Genevieve

Each month we spotlight a different CFA athlete who stands out and shows just how awesome they are. What is it that makes up an Athlete of the Month? It may not be the person that finishes the fastest, Rx’s every WOD, or gets a PR every time they walk in the gym. Although we love and celebrate when those things happen, the Athlete of the Month is made up of much more than physical ability. This person shows up, gives their best every time, and then gives a little more. They are hungry to learn and always ready to do the work. They support their fellow classmates and encourage them to reach their goals. This athlete embodies what we believe the CrossFit Austin Community should be about.

Our March Athlete of the Month is Bruce Cline! Bruce finished up fundamentals with Coach Tim and joined group classes in September of 2016. You’ll usually catch him with the 4:30 pm crew. Bruce has a fire for training that is tough to match. It’s been really exciting to see the progress he’s made in the short time he’s been here. He gives it all during class and puts in the extra work to reach his goals. All that work has certainly paid off in his time here! We’ve enjoyed Bruce’s positive attitude and watching his continuous gains over the last few months and we’re excited to see him continue to progress for many more years! Bruce, we are proud to have you as our March Athlete of the Month and as an awesome part of this community. Thanks for all your hard work! Congratulations!

State your Name and/or Nickname please:
Bruce Cline

Words to live by?
“Very little is needed to make a happy life; it is all within yourself, in your way of thinking.” Marcus Aurelius

What is your fitness background?
Organized sports in High School, Unorganized sports in College, Mountain Climber (many 14ers and soon to be a 19er).

How long have you been CrossFitting?
For two trimesters.  The first 3 months were real pukey, the second 3 have been less pukey but the aches and pains have increased!

Take us back to your first day of CrossFit… How did you feel? How do you compare it to workouts today?
I was excited to learn new techniques and proper movements but I was pretty winded early in the lifts and would get nauseated quickly.  Today, I can push the engine a little harder.

What’s your favorite part of CrossFit Austin?
The people.  Everything that seems to divide our nation today (politics etc.) doesn’t enter this realm…I think it stays in our cars or at home or on Facebook LOL.  We enter the gym as one group and that is a refreshing 1+ hours of good butt kicking.

Current Training Goals/PRs?
Do a muscle up in 2017.
Do double-under(s) in 2017

What advice do you have for folks just starting out in CrossFit?
Be patient.  Look around the gym…if someone is killing a workout; I guarantee they have put in many hours or years.  Don’t be afraid to work hard.

What is your cheat meal go to?
Mexican Food & Beer

Tell us about a moment you felt most proud of yourself during a workout.
Going a little harder when everything hurts.  That decisive moment can come once in a workout or 100 times, but it feels good when you give it the middle finger and push harder.

If you could create a WOD and name it for yourself, what would it be?
“Bruiser”

4 Rounds for time, no Cap
400m run with medicine ball (20lb/14lb)
10 reps deadlift at 60%
20 wall balls
20 push-ups
20 sit-ups

What are your hobbies, interests and/or talents outside of CrossFit?
Landscaping.  I love fossils.  I can ride a unicycle.  

Tell us something we don’t know about you…
I discovered a juvenile triceratops (or part of it) on a dig in Wyoming.  I touched something that lived 65 million years ago.  I also have a T-Rex tooth and that is just badass.

Longhorns or Aggies?
I root for both of them.

Leave the fine folks of CrossFit Austin with some parting words…
“Everything is only for a day, both that which remembers and that which is remembered” Marcus Aurelius

In today’s culture everyone is constantly looking for a way to “hack” their way into a smokin hot bod, world class athleticism, and lifetime of bliss and happiness. Hard work and the investment of long hours are quickly abandoned for the latest shortcut found on the internet. The truth is getting fit is a fairly simple task, but it is far from easy.  Most fitness results are found through the process of mastering a few simple, but highly effective habits and repeating them consistently for a lifetime.  

So, in an effort to cut through the noise we’re offering a new series of articles we call “Fitness Fundamentals”.  For those just starting a health and fitness journey this is simple actionable advice to start improving right away. For those whom fitness is already an active part of their lives, these are the thing we tend to forget as we move further away from the beginners stages. These fundamentals are something that should be revisited consistently to make sure the foundation of our hard work remains solid in support of our goals.

For the sake of sequence we’ll use the classic visual of the fitness pyramid to present the fundamentals:

So we begin at the bottom of the pyramid with Nutrition. Here are the 3 nutrition fundamentals we believe all nutritional strategies should be built upon.

Eat protein and “lots” of vegetables at every meal.

While protein intake amount will vary based on size and goals of the individual, some protein should be consumed at every meal.  For most, protein will mean fish, eggs, chicken, beef, and / or pork. Green vegetables should always be the first thing consumed on your plate, and the more the better. Kale, broccoli, spinach, lettuces, asparagus, brussels sprouts are a great place to start with getting an abundance of greens at each meal.

Food quantity should be natural not neurotic.

While many in the nutrition industry will ask you to count calories, weigh and measure every ounce of food, and hit precise “macro” percentages we believe there is a better way. While all of those things have some merit in specific higher level situations, we follow a simpler quantity solution developed by Precision Nutrition: A palm of protein, a cupped hand of non veggie carbs (fruits, and starchier carbs like sweet potatoes), and a thumb of fats.

For more details on how to apply this approach based on gender, and size take a look at this infographic from Precision Nutrition.

Make water 90% of liquid intake.

Water is the most important thing we voluntarily consume. You can survive 30-40 days without food, but maybe only 8-10 days without water.  Hydration is not only important for your survival, but your ability to thrive as well.

Many times folks who struggle with fat loss or fitness performance still take in a large amounts of calories from alcohol, sodas, juices, or other sugar laden drinks.  It’s best to eliminate these or reduce their consumption significantly. And, while we’d never ask someone to give up their coffee, we do recommend drinking at least twice as much water as coffee in the morning to maintain proper hydration throughout the day.  

Our minimum recommendation is 16-20 oz at night before bed and immediately upon waking. If you plan on exercising 32 – 40 oz an hour before exercise and then another 16-20 oz twenty minutes before exercise, and drink as you feel “thirsty” during exercise.

In closing we like to remind everyone that we’re not doctors and this is not medical advice. There are many conditions that adults face that may call for a nutritional intervention that’s beyond our scope of practice. However, we do believe that implementing the three “fundamentals” presented here will immensely help anyone who is striving to improve their health and fitness.