May Athlete of the Month – Chris Byrd
BIG congratulation to our May 2021 Athlete of the Month…..Chris Byrd
Chris gets up early and makes his way to 6:15am class 3x a week with the intention to make his health a priority (and to lift really heavy sh*t)
There is no hiding the success of his dedication and determination as he powers through met-cons, and squashes PR’s!!
We are proud and grateful to have Chris in our community and look forward to many more years of all his awesomeness!!
Congrats on all your successes!!
1) What is your biggest motivation?
I used to always say that my wife and son are my motivation, while they are still a big portion of my motivation, my focus has transitioned to me and not motivation, but investing in myself. Motivation can change like the seasons, I’m making a conscious decision to invest the time to gain control and make the necessary changes I need to in my life. Living a life with pain and the inability to be more active with my family has truly helped change my mindset. I have lived a growth mindset at work and have made a significant change mentally to envelope the growth mindset in my personal and physical life as well. Starting with changing some of verbiage I use about myself, as to not pass that down to my son, but more to shine a positive light on me while I speak about myself. Also changing my behaviors to live a more active lifestyle so my son doesn’t repeat what I have done and we can enjoy all of the reasons we moved to Texas.
2) Your favorite quote or words to live by?
“Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.” – Winston Churchill
3) What is your current training goals/PRs?
Current goals are nutrition related, although getting a 300# strict press locked out would be awesome lol. I have always had consistency within the gym walls and have been crushing PR’s since I started CrossFit back in 2017, but now I need to PR on my nutrition. I was the kid that was always on the husky side until I started wrestling in high school and was able to lean out, I carried that into college wrestling for a D3 school in Iowa, but it was never a healthy lean out process as most would know. Working now with Adrien on my nutrition, I’m ready to crush some more PR’s!
4) Take us back to your first day of CrossFit… How did you feel? How do you compare it to workouts today?
My first CrossFit workout was at a different gym. After foundations in 2017 was a labor day workout with the Box owner and 2 of the other fittest in the room. So here I am not knowing what I’m doing as far as pacing and what not and I’m watching these animals just destroy this partner workout. It was a 35 min AMRAP of 20 CAL Assault Bike to sled pushes with 135# to 100# Dballs over the shoulder to rest. Couldn’t switch positions till 20 cals were reached on the AB. I know about 10 min in to the workout, I cried out “I’m Sorry Guys” lol. That bike was hell on earth to me at that time. Fast forward to joining CFRR, I’m in a different place in my fitness journey and scale a lot where I know I should, know how to pace myself(for the most part) to not go out too hot and choose more efficient weights for the WOD. Going a little lighter, I can go harder and sustainably through the WOD.
5) What advice do you have for new athletes just starting out in CrossFit?
CrossFit is a journey not a race. Don’t look at what someone else is doing and think that you should be doing the same or more. CrossFit is about you and your goals, what you put in is what you get out. Everyone’s goals are different and that is great, as we are all individuals heading in the same direction, to be better than we were yesterday. Lastly, always ask questions about your form.
6) Tell us about a moment you felt most proud of yourself during a workout?
I have 2 and both are in the open. First was 19.2, doing the scaled version with the 8 min clock to get through:
Round 1
25 hanging knee raises
50 Single Unders
15 Squat Cleans 95#
25 hanging knee raises
50 Single Unders
13 squat cleans 115#
Round 2
25 hanging knee raises
50 Single Unders
11 Squat Cleans 135#
25 hanging knee raises
50 Single Unders
9 squat cleans 155#
I almost got to round 3 which was way further than I anticipated. Second was 19.5 33-27-21-15-9 of 65# thrusters and jumping pullups. 19.5 is the only Open workout I have ever finished to date. I was so excited I dame near cried!
7) What are your hobbies, interests and/or talents outside of CrossFit?
My Hobbies really consist of Working out, Fishing, Golf and playing with Legos lol….weird combinations I know but there is nothing better than sitting on a shore or boat with a line in the water and waiting for that bobber to twitch or sitting at a table looking at a Lego set completed.
8) What’s your favorite part of CrossFit Round Rock?
Everyone has been so nice and welcoming. Especially being new to the state, it has felt like home.
9) If you could create a WOD and name it for yourself, what would it be?
I love DT or anything with a barbell really and EMOM’s and complex’s. like the bear complex, OLY complex’s and the like.
I like the Idea of a an EMOM building in weight of:
Byrd Complex
Snatch Grip DL – 1
Hang Power Snatch – 2
Overhead Squat – 3
10) How has your diet changed since starting CrossFit (if it has), and what foods do you rely on most?
As I mentioned previously, my diet never really changed…I had gone through some programs that never really stuck or were sustainable. Now I’m working with Adrien, the food I rely on most is Chicken and all the Greens! Lol This has been a tough decision for me, even though I am ready and know it’s time, as I’m a big guy that loved BBQ living in Chicago and then I moved to the land of BBQ…BUT I am truly glad that I am making the mental and physical step on correcting my nutrition as this has been needed for a long time.