DEC 2010 - HARRY STRAYER

When did you first become part of CFJAX?

This is my second time around.  I joined about two years ago and did it for about three months and then I got on with the Fire Department.  I wasn’t able to commit 100% because of the rigors of the first year of training, so I waited around with CFJAX in the back of my mind until I was able to come back.  I came back to CFJAX in October of 2010.

Who introduced you to CrossFit?

I heard about it through the grapevine.  I knew a lot of firefighters, being a paramedic, and a lot of them were doing it.  After doing a lot of research online, a friend gave me a business card for CFJAX that had been sitting in his wallet for a couple of years and I made the call.

What was your first WOD?

Cindy.  I was sore for four or five days and ripping calluses off my hands even longer.  Lying on the floor wondering if I was really going keep doing this is a pretty great introduction to CrossFit. 

What’s your favorite WOD?

The Filthy Fifty.  You cover a lot of different movements and you really do have to have a strategy going into a WOD like that.  It brings in the mental side of CrossFit as well as the physical, and I really like that.

Least favorite WOD?

Fran.  Probably because it’s a sprint.  Five minutes can do horrible things to you.  If you’re not ready to puke after a workout like Fran, you didn’t go hard enough.

Favorite Lift?

Deadlift.  I really want to be able to Deadlift 2.5 times my bodyweight.  Right now I’m at 400, and with a goal bodyweight of 200, I want to be able to deadlift 500 this year.

How do you choose which days you come to the box?  Do you cherry pick workouts?

Being a firefighter, I’m not really able to “pick” which days I come, so no cherry-picking here.

How about your nutrition?

When I started at CFJAX I was just like every other person uneducated about proper nutrition.  I lived according to the food pyramid, eating a diet heavy in grains and low fat dairy.  I sat down with Chris and Meghan when I came back to CFJAX and they introduced me to Paleo.  Paleo has helped me change my body composition tremendously.  I’ve lost 25lbs in the two months I’ve been doing it.  It’s great having an awesome support system of friends at CFJAX that all have the same goals.

How has CFJAX changed your life?

It’s all about the people.  You meet and become friends with people from all different backgrounds and situations that you don’t know anything about, but they are all share the same goals for fitness.  It has also better prepared me for the demands of my job as a firefighter.  My perspective on my job has changed.  I don’t fear it anymore but I look at it as a challenge.

Is it helpful/awesome to have a significant other that does CrossFit as well? What's dinner table convo like? 
Yes, it is pretty awesome. When you take on CrossFit and commit to it you have to make some changes if you are going to do it 100%. Then one day you realize your life is structured around the WOD and nutrition and when you see your everyday friends they have no idea what you are talking about when you talk CrossFit. So naturally I started to try to surround myself with people that understood my life and got what I’m trying to accomplish. 

When Amanda and I started dating we started, and still do try, to keep each other on track nutrition-wise and on the balance of WODs for me and her marathon training schedule. It is very awesome to have someone to talk to about how you feel about workouts, nutrition, and personal goals. Every day that I’m not at the fire station we eat together. Our conversations are mostly about everyday stuff I guess but we  do talk CrossFit a lot (mostly about Chrissy's nasty cut on her forehead from Nuclear Winter) but also about work and life.

Who do you stalk on the whiteboard?

Matt Rodgers.  He’s freaky strong.  I definitely check out his numbers on any heavy days.