“We aim above the mark to hit the mark.”- Ralph Waldo Emerson
PROFILE
“It wasn’t not stressful.” Caroline Conners and Austin Spencer Compete in Atlas Games After Wedding
When Caroline Conners and Austin Spencer met in 2014, they had no idea that eight years later they would be competing on the Semifinal floor at the same time—as individuals, but also—as newlyweds.
After pursuing their competitive CrossFit dreams side-by-side for six years, Conners and Spencer officially tied the knot on May 21, 2022, just three weeks prior to flying to Montreal for the fourth and final North American CrossFit Games Semifinal.
Wedding Planning during the Competition Season
Planning a wedding is no easy task. From booking a venue to mailing invitations and everything in between, the average American couple will spend 528 hours planning the big day (as Morning Chalk Up’s own Tommy Marquez is currently learning).
Add that both the bride and the groom are competitive CrossFit athletes training for Semifinals, and a whole new level of chaos is achieved— one that Caroline Conners and Austin Spencer fully embraced.
Timeline
March 24–27: Individual Quarterfinals
May 21: Wedding
June 8: Fly to Montreal
June 10–12: Atlas Games Semifinal
“It wasn’t not stressful,” Conners shared. “But we knew going into it that we would have to manage and deal with some busy days, so we were prepared to take each day as it came.”
When it comes to functional training, it’s simple…
A knee sleeve needs to support your knees for your heaviest lifts but also give you the flexibility and mobility to perform all your other functional movements.
That’s why Element 26 went to work to create knee sleeves that were uniquely designed for functional fitness athletes, not just weightlifters.
How are they different? Using 6mm thick neoprene for optimum mobility, a contoured shape around the knee for comfort on the move, reinforced seams for additional durability, these sleeves are designed to keep your knees healthy without disrupting your WOD.
Workouts dropped: The Last Chance Qualifier workouts have been announced and all we can say is “ouch”! 😭
In case you missed it: Lauren Kalil, the host of The Bottom Line, spoke to Chase Ingraham and Dex Hopkins about which Dottir – Katrín Davidsdottir or Sara Sigmundsdottir – they think will make the 2022 NOBULL CrossFit Games via the Last Chance Qualifier.
French Throwdown recap: Morning Chalk Up’s Brian Friend breaks down the event, which took place just outside of Paris, which went off this past weekend and delivered some interesting results. 🇫🇷
Eva Strong: The tributes continue to pour in for Eva Mireles, one of the teachers slain in the Uvalde shooting, who was also an avid CrossFitter. Jason Dunlop, who is the Global President of CrossFit, spoke about his trip to Texas to take part in the fundraiser.
CROSSFIT GAMES
MEMBER EXCLUSIVE
Last Chance Qualifier 2022 Mock Draft: Women’s Division
If you missed it yesterday, check out the first half of this mini-series where we draft men in a two round snake style draft for this week’s Last Chance Qualifier. Here’s a refresher on last year’s women’s draft (where Tommy crushed it).
Draft Order for the women will be inverted from the order for the men, so Patrick is up first, followed by Brian, and Tommy will have back to back picks at the turn.
(Note: We did the draft and wrote these before knowing any of the workouts.)
I live in Morelia, Mexico, I am six years old and I’m one of the few girls competing against the boys in Taekwondo.
It’s a boys sport, so having girly characteristics isn’t well seen.
I don’t want to be a girl. It’s a disadvantage, so I have to find a way to keep up with the boys.
When I hit middle school, I start competing against girls my age and my size, and I realize I need to stay small and as lean as possible, in order to be able to compete.
This carries on through my teenage years, as I compete at the World Junior Championships weighing less than 105 pounds.
I am an elite level athlete, I’m super lean, super small, but I don’t even have the strength to do a pull-up. And my body doesn’t menstruate. I’m not healthy.
What I Discovered Using Eight Sleep's Vibrating, Cooling, and Heating Mattress for 30 Days
You’re leaving the gym or work after a long stressful day. You just want to crawl into bed as soon as you get home. It’s the middle of summer and your AC unit is shot. But lucky for you that bed of yours is cool as a cucumber all thanks to a temperature control through an app on your phone.
It’s interesting because anytime you talk to a high-level athlete about their routine or priorities, sleep is always at the top of the list. To their credit, most are getting 8-10 hours (have you ever looked at Brooke Wells sleep data? That girl is sleep goals!) but is it good sleep?
For some, probably. For many, probably not. So how can we maximize the time we’re in bed and sleeping? VOILA, The Eight Sleep Mattress.
Was I hesitant to believe that some high-tech mattress could genuinely improve my sleep? Yes, especially as someone who already gets good sleep (do not factor in CrossFit Semifinals month or the week of the CrossFit Games). But my biggest struggle when it comes to sleep is falling asleep. I don’t have a tv in my room, I wear blue-light blockers before bed, I take CBD, you name it and I’ve tried it.
How many people PR'd? How many people took part? How many over 60's completed Murph? If you're a person who just loves a dataset, this is the post for you. Go behind some of the numbers logged by Wodify clients during 2022's Murph WOD.
Introducing the AIRWAAV Mayhem Edition – a collaboration with 9x Games Champion Rich Froning. Now available with complete Mayhem branding, the AIRWAAV Performance Mouthpiece is scientifically proven to increase airflow to help you train harder, longer, and more efficiently.
It's a rest day, and you're looking for something to do to stay active but not destroy your body even further. Follow along with these seven stretches (led by Kristi Eramo O'Connell) and feel all the tension and soreness leave your body.
The search for high-quality meat ends here. ButcherBox sends amazing tasting and humanely raised meats right to your doorstep. Sign up now to get a pack of their legendary bacon free in every order for the life of your membership.
The biggest issue with meal prep...chicken and rice is kinda heavy for a warm summer day. Instead, try this bento box with hummus, pita, olives, chickpeas, cucumber, tomato, and falafel. It's packed with protein and adds a new option to your roster.
The Harleigh Games were held this past weekend in Amherst, WI in honor of community member Harleigh Firkus who passed away in 2019 from a rare genetic disorder.
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