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 @LionheartedPodcast Follow Coach Nick on Instagram @NickRalston05 Learn 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 Fiber 2. Limit Alcohol and Pre-log it (Use Working Against Gravity Alcohol Calculator) 3. Understand which foods are unique to the holidays 4. No seconds unless you ate all of your protein and you could eat more protein with seconds 5. 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 water 7. Minimize appetizers and try to only eat the ones unique to the holiday or special occasion 8. 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 awry 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 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 Stamps 3:45 - #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 composition I 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 Staff Preston 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 going And 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 @LionheartedPodcast Follow Adee on Instagram: http://instagram.com/adeecazayoux Follow 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 @LionheartedPodcast Follow Joy on Instagram @JoySobel Joy’s favorite habit maker & breaker app: https://apps.apple.com/ca/app/way-of-life-habit-tracker/id393159800 Joy’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 @LionheartedPodcast Follow Wes on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/wespiatt2013 Wes’ 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 coac Her 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 @LionheartedPodcast Follow 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, Colorado 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 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 @LionheartedPodcast Follow 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 @LionheartedPodcast Check 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 @LionheartedPodcast Follow 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 @LionheartedPodcast Music: 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 @LionheartedPodcast Follow Andrea on Instagram @andreamcecil Music: https://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music Redemption Road CrossFit: https://www.rf2.org/ Building Community Behind Bars: https://journal.crossfit.com/article/limon-seminar-cecil-2 Reporter’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 @LionheartedPodcast Check out Croga Nutrition on Instagram @CrogaNutrition Music: https://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music Check 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 @LionheartedPodcast Check out Croga Nutrition on Instagram @CrogaNutrition Music: https://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music Find 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 @LionheartedPodcast Follow Andrea on Instagram @andreamcecil Music: https://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music Youtube 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