WEDNESDAY WINS! RONNIE E!
WEDNESDAY WINS! RONNIE E!
This guy is so humble, he was hesitant for us even to feature him as a Wednesday Win. And when we ultimately DID convince him, all he did was talk about all the amazing athletes that surround him. Yep, Ronnie is just that kind of guy.
We are lucky in that we don’t just get Ronnie in the deal, we get a fit and fierce twosome with Zipporah as well. They’ve always been fitness oriented people — Zipporah was a trainer and between the two of them they used to make fun of CrossFit (in fact, they even once said “this stuff is for losers”!). They used to do spin together and loved worked out together at the gym all the time, but they finally caved and gave CrossFit a try to diversify their movement.
He tried some other boxes in the area, but nothing felt quite right until he got to the Cove. “I love that everyone is just here to get in a great workout.” He likened it to “a ‘team sport’ in that we are all in it together to push ourselves and to grow.”
Speaking of growth, Ronnie has seen dramatic gains. We know it’s hard to believe because he came to us fit, strong and with legs the size of tree trunks. “But from day one at the Cove I was challenged like I had never had been before in positions and mobility. I have had strength coaches in my college wrestling past but they never pushed me in these areas.”
“I didn’t realize the holes I had my fitness. There are now times when I think ‘I am not good at this’. But these are the things that are challenging to me and I am always looking to grow — and this is really helping me do that”.
As his coaches, we look at Ronnie and the changes are incredible. From working on his ankle mobility (he’s now squatting heavy in the heels vs. on his tippy toes) to flexible hamstrings which allow him to address the bar in a good, safe position. He’s not muscling up the barbell anymore, rather he’s using his hips and explosive movement to drive the weight up. And his gymnastics have done a 180. His body awareness, kipping and patience have helped him immensely (even getting his first kipping handstand push ups just over two weeks ago).
Like most of us, fitness is important to him for his sanity. He is a very busy guy at work (he is a Marina Corp captain) and even busier at home with two young kids. And he loves that he can have a great workout in only an hour (in a former life he used to work out sometimes 3 times a day!) “I love that it’s an hour and the programming is done for me. It’s a super efficient way to work out for my lifestyle and the results are so much better in less time.”
It’s also important for Ronnie to be an example for those around him at the workplace. In the military you advance three ways: through fitness, professionalism and proficiency. And it’s clear by what he’s doing here that the ‘fitness’ box is well checked. Plus, after the AM class my mental agility is so much sharper. I can get so much done when I starts my day here”.
He loves this place. He loves his fellow athletes. “I love working out alongside Mike Kovacs because he ‘brings it’ every time. And I’m so impressed with Nazma and how far she’s come. She attacks each and every workout and I love that”.
“I love that there are no mirrors here. We are all here striving to improve our expression of fitness. The focus is on our capacities, not how we look. And the coaches really demand a high level of proficiency in the movements we see from people.”
AND top it all off, he could be the nicest guy out there. Ronnie is just the guy you want to be around. He’s the guy you want for a partner WOD. Not because he’s strong and fast… but because he LOVES working out with YOU. All of you. Nazma and Kovacs, we expect a fight between the two of you this Friday to be his partner!
SKILL WOD
4 Heavy Front Squats (same weight across)
8 Weighted Push ups
:30 hollow hold
5 Rounds
WOD
1K Row for Time
Coach’s Tip: Our focus is on the strength today, but we finish off with a fun row buy-out. The set of 8 push ups does not need to be unbroken, but should be a heavy or a hard progression with a good range of motion. We are looking for eight GREAT reps. We rowed a 500M tester on July 13th, so use that as guidance for the 1k (but do NOT expect to match that pace for the second 500. A 1K is a COMPLETELY different beast!
Keith H. looks like he tried to escape mid-WOD. Or he’s just trying to get Marina’s attention…