CrossFit provides a method for a personal journey to constantly improve oneself physically, mentally, and spiritually. The intensity of the workouts often makes you question your physical and mental capacity. I heard Greg Amundson say that "The biggest improvement that CrossFit athletes experience is between the ears." The mind can allow us to achieve greatness or cause us to fail. There are only two ways to fail...quit or die.


Since starting CrossFit I have always had a deep appreciation for the Hero WODs. I grew up on various Military Bases as my Father served in the USMC as a helicopter pilot. I remember when we got the news of a helicopter crash involving his squadron while lifting off from a carrier off the coast of Okinowa. He lost good friends, most of which had their families living in Hawaii while they were deployed. I remember seeing these families pack up and move back to the mainland. I often wonder what happened to the children.


I was introduced to CrossFit by a fellow Police Officer back in 2005. "Fight gone bad" on my first day? Really Rochet? Well, I was hooked. "Murphy" came to be my favorite workout. I remember the days when every six months or so we would see a new Hero WOD. Now, I think it's almost three a month. I went to "Randy" Simmons funeral. (Hero Workout #10). I was a new SWAT officer myself at the time and was taken back at how he died. More so, I was incredibly moved by what type of man he was outside of law enforcement. He left two children behind that loved and admired their father. He led a group of inner city youth from his Church who were left without a great mentor.


My personal desire to become a better husband, father, and find some inner peace pushed me to find a way to appreciate life and honor those who gave the ultimate sacrifice and to those left behind. Since opening my own CrossFit affiliate with my wife in 2009, I have missed completing many of the new Hero WODS. The Challenge I came up with for myself was to complete all the Hero WODs, as prescribed, in the order they were posted. To add to the challenge, I decided I would do one Hero WOD a day, six days a week, resting on Sundays. When I started the challenge there were 50 Hero WODS.

20110415

Friday - April 15th, 2011


U.S. Marine Corps Sergeant Matthew T. Abate, 26, of Honolulu, Hawaii, assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, 1st Marine Expeditionary Force, based out of Camp Pendleton, California, was killed December 2, 2010, while conducting combat operations in Helmand province, Afghanistan.  He is survived by his wife Stacie Rigall, son Carson, mother Karen Binion, father Salvatore Abbate, and siblings Dominica Abbate, Elliot Abbate, Valerie Binion, and Kelly Binion.

First posted March 26, 2011







Day 53 of the Hero WOD Challenge.

"Abbate"

Complete the following for time:

Run 1 mile
155 pound Clean and jerk, 21 reps
Run 800 meters
155 pound Clean and jerk, 21 reps
Run 1 mile

Time: 36 minutes 44 seconds


Did squat clean and jerks.  I need to get stronger.  Felt pretty good to do 42 Clean and Jerks at 155 # when I weigh 150#.  Camp Pendleton (where Abbate was stationed) is our local base located just south of us.  We are fortunate to have a Marine and his wife that are stationed at Camp Pendleton that train with us here.  Grateful for those who serve in their various capacities of the Armed Forces, Police, and Fire.  May their families be blessed for their service.

So today was the final WOD of the Hero Challenge.  53 Workouts in 60 Days.  It was a great challenge.  A lot has happened in the past 60 days with my family.  Some bad but mostly good.  How we approach our challenges greatly effects the outcome.  I learned a great deal about myself during this challenge.  Grateful that I was able to stay healthy enough to complete it.  Thankful for the encouragement from my friends and family.  It's pretty neat to be able to say I've honored all these men by completing their WODs as prescribed.
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