The contest will be a Paleo Challenge. All participants can pick up a sheet of Paleo Diet rules so there will be no question of the rules. It will start on Feb. 1st. All participants must declare their participation in the comments section of this post and pay the $20 buy in by the end of the week. This contest will be run on the honor system so that should tell you how much we trust all of you.

This will be a last man standing contest. What that means is that beginning Feb 1st all participants begin eating strictly Paleo. If you cheat or fall off the wagon then you have to log back in and post to the comments that you are out. Last person to cheat wins all the cash. It’s that simple.

If you are participating in the contest please post to the comments section of this page and post again when you are out. More People More Money…

That box will change everyday as it pulls a new recipe from a variety of websites. Most of the recipes are pulled from Paleo or Primal style sites. Although they may not all be perfect they are a great addition to your nutritional arsenal. You can click on the recipe or on the link directly to the site from which it was pulled. starting to do that and bookmarking those blogs and pages will begin to give you an infinite resource list for food needs.

Thefoodee.com however is where I truly believe the magic and genius has happened. This site was developed by Matt Lucas who owns CrossFit Free Range. Spend some time and go to the site and look around. I encourage you to register for the site. Once you do you will have access to the best resource it has to offer which is the menu planning and grocery list.

When you click on the recipe it will give you the option to add it to your grocery list. You can continue to look at recipes and add things to your list. When you are done you will have a grocery list containing all of the items you need to make each of those recipes divided into what sections of the grocery store you will find them in.

We are getting into the competition season leading up to the CrossFit Games. We have several athletes competing in the Tucson Winter Open. This involved submitting 2 videos for the qualifying Workouts and then the top 45 men and 35 women and the top 10 of each in the masters category will move onto the live competition on Feb. 11th. We will be closed that day to go support our athletes and invite everyone to take a road trip and experience the energy that a CrossFit competition brings. It’s amazing!!

The first two workouts they hade to complete were:

3 rounds for Time:
3 Cycles of the Bear complex @ 155/105
15 Pull Ups

and

5 Handstand Push Ups
10 Bar Facing Burpees
10 Handstand Push Ups
20 Bar Facing Burpees
15 Handstand Push Ups
30 Bar Facing Burpees

I am Proud to say that the following members have made the cut.
Chuck Browder
Niko Countouriotis
Trevor Gelder
Larry Narranjo
Joey Pacheco
Bruce Briggs
Bill Knight
Jessica Gelder
Sandy Ericsson

The competition will be on Feb 11th and has been moved to Prescott at Captain CrossFit. We want to get an idea of who is willing to take a road trip with us to help support our athletes. Please post your support to the comment section of this post and tell us if you are interested in going. If you’ve never been to a competition it is an incredible experience.

The Holiday Body Fat Loss Contest came to an end this weekend. Everyone did really well, but your winner is Jen Hercher. She lost 7.13% which resulted in a 22.23% change from her starting body fat. Jen came back in at 12:00 to collect her $780 check and is excited to go shopping at lululemon for her outfit that they so graciously donated.

Without disclosing anyone’s body fat I will list the top 10 finishers.
Jen Hercher
Sarah Roberts
Andrew Gaspar
Andrew Wilson
Kathleen Leonard
Tricia Hill
Mike Chasan
Joe Robison
Christine Wilson
Scott Vote

Congratulations to everyone who undertook this challenge it is not easy to maintain weight or BF during this time of year much less to lose it.

You may have seen CrossFit on ESPN recently or heard your friends talking about it. They may have been comparing their times on workouts or Max Loads. You may have heard that it is for elite athletes and the military. That may all be true, but it is more than that.

We do time your workouts, but it’s not just to compete. We do this so that you can track your progress. As your fitness level and abilities increase the time it takes to finish workouts or running or rowing should decrease. You will be able to see that you are getting better and not have to rely on a personal trainer who is trying to sell more sessions how great you are. You will see it, feel it, and hear it because people are going to notice. We try to make fitness fun and motivating and something you look forward to not just something you have to do.

CrossFit Forever Strong is a community. It is a group of people who all have different goals and abilities, but who come together to work hard. We have members who range from ages 15 -65, Overweight, Great Athletes, De-conditioned People, Firefighters, Military, Police, Everyone. We can modify any exercise to fit everyone.

The January Challenge… Join our Crew Team!!!

This month we are going to participate in the Concept 2 Virtual Team Challenge. All month long we need to row as many meters as possible. We will keep track of the lifetime meters rowed on each rower so don’t worry about logging it anywhere, just worry about rowing A LOT. Last years Crossfit winners rowed 3,542,625 Meters. I am sure that we can beat that.

We are going to be different this year. You can feel free to keep any personal resolutions (Read more books, Watch less TV, etc.) to yourself and your family, but I am going to ask for something more important. I learned a long time ago that NO ONE goes to a gym to workout “Just Because”. Everyone that comes through the door has a goal they want to achieve, or something they want to change. No one’s goal is any more important or valid than anyone else’s goal. They come from many different places. Some goals come from pride and a desire for a new personal best at something. Some come from family and not wanting to suffer a preventable death like that of a loved one. Some from vanity…who doesn’t want to look better naked? The bottom line is that they are very personal and extremely important to the individual.

We are all important to each other, and I think our goals should be too. Let’s make them public this year. Stop trying to achieve them alone and struggling with it by yourself. This will provide a source of accountability, but also a source of support.

I would like to have everyone in this gym take a few days and really think about why you are here, what keeps you working so hard here, and what do you want from this.

Let’s talk a little bit about Goal setting. In order for there to be success it is best to use a system called SMART. Your goals should be Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Timely. “I Want to Feel Healthy” is a great goal but tough to quantify and measure. A better goal would be to get a physical and select some data points (HDL, LDL, Blood Sugar) that you want to improve and by how much. Goals can range from races you will run, weights you will lift, weight you will lose, anything you want as long as it fits into the above categories.

Let’s skip the resolutions this year and make some real goals, let’s make them public, and let’s celebrate as we accomplish each one.

Please post your Your Goal to the comments section.

Everyone remembers where they were the moment they heard about a major disaster. The Challenger, John F. Kennedy, 9/11. The question usually refers to your physical location. Where were you, who were you with, what were you doing the moment you found out? Those things all remain such vivid images and sensations to us. I expect that those are things that we will never forget as long as we live. My thoughts today aren’t about where I was that morning, but where was I on the days and months that followed that morning.

I can’t and probably won’t ever remember my physical location on any of those following days, but what I do remember is a distinct change in my attitude, heart, and actions. I think that we all do if you take a minute and remember. I was working as a Corrections Officer for NYS and had those patriotic urgings to join the service and defend the country. I even went and talked to some recruiters in those following days. There was a sense of pride and protection of country that welled up inside all of us that was undeniable. You couldn’t turn on the TV without seeing countless vigils and gatherings with thousands of people completely different yet united with a single heart and voice. There was a sense of community and compassion for those around us like I had never seen or felt before in my life up to that point. We held doors for strangers, said hello to everyone we saw, honked our car horns at the sight of another car driving down the road with an American Flag on their antenna. You called family more often, held your kids tighter, made sure you kissed them goodnight and that there wasn’t a person in your life that didn’t know you loved them or how much they meant to you. The outpouring of respect, thanks, and admiration for our protectors was awe inspiring. People thanking them for their daily service and sacrifice. Each of us changed that day…

Think hard about it…  Why did it take a disaster for us to hold tight to what was dear to us and to open up to others around us. There are always tough times, there is always a reason to do those things, and more to the point we shouldn’t need a reason. It seems as though we are moved to action by immediate and instant things. We are in and have been in a financial crisis as a country for a while now, and are surrounded by people struggling to keep going and to support their families. This crash happened gradually and there is no such outpouring of support or compassion for others. Why is that…more importantly where are the people that we were on 9/12, 9/13, 9/14 etc… Every one of us changed that day. How long did it last? What happened to it? Much like they way the current crisis came on slowly I think that the people we were left and faded slowly. I am not exempt from this attitude reversal. I realized today that I am not that same person either.

There will be much talk today about tributes and remembrances of that morning. I suggest that we take today to remember not only 9/11, but those following days also. Let’s take a moment and show our appreciation for those that have lost their lives and for those that fight for us and live in the ways that we did immediately following 9/11. That united country, heart, voice, and community is worth fighting for everyday, both abroad and right here at home. Let’s not wait for the next disaster to happen to change again.

You will always remember where you were. Don’t forget to take a minute sometimes and ask yourself where are you now?

http://www.marksdailyapple.com/the-primal-blueprint-30-day-challenge/#more-14609

I am sure that you have all seen Bruce’s comments of Grok on…This is your chance to find out what he means by that and who or what Grok is.

Thousands of women and men come together, each raising money for Susan G. Komen for the Cure. Then they take their commitment to end breast cancer one step further and walk 60 miles over the course of three days.

Net proceeds from the Susan G. Komen 3-Day for the Cure fund innovative global breast cancer research and local community programs supporting education, screening and treatment. Every major advance in the fight against breast cancer in the last 27 years has been impacted by a Susan G. Komen for the Cure grant.

Nick’s Wife Brynn is one of those strong and brave women who are willing to walk 60 miles in order to fight this disease. I can appreciate this and thank her for doing this because my mother is a 2-time survivor of breast cancer.

As a gym we often come together during a workout or a picnic or gathering. I think that Brynn has provided us a special chance to come together for something so much bigger.

I am asking that as a gym we donate what we can to help her. We will have a jar out in the gym until her walk for spare change or cash donations. I will post the link to her online donation page at the bottom of this form if that is easier for you. You always answer any challenge that I throw at you so here is another one…

FOR EVERY DOLLAR A GYM MEMBER DONATES I WILL MATCH HALF OF IT.

https://secure3.convio.net/npt/site/Donation2?idb=1980068771&df_id=2240&2240.donation=form1&FR_ID=1460&PROXY_ID=5004274&PROXY_TYPE=20

3,2,1… GO!!!!!