COMMUNITY UPDATE

please fill out our end of year member survey.

We’d love your feedback on our survey here. By answering these questions, you help us improve and better serve you!

“BRING A FRIEND WEEK” IS BACK STARTING SATURDAY january 13 . . . your friend works out for free!

Our next Bring a Friend Week starts Saturday, January 13. During that week:

your friend works out for free (and other members will bring their friends in, so your friends will be with other athletes who are also new to CrossFit, or new to Feast)
the workouts will be designed to be easily modified for all levels
you’re entered into a raffle for each friend you bring in—1st, 2nd, and 3rd prizes are (a) a free 30 min session with a coach to work on a skill or goal of your choice, (b) $50 Spoken Cafe or Starbucks gift card (you choose), (c) $25 Spoken Cafe or Starbucks gift card (you choose)
and, of course, if your friend joins, they get $100 off their first month membership, and you take $100 your next month’s membership

This is a great opportunity to help a friend who wants to get healthy in 2024! Introduce them to Feast, and we’ll help them get in great shape in a fantastic community.

Just have your friend sign up through this link.

THANKS TO ALL WHO PARTICIPATED IN FEASTIVUS, SECRET SANTA, AND FRIENDSGIVING

You really made this Holiday Season special. Our first ever Friendsgiving had the gym overflowing with food, drink, and friendship, and more than 50 Feast members participated in Secret Santa, spreading holiday joy with fun gifts. And of course, we had a blast at Feastivus—talking, eating, and playing drinking games. Burpee flip cup might be the newest party trend!

Thanks to everyone who contributed, participated, and attended!

AND THANKS FOR ALL YOUR GENEROSITY THROUGH THE YEAR

One of our mission statements is to serve the lifelong health + happiness of our community.

In furtherance of that mission statement, we make a point of hosting fundraisers that will have a local impact.

This year, that included donating over $9,000 in cash or goods to:

Americares to support Ukrainian refugees through Murph proceeds
TPAN/Chicago House through our partnership with Andy Boyer’s fundraiser at Feast
Mutual Aid Support for Migrant Families through our clothes drive for Chicago migrants
The Children’s Place Association Adopt a Family Program
Val’s Games Expenses offset through our Row-a-Thon

Thank you for all your generosity in supporting these causes!

new feast apparel in january

We rolled out new t-shirts for the thROWdown, Murph, and the Rumble on Ravenswood this year, and now we’ve got a new apparel release coming up in January. You’ll be able to see the merch and pre-order at the front desk. Be on the lookout!

there’s still time to sign up for the idaho trident

Former Feast Coach and current McCall, Idaho resident Ryan Heywood is once again hosting an amazing hiking adventure in the backcountry around McCall. He’s guiding two trips in 2024:

IHT-Adventurer is June 20-24, 2024, and is for the more experienced hiker and endurance athlete who wants to test themselves in the mountains.
IHT-Traveller is July 25-29, 2024, and is for the beginner hiker or athlete who wants to hike at a more relaxed pace while enjoying the beauty of their surroundings.

Just e-mail rdh.endurance.training@gmail.com for more details and to sign up!

FITNESS UPDATE

THE OPEN IS COMING!

Feast will run the 3 workouts of the 2024 CrossFit Open on March 1, March 8, and March 17, and we want you to sign up!

We’ll be running the Open workouts as our WODs during Friday classes, so plan on acting as a judge for one of your classmates, and then them judging you in the WOD. You’ll be doing the workout anyway, so you should just sign up for the Open! We’ll also be running special Friday Night Lights throwdowns, so be on the lookout for those.

Saturdays will be team workouts as normal. If someone wants to do the Open workout on Saturday, we will have space for them in Open Gym.

Here are some reasons we think you should participate in the Open.

Reason 1: PRs and Benchmarks!

Each year, we see Members use the excitement of the Open to accomplish lifts or movements that had previously been out of reach. The Open workouts become workouts that they remember years into the future, and those workouts are sometimes repeated in future years, allowing us to see progress. The CrossFit Open sets the stage for PR's to happen, and we'd love to help you celebrate!

Reason 2: Act locally to be part of something global.

The CrossFit Open is a huge worldwide event that it is exciting to be a part of with your fellow Feast members. You’ll show the rest of the world that Feast has an active, involved community, and if you have friends that do CrossFit anywhere else, you can share stories and compare results. You’ll also get to know your fellow Members better, help cheer them on, get them through the workouts, and build stronger connections in the gym!

Reason 3: It really is for everyone.

The workouts are for all levels and abilities. You are physically stronger than you mind lets you believe, and you are mentally tough enough to enjoy a challenge like this in a safe environment. When’s the last time you got to harness that nervous, competitive energy knowing you literally cannot fail—you’re just in it for fun!

Reason 4: Appreciate the fitness of your fellow Members and the fittest in the world.

You'll be doing a version of the workout being tackled by the fittest people in the gym, and the fittest people on earth. And while it's humbling to compare scores, it is also pretty amazing to see and have an appreciation for what the Best of the Best can do.

Reason 5: It's fun!

The Open is fun, even if you're just starting out in CrossFit. There's an excitement around these workouts, and it helps renew your passion for training. It's also fun to bond with other members, to tackle the workout together, and cheer with each other when it's over.

current PROGRAMMING CYCLE: PEAK

We hope you’re enjoying the current workout cycle, PEAK.

This 6 week cycle is Part One of our Open Prep. Our strength work will consist of Back Squats, Strict Pull Ups, Overhead Squats, Ring Work, and Cleans. Our metabolic conditioning will include movements that we’re likely to see in the Open. You can expect heavier loading, higher reps, and more intensity in this cycle.

Monday - Back Squat + Chipper

Tuesday - Skill Work + Conditioning Metcon

Wednesday - Upper Body Pulling + Interval Work

Thursday - Snatch Complex + Accessories

Friday - Skills + Strength

Saturday CrossFit - Partner WOD

Saturday Oly - Clean Complex

Sunday - Zone 2 Recovery/Sweat Class

As always, although the whole week is programmed, you need to listen to your body, prioritize recovery + take rest days! Need help deciding when to rest or with effective recovery strategies? Reach out to any coach.

NEW EQUIPMENT, NEW LAYOUT

We’re constantly looking to upgrade your workout experience by providing more space, and the equipment you need. To that end, we recently:

purchased more 10, 15, 20, 25, 35, and 50lb dumbbells, and added a three-tier dumbbell storage rack to accommodate the new weights
moved the jerk blocks, which aren’t commonly used, into the loading bay
moved the kettlebells to the side of the gym lobby where the jerk blocks were
moved the dumbbells to where the kettlebells were
moved the barbells towards the lobby
moved the plates, bikes, and ski ergs toward the dumbbells
moved the Oly plates next to the wall

This allowed us to create more workout space, even while we added almost 1,000lbs more of dumbbells.

We’re considering moving the rig to create additional squat rack, pull up, and muscle up stations, and more open floor space, as well. Stay tuned!

NUTRITION UPDATE

OUR FEAST FIFTY CHALLENGE is back starting January 20

On January 20, we’ll launch our bi-annual Feast Fifty Challenge for all Members who want to participate. You can sign up here. We’ll launch the Challenge during an intro nutrition seminar at 11:00am on Saturday, January 20, so mark your calendars to attend. If you can’t make it, or if you’ve got questions, get in touch with Greg by e-mail at greg@feast-fitness.com.

Here’s how the Challenge works:

You’ll be given access to an online scoresheet, and you’ll score yourself daily on your progress at adopting the following healthy habits:

Good Night = Good Morning! 2 points if You Were in Bed Lights Out for More than 8.5 hours. 1 point if You Were in Bed Lights Out for 7 - 8.5 hours.
Savory Breakfast: 1 Point if Your Breakfast Had at Least One Card Deck Protein (4 ounces) and 0 added sugars
Protein and Produce Lunch: 1 Point if Your Lunch Had at Least One Card Deck Protein (4 ounces) and at least One Fist Produce
Protein and Produce Dinner: 1 Point if Your Dinner Had at Least One Card Deck Protein (4 ounces) and at least One Fist Produce
Healthy Fat Bonus: 1 Point if each of your meals contained one of the fats from the "Protein, Produce, Fats" sheet
Water Intake Bonus: 1 Point if you drank at least half your bodyweight in ounces of non-caffinated, non-sweetened liquids
Meal Prep Bonus: 2 Points if you prepared all of your meals today. 1 Points if you prepared 2 of your meals.
No Sweeteners Bonus: 2 Points if none of the foods you ate today included added sugar or sweeteners

You’ll receive weekly support e-mails, and can respond with any questions you have.

At the end of 50 days, you’ll have made progress towards adopting these habits that will keep you fit for life, and if you’re one of our top three scorers, you’ll win:

1st - A personalized nutrition consult, including a macro Rx if they want it ($100 value), as well as a Feast apparel item of their choice
2nd & 3rd - A Feast apparel item of their choice, or a 12 pack of FitAid flavor of their choice.

If you’ve got friends or family who you think might like to participate in the challenge as well, just let Greg know, and we’ll get them signed up!

Newsletter #23 January 2024