Jack’s a wall ball fiend!

Our next member spotlight showcases an athlete who prioritizes his daily training no matter his schedule. Jack Dobbin often comes and trains on his own time during Open Gym and his commitment has really showed. Jack recently got his muscle up and was able to get do it in Open WOD 13.3! Read on to learn about how CrossFit has impacted Jack’s life including basketball and his marriage.

The Foundry: You often train during open gym, usually by yourself. What’s it like to do the WoD alone vs in the class?

Jack Dobbin: I get to take my sweet time! I usually have a good hour and a half to do the WoD, which gives me a chance to practice the movements more, get a little more rest between exercises, and do some extra credit workouts. It also allows versatility, so if there’s something I need to work on or if Jon and Noah’s workout looks like more fun (sorry Brad!), I can pick and choose without disrupting a class. On the other hand, I love having a coach and fellow athletes pushing me in a regular class. My best workouts have come from trying to keep up with the Spazzs and Ketchups, which is motivation I don’t get training by myself.

It’s also great to come in when the coaches are in their natural state. Once you get past the icy, tough-guy exteriors, these guys are really a bunch of sweeties.

The Foundry: You’re into basketball and other sports, how has CrossFit benefitted your performance in those areas?

JD: Yeah, my biggest reason for training isn’t for nutrition or the competition or to look sexy (that’s just a fortunate side-effect), it’s to be a better basketball player. I’ve definitely noticed some major improvements since I started CrossFitting. First, a basketball game ain’t got nothin’ on the crazy stuff Brad comes up with. I never feel the need to rest during games, which is especially important because I have a tournament coming up where we have to play something like 8 games in two days. Second, I like to mix it up down low by the basket, and it’s nice to not get bent in half by some of the bigger guys. And most importantly, my number one fitness goal is to unleash some sick-nasty, pride-decimating dunks on some poor unsuspecting souls. Since joining The Foundry my vertical has improved by a few inches, so it’s just a matter of time…

The Foundry: What’s it like having Priscilla be so into CrossFit and having The Foundry as a common interest?

JD: We spend a good 80% of our time together either commiserating over (burpees) or getting excited about (box jumps) the workout. Since we have to do most of our workouts separately, there is a lot of texting between us with “How’d ya do?!”s and accomplishments. It’s something we get excited about and we really look forward to those weekend mornings when we can head over to the gym for a few hours, see our friends, and maybe even bring the dog.

The tricky part comes when we push each other. I straddle a fine line between encouraging Priscilla to give a workout everything she’s got, and just being a jerk. But I think we figured it out while coaching each other on Open workout 13.3, so hopefully that’s something that can be applied to other aspects of our marriage.

But mostly we just like to gossip about all you fine people.

The Foundry: What’s something we don’t know about you?

JD: I was once the top-ranked Magic: the Gathering player in the state. Ladies, please, form a line!

Thanks Jack for sharing! Be sure to congratulate him and continue to WOD hard!