Wednesday Wins — Dan P!
WEDNESDAY WINS — DAN P.!
Today we shine a light on a great family man, incredible athlete and regular nooner, Dan P! He’s seen huge gains in the gym and his physical transformation is nothing short of amazing.
Dan doesn’t fit the mold of classic “before and after”. If you met him on day one, you’d probably say to yourself “he looks great and in shape”. But perception isn’t always a reality. After two kids and struggling to make time for himself, he knew he had to make a change.
He’s tried almost everything in the books. He’s run half marathons, triathlons done boot camp classes. He’s even done CrossFit in the past. But it wasn’t until he found the mix of consistency at the Cove AND good nutrition that magic happened.
He’s always been smitten with the CrossFit regimen. As a busy guy with two young kids and a demanding job, he couldn’t believe that everything could be worked in 12 minutes. As he said, “the days of hitting the gym and doing ‘back and bi’s’ are long gone. And unlike past boot camps, adding a barbell back the regimen was challenging.” He loves it all, but something about “cleans” fire him up!
While Dan is a loyal nooner (he works next door) and doesn’t cross other time zones often, he’s drawn the people at the Cove. “At other places you walk in and feel like you’re surrounded by ‘New Year’s Resolution” kind of people. The athletes here are so much better and give me something to strive for”. While he may not know the people behind the names on the ‘White Board’ personally, “I’ve got a few secret ‘rabbits’ that I chase”.
NUTRITION MATTERS
“I’ve tried variations of all kinds of challenges in the past. Setting up the teams was really great for me. Seeing my teammate’s perfect scores kept me motivated and helped me stay on track. The inherent competition built in made it work for me.” And boy did it work. He lost 12+ pounds of fat on the challenge AND gained lean muscle mass.
For him, it’s all about thinking ahead. “Once I was starving, it was game over. Start thinking about hunger an hour ahead (or more). It was the pre-planning that made it work for me”.
Plus he’s got an amazing support system at home. “My wife loves cooking and trying new things. We are both are enjoying this new way of eating together. And we’ve found a great balance. We’ve been off the challenge for about a month and I know it is ok to have a piece of pizza once or twice. Its just when you get in a cycle of going out multiple days, skipping workouts, etc. the balance is broken.”
CONSISTENCY IS KING
He also puts in the time at the gym and never missed a class to work on the gymnastics cycle. He’s now stringing muscle ups and has also checked off his goal of stringing together doubles. Not only do his coaches see it in his performance, he’s feeling it too.
Overall, he says he’s feeling stronger. “I’ve always been ‘decently’ strong. But I’m getting much more EFFICIENT. I came in and saw really skinny kids throwing up heavy bars and I couldn’t believe it. I didn’t now how it was possible until I realized I’m just trying to muscle everything up. I love all the coaches at the Cove, but Holden is just amazing. He helped me get out of my head and told me I had a lot of things to fix to make my lifts better and he’s worked with me on all of it. I was so excited when I hit a 145lb snatch I almost gave Holden a hug.”
GIVE YOURSELF A CHANCE TO SUCCEED
We asked him what advice he’d give to someone now that he knows what he knows. He put it simply and beautifully: “Give yourself the chance to succeed. So many people think to themselves, ‘I’m fine. I’m not fat. I’m not eating great, but I know people who do much worse. If that’s the attitude you have, you’ll never know what you’re capable of. Give yourself the opportunity to see how great you can be.”
Well-said Dan. And VERY well done Dan.
FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS!
If ever there’s a Friday to be here, this is the one. Not only is it week FOUR of the Open, it is also St. Patrick’s Day! To up the ante for this week, we are adding two more judging categories to the intramural competition. BEST POTLUCK DISH and BEST POTLUCK BEVERAGE. The athlete who brings the best St. Patty’s Day or “team themed” items will win 5 points for their team! For the old folks I’m thinking something like “Ensure Coladas”?
#RespectYourElders
TOURNAMENT TIME!
CROSSFIT COVE’S “MAKE ME A WODFATHER” NCAA TOURNEY
After passing the halfway mark of the Open, it’s time to add yet another ‘tournament’ to your radar! Yes, we are doing our very own NCAA March Madness pool. But unlike any of those other pools when you win boring prices like cash (I mean, SNOOZE!), at the Cove the winner gets to play “WODFather” for a day PROGRAM A WOD for all their fellow Covies!
Last year Kim M. took the top prize and challenged us all with her favorite moments (and threw in some “2 for 1 wall balls” for good measure). Who’s it gonna be this year?
To join just use the following link to the MAKE ME A WODFATHER BRACKET
You must complete and submit your bracket by the time of first tip off on Thursday, March 16.
3 Minutes on 1 minute off for 3 Rounds
12 Overhead Squats
24 Sit ups
Max (insert “hopper” movement here!)
3 Minutes on 1 minute off for 3 Rounds
12 Front Squats
24 Sit ups
Max Double Unders
Fitness: 75/55
RX: 95/65
RX+: 115/75
Coach’s Tip: You should get to the last movement with 1 minute or more on the clock. Approach “it” (whatever you choose for the first metcon out of the hat!) at a pace you can maintain for a minute. It should not be a 20 second sprint into a rest. This workout should help you not just develop your conditioning, but help you strategize with pacing.
