Lionhearted

This week I sat down with one of our former coaches at Croga, Nick Ralston, for another chat about Endurance.If you haven’t listened to my first interview with Nick about Self Identity and Using Fitness to Experience the World, go check out episode 42.Additionally, in episode 45, Nick and I chatted about some endurance events he had participated in during the summer of 2019 and started scratching the surface of some of the nuance of endurance like self reflection, integrity, honor, mental limits and also physical limits that we’re going to dive deeper into today.The inspiration for the episode you’re listening to right now, episode 55, is actually a training book/journal that Nick sent me as a gift.The book is titled “Endurance” and is produced by a couple coaches named Mark Twight and Michael Blevins who are based out of Salt Lake City and run a business called NonProphet that produces training content, hosts Fitness Education Symposiums, is a private training facility and also the name of their very thought provoking podcast.Join us on our chat this week as we self reflect and discuss the first half of this book about the pieces of Endurance that are much deeper than the surface level nonsense most think of when they think about Endurance as a sport of distance running, cycling, swimming or some combination there of.Follow us on Instagram & Facebook @LionheartedPodcastFollow Coach Nick on Instagram @NickRalston05Learn more about NonProphet on Instagram @NonProphet  Music: https://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music

This week, with Thanksgiving only a few days away, I sat down with our Coach Cody, who is not only our Head Coach at Croga Fitness, but also one of our awesome Croga Nutrition Coaches to run through our top tips and tricks for surviving Thanksgiving Day.These tips and tricks just so happen to be useful at ALL holidays and throughout the year at different get togethers that revolve around food, so if you didn’t catch this episode before Turkey Day, don’t skip it just yet, there’s a ton of useful information in here for you still!We hope that you enjoy the episode and can put at least a few of this tips to good use at your next food focused gathering.Additionally, if you are interested in one-on-one nutrition coaching or have questions you’d like us to answer, shoot us a DM on Instagram at @CrogaNutrition or send us an email to Nutrition@CrogaFitness.com and we’ll get you more info or get your questions answered in our next podcast.We’re thankful for all of you that we know personally and all of you that are listening and supporting the show. We hope you have a wonderful and safe Thanksgiving!———————————Our list of 9 tips/tricks:1. Make Breakfast and lunch High Potein, Low Carbs, Low Fat & High Fiber2. Limit Alcohol and Pre-log it (Use Working Against Gravity Alcohol Calculator)3. Understand which foods are unique to the holidays4. No seconds unless you ate all of your protein and you could eat more protein with seconds5. Sit with your back to the food if buffet style OR keep the food that's most tempting to you furthest away from you on the dinner table.6. Drink lots of water7. Minimize appetizers and try to only eat the ones unique to the holiday or special occasion8. The first bite tastes the same as the last (Coach Preston) so try to have smaller portions or just a few bites of things you NEED, but you know are not "good" for you.9. Avoid feeling guilty if things go awryFollow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lionheartedpodcast/Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LionheartedPodcast/Follow Croga Nutrition Powered by WAG on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/croganutrition/ Music: https://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music

This week I sat down with our Croga Nutrition Coaching Staff (Cody, Meghan and Stephanie) to answer a bunch of questions form our newest set of clients and some frequently asked questions we’ve been asked over and over during our first year of nutrition coaching.The questions were very well rounded, including, how to weigh and measure food properly, how to get more protein, how much water to drink daily, carbs versus net carbs and how to log these foods and much more.And since there were four of us answering every question, the answers provided great insight and lots of different tips and tricks that should help you find something that works for you.We hope you enjoy the episode and if you are interested in one-on-one nutrition coaching or have additional questions you’d like us to answer, shoot us a DM on Instagram at @CrogaNutrition or shoot us an email to Nutrition@CrogaFitness.com and we’ll get your more info or get your questions answered in our next podcast.———————————Questions & Time Stamps3:45 - #1 - I currently find myself with extra carbs towards the end of the day. What are some good (maybe pre/post workout) snack ideas?9:40 - #2 - I would love a good high protein breakfast option that doesn’t include eating 6+ egg whites. I have mixed it up with “oatless oatmeal” but I get tired of it quick. Got any suggestions?16:28 - #3 - My clothes don't fit me as well anymore... With shelter in place, it doesn't matter as much (plus baggy is coming back in style). That said, do I buy clothes that fit me now? Or wait until I hit my target goal? And should I keep my current clothes in case I need them in the future?24:25 - #4 - Is it best to have more carbs earlier in the day or is the goal to split macros between 3 meals?29:10 - #5 - If you're cooking something with oil, such as roasted sweet potatoes with olive oil, for example, how do you count the oil - as the full amount used or a portion given that not all of the oil is absorbed by the cooked food?30:46 - #6 - How much water should a person drink?36:19 - #7 - Net carbs vs total carbs. I have tortillas that are 30 gr of carbs a piece but 25 of those are fiber and only 5 are considered “net” carbs (starch I presume). How should I log them? Net or gross?42:25 - #8 - If you go wildly over carbs or protein one day (ie 20-30percent over your macros because you ate out) are you best off doing which of the following: (1) Just writing that day off and continuing with the same macros the next day, (2) Trying to trade protein for carbs or carbs for protein if you can in any remaining meals. Ie if you are over protein by 15g then eating 15g less of carbs that day if you can (3) Compensating the next day by decreasing what you went over in (Ie if you went over in protein having a little less the next day)50:23 - #9 - I’m regularly over on my carbs and fat, but I think that’s because I eat out too often. I assume people who know what they are doing plan ahead to hit their macros? Is that what I should plan to do to be successful? And similar to Whitney, if you’re way off, what’s the best approach for the rest of the day or the day following?60:14 - #10 - We meal prepped but I don’t know how to count it. Can you help?Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lionheartedpodcast/Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LionheartedPodcast/Follow Croga Nutrition Powered by WAG on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/croganutrition/ Music: https://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music

This week I sat down with our awesome Croga Nutrition Coach, Meghan, for the second time.This time I wanted to chat with her about her experience DURING her journey and if/how life has been different since reaching her goal weight and body compositionI loved having this conversation because it opened my eyes to some things I would have never even thought about from a new athletes perspective, as well as, what it’s like to lose a bunch of weight in the CrossFit gym environment and have people notice and talk.I think you’ll find that this conversation will give you a great opportunity to think about the way you think about yourself, the way others view you, and the decisions you make because of your internal dialogue.To say that this conversation was a wonderful catalyst for thought and future conversations would be an understatement.Meghan has been a hell of an athlete, client, guest on the show and is an amazing coach and I can’t wait to have her on again soon.Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lionheartedpodcast/Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LionheartedPodcast/Follow Meghan on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mlp111283/Follow Croga Nutrition Powered by WAG on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/croganutrition/ Music: https://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music

This week I sat down with one of our long time coaches from Croga CrossFit who also happens to be, hands down, the most knowledgable member of the Croga Nutrition StaffPreston has been coaching at Croga for six and a half years now and although he doesn’t spend as much time at the gym in person because he’s got a busy work and extra curricular schedule, he is a pillar of our community.He’s smart, kind, thoughtful and reverent and it has been an honor to be one of his mentors and to watch him grow into the man he is today.He’s also the guy that I lean on most when it comes to nutrition questions because he has spent hundreds of hours learning about nutrition and nutrition coaching, which makes him the perfect subject for the podcast.On this episode he shares some tips for coaches, some things for athletes to think about and some tricks for living a fulfilled life that includes good food, dessert and some alcohol, but still allows you to reach your goals and maintain the body composition you desire.Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lionheartedpodcast/Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LionheartedPodcast/Follow Preston on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/prind_/Follow Croga Nutrition Powered by WAG on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/croganutrition/ Music: https://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music

This week I sat down with the Croga CrossFit 2019 Member of the Year and one of our Croga Nutrition Coaches, Meghan Pierce for a chat.Meghan had one hell of a successful year of self improvement that included about 60 lbs of weight loss, tons of athletic improvement and a complete shift in mindset.She attributes a lot of her success to establishing new habits and changing her internal monologue about the way she perceives or responds to things that would have previously sent her on a month long negative path.Meghan’s story has been incredible to watch and I’ve loved seeing her take the next step in her journey by becoming a coach because she has so much knowledge to share that it would be unfortunate if she kept it all to herself.I hope you enjoy this episode and pick up something valuable. I’ve already taken some of what she shared and implemented it into my own life and I’ve got her favorite book, Atomic Habits, at the top of my list to read next.Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lionheartedpodcast/Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LionheartedPodcast/Follow Meghan on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mlp111283/Follow Croga Nutrition Powered by WAG on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/croganutrition/ Music: https://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music

This week I sat down with the CEO and Founder of Working Against Gravity, Adee Cazayoux.We started off by having some fun chatting about kids because she is 24 weeks pregnant, which is super exciting.Then, since Croga is a WAG nutrition Affiliate and the last time I interviewed her their Affiliate Program was still in the works, we talked about the whole process of building that program out, getting it to the world and how it’s goingAnd then we dove into the subject that everyone was here for and the elephant in the room, the Coronavirus or COVID-19 and how it has effected her life as an individual, as a business owner and as a coach.Adee has a very unique perspective on this whole thing because she has been teaching people to be healthy for 6-plus years through her nutrition business and she’s also been working from home that whole time, so she had TONS of awesome tips on nutrition, cooking, staying social, keeping your mood positive, and some tricks to being productive and making the most of working from home, which I learned a ton from.I hope you all enjoy our chat as much as I did and let me know how myself, the Croga Staff, Adee or the WAG staff can help you be successful and improve your lives while we’re in this unfamiliar territory.Follow us on Instagram & Facebook @LionheartedPodcastFollow Adee on Instagram: http://instagram.com/adeecazayouxFollow Working Against Gravity on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/workingagainstgravity/Follow Croga Nutrition Powered by WAG on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/croganutrition/ Music: https://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music

This week Dave sat down for the second time with Croga’s favorite canadian, Joy Sobel, (sorry Kal) to continue our conversation about fitness and coaching.If you didn’t listen to our last episode, I suggest you go back and check out episode 46 to catch the first part of this interview, but this one should be good either way.Joy has a very different background and unique view on the world of fitness compared to mine, so I really enjoy picking her brain about how her past and other job in fitness relate to her new CrossFit world and also how the two worlds impact each other.She gave me a pretty cool list of podcasts and books to listen to and read at the end of the show, so I suggest you listen all the way through and check the show notes for links to some cool content that’ll make you a better human.Follow us on Instagram & Facebook @LionheartedPodcastFollow Joy on Instagram @JoySobelJoy’s favorite habit maker & breaker app: https://apps.apple.com/ca/app/way-of-life-habit-tracker/id393159800Joy’s Books of 2019: https://www.instagram.com/p/B6byQ2fBp55/Joy’s Podcasts of 2019:https://www.instagram.com/p/B6t4rFVBLAx/Joy’s favorite Toronto Pizza joint: https://www5.pizzapizza.ca/store/1/delivery Music: https://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music

This week Dave sat down with a man who has one hell of a resume as a veteran of the Air Force, an owner of a highly successful CrossFit affiliate, member of the CrossFit seminar staff, and CrossFit Games athlete.And even better, he’s a wonderful husband and father.His name is Wes Piatt and he’s the owner of Coast Range CrossFit in Gilroy, California.And as you’ll gather in this interview, Wes is a man of many talents.He’s a guy that has a very deep understanding of coping with stress, working through trouble and coming out the other side a better human.It is this background and my connection to his dedication to his community that pushed me to ask him to take this interview and I’m glad I did.Wes not only didn’t flinch when I asked if he wanted to have a Sunday afternoon chat over the internet while drinking a beer, but he was well prepared, thoughtful, well spoken and had a good sense of humor about him even though we were talking about a subject that is difficult to wrap our heads around or understand how it will really impact us in the long run.I hope you all enjoy this episode as much as I did and use some of it to motivate yourself to come out the other side of this madness a better person than when it all started.Follow us on Instagram & Facebook @LionheartedPodcastFollow Wes on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/wespiatt2013Wes’ Message to the Coast Range CF Community: https://www.instagram.com/p/B9zrrlFgji_/Coast Range CrossFit Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/coastrangecrossfit/Coast Range Nutrition Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/coastrangenutrition/The Drinking Team CRF: https://www.instagram.com/thedrinkingteam_crcf/ Music: https://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music

This week Dave sat down with one of our honorary Croga members who lives in Toronto, Canada and is a jack of all trades fitness coacHer name is Joy Sobel and our paths crossed when she was visiting her brother, Kal, who is a member at Croga.From about 30 seconds into our first interaction I knew that Joy and I were going to get along because she’s an absolute fireball of energy, positivity, inspiration, and enthusiasm.She’s one of those people that you could tell the workout of the day is 1,000 burpees for time and she’d be so anxious to get started she’d want to skip the warm up.With all that said, as we got to know each other by chatting here and there when she was in town and messaging on social media, it became obvious to me that she would be a great person to talk with on the podcast because she has an interesting history in fitness and fitness coaching and over the past 6 months or so has started dabbling in more and more CrossFit as her training methodology of choice.As you’ll hear in the podcast, Joy comes from a fitness family (her mom has been a fitness instructor for something like 40 years), which is very unique, but the thing I loved about our chat was that Joy is very open minded and curious.This episode is a long one, Joy and I are both talkers, and it will most likely be followed up by 2 or 3 more episodes so we can dig in a little deeper.Follow us on Instagram & Facebook @LionheartedPodcastFollow Joy on Instagram @JoySobel Music: https://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music

This week Dave sat down with one of his former coaches at Croga CrossFit, Nick Ralston, to follow up on his half-ironman in Boulder, Colorado and half-marathon up the side of PIke’s Peak in Colorado Springs, ColoradoIf you haven’t listened to my first interview with Nick about Self Identity and Using Fitness to Experience the World, go check out episode 42 and then come back to this one as a follow up.In Episode 42 Nick mentioned that he had these races coming up and we chatted a lot about some of the self discovery he had experienced during his 6 months or so of preparation for them.In this episode we chat about the final few weeks of his training for these events, how the races went and what he learned about himself in the process, and we had a pretty in depth chat about self reflection, integrity, honor, and mental and physical limits.This episode will, most definitely, get you thinking back on the thoughts that go through your head during your training and will hopefully help you conquer some inner demons so you can reach a whole new level of personal awareness and physical capacity.Follow us on Instagram & Facebook @LionheartedPodcastFollow Coach Nick on Instagram @NickRalston05 Music: https://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music

This week the boys sat down for a chat about General Physical Preparedness and how when you elect to use this methodology as the anchor for your programming your clientele will be pushed physically and mentally, which will help them improve, but may also push their buttons.With that in mind, from a coaching perspective, it is of utmost importance that we give each member a win each day that they come and do the workout.And if you’re one of those listening that doesn’t have a coach, it is your job to look for a win in each training session so that you can build some momentum and fall in love with the process of getting more fit, which will keep you coming back for more.Follow us on Instagram & Facebook @LionheartedPodcastCheck out the Instagram post by @WarmupAndWorkout at https://www.instagram.com/p/BxNLqltgQNe/ Music: https://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music

This week the boys sat down for a chat about consistency. More specifically: consistently moving well, consistently eating well, consistently sleeping enough, consistently doing the work required to advance your career, consistently learning, and many more things that can’t be done here and there if you want to be successful at them.Consistency is a word that you’ve probably heard us use hundreds of times in our first 42 episodes, but it is such an important piece of being successful in every aspect of your life, that we’ll probably never stop talking about it.Follow us on Instagram & Facebook @LionheartedPodcast Music: https://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music

This week Dave sat down with one of his former coaches at Croga CrossFit, Nick Ralston to chat about self identity and how changing the way he sees himself has allowed him to use fitness to experience the world.On the outside, Nick is a big, strong, athletic looking dude that is ex-military, but in this podcast you’ll come to learn that he’s also an intellectual who is well smart, well spoken and loves to explore ideas and experience the outdoors.Nick’s unique point of view and experience with self reflection and decision to go to the opposite end of the fitness spectrum from what his DNA is coded for so that he can experience the world really make you think hard about what you’re doing, why and what things you might be interested in that you’ve never done before or have shied away from.All of this and more in this week’s episode.Follow us on Instagram & Facebook @LionheartedPodcastFollow Coach Nick on Instagram @NickRalston05 Music: https://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music

This week the boys sat down for a chat about when enough is enough and you just need to dial back the intensity or maybe take a good ole fashioned rest day, rest week or rest weeks. We’ve experienced overtraining and lack of recovery as athletes and we see it all too often on the faces and in the performance of our clients, so we thought it’d be a great subject to shed some light on.When should you take a rest day?When should you head to the gym, but just hop on a bike or rower and stretch for the hour?When should you take a nap instead of working out?When should you just focus on your movement and not the leaderboard?All of this and more in this week’s episode.Follow us on Instagram & Facebook @LionheartedPodcastMusic: https://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music

This week the boys sat down with our friend, Andrea Cecil. If you didn’t hear her join us to chat about CrossFit’s effect on the Female Aesthetic in Episode 37, go back and give it a listen. Andrea is the former assistant managing editor & head writer of The CrossFit Journal. When we were discussing subjects before Episode 37, we paired it down to two options. The second of which is what you’re going to hear today. This is a story that is a little different than what we usually talk about on The Lionhearted Podcast, but it’s a story that needs to be told and a story that needs to be heard. This is the story of Redemption Road CrossFit. The first CrossFit affiliate to operate inside a prison. Andrea had the first-hand experience of attending the Level 1 seminar that was conducted at the Limon Correctional Facility, a Colorado State prison for men located about 2 hours outside Denver. This is the story of what finding fitness, finding a purpose and making good use of your time behind bars looks like. This is not a story for the little ones, so if you typically listen with your kids in the car, please save this episode for another time.Follow us on Instagram & Facebook @LionheartedPodcastFollow Andrea on Instagram @andreamcecil Music: https://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-musicRedemption Road CrossFit: https://www.rf2.org/Building Community Behind Bars: https://journal.crossfit.com/article/limon-seminar-cecil-2Reporter’s Notebook: CrossFit in Prison: https://journal.crossfit.com/article/limon-2-cecil

This week the boys sat down for a chat about Coaching and a little bit about being on the receiving end of coaching. The conversation was sparked by a blog post titled “If you see something, say something” written by Janet Navarette on Pat & Taz Barbers programming website, Warmup and Workout. As coaches and coaches of coaches and even as athletes, this is an idea that Danny and I have thought about, talked about, and experienced both sides of for many years now, so it made for a fun hour of exploring. Follow us on Instagram & Facebook @LionheartedPodcastCheck out Croga Nutrition on Instagram @CrogaNutrition Music: https://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-musicCheck out the original WUWO blog post here: https://warmupandworkout.com/blog/if-you-see-something-say-something/Check out WUWO on Instagram @WarmupandWorkout

This week the boys sat down for another chat about Nutrition. Since this is a topic where there is constantly new information and Danny and Dave are constantly reading, learning and experimenting it only seemed fitting that they have another chat on the subject with some updates for 2019. Additionally, Dave just launched in-house nutrition services at Croga CrossFit through the Working Against Gravity Affiliate Program and he’s super pumped about being able to do one-on-one, personalized, nutrition coaching for their athletes and friends.Follow us on Instagram & Facebook @LionheartedPodcastCheck out Croga Nutrition on Instagram @CrogaNutrition Music: https://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-musicFind out more about Croga Nutrition: https://crogacrossfit.com/croga-nutrition-powered-by-wag/

This week the boys sat down sat down with the lovely, Andrea Cecil. She’s the former assistant managing editor & head writer of The CrossFit Journal. Andrea and Dave crossed paths about 6 years ago when she moved to town for a job at CrossFit HQ. A couple months ago her husband, Tony, and her popped in to one of Dave’s Oly classes to throw some weight around and they got to chatting about having her on The Lionhearted Podcast. In this week’s conversation, we chatted about the effect CrossFit has had on the female aesthetic inside and outside the box, how doing CrossFit and earning the physical capacity that comes with that changes the way women think about the way they look in the mirror and, how the rise of our sport has produced some solid role models for young girls by promoting health, wellness and function over looks alone as the metric for confidence and self-worth. Follow us on Instagram & Facebook @LionheartedPodcastFollow Andrea on Instagram @andreamcecil Music: https://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-musicYoutube Video Andrea referenced in the podcast - Letting Beauty Speak: https://youtu.be/CDXxURPagpM

This week the boys sat down for a chat about the 2019 Open. More specifically, some lessons we’ve learned over the previous 8 years of The Open, including how to perform your best during the workouts, how to motivate yourself even though you’re not going to The CrossFit Games, how to stay safe and healthy through the five week long competition and how to enjoy the hell out of this yearly test and celebration of fitness. Follow us on Instagram & Facebook @LionheartedPodcast Music: https://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music

This week the boys sat down for a chat about an opinion piece titled “CrossFit Still Needs Its Heroes”, written by the Editor-in-Chief of The Morning Chalk Up, a daily CrossFit focused email dedicated to keeping it’s readers up to date with the CrossFit community. This article was the perfect follow up to our conversation last week in episode 34 about the changes to the CrossFit.com main site and the overall change in focus of CrossFit HQ because it raised the questions of “who will we all look to as inspiration to help us dig a little deeper at the end of a workout?” Which is where we all know the most progress is made physically and mentally. And, “who will be the face of the sport that our kids look up to and pretend to be when they’re lifting weights, running laps and doing pull-ups? Who will be the Michael Jordan or Mia Hamm of CrossFit if we don’t remember to promote our sport as a sport?” As Justin said at the end of his blog post, “young athletes need to pin up posters of champions in their garages, imagining they’re going rep-for-rep with Mat Fraser; grabbing just one more before the time cap. The next generation needs to wake up hungry, hungry to compete, to grow, to sweat, to hurt, to earn it, and to win.” and Danny and I had a fun time chatting about how and why this is an important piece for the future of CrossFit. Follow us on Instagram & Facebook @LionheartedPodcastCheck out The Morning Chalk Up at morningchalkup.com or @morningchalkupRead the opinion piece here: https://morningchalkup.com/2019/01/25/crossfit-still-needs-its-heroes-opinion/ Music: https://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music

This week the boys sat down for a conversation about the exciting changes to the main site, aka CrossFit.com, that showed up on January 1st. As many of you know, this past fall CrossFit HQ announced a sort of shift in their focus, or at least in the outward facing content that they produce, from being mostly about The Games and the Sport of CrossFit to being more dedicated and focused on improving the health and wellness of as many human beings as possible. Not to say that this hasn’t always been the focus for almost everyone behind the scenes at CrossFit HQ and the focus of all Level 1 and above seminars, but what we’re seeing now is a shift in investment of time and resources to what Danny and I think is the correct bigger picture. This is a change that we’ve been talking about needed to happen for years and we’re very excited to see where this takes CrossFit as a training methodology and as a business. And, we’re even more excited to see how much bigger our reach as a healthy and happy community can be, to hopefully change the lives of millions more Americans and people all over the world. So, if you haven’t already, go check out the new CrossFit.com and then sit back, relax and enjoy this conversation about where we’ve been and where we’re headed. Follow us on Instagram & Facebook @LionheartedPodcast Music: https://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music

This week the boys sat down for an episode filled with laughs about Gym Etiquette and what NOT to do when you’re traveling to another gym for the holidays. This one started as an idea on good behavior for your home gym, but because of the time of year and some of the things we’ve seen from visitors quickly developed into a survivors guide to being a good guest when you’re working out in someone else’s gym during the holidays. As I listened back on parts of this episode to jog my memory, I was hooked and just cracking up the whole time. So, even if you’re not someone that drops in to other gyms or doesn’t travel much, this episode is still filled with lessons on gym etiquette and hopefully we’ll make you laugh at least half as much as we made ourselves laugh during this episode. Follow us on Instagram & Facebook @LionheartedPodcast Music: https://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music

This week the boys sat down for a quick chat about how to stay fit during the holidays. To be honest, they didn’t really have a plan for this episode, they just kind of went for it, but sometimes that produces the best content. Well…….funniest at least. Since Danny and Dave both started CrossFit they’ve been through more than a decade of holiday seasons, and they’ve stayed fit during them and also been very fat and happy during them, so this episode includes their tips and tricks from all the lessons they’ve learned the hard way. Follow us on Instagram & Facebook @LionheartedPodcast Music: https://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music

This week the boys sat down for a chat about one of my favorite training tools to make sure you’re doing what you should be doing mentally to get the most out of your training. The idea came from my coach, Kyle Ruth of Training Think Tank, and it is to give yourself a score from 1 to 10 in the categories of Intensity, Concentration and Effort after each training session and use this to determine if you gave each session everything you had. This was a new idea to Danny, so we used his workout from that morning as a sample and the result was fantastic. If your’e someone that’s been in a funk lately or ever and you’re looking for a way to re-focus and improve your training, I think this is one of the best ways to recalibrate. If you’re a coach, this is a great tool to use to empower your athletes and to help them self reflect on each training session. We hope you use it as just another tool to improve as an athlete and human!Follow us on Instagram & Facebook @LionheartedPodcast Music: https://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music

This week the boys sat down for a chat about the tough conversations and situations that CrossFit Coaches and Box Owners have to have or have to deal with. We touch on managing athlete expectations and keeping them safe, keeping the class moving smoothly and dealing with the chatty members as well as the over-eager ones, and finding a way to establish trust with the member that’s feeling a little down and out or going through something tough in life who’s negative energy is dragging down the class, but what they really need is just someone to talk to.This was an interesting conversation because as we had it Danny and I did a lot of self reflection and realized that there have been more than a few moments where we’ve been on the other side of almost all these conversations or made some of the mistakes we regularly have to correct as coaches.This is a great episode for box owners, coaches and athletes to learn from, I know I learned a ton about myself as an athlete and coach from having this conversation. Follow us on Instagram & Facebook @LionheartedPodcast Music: https://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music

This week the boys sat down for a chat about athlete motivation. More specifically, why people start CrossFit, what we think are the best long term why's that make people successful over the long haul, what to do once you’ve reached a specific goal or made it through a test that was your target, what motivates athlete mid-WOD and some tips for positive self talk, and finally, how all of this happens in the gym, but relates directly to your life outside the box. This was a very fun conversation that allowed them to explore their own experiences as athletes and coaches and they hope it helps you get or stay motivated as a CrossFitter. Follow us on Instagram & Facebook @LionheartedPodcast Music: https://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music

This week the boys sat down for a chat about the mental side of intensity and one of our favorite books, How Bad Do You Want It? by Matt Fitzgerald. They talked about everything intensity related from how to get fitness results using intensity even if you’re just a casual CrossFitter, to how to train with intensity daily and not burn out for the more serious athlete, and even talked for a bit about how the brain controls the body’s limitations and how to get yourself to achieve more than you ever thought was possible with proper mental preparation and controlling your thoughts in competition or in a tough portion of a WOD where you just want to rest. If you haven’t already, the boys highly suggest you pick up a copy of How Bad Do You Want It? by Matt Fitzgerald and if you’re not convinced yet, listen to this podcast and you won’t be able to resist giving this book a read or listen.

This week the boys sat down for a chat about continuing education in CrossFit since Danny has his Level 2 weekend coming up soon and Dave has his CrossFit Level 3 or Certified CrossFit Trainer Test on Friday, August 31st, the day this podcast is being released. As we dug deeper into why we’re both taking the next step in our CrossFit educational process our conversation evolved into one of why constant learning, passing along the knowledge that you gain to others, receiving consistent feedback from others and having an open mind is so important for honing your craft. This is a conversation that really applies to all professions and walks of life, it just so happens that Danny and Dave have found that coaching and helping others improve their lives through fitness is where our passion lies. Follow us on Instagram & Facebook @LionheartedPodcast Music: https://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music

Coach Dave gives his thoughts on the breaking news that CrossFit will be getting rid of Regionals and proceeding with a new CrossFit Games qualifying format.

This week the boys sat down for a chat about athlete skill development. They looked at it from a coaches standpoint on how to build progressions and get athletes to make small, but consistent improvements over time and they also gave some tips to athletes that don’t have a coach and need to figure out how to get better at a movement that is holding them back. This episode is filled with A TON of knowledge that Dave has accumulated from climbing the competitive CrossFit ladder over the last 5 years and Danny did an amazing job of pulling it all out of him with very specific and pointed questions about how to build the skills necessary to be elite in our sport. Follow us on Instagram & Facebook @LionheartedPodcast Music: https://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music

This week the boys sat down for a chat about being a motivating coach and making personal connections with your athletes. This episode also involved us having a few beers, telling some hilarious stories and all kinds of weird background noises from airplanes, trains and Dave's neighbors because they recorded it in his garage, so hopefully you’ll laugh as much as they did. Follow us on Instagram & Facebook @LionheartedPodcast Music: https://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music

This week the boys went old school and sat down for a chat, just the two of them. As many of you know, Danny is addicted to becoming more mobile aka flexible and although Dave isn't as big of a fanatic as Danny is, he's spent more than his fair share of time, especially while competing in CrossFit, stretching, smashing and rolling to keep his body happy and healthy. Follow us on Instagram & Facebook @LionheartedPodcast Music: https://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music

This week the boys got to interview Dave's coach for the last 4 years, Kyle Ruth of Training Think Tank. Kyle is one super smart dude that, as you’ll learn in this episode, became obsessed with how the human body works and how to drive the performance of athletes at age 15 when he had his first experience with high level athletics after qualifying for junior nationals in swimming. He swam throughout college at The University of Indiana where he got his bachelor of science in Exercise Physiology and followed it up with a Master’s of Applied Sport Science, which unbeknownst to him at the time would lead perfectly into being a Remote Coach for high level athletes in CrossFit and other sports all over the world. He’s a 4-time CrossFit Regional Individual competitor as well and he works out of the Training Think Tank headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia. They dove deep into all kinds of stuff in this episode from remote coaching, the Training Think Tank educational series, some training and mental tips that Kyle has seen help push his athletes over the edge or take the next step, some other training secrets that he usually only gives to paying clients, haha, and just had some good old fashioned conversation about life, CrossFit and this year’s Open and upcoming Regionals.

This week the boys got to interview the woman behind one of the most influential nutrition companies in the CrossFit space. Her name is Adee Cazayoux and she is the founder and CEO of Working Against Gravity, a 1-on-1 nutrition service that helps individuals develop positive relationships with food by removing the guilt surrounding their eating habits. There are no gimmicks, no meal plans, no restrictions, just finding what works for you through patience, education and a little hard work. We had a ton of fun chatting with her about her background, how working against gravity works, some solid nutrition advice for individuals looking to clean up their eating and track their intake, and a bunch of other fun stuff about business, life and just plain being awesome. You can find out more info at workingagainstgravity.com or on their Instagram at @workingagainstgravity You can find Adee Cazayoux in Instagram at @adeecazayoux Follow us on Instagram & Facebook @LionheartedPodcast Music: https://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music

This week Danny and Dave got to interview one of the guys behind Wodapalooza and the man behind the mic on the floor of the CrossFit Games. His name is Dylan Malitsky and his weekday, year round, job is helping to plan the biggest independent CrossFit event in the world, Wodapalooza Miami. And if that wasn’t cool enough, his 10-15 weekends a year job is to be the MC on the floor of some of the other enormous CrossFit events throughout the country, most notably, calling the individual athlete events at The 2017 CrossFit Games in Madison. In this episode we chat about how Dylan found CrossFit, he’s got a few very well known high level CrossFitters as best friends from college who all happened to find the sport by introducing each other to it, how he stumbled into doing live event announcing, what he does for Wodapalooza and some cool stuff they’ve got in the works, and what it’s really like to be on the floor of The CrossFit Games with a mic in hand and everyone listening

This week Danny and Dave got to interview the co-owner of Float Station. His name is Ryan Ariko and he and his wife, Katie, are the founders of a sensory deprivation float tank business in Campbell, California. In this episode we chat about the history of floating, some of the benefits of floating that have been medically proven and what makes it the perfect escape from distractions, gravity and stress from our busy and hectic lives. They like to say that Float Station is a place where you can get away without going away. You can find out more info at floatstation.com or on their Instagram at @floatstation Follow us on Instagram & Facebook @LionheartedPodcast Music: https://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music

This week Danny and Dave got to interview the man behind an up and coming macro tracking app called MacrosFirst. His name is Jacob Bockelmann and he’s a product manager by day and a olympic weightlifter by night. He got turned on to the Renaissance Periodization or RP Strength Diet a few years ago and found that trying to figure out how much of each food to eat to hit his correct macros for each meal was such a nightmare he was determined to find a better way. An Entrepreneurial spirit, some well timed jury duty that gave him some time with paper and pen instead of at his desk working on someone else’s product, this built up frustration with how hard it was to eat correctly, and the determination to fix his own problem and help other people at the same time led him to build MacrosFirst. In this episode we chat about nutrition, weightlifting, marconutrient counting, silicon valley, building an app and a bunch of other fun stuff, so it’s a very well rounded and fun hour. You can find on Instagram at @macrosfirst Follow us on Instagram & Facebook @LionheartedPodcast

This week we experimented with going live on Instagram and answering listeners questions. We chatted about The Open, our personal experiences, what we enjoyed and what we loved seeing from our athletes. We also shot the shit a little and had some good laughs about all kinds of nonsense, like usual. Follow us on Instagram & Facebook @LionheartedPodcast Intro music: www.bensound.com

This week Dave & Danny got to interview the boys from Lean Feast Their names are Eric & Bennie and they’re two of the hardest working people we’ve ever met in our lives. About 3 years ago Eric started a meal prep company out of the back of a nightclub he DJ’d at. A year later, he was so busy that he NEEDED his friend Bennie to help, so he hired him. Fast forward another year and the boys have a retail chipotle style clean eating store that is an absolute hit, they’re working on a line of bottles sauces and marinades, they’re own brand of spices, and franchising Lean Feast for future expansion. And the funny and cool part is, the motivation behind all of this is to change people’s lives and make them healthier, NOT the money that has come with it. I can honestly say this is the best episode we’ve filmed yet. So good that you might want to listen to it two or three times. You can find them on Instagram at @lean_feast Follow us on Instagram & Facebook @LionheartedPodcast

This week Danny and Dave had their first remote guest on the show. His name is Gabe Yanez and he was one hell of a guest for a handful of reasons. He’s got a high level endurance and swimming background, which is huge in our sport, he’s worked for multiple supplement companies with different focuses and goals with their products, he’s learned a ton about nutrition for performance along the way, and he’s an absolute pro at getting himself just short of his redline and hanging out there for extended periods of time. You can find him on Instagram at @_gabeyanez You can find Puori on Instagram at @puroilife You can find TJ's Gym on Instagram at @TJsGyms Follow us on Instagram & Facebook @LionheartedPodcast

This week we got to interview a two time Olympian in the hammer throw, Kevin McMahon. Kevin is a highly intelligent, highly motivated, well spoken and creative person that is an absolute thrill to talk to. Despite his lack of height and size for his sport of choice, he found a way to compete toward the top of the world for more than 10 years including making two olympic teams, winning a Pan Am Silver medal, and earning the title of US champion twice, all while competing 100% drug free in a sport that has been riddled with PEDs for decades. In this episode you’ll learn a ton about the obscure sport that is the hammer throw, how Kevin found it and decided he wanted to compete in it, Kevin’s 7 secrets to performance that he compiled while spending thousands of hours training with and being coached by some of the worlds best athletes in track & field and that he used to give him an advantage as the smaller David type athlete in a sport that’s filled with Goliath’s.

This week we got to interview a girl named Sophie Simmons who not only stands out as a stellar athlete in pretty much every sport she’s every tried, but she’s well educated, runs a successful personal training business and as you’ll hear, has a positive energy about her that is unbelievably contagious, inspiring and motivating. In this episode you’ll hear her life story and how her willingness to take leaps of faith and go after what she wants has led her down a winding road filled with lots of different sports, tons of learning experiences and has led to an ending that seems like it’s just the beginning for her. You can find her on Instagram at @thats.sofitness & @sophie_g_simmons Follow us on Instagram & Facebook @LionheartedPodcast

This week it was just Dave & Danny, but they absolutely killed it! Tons of laughs, tons of good stories, tons of knowledge, and tons of positive energy. They chatted about The CrossFit Games Open, Overtraining and Movement Efficiency. They also learned about how Danny lost 10-12 lbs in 36 hours from food poisoning. We hope you enjoy the episode! Follow us on Instagram & Facebook @LionheartedPodcast

This week we chatted with the owner of the lifestyle brand, Project X, Todd Hernandez. This is a brand that Todd launched in the CrossFit world as a t-shirt company, but he always had a larger vision of being an art company that likes to use apparel as their canvas. As you listen you’ll get to learn a ton about Project X, Todd himself, what makes them unique and why we love supporting them so much. They’re a local company with their showroom located off Lincoln Ave in the heart of Downtown Willow Glen, the same neighborhood that is home to Cróga CrossFit, so we hope you enjoy the show and then look them up and head down there to check out their stuff. You can find their stuff at iamprojectx.com or on instagram at @iamprojectx.

This week we sat down with a man named Peter Jordan who went on one of the coolest and most unique journeys you’ve ever heard of. Peter made his career as a teacher and coach in the Saratoga school district and was instrumental in bringing CrossFit to Saratoga High School as the foundation for their Physical Education curriculum. At the end of that successful career as an educator is where the story of this journey begins. When Peter retired, he packed a bag, flew to the small island of Shikoku, Japan, and ventured off on his own to hike the Shikoku trail and visit the 88 sacred temples found around the island. In this episode, he tells us all about his journey, the things he experienced, the people he met and how it has impacted his day to day life since. Peter is an amazing man and the story of his Shikoku Pilgrimage and the 88 temples is one that you won’t want to miss. Where to find this week's guest: Peter's Instagram: @TrainingForShikoku Peter's Email: runcoach@gmail.com

This week Danny and I got to sit down with a friend of mine that knows a ton about anatomy, physiology and how to get strong. His name is Kevin Don and he runs a business called Strength Bias Training. I met Kevin years ago when he just popped into Croga for a class and we immediately became friends. Through Strength Bias Training he travels the world running powerlifting seminars, learning from experts in training, sharing all his knowledge to make better coaches and athletes, teaching people how to get stronger and doing remote programming for athletes of all levels. Where to find this week's guest: Kevin's Instagram: @StrengthBiasTraining Kevin's Email: coach@strengthbias.com Kevin's Website: strengthbias.com Kevin's Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzvahufTACGf5boB9mTHZgw

This week we got to sit down with our good friend, Lindsey Locke. She’s a very interesting person who has a great outlook on life and has worked for a few different companies that all are involved in the CrossFit world. Our main focus was on her current position as the fitness director for a 90-day holistic rehabilitation center named Elevate Addiction Services, what the job entails and how the rehab center uses fitness and more specifically, CrossFit, to help people turn their lives around. However, as our conversation evolved we dove deep into the concept of mindfulness and how important it is for not just people recovering for addiction, but for all individuals living the crazy and hectic lives that we do. We really enjoyed our time chatting with Lindsey and learned a ton from her, so we hope you find some good takeaways too and reach out to her or Elevate Addiction Services if you or someone you love may need their service. Where to find this week's guest: Lindsey's Instagram: @LindseyTaylorLocke Elevate Addiction Services Instagram: @elevateaddictionservices Elevate's Website: elevaterehab.org

We chatted with Julie about a lot of different things: From her active life growing up on Maui, meeting her husband at the University of Colorado, Boulder (Go Buffs!), her path to CrossFit through a few other types of fitness, how she makes good use of her time while her two boys are at practice or weekend lacrosse tournaments, family activities they enjoy together, some cooking tips and tricks she’s got and a cool brand she’s an ambassador for called Four Athletics. She had a big smile on her face the entire time we were chatting and we think you’ll be able to hear it through your speakers during this episode that is filled with tips for living an active life.

This week Danny and I got to sit down with the boys from Rubel Roasting aka The Brothers Rubel to pick their brains. We chatted about their background story, growing up together, how they found CrossFit, what motivated them to become coaches, where their love of coffee came from, how that turned into a little thing called Rubel Roasting and what’s next for the two of them.

On this week's episode we get to chatting with food bloggers/nutrition experts, Laura and Kit from FoodologyGeek.com. We learn a little bit more about them, how they got into cooking and baking, some of the tasty recipes they have on their website including their world famous Beast Bowls and some Thanksgiving recipes if you're looking for some last minute help. We also chat a little bit about the brain/stomach connection and how and when to eat for your average CrossFitter AND their book that's coming in January 2018. We hope you enjoy these two fun and hilarious ladies and we hope you check out their website, FoodologyGeek.com