Mathew Fraser Accepts Dubai Invitation

Good morning and welcome to the Morning Chalk Up. Today’s edition is fueled by EPIC Provisions, providing protein-packed snacks made from whole foods for all of your muscle-building and adventure goals.

Their animal fats and bone broths make all of your fall cooking easier and healthier! Best of all, when you stock up on these pantry staples, you’ll get two free bags of their new traditional jerky.

“Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, ‘What are you doing for others?” — Martin Luther King Jr.

Helping Combat Wounded Veterans Catch A Lift

Background.

The Catch A Lift Fund helps post 9/11 combat wounded veterans regain their mental and physical health through gym memberships, in home gym equipment, personalized fitness and nutrition programs, and peer support network.

Catch A Lift was founded by Lynn Coffland, sister of Army Cpl. Chris Coffland, who lost his life in November of 2000 in Afghanistan while serving in Operation Enduring Freedom. Coffland believed that through fitness, one can reach their highest potential both mentally and physically.

Since day one, this has been the mainstay of Catch A Lift.

How does it work?

“Every veteran had to be at the top of their game, and they relished in that. It’s really them, growing outside of themselves, to be able to reach out and say, as a warrior, I need a little help,” said Lynn Coffland.

Catch A Lift always has their nose to the ground for those who need help, but any combat wounded post 9/11 veteran is eligible. The Catch A Lift grant cycle is for one year and in that year the veteran is able to choose between using the funds in a fitness facility or on home equipment.

And, any veteran that receives the grant is also introduced to the MAPS program; motivation, accountability, and peer support.

But there are many other benefits to the CAL program like further education in the fitness industry, yearly events teaming veteran members in athletic competitions involving community support, and squad leaders that help motivate and inspire each grant recipient all year long.

There’s also the Women’s Fitness Initiative, an initiative that gives combat wounded women a safe platform to grow through physical fitness.

How to get involved.

So many ways. You can host a Warrior Fit Weekend, volunteer to coordinate a Fitness for Heroes Challenge at your gym, host a fundraiser, or run on a CAL Endurance team. You can also become a CAL squad leader to help track veteran members throughout the year to make sure they’re reaching their goals while also being a support and a mentor. You can also donate to keep keep the grants going.

Ice Cream That Your Abs and Wallet Will Love

It fits your macros.

Low-cal, high protein ice cream is all the rage — perfect for topping off your macros after a long day and a hard workout. Halo Top, is a popular brand of the guilt-free treat (it’s got as much Instagram street cred as La Croix), but at nearly $6 per pint, it’s not helping your wallet as much as it is your waistline.

Thankfully Aldi’s got your back.

Aldi is kind of known for their product dupes and they just introduced their own version that people are saying is just as good as Halo Top. The ice cream comes in three different flavors: chocolate, vanilla bean, and mint chip. Each one is less than 300 calories per pint and packs between 20-24 grams of protein. Oh, and they’re only $3 per pint.

That’s a copycat we’ll be happy to stock up on.

Coffee Break Conversations

What to tell your nutrition client who is already nervous about the holiday season of eating…

You gotta’ go in with a plan, Janet. With the holidays approaching faster than we can judge your squat depth, it’s important to prioritize your health and wellness. You didn’t spend all year gettin’ this swole to lose it all over some Costco pie and cookies. So take a few minutes to identify what you want, make a plan, then stick to it. 

Things To…

WATCH: The Problem with the Standard Diet

The nutrition lecture at the CrossFit Level 1 Course is when it’s time to talk about food. The CrossFit truth when it comes to nutrition is “Eat meat and vegetables, nuts and seeds, some fruit, little starch and no sugar. Keep intake to levels that will support exercise but not body fat,” but what does that mean?

IT’S PRETTY SIMPLE ACTUALLY.

HEAR: Doing the Dangerous 14

Reader’s Digest just released a list of 14 exercises that they argue are dangerous for anyone over 50. In this episode of the Beyond Macros Podcast, Mat Walrath sits down Chris Walrath, his father, to discuss how to stay fit and healthy for the long run and he shares his all-time PR powerlifting total on his 60th birthday at 1000 pounds.

THAT’S A HECK OF A PR. 

EAT: Paleo Chipotle Aioli Mayo

Homemade paleo mayo is a total game changer and unbelievably easy to make. This homemade paleo chipotle aioli has a nice kick to it, although not overwhelmingly spicy. Make a double batch and store it in an airtight container in the fridge, because you’ll want it on everything.

ONE BOSS SAUCE. 

SUPPORT: RP and Barbells For Boobs

October is Breast Cancer Awareness month and the folks over at Renaissance Periodization are showing their support by donating 20% of all RP Diet Template sales to Barbells For Boobs this week.

A WIN WIN. 

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

Chalk Up Community

• PRO-TIP: WRIST AND GRIP STRENGTH — Did the 2018 CrossFit Team Series expose a giant hole in your grip strength? Try this CrossFit Training drill to help build up your wrist and grip strength for next year. 
• FIRST PLACE GETS YOU INTO WODAPALOOZA — This Saturday at CrossFit Iron Mile in Sacramento, CA, you can compete in the Iron October 6 in the RX or scaled division. Winner of the RX division gets to bypass the Wodapalooza online qualifier. And, to add to the fun, Margaux Alvarez will be there hosting a wine event all day. 
• BURPEES FOR DARYL — The members and coaches at CrossFit 51 in Tulsa, OK completed the Burpees for Daryl challenge. Together they completed 3600 burpess to help Daryl Glen Kelley, owner of CrossFit Ideal, as he recovers from a recent accident. 

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

Becca Voigt had surgery on both hands yesterday • Cameron Bucek, the CrossFit Nomad, is at Power Monkey Fitness Camp • Noah Ohlsen has teamed up with Pure Spectrum • Flashback Friday but on a Wednesday to Anthony Davis snatching 325 pounds at the Granite Games • Travis Mayer
flew to Miami for one afternoon to re-do a Team Series event with Noah Ohlsen • Happy belated birthday Jason Khalipa. 

…and make sure you have all the accessories ready if you’re dropping in at Camel City CrossFit.

GAINZ BOX MADE A HUGE GAIN — Orange Coast CrossFit is announcing today that owner Kenneth Leverich has sold his portion to Gainz Box founders Brian Ellis, Kenneth Miller and Michelle Miller. “It has been a great blessing in my life to have served OCCF as an owner these past years,” says Kenneth Leverich. “This community is the source of all my passion in this sport. As my time permits I will
continue to be a part of OCCF, aside from my duties as a EMS professional and I have every confidence in my friends at Gainz Box.”

The 2018 CrossFit Team Series Winners — The CrossFit Team Series came to a close Monday. No official announcements yet, but unless something changes these are your top teams:

— Men: 1.) Travis Mayer/Noah Ohlsen, 2.) Josh Gervais/Tyler Lee, 3.) Connor Duddy/Dane Smith.

— Women: 1.) Meg Reardon/Kristine Best 2.) Harriet Roberts/Jessica Coughlan, 3.) Justine Beath/Maddie Sturt.

— Mixed: 1.) Travis Williams/Alexis Johnson 2.) Ben Smth/Laura Horvath, 3.) Carolyne Prevost/Lucas Parker.

Happening this Morning: Dubai Qualifier Week 1 Announcement — The Dubai CrossFit Championship online qualifier kicks off this morning with the announcement of the first week’s qualifier workout; there will be three total over the next three weeks. A video announcement will be posted to Facebook and YouTube at
5:00 AM PT/8:00 AM ET/4:00 PM GMT+4, detailing the first workout for week 1. Athletes will have until Sunday 5:00 AM PT/8:00 AM ET/4:00 PM GMT+4 to submit their scores, and here’s where you can follow the leaderboard.

— OVERNIGHT: Mathew Fraser, Annie Thorisdottir and Sara Sigmundsdottir accepted invitations to compete at Dubai CrossFit Championship in December. As former champions of the former Dubai Fitness Championship, each received an invite to bypass the online qualifier. Noah
Ohlsen and Bjorgvin Karl Gudmundsson also received invitations but yet to accept.

Happening this Evening: Wodapalooza Individual Qualifier Week 1 Announcement — Tonight at 5:00 PM PT/8:00 PM ET, Wodapalooza will announce the first qualifier WOD for individuals on Wodapalooza.com. Then tomorrow at 6:00 AM PT/9:00 AM ET, a second workout for week 1 will be released. Both will be due Monday 5:00 PM PT/8:00 PM ET.

— ICYMI: “Wodapalooza Gains Sanctioned Status”

— Grab 20% off registration for the individual or team online qualifier with code “WZACHALKUP18.”

“‘Dena the determined’: MS patient fights back with CrossFit” by Hannah Davis, WFAA

If it’s 5 a.m. you know where to find Dena Blum. She’ll be covered in sweat Tiger’s Den CrossFit in Dallas.

“I wake up at 4:15 a.m. to get here,” Blum said.

Blum is at the gym six days a week, squatting with heavy weight, pushing herself on the bike or heaving a medicine ball into the air over and over. Believe it or not, she wouldn’t miss these tough workout for the world.

“I never want to skip. I’ve have to come,” Blum said.

Blum is serious when she says she “has” to show up. Because she says these workouts are her key to battling multiple sclerosis.

“If I skip I can’t move like normal the next day. I have to keep going,” Blum said.

Blum was diagnosed six years ago. Doctors delivered the life altering news the day before her then boyfriend Steven Latham proposed.

10/3: Wodapalooza Qualifier – Individual (Online)

10/5: The Hopper (Asheville, NC)

10/5 – 10/7: International Functional Fitness Federation World Championships (London)

10/6: Beer City Beatdown (Asheville, NC)

10/6: Gallant Gauntlet 2 (Bedford, TX)

10/6: WOD for Water Troy (Troy, AL)

10/6: Cactus Games (Phoenix, AZ)

10/6: Pound-4-Pound Competition (Denver, CO)

10/6: Invictus Boston Barbells for Boobs (Boston, MA)

10/6: Girls Gone RX @ Old Line Crossfit (Millersville, MD)

10/6: The Battle To Benefit Badge (Utica NY)

10/6: Iron Eagle Challenge (Cookeville, TN)

10/6: The Grit Games (Jacksonville, FL)

10/6: Fit For Freedom (St. Peters, MO)

10/6: Fitness Freedom Project Jay WOD (San Marcos, CA)

10/6: OUTWOD (Philadelphia, PA)

10/6: Garden State Open 2018 (Berkeley Heights, NJ)

10/6: T-Town Throwdown (Toledo, OH)

10/6: 7th Annual Dog – WOD (Minneapolis, MN)

10/6: Hulks and Ninjas (Bangor, ME)

10/6: 7th Annual Dog WOD ( Minneapolis, MN)

10/6: Masters & Minors Invitational (Kill Devil Hills, NC)

10/6: Capitol City Classic (Madison, WI)

10/6: Team Scream Crossfit817 (Fort Worth,TX)

10/6: Iron October 6 (Woodland, CA)

10/6 – 10/7: The Iron Clash (Fayetteville, NC)

10/6 – 10/7: 307 Throwdown (Casper, WY)

10/12 – 10/14: Faith RX’d (Denver, CO)

10/13: Barbells For Boobs 2018 (Sutton, MA)

10/13: WOD for a Cause (Bloomsburg, PA)

​10/13: C4 CrossFit Co-Ed Classic (Brunswick, NJ)

10/13: 2018 War in the Woods (Norton, MA)

10/13: The Festivus Games (Online)

10/13: Grand Games 2018 (Westfield, IN)

10/13: Push Pull for Pancreatic Cancer @ Red Island CrossFit (Smithfield, RI)

10/13: Barbells for Boobs (Steamboat Springs, CO)

10/13: Older, Wiser, Faster, Stronger (Plymouth, MI)

10/13: The Greenville Games (Greenville, SC)

10/13: Reps For Recovery (Hickory, NC) 

10/13: Kal-Haven Trail Ruck (Kalamazoo, MI)

10/13: Fall Brawl (Saint Michael, MN)

10/13: Sweat for Georgia Mae (Wendell, NC)

10/13: Barbells For Boobs (Southaven, MS)

10/13: Wodtoberfest Co-ed Team Competition (Owosso, MI)

10/13-14: Central Florida Throwdown 6 (Lakeland, Fl)

10/13 – 10/14: Box Wars 3 (Fort Valley, GA) 

10/14: CrossFit for Kayden (Fallsington, PA)

10/20: BCS Classic 2018 (Bryan, TX)

10/20: Head 2 Head in Hamilton (Hamilton, NJ)

10/20: Fittest on the Valley VI (Lahaina, HI)

10/20: Crossfit Bona Fide Third Wheel Throwdown (Portsmouth, NH)

10/20: CrossFit Katana Samurai Showdown VI: Trio of Terror (Mansfield, OH) 

10/20: SE Texas Masters of CrossFit Fall Classic (Cypress, TX) 

10/20: Barbells For Boobs (Stamford, CT)

10/20: Filthy 150 Irish Competition (Dublin)

10/20: CFT’s METAvivor Fundraiser (Carol Stream, IL)

10/20: WOD for the Fallen (Columbia, SC)

10/20 – 10/21: The Independence Games (Florence, SC)

​10/20 – 10/21: The Lincoln Invitational (Spokane, WA)

10/21: Chalk It Up 2 (Akron, OH) 

10/21: Me Jane, You Jane (Santa Rosa, CA) 

10/26 – 10/28: JAKTRX Atlas Games (Montreal)

10/27: Tough Temple Invitational (Rockville, MD)

10/27: Rock Your Box Throwdown (St.Cloud, MN)

10/27: Halloween Havoc (Harrisburg, PA)

10/27: Push Pull for Pancreatic Cancer @ CrossFit Trumbull (Trumbull, CT)

10/27: Saberspook THrowdown (Minneapolis, MN)

10/27: Monster Mash (Ann Arbor, MI)

10/27: The Foundry 5K (Steamboat Springs, CO)

10/27: Rock Your Box Throwdown (Saint Cloud, MN)

10/27: Beartown Halloween Beatdown (Lebanon, VA)

10/27: 9th Annual Fall Brawl (Gibsonia, PA) 

11/2: Wodapalooza Qualifier – Team (Online)

11/2 – 11/3: Women’s WOD Jam Individuals (Denver, CO)

11/3: The Battle of Port Royal Sound (Okatie, SC)

11/3: Battle for the Badges (St. Louis, MO)

11/3: PPS CrossFit Fall Throwsdown (Portland, OR)

11/3: CFT’s 2018 Strongman Classic (Carol Stream, IL)

11/3: WODamania (Riviera Beach, FL)

11/2 – 11/4: Reignited Games 2018 (Wilmington, NC) 

11/3 – 11/4: Charlotte Throwdown for Mental Health Awareness (Charlotte, NC)