Crossfit Annandale Throwdown 2015

To celebrate buying CFA and our members we had a fun Throwdown and Grand Re-Opening Party! We always say we are going to take pictures and then don't....or we take three and they are awful. This time we enlisted Linette from Wodtography to capture our awesomeness. She did a pretty great job!

The CFA Crew

It was a rainy Saturday and everyone came to work hard and party hard. Here is what the day looked like:

Event 1:

6 Min Cap
25 Burpees
Then find your
1RM clean and Jerk

It was a great way to start the day. A 1RM is always fun, gets everyone cheering and gets the jitters out. Those 25 burpees were not fun - but they never are.

Event 2:

6 Min AMRAP
10 Box Jumps
25 Kettle Bell swings

This might have been one of the harder workouts I've done. It's "only" 6 minutes. There is no stopping. There is no slowing down. Forearms were on fire!

Event 3:

7 min Cap

27-21-15-9

Shoulder to Overhead
Burpees

That last picture is an exactly how that workout felt. Awful. So much pushing, jumping, breathing, sweating......whew!







The final workout was a chipper and went a little something like this:

400 M run
10 power snatches
20 toes to bar
30 front squats
40 double unders
400 M run

Oh, and it was raining

Everyone worked hard and the energy was great!

So far being gym owners has been great. A huge part of everything going so well is the members at CFA. They are great! There are always so many smiles and hugs to go around. Our community is strong in so many ways!

A big Thank You! to the coaches that put on our great event. Sho and Samnang. You guys rocked it!

Thank you to our sponsors too!

Caffeine and Kilos

Cupcaked

Rogue

Natural Grips

Wod Repair Lotion

Be Proud!

I know guys....it's been a while. I have good reasons for not updating sooner!

1. It's summer. I'm at the pool. Duh.

2. We rode tripped from VA to Niagara Falls to London, Ontario, to Minnesota, to Nashville, to home. Epic. Awesome.

3. We bought Crossfit Annandale. Yep. It's ours. Could not be happier!

4. It's summer. I'm at the pool.

So, back on track. Four letter words. I use them. All of them. I have the mouth of a sailor. My kids know them. They know not to use them. EVER. Mason actually thinks the "b-word" is "bench"....makes me laugh.

OK. Focus.

There is one four letter word I'm actually trying not to use and I think you should get rid of it too.

It's killing me!

HOW?

Well, how many times have you said or heard this?

"I only lost 1 pound"

"I only did 1 pull up"

Bad. Ass.

"I only did 4 rounds"

You are doing it!

What you are doing is great. It's awesome. It's making you smile, jump up and down, sweat, and laugh. So why do we talk about out accomplishments and then make them seem un-important by using the word "only"? I never really thought about it until a good friend at the gym texted me about her workout. She was STOKED that she did this particular workout with pull ups for the first time. She was SO excited.....and I was excited for her, then she finished the excitement with "but I only did 8 rounds". Only 8 rounds? Who cares? The point and the excitement was that you did pull ups. Be proud!!!!!

I am guilty of this too. I get really excited about something and share it and then add in the word "only" so I don't seem....what? Braggy? I'm 35. I did a fucking pull up. You are damn right I'm bragging. Do you know how much blood sweat and tears go into that ONE pull up? Lots. Tons. No way I'm using the word "only". None.

I do use it with weight loss. "I'm only down 1 pound." Sad face. Tears. Swedish Fish (god I love those little guys). Why? A pound is a pound....if I loose enough 1 pounds then I'm even closer to my goal.

who doesn't love this kid?

My goal is to take the word "only" out of my vocabulary. I'm not using it. I am going to be proud of my 1 pull up, my 1 mile run, my 1 pound lost.....Pride in my hard work. No more self-hate. 

My first handstand push up. It was super awesome. SUPER. AWESOME.

Who I am

Team Mom

I am a mom. First. Always. About 8 years now.......Some days I'm the best mom I know. Some days I need to wear sunglasses so they don't see my tears/fear/cluelessness. It's all about being consistent, keeping them safe, keeping them happy, keeping them healthy. Half the time I feel like I'm the same age as them and I'm pretty sure they can sniff those moments out. How do I get through the days? Sam. Friends. Family. I have a group of girlfriends that I bounce ideas off of, tell me I'm doing the right thing, laugh with me, cry with me, drink with me. I'm getting pretty good at this mom thing......some days.

I die.

Team Hardman

I am a wife. Going on 11 years. We have been together 15 years. You would think that we know all there is to know about each other. Nope. I know Sam better than I know myself, but there are moments that still surprise us both. Sam is my best friend, my cheerleader, my biggest supporter. He is blown away when I doubt myself - he always believes. Always. My world is better with him. It's not all perfect. He snores. I hate change. He lives to be spontaneous. He doesn't multitask as well as me (duh). He loves to party and socialize. I tend to like a small dinner party. It works. Why? Because we work at it. Together. Daily. We are Team Hardman.

In public of course

Mom date. Dad date.

Team Speech

I am a speech therapist. Not the most exciting thing in the world. No pics of my clients. That's illegal! :) HIPPA and all. Trust me. I work with kids. I have been a speech therapist for 11 years. I've worked with 18 month olds up to 18 year olds. Right now I'm in a middle school. I typically have a large range on my caseload. Autism, Downs Syndrome, Language disorders, Apraxia, Selective Mutism, deaf and hard of hearing, and articulation disorders. It's fun. I love working with kids. I love the people I work with. I therapize my kids at home (working on an /r/ right now!). I've done public school and private practice. Public school is where it's at for me now. Snow days. Summer break. Done deal.

Team Crossfit Annandale

I am an athlete. Yep. I am. Going on my whole life. I don't always feel that way, but I am. My sport has changed. I started in dance, then gymnastics (short lived), and softball. When high school sports were approaching it felt like all the girls were signing up for Field Hockey and Lacrosse. I saw the uniforms. Kilts. Cute. I'm in. So in high school I played field hockey and lacrosse. College came around and I didn't know what to do without a team. I worked hard and played both in college (2 years of hockey.....I was better at lacrosse). Graduated. I was lost. No team. No practice. No real goals. Went right into Grad school. That became my team. I did adult league lacrosse for a while. It was fun, but just games. Packed on the weight. A few years later I got into road races, triathlons, and then fell on Crossfit. That's where I am an athlete now. I have goals. I have made progress. Crossfit Annandale is my team. They push me. They notice when I'm not there. They make me smile. 

That's who I am. I feel pretty good about it.

Training Partners - like peanut butter and jelly

I do a good amount of work outside of Crossfit Annandale. I have a home gym (thanks Sam!) and I have no problem working on skills, strength, and running through WODs on my own. This allows me more time with my kids and save on babysitting fees. Sam hates working out by himself. He is a social butterfly and likes to be around people. Always.

I do understand and feel the benefits from having a training partner. I typically go into CFA 3-4 times a week to be with people, get inspired, and get pushed to go faster and lift heavier. I don't know where I'd be without my training partners. My training partners know who they are and we lift together, we push each other, we cheer each other on, we strategize with each other, and we do competitions with each other. Then there are the people that have no clue they are my partners. The person that comes in regularly, makes progress, laughs and enjoys the hour - they are my partner too. We cheer for each other and have a great time! Oh, and every guy in the gym. I am always chasing you boys!

A training partner also can mean FUN. Laughing, smiles, high fives, and hugs are all part of the PR magic. Trust me. So here is a BIG shout out to all those who have cheered, sweat, and pushed me along the way. Thank you. Love you all!

awesome running buddies

tutu running partner

our first triathlon

only fitting we do a wine country 1/2 marathon together

my biggest fan

the best tiny training partners

Those gym partners. Always there for a push!

So much great support for my first RX competition

All the feels on being 3rd for workout #1

Coaches, training partners.....awesome

My partner in crime

The dudes that get to answer ALL my questions and talk me off a ledge

Syn @Afrobrutality for all the support!

Training partners that love to dress alike

Team Work