Blog

State your Name and/or Nickname, please.
Nick Schittone; “Schittone”

Words to live by?
“The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.”
– Martin Luther King Jr., Strength to Love, 1963

What is your fitness background?
My fitness background? A five second stretch before I throw my leg over a dirt bike is about the extent of it.

How long have you been CrossFitting?
Wow, I guess it’s been about 2 1/2 years.

What’s your favorite part of CrossFit Austin?
You know, everyone says “the people,”… but when I started with CFA, there were not many people there. I got a lot of one-on-one treatment in the early days. I’m going to say the Coaches are the reason I continue to come back and not go to another box, even after taking a job in Round Rock.

What are your training goals?
My goals have always been just get better each day, in every facet of my life. But my CrossFit goals at this time are to Back Squat 300 lbs  (I’m at 290 lbs), run my second half marathon on Dec. 9th, and continue to up my capacity in a work out.

Favorite sport or activity?
 Motorcross/ motorcycle racing. Give me a motorcycle and I will race it.

Recent adventure you’re planning?
Traveling to San Francisco for Christmas vacation with my wife, Christine, aka “Teeny,” and the BCS Marathon on Dec 9th.

Tell us something we don’t know about you…
Some people know…but most don’t know that I’m a recovering alcoholic and drug addict. It just so happens, that I’m hitting the decade mark as we speak.

Longhorns or Aggies?
All I have to say about that is: “Lets Go Packer’s, Lets Go!!” I’m from Wisconsin and I’m always rooting for my state.

Over the past two years, you been awarded the “2×4 Award” and the “Ear Muffs Award.” What does it take to be the only 2-time award winner at CrossFit Austin?
Well, it takes a lot of work and dedication to get so far under the skin of the coaches’ that they need to call you out in front of everyone at a Christmas party two years in a row.

Leave the fine folks of CrossFit Austin with some parting words…
I just want to say thank you to all the people I have had the pleasure to work out with as we all chase our goals. Joining CFA has been one of the best decisions I have ever made. It filled a void in my life needing to be filled.

State your Name and/or Nickname please:
Meredith “Mer” O’Brien

Words to live by?
“Life’s for living.”

What is your fitness background?
I’ve always gravitated toward being active — I’m not good at sitting still. In high school I decided one day to run home from school instead of take the bus — eight miles — and I did that pretty regularly. I taught tennis for Club Med for quite a few years, having played a lot in high school and college, as well as on my neighborhood courts growing up, I really just like tennis clothes better than other sports uniforms, so that probably explains it.

How long have you been CrossFitting?
I started on October 6, 2011 — almost a year.

What’s your favorite part of CrossFit Austin?
There are elite athletes rooting on perfect novices and vice versa. The communal feeling is mind-boggling. Ego and attitude are checked at the door. We are all in this together.

What are your training goals?
I want to just keep having fun, keeping it positive, and learning about myself.

Favorite sport or activity?
Favorite sport: CrossFit because I really enjoy a challenge, and even if I’m moving two steps forward, one step back, at least I’m moving forward into new territory.
Favorite activity: traveling with my husband and kids because it always makes me realize how lucky I am to call those three people my family.

Recent adventure you’re planning?
Finish writing my second full length play.

Tell us something we don’t know about you…
I used to dance nightly with fake bananas on my head (Club Med, again.) And also, I wrote my college thesis on James Joyce’s “Ulysses.”

Longhorns or Aggies?
I always root for Roger Federer.

In addition to being a super mom and world traveler, we hear you’re pretty handy with a unicycle… What’s your secret to being a one-wheeled whiz?
Well, my unicycling skills are far surpassed by that of my seven and nine year old sons, but the secret to learning to unicycle is this: Don’t. Give. Up. If you fall down, get up right away and try again. Trust the movement. And keep a sense of humor. A lot like CrossFit.

Leave the fine folks of CrossFit Austin with some parting words…
We will never part! You can’t get rid of me! I’m going to be ninety years old and still trying to get that kipping pull-up. When I walk into the gym I am sometimes nervous — will I be able to complete the workout? Will I get hurt? Will I disappoint myself? — but that feeling always goes away as soon as I see the people there –the coaches, Caitlyn, friends, even people I don’t know or whom I’ve never met — because it’s like there is this incredible support, like I’m being cushioned or protected by people who have similar interests and hopes and concerns, and we all want to slam that wod the best we can. I feel like my world has been enriched exponentially through being a part of the CFA family. It’s just so great.

State your Name and/or Nickname please:
Michael Page a.k.a. Michael

Words to live by? 
In God I trust; I will not be afraid. What can mortal man do to me?” –Psalms 56:4
“Get busy livin’ or get busy dyin’.” –Shawshank Redemption
“When life gives you shit, make a shit sandwich.” –My Dad

What is your fitness background?
Way back in my high school days I ran track and cross-country. After that I was a “seasonal” weightlifter/runner. I’d workout for 4 months then lose interest. Before I started CrossFit, I took fitness to another level by joining a skee-ball drinking league. And that’s when I realized I needed a better workout program.

How long have you been CrossFitting?
I actually had to look this up. Started “On Ramp” in Jan. 2011. So 1.5-ish years.

What’s your favorite part of CrossFit Austin?
Battling the WOD. Besides waking up, it’s my first challenge of the day. I love looking at the board/website to find out what I’m up against. WOD and I have it out every class. The SOB knocks me on the ground almost every time, but I manage to get a victory every once in a while. There hasn’t been a 6:30am class yet that I didn’t feel an adrenaline rush right before WOD and I go toe-to-toe.

What are your training goals?
Gain muscle and endurance. Be more consistent with my diet. Maybe one day join the half-ton club.

Favorite sport or activity?
Football. Whether it’s national, college, flag, paper – It’s the most exciting sport to play or watch.

Recent adventure you’re planning?
I feel like I need to be a Goonie or Peter Pan to answer this question. At the moment I don’t have anything adventurous going on…wait…wedding anniversary! BAM! Just remembered I have my one-year wedding anniversary in October. And it’s going to be a great adventure. I hope my wife likes searching for missing treasure, because it’s on.

Tell us something we don’t know about you…
I’m a burger connoisseur. So far, I’ve tried 52 different burgers in Austin. After college I realized I was wolfing down 3-4 a week. But I’ve come to grips with my addiction since then. Now, I only eat one a week. So I’m always on the hunt for a tasty burger.

Longhorns or Aggies?
I’m not a fan of this question so I rewrote it.
Red Raider, Longhorn or Aggies? Oh, definitely Red Raider.

As the original “Michael” of CFA, you’ve got some status. If you had to pick a nickname, what would it be and why?
I’m pretty bad at math early in the morning. For some reason that area in my brain is not awake. I’m always looking for the calculator in class. Hmm, how bout…Mad Math Mike or Math Page?

Leave the fine folks of CrossFit Austin with some parting words…
Don’t be afraid to apply what you learn in class to the rest of your life. Besides class, we’re tested every day. Whether it’s our careers, school, finances, relationships, whatever– life is always going to try to knock you to your knees and keep you there. But just like in class, we don’t know what we’re truly capable of accomplishing until we give it a try. Until we fight a little harder. Hang on a little longer. Only then, do we see what’s possible.