CrossFit Announces First Sanctioned Event

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“Our lives are defined by opportunities, even the ones we miss.” — F. Scott Fitzgerald

Dubai CrossFit Championship is First Sanctioned CrossFit Event

Just one week after we broke the news about format changes coming to the CrossFit Games season, which included new official sanctioned events, CrossFit announced the Dubai CrossFit Championship as the first ever sanctioned event.

“The Dubai CrossFit Championship marks the beginning of a new chapter for CrossFit,” said Greg Glassman, CrossFit’s Founder and Chairman. “The miracle of CrossFit happens in each one of our affiliates that help people get healthy and stay that way. Partnering with organizations like the folks in Dubai means we can really focus on that core mission. Through CrossFit sanctioned events like the Dubai CrossFit Championship, we’ll be able to keep pace with the growth of this international sport.”

The Dubai CrossFit Championship, formerly known as the Dubai Fitness Championship, is a four-day official CrossFit competition in Dubai which will take place the second week of December.

A major draw for top-level CrossFit Games athletes for the past several years, Annie Thorisdottir and Bjorgvin Karl Gudmundsson took home $50,000 each after taking first place in 2017.

In an interview last week, Glassman outlined a new CrossFit Games season that would include 16 sanctioned events once fully established, with roughly one competition taking place every two weeks. These sanctioned events will take the place of Regionals.

CrossFit expects to announce additional sanctioned events in the coming months. Both Wodapalooza and Granite Games are currently in discussion with CrossFit.

“At this time we are focussed on running the very best event for our athletes, volunteers, spectators and partners,” said John Swanson, the Director of Granite Games. Granite Games kicks off its 8th year of competition on September 6.

Additionally, CrossFit made its first official announcement confirming key details regarding the 2019 CrossFit Games qualification process.

“The top male, female and team finisher in the CrossFit Games Open from each country that is home to at least one CrossFit affiliate will earn spots to compete at the CrossFit Games the following summer,” the press release said.

The ‘Renal Warrior’ is Ready to Ride

Some background.

In 2016, Wilson Du was in a hospital bed with Stage Five Kidney Failure. In pain from head to toe, his options were dialysis or a kidney transplant. But, at 315 pounds, Wilson found out he could not be placed on the donor list.

So, he started walking.

At first, Wilson forced himself to get up and walk to his porch and back, every day. Then he would take a very long nap.

He would get up and do it again the next day. And then the next. Every day he walked a little bit further and slept a little bit less. He tracked his distance every time, walking further and further. He discovered bike riding and boxing and worked on cleaning up his diet with RP Strength.

This whole time he still went to dialysis three days a week.

He remembers discovering, “Our minds, our bodies, are resilient. They can do so many things, and once you think you’re tired, just know you got a little more left.”

What a champ.

Now, Wilson is down 130 pounds and stronger than ever. So strong in fact that starting September 30, he’s going to ride his bike from the San Francisco Bay area all the way down to San Diego for Renal Awareness.

Titled “The Warrior Ride“, he’ll ride one day then do dialysis the next. Through this ride, he’s hoping to find a living kidney donor, raise awareness to kidney disease, and to inspire hope for other patients who need to make their own transformation. You can follow Wilson on his Instagram, and you can donate to his cause too.

Coffee Break Conversations

What to tell your Keto neighbor at the Labor Day BBQ today…

Can’t drink onKketo, bro. There’s no denying it: alcohol consumption can jeopardize several processes in the body, whether you’re Keto or not. Your liver recognizes booze as a poison, period. And, an alcoholic beverage can add hundreds of empty calories to your intake. Multiply the effect of one such drink by three or four or more — as in a night of binge drinking — and you’ll easily turn your finely-tuned metabolic engine into a clunky old rust bucket. But, if you’re jonesing for a drink or two tonight, there’s still a few options that won’t do you in. 

Things To…

WATCH: Remember, Affiliates are Lifeboats

“Our estimation is that we have three times the number of CrossFit Affiliates that have carved 100 pounds off of a member than have sent someone to the Games. So what’s the real work in the box? It’s the good stuff.” —Greg Glassman, Founder of CrossFit

BACK TO THE BASICS. 

HEAR: Train Hard, Recover, Drink Wine

PJ and Alanna of the Night and Day Podcast sit down with CrossFit Games competitor, Margaux Alvarez to talk about her experiences as a CrossFit athlete, her outstanding performance in the marathon row at the 2018 CrossFit Games, her thoughts on the changes to the 2019 CrossFit season and of course her wine making business.

TRAIN HARD AND WINE.

EAT: Grilled Sweet Potato and Bell Pepper Toss

Here’s a side dish you can take with you tonight that won’t set you back a week’s worth of hard work. Grilled sweet potatoes and crunchy bell peppers tossed with fresh lime juice will be the belle of the ball tonight. 

SOUNDS GOOD. 

BUY: Ground Beef for Life

How would you like to get 2 pounds of ground beef delivered right to your door, every month for free? Dumb question. From now until September 30, anyone who signs up for ButcherBox will get 2 pounds of 100% grass fed beef delivered every month for as long as you’re a customer.

IT’S GRILLIN’ TIME.

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

Chase Knight gets a 350 pound clean PR • Congratulations to Ginny Hoover on her 111 pound transformation • Sydney Collins 175 pound five rep max PR • Jeff Rother gets a 444 pound five rep max back squat PR • Wes Piatt hang cleans 325 pounds for two • CrossFit Jaakarhu in Austin, TX moves to a new location • Saxon Panchik snatches 285 pounds.

Saved by the Barbell — On Saturday, the CrossFit Foundation held the first annual Saved by the Barbell WOD, an annual, world-wide Labor Day workout and fundraising effort to help bring CrossFit to more kids everywhere. Left Coast CrossFIt participated and so did the Kid Titans at CrossFit Hale Titans. CrossFit 138 even hung up paper streamers for their event and it was a packed house at Pine Mountain CrossFit. If you missed it this year, don’t worry. You’ll see it again next Labor Day. 

Labor Day Sales — It’s not too late to cash in on all the CrossFit friendly labor day sales. Here are five ways to save today:

1. Caveman Coffee Company is offering 17% off with “PIRATE” through tomorrow.
2. VIRUS has 10% off and a free pair of socks with code “LABOR10” until midnight tonight.
3. O2 Natural Recovery is offering 20% off and free shipping through tomorrow with code “LABORDAY.”
4. Get a free Barbell Apparel hoodie with any order over $99 tomorrow only. No code necessary, but you can snag an additonal 10% off with code “CHALKUP10.”
5. And don’t forget that CrossFit is having a sale too, anywhere from 20 – 40% off select items with CODE “GETMORE.” 

“Good genes are nice, but joy is better,” by Liz Mineo, The Harvard Gazette

When scientists began tracking the health of 268 Harvard sophomores in 1938 during the Great Depression, they hoped the longitudinal study would reveal clues to leading healthy and happy lives.

They got more than they wanted.

After following the surviving Crimson men for nearly 80 years as part of the Harvard Study of Adult Development, one of the world’s longest studies of adult life, researchers have collected a cornucopia of data on their physical and mental health.

Of the original Harvard cohort recruited as part of the Grant Study, only 19 are still alive, all in their mid-90s. 

Over the years, researchers have studied the participants’ health trajectories and their broader lives, including their triumphs and failures in careers and marriage, and the finding have produced startling lessons, and not only for the researchers.

“The surprising finding is that our relationships and how happy we are in our relationships has a powerful influence on our health,” said Robert Waldinger, director of the study, a psychiatrist at Massachusetts General Hospital and a professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. “Taking care of your body is important, but tending to your relationships is a form of self-care too. That, I think, is the revelation.”

9/6 – 9/9: Kill Cliff Granite Games (St. Cloud, MN) 

9/7: Koski Training Camp (Lloret de Mar, Spain) 

​9/8: Midwest Fall Classic (Tulsa, OK)

​9/8: The Sugar Skull Showdown (Agawam, MA)

9/8: I Can CrossFit Competition (Georgetown, TX)

9/8: Global Aftermath 2018 (Online)

9/8: The Catalyst Games (Bastrop, TX) 

9/8: BoxLife Games @ CrossFit Bear Cat (Bunnell, FL)

9/8: BoxLife Games @ CrossFit Wynwood (Miami, FL)

9/8: Booties in Action (Wilsonville, OR)9/8: Hookd2Hops 2018 (Newtown, CT)

9/8: Rumble in the Jungle 2018 (LaVista, NE)

9/8: 2018 Battle of the Bluegrass (Louisville, KY) 

9/8: Decima Throwdown (Littleton, CO)

9/8: First Timers Fitness Festival 2 (Burlington, MA) 

9/8: Girls Gone RX (Bridgeville, PA) 

9/8: BoxLife Games at CrossFit James Island (Charleston, SC) 

9/8: Femme Royale (Denver, CO) 

9/8: Double Trouble Throw Down (Twinsburg, OH)

9/8: Power Output Challenge (San Antonio, TX)

9/9: Reps for Recovery (Annapolis, MD)

9/8: WV CrossFit Championship (Fairmont, WV)

9/8 – 9/9: Beach Cities Battle 2018 (Gardena, CA)

9/8 – 9/9: The Vermonster Team Challenge (Berlin, VT)

9/15: Warrior Affiliate League Three Amigos (Pomona,CA)

9/15: No Mans Land 4 (Painesville, OH)

9/15: Average Joes (Troy, MI) 

9/15: Stateline Throwdown 2018 (McHenry, IL)

9/15: Project Uplift (Fort Collins, CO)

9/15: Barbells for Bullies (Lexington, SC)

9/15: Barbell Brawl IV (Kennett Square, PA)

9/15: Double Date Got Twisted (Bowling Green, KY)

9/15: Doomsday CrossFit Team Competition (Beachwood, OH)

9/16: 2018 Battle at the Rock (Castle Rock, CO)

​9/16: 5th Annual North East Masters Classic (Plainville, MA)

9/16: The Brazen Cup 2018 (Fairfield, NJ) 

9/22: Shatter the Stigma III (Boyertown, PA)

9/22: New Kids on the 321 Block 2018 (Topsham, ME)

9/22: Femme Royale at Eagle Wing CrossFit (Orange, CA)9/22: 2nd Annual CrossFit TUFF Charity Row-A-Thon (Nashua, NH) 

9/22: Girls Gone RX Denver (Denver, CO) 

9/22: Legends of the WOD (Grapevine, TX)

9/22: 2nd Annual Hotshot Showdown (Bridgeport, TX)

9/23 – 9/23: Field of Teams (Cedar Falls, IA)

9/22 – 9/23:The D-Town Throwdown (Decatur, Illinois)

9/22 – 9/23: The Cascade Classic (Seattle, WA)

9/23: Games of the Ages Masters Team Competition (Hanson, MA)

9/23: Cadre Crucible Team Competition (Hudson, OH)

9/23: Detroit Red Wings WOD (Detroit, MI) 

9/23: IronWorkz Gauntlet (Medina, OH)

9/24: CrossFit New England 3rd Annual Fundraising Golf Tournament (Hudson, MA)

9/28 – 9/29: Pensacola Beach Brawl (Pensacola Beach, FL)9/28 – 9/29: The Primal Games (Savannah, GA)

9/28 – 9/30: San Antonio’s Partner Competition (San Antonio, TX)

9/29: Kilo Crush Fest (Hampton, VA) 

9/29: Barcode Team Competition (Leander, TX)

9/29: Long Island Masters Team Competition (Hauppauge, NY)

9/29: Fallout Powered by Battleground Events (Long Beach, CA)

9/29: Battle for Boise (Meridian, ID)

9/29: 5th Annual WOD for a Cause (Murrietta, CA) 

9/29: K-9 Pursuit (Bristol, CT)

9/29: Swolemates (Cincinnati, OH)

​9/29: CrossFit Be Someone Charity WODathon (Houston, TX) 

10/6: Barbells for Boobs (Ladson, SC)