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🎯 Alex Gazan Makes Her Return at the 2025 Rogue Invitational

October 31st, 2025

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Good morning and welcome to the Morning Chalk Up.

In today’s edition:

  • đźš— After a car accident ended her 2025 CrossFit Games season early, Alex Gazan is returning to action at this weekend’s Rogue Invitational.

  • 🍎 Social media has completely changed how we think about nutrition — inspiring healthier habits and spreading misinformation.

  • 🥇 Noah Ohlsen and Lauren Weeks win the first-ever LT Games, a “choose-your-own-adventure” competition hosted by Life Time Fitness and sponsored by Ten Thousand.

QUOTE OF THE DAY
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I'm hoping Rogue will be fun, and I'll get to compete without pain and just enjoy it. After that, I'm hoping to get back to where I was, and I want to win the Games...”

Alex Gazan, on her comeback following her season-ending car accident earlier this year.
PROFILE

Alex Gazan Is Back — Months After a Car Crash Ended Her CrossFit Games Season

Credit: Carlos Bown / HWPO Training

A camping trip after winning the Norcal Classic took a devastating turn when Alex Gazan and her husband, Jake, were involved in a car accident, ending her 2025 CrossFit Games season early. 

Remind me: Gazan won the 2025 Northern California Classic in May, earning her a spot at the 2025 CrossFit Games. She was expected to perform very well at the Games and was on track for a podium finish. However, the universe had other plans when she and her husband, Jake, were involved in a car accident that left her with a fractured fibula and glass covering her entire body. 

Gazan initially thought her fibula injury wasn't serious and that she could still participate in the Games.

  • “I kind of just had this illusion that maybe I could still show up at the Games, but as the days kind of progressed, I had a few other things, like glass in my eye. I realized I couldn't move my foot, my foot was not in sync with my brain, and so I found I had some nerve damage from the impact,” said Gazan in a video posted on the HWPO Training YouTube channel.

Continue reading for what coach Justin Cotler says about her return — and why Rogue could be the perfect test.

A MESSAGE FROM GYMREAPERS

Medeiros & Hatfield Take the Floor

The Rogue Invitational is here—and two Gymreapers athletes are stepping into the spotlight. Justin Medeiros and Austin Hatfield are set to take on some of the toughest competition in the sport this week in Aberdeen, Scotland.

Rep your support and grab their official Gymreapers athlete tees before they’re gone.

*This newsletter relies on our sponsors. Please consider supporting them.

SPEED READS

🔥🏋️‍♂️ Rogue Drops Two New Machines: The powerhouse gear manufacturer just unleashed the Air Rhino — a flywheel-driven strength trainer packing up to 1,100 pounds of resistance — and the Echo SKI, a compact, Games-calibrated erg built for precision and power.

🔥🧠 Willing and Able — Redefined: CrossFit flips the classic phrase: ability isn’t the barrier anymore — willingness is. With infinite scalability built into every class, the only real question now is: Are you in?

đź”´ đź§  Infrared Saunas for Mental Health? A small but promising study shows sauna sessions could help treat depression. The secret may lie in how heat regulates the body’s stress and sleep systems.

🔥🏋️ Mayhem Goes All In for Rogue: Check out this behind-the-scenes look at Haley Adams, Roman Khrennikov, Gui Malheiros, Austin Hatfield, and Paige Rodgers (Powers) during their Rogue prep. The Mayhem crew isn’t holding back.

ICYMI: 🏋️‍♀️ CrossFit just announced details on the 2026 Semifinal events that will qualify athletes for next year’s CrossFit Games.

MEMBER EXCLUSIVE

How Social Media Has Changed the Way We Think About Nutrition

Credit: Shutterstock

In our digital age, we no longer pick up a nutrition guide, flip through its pages, and quietly put it away. 

  • Instead, we scroll, 'like,” share, and sometimes follow the advice we see on our feeds. Social media has transformed not just what we eat, but how we think about food. 

This change brings both opportunities and risks, and greater awareness can help us navigate this new landscape with more confidence.

The Upside: Nutrition Goes Mainstream

One of the biggest benefits of social-media-driven nutrition content is its accessibility. Advice, recipes, healthy eating challenges, and community support are now more visible than ever. 

Social media platforms give people a way to find inspiration to eat more vegetables, learn simple meal ideas, or connect with others working toward healthier habits. 

  • After the jump — how influencer nutrition advice stacks up against the science.

THINGS TO…

…WATCH

The Buttery Bros Turn Up the Heat — Literally

From CrossFit’s early media days to building a global YouTube empire, Heber Cannon and Marston Sawyers share how Buttery Bros was born — all inside a 230° sauna. They talk timing, storytelling, and the future of CrossFit while battling the heat (and trivia penalties).

…UNDERSTAND

The Off-Season Isn’t “Off” — It’s Intentional

Training Think Tank coaches break down why September–December should be goal-driven, not FOMO-driven: define your North Star, set micro-benchmarks, build habits (fuel/sleep/mobility), and periodize real weakness work. Compete only with purpose (practice the skill of competing or skip it).

…KNOW

How Your HYROX Splits Stack Up

Men’s Health UK analyzed thousands of race results to find the average station times across all divisions — from SkiErg to wall balls. The takeaway: most athletes clock in at approximately an hour and a half overall (~1:35), with lunges and wall balls eating the most time. Use these numbers to benchmark your training and spot weak links before your next race.

COMPETITIONS

Noah Ohlsen and Lauren Weeks Win First-Ever LT Games

Credit: LT Games

During a weekend packed with action (including the Down Under Championship, ATHX Games, and Alltra Games), the LT Games also went down in Minneapolis, MN.

  • The event showcased a lineup of CrossFit and HYROX competitors, helping put the LT Games, sponsored by apparel brand Ten Thousand, on the map. 

Alec Smith, Noah Ohlsen, Cole Sager, Nico Bedon, Nicolette Torreggiani, along with hybrid athletes Lauren Weeks, Dylan Scott, and Jack Driscoll all took part. 

Remind me: The LT Games, part of the Life Time Fitness premium gym brand, features 17 stations that test agility, strength, and power. 

  • The format is a “pick-your-poison” workout, where athletes can complete the stations in any order and break it up as they see fit.

The results: The men’s podium was dominated by Ten Thousand brand athletes, with Noah Ohlsen taking first place with a time of 39:03, followed by Dylan Scott at 40:22. Jake Driscoll finished third with a time of 40:46. 

On the women’s side, Lauren Weeks took first in the division and overall, with a time of 35:59, followed by Terra Jackson, who finished in 39:28. Janelle Teal took third with a time of 41:34.

HIGHLIGHTS

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