EMOM 10 Minutes:
3 Push Press
Start @ 60% and move up.
Rx+ Clean the weight for each set, no rack.
13.4
7 Minutes:
3, 6, 9… Clean and Jerk 135/95
3, 6, 9… Toes to Bar
This months member of the month goes out to someone is is an amazing member of the community who’s name kept coming up for a member of the month. It was what I considered to be a rock star show of character a couple weeks ago that earned Topher this months nomination.
There are a number of reasons that someone may not have finished the Open. Some of those reasons are valid, while many are not. Topher had a vacation/excursion planned that took him away from the gym for the past couple weeks, but he was determined to finish what he started. Topher knew that his score would never show up on the 2014 leaderboard for 14.5, but that wasn’t important. What was important was finishing the challenge.
Not only was 14.5 the hardest workout of the Open, it was one of the hardest workouts of all time. It would have been very easy to slide out on this challenge having been gone when it officially took place. Not this guy. All his buddies did it. He signed up to do it. It was the thing to do.
I was inspired by this performance which took place on April 11th and it got me fired up. Way to be Tohper. This is what CFES is all about. You never give in, you never give up. You see the easy road and you take the hard road. You finish what you started, even if you went on vacation in the middle of it.
1. Before CFES, where was your workout spot?
Alhambra Athletic Club. We started there when we moved to Sacramento for my residency. I would do some classes (spin, yoga) and some weight machines. Eventually I enjoyed it less and less and found myself going to the gym at 6am to read the paper, drink coffee, sit in the steam room, then go to work. The final straw was when I walked into the locker room and saw an older gentleman standing buck naked with one leg up on a chair while he used a blow dryer on his under carriage. I had to ask myself if I was becoming that guy? It was time to move on.
2. How has CrossFit changed your life?
I have never been truly fit until I found CrossFit. There was a time where I ran a lot (sub 3h) marathon and I have ridden bikes (mostly mountain, sometimes a long ways) but I was never fit as defined by CF. As I continue to work out at CFES I continue to set PR’s and I continue to realize what real fitness means for me. As a father and a coach (our very own East Sac Impalas, Competitive U12 Girls Soccer) I have found a way to combine my profession (physician) and my passions (being engaged with my kids and finding a balance in my days) . I have focused on injury prevention for our girls, as they have progressed through the ranks of higher level soccer I am challenged on a daily basis to train them to be better, safer athletes. I am stoked to be able to watch them grow and use my professional background along with what I continue to learn at CFES to guide them. And if I look at how I approach my patients (I am a physical medicine and rehabilitation specialist) I can see how CrossFit has changed how I see function and fitness, and how functional fitness is a goal for anyone from a paraplegic patient to one that is an Olympic or professional athlete.
3. Paleo or PaleNo?
More Primal than anything. Once I started CrossFit I started doing a lot more reading on diet, from the basic scientific literature to books for the lay public. I realized most of what I was taught in medical school about diet was a crock. I have an awesome primary care doctor that was enthusiastic and receptive to the conversations you need to have to make good choices with regards to food and medicine. I cut out wheat, increased my dietary fat (saturated fat included), lowered my refined carbs and got off the statin I had taken for years due to “familial hypercholesterolemia”. My lipid panel improved dramatically, I stopped farting like a warthog with dysentery and I generally felt better. I am a fan of Mark Sisson’s Primal Blueprint which I find to be very understandable and scientifically sound. Frequently it is the book I steer open-minded patients towards.
4. What is your most memorable CF moment?
First kipping pullup (Shout out to Brooke!) and finishing 14.5 without coughing up a solid organ.
5. You are a Senior in High School. What was a typical day like for Topher?
I went to boarding school, so I was usually scheming how to get off campus for a variety of reasons. We will just leave it at that.
6. We know you graduated at the top of your Self Defense class. An attacker is trying to break down the door of your home. What do you do?
Grab the one foot section of iron pipe kept next to the front door, AKA the ”fucker-thumper” ( a term coined by my grandmother, BTW) and use the same voice I use to train my dog or get the attention of my kids. The rest is up to your imagination. In all seriousness I was never an aggressive or pugilistic kid and am generally pretty laid back. Seeking out fights has never been in my nature. But CrossFit woke something up in me that Rick’s Self Defense class further refined. I highly recommend it to anyone that is not an accomplished street fighter/Navy Seal.
7. Alright. What’s the deal with the Wolf Pack?
Seriously, you haven’t you figured it out? The first rule of Wolf Pack is that you do not talk about the Wolf Pack. Rule number two, refer to Rule One. In reality it is a group of like-minded individuals from diverse backgrounds brought together by CrossFit. As a group we share common goals and values that we seek to embody on a regular basis. It was a combination of heckling by the WP, as well as a sense of guilt for going on spring break with our kids and missing the last workout of the Open, that pushed me to do 14.5. Shout out to the Pack!
8. What jobs did you have that led you down the path to becoming a physician?
OK, here we go: Colorado River raft guide-> Hot Shot wildland fire fighter-> semi-professional clown (that’s DOCTOR Bobo Doodlemeyer to you!) to actual doctor.
9. How do you keep your gut in check after pounding a case of Racer 5?
What people fail to realize is that all the yeast in good beer is actually really good for your gut. Don’t be afraid of good beer, embrace it. It is your friend. Just like all the tasty fermented food that Paleo/Primal converts enjoy, beer is good. In reality Emily won’t let me in the house for several days if I have been out with the Wolf Pack “embodying our common goals and values”.
10. What made you become a survivalist?
This is a total rumor. A few weeks ago Trav mentioned that I was a “pretty useful human being” or something to that effect. Having some practical skills, along with some water, peanut butter and duct tape stashed in your truck, does not make me a survivalist. I occasionally dream about the zombie apocolypse, but only in terms of what I should be doing in CrossFit to make my odds of survival better.
