Another Blow in the NSCA/CrossFit Lawsuit

Happy Valentine’s Day and welcome to the Morning Chalk Up. Today’s edition is sponsored by Kettlebell Kitchen.

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“Roses are red, violets are blue, what I love most, is lifting with you.” — Someone, we hope

Federal Judge Delivers Another Blow to NSCA

The story.

On Monday, the NSCA suffered another blow in their years-long battle with CrossFit, Inc. after a California federal court shot down their request to dismiss a second lawsuit brought by their own insurance company, Insurer National Casualty Co.

Remind me.

CrossFit Inc. and the National Strength and Conditioning Association have been locked in a legal battle for the past several years over a false study published which claimed that CrossFit was dangerous.

The lawsuit hasn’t gone well for the NSCA.

• In 2016, the court ruled that the “NSCA fabricated the injury data” and the study was published “with the intention of protecting [NSCA’s] market share in the fitness industry.”
• By failing to comply with court orders on multiple occasions — including lying under oath and withholding documents — they were required to pay seven figures to hire a forensic accounting firm to comply with their court’s request.
• In May 2017, the court awarded CrossFit $400,000 in attorneys’ fees.
• Then in June 2017, the NSCA’s own insurance company — Insurer National Casualty Co. — brought a lawsuit to remove them from the liability of covering the NSCA any longer, which further exposes the NSCA to legal costs and liabilities.

So what’s next?

If the NSCA loses their battle with their own insurance company they’ll be on the hook for whatever they’re ordered to pay in damages to CrossFit.

One Man’s Mission to Get an AED in Every CrossFit Gym

Some background.

Jack Perkins has been CrossFitting for almost a decade. He’s also an Emergency and Internal Medicine physician. He decided to join his two passions and in 2016 founded a non-profit called the Compress and Shock Foundation.

What is the Compress and Shock Foundation?

Dr. Perkins believes everyone should learn CPR and how to operate an automated external defibrillator (AED). “We are committed to providing this education free of charge as there should never be a barrier to learning how to save a life,” he said.

Currently, less than one in ten people who suffer an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest will leave the hospital with a good neurological outcome. But, “if every victim of sudden cardiac arrest received CPR and AED use, this number would increase to 3 out of 10.  In the US alone, that would be 70,000 lives saved,” Dr. Jack Perkins told us in an email.



Getting Training into the Gym.

On May 13, 2017, Compress and Shock trained 300 people across seven states in CPR and AED use with volunteers and donated equipment during the 1st Annual National CPR & AED Day.

Last year, they expanded to include 16 facilities in just Roanoke alone, with additional sites in nine other states. “We partnered with the Roanoke City and Roanoke County Fire and EMS departments and trained nearly 600 individuals on that day,” wrote Dr. Perkins.

And they hope to reach even more people this year on Saturday, May 18, with a goal of training more than 1500 people in ten states. “I would like to see the CrossFit community embrace our yearly CPR and AED Education Day as part of what the CrossFit community offers its athletes, their families, and the public,” said Dr. Perkins. “We are committed to never charging a learner for this life-saving education.”

Your gym can be a site for the 2019 National CPR & AED Day by contacting the Compress and Shock Foundation.

Coffee Break Conversations

Still need a Valentine’s Day gift for your swolemate?

Here’s a super romantic idea; weightlifting gear. If you’re not sure what you need, how it works, or how to use it all there’s a handy guide for that. Because let’s be honest, chocolate is overrated and flowers die. Gainz don’t.

Didn’t make a dinner reservation in time…

Why are you like this? Just don’t take your date to Whole Foods for dinner tonight. They quietly just raised their prices on more than 500 items with an average price increase at 66 cents, but some go all the way up to several dollars. So chalk up that dinner wait time and save a few bucks tonight. 

Things To…

WATCH: On the Minute, Episode Ten 

Our very own Justin LoFranco joins Armen Amirian of ArmenHammer TV to bring you this week’s installation of On the Minute. They cover all the breaking CrossFit news of the week, including Jillian Michaels grossly inaccurate statement regarding CrossFit, the recent round of layoffs at HQ, and the CrossFit Open which kicks off in just one week.

ON THE MINUTE-ISH. 

HEAR: Talking Elite Fitness Over Here

Sean Woodland and Tommy Marquez discuss the latest round of lay-offs made by CrossFit HQ, Tommy shares info about a new app project he’s working on, and they both share some community support stories where you can get involved.

AND THEY ANSWER YOUR QUESTIONS.

WIN: A Free Year of Health Care

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ENTER TO WIN.

EAT: Valentine’s Day Chocolate Sugar Cookies

This grain-free almond flour recipe only uses one bowl and can be made into cut out shapes or rolled into dough balls. Top with a silky velvet chocolate frosting if you’re into that and give them to all those special valentines in your life. 

HEART SHAPED COOKIES.

Today’s edition of the Morning Chalk Up is sponsored by

Chalk Up Community

• EVA FOR EVA — Eva Twardokens, also known as Eva T. from the original CrossFit Nasty Girls video and namesake of the benchmark workout “Eva”, was badly injured in a plane crash last Saturday. This Saturday, February 16, CrossFit boxes everywhere will be doing “Eva for Eva” in support of her recovery. A GoFundMe account has also been created to help with her overwhelming medical and recovery
  expenses.
• NEW LOCATION — Bitterroot CrossFit, owned by Jeff and JJ Lewis, has moved to a new location in Hamilton, MT.
• PELVIC FLOOR SEMINAR — CrossFit Battle Ready in Greeley, OR is hosting a pelvic floor seminar Saturday, March 9th with Pregnancy and Post-partum Athleticism coach Kate Johnson.
• WODDING FOR VETERANS — For the month of February, Justin Wright of CrossFit Invictus Back Bay is running a fundraiser for the Travis Mills Foundation for wounded vets and families. Called the Machine Man Challenge, it’s composed of a 15,000 meter ski, a 121,000 bike, and a
  marathon row that can be completed solo or with a team. 
• BURPEES FOR JENNY — Join Southern Columbus CrossFit in Columbus, OH on February 17 from 12:00 – 1:00 PM PT in-person or on Facebook Live for an hour of burpees to benefit Jenny Malec, who is battling a rare form of cancer. 

CHALK UP IN 2 MINUTES (a highlight reel around social media of CrossFit pros and average joes)

Happy birthday Candice Savage-Wagner • Nineteen-year-old Guilherme Malheiros gets a 410 pound clean PR • Teresa Trojanowski gets a 235 pound clean off the blocks • Congratulations to Claire from Girls Gone WOD on the birth of her daughter Juna • Lauren Fisher deadlifts 325 pounds for two • You can meet Margaux Alvarez at Total Wine in Las Vegas, NV on March 9 and try her wine.

…and sometimes your daughter beats you in handstands in a twirly dress. 

Brazil CrossFit Championship Qualifier Winners — Alex Caron and Mel Rodriguez are the winners of the Brazil CrossFit Championship Online Qualifiers. They’ve both accepted their invitations to compete at the main event May 17-19
in Sao Paulo, Brazil. 

Early Access to 2019 Games Tickets — Yesterday, CrossFit announced that any box with 12 or more athletes in the Open will earn early access to the 2019 Games tickets. Translation…pay $240 dollars, the low-side price of coliseum ticket and you’ll get early dibs. 

FDA Sends a Warming to Supplement Companies — On Monday, the Food and Drug Administration issued a press release announcing new priorities when it comes to oversight of dietary supplements.

— “The U.S. Food and Drug Administration plays an important role in helping consumers make use of safe, high-quality dietary supplements while also protecting Americans from the potential dangers of products that don’t meet the agency’s standards for marketing.”

— “I recently directed the establishment of a Dietary Supplement Working Group at the FDA…I’ve tasked this group with taking a close look at our organizational structures, processes, procedures and practices in order to identify opportunities to modernize our oversight of dietary supplements.”

— Check the Mail: The FDA has already sent out fifteen warnings to supplement companies claiming to treat illnesses such as Alzheimer’s. 

— Bottom Line: The bottom line is that the FDA has it’s eyes on supplement companies and the claims they make, not just regarding diseases like Alzheimer’s, but also on the “reporting and labeling requirements on the makers of vitamins, minerals and herbs” across the board; even in sports performance. 

“McKernan, Oldroyd Among HQ’s New Wave of Layoffs,” by Justin LoFranco, Morning Chalk Up 

In a continued effort to shift the direction of CrossFit Inc., the company executed another sweeping round of layoffs Tuesday at their office in Scotts Valley, CA, the Morning Chalk Up has learned.

Through conversations with former employees, we have confirmed that 21 of in-office employees across publishing, health, video, writing, IT, e-commerce, project management, QA and operations departments were laid off effective immediately.

This is the third round of layoffs the company has gone through in the past six months. Key figures like Rory McKernan and Tyson Oldroyd were included in this round of layoffs.

McKernan, the host of the CrossFit Games and a former L1 Seminar Staff member, was one of the CrossFit media team’s first hires a decade ago. He was an integral member of Games media broadcasts that streamed across the globe, and landed on networks like ESPN and CBS Sports.

Oldroyd, also a former member of the L1 Seminar Staff, had a hand in coordinating and producing a significant portion of CrossFit Inc.’s media efforts during his tenure, ranging from core instructional content to the Fittest on Earth documentaries.

CrossFit HQ declined to comment for this story.

With the latest changes, the total number of CrossFit employees laid off over the past half year is approaching 100, according to our best estimates, leaving a skeleton crew to execute on the CrossFit Games vision which kicks off in a little more than five months.

2/15 – 2/16: 2nd annual Tough Love Competition (Louisville, KY)

2/16: Valentine’s Day Massacre (Kilgore, TX)

2/16: Cupids Revenge (Kapolei, HI)

2/16: Masters of Fitness ( Cape Coral, FL)

2/16: The Garage Games Xs & Ys (Valdosta, GA)

2/16: Couples Clash 2019 (Pensacola, FL)

2/16: Tuff Love (Boulder, CO)

2/16: Reps For Rescues at Timberwolf CrossFit (Roseville, MN)

2/16: Valentine’s Day Massacre (Selma, TX)

2/16: Winter War Games (Spanish Fort, AL)

2/16: Vicious Valentine’s Partner Throwdown (Carlisle, PA)

2/16: Ice Breaker 3 at Unbreakable Athletics Academy (Plainfield, IN)

2/17: RGA GAMES 2019 Online Qualifiers (Online)

2/23: Amicus Ambush: Mixed Teams (Dickinson, ND)

2/23 – 2/24: Strength in Depth (London, England)

3/24: The Rockwell Championships Series Team Qualifiers (Online)