November Newsletter

Tis the season for food and plenty of fitness!

Can you believe it’s been a year since we came together to form one big community! What a year it’s been and there are still two months left to enjoy! Let’s make them great and kick off November with the latest news and things we’ve been working on!

Winter Session OLY CLASS with Fitz

Bummed about the cold weather months ahead? Well how about another cycle of our Oly Program with Fitz to tide you over? Fitz is back in the Fringe Den with another session of Olympic lifting! So many people expressed regret about not signing up for the last session so we’re excited to be able to offer you another chance with some flexible payment options for the upcoming holiday season. Learn more by reading our latest blog post (aside from this one)! Sign up soon, this Winter session will begin November 14th!

HOLIDAY PARTY DETAILS FINALIZED!

After what felt like ten rounds trying to find the right space, we are now excited to announce the Holiday Party will be Saturday, December 2nd beginning at 6:00 pm at The Penguin in downtown Columbia!

To make sure you’re all set to attend, make sure you’ve done all the following:

1. RSVP to the Facebook event.
2. Buy your tickets ($35) to the event before December 2nd (each person will need a ticket – and YES bring your significant others!).
3. Choose your fancy outfit.
4. Remind your friends!

New Gear Pre-order Almost Finalized

We’re working to finalize the last details of our next warm-weather ready Fringe Gear! Included in this batch of designs are:

• 2-color pull-over hoodie
• 1-color zip hoodie
• Beanies
• Pants in 2 colors
• Customized T-Shirt or Long Sleeve ($30/$35)

Watch social media for the pre-order forms! If you have any questions about the pre-order or items, just drop us a line at [email protected].

Black Friday/Cyber Monday is coming back this Thanksgiving!

If you attended Black Friday last year, don’t miss it this year! We’ll have awesome promotions for gear, supplements, personal training, and CrossFit Elements! Stay tuned!

B4B Fundraising Goal achieved

We are thrilled to announce that this year we raised more than $2,500 during the 6th annual Barbells for Boobs fundraiser! More than 100 Fringies participated in the benchmark barbell-themed workout.

“We are always blown away by the generosity of our members.” Tyler Lasley, Owner of CrossFit Fringe, said. “We are thrilled to be able to continue to support early breast cancer detection, treatment, and services. As we’ve said before, no one is immune to breast cancer, but no one fights it alone either.”

One hundred percent of the $2,500 raised will be donated to the Barbells for Boobs Foundation.

WINNERS OF BRING-A-FRIEND WEEK

Congratulations to our winners of the Bring-a-Friend Week contest Karen OConnor (new member) and Bridget Lolli (member)! If you remember, we offered a free month to a new member and an existing member of the new member completed a free trial during Bring-a-Friend Week, an Elements session, and signed up for their first month afterward! Stay tuned, we’re doing another one this winter!

MORE UPCOMING EVENTS

• Black Friday/Cyber Monday Sale: November 24/27
• December Elements Session (last session of the year!): November 28 (more details here)
• Annual Holiday Party: December 2nd, (see above and continue to watch social media/Facebook event!)
• Endless CrossFit Old School Classic Comp: December 2
• Annual Whole30/Nutrition Challenge: January 8 (details coming)

Holiday Hours

Thanksgiving

• 11/20-11/22: Normal classes
• 11/23: Thanksgiving – Open Gym 8:00-11:00 am, with heats of Thanksgiving WOD for all members at EAST ONLY (West CLOSED)
• 11/24: Black Friday – Classes at 9/10 am, Open Gym 11:00 am – 1:00 pm (both locations)

Christmas/New Year’s

• 12/23: 12 Days of Christmas WOD; regular Saturday hours
• 12/24: Christmas Eve – Open Gym from 12:00 pm – 2:00 pm for all members at Fringe WEST ONLY (East CLOSED)
• 12/25: Christmas Day – Closed
• 12/26: Open Gym 8:00-11:00 am for all members at EAST ONLY (West CLOSED)
• 12/27: Normal schedule
• 12/31:  Normal Open Gym from 12:00 pm – 2:00 pm, NYE-themed WOD
• 1/1: Open Gym 8:00-11:00 am for all members at WEST ONLY (EAST CLOSED)

FROM THE QUESTION/COMMENT BOX

Question: It’s getting close to holiday party season. What are some snacks I can take with me both to the office and to a party to make sure I snack healthy?

A: Snacking for the Holidays

Here are some easy snacks for when you are on the go. These are ready to go out of the package, no fuss, no mess. Of course, as I know many of our foodie members can attest to, there are many homemade snacks that are super easy to prep and grab to go as well, but that’s the subject of another post.

Protein Bars:

My favorites:

• Oh Yeah One Bars
• Quest bars
• RX Bars

Many of these bars not only have a sweet dessert-like taste, but they’re souped-up with extra protein to help fight hunger longer. While not meant to be a meal replacement, they can help you make it between meals with better options.

Breakfast On-the-Go:

Jimmy Dean’s cares about health and are doing their part to try and offer healthier options. Their line of “Delights” offers several options that are lower calories, higher protein, and pretty solid macros to fit in your day. They are inexpensive and heat in the microwave in about 2 mins!

More options:

Beef jerky sticks: the less added sugar the better – Jack Links are usually pretty good options – these sticks are pretty much pure protein goodness.

Peanut butter/Almond butter: JIF and Justin’s both make single serve packs and small cups of nut butters, easy to keep in the pocket and eat as time allows – these are higher fat with a moderate amount of protein. Pack some veggies with this to make boats (celery stalks filled with nut butter and topped with a fruit like craisins, raisins, etc.).

Lunchables P3/Sargento balanced breaks / Trail mix (either buy or make your own in small bags): these little-prepacked bites are made of nuts, berries, and cheeses (Sound familiar? A lot like what Coach Glassman says in ‘Fitness in 100 words’).

Greek yogurt: Oikos Triple Zero greek yogurt has 15 grams of carbohydrates and 15 grams of protein which make it a nearly perfect snack. If you’re looking to add to it you could add a side cup of protein granola (Nature Valley makes a high protein granola blend that adds perfectly to these).

Deli roll-ups: take sliced deli meat and roll it up with a slice of cheese and/or veggie – balanced protein, fat, and veggies on the go that can also easily transported. Here is an easy tutorial to get you started (via blogger Dancing Carrots).

Tuna pouches: one of the easiest on the go sources of protein with healthy omega-3 fats.

COACH FEATURE: DR. LIBBY COWGILL

So we hear everyone call you Dr., what’s your area of expertise?

My Ph.D is in biological anthropology, which is the field that studies human evolution, genetics, and primate relatives. My own particular speciality is Neandertals and how physical activity shapes the human skeleton. When I’m not at Fringe, I’m teaching at Mizzou, writing papers on Neandertals, or hopping around the globe studying really old dead people.

And I hear you’ve gotten to rub elbows with some pretty famous people?

I guess that depends on what you mean by famous. Last year, I was invited to participate in a BBC/PBS documentary on Neandertals, where I flew to London and met Andy Serkis, who is creating motion capture Neadertals for the film. (Editor’s note: You might know Andy Serkis as Gollum from Lord of the Rings)

What first brought you to CrossFit?

I’ve been lifting since I was about twenty, but somewhere in my early thirties, just lifting by itself wasn’t enough to keep weight off me anymore. So I started looking around for something new to do, and stumbled into a free class. Almost five years later, I’m still the happiest person on squat day, and doing my cardio like it’s a nasty vitamin I have to swallow.

Do you remember your first horrible CrossFit workout?

Honestly, I remember the aftermath better than the workout itself. It was some sort of tabata. The day after I had DOMS like nothing I had ever experienced in my life, even though I had been lifting heavy for years. I couldn’t get up from a seated position without assistance.

I hear lifting and athletics is in the genes, tell everyone about your impressive lineage!

I have a weird family background– far more show biz than your typical academic. My grandfather was part of a gymnastic circus group called “The Three Jacksons,” and they did wild acrobatic tricks, usually far off the ground. If you want to check them out, google “acrobats on top of the Empire State Building” for an easy representation of what grandpa was into. He was also on the cover of Muscle and Fitness Magazine in the ‘30s as well. Then, he met my grandma, who was singing in a nightclub at the time. So I’m the genetic product of an old-time strongman/acrobat and a burlesque singer. I’m sure everything makes sense now.

We also hear you are a black belt — what led you to be such a badass?

The movie Karate Kid actually! I was raised mostly by a single father and we watched it together when I was around six. I decided I was going be just like Ralph Macchio, and for the next eight years, Tae Kwon Do was just what I did with my dad for quality daddy/daughter time.

What’s up with the minimal shoe preferences? Do you really prefer to be barefoot?

Oh, yeah, no foot prisons for me. My family spent most of my childhood trying to keep shoes on me and failing. Eventually they gave up. Before I found CrossFit, I spent a few years doing barefoot distance running, both in minimalist shoes and totally bare. The farthest I went was about ten miles completely barefoot, on cement, in a St. Louis January (you really don’t feel your feet after while). There are all sorts of benefits to it, including changing your gait pattern to a mid- or forefoot strike and strengthening the muscles in your feet. And personally, it just feels awesome– free, like you’re a little kid again.

What’s one CrossFit movement you can’t live without?

Isn’t that like asking someone to pick their favorite kid? I’m not sure I can pick just one. Anything slow and heavy… where all that matters is pure, brute force and no one notices how clumsy and uncoordinated I am! CrossFit Total is one of my favorite workouts.

Have an amazing month of love, lifts, and GAINS! As always, if you need anything, you can reach out to us on social media, or email [email protected].