Hi, My Name is Romdre, and I'm a Junkie

It's been a while since the last post. Any particular reason? Not really. Mostly laziness. And Alone. If you don't watch it on History Channel, you probably should punch yourself in the giblets.

Either way, I started this blog off as a way to review many of the products, gyms, and programs that I try out, so I figured I'd begin with the blogs namesake, the Junk Headband.

As a bit of introduction, I came from a background playing basketball, so all I ever used to work out in were cut off shirts. At first, this produced some disastrous results. Many a shirt were prone to the nip...not so much slip, but all-out onslaught of areola. Eventually I got the hang of it, but that left me with an abundance of useless shirt sleeves. What was I going to do? Such resources must not be simply discarded away like some $2 hooker. So I started using them as a headband to mop up some of the gallons of sweat I produced at the gym. I also could coordinate them with my daily attire, keeping my rep up as the closest thing to fashionable one can be at the gym. I mean, not as cool as weightlifters, but still pretty baller.

These makeshift sweat shields did come with some drawbacks. For one, the cotton was not the best at wicking away sweat. There was a point of diminishing returns, similar to the hot-crazy scale, where we had diminishing returns. And, as I mentioned before, I sweat a lot (lines back there ladies). So within minutes of the warmup, I'd already be in what I'd call a perspiration crescendo, creating as many problems as it was meant to solve. Further, cleanup of these things was gross. They held onto the foul odors harder than a child holding onto an animal (the animal is obvi thinking "Dafuq bro?").

Then I came across the Junk Headband. I don't remember if I found them or they found me, but it was a match made in heaven. I needed something to help with keeping my sweat to myself, and they needed people to give them money. Win-win (win)!

The headbands themselves are made of "Pro Sport Jersey fabric," which is just a fancy was of saying stretchy nylon. Originally made only in solid colors, the bands now sport various motifs (some are made to look like traditional bandanas, others with animal themes, USA styles, as well as NBA and NCAA team versions) to suit just about everyone's tastes. The most basic style they offer is a tie version that is similar in shape and style to a folded over bandana, however they also have a full "sleeve-like" variety known named infinity, big bang, and big bang lite, signifying thickness of the band.

In terms of performance, the headbands never move from their place during WODs and do a great job of keeping sweat out of my eyes. Most of the moisture wicks away and leaves me free from having to worry about it impacting my times or lifts. Cleanup is a snap, as I usually just run it through water and leave it hanging in my locker, where it would be ready for use by the next day. I can usually get about 2-3 uses before they begin getting that "a little past due date" smell, but that usually doesn't become a problem due to the sheer number of headbands I own (currently around 25).

As for price, they tend to be a little steep for something so simple, ranging from about $10-12 for sale items, and full price versions at $16-18, depending on who Junk teams with to market (Reebok for example has their name on a few versions which cost more due to licensing the TM). For the regular person, five headbands comprising of a few basic colors and possibly a specialty one they really like would be more than enough. For those of us "needing" to keep our fashion game on point (or those with shopping addictions), you really never can have enough.

Junk also has clothing that is for the most part on par with most other CF inspired clothing brands, has recently started making wrist bands inspired by the headbands, and is soon coming out with a collection of Junk socks, a market I think is sorely in need of help.* The bands are now on sale, and the socks are allegedly making their debut at this years CrossFit Games. And yes, I'm getting a pair.

Are there cheaper alternatives for a pretty insignificant problem in the grand scheme of things? Of course. Does that mean I won't continue to buy them as I see more that I like? No way Jose. The Junk headband does a great job as a functional and aesthetic part of my daily workout. And for that, we thank them.





*Sidebar: I usually only workout in Nike Elite basketball socks. They are super comfortable and breathe really well. I also have other Nike socks that I use, but the hoops socks are the best. The problem with CF socks is that they are, in my opinion, too thin. Traditional shoes, such as the Nano and oly lifters, don't have a ton of cushioning or are made to be very hard to create a platform. Most CF socks are more about the style than the performance. Hylete, which I'll review later, had one of the worst socks I've ever worn. Maybe I'm just used to the finer things. And when it comes to my shoes, I need the best.

Better than Yesterday

Week 2 of the 2015 CrossFit Open is upon us, and while I should have posted something about this last week, there's still plenty to talk about.  Lots of woah crazy crazy, from Froning and Fraser kicking it all off, the first double scored workout, and subsequent invalidation of some scores for said workout.  It was definitely an interesting start.

After training since July, I anticipated the first event would be one that I would excel at, a bodyweight movement with light olympic lifting involved.  But of course my weaknesses got the best of me, and I bowed out with a paltry 147.  Forearm fatigue was in the end the limiting factor (if you don't count lack of strength as a prerequisite to being a good athlete).  The C&J went better, but I've known issues in other areas have hindered my development there more so than anything else.

What I'm more excited about was the general feeling you get from participating in something as opposed to merely being a bystander.  I've been at my box for people participating in the Open before, some scaling down and doing their best, others putting their last years worth of training to the test.  It's fun to cheer on your fellow competitors, see them strive for one more rep, one more pound on the bar.  But there's nothing like lacing up the MetCon's yourself and stepping onto the stage yourself.

Unlike local affiliate competitions, the Open allows us to compete on an even playing field with some of the fittest on the planet.  No other sport allows their participants to be able to gauge their talents to those who do this for a living.  I can play pickup basketball with the local teenagers and rack up a triple-double, but that doesn't tell me how I would fare against the likes of Stephen Curry.

And there seems to be more, for lack of a better term, weight behind the Open.  It's become a PR and marketing spectacle, and allowed for the sport to branch out to people and places it might not have without the Open.  Of course, it's created a schism in the CrossFit culture, the Open/Games vs. the original, garage gym mentality that made CrossFit a cult following to begin with, and wether that's a good or bad thing is up for debate.  But the Open and Games have ultimately made our goal in fitness bigger.  I try to approach every open workout as I would a regular WOD at my box.  But I'd be lying if there wasn't a part of me that understood that it's not the same.  I see it in people's faces as their grinding out another overhead squat, sense it in the crowd as they urge their boxmates on to keep moving, keep trying, and feel it as I walk up to the bar and see clock flashing 3...2...1...

I've never participated in the CrossFit Open until this year.  Yes it's a cash grab for HQ.  And no, I don't have any delusions that I'm qualifying for regionals.  But that's not what CrossFit is about anyway.  If you're only in it for that, then you're likely to lose sight of the journey, the reason you should be doing this.  It's about a :01 PR.  It's about getting that first unassisted pull-up.  It's about finishing a workout as prescribed for the first time.  It's about being better that you were yesterday.

Welcome to the Canoe

"Hi, my name is Rommel, and I'm addicted to CrossFit gear (Hi, Rommel)."

In case the name, URL, or first line of this didn't give it away, this is a CrossFit related blog.  For some of you, this is goodbye.  For others, this may be the start of a beautiful friendship/tragic train wreck you can't look away from.  

With all the more well known, CrossFit related information out there on clothing and accessories, you might ask what makes this blog different (I was actually wondering what the title of the post means). Aside from the fact that only people I know are reading it, it's that I buy everything I'll post about myself, therefore want to save you the hassle of wasting your hard earned money on expensive shit that supports your expensive workout habit.

Along the way, I'll also write about things going on with my CrossFit related journey, starting with my competing in my first CrossFit Open.  Despite doing CrossFit on and off for about 6 years, this is the first time I actually threw down the $20 to see how poorly I did against the rest of the world.  Unlike years before, I actually trained more and want to be able to reflect to what got me here.  Maybe it makes for an interesting read.  Most likely it'll sound like a bad idea for a JCVD movie (Still hasn't talked about the title.  Mildly annoying).

Either way, I hope you find the reviews helpful and can withstand my rants.  Should be...educational.