No Grain/No Pain Challenge

January is a time for virtuosity. For righteousness. Time to strip things clean and start fresh.
Our stark winters make for easy analogies. But here’s what it comes down to: eat simply, and move more. Our culture makes fitness too complicated: it’s not about counting calories, or blocks, or looking at the Glycemic Index before every meal. Success is about consistency: doing the hard stuff until it becomes….just what you do.

ROWING CHALLENGE
Beginning at midnight on January 1, Catalyst will participate compete in a worldwide rowing challenge. We’re going to win with consistency: everyone is going to row 3k/day, for a total of 100k+ each month. The 3k is the important part: if you feel great on Sunday, and want to row 10k, great. But row 3k on Monday; there’s no ‘metres bank.’
December 28, Gavin Grant – world-record holder in MOST metres rowed in a month – will coach a rowing clinic at Catalyst. Show up, get better. On the rower, smooth is fast. Make no ripple, but leave a wake. Then, on the 1st of January, we start rowing.
We’re going to invite other CrossFit gyms to compete participate with against us. This will be great mental preparation for the Open, but it will also be a LOT of fun. That’s more important.
Here are more details on the Concept2 Virtual Team Challenge. We’ll let you know when to sign up.
EATING CHALLENGE
Beginning at midnight on January 1, we’re going to give up grains. All of them.
On December 28, Steph Eusebi will give us a one-hour seminar on how to go grain-free: why, what and how. She’ll give you all the cheat codes (how to make it delicious, not a secret UP/DOWN/UP/A/B/SELECT-type cheat code.)
As on the rower, things won’t get tough until the novelty wears off. But that’s when it counts most. We WANT things to get tough, and for you to fight through anyway. This is about longevity: can you say “no,” and continue to say “no” for thirty days? If we prove you can do it, then we’ve shown you can do just about anything.
We’ve been saying “smooth is fast” in our groups a lot lately. What we mean is that consistency is fast; that good movement makes things easier; and to calm down and commit to your pace.
There WILL be a charge for this challenge. It’s important, we know, for you to feel invested in the challenge. Registration will open soon, but for now you can stay up to date on the event facebook page.
A final note: we may just have a full-blown Regatta at the end of January…