Updates!

Since last time, I have gotten a little bit more done on the garden. I planted okra, three kinds of tomatoes, eggplant, squash and bell peppers. More to come soon, i've got 4 rows to fill up!

Pierce was one month old this past Sunday, that is crazy! He is changing every day and packing on the pounds!

Making Gains

(125 kilo clean, new PR)

This past weekend Hyde Park Gym had a clean contest and tire flipping contest. It was an absolute blast testing myself against other crossfiters and people that do nothing but Olympic strength training. I set a PR for cleans at 125 kilos (275.5lbs) and flipped the 630lbs tractor tire 3 times. First time to flip a tire, so I wasn't too disappointed. I will say this, Olympic weightlifting has got to be my favorite type of lifting to do and has got to be one of my favorite things to coach. I just wish I would have found it when I was twenty years old.
Many of you may or may not know I am doing three on one Olympic weightlifting and strength specific training once a week for eight week sessions. The next session will begin in four weeks. If you are interested in joining the group or have any questions please email me at zacharythiel@crossfitcentral.com

Back to my roots!

Some of you may or may not know that I grew up in Lubbock working on my dad's produce farm. Sunburst Farms has been in business for over 35 years and I have to say I have a love hate relationship with it.

The farming we did in Lubbock was done an a large scale, and I was on the tractor a lot of the time. We produce yellow squash, zucchini, black eyes, etc., as well as cotton. Our produce is shipped all over Texas and surrounding areas.

(standing in a field of black eye peas)

I think it's time to get back on the love side of farming, on a much smaller scale, and remember all of the things that I enjoy about it. Can't wait to get planting!

Dedicated

Dave and Deb celebrated their two year boot camp anniversary this past January and are still going strong! The two of them have been married for over twenty years and decided they needed to get into shape together, and that's when they came into my life. Dave is one of the top dogs in boot camp and continuously raises the bar for everyone and Deb is constantly improving and pushing herself to new heights. It has been a pleasure to watch the two of them grow in their physical fitness journey and to get to know them as friends as well. Congratulations Dave and Deb!

For many of you that don't know I coach boot camp four days a week in west and central Austin. It is where I got my coaching start and have grown to love and enjoy it greatly. It allows me to be creative in the many ways I enjoy kicking peoples butts into shape and has also allowed me to meet many wonderful, hard working and dedicated people.
Many of the people I coach at Central ask what boot camp is all about, so I will try to explain a little, IT'S TOUGH! We start with the universal warm all of our boot camper and gym athletes do with a few different twists. And then the fun stuff starts! Boot camps are an hour long and a least 50 minutes of it are non stop body weight movements along with med ball work, sprints and stairs thrown in the mix. If you want to get into tri shape, marathon shape or duathlon shape this is the training for you. Many of my boot camp athletes participate in these sports and use Relentless boot camps as their training method. So, I think that should tell you something right there. If you want to try one of my fun and challenging boot camps, or any one of our boot camp's visit www.relentlessbootcamp.com for more info.

Sectionals 2010

The 2010 Sectionals have come and passed. Not only am I sore, humbled, and sunburned, but I also feel incredibly privileged when I think about the coaches that I am surrounded by and the clients that I have the privilege to coach; it is almost overwhelming. The sectionals went very smoothly and without any snafu, from what I could tell, so major props to all the hard work and long hours by the folks that put it on. What I learned about myself is to the point and very simple. If I want to be a competitive crossfiter I must be more conditioned and put away any pain that I let slow me down. If there are a few things I have learned in my four and a half years as a crossfiter, it is suck it up, have no fear and have FUN! I watch people walk around all tense and not having an ounce of fun and wound up so tight they could explode. I understand wanting to win, but man, if you can't enjoy the comradery and the competitive atmosphere then there is simply something wrong with you. I think I have the having fun part down, now it's time to take advantage of the fact that I have some of the fittest people around me and use them for there knowledge and input. Even coaches need coaches. With all this said, I will have laser beam focus on the affiliate team and my quest to be not only apart of the team, but also a team leader. If I want that for myself I must be better at my sport and lead by example. So in a sense, I'm calling myself out. It's time to put up or shut up. With all this said, thanks for all the supporters and to the people that put on the event. And a special thanks to Carey and Jeremy for there hard work and dedication to putting on the best event in the country!

Ahhhhhh Hydration

Did you know that our bodies are about 60% water? Do you drink enough water during the day? Studies say that you should drink 2-4 liters a day depending on your size. That is half to a whole gallon of water a day!

Here are some facts on what drinking more water can do for your health:

• Prevents overheating and cramping during wod's
• Curbs hunger- many times hunger pains are caused by dehydration
• Increases energy
• Reduces joint pain
• Aids in flushing toxins out of your body
• Prevents constipation and helps in digestion
• Reduces your risks of headaches, gall stones, some types of cancer and many other things!

Buy a water bottle or refill your water glass from a gallon jug to keep track of how much water you drink. You may be surprised at the results. Another good resource for when you just want something different is coconut water! Mmmmmm one of my faves! Coconut water is an isotonic drink, which means it naturally contains the electrolytes your body needs to hydrate itself. With the summer heat around the corner this is going to be essential for all of us at CrossFit Central!

Great Success!

I Am Crossfit is officially over! But I have to officially give a BIG congratulations to James who took the challenge by the horns and absolutely slaughtered it. In eight weeks James managed to lose 5.8% Body Fat, 11.2 Inches, and 20.6 Pounds! He finished the WOD in 10:10! His previous attempt was a DNF with a 12 min cut off! James religiously logged his food, did the extra WOD's and then some. So congratulations James on a job well done. And I also want to say congratulations to all of my team. Everyone lost a percentage of body fat and everybody took time off of the I Am workout. It was a pleasure working with my whole team! Everyone took the challenge seriously and overcame everyday life to get their food logs to me as well as made it to the extra workouts we did on the weekends. Thanks guys for doing this and thanks Crossfit Central for putting on such a great event!

(James getting his jump on during one of our Sunday morning team workout's)

Spring Gardening

There is nothing better than getting to go out to your backyard to gather up dinner. This spring I decided to try my hand at some small scale farming. I grew up farming produce on a large scale with my dad, but this is quite different.
One of the great perks of having a garden is the freshness factor. Did you know that many of the fruits and vegtables that you and I eat travel thousands of miles to get to us. Plants are alive and when we get to eat them before they are old and dead we get the most out of the nutrition they can provide. I will keep y'all updated as things progress and we can really see if I have a green thumb!
Just another tip, if you don't have a garden the best way to get the freshest food is to eat foods that are in season and less likely to have traveled a long way to get to get to the grocery store.

It's A Boy!

Just wanted to say thank you to all of the good vibes and love every one is send to Ashley and I. Pierce Uzzell Thiel was born yesterday at 5:50pm and weights 7lbs 10oz and is a staggering 20inches long. Ashley worked her tail off and brought Pierce in to the world in a fast 40 minutes. I can't really explain what I'm feeling or how I am going to handle this little guy. What I do know is that I am extremely proud of my wife and proud of my little bouncing boy. And I am extremely blessed to be apart of such a great community of outstanding friends and clients. I don't think I could ask for a better life and all of you play such an important role in. Thank you all so much!