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The M.A.H.A. (Make America Healthy Again) movement has brought health into the spotlight like never before. I’m not mad at them for it. For the first time in decades, people are paying attention to health and those of us who have been shouting it from the mountain tops are just relieved people are listening. But despite the positive shift, much of the movement needs focus. The Problem: A Distracted Focus One major issue? The obsession with things like food dyes. While it’s great to be mindful of what we consume, the reality is that there is virtually no direct evidence that red dye causes health problems in humans at normal consumption levels (Layne Norton). Yet, many people who once distrusted government agencies are now treating the FDA’s word as absolute truth, when in reality, the answer—like most things—lies somewhere in between. The Big Picture: What We’re Missing America’s health crisis isn’t about food dyes, seed oils, or whether your snack is organic. The real issue? Overconsumption and inactivity. Junk food without red dye is still junk food. And no amount of “clean eating” will fix a sedentary lifestyle. The Common Mistakes: Missing the Forest for the Trees I once had a client proudly tell me she ate “really healthy” because all of her food came from Whole Foods. But organic ice cream is still loaded with fat and sugar—nutrient quality doesn’t cancel out overconsumption. Another client swore that Cheerios were great for heart health because the box said so. The truth? It’s still processed junk marketed as a health food. The Reality Check: What Really Matters Health isn’t about trendy buzzwords or fear-mongering over ingredients. The key to long-term success is calories in vs. calories out, combined with consistent movement. Instead of hyper-focusing on minor details, shift your energy toward: ✅ Eating mostly whole, nutrient-dense foods (Eat meat & vegetables, nuts & seeds, some fruit, little starch) ✅ Prioritizing protein, fiber, and hydration ✅ Managing portion sizes—yes, even “healthy” foods ✅ Moving your body daily—strength training, walking, and cardio Health doesn’t have to be complicated, but it does require personal responsibility. Small, sustainable habits will always beat quick fixes and fear-based trends. Own your health, make informed choices, and focus on what truly matters.

Sunday Story…More Recovery It’s been a solid 4 months since total knee replacement surgery. There have been many wins over the last month, but the biggest was snowboarding in Colorado two weeks ago. If you don’t know snowboarding, you may not realize the mobility required to get in and out of the board, as well as up and down. There were some challenges along the way, but most of them were easily met. The worst part of the experience was the “yard sale” I pulled in the parking lot. If you aren’t familiar with that term, it means you fall, and all your stuff goes everywhere like a yard sale. It’s embarrassing, especially when it happens in the parking lot at the end of the day! Other than that experience, the trip was a tremendous success. And the knee did well and did no additional damage. I continue to do my performance physical therapy exercises as prescribed by Dr. Amanda Anderson with Raise the Barbell physical therapy. This is the most important thing. No matter what happens to you, if physical therapy is prescribed, you Must do it. All of it, as prescribed, every day. You see, when you have an injury, your brain shuts off certain pathways to protect the injury. The problem is your brain doesn’t know when the problem has been fixed to turn those pathways back on. Physical therapy is designed to do just that. It is particularly important if you have had an injury for a long time as most of us with knee problems have had. My brain and body figured out how to get things done in the most efficient, efficacious way possible. Now that everything is fixed, I need to rebuild the proper pathways. That takes dedicated, consistent work to get all the pieces working together again. Too many people neglect their physical therapy exercises. Don’t be that person. If you want an outstanding result, you are going to have to do the work. Remember, there is no magic pill! John Mariotti www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com www.crossfitodyssey.com 775-338-2412

by Ellie Bishop McKenzie The CrossFit Open 2025 has come to a close, but we wanted to give a quick shout-out to everyone who participated, whether just doing the workouts in class or signing up for the actual competition online. Your results may have taught you a lot about your strengths and weaknesses, but one thing is for sure, you learned exactly how amazing an athlete you have to be to still SUCK at the CrossFit Games! It’s true - the best in the world are truly amazing. So why even try? Well, we have to remember that this is not as much about you verses others as it is about you verses you. When you enter a competition like this your weaknesses are exposed and now you know what to work on to get better. As an example, I’d love to tell you a few stories about some of our clients who participated this year. Mike Hornung - Mike only did the first of these workouts as prescribed due to shoulder injuries - however the fact that he even signed up in the beginning is the true story. Mike started CrossFit about 18 months ago. When he began he had recently had both hips replaced, a new pacemaker, and some extremely tight and wonky shoulders AND he had a recent skiing accident that injured his shoulders even worse. He did the workouts to his ability, which sometimes meant scaling back more than the prescription scale, but he showed up, did what he could, and had a lot of fun! Congratulations, Mike!

Sunday Story…The Aftermath It’s over. 3 weeks of tests have come and gone. You did well on some, but not so well on others. Or maybe you exceeded all your expectations. What matters, however, is that you showed up and gave it your full effort. Full effort is full victory. Now, in the aftermath, the question becomes, what is next? What are you going to do with the knowledge you have attained about yourself, your fitness, and your motivation? Often in the aftermath, I hear about all the plans, all the skills, all the motivation to do better next year. And that’s great. Here’s the sad truth, however. If you are like most people, you have the desire and motivation, but you don’t have a plan. At this point what you have is a vague sense of needing to work on certain things to get where you want to be. If you are serious about improving your skills and/or strength, you will need to do three things. First, make a cohesive plan. Second, decide how to implement that plan. Third, go to work. It’s simple, but not easy. Here’s my offer…if you want to sit down and discuss what your goals are for the coming year make an appointment with Ellie, Alex, or myself and we will sit down with you to help make that plan. Once you have your plan you can hire any one of us to train you and make sure the plan is working. Here’s my other offer: Get four of your super friends, and we will create a small group class for you that can meet once, twice, or more often every month to work on improving everyone’s skills so that next year, some of those holes in your game will be less glaring. Let’s do this! John Mariotti www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com www.crossfitodyssey.com 775-338-2412

Here at CrossFit Odyssey, we talk a lot about the Journey to Extraordinary. Looking for inspiration? My next adventure is set—Machu Picchu for my 56th! I’m planning a four-day trek on the Salkantay Trail, finishing at the breathtaking Incan citadel. A journey filled with history, culture, and adventure!

by Ellie Bishop McKenzie The first blog I ever wrote back in 2011 was titled “It’s Hard to Cry When You’re Running.” I started it in the midst of my divorce, at a time when sadness felt overwhelming. But I needed to stay strong—for my children and myself. Fitness became my anchor, the one thing keeping me afloat. Why that title? Because it’s true. It really is hard to cry when you’re running. Your breathing deepens, your nose starts running, and suddenly, making an ugly crying face in full view of your neighbors becomes a whole new level of awkward. But as you push forward, you shift your focus—your movement, your breath, the rhythm of each step. And then, something incredible happens. The fresh air hits your skin. The sun warms your face. You inhale deeply, filling your lungs with power, and exhale the weight of your worries. With every step, you leave behind the stress, the tension, the anxiety. Strength Training: A Powerful Tool for Mental Health Thousands of studies have shown that exercise plays a key role in reducing depression and anxiety. While running has always been my go-to stress reliever, strength training is just as powerful—if not more so. The confidence and sense of accomplishment after lifting heavy are unmatched.

Sunday Story…The Thrill of Victory By now you may have done the first 2 CrossFit Open workouts. You may be pleasantly surprised or vastly disappointed, or both! This is one of the best things about testing yourself like this. You get to see both the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat. If you found yourself staring down a skill you didn’t have before, and went ahead and tried it and discovered you had it or almost had it, you should celebrate that. And decide now you are going to do what you need to do so next time that skill pops up you can own it. Maybe you will need some personal training lessons. Maybe you will need to dedicate 5 or 10 or 15 minutes of practice every day or week to dial in that skill. Maybe you found out your conditioning was weak in one area or another. What’s your plan to improve that? Here’s an example from my own discovery. Yesterday, on 25.2, I discovered my conditioning while doing thrusters was weak (that’s being nice, it sucked). It’s not surprising, given the fact that I have kept my intensity exceptionally low over the last 3 months. If I want to improve, I am going to have to change what I am doing a little bit. I need to add some intensity around moving weight fast once or twice a week. By the way, this is a life lesson. If you want something different, you need to do something different to get a different result. You can’t solve a problem with the same level of thinking that created it. So, look at your results and make a plan to do better in the future. John Mariotti www.sunday-stories.blogspot.com www.crossfitodyssey.com 775-338-2412