Picture: Los Angeles CrossFit Affiliate owners came together yesterday to share successes & challenges at our 3rd Totally Unofficial (#itsup2us) Affiliate Gathering. It was a motivational day for me.
This event was hosted by 16x CrossFit Games Athlete Becca Voigt & her husband, Eric, at their beautiful gym in Burbank. Becca is a LEGEND in the CrossFit community – an OG “Valley Girl” – qualifying for the Games every single year since 2008! She’s also an 11yr Affiliate Owner. I love and admire her grit and determination and her message: “CrossFit doesn’t have an end..we’re gonna see me get older and not be able to do the things like I did.. and its ok.”
“Time is the only currency you spend without knowing how much you have left.”
Happiness Project, Gretchen Rubin
CROSSFIT IS IN GOOD HANDS – LESSONS FROM SOME AFFILIATE OWNERS My friend, and fellow affiliate owner, Zia Rohrbaugh, and CrossFit Regional Rep, Katie Hogan hosted a get-together for about 30 affiliate owners in Los Angeles. We came together at OG Becca Voigt’s beautiful gym in Burbank – Training Yard CrossFit – to share success stories, great ideas for growth and challenges we’re facing as owners. This was the 3rd gathering that originated with our “Totally Unofficial” gathering at Diablo last November – a grassroots effort for owners by owners to leverage our shared experiences for our mutual success and to support the growth of CrossFit.
This event included a garage gym affiliate, CF School of Sweat, a brand new affiliate with no building yet, and several other owners with varying years of experience, including Kenny Kane, owner of CrossFit Oak Park LA – a 21 year affiliate! There were NO complaints from this passionate crew. Instead, we talked about current opportunities, our coaches, training, programming, industry trends and the future of CrossFit. The biggest concerns for CrossFit affiliate owners in LA:
- Real estate costs! Finding good, reasonably priced location and keeping it is a challenge.
- Finding and training new coaches – we shared our best coach recruiting and coach development ideas. Their member communities are the best source!
- Competition – LA is a fitness-oriented community with lots of non-CrossFit competitors.
- Member development: prospective members today are less experienced (and less fit) than prospects 5-10 years ago.
My biggest take-away from this session with LA owners was the shared passion for CrossFit and a desire to help others with the methodology. Owner Kenny Kane related a very powerful (and scary) story of the recent LA Palisades fire that his wife and children barely escaped. He and several of his members lost their homes and everything in them. After it was over, the CrossFit community came together to provide financial and other support to help get them back on their feet. Kenny’s affiliate re-opened quickly and became an outlet for stress relief and human connection for his members. His description of members crying while in the middle of workouts was emotional for all of us.
CrossFit Affiliate owners ALL want CrossFit to thrive and grow. They believe in the methodology and its power to reverse chronic disease and positively impact everyone who walks through their doors. They are excited for the future as mainstream media, social influencers and most health experts point to strength training and intensity as key drivers for longevity. CrossFit has the cure.
When we finished, everyone committed to creating an affiliate get-together in 2025 with their local affiliates. This is grassroots CrossFit. #itsup2us
APR EVENTS
- CLOSED – Sunday April 20th – Happy Easter!
- RUN CLINIC – SAT, APRIL 26: FormFocus Run Clinic – Coach Monica has completed 26 Marathons and coached runners for more than 10 years. This clinic includes comprehensive instruction on proper running form, from head-to-toe with a goal of increasing efficiency, reducing discomfort and improving overall performance. $30. Sign up on the Diablo App!
- !! BRING A FRIEND DAY !!. – SUN, APRIL 27: 10AM We’re gonna partner up for this one! Bring a friend or family member to Diablo – for FREE and we’ll give them an incredible workout experience. If it gets outta hand, we’ll add an extra class.
>> PRSALLDAY PODCAST – TUE, APR 15 10:30AM << – Jeremy Thiel, Owner “The Fittest Experience” CrossFit Competition, CrossFit Central in Austin, OG CrossFitter and 3x CFG Athlete. We’ll talk about the competition season, The Fittest Experience in May, and CrossFit history.
A LITTLE ABOUT DIABLO…STRONG
Coach Corey and his Diablo Strong USAW Weightlifting Team showed up big time at the Hassle Free Barbell Spring event on Saturday. Congratulations to Diablo member Marium Holland and Coach Monica who BOTH qualified for the USAW American Open with their successful lifts.
PRSALLDAY THIS WEEK:
- Mon: HSPU. Metcon: 4RFT – 6HSPU, 100m FC, 200m Run
- Tue: Back Squat, Accessory: Split squats & Cossack Squats
- Wed: DL + Hang C&J. Metcon: 12 Alt DB Devil Press, 24 Box Jumps, 10/18, 8/12, 6/6
- Thu: 3x3x3 – 3m x 3 stations for 3 rounds (27m) – Bike, Row, Ski
- Fri: Squat Snatch. Metcon: Amrap 12m – 12 SDHP, 9 OHS, 6 Strict Chin Ups (55/75#)
- Sat: IN-N-OUT – 5RFT: 12 T2B, 10 HPC, 400m Run (#75/115)
- Sun: Pistols. Metcon: 5RFT – 12 DB PP, 10DB FR Walk Lunge, 8 Burpees to Target
- Podcast – Rogan with Gary Brecka #2304. Really enjoyed this one. Gary is a biologist and a “biohacker” and very engaging. He runs a very successful wellness clinic business. He breaks down the cholesterol story very well and offers insight into the prolific use of statins. He also gets into detail on the significance of chronic inflammation and its many causes.
- YouTube – Deaf, Driven, and Doing the Level 1 – WOW! Courtney Caseiro has been CrossFitting for a year. She is deaf. And, she’s now a CrossFit Level 1 Coach. This is a really cool story!
- Blog Post – “Standards Don’t Set Themselves”. As we get closer to ‘Murph, here’s a great reminder from my friend Tim at CF Palo Alto on holding the standard. Over the next several weeks our coaches will be paying closer attention to your range of motion and quality of movement – to make sure we’re all holding the standard.
- NetFlix – Lincoln Lawyer – This is a 3 season, TV style drama that Yvonne and I found pretty damn entertaining. Season 1 will get you in.
