CrossFit HQ’s Former Director of Marketing Opens CrossFit Fairfield

February 23   |  
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Good morning and welcome to the Morning Chalk Up.

In today’s edition:

• Meet Dylan Gibbs, the first male Collegiate Functional Fitness Champion
• Are you missing out on an ideal client demographic for your affiliate? Learn more below
• CrossFit HQ’s former Director of Marketing, Keith Knapp, is opening a new affiliate: CrossFit Fairfield
• And, Matilde Garnes Workout of the Week

Editor’s Note: The Morning Chalk Up has moved its content to BarBend, which you can find here going forward. We have also moved our newsletter to a new mailing platform. Please bear with us through the transition and know that some things will look different temporarily, but rest assured, we’re still here to deliver all the best news and highlights from the sport and community of CrossFit.

“I’m going to be real with myself. I think Semifinals are in the cards this year.” – Dylan Gibbs, the 2024 US Collegiate Functional Fitness champ on his 2024 CrossFit Games season

Meet Dylan Gibbs: The USA’s First Male Collegiate Functional Fitness National Champion

Two weeks ago, Dylan Gibbs, a biology student at Louisiana State University (LSU) in Baton Rouge, LA, became the first USA Functional Fitness National Collegiate Champion in a down-to-the-wire competition that was determined in the fifth and final test between Gibbs and Will Campbell.

The test: 12-calorie row, 12 bar-facing burpees, and 12 thrusters at 135 pounds.

• “It was neck-and-neck, and whoever won [the workout] would win the competition…he was right next to me and I was able to edge him out,” said 21-year-old Gibbs, a senior set to graduate next December.

Remind me: The first ever U.S.A. Functional Fitness National Collegiate Championships was put on by the U.S.A. Functional Fitness Federation, a nonprofit organization that’s part of the International Functional Fitness Federation. The federation’s goal is to promote the growth of functional fitness as a sport.

• The competition, held at CrossFit Reston in Herndon, VA, on February 3-4, featured both individual and pairs divisions and was open to anyone under the age of 25 currently enrolled in a degree program at a U.S. college or university. Qualification was determined through an online qualifier consisting of four tests.
• Though not an official CrossFit competition, the event looked similar to one, albeit with one significant difference: Athletes were put through five tests of fitness — an endurance test, a strength test, a gymnastics test, a mixed modal test, and a power test — in a 90-minute window, with 10 minutes rest between events.

Gibb’s Story

Gibbs, who has been doing CrossFit since the eighth grade and currently trains at Red Stick CrossFit in Baton Rouge, first caught wind of the competition when the Morning Chalk Up wrote about it last August.

His goal was immediately, not just to qualify, but to win the whole thing, which he was ultimately able to pull off.

The win has helped Gibbs believe he can reach his goal of qualifying for Semifinals this season. (Last year, Gibbs placed 114th in Quarterfinals in North America West).

• “Definitely, this builds my confidence because a lot of the training I do is on my own, so it was nice to see where I stack up against other college kids who are trying to compete,” said the 6-foot, 200-pound Gibbs, who played football, baseball, wrestled, and threw the javelin in high school.

What might be most impressive about Gibbs is that he doesn’t even have a coach…at all. Not a CrossFit coach, not a gymnastics coach, let alone a mental coach or a nutrition coach. In fact, Gibbs does his own programming.

• “I do have some pretty good connections that I can bounce ideas off of […] but I do all my own programming,” he said. “I geek out over this stuff.”

Gibbs builds his strength program first, which acts as the foundation for the rest of his program, he explained. And then, every Sunday, he sits down and fills in his conditioning and gymnastics work in a way that compliments his strength training.

Sometimes he pulls workouts from Mayhem Athlete, other times from HWPO or other sources, he said, but he is systematic about fitting it in, he explained.

Continue Reading…

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✍️ 💪  The Pit Fitness Ranch, host of the 2024 Teen CrossFit Games and the Professional Fitness Athletes’ Association unveiled their new mentor program for the 120 teenagers who will compete this summer.

• These CrossFit Games athletes will work with 2024 CrossFit Games teens starting in June through their championship event Aug. 29-Sept. 1 in Southwest Michigan. The mentors will guide cohorts of six to eight athletes, offering advice, movement and workout evaluations, and more.
• From Pit Coach Brock Yost: “The program will provide athletes with plenty of learning and leadership opportunities as well as the chance to lean on some pros with high-level experience in the CrossFit Games.”
• Experienced CrossFit Games athletes may apply to be mentors by contacting Adam Paulsen, 2024 Pit Crew Athlete Development Coordinator, or send them a DM and they’ll provide a link to apply.

Fan Favorite and CrossFit Legend, Kara Saunders is making her return to the competition floor at the Expo Games Australia, happening in Melbourne, April 13-14.

🎟️ 🎟️ Syndicate Crown / North America East Semifinal Spectator Tickets: Want to check out the top 40 men and women, and top 30 teams in the North America East region early this summer? Spectator tickets are available now.

“Unpolished,” a Six-Part Series: Watch Danish stand-out Rebecka Vitesson’s new six-part YouTube series, “Unpolished.” Rather than focusing on training and day-in-the-life videos, Vitesson plans to highlight and explore her background and upbringing, her inspirations and mindset.

Working with Larger Bodies Seminar and PRVN Fitness: Athena Perez and Scaled Nation will be joining PRVN Fitness at their new headquarters in Nashville, TN to present the “Working with Larger Bodies” seminar. The event will occur on April 21, 2024, beginning at 9 AM. Register now!

ICYMI: In Week 5 of The Open Report, Mike Halpin not only provides a weekly update on current 2024 Open registration numbers but also digs into the history of Quarterfinals and what it might take to qualify this year.

MEMBER EXCLUSIVE

Want Your Gym to Make More Money? Target the 50+ Crowd

Long-time gym-goer Jay Croft suddenly felt invisible.

Why?

Because he was over 50.

• “I was no longer being targeted in fitness marketing and it didn’t make sense to me,” Croft, now 60, told the Morning Chalk Up.

It didn’t make sense to Croft because older adults like himself are where the “greatest economic opportunity is” for the small gym owner, yet the marketing efforts he was seeing all targeted younger adults in their 20s and 30s.

• “I finally had some money and nobody seemed to want it,” he added, laughing.

With all this in mind, Croft created Prime Fit Content, a marketing company that teaches gyms how to market and attract older adults in their 50s, 60s, 70s, and even 80s. Today, Prime Fit Content works with many PushPress functional fitness and CrossFit gyms, as well as personal training studios.

Continue Reading…

CrossFit HQ’s Former Director of Marketing Opening New Affiliate

Keith Knapp and his wife Julianne found the perfect spot to open a small CrossFit box in their town of Fairfield, OH–two weeks later Keith’s job at CrossFit HQ was eliminated. 

The pair had intended on opening a gym supplemental to their full-time jobs, but when Knapp learned that his role as director of marketing was being eliminated he immediately pivoted to spearhead the building of the gym. 

“At a certain point, I have to just accept reality and move on and do the best that I can to continue to pour myself into promoting the [CrossFit] methodology which I’ve believed in for 16 years now,” said Knapp. 

The gym, CrossFit Fairfield, will be having its official launch on Saturday, February 24. Knapp was in his role as director of marketing at CrossFit for 19 months. He adds that he has no animosity for HQ’s decisions and is instead taking this as an opportunity to focus on the gym and his family.

• “I’m living and breathing everything about the role that I have and the methodology that we’re trying to promote. And then the role that I had gets eliminated and so I’m like, ‘Well, wait a minute this feels a little bit interesting,’” said Knapp.
• “There’s CrossFit HQ the company, and there is CrossFit the methodology and I don’t necessarily have to support CrossFit HQ the company. But that being said, I do believe that all the things that they’re currently doing are the right things to do.”
• “They’re trying to support affiliates and making them better businesses. They’re trying to promote the leveling up of coaches, which I think is really important. They’re trying to make sure that the experience inside of CrossFit affiliates is better than it has been universally across the board.” 

“They are trying to point more people to CrossFit gyms near them, which I think is really important. So all the things that they’re currently doing, I agree with, so I don’t have to do a lot of stretching to find a reason to support the company because I believe in what they’re doing.”

Continue Reading…

Matilde Garnes’ Workout of the Week

Today’s workout is programmed by three-time CrossFit Games veteran, (twice individual, once team) Matilde Garnes. The 27-year old Norwegian placed 19th in her Games debut with five top-10 finishes. She struggled in Madison in 2023, where her highest event finish was tenth in “Inverted Medley,” ultimately finishing in 33rd place overall. She ended the year on a high note, winning the iF3 World Championship in Oslo. This season, Garnes is back this a vengeance and this time returning to her team division roots with Team Peak based out of Miami, FL, with teammates Noah Ohlsen, Tola Morakinyo, and Lena Richter.

Matilde Garnes

5 Rounds For Time:
20-Cal Echo Bike
10-8-6-4-2 Ring Muscle-Ups
10m Handstand Walk*
*Handstand Walk:
Round 1: 10m Forward
Round 2: 10m Backward
Round 3: 10m with 360 Pirouette Halfway
Round 4: 10m Freestanding HSPU every 1m
Round 5: 10m Ramp+Stair (5+5m)

Scaling tips: Adjust the Ring Muscle-Ups to another pulling gymnastics that allows you to hold the sets unbroken or a maximum of 2 sets (BMU/C2B/Pull-up/T2B). Choose 5 different Handstand Walk variations and start with the easiest one. It can also be wall walk, bear crawl, shoulder taps, etc., for athletes who have not mastered handstand walking(yet).

Advice from Matilde: Try to go out hard on the movements and keep the Echo Bike at a speed that allows you to have quick transitions. The Ring Muscle-Ups decrease every round which makes it easier to hold them unbroken, but the handstand skill gets more advanced every round so it’s important to know your capacity upside down when your shoulders are smoked.

To inquire about submitting an upcoming workout of the week, shoot us a note.

…ENTER

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GOOD LUCK.

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…LEARN

What Not to Do Before Bed

CBD, supplements, blue light glasses, and even milk—are they helping or hindering your sleep? Dr. Chad Walding shares his expert insights on what to avoid and what aids in a restful night’s sleep.

CATCH SOME ZZZS.

…EAT

Sweet Potato Tortillas

Paleo, gluten-free, three-ingredient sweet potato tortillas are on the menu tonight. These are so easy to make and pair deliciously with avocado and veggies for a savory wrap, or fruit and nuts for a sweet treat.

YUM.

…SNAG

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TREAT YOURSELF.

…TRAIN

Heaving Snatch Balance

This drill develops arm speed for the snatch. Check out the tips and points of performance mentioned in the post to make sure you’re training it correctly.

HEAVE HO.

Celebrating a PR, hosting a fundraiser, this, that, or otherwise? Send us a tip.

• 🎂Happy birthday on Saturday to Kyra Milligan and Marcus Wilson.
• Happy birthday on Sunday to Brent Fikowski.
• Happy anniversary on Sunday to Luke and Jennifer Parker.
• Congratulations to Jordan of CrossFit Thronton in Thronton, CO, on the 170 pound/77 kilo squat clean PR.
• 💪Congratulations to Training Think Tank’s Kyle Ruth on the 380 pound/172 clean PR.

On March 23, Equity Fitness in Elkton, MD, will be holding a 5K fundraiser for one of their coaches, Jen, who has been diagnosed with stage 4 cervical cancer at the young age of 32. Her community has set up a website to register for the 5K or donate, for those that are looking to donate.

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3/2: The LKW Games (Lake Waccamaw, North Carolina)
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3/16: Upper Hunter Strongest Novice (Muswellbrook, Australia)
3/16: Oceanside CrossFit 1st Annual Shamwod & Shenanigains (Oceanside, Ca)
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4/13: Queens of Oly East Tennessee (Bulls Gap, TN)
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4/19 – 4/21: Crash Crescendo (Spartanburg, SC)
4/20: Barbells For Bullies: Community Workout Savannah (Savnnah, Georgia, US)
4/20: Festivus Games @ CrossFit Plattsburgh (Plattsburgh, NY)
4/20: Festivus Games @ CrossFit Masiphumelele (Kommetjie, Cape Town, South Africa)
4/20: Festivus Games (Goderich, Canada)
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4/20: Festivus Games @ The Gym – CrossFit Kilo (Cedar Falls, IA)
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