Preparing you for Life Podcast

We've all been working from home for a while now, have you developed new routines to get the most out fo your day? Listen to Old Cityzen, Justin give his thoughts on working from home!

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For those of you who are long term Old City members, you’ll remember the staple coach that was Jenn Power. She helped hold down the fort in the afternoon for the first few years that we were open. She’s since moved on to greener pastures in upstate New York and now Pennsylvania, but Jenn dropped in on the podcast to deliver some knowledge bombs for us all to consume. If you didn’t get the chance to work with Jenn when she was here as a coach, don’t miss this opportunity to learn from her now! [0:00] How Jenn found CrossFit and how she found Old City [14:00] Focusing on being better each day [20:00] Fitness that’s emotionally harmful? Jenn explains how she hid behind fitness for a long time. [30:00] The value of investing in yourself, and how finding a good coach can accelerate the process of learning [45:00] Being generous to yourself when it comes to eating right [60:00] Creating a productive relationship with your coach [1:20:00] Using nagging pains as an early warning system for your body [1:30:30] What Jenn Power is working on for self improvement

I knew Jess Baker for a LONG time before recording this podcast and right around the 50 min mark I learned that she has a PhD is Nuclear Physics. It sort of blew my mind and we spent a large portion of this show talking about that. One thing that struck me when talking to Jess is her extreme humility. I can definitely learn something from her in that regard, but tucked behind her hidden PhD is a subtle confidence that was forged through years of focusing on her strengths both as an athlete and as a scientist. I hope you listen and learn as much about Jess as I did when I recorded it. [0:00] Jess Baker does Naval Warfare modeling [15:00] Jess and Sean talk Leadership [30:00] Etiquette on a Submarine if you get the chance to ride on one [45:00] Upstate New York [50:00] Sean finds out that Jess Baker is Dr. Jess Baker in NUCLEAR PHYSICS! ...and we talk about this fact for a LONG time [1:20:00] Jess and Sean talk about cool things science has created [1:30:30] What Jenn is working on to improve her life

Kara is one of our coaches and runs Old City’s admin email. My conversation with Kara covered a lot about her background, but quickly pivoted into a chat about discovering your passion and taking steps to living a more passion filled life. Kara took small steps towards happier employment, and now instead of one big traditional job, Kara is much happier doing 4 smaller, part time jobs. Check out this conversation to get ideas on how to take small steps to being happier with the work that you do on a daily basis. [0:00] How Kara likes her coffee. [6:00] Living the cubicle life, and how to transition out of them into more passion filled work. [16:00] Kara’s background in exercise science [30:00] Learning new things, and the role of different coaches [45:00] Small steps to take towards more passionate employment, and how Kara approached those challenges [58:00] Follow your passions [1:11:00] What would you do with your life if you didn’t need money [1:19:30] Don’t stop learning and trying new things. [1:24:00] Try challenging things. Look for something that’s going to make you feel accomplished!

Rachel is literally the most consistent person in we have in the gym. We chat a lot about everything in this podcast from nutrition and lifestyle to concrete examples of how to get out of ruts, improving the routines of your life, developing daily and weekly consistency, and everything in between. Rachel’s approach towards improving and executing a daily routine will give you some ideas on how to develop more consistency in your life. Once you have the consistency in place, all you need to do then is sit back and let the #gainztrain roll into town. Enjoy: [0:00] CrossFit works. Rachel’s evolution in her fitness journey. [13:30] Consistency is an evolution. Add small things to your routine and execute your routine. [21:55] Rachel’s approach nutrition (hint: there’s not a lot of sugar) [30:00] Rachel transitions out of the party life with a greater focus on fitness [44:30] Work on yourself a small amount each day to make big changes over time. [52:30] Rachel and Sean talk about interviews and developing a better understanding of who you are. [1:00:10] A focus on health improves Rachel’s confidence among other things.

What do CrossFit, powerlifting, triathlons, and rock climbing all have in common? Sean Chua does them all. There are few people I know of who are more dedicated in developing competence in as many areas in life as Sean Chua, and in this conversation we explore Sean’s life and experience with fitness. In the process we learn about Sean’s 80% Rule, and how he uses this rule to get really good at things pretty quickly. It’s hard to become the top 1% at something, but it’s fairly easy to get to be in the top 20%. Sean talks about consistency, effort, mental fatigue, coaching, leadership, and everything in between. I learn something from Sean everytime I talk to him, so give this podcast a listen and hopefully you’ll take something away as well! [0:00] Sean Chua was at one point, the strongest man in Washington DC. Learn about Sean’s fitness background. How he got into CrossFit and Powerlifting. [10:00] Sean Chua tries Triathlons [14:20] The 80% Rule - The Sean’s talk about what this rule is, and how to use this rule to get really good at basically anything [20:00] Training vs. Exercise - doing what you want to do vs. training for a performance. [25:00] Show up. Be consistent and get results. [30:00] Take action to improve your situation. Move the ship in a safe direction! [44:00] Ideas on developing training consistency and ideas on how to avoid mental fatigue. [59:45] Success through failure. [1:09:17] Sean Chua talks about becoming a coach [1:12:00] Why you should get a coach [1:20:33] What we love about coaching

I love every conversation I have with Jason and I was especially lucky to have recorded perhaps my favorite conversation with him thus far. We dive into a ton of topics, but the theme of the conversation is really about self improvement. As CrossFit coaches, both Jason and I see CrossFit as an important avenue towards self improvement. In this podcast we breakdown how we use CrossFit specifically at Old City as a method to move ourselves towards health by focusing on fitness, nutrition, stress management and sleep. The first 80% is fairly tactical, filled with ideas and approaches to move yourself in a healthier direction. The final 15 minutes is me and Jason pontificating the hero’s journey and what that means for our lives and how we want to live. I really hope you enjoy: [0:00] Jason’s life as a beer sales rep for Port City and a fitness enthusiast and coach. [7:30] Jason and Sean talk about their approach to nutrition and eating healthy, and give a lot of practical guidance to eat for weight loss, strength gain, and health. [53:00] Approaches to make improvements on your health, by focusing on your weaknesses as opportunities for growth. [58:00] Stress management - a little background on stress and what to do to reduce stress to live life in better balance. [1:16:20] Sean and Jason chat technology and offer some ideas on how to reduce it’s power on our stress. [1:33:25] The podcast ends. SIKE! [1:33:35] Jason and Sean talk about the Hero’s Journey and things get deep. Hopefully the theoretical thoughts we explore come across as informed and thoughtful :)

Amy Rzpeka is a mom of two, a wife, a professional, and and all around wonderful person. This conversation dives into the importance of taking care of yourself and carving out time to prioritize filling up your own cup of happiness and fulfillment. If you’re not at your best, you can’t be at your best for others in your life. Your relationships will suffer, your work will suffer, and ultimately, your happiness and fulfillment will suffer. Amy goes into a lot of detail about her struggles raising two kids while balancing a professional career, and how she made conscious changes to her life to make it better. Not being a parent, I really found a lot of similarities in Amy’s struggles to the struggles I’ve experienced in my life. I really enjoyed this conversation and I’m hoping you get something out of it. Enjoy! [0:00] Amy’s life as a professional, a mom, being pregnant, fitness background, finding CrossFit, and the stimulus for making BIG changes. [4:50] Filling up your own cup - Taking care of yourself, and prioritizing your life so that you’re better for everything and everyone else in your life. This is the basic theme of the whole conversation… [14:00] Getting perspective in your life and realizing when you’re overstretched. Any what to do when you feel “stuck” in a negative routine. [28:50] Parenting vs. nurturing, and Amy’s interest shifting from being a professional first to wanting to be a Mom first. How she made the transition and how she found balance in her life with the change of mindset. [44:30] More ideas on finding balance in your life, and how to prioritize your life. [58:30] Dealing with adversity with a mindset of overcoming challenge and controlling what you can control. “GOOD.” [1:14:00] Where confidence comes from? Creating a better relationship with success, defining what success means, and how to define it for yourself. [1:28:00] More about filling your own cup (I told you that this was the theme for the conversation) - finding challenges that are worthy of pursuing.

Jordan is one of the most thoughtful and caring people I’ve met. In this conversation, we dive deep into the idea of loving yourself and loving others. This whole conversation is pretty much focused on the same idea of self-love and exploring what that means. For the show notes, instead of breaking down all of the aspects and transitions of the conversation, I just checked in with the conversation every 15 minutes or so and wrote what was happening in the conversation at that time. This is really one of those conversations that’s better heard from start to finish vs. jumping into a specific topic. I understand that not everyone has 2+ hours to dedicate to self-love, but if you do, just press play. If not, here’s a brief outline of where this conversation went. I hope you get something out of our chat and learn a little bit on how to love yourself a lotta bit. [0:00] Jordan and Sean talk nicknames and exploring who you are and who you want to be as a kid. Learning and loving who you are. [14:00] Jordan does a 10-day silent retreat. What he learned from the experience (hint: self-love!) [18:00] You are the owner of your own feelings. + how to deal with negative feedback without reducing your self-worth. [30:00] Locus of Self - internal judgment vs. external judgment. [45:00] Jordan and Sean talk about how to love someone regardless of who they are. How to balance unconditional love with tough love. [59:00] Sean talks about his life on a Submarine and how he learned about his unique genius in the process. [1:14:00] Learning to lead with your own voice and how CAPT Wes Guinn empowered Sean to explore his leadership voice. [1:29:00] Jordan and Sean talk about radical kinship. How to take a relationship from informational to personal. [1:45:00] Finding your limit and learning from that experience. [2:00:00] Filling up your own cup. Jordan and Sean talk about their approach towards self-love. [2:13:00] We are our own worst enemy and biggest critic - how to change that approach. + would you make out with Penelope Cruz?

Jen is the first coach we added to the team way back in October of 2013. Almost immediately Jen took over as the head coach for the morning classes and has been running our mornings at Old City (starting at 5 am!) for close to 5 years now. When she’s not coaching, Jen fills the rest of her day owning and running a successful dog walking and pet sitting service in the capital hill area - Capital Critter Sitters DC (http://www.capitalcrittersittersdc.com/) If that wasn’t enough, Jen runs 100 mile races. Yeah. Plural: 100. Mile. Races. I wrote this post a few years ago that puts this feat into slightly better perspective: https://oldcitycrossfit.com/meet-jen/ Jen is the model of consistency and excellence and I chatted with her to learn more about what drives her in the hopes that I could level up my life, even if only enough to build up the courage to run a 5k. [0:00] Background about Jen coaching with Old City, and coaching in general [15:00] Jen finds CrossFit and it’s love at first sight [29:30] What drives Jen and Sean to coach [40:00] Wake up. Show up. Do work. [1:00:00] What does Jen ENJOY about doing 100 mile races? [1:15:00] Flow state, and other things that motivate Jen [1:40:00] Jen uses goals and competitions to foster motivation [1:48:00] Jen’s approach to cutting weight for her races, and Jen and Sean talk about food, nutrition, and dieting

Meg’s my little sister and also runs our Swim School! In this conversation we dive into the mountain of obstacles and challenges Meg had to overcome to find success. Meg’s story and this conversation is really about how to constantly work hard through adversity to discover your unique genius. Meg has overcome some pretty intense challenges in life, from being dyslexic to being fired from her first big-time job. But after listening to Meg’s story you’ll gain some insight in how you can take one door shutting as the biggest opportunity of your life. Meg taught me that there’s no such thing as a bad deal, only a good deal you can’t see yet. I really enjoyed this conversation and have learned a lot from being a part of Meg’s story. I hope you enjoy it as well and can learn how to see the next obstacle in your life as a great opportunity [0:00] Yup - Meg is Sean’s sister and she runs Old City Swim School. How she became a coach at Old City, then how the Swim Program grew out of that. [5:20] What’s it like working with your family? Meg and Sean give their two cents. [13:50] Meg’s athletic background, and rising to your own athletic potential. [21:00] Growing up swimming with a younger sister who was a better swimmer and what challenges Meg faced as a result. Also, Meg talks about overcoming the challenges of dyslexia in school and in the workplace. [44:20] Meg graduates college and gets her first “real” job as an intern in DC, then turns a volunteer position into a full time job! [53:00] Meg gets fired. That sucks…..or does it? Meg turns this setback into an opportunity to pursue coaching full time. [1:04:00] Meg gets an internship in a CrossFit gym at CrossFit Fairfax, then gets an opportunity to coach at Old City. [1:13:30] Meg discovers her passion for working with kids when she started a CrossFit Kids and Swim Lesson program [1:24:00] Why is Meg passionate about working with Kids? [1:29:40] Old City Swim School transitions to Swim America. What’s Swim America all about and why it’s a great swim lesson program for children. + what you can do as a parent to set your kid up for success in swim lessons. [1:58:00] Leaning to define your own way and not be blinded by the path that most other people take. Discover your own passion and your unique genius.

My cousin Will Campbell has been raising cattle his whole life. In this podcast we talk about the process of raising cattle, cattle genetics, beef markets, and transitioning a farm into a more holistic model where beef and chicken is sold straight to the consumer. If you really want to get to know your farmer, look no further than this podcast. To order meat from Will, and to learn more about his farm, check out their facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/OldRichValleyFarm/ Enjoy the show! [0:00] Meet my Cousin, Will Campbell - he grew up as a farmer, and what life on the farm looks like for a kid [3:45] Will describes how his and his father’s pasture raised cattle business works: breeding cattle, managing genetics, and growing a herd, how much land you need [23:00] How Will transitioned from college into farming full time + some information about Will’s time as a dairy farmer [30:00] Will Transitions his farm into a straight to consumer model. Why knowing where your food is coming from is important [34:00] How Joe Salatin of Polyface farms inspired Will to look at his farm differently [39:00] Adding chickens to the farm! + Sean learns chickens don’t pee :| [57:05] The difference between Wil’s grass fed and pasture raised cattle. [1:05:45] You are what you eat eats. Get to know your farmer. [1:13:50] Support Will and Old Rich Valley Farms!

David’s athletic career was primarily focused in Martial Arts. The mindset of “Internal Reflection” was forged through the highly disciplined study of Taekwondo David underwent for the majority of his life. Check out this podcast and learn a few things about how to incorporate internal reflection into your life. [0:00] David Drew is a Legit Black Belt - How David got into Martial Arts, plus a little about David’s sports background. [4:35] Sean and David lived in the same town for a few years. That’s cool. [8:02] When did Martial Arts change from a hobby to a dedicated practice? [10:05] David explains how he gets his Black Belt + a little bit about how “mastery” is really only the beginning of understanding. [14:05] What is a Taekwondo (TKD) Form? [18:15] What a TKD competition looks like? [20:30] Is there a difference between getting your Black Belt as a kid vs. getting your Black Belt as an adult in TKD? [21:31] How forms are a method of training your unconscious mind, and how it relates training Olympic Lifting movements. [24:10] Sean’s phone goes off because he forgot to put it in airplane mode. :| [26:10] Biggest lessons learned through Martial Arts as a student - the idea of “Might for Right” and how to use your talents for good. [28:55] Lead by Example - how martial arts taught David this important lesson in leadership. [30:05] Internal Reflection - ideas for how to set high internal standards and use those to create a high level of self drive and internal motivation. [39:00] External vs. Internal Motivation - What’s the role of a great coach? [42:05] David’s transition into a TKD Coach and how the practice of TKD changed when David made the transition to coaching. [53:20] Visualization techniques for success. Tactics and techniques for winning the battle, the lift, or the presentation by visualizing the every detail of the event before it happens. [56:40] Sean talks about a study that illustrates the power of mental training + we brainstorm a new business idea. Here’s the Study - Sean didn’t make it up (!): https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/14998709 [59:38] Winter and Summer Olympics - David and Sean’s favorite events + Sean tells the story of bobsledding in Lake Placid. [1:03:30] The various martial arts in the Olympics. [1:10:40] David’s thoughts on the UFC. [1:17:40] David studied abroad in Japan and how he learned Japanese [1:21:30] David moves to Korea to teach (without being able to speak Korean) [1:25:15] David finds CrossFit in Korea and commutes TWO HOURS to his gym, EACH WAY! + some thoughts on dedication and motivation. [1:34:20] The process of self improvement through challenge and how that idea connects to the previous idea of internal reflection. [1:40:45] Sean talks about falling gloriously out of shape. + Sean and David talk about their first CrossFit workouts. [1:46:38] How David’s Martial Arts background translate to picking up CrossFit [1:52:15] Some tactics on how to approach failure in a workout. [1:56:00] Creating internal motivation and some tangible ideas on how to put this into practice.

This has been one of my favorite conversations thus far in the podcast series. I have a LONG conversation with Katie about meditation and mindfulness. Katie talks a lot about how a mindfulness practice helped her overcome negative body image issues. I go into how a mediation practice helped me overcome my fear of pain. Regardless of what you’re struggling with in your life, this podcast will help give you ideas on how to start making progress towards finding ways to defeat those struggles. I hope you enjoy listening as much as I enjoyed participating in this conversation. [0:00] Katie’s background as a dancer [12:45] Tackling fear [21:30] Balancing acceptance and self love with standards and failure [35:30] Using challenge for self improvement [1:00:42] Meditation as a process for self improvement [1:29:00] Discipline = Freedom [1:49:00] How to start a meditation and mindfulness practice [2:04:00] Thoughts are a reaction of how your body feels. Learn how to notice what your body’s feeling to control your thoughts. [2:15:00] What you get out of a meditation practice

The Open is upon us! Get excited for the 5 weeks of glory and fun, but most importantly, sign up! [0:00] Coaches David, Katie and Sean describe what the CrossFit Open is, and what it means to each of them. [4:45] Games Athletes - inspirational or demoralizing? [5:50] Katie, David, and Sean’s history doing the CrossFit Open [8:15] The CrossFit Open Logistics - Everything you need to know about how the CrossFit Open works: when the workouts get announced, what to expect, how to input your scores [11:35] Scaled and Rx Division explanation. Which one should you do? Hint: it doesn’t matter! Listen to find out why :) [17:35] How to use The CrossFit Open as a personal challenge - it doesn’t matter what everyone else is doing! [19:40] Teens and Masters Divisions! [20:35] THE OPEN IS FOR EVERYONE! YES, EVEN YOU! + how it’s an opportunity to rise to your best self [25:25] The Open Workouts are judged, but that’s a good thing! [30:40] The Open is FUN, so that’s another reason why you should do it! [32:10] Old City CrossFit Open Logistics - every detail you need for participating in the Old City Open + details about our Friday Night Lights Event each week of the OPEN! [41:00] Pleads with us to get you guys to sign up for the Open. It’s going to be a blast and we want you to participate with us!

[0:00] - Meet Claire Bowe, her background, how she got into physical therapy, and what makes Rose PT a great Physical Therapy Clinic. [4:35] - Sorry for the background noise, we were recording in her clinic. The baby crying is one of Claire’s wonderful twin daughters. :) [5:45] Sean’s experience with Physical Therapy when first starting CrossFit and a little more on what to look for in a Physical Therapy Clinic. [10:57] The importance of your Pelvic Floor and the first time (of many) that we talk about peeing yourself. What’s normal and more importantly, what’s NOT normal. [14:02] What is the Pelvic Floor? [16:00] What causes muscles to be tight and/or weak. An amazing description of what “knots” are within muscles + what foam rolling/lax ball work actually does. [19:00] Causes for Pelvic Floor dysfunction: weakness vs. tightness. Muscles must be relaxed AND strong, and what muscles must be healthy for a healthy pelvic floor. [22:24] Symptoms of Pelvic Floor dysfunction for women (and men hint: erectile dysfunction can be tied to the pelvic floor) [24:10] Exercises to do for a healthy Pelvic Floor + how to use kegels to check in on your pelvic floor health. [26:25] Your Adductors and their role in your Pelvic Floor. How to stretch them + a mind blowing conversation about how to better use a VooDoo floss for ab/abduction work (hint: Sean’s been doing it wrong all these years!) [29:45] IMPORTANT >> Stable and mobile joint conversation about how the joints in your body work together and how to use this concept to more accurately correct movement dysfunction. [32:31] Sean gets busted for having crappy posture. He felt Immediate shame. [34:11] Strengthen those Adductors and how to do that in isolation. (Yes, we’re going to have to get a thigh master for the gym.) [37:07] Isolating glute contractions [40:00] Learning how to feel different muscle group activation, and Sean’s idea to do a Guitar Hero muscle activation game. [43:20] Sean breaks down the gym’s method of creating midline stability + Claire gives input on how to create pelvic floor activation as a part of a bracing sequence. [46:36] What’s the cause of the prevalence pelvic floor dysfunction in our modern society? [47:45] Get more connected and tuned into your body aka mind-body connection. [48:25] Coregous balls, lax balls in the glute. If something is painful and tender it’s probably tight and it’s probably a good idea roll it out. [50:15] The Pelvic Floor prescription for postpartum women and men is identical! [51:00] Talk about the workshop we’re hosting on Feb 10th, 2018. If you’re listening to this after the workshop, check out our Facebook video library where you’ll find the FB Live stream of the workshop. More workshop info can be found here: https://www.facebook.com/events/918356108337576/

Jazmyne McBride is Old City Gymnastics Head Coach. With an entire lifetime of gymnastics training under her belt, Jazmyne tells us what it's like to enter high-level gymnastics training as a kid. She explains what it was like transitioning out of gymnastics into cheer, and finally, we spend a good amount of time talking about Old City's Children's Gymnastics Program. Here's an outline of the show, I really hope you enjoy getting the chance to know Jazmyne a little bit better: [0:00] Who is Jazmyne, and how she got into Gymnastics + First gymnastics day memory! [1:38] - What a serious gymnastics training program looks like + what a standard gymnastics practice looks like [6:38] - Developing discipline through high-level athletics as a child and transitioning to adult training [12:10] Jazmyne’s best (and worst) gymnastics events + how mindset affects confidence and performance [24:45] Cheering through college [28:40] Does gymnastics make people short, or do short people do gymnastics? [29:45] Simone Biles - how good is she really? [32:30] Old City Children’s Gymnastics Program and the benefits of athletic training as a child in confidence, self-esteem, flexibility, and general athleticism. [49:00] - Jazmyne’s life outside the gym

For those of you who don't know, our afternoon is losing a dear friend and an amazing #oldcityzen. Liam McLaughlin is leaving us for the brighter pastures of Dallas, TX. Before taking off, I wanted to pick Liam's brain a bit about his mental approach to athletics and try to figure out what drives him to such high performance standards day in and day out. I hope you enjoy listening to this as much as I did as a participant. Here's an outline for those of you who want to skip around a bit: [0:00] - Liam McLaughlin intro and Background + a little LeBron talk [5:23] - The power of that “Winning Moment” + stories from Sean and Liam’s first winning moments. [13:31] - Turning negative events into a positive mindset. “A positive attitude defeats all obstacles.” + how powerful your mind [21:23] - Establishing a positive mental mindset for workouts + Liam and Sean give tips for getting your head into a positive framework for training day-in and day-out. [24:15] - Liam’s sports background + Dealing with disappointment in athletics and using the lessons of failure to fuel self-improvement. [36:35] - Using sports/athletic pursuits to learn about yourself through failure. [39:40] - Sean and Liam discuss their first devastating losses in sport + lessons learned through those losses. [48:50] - The best (and worst) prize for winning in professional sports: trophy vs. medals + the Green Jacket and the Triple Crown Trophy [52:42] - What motivates you today? Winning vs. Not Losing? Is the desire to win a positive virtue? [55:38] - How to embrace the “SUCK.” Sean and Liam talk about tips for convincing your mind to be comfortable with the uncomfortable. + Stories of how to apply these ideas. [1:03:24] - Flow - finding the flow through exercise and sport + tactics for getting into a focused mindset (flow) at the gym. [1:08:00] - Finding the motivation to get into the gym. + Sean’s concept of “Show up, Don’t Try” & Liam’s idea of setting micro-goals. [1:13:20] - Morning rituals - making the bed & the power of a cold shower. + the idea of *not* thinking, just do. [1:15:10] - Using CrossFit or anything hard to learn about (and improve!) yourself.

In this Episode coaches Jen, Jason, and Sean talk about why it's important to strength train in CrossFit. Steps you can take to get more out of your strength training program. We even dive into the ins and outs of Old City CrossFit Strength training. Enjoy!

Old City CrossFit owner, Sean Emery tells his story of finding CrossFit and opening Old City CrossFit.