May Blue Crab CrossFit Newsletter

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What to Expect in May

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We’re closing in on the halfway point of 2024, but before we talk about May, let’s review April and everything we worked on! First, we saw the beginning of our Volume/ Capacity cycle for the Overhead/Front Squat + Bench Press that carried through the month. Each week the reps got a little lower with the intent of increasing the weight.…we also got the opportunity to retest Death Row and see the engine improvement!

The Strict Handstand Push-Up (HSPU) showed up a few times during the month, both as a skill session and in workouts…the goal was to develop strength/awareness while inverted, and even if this didn’t result in your first Strict HSPU, it still helped get some practice upside down!

We saw a change in the conditioning focus, too…we are working on rowing capacity for the next few months, which means 2-3 GRIND workouts per week! Lastly, we saw the beginning of our four week extra credit Murph Prep, which will lead us up to Memorial Day and make sure everyone is ready to rock! Since we’re talking about Murph, let’s see what May has in store!

The first full week of May is going to start on a high note as we test our 3x Rep Max for the Overhead/Front Squat & Bench Press!

Once the strength cycle is done, we go back to General Physical Performance lifting, which will consist of barbell complexes and strength days, but there will not be a linear progression behind them. We will continue to get stronger by varying our strength movements!

We have a special Cinco De Mayo workout, a great Mother’s Day Workout, our Benchmark workout: Kelly, and of course, we are tackling Murph on Memorial Day weekend!

Throughout this month, we will see the gymnastics focus shift from Strict HSPU to building confidence/capacity in the Toes to Bar. This will take the form of skill sessions and higher volume TTB workouts, so prep those lats and midlines! We also will be prepping everyone for the Mid Year Mini Comp that will take place in the final 3 weeks of June!

We will see some “Open Style” workouts to help us get ready for the 3-week event! We will still be focusing on longer GRIND workouts 2-3 times a week, so let’s get ready to keep building those engines through the month of May, especially with one of the best examples of an engine workout, Murph, right around the corner!

May Weekly Workout Commitments

Overhead/ Front Squat + Bench Press 3RM Test

(2x/ Week) Grind Workouts

(1x/ Week) Workout of the Week or Benchmark/ Classic workout

(2x/ Week) Extra Credit Murph Prep

(1x/ Week) Toes to Bar Capacity/ Focus

Committed Club Results

We just wrapped up the first month of quarter 2 for the 2024 Committed Club!

The Blue Crab CrossFit Committed Club is for members who attend 15+ classes at the gym each month. Every quarter, if you make the three consecutive months in that quarter, you get added to the quarterly drawing as well! $20 monthly - $50 quarterly towards the BCCF store!

Why do we have a Committed Club?

Unlike big box gyms who have a business model of pay for a membership but don’t encourage attending, Blue Crab CrossFit WANTS you to USE YOUR MEMBERSHIP! The more consistently you attend group classes, the better you feel and the more results you’ll see. Our mission is to help you live a stronger, healthier life and in order to do that, you must attend class 3+/week. Our committed club highlights members who made it to the gym 15+ times in a month.

Haven’t made the list? We’re just getting started! You have the year to make 200+ check ins or 11 of the 12 months on the list to get an entry into the Grand Prize!

May Athletes of the Month

Zach Ellis

Congratulations to our May Athlete of the Month, Zach!

Zach has been nothing but consistent since the day he walked into BCCF. He prioritizes himself while balancing a busy schedule and works hard, which has shown off with his many gains he’s experienced since joining BCCF! He has a ton of great stories, so get excited to learn more about Zach!

Congratulations on a well-deserved nominations!

Tell us your story - where did you grow up and what kind of activities did you do growing up?

I grew up in Portland, Oregon close to the airport in NE Portland, I would ride my bike around the neighborhood, speed down hills, climb trees and play sports all my life. I played Soccer, Football, Basketball, Baseball, Track & Field, Swimming, and Water Polo. I was a band nerd and played Trumpet, Baritone, and Trombone. In high school I played in the Jazz, Symphonic, and Pep bands, it was a lot of fun. I joined the Oregon Army National Guard in July 2006, and went to Oregon State University, where I did ROTC, joined the Pi Kappa Alpha (Pike) fraternity and studied Business Information Systems and Management graduating with two Bachelors and a Commission in the Army National Guard in June 2011. One of my all time passions was watching airplanes take off and I decided to get my Pilot's license, which I did in May 2013 and got my Instrument rating in Sept 2014. I love craft beer, being from Portland, the city was home at one time to 85 craft breweries and I would attend a lot of the local beer festivals, so much fun. I stayed in Oregon until Aug 2016 where I moved to Norfolk, VA briefly for a job and then moved to Fort Walton Beach, FL in Dec 2016. I moved to Augusta, GA in 2019 for 6 months for an Army school and was mobilized to Fort Meade in Jan 2020. I've been here ever since. I continue to fly airplanes occasionally and work on my lifelong upskilling of becoming a Cloud Security Engineer. I'm still serving in the Army National Guard, in Virginia, where I'm a Major and a Commander of a Cyber Operations company. I live in Hanover, MD with my wife (Sharon) and our dog (Sampson).

Tell us how you were first introduced to CrossFit? How long have you been doing CrossFit - any thoughts/comments on how it’s changed or influenced your life.

I was first introduced to CrossFit by Emily Betz who is actually my next door neighbor, about two doors down. We met each other through my wife and they met walking their dogs in our neighborhood. Emily highly recommended Blue Crab and invited me to join, that was in Jan 2022. I haven't looked back since. It has changed my life for the better. I like how the workouts are always different each day and coming to the gym with other like minded individuals brings a esprit de corps and camaraderie unlike any other. I mean why else would we be here if we didn't want to improve ourselves. I have met some incredible people through the gym and it has been a positive experience. I have seen nothing but positive gains since joining CrossFit.

What goals do you have within the next year - CrossFit and non-CrossFit?

My goals, I want to be able to do a bar muscle up, that is a goal of mine and improve my hand-stand. Being tall does have its advantages and disadvantages and I want to improve that skill.

Non-CrossFit, I want to further my pilot training, get my Commercial license and hopefully one-day (sooner rather than later) purchase an airplane to continue my passion of flying.

Talk to us about your life outside of the gym - hobbies, favorite meal, music, job etc. Any random facts you want us to know?

My hobbies consist of me hanging with my wife and our dog, hiking, playing video games (casually), constantly reading, listening to podcasts or learning a new skill as I'm a Cybersecurity professional and that career field never sleeps. I like winter, as in I like snowboarding and seeing the Mountains during the winter months. I think they are beautiful whereas my wife prefers someplace warm during the winter months, lol. My wife and I like to take adventures and travel, recently we got married in Ireland, and had a blast, highly recommend it to anyone who wants to visit.

I like to watch sports, being from the Pacific Northwest, I'm loyal to the sports teams in that area, Seattle Seahawks (NFL), Seattle Kraken (NHL), Portland Timbers (MLS), and for European football I follow Liverpool FC and Wrexham AFC. I watched the documentary and got hooked. Favorite meal would be a Filet Mignon (medium-rare), with grilled asparagus, garlic mashed potatoes paired with a nice dark red wine to go with it. Music, I believe my taste in music varies depending on the mood. Since I played in the Jazz and Symphonic band, I'm a huge fan of the movie soundtracks from composers like Hanz Zimmer and John Williams along with Classical music. Back in Oregon, I would take my Grandma to the Oregon Symphony to watch them play, it was fun. However, recently I like alternative rock, inspirational instrumental music and lately been getting myself into more heavy metal, courtesy of Blue Crab spotify playlists during the workouts which actually is making my wife happy as she is a die hard metal music fan. For work I'm a Cybersecurity Analyst with a focus on IT networking and Cloud engineering at the fort. I'm always continuing to learn new things daily in the hopes of landing a new job dedicating myself purely to the Cloud computing industry. Random fact, I have a 3rd Degree Black Belt in Tae Kwon Do martial arts.

Do you have any advice for people getting started with CrossFit - what's helped you stay consistent and coming back day after day?

I would say, start light, listen to your body, take baby steps, and gradually improve yourself daily. Everyone started somewhere, and over time, as you improve, you'll be amazed by what you have accomplished. Yet, stay consistent as that is the only way to improve. Consistency creates credibility and I truly believe that. As I continue to get older, it is important to keep your body engaged in physical fitness as it helps mitigate any potential long term illness. Recently my Dad passed away due to Alzheimer's disease and he didn't keep up his fitness. I see CrossFit as a way to not only help your body but your brain, keeping it active and engaged. I come back day after day because I want to ensure I'm staying physically fit to mitigate any illness when I get older into my twilight years. Blue Crab CrossFit has been a positive experience for me and I'd highly recommend it to anyone who's looking for a gym and to gain new friends in the process.

CrossFit Youth Kicks off May 11th!

Join Blue Crab CrossFit for the opportunity to get your kids active and learning the importance of making exercise FUN! Our May 2024 eight-week program is once again led by Coach Sam Harthman! Secure your spot now!

Class Time: 9:30 - 10am - 30 minutes

Price: BCCF Members: $160; Non-Members: $200

Can’t make all eight weeks? As space is available, you child can drop in for $30 each class! Send us an email to let us know when you plan to drop in!

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