 5: 3 Bar Muscle Up, 6 Toes to Bar, 9 Air SquatsAMRAP 5: 3 Thrusters (110/75 LBs or 50/35 KGs), 6 Front Squats (110/75 LBs or 50/35 KGs), 9 Bar-facing BurpeesAMRAP 5: 3 Devil Press (50/35 LBs or 22.5/15 KGs), 6 Double Dumbbell Front Rack Reverse Lunge (50/35 LBs or 22.5/15 KGs), 9 Box Jump Over (24/20 inch) *No break between AMRAPs, one round = finishing each AMRAP in succession, then repeat from the beginning for a total of two rounds.
SCALING OPTION 1:
2 Rounds
AMRAP 5: 1 Bar Muscle Up (or 3 pull-ups), 6 Toes to Bar, 9 Air Squats
AMRAP 5: 3 Thrusters (85/60 LBs or 40/27 KGs), 6 Front Squats (85/60 LBs or 40/27 KGs), 9 Bar-facing Burpees
AMRAP 5: 3 Devil Press (35/25 LBs or 15/10 KGs), 6 Double Dumbbell Front Rack Reverse Lunge (35/25 LBs or 15/10 KGs), 9 Box Jump Over (24/20 inch)
SCALING OPTION 2:
2 Rounds
AMRAP 5: 3 pull-ups, 6 Toes to Bar, 9 Air Squats
AMRAP 5: 3 Thrusters (65/45 LBs or 30/20 KGs), 6 Front Squats (65/45 LBs or 30/20 KGs), 9 Bar-facing Burpees
AMRAP 5: 3 Devil Press (25/15 LBs or 12/8 KGs), 6 Double Dumbbell Front Rack Reverse Lunge (25/15 LBs or 12/8 KGs), 9 Box Jump Over (24/20 inch)
Time Cap: 30 minutes
Some advice from Kristin: “The workout is called “Only 30 min” and it’s from my program, Kriger Training. It’s 30 minutes of continuous work so you should pace yourself accordingly. The goal is to get the same score on both rounds so you might want to hold back just a tiny bit in the beginning. It is a tough workout, but not as tough as you 😉 . #Kriger”
To inquire about submitting an upcoming workout of the week, shoot us a note.
THINGS TO...
...WATCH
Some Mayhem in Miami
With 15 athletes competing at Wodapalooza this weekend...Mayhem's rolling deep. Check out their first day in Miami and see how they're preparing for the competition.
Looking to reset after the holidays and feel your best going into 2022. Join CrossFit Games Champion and NCFIT founder, Jason Khalipa, for the EOE40 Challenge. Work on your fitness and nutrition, all while building the small habits it takes to start and finish each day with a win.
A Free WHOOP Strap 4.0 And First Month's Membership
Watching the live heart rate data at Wodapalooza peaked your interest? Ours too. WHOOP measures your body's data over 100 times a second to provide personalized feedback on your recovery, strain, and sleep.
Rich joined the WHOOP podcast to explain how his drive to win, and his disdain for losing have fueled him for the last decade. This in-depth talk also touched on why he trains with partners, his thoughts on individual vs. team success, and what he's learned over the last 10 years at the top of our sport.
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