How Mat Fraser Protects His Private Life

Good morning and welcome to the Morning Chalk Up. Today’s edition is brought to you by FITAID.

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“Hardships often prepare ordinary people for an extraordinary destiny.” — C.S. Lewis

When Dreamtown CrossFit Built It, the Teens Came

Some background.

It all started when Jason Berger, owner of Dreamtown CrossFit in Truckee, CA asked for a Onewheel. Dad and son made an agreement: if he sold his Xbox, a heated topic in the home, he could buy the Onewheel. It worked.

It gave him an idea. If he could get other kids in his area to commit to something, then he might be able to get them off the couch and into the gym.

“You know, when I look at my generation, this is kind of our fault. We did this to them,” he told us in a phone interview.

So he started a free kids program.

Yes, free. It costs them absolutely nothing to come to Dreamtown CrossFit every day. Instead, each teen member in the program has to make a commitment to Coach Jason in exchange for their membership.

He wasn’t sure it was going to work at first. “Essentially, what I’m asking these kids to do is put effort into me kicking their butt every day,” he said.

But in September, he started it anyway. In two months, he had 40 teens enrolled in the exchange-based program. They closed registration until they could sit down and re-evaluate. Now, with zero advertising, they have 56 teens. They’ve grown from three classes a week to five, with an average of 14-20 kids coming in every single day.

The kids are gonna be alright.

“The thing is, because their parents aren’t forcing them to come to class, they are free to take ownership of themselves. They manage their membership all on their own,” Jason said. The kids get to pick what they exchange for their membership. “But, it has to be something that they’re struggling with in their life that they want to get better at.”

Jason’s son of the earlier Xbox fame agreed to make dinner at home two nights week so that he can learn how to cook. One teen member, after never eating vegetables, agreed to eat six ounces of vegetables at night and uses a scale to measure them. Three of them volunteer weekly at the local animal shelter. Others gave up soda, agreed to limit screen time, and one committed to being more respectful to his mother.

“We have a contract. If they don’t follow thru, they can’t come in. This gym was started on integrity, and that’s what I expect. If you look me in the eye and tell me you’re doing it, I’m going to believe you. It’s the same as counting their reps. And you know what, they pull their stuff together. That’s what we’re trying to instill in them.”

Coffee Break Conversations

What to tell the person who is three weeks into their New Year’s resolution…

First of all, congratulations. Second, maybe it’s time to mix it up a little bit. If you’re working out more than you ever have, but not seeing results you wanted, try something new to spice things up a bit. You might be pleasantly surprised. 

Things To…

WATCH: On the Minute, Episode 8

In this brand new episode of On The Minute, Morning Chalk Up Editor-in-Chief Justin LoFranco and Armen Hammer of ArmenHammerTV give a full report card on the 2019 Wodapalooza Fitness Festival. They breakdown why it’s important to pay attention to the whole leaderboard and two standouts to watch for.

REPORT CARDS GIVEN.

HEAR: What is Intuitive Eating

Intuitive eating sounds vague, mysterious even, but it’s simpler than you think. Dietitian Lauren Rieker, who specializes in eating disorders and founded Renovate Your Plate, is a different kind of nutritionist. She discusses her tip to help you stop feeling guilty about eating certain foods on the Worth Your Time Podcast.

WORTH YOUR TIME.

BUY: Fresh, Organic Smoothies Delivered to You

This January, SmoothieBox is running a New Year, New You offer. New members will get $60 off their first three boxes and they get free shipping. So you’re looking at less than $5 for each smoothie full of one who serving of organic fruits and veggies, 20 grams of healthy collagen protein, and no added sugar. Just use code “NEWYEAR” and get started. 

BREAKFAST COMING IN CLUTCH.

EAT: Stovetop Adult Mac and Cheese

Just about as easy as opening one of those little boxes of shells and powdered sauce but a whole lot more delicious. This super-quick stovetop mac and cheese borrows from the method for a classic pasta, but with a bit of milk to make it extra creamy. No béchamel, no baking, just pure dairy-on-carbs joy.

A CHILDHOOD CLASSIC.

Today’s edition of the Morning Chalk Up is brought to you by

Chalk Up Community

• BRUTE STRENGTH SEMINAR — Brute Strength is hosting a live online mental performance seminar with Justin Su’a, the mental performance coach for the Boston Red Socks and Cleveland Browns, on February 6 at 5:00 PM PT.
• A COMMUNITY COMES TOGETHER — The CrossFit community at large has started a GoFundMe for Custom Made CrossFit, who lost everything in the recent Camp Fire.
• FREE DURING THE FURLOUGH — Decima CrossFit in Littleton, CO is offering free memberships to anyone affected by the ongoing government shutdown. 
• FUNDRAISER FOR A FALLEN OFFICER — On Saturday, January 12th, Fern Creek CrossFit hosted a community workout to honor fallen officer Detective Deidre Mengedoht, who was tragically killed on Christmas Eve while doing a routine traffic stop. All funds raised during the event went to her nine-year-old son. 
• HONORING A FALLEN POLICE OFFICER — MobTown CrossFit in Mobile, AL is hosting a fundraiser featuring a Hero WOD to honor Officer Sean Tuder, who was shot and killed in the line of duty, Sunday. Shirts are being sold to help with the funeral costs and donations will be accepted. 100% of all proceeds will go directly to his family.

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

Brent Fikowski is holding an Ask Me Anything session on Reddit today from 3:00 – 4:00 PM PT • Ash Crawford gets a 505 pound deadlift PR
• Jen Krysh showcases her weightloss transformation since finding CrossFit • Congratulations to Cassie Brown on her first muscle-up • Shane Orr
and Tia-Clair Toomey are relaxing in Florida after her Wodapalooza win • The Asia CrossFIt Championship is looking for volunteers • Nicholas
DiMarco gets a 364 pound 5RM back squat PR • Congrats to Beth on her first rope climb. 

…and Jenn and Sam Dancer are pretty much relationship goals.

Australian CrossFit Championship — The Australian CrossFit Championship is underway in Queensland. Sam Briggs, Matt McLeod, and Team Project X took Event 1. Here’s the schedule for today and the complete roster.

— Fans Bewars, this Fake Livestream is a Scam…“some of our friends down under shared a suspicious Facebook page called “Australian Crossfit Championship 2019 Live” that promised access to a livestream for the Australian CrossFit Championship. We reached out to vent organizers who confirmed that it has “no association whatsoever” with the event. They told us a week ago there would be no livestream either so don’t fall for this one. 

Fittest In Cape Town Releases More Events — Fittest in Cape Town, a sanctioned event that takes place January 31 – February 2, released several events including Individual WOD # 1 “Sprint Murph”, another Individual WOD with heavy barbells, a classic 400 meter run, a Team WOD called “Donny” and another called “Mad Max Out.” 

— Carol-Ann Reason-Thibault Withdraws: Carol-Ann withdrew from the Fittest in Cape Town event yesterday. For more updates regardig the full roster, follow along on our Global leaderboard. 

Sixty Minutes with Mat Fraser — Armen Amirian of ArmenHammerTV spent some time with Mat Fraser in Miami. He talks with Mat about how he’s developed a reputation of being a bad guy in the CrossFit world, how he works to protect his private life, and the persona he puts out there when he competes. 

Jason Khalipa on the Rogue Invitational — Jason Khalipa sat down with Justin LoFranco in the Morning Chalk Up studio in the RPM booth and discussed the upcoming Rogue Invitational. “It was really cool. Im glad that they didn’t call it Masters. Theres a lot
of fans out there that are excited to see these guys. And I am excited to see them again and also compete with them. It’s exciting. I think people are going to like it.”

— On Everyone’s Mind: Speaking of the Rogue Invitational, Rich Froning discussed the Rogue Invitational with Armen Hammer. “I have a Legends invite…If we’ve already qualified then yes I’ll definitely do the Legends event. But if we haven’t qualified and thats something we’re going to depend on then I’m gonna have to pass on that. The team comes
first.”

— Pleaes let this happen. Please. 

“How America’s Soda Industry Conquered China’s Public Health Agency,” by Russ Greene, Keep Fitness Legal 

Wenhua Zhao and Junshi Chen both serve as preeminent public health officials in China. At the same time, Zhao and Chen have led Coca-Cola’s propaganda and lobbying efforts in China. They have fooled not only the Chinese government but also the Western academic journals they’ve published in. They have declared no conflicts of interest while publishing in outlets such as the Journal of the American Medical Association and the American CDC’s publications.

China is just the latest example in a global trend: the soda industry’s exploitation of the nonprofit conflict of interest loophole. That is, the industry has exploited this loophole in the conflict of interest policies of worldwide public health agencies and academic institutions. It has founded and funded public health-oriented nonprofit organizations such as “Exercise is Medicine” and the “International Life Sciences Institute”. Leaders of these industry proxy organizations have maintained government public health positions in countries such as the United States, South Africa, Malaysia, and China. No one would accept a government health official simultaneously working for Coca-Cola. Yet these officials have simultaneously served on nonprofits founded and funded by Coca-Cola. And only a single case, that of former U.S. CDC official Barbara Bowman, had any apparent repercussions.

On first glance, Junshi Chen’s academic and government credentials appear unassailable. He is Senior Research Professor of the Institute of Nutrition and Food Safety at the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Chen is also a Visiting Scholar and Adjunct Professor at Cornell University and has served as an Associate Professor, Professor, and Deputy Director of the Institute of Nutrition and Food Hygiene at the Chinese Academy of Preventive Medicine in addition to a host of other official public health positions.

Yet at the same time, Chen serves as the “National Center Director” of Exercise is Medicine in China and the Director of the International Life Sciences Institute’s Chinese arm, ILSI Focal Point China. Note that Coca-Cola was the “first founding partner” of EIM, a program that promotes exercise as the answer to chronic disease while silencing fitness professionals on the subject of nutrition. And Coca-Cola has used EIM to fight soda taxes in Mexico.

1/25 – 1/27: Australian CrossFit Championships (Queensland, AUS)

1/25 – 1/27: Judgment Day Hawkes Bay (Napier, NZ)

1/26: The Force Wars 2 (Pembroke Pines, FL)

1/26: Lost River Rumble (Bowling Green, KY)

1/26: The Blizzard Bowl (Little Canada, MN)

1/26: 2019 IceBreather Classic (Springfield, IL)

1/26: ATCF Cancer Crackdown: Revival of The Fittest (Pasco, WA)

1/26: Hung Like Coff at PFC CrossFit (Las Vegas, NV)

1/26: Steel Rail Shootout 2019 (McComb, MS)

1/26: Woid Beast Fitness Challenge (Cham, Germany)

1/26: Brick NY Midtown Throwdown (New York, NY)

1/26: Fifth Annual Cold Steel Classic (Oswego, IL) 

1/26: New Year’s Revolution (Seminole, FL)

1/26: Three Rivers Throwdown (Rome, GA)

1/26 – 1/27: Cougars and Cradle Robbers (Salem, MA)

1/26 – 1/27: Game Day Eau Claire (Eau Claire, WI)

1/26 – 1/27: NorCal Masters (San Rafael, CA)

1/27: Big Dawgs Athlete Development Camp (Letchworth, England)

1/29 – 2/2: Fittest in Cape Town (Cape Town, South Africa)

2/1 – 2/2: Battle of the Brave III (North Kansas City, MO)

2/2: Golden State Games (Stockton, CA)

2/2: Left Coast Classic Competition (Laguna Niguel, CA)

2/2: Golden State Games (Stockton, CA)

2/2: A League of Their Own (San Antonio, TX)

2/2: True Paw III Crossfit Competition (Annapolis, MD)

2/3: Coffland Hero WOD (Norwalk, CT) 

2/9: Valentine’s Day Crush (North Hollywood, CA)

2/9: The Garage Games Master of the Masters (Suwanee, GA)

2/9: Cupid’s Roar Partner Competition (Melbourne, Australia)

2/9: 3rd Annual Black Ops Partner Competition (Wheaton, IL)

2/9: Bedrock Heart Breaker (Calgary, AB)

2/9: Battle of the Ages (Jacksonville, FL) 

2/9: Battle for Bae 2019 (San Mateo, CA)

2/9: Battle of the Fittest 6: NYC Throwdown (New York, NY)

2/9: My Bloody Valentine (Vidalia, OH)

2/9: 2nd Annual Battle of the Ages (Fruitland, ID)

2/9 – 2/10: The CF Circus (Des Moines, IA)

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

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

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

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

2/16: Tuff Love (Boulder, CO)

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)

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

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