Congratulations to this months athletes of the month Jayne and Dec! They have been nominated by the coaches for the effort and determination they both put in! Both making some serious progressions and gains!!! Keep up the good work guys! Jayne was runner up in our Perpetua Scaled open competition this year. Dec also wins the award for best beard in the gym.
Meet Jayne
1> What do you do outside of CrossFit for work and for fun?
I work as a PR Consultant to a bunch of bars in the city . I am also just finishing up my Advanced Diploma in Nutrition which Ive been studying at night . I am also half of Health and Fitness Blog Kettlebelle.ie ! After all of that time is pretty tight but I really love good food and wine particularly of the red variety so a nice meal out is always appreciated! I’m a total feeder too so I enjoy cooking for my nearest and dearest!
2> How did you get involved in CrossFit?
I kind of ended up falling into CrossFit out of necessity ! I needed to get fit fast . I signed up for a half marathon on a bit of a tipsy whim not really thinking of my severe crappness at running. I had 2 months to train! Thankfully my boyfriend at the time and his friends followed this CrossFit stuff online ( I thought they were all a bit mental to be honest chucking stuff around on the beach and in the park ) they took me on as a challenge. I finished the half Marathon and didn’t die so success!! I suppose I was hooked before I ever even stepped into a CrossFit gym!
3> When did you first join CFP?
October 2013 I believe. It was my first port of call on moving back to Dublin! Join a CrossFit !
4> What was your first WOD in the classes?
I cant be sure exactly , I remember it was a morning class and Kortney took it and I had to say my name and how long Ive been CrossFitting! I do think it was something that suited me with runs and kettlebell swings . I remember being so worried Id be falling behind on everything but the wod was made up of pretty much the only things I was really solid at ….SCORE! 
5> When did you realise CrossFit was right for you?
In CrossFit Galway which was where I did my fundamentals and began CrossFit properly. I really got a taste for the community feel. The fun, support and competition . Also getting to experience consistent programming and being introduced to so many new movements and skills had me hooked. It was intimidating and exciting and I was done for, I caught the CrossFits and there was no cure! Within a couple of months I signed up for my Level 1 I was on a roll of enthusiasm just needed my body to catch up with my keeness ( still working on that)!
6> What are your short term goals?
In CrossFit it would be gymnastics and Oly improvement . Work on improving my movement and any mobility issues that might be limiting me too. Also I would like to RX Fran this year , its just one of those Benchmark wods that sticks in my mind and I clearly remember my first time. I’m slowly building volume on my pull ups , not ready for it yet but hopefully in a few months I might be able to tackle it! Also a few competitions this year would be great. I love being part of a team way more that competing as an individual so I’ve my sights set on a few team comps coming up!
7> Long term goals?
A muscle up! I think that’s pretty much what everyone wants right? I can give up after that :)! I would love to learn more , constantly improving my knowledge and skills . I hope to coach at some level in the future . Nutrition and coaching are part of my long term goals . I love helping people achieve more than they thought they could ! Embracing a healthier lifestyle had such an impact on all aspects of my life It would be a dream to help others on that path. Through Kettlebelle , Coaching and as a Nutritional advisor.
8> What is your greatest accomplishment?
Pull ups! Without a doubt . I was a total T-Rex coming into CrossFit . All legs little or no upper body strength and a dodgy shoulder . Very long process with the assistance of Al and Andy along the way getting me to where I am now . Ive still a long way to go but its exciting to reach this point , it makes the bigger goals seem that bit less impossible .
9> What is your favourite WOD / movement?
Its a toss up between Squats ( all of the types) , Deadlifts and kettlebell swings !
10> What is your least favourite WOD / movement?
Burpees ( thrusters and wall balls are pretty nasty too )
11> Would you recommend CrossFit to your friends and family? What advice would you give them?
Yes , its all they hear from me ! Thank feck I bake or I wouldn’t be allowed visit anyone anymore! I think I would advise them to stick with it at the start and not to be intimidated by what others are doing . Don’t feel you have to compete or that you will be judged for going slower, lifting lighter etc. That people are there to support each other and everyone started exactly the same! Trust your coaches if they tell you to scale or advise you on a movement , they are usually right and its not fun figuring that out mid wod! Id also tell people to always remember you get back what you put in so for that hour try to give it your best , some days that best will be more or less but go for it anyway, you will be thankful when you’re done!
12> Least favourite and favourite music to WOD to?
Least favourite would be anything too sedate , nothing worst than trying to do a wod with chill out tracks or easy listening. Favourite depends on the workout generally I do enjoy the cheesy chart and epic dance stuff but when it comes to a tough wod I love harder tracks , my all time favourite wod song is “Killing in the name of” ….gets me every time!
13> Bonus question: Most memorable or funniest CFP moment?
This is really tough . I cant pin point one moment , it will probably come to me after Ive sent this on. Ive laughed so much and met some downright fantastic people in my time at CFP that one moment is so hard to choose! My first CrossFit Open in 2014 was a big one , terrifying but a great memory. Team workouts on a Saturday with Anastasia and Sara with the music blaring and lots of laughs always stick out for me too . 6 am’s in general as the banter and laughs some mornings makes a 5 am wake up bearable!
Meet Dec
1>What do you do outside of CrossFit for work and for fun?
Work wise I am a client manager in Mediaworks, a media planning agency just down the road from the box. I’ve been there for four years now and am responsible for planning and executing all of Lidls marketing and advertising communications across all media.
Outside of work I have a strong fondness for coffee and cake on Saturdays and Sundays with the lads. These “meetings” usually consist of both people watching and commenting and have been known to end up with a few pints. I have recently started running a few times a week and I’ve also started to play 5-a-side too.
2>How did you get involved in CrossFit?
I used to play a lot of GAA up until I was about 20 and then between nights out and part time jobs during college my focus shifted to being a bit more of a “social butterfly”. The eight years that followed were taking their toll and a few months before my 29th birthday I decided, “You need to get in shape before you’re 30 or you never will”.
I was looking at different options between going back playing GAA (but I didn’t want to be on a junior team despite it now being my realistic level), joining a soccer club or a gym. Around that time I bumped into Eoghan outside Fresh at Grand Canal and he told he was a coach in Crossfit. I was in college in Galway with Eoghan and hadn’t seen him in about four or five years so I was mailing him quite a bit after that asking him questions and finding out more about it. A few days later one of the guys in work said he was doing his fundamentals and Eoghan was his coach so I bit the bullet and signed up to start mine in March (there were a few nights out on the cards in late Feb and early March with work so I wanted to have a clear run at my lifestyle overhaul)
3>When did you first join CFP?
My first class was 1st of April 2014 and if you had told me a year earlier that I would be in Crossfit I would have thought you were playing an April Fools on me.
4>What was your first WOD in the classes?
My first WOD was Fight Gone Bad, I can’t remember the score I got in it and if I’m being honest it took me a few weeks to remember to count any of the reps or rounds I was doing.
5>When did you realise CrossFit was right for you?
From the very first morning of the fundamentals. I got sick after every single one of them and was pretty disgusted at how unfit I was so I said at that point that I was making a change in my life. I managed to go a bit AWOL for about two months after my birthday in June last year but when I got back into it I said I was going to give it 100%.
The main appeal that Crossfit has for me is that although you participate against yourself and always try to better yourself there is a real team spirit in the box. I literally didn’t know anyone in the box when I started but can say that I’ve made some really good friends in the last year through the community that Dave and all of the coaches have built.
6>What are your short term goals?
I have set a number of goals for 2015, I want to master double unders, be able to do 10 unbroken muscle ups and I also want to be able to transition from a tripod, to a headstand, up into a handstand and handstand walk.
7>Long term goals?
Be able to do all of the RX WODs.
8>What is your greatest accomplishment?
It doesn’t sound like much but the first day I got a chin up was probably the most satisfied I’ve felt in years. I had never done a chin up or pull up in my life and I can remember trying one when I started off and it was a pathetic attempt. I was doing ozzy rows for months after that and one day I decided to jump up onto the bar and I was able to knock out two in a row. I couldn’t believe it and was pretty surprised when I got up over the bar.
9>What is your favourite WOD / movement?
I like being upside down or hanging out of a bar and I find the gymnastic work really enjoyable. WOD wise, Eoghan prepared a WOD a couple of weeks ago for Freaks on Friday that involved a 1.2km run around the quays followed by 50 trusters @42.5kg, 50 sit ups, 100 double unders (high jumps for me), 50 hang power cleans @42.5kg and 50 box jumps. Despite being wrecked after it it was really enjoyable.
10>What is your least favourite WOD / movement?
Double unders
11>Would you recommend CrossFit to your friends and family? What advice would you give them?
I can’t recommend Crossfit enough to people and my housemate is due to start his fundamentals with Eoghan shortly. Around advice, just listen to what the coaches have to say. You may think that you’re taking baby steps at the start especially when you look around at some of the other people during the WODs but everything that you are doing is with a view to progress to the next level. You have to learn how to walk before you run.
12>Least favourite and favourite music to WOD to?
I’m not too picky although I prefer if it’s loud and banging.
13>Bonus question: Most memorable or funniest CFP moment?
I can’t remember who was in front of me at the time but I’m sure they do. It was just after I had started and I was going from squats into Ozzy Rows, I was happy as Larry when I got up after the Ozzy Rows but didn’t realise that I had ripped the arse out of my shorts during the squats not leaving much to the imagination.
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