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Greg Glassman’s Tweet: What We Think About It

iphone representing greg glassman's tweet which was controversial

If you have not heard yet, you will. Greg Glassman, the founder and CEO of CrossFit, recently made a comment that has offended people for multiple reasons. I’ll let you do your own research and make your own judgments about Greg Glassman’s tweet. However, I’m sure it will get brought up, so I wanted to address a few things as a whole.

Who is Greg Glassman?

He created the CrossFit brand and is the current CEO of CrossFit. Some people might assume that makes him my boss, but CrossFit isn’t a franchise. It’s an affiliate. 

Basically, affiliates just pay money to use CrossFit in their name and marketing materials. CrossFit is trademarked and therefore they can legally come after anyone who uses their brand name without permission. 

Each affiliate is able to run their box as they see fit. Each affiliate depends on CrossFit for nothing other than the name and legal support.

What do you think of Greg Glassman’s tweet?

Glassman is nuts and always has been.  Obviously, I don’t know him personally but from everything I have read and heard, he just seems like an odd duck.

He is constantly involved in drama, he likes to pick fights, he has said wildly insensitive/inappropriate stuff in the past, and he probably will again in the future too. 

With that being said, he is fiercely protective of his brand. Overall, I suspect he just doesn’t understand how his words/actions affect people or CrossFit as a whole. 

At Buffalo Nickel CrossFit, We Do Not Support His Comments

Although Glassman is a loose canon, Buffalo Nickel CrossFit always tries to stay out of the drama that seems to always surround him. But, sometimes we get roped in just because we are a CrossFit.

Does Greg Glassman’s tweet show a poor leadership choice for the organization? Yes. 

Was it an idiotic and uncaring thing to say in such a setting and at such a time? Yes.

Was it insensitive? Yes.

Did it do anyone any good by saying it? No. 

Does Greg Glassman speak for all or even the majority of affiliates, specifically Buffalo Nickel CrossFit? Absolutely not! 

Will BNCF dis-affiliate because of Greg Glassman’s tweet? Not be a CrossFit, but still be a gym?

That is undecided at the moment. I try to view and learn all the possible angles of a situation before making a decision. Basically, I want to see what changes and or moves are made. This is not because I am a Greg Glassman fan, but because I am a CrossFit fan and a CrossFit community supporter. 

I am reminded of the saying: “don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater”.  Or, it’s like when a car breaks down. You don’t just leave the car on the side of the road and go buy a completely new car. You take it to a mechanic and find out what the issue was. Once the issue is fixed, you can continue driving the car.

Things take maintenance. It is unrealistic to think every relationship or dealing with people will be 100% perfect all the time. Greg Glassman’s tweet is just one of many examples of this.

Do I think other affiliates are having a knee-jerk reaction to dis-affiliating? 

Yes, in my opinion CrossFit is more than Greg Glassman. CrossFit is a community. Every box is different but at BNCF we have always welcomed every type of person. CrossFit has helped lots of people in many ways. I think there is a very loud part of the community that has forgotten that. 

CrossFit has done many great things for smaller gyms/athletic centers that could not compete against larger organizations with deeper pockets. For years, CrossFit has fought for their affiliates/coaches in legal battles and has spent millions of dollars to make sure we can operate as we see fit and don’t have to answer to large government groups that don’t even know what a barbell is.

It is both fortunate and unfortunate that CrossFit has Greg Glassman. I don’t think CrossFit would be what it is today or maybe even still be around if it were not for Glassman. I also think that some of Glassman’s wires might not be fully connected.

It’s similar to Elon Musk calling one of the cave divers that rescued the soccer team a “pedo guy” and going wild on Twitter. Some people are amazing at creating something, and are truly an artist in their field, but that doesn’t mean they need to be the public face of the company or have access to the brand’s social media.

I ask that people please be patient and understanding. Give CrossFit the company the time they need to make a decision is fair and rational.

Note: shortly after this post was published, Greg Glassman resigned from his position as CEO of CrossFit. Reebok also ended their partnership with CrossFit in response to the controversy. Although he has apologized, many of CrossFit’s affiliates do not accept this.

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World Class Fitness in 100 Words (Part 2)

fitness in 100 words group of healthy women

So as a follow up to part 1 of this post, I wanted to break down each aspect of fitness in 100 words. The great thing about the mindset is the simplistic takeaways. The lack of specialized words or terms makes it very easy to read, and actually comprehend.  So trying to stick with that same theme, let’s dive in to take a look at these parts.

Eat meat & vegetables, nuts and seeds, some fruit, little starch and no sugar.

Choose healthy foods that provide your body with lots of nutrients. A bag of chips doesn’t have many nutrients in it. Lower amounts of starch means you don’t need them with every meal.

I know what you’re thinking, and yes, fruit does have sugar. The “no sugar” that this is referring to are things like candy, or sweets with high levels of sugar and no other vitamins or benefits.

Keep intake to levels that will support exercise, but not body fat.

Measure your foods for optimal fitness.  If that doesn’t work for you, just try not to overdo it. Eat healthy foods, when hungry.

Practise and train the major lifts:

Deadlift, Clean, Squat, Presses, Clean and Jerk and Snatch.

These are multi-joint movements that train large (and more than one) muscle groups at a time. Compound lifts are shown to be the most effective at developing muscle and gaining strength. Vary the weights and reps you use when training these lifts.

Similarly, master the basics of gymnastics:

Pullups, Dips, Rope Climb, Push Ups, Presses to Handstand, Pirouettes, Flips, Splits and Holds.

If the major lifts build your large muscle groups, then these train the smaller ones. These exercises are great for helping you stabilize and balance, rather than move large amounts of weight.

Bike, Run, Swim, Row, etc… hard and fast.

It’s crucial to do enough cardio. Aim for easily repetitive movements that can be done intensely without major risk of injury. Focus on sprint intervals with these, not distance.

Work out 5 or 6 days per week. Mix these elements in as many combinations and patterns as creativity will allow. Routine is the enemy.

The majority of the week you should be combining these lifts, movements and exercises in endless ways. There should be an underlying structure to how they are combined. But, try to stay out of a strict routine. Don’t get in a rut of doing the same things over and over. Get creative with how you incorporate workouts into your life.

Keep workouts short and intense.

Intensity is king. Common knowledge would say longer is better. However, this is not true. There is a reason sprinters look like power houses and marathon runners look like twigs.

Regularly learn and play new sports.

Learn new movements and create lots of neural pathways. Teach your body and your mind how to do lots of things!

Fitness in 100 words: a simple philosophy

There you have it. That is fitness in 100 words (plus a little extra).  Ready to get fit? Book your free intro today.

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Buffalo Nickel Crossfit FAQ

buffalo nickel crossfit faq workout

Ever wonder about Buffalo Nickel CrossFit? Wonder no more! Here are the answers to your top questions about Buffalo Nickel Crossfit.

When did Buffalo Nickel CrossFit open?

The end of 2016. I decided to open around August/September. By the time all the papers were signed and the doors were open it was December.

Where does the name come from?

Mostly because I am a bison nerd! I find all aspects of them amazing. Their history, their wildness and stubbornness, how nutritious their meat is, but mostly how athletic they are.  Bison are all muscle, with very little fat. They are big, powerful and strong animals. Yet, they are still able to jump 6 foot fences, run about 40mph, and move with ease.  From a CrossFit perspective, they are one of the ultimate athletes.

Why did you start Buffalo Nickel CrossFit?   

I started coaching CrossFit in 2014 and I loved it. The most enjoyable part for me is helping people improve their movement. I really like being able to give someone the right cues to help them move better.

So, after coaching part time for about 2 years, I decided it was time to open my own affiliate. My goal starting out was simple: I wanted to help normal people become healthier, and move/lift in functional ways. CrossFit had been such a large part of my life and I felt like it had done a lot for me. I wanted others to experience that too.

What does the future hold for Buffalo Nickel CrossFit?

Of course, our main goal is to give our clients the very best value along with the ultimate CrossFit experience.  I want people to be blown away by every little detail of Buffalo Nickel. This is why it’s always a work in progress. I never stop thinking about what we can do to make our box better.

Myself and the other coaches do a lot of learning and studying just trying to make sure we can provide some great services to our members.

Knowing what you know now, would you do anything different? 

I definitely underestimated how difficult starting a business is. On the other side of that coin, I overestimated myself. 

There have been a lot of very long, painful, and expensive lessons to learn, but ultimately I enjoy the satisfaction of overcoming the obstacles.  Of course there are things I would do differently.  The main thing I would suggest to anyone starting any business is do your homework and just start trying different tactics to find what works. 

You can’t know/do too much.  The faster you find what doesn’t work, the quicker you can find what does. 

How will you know when you have become successful?

I think the word successful is misleading to most people. I believe most people picture success as reaching a point in life where they are done chasing dreams, or don’t have to work for things. Basically, a point where things are easy.

Of course I want to achieve goals, and accomplish what I set out to achieve. But I never want to reach a point where I stop chasing dreams. And resting on my laurels is unacceptable. For me it’s the chase that’s exciting.

Really, I just want to help make happy, healthy humans.  So that’s what we are going to do!

Click here to see some more info about what we do and how to join us at Buffalo Nickel CrossFit.

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Exercising Later In Life: It’s Never Too Late

exercising later in life man walking on beach

Getting older sucks…or so the saying goes. But why does it suck? A big reason is loss of health. As we age, we typically lose muscle mass, have less energy, a compromised immune system, higher blood pressure, and more. Years of unhealthy habits finally catch up to us, and we have to start paying the piper.  Even so, there’s another (better) saying: “it’s never too late”. Exercising later in life is an excellent way to combat these common issues.

I want to brag for a moment. At Buffalo Nickel CrossFit we currently have 6 members over the age of 55. One of them is my own mom. I can’t tell you how proud I am of these 6 people, for multiple reasons. 

One being, CrossFit is totally different from the health and fitness routines that they were taught growing up. Secondly, they haven’t let age determine their health. They embody “it’s never too late.”

Lastly, when I first started CrossFit I was in my early 20s and relatively fit. I was still nervous walking in. These folks started CrossFit in their 50s and 60s.  They took a huge step out of their comfort zone and stepped into something that requires discipline and grit. That is awesome!

So, are you too old to join a gym? 

No way, not even close.  Fitness is healthcare, even just being interested in fitness is caring for your health.  In fact as we get older it is even MORE important to take an interest in your health.  It is like planning for retirement, earlier is better but even if you don’t start until your senior years you can still reap benefits.

How can exercising later in life help your mind?

Exercising helps with multitasking and creativity. It also prevents some of the common effects of ageing such as memory loss, cognitive decline, and dementia.  In some cases, it can even slow the progression of Alzheimer’s.

Exercising is great for your body and brain. Committing to exercise later in life is a perfect way to slow the cognitive effects of ageing.

How can exercising later in life help your body?

It boosts your metabolism and builds muscle, in turn burning more calories. Exercise lowers your risk of diabetes, heart disease, obesity, osteoporosis, and certain types of cancers.

It also improves strength, flexibility, and posture, which helps with balance and coordination, and helps prevent falling. As an older person, you’ll find that exercise alleviates symptoms of arthritis. Working out over 50 is one of the best things you can do for your body.

Living a happier, healthier life can start at any age. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.  If you are still uncomfortable in a gym setting, there is plenty you can do from home to help increase your fitness and be healthier.  Unsure where to start?  Reach out to us, we have some of the best coaches who would love to help you.   

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