In this episode, Dee shares how CrossFit helped her get mentally and physically stronger after her mother’s death.

Dee: “Suck It Up and Drive On.”

Dee had been a cardio fanatic all her life, but when her mother passed away in 2013, she needed something different to distract her and help her process the loss. 

So she joined CrossFit Hale, despite never having picked up a weight before. 

“The first time you told me to jump on a box I looked at you like, ‘What?!’” she said to Coach Jay.

She’s faced many more challenges since then, from her first Murph to competing in the 2019 NorCal Masters competition, and says she’s only gotten better for it. 

“It was hard but it set off a trigger, I took it as a challenge,” she said of her first impression of CrossFit. “This is different and it’s difficult, but I want to learn how to do it.”

In this episode, you will learn:

• How embracing difficult things has made Dee better.
• How CrossFit has helped her improve her mental health and focus.
• The best piece of advice she’s ever received: “Suck it up and drive on.”

Links and resources for this episode:

• About CrossFit Hale
• NorCal Masters Competition

Thank you for listening!

Thank you so much for checking out our podcast!

Have some feedback you’d like to share? Leave a note in the comment section below, or email us.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe via iTunes or Stitcher.

Subscribe via iTunes.

Subscribe via Stitcher.

Do you have a burning question you want answered? Click here and share it with us!

The post Living Better Podcast – Ep. 40 – Dee: “Suck It Up and Drive On.” appeared first on CrossFit Hale.

How Kenny lost 35 lb., gained a 450-lb. deadlift and stopped running from the camera.

Kenny Kicks Butt; Loses Gut

Kenny had been in great shape all of his life. He played football in high school and baseball in college.

But once he joined the working world, his fitness took a turn for the worse.

“Once I started working, I just started eating everything in sight, and I just lost control,” he said.

He’d make half-hearted attempts to hit the gym, but would usually pack up and go home after 10 or 15 minutes. He needed something more interesting than the treadmill.

Enter CrossFit. 

His first day at CrossFit Hale, Kenny watched someone doing double-unders. 

“‘Is the rope coming around twice?’” he asked himself. “I thought I was seeing things.” 

It wasn’t always easy, but he committed to training—even when he felt like he didn’t know what he was doing or when he finished a workout dead last.

Three and a half years later, Kenny’s the one rocking out the doubles—and a few other skills, too—and is down 35 lb. 

“Be patient, it will come,” he advised. “All you have to do is show up.”

Listen to the rest of Kenny’s story in Episode 39 of the Living Better Podcast.

In this episode, you will learn:

• How Kenny lost 35 lb. after joining CrossFit Hale.
• How he found balance with his diet.
• How fitness has transformed Kenny’s life in and out of the gym.

Links and resources for this episode:

• About CrossFit Hale

Thank you for listening!

Thank you so much for checking out our podcast!

Have some feedback you’d like to share? Leave a note in the comment section below, or email us.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe via iTunes or Stitcher.

Subscribe via iTunes.

Subscribe via Stitcher.

Do you have a burning question you want answered? Click here and share it with us!

The post Living Better Podcast – Ep. 39 – Kenny Kicks Butt; Loses Gut appeared first on CrossFit Hale.

How Sarah Palmer DeFrank Rewrote Her Story

Sarah used to cry at her kitchen table after workouts. She thought she was no good, and couldn’t understand how it seemed so easy for everyone else.

That was more than three years ago, and today, Sarah is proud of what her body can do—she’s lost 60 lb. and gained 7 lb. of muscle, along with toes-to-bars and double-unders.

But the road hasn’t always been smooth.

In Episode 38 of the Living Better Podcast, Sarah shares how she changed the narrative of her life from depressed, overweight and unsatisfied to thriving physically, mentally and professionally—and how CrossFit helped along the way.

In this episode, you will learn:

• About Sarah’s tough past and depression after her mother’s death.
• Her struggles with inadequacy when she first started training.
• How she rewrote her story, lost 60 lb. and found happiness.

Links and resources for this episode:

• About CrossFit Hale
• Odyssey Open Water Alcatraz Swim

Thank you for listening!

Thank you so much for checking out our podcast!

Have some feedback you’d like to share? Leave a note in the comment section below, or email us.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe via iTunes or Stitcher.

Subscribe via iTunes.

Subscribe via Stitcher.

Do you have a burning question you want answered? Click here and share it with us!

The post Living Better Podcast – Ep. 38 – How Sarah Palmer DeFrank Rewrote Her Story appeared first on CrossFit Hale.

In this episode, CrossFit Hale coach Wendy Medina tells us about her experience tracking everything she’s eaten for the past year and a half.

500 Days of Food Tracking

When Coach Wendy started tracking her daily food intake, her goals were simple.

“I wanted to feel better and perform better in workouts,” she said.

While previous experimentations with restrictive diets left Wendy feeling sluggish in workouts or failed to yield results, tracking her intake to meet specific macronutrient targets allowed her to adjust her diet mindfully to reach her goals.

After almost two years of diligent logging—even on “treat days”—Wendy has reduced her body-fat percentage, gained muscle mass and has a healthy relationship with food.

“I feel great, and I feel like I am able to maintain a healthy diet while still enjoying foods and enjoying life.”

In this episode, you will learn:

• How daily food logging can help you reach your goals.
• Tips and techniques for making logging manageable.
• Unexpected positive side benefits of tracking your food.

Links and resources for this episode:

• Learn more about Wendy
• Track your food with MyFitnessPal
• Contact Wendy

Thank you for listening!

Thank you so much for checking out our podcast! Have some feedback you’d like to share? Leave a note in the comment section below, or email us.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe via iTunes or Stitcher.

Subscribe via iTunes – Click here.

Subscribe via Stitcher – Click here.

Do you have a burning question you want answered?

Click here and share it with us!

The post Living Better Podcast – Ep. 37 – 500 Days of Food Tracking appeared first on CrossFit Hale.

When Phil came in to Hale, he was thinking about retiring.

When I asked him about his goals, he said he wanted to get in the shape he was in his 20’s and 30’s. He wanted to lose a few pounds and feel better overall about his health and his body.

What good is retirement if your body doesn’t work, right?

So he started coming in and working with a coach, attending class, and training regularly.

He connected to the community, the coaches and the training, and he started seeing results.

And a funny thing happened on the way to him losing 35 lbs.

He reconsidered.

His body was just working better, his mind was working better. He had energy, and he was inspired.

He started setting more aggressive goals for the rest of his life outside of the gym.

As a result, he decided NOT to retire and instead GROW his law practice instead.

In this week’s living better podcast, we meet Phil A.

He’s a lawyer, a grandfather, and an amazing athlete in his 60’s.

He’s got a great story about how fitness can impact your life outside of the gym, and a great perspective on the reason WHY you should show up to the gym.

Check it out and let me know what you think.

Coach Jay

The post Living Better Podcast – Ep 36 – Un-retirement with Phil A appeared first on CrossFit Hale.

“If you want to eat bags of Hot Cheetos, you need to do some running” – Wendy’s mom

Wendy’s athletic career started with a simple rule her mother made to get her out of the house. She started with sports like soccer and running, but eventually she found her way to 24 hour fitness.

Not wanting to go alone, she dragged her sister Lilly along with her…

They would go as often as they could, but they HATED it. Every single day was a struggle, convincing Lilly to go with her only to end up waiting 30 mins to get on a treadmill or a Stair Master.

Eventually they found their way to Hale almost 5 years ago and it changed everything..

Both Lilly and Wendy are now coaches at Hale, and have been part of its fabric since the beginning.

Learn more about Wendy and her journey in this week’s living better podcast.

In this episode, you will learn:

* Where our powerful duo of Medinas got their start & how shy Lilly was on day one
* What helped Wendy make progress so fast
* How a 10 min workout on the first day changed Wendy’s thinking about what “fitness” is
* What she LOVES about coaching
* Where Wendy gets her confidence.

It’s really easy to look at coach Wendy and assume that it was easy for her, but in this episode you’ll get to see her in a whole new light.

Check it out.

Coach Jay

PS – We had a lot of interest in our Advanced course this weekend from all types of athletes. Some of you said you wanted to do the course that you wanted to work with/get familiar with the barbell.

So we are running another 3 week course starting next Tuesday called “Basic Barbell”. The goal of this course is to get you comfortable with the barbell movements you see on a regular basis at Hale (Squats, Deadlifts, Presses, etc).

It will be 3 weeks long, each class will be 60 mins, and it will run starting Tuesday Nov 13 (next week), going through Tuesday Nov 27 at 6:30pm each evening.

Cost is FREE for members. If you’re interested, send a note to [email protected] and let me know. We require 8 people minimum to make it go….It will not get in the way of your normal training, if you want to do it after class.

PPS – If you haven’t signed up for the advanced course and still want in, it starts THIS Saturday at 6:30am. If you don’t sign up, you’re not in…We have 2 spots left, so let me know if you want in @ [email protected]

Thank you for listening

Thank you so much for checking out our podcast! Have some feedback you’d like to share? Leave a note in the comment section below, or email us.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe via itunes or stitcher.

Subscribe via iTunes – Click here.

Subscribe via Stitcher Click here.

Do you have a burning question you want answered? Click here and share it with us!

The post Living Better Podcast – Ep 35 – Deadlifts and Hot Cheetos with Coach Wendy appeared first on CrossFit Hale.

“It’s the closest thing to feeling like a kid again” – Edison Murillo

Talk to Edison and you’ll walk away feeling better about yourself. His enthusiasm and happiness infects everyone around him in a way you can’t measure. He makes you feel good about life.

You’d never guess that he has been up since 3:30 in the morning to work all day before coming in to work out.

Or that he narrowly escaped death in a civil war in his homeland

Or that he was almost 50 lbs heavier when he started and scared to walk through the door.

Edison is a true success story, he’s turning 50 this year and is in the best shape he’s been since he was a kid!

Normally I’d have a ton to write about, but Edison says it all better than I ever could!

Check out his story in this week’s Living Better Podcast.

Coach Jay

The post Living Better Podcast – Ep 34 – Losing 50 at 50 – Meet Edison appeared first on CrossFit Hale.

David’s whole kitchen was flooded.

After a heavy rain in Port Costa, the creek filled up and started flowing right through the kitchen of his Bull Valley Road House.

Worse, it happened right in the middle of his Christmas party.

So they went from drinks and celebrating to buckets and bailing water.

It was a (potential) nightmare scenario…

But it turned out to be one of the best things that happened to them.

The whole town pitched in and they were back to serving customers within days!

“One day I’m wading in water because the whole place is flooded, and the next day I’m cooking in the kitchen.”

The love and care showed by the community to help them get back to business is a reflection of the love and care he puts into the food as Head Chef of Bull Valley Road House.

Its why his restaurant has been voted one of the Top 100 in the Bay area for 5 years.

If you haven’t been to Bull Valley, you’re missing one of the most unique and amazing dining experiences you can get in the Bay.

That same love and care is what David brings to his movement practice every day to Hale (along with two giant dogs named Bourbon and Bacon), and his progress over the last few years is why we wanted to interview him for the Living Better Podcast.

Check it out.

In this episode you will learn:
* How a kitchen/restaurant is a lot like a gym
* How David got started at Hale and why the “horror” stories made him more interested in trying it.
* Why fitness is more important for mental health than physical
* What David’s real world fitness goal was when he started.

David and I laughed and joked throughout this talk, you’re gonna love this one.

Coach Jay

The post Living Better Podcast – Ep 33 – Food, Fitness, and Family – Meet David appeared first on CrossFit Hale.

Candice had almost no fitness background when she started.

Any time she’d been to the gym in the past, it had only been because a friend had invited her.

“This seems like fun, I’ll do it too!”

But she was never really into it, and when her friend dropped off, she’d drop off as well.

But after a doctor told her she needed to lift weights to address a medical condition, she decided to try it again.

Her goal when she walked in door was just to lift weights and stay active.

She was shocked on the first day when she got to the bottom of a squat and went to stand up….

and nothing.

She was STUCK.

No weights, just bodyweight…she couldn’t do a single air squat!

Rather than getting discouraged, she looked at this as an opportunity.

“Why can’t I do this? Maybe I really DO need to take fitness more seriously!”

Over the years since she started, she’s made amazing progress, just focusing on a few days per week of training.

In the process, her daughter and husband have completely changed THEIR lives as well.

Check out this podcast to learn all about Candice.

Her and her family are a model of consistancy and progress.

Coach Jay

PS – Listen to the 23:30 mark to find out how much Candice can squat now!

Thank you for listening

Thank you so much for checking out our podcast! Have some feedback you’d like to share? Leave a note in the comment section below, or email us.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe via itunes or stitcher.

Subscribe via iTunes – Click here.

Subscribe via Stitcher Click here.

Do you have a burning question you want answered? Click here and share it with us!

The post Living Better Podcast – Ep 32 – Starting from Scratch, Meet Candice appeared first on CrossFit Hale.

We couldn’t put our finger on what we liked about Angie the first time we met.

Her passion, knowledge, and experience was clear, but there was something else…something that stood out and made us think “we need her at Hale”.

You get clues about it when you hear the story of how she sold everything she owned and moved to California, or how she trained and finished the St Georges Ironman triathlon, or all the jobs she’s had and adventures she’s been on.

But when you find out how she got started with CrossFit, you’ll instantly recognize what we loved about her.

Cause when Angie started CrossFit, she couldn’t do a push up…not even on her knees.

Despite her athletic background, and all the hard work she had put in, she couldn’t do a single push up.

“I had some massive holes in my fitness” she said.

It’s common to realize you’re not great at something when you start a new fitness program, but your reaction to that is what ultimately determines your success.

Angie’s reaction was “I can’t do this, this is interesting! I wonder what else I can’t do”

⌃ ⌃ ⌃ ⌃ THIS is what you’ll love about Angie.

She sees a challenge and runs TOWARDS it, not away from it.

In this episode of the Living Better Podcast, you get to meet Coach Angie and learn all about her path to Hale

Check it out.

In this episode you’ll learn:
– How she got started
– How she lost 13% body fat in 7 weeks while GAINING WEIGHT
– What she loves about coaching
– How nutrition coaching is about so much more than food

Angie is super inspirational, and there are many lessons to take from this one.

If you have questions for Angie, email her at [email protected].

Thanks,

Coach Jay

PS – Sorry in advance for the low level of my mic, usually I talk so much louder than the guests and have to turn it down. Not this time!

PPS Last week to sign up for the No Excuses Challenge! Get your name on the list today! We are having an in person kick off session at 7pm on Wednesday with Coach Angie.

The post Living Better Podcast – Ep 31 – Putting in the work – Meet Angie appeared first on CrossFit Hale.