There were long pauses as people strolled into the Fort yesterday and saw the workout. It was fun and amazing, but you had some choices to make. Each round would require you to either row, run, or do double unders....but you had to do each movement at least once. The workout looked like this:

21 barrier hop burpees
21 body rows
200m row OR 200m run OR 50 DU's
15 barrier hop burpees
15 body rows
400m row OR 400m run OR 100 DU's
9 barrier hop burpees
9 body rows
800m row OR 800m run OR 200 DU's

Yeah, I guess that IS confusing, isn't it....Our fastest time of the day came from Zachamole. He chose to run, row and then DU. Believe it or not, 200 DU's is faster than an 800m row for him! Good work!

Something truly wonderful and amazing happened yesterday at the 9AM class - Kinsy got 3 unassisted pull-ups! She has been kicking some serious butt with the blue and red bands, and during our weighted pull-up work, she rocked some unassisted pull-ups! Most people start by getting ONE pull-up....unless you're Kinsy. She wasn't messing around with that single pull-up stuff. Great job! Welcome to the Got Pull-Ups club!

[Read more →]

Hi kids! Sorry for the delayed posting. Crazy day yesterday, and I didn't get a chance to put up a post.

ANYWHO.....

The Tuesday evening workout was Karen - 150 wall ball shots for time. Don't underestimate the awesome powers of Karen. She's an evil B. (sorry to use harsh letters) Wild Bill is always thinking, and he had a revelation about this workout. What if you break it up onto 5 sets of 30, and strategically plan your rest? (scratching chin) Know what happens? People PR like their hair is on fire!

We saw some blazing fast new times from everyone. Brian S beat his old time by over 2 minutes, and Brandon H. PR'd by 4 minutes! Among our PR's were Hero Mike, Earl, Josh T, Zachamole, Pete, Craig, Bethy, Tommy Mo, Heath, Brandon, Ryan Z, and Jessica. Ryan Z took the top spot on the record board by finishing in 5:30, only 4 seconds ahead of Pete, and 6 seconds ahead of Zachamole! The next time this workout comes up in the programming, I'd like my top 5 guys to come duke it out, and do this workout TOGETHER. You'll of course be required to be shirtless. I'm just sayin'.....

Here's another new face around the Fort - this is Amanda.

[Read more →]

The instructions for yesterday's workout were quite simple: jump high, go heavy.

Our strength work was heavy sets of 3 on overhead squats. I'm happy to announce that Katherine OWNED her overhead squats yesterday. We have a few other newcomers who are going to be rockstars in no time! Among them are Andy and Hannah. Great job yesterday you guys!

The metcon was from Wild Bill's laboratory, and it was a doozey. It was a 10:00 AMRAP of heavy hang cleans, and high box jumps. Most people laughed and joked when they saw that the hang cleans were prescribed at 70kg's for the men and 50kg's for the ladies. Is this heavy? Yep. But ya know what? It was an AMRAP, and maybe Wild Bill wanted you to go heavy and get fewer rounds.

Once people saw that the box jumps were 34" for men, and 28" for the ladies, they almost ran for the door. All we ask is that you go a little higher than what you usually use for your box jumps. These should be high enough that you can't just rep through them lickety split, you should have to stand and reset your feet between attempts. If you're Hannah, you have to make sure your forearm comes in COMPLETE contact with the box on your second to last box jump of the workout. Hope your arm is ok!

Schedule note: We will now be offering an 8AM class on Tuesdays and Fridays. Hooray! This morning was our first class, and there were 5 people at 8AM, and still 12 people at 9AM. Needless to say, these 8AM class times are probably going to fill up fast! Once we see that we can continuously fill up both morning slots, we'll make more 8AM class times available.

Is everyone signed up to come to Fortapalooza? Cross your fingers and your toes that the rain stays out of the forecast for the weekend. We need some good weather! The party will be on, rain or shine! We'll be supplying a roasted pig, corn on the cob (I know, corn is a grain), and a fruit platter. If you would be so kind as to bring a dish to pass, that would be splendid! We'll have a special take home gift for all our CrossForters who attend!

Here's one of our new faces - everyone meet Hannah!

[Read more →]

Is it just me, or does the general public avoid anything fitness related like it's the plague? Unless it's an infomercialized, this-thing-does-the-work-for-you kind of contraption, people just don't seem interested. And while I hate to bash on stuff, I just have to say it publicly; shoes with a squishy bottom are NOT a good workout for your butt and legs. Know what IS a good workout for your butt and legs? HEAVY FRONT SQUATS. The fact that you walked an extra 10 miles today just to try out your squishy shoes is the reason your butt and legs are sore...not because these shoes are magic.

"Jennie, why are you so mad today? Tell us what set you on this tirade!?"

I can't even tell you how many times people have seen our name - CrossFit Fire - and pronounced it "CrossFire". I've absolutely had it! CrossFIT Fire! The word FIT is sneaky, I realize this, but it is conveniently placed right between the words Cross and Fire. Grrrrr....

SERIOUSLY.

Want to know my theory? It's a wild one, so bear with me. My theory is that since people don't make fitness a part of their lives, their brains just skip right over the word "Fit". It isn't even part of their vocabulary. It's as if they just saw something scribbled in Arabic.

I realize that what we do at the Fort is seen as "extreme". We lift weights, do pull-ups, and lay down on the floor when we're done with our workouts. We drop stuff, jump on stuff, and climb ropes. Our workouts defy logic, in that they are usually less than 15 minutes long, but make you feel like you just did the hardest workout of your life. When it comes down to it, none of that stuff really matters so long as you like what you're doing, and you continue to see results; am I right? My sole purpose for unlocking the doors each morning and flipping on the lights isn't just to get you in shape for your big vacation; it's to make fitness part of your lives permanently.

Here's my big "what if" for the day. What if there were no drive-thru's at fast food restaurants? AND what if you had to park no less than 100 feet away? Do you think the consumption of fast food in the United States would decline significantly? I think it would. Our whole country is so damn comfortable, that they can't even be bothered to get off their fannies long enough to stand in line and order their food. They just sit in their cars, stuffing their faces with breakfast sandwiches, double cheeseburgers and Double Stacks. "no, no....don't get up....I'll just place your food directly into your mouth for you."

From this day forward, let's all take a CrossFit Fire vow to ALWAYS make fitness part of our lives. I know your friends and family roll their eyes every time you talk about CrossFit, but they'll come around eventually. They only roll their eyes because they don't understand that what we do at the Fort is about so much more than just a workout. It really is about a whole new lifestyle!

Here's the vow:

(raise your chin above the pull-up bar and repeat after me)

I, (state your name), do hereby solemnly swear to always make fitness a part of my life. I will not circle the mall for 27 minutes trying to find the closest parking spot. I will not push around a grocery cart if the only thing I am purchasing is a pound of ground beef and a banana. I will feed my family with food that is good for them, not convenient. I will take the stairs instead of the elevator, and call TIME as I burst out of the stairwell. I will push myself to be faster and stronger. I will not cry when my hands tear, I will not be discouraged when I fail a rep. I will only allow these things to motivate me even more.

All this I swear on a stack of bumper plates.

[Read more →]

We decided to forego our normal Team Saturday so that we could get a little Fight Gone Bad action. Bill and I arrived at the Fort extra early so we could get everything set up, and by 9:00 the people were pouring in. In just over 50 minutes, we put 36 of our amazing CrossForters through this workout. Biggest Saturday EVER!

Thank you to everyone who helped set-up, clean-up, count and motivate. It was an absolute blast! We even got a surprise visit from Super Dave! It was SO GOOD to see you!

I couldn't be more proud of everyone and their performance today. We forced a few unwilling participants to go RX'd, but in the end everyone was glad they did it. We saw some amazing new PR's, and some inspiring first timers. Even our old buddy Giles came back to play! As Special J put it, it wasn't Fight Gone Bad, it was "Fight Gone Well."

[Read more →]

Yesterday's workout wins for the most confusing workout ever. It wasn't confusing in the sense that it had a lot of movements, it was just unclear by the way it was written on the board. Here's what the board said:

AMRAP in 5 rounds of:

:90
5 overhead squats (60/40kg)
10 burpees
:30 rest

See what I mean? 5 rounds? AMRAP? HUH?? What we meant to say was that we are going to tell you when to work and when to rest. Try and get as many rounds of 5 overhead squats and 10 burpees as you can, but you'll have 5 x's 90 second sessions with 30 seconds of rest in which to accomplish this. Weird, I know.

Regardless of the confusing nature of this workout, everyone did great. Earl actually commented that it was among the hardest workouts he has done at the Fort EVER. Then again, burpees and OHS are two of his least favorite movements.

Yesterday was a bitter sweet day for me, as it was Daniels very last day at the Fort. He is being deployed again for several months, and once he is done, he will be returning home to South Carolina to be with his family....finally. It might be the end of his time at the Fort, but it is hopefully not the end of his time as a CrossFitter. We wish you well Daniel - return home to your family safe, and don't forget about your CrossFit Fire family!

(I think I got something....in my eye.....)

We had 19 people at our 9AM class. Holy kamoly! Needless to say, we will be opening up an 8AM morning class on Tuesdays and Fridays starting  next week. Hooray for 8AM classes!

[Read more →]

I heard a rumor that there are some sore traps today. Is this true? If it IS true for you, then you'll know that you were shrugging hard enough on your snatches yesterday! (silver lining and all...)

The strength work yesterday was back squat. Know what my favorite part about back squat is? It's that we use almost ALL the weights because you guys are so flippin' strong.

Our metcon was fun and amazing, as always. We combined box jumps with deadlifts, and topped it off with pull-ups. For those of you who went through this workout yesterday, you probably have much more respect for how much you use your hamstrings to do box jumps. Am I right? We had a few dive-tuck-and-roll maneuvers, but ultimately we all lived to tell the tale.

Here's two new faces at the Fort! Jose and Katherine have completed ramp-up and you should see their smiling faces in regular classes. Welcome!

Know who else deserves a warm welcome? Mark and Tricia's new babies! The Ritchies welcomed their SECOND SET of fraternal twins. Pryce Dove and Quinn Hawke came into this world a touch over 6lbs each! Well done you two. Trish, we expect you back at the Fort in a couple of days. Sound good? As for you, Pryce and Quinn, if you're half as strong as your Dad, and half as good a rower as your Mom, we'll see you at the 2029 Games!

[Read more →]