Inmates and the King of Grit

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“You have to decide whether you want to be good at CrossFit or breathe (during a WOD).” — Austin Aikens, owner of CrossFit 706 in Augusta GA

A FLAG ON OUR DOORSTEP

What happened?

Yesterday, we showed up to our office to find an unexpected and very patriotic package at our door. The return address read APO, AE which stands for “American Post Office, Armed Forces Europe.”

It left our heads scratching a little. 

What was inside?

Needless to say, we lost no time in opening the package and we found an American Flag, challenge coin and certificate.

Who’s it from?

The package was sent from the 379th Expeditionary Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron currently stationed at the Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar. The enclosed flag was flown on board a C-130H on October 25, 2017 during an Aeromedical Evacuation Combat Support Mission transporting American service members over Iraq, Kuwait and Qatar safely delivering them to receive care outside the theater of operations. 

Why’d they send it?

Good question. We can only guess that it’s because of the story we wrote on October 19th about CrossFit Undisclosed, located on the Al Udeid Air Base, which is desperately in need of repairs as much of their equipment is either makeshift or held together with duct tape and glue. To date, the CrossFit community has generously donated more than $5,000 to help our servicemembers out. 

We’re so honored to have received this gift. For as long as we’re a company, this flag will hang in our office, proudly. Oh and if you didn’t donate the last time around, there’s still time to help these guys out. 

CHALK UP IN 2 MINUTES

Roundup — Travis Mayer hits three snatch balances at 305 pounds. Lauren Fisher beats Rasmus Andersen in a handstand obstacle course race. Rich Froning is
giving away 10 pairs of limited edtion Bear KompleX hand grips. Chelsea Sellers does Grace in 1:01. Well look who’s working out together. 

With your second cup of coffee…watch this 7-year-old do 10 unbroken strict-ish muscle-ups. 

Side Note — Everyone has that friend who really means this, when they ask for just a bite.

Set Your Calendar Reminders — Justice League comes out Thursday night and CrossFit’s very own Brooke Ence gets some screen time. Brooke also weighed in on costume-gate, the controversial wardrobe change to the Amazons’ more revealing battle gear saying, “The girls on set, we never thought of [the new costumes] as a sexy version. It felt a little more glamorous, if anything, because we had bigger, beautiful hair, which I loved. I’m an athlete
first, right? [Usually] I can’t wear anything without someone commenting about my [muscular] body. So for me, it was actually really cool to be able to show it and not immediately feel masculine, but still very feminine.”

COFFEE BREAK CONVERSATIONS

What to tell your friend who’s got some extra spare time…

Signup to volunteer. Meet James Lancaster, a relative unknown up-and-comer who also owns CrossFit Hit and Run in Memphis, TN. Every Thursday, James visits the F-wing at 201 Poplar, the downtown Memphis jail, where inmates 18-24-years-old are locked up. He leads a one-hour CrossFit class, and get this: he carries items like medballs in an old military duffle bag to and from his box. The weekly volunteering has spun off into a nonprofit called Kings of Grit to “teach young men, through fitness, the importance of being relentless, teaching the next man, showing grace, and having unity.” You
gotta watch this video about how James is changing lives in a dark place and as soon as we figure out how to donate to his cause you’ll be sure to hear about it.

What to tell your friend who just snuck in a couple ginger snaps…

Where’d you get those? RXBAR has just done something awesome for any festive gingerbread fan, they released a limited run of gingerbread RXBARs. Want a free taste? All orders placed through November 19 will include two free bars of Gingerbread, or you can just buy a whole box to snack on while watching Miracle on 34th Street.

THINGS TO…

WATCH: WAG Down to Houston

After Hurricane Harvey swept through the city, Working Against Gravity put a team together and sent them down to join up with Urban League Houston to help give the city a hand up. 

ROLL UP YOUR SLEEVES.

HEAR: Patrick Vellner on PEDs and Getting Third Place

The third fittest man on Earth, Patrick Vellner joins Julie Foucher’s Pursuing Health podcast and opens up about the controversy surrounding Ricky Garard getting popped for using PEDs and his perspective on how that affects the sport of CrossFit. 

DON’T WANNA MISS.

MARK YOUR CALENDARS: Camp Timeout with Joy and Claire

Girls Gone WOD Podcast is…get ready for it…hosting a U.S. based getaway, this time in their home state of Colorado. So if you’re feeling a little summer camp envy, mark your calendars for Black Friday cause that’s when this retreat sale goes live.

I’M READY FOR A SUMMER VACATION.

EAT: 3-Step Green Curry

Green curry is absolutely the bomb, especially on a cold day — it’s fall y’all! Curry seems like such a challenging recipe to make but honestly it’s not and there’s always a ton of extras for lunch the next day.

EASY AS 1, 2, 3.

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

CHALK UP AFFILIATES

• The Hallmark neighborhood of West Louisville, KY is characterized by low life expectancy, health issues like obesity and diabetes are prevalent, many older residents are dealing with the physical repercussions from years of labor, and some don’t feel safe even going for a jog. In comes Break the Mold CrossFit, who recently opened up a class for athletes 50+ in what’s refered to as the “exercise desert.” Now retirees like 70-year-old James Cross who worked for years on the Ford assembly line have a place to go to get fit instead of staying on the couch. 
• Hundreds of athletes showed up at CrossFit Des Moines in Des Moines, IA to honor Officer Justin Martin who was shot and killed in the line of duty last year. All of the proceeds from the competition are being donated to the Justin Martin Memorial Fund.

“Dumbbells: Did You Get the Message?” by Brittney Saline 

It’s been almost a year since the Great Dumbbell Shortage of 2017.

Provoked by a single photo shared on Instagram by CrossFit Games Director Dave Castro, the shortage was the result of thousands of affiliate owners who rushed to purchase dumbbells for the 2017 Reebok CrossFit Games Open, nearly depleting retailers of their wares while inciting fury among those who had long mistaken the dumbbell for a glorified doorstop.

So what’s happened since then?

Did you get through the Open only to return to the barbell like a long-lost lover? Or did you recognize a hole in your fitness and spend the year filling it?

Here, affiliate owners react to the 2017 season and share how it affected their approaches to training and programming.

Brought to You By Kati Breazeal — Do you wear or thinking of wearing those gymnastic grips for pull-ups, toes-to-bar, muscle-ups, etc.? Do you sometimes feel like there’s a little extra fabric bunched up at the top? This is going to blow your mind — it’s supposed to be there and if you learn how to use it properly, it’ll help you stay on the bar longer and save your grip.

11/18: New WODs On The Block (Various Locations in US)

11/18: Downtown Throwdown (Prattville, AL)

11/30: CrossFit Liftoff (Online)

12/1 – 3: Atlas Games (Montreal, Canada)

12/2 – 3: Rogue Winter Classic (Cleveland, OH)

12/2: Anthem CrossFit’s Reindeer Games (Pensacola, FL)

12/2: Vekter Games IV (CrossFit ReVamped, Columbia, MD)

12/9: The 2017 Reindeer Games (Del Mar, CA)

12/9 – 10: WOD GODZ 2017 (Shreveport, LA)

1/27/18: Winter Chiller (Fairmont, WV)