NerdFit

Review: Inov-8 F-Lite 235

Nick Palomo5 Comments

My Nano 3s and Inov-8 Bare-XF 210s will not last forever. A year of CrossFit has taken a toll on them and the wear is starting to show. I was leaning towards the new Nano 4s but the design of the new Inov-8 F-Lite 235s caught my eye. I own a few pairs of Inov-8 shoes and I’m satisfied with their quality. My fiance purchased a pair for my birthday and I’ve been using them in the majority of my workouts ever since.

Looks, Fit and Sizing
The colorway and design of the 235s are very unique. It has a “yin yang” design with half the shoe being one of the two colors. The materials and construction feel solid and the Rope-Tec blends in well with the shoe. Using my 210s as a reference my fiance ordered the shoes in my actual size. The shoe fits well and better than my 210s. The toe box doesn’t feel as wide as the Nano 3s but it has plenty of room for your toes. They feel lighter than the Nano 3s and slightly heavier than the 210s. The shoe feels flexible enough for running and stiff enough for lifting making it an ideal shoe for any WOD.

Performance
I decided to do some squats and deadlifts to test out how these shoes handle lifts. I used a moderate weight when lifting and didn’t try to max out. These shoes were great and handle lifts well. They perform just as well as my Nano 3s. I didn’t feel the soles compress during heavy lifts and the shoe felt stable throughout.

After running in the 235s for a few weeks I have nothing but good things to say. I used a couple of 400m runs to test run performance. The 235s have a zero-drop profile and with the sticky rubber sole provide a lot of grip. I was concerned that the shoes would feel like the Nano 3s, thankfully that was not the case. The shoe grips the pavement well, only felt a slight slip when running through a wet area. My box doesn’t program rope climbs regularly and a rope is not set up at the box. I will update this post with any info on how the shoe holds up to rope climbs.

After using these shoes regularly for four months, I can say they are holding up well. The construction is solid, and the wear is not that noticeable. The quality is what I’ve come to expect from an Inov-8 product. The versatility of the F-Lite 235s is its strongest selling point. It does well in lifts and its a good shoe for shot to medium distance runs. I hope they release a few more colorways, black and red would look awesome.

If you have any questions, leave a comment at the bottom. Next on the review list is the Inov-8 Fastlifts and the Nike Metcon 1s and strength wraps.

 

CrossFit Open 15.3: Check Your Ego at the Door

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This weeks open workout was an ego check for most people trying to do the workout Rx. After Dave Castro mentioned muscle ups as the first part of the triplet I came to this realization. I’m still a scaled athlete. I’ve come a long way this past year with regards to fitness. I feel stronger, look better and have more energy but I still have weaknesses. At least I will be able to do the workout scaled.
I wish the scaled version was different. 50 wall ball shots and 200 singles. I wanted something with body weight thrown in like pull ups. I did the workout and got 536 reps. I think I can probably get more if I tried it again since I should have paced my wall balls better. Hopefully we will have another fun workout next week. I’m thinking Dave Castro will put in rowing and burpees since we haven’t done them yet. 

August Loot Crate: Heroes

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It’s the end of the month which means Loot Crates should be shipping. This months theme was “Heroes”, which is similar to last weeks theme “Villans”. I was pretty sure their would be some TMNT and Guardians of the Galaxy items since those movies were released recently. Overall I liked the contents of this months crate.

The Box

This box reminds me of old TMNT play sets I used to own. I had all the turtles and I used to keep myself entertained for hours. This was a cool touch; Loot Crate is releasing more unique box designs. I can’t wait to see what future boxes will look like. 

TMNT 

With a cool sewer box you need some TMNT! Kid Robot is the manufacturer of this mini. I like the quality of Kid Robot products and this one did not disappoint. Raphael is not my favorite character but I’m happy. If anyone wants to trade for a Leonardo figure, let me know. The mask sunglasses were pretty cool too. I will probably not use them since they feel small on my face. I’ll probably give that to my little brother.

Last But Not Least

The big item in this crate was the exclusive Funko vinyl of Groot. After watching Guardians of the Galaxy I became a fan. I didn’t read a lot of comic books when I was younger because they were too expensive but I may start reading this series. It seems like a interesting story. Other items include this months theme button, a magnet, a pair of sneaker wings, some codes for digital games and a mega man air freshener. That works out because i needed a new air freshener. 

Final Thoughts

I’m satisfied with the contents of this months crate. I thought it would have came with a t-shirt since Villans came with one. I’m starting to like the Funko vinyls and might start collecting more characters. I can’t wait to see what the great people over at Loot Crate have in store for next month.

If you want to subscribe to Loot Crate, use this URL: http://mbsy.co/cQvM. If you sign up with that link, it adds to a free crate for me. If you have any more questions, feel free to comment below. Until next time, Train Hard, Game Hard.

Nick                                                                          

Front Squat PR

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I hit a new PR for my front squat. My 3 rep max so far is 225lbs. I have not attempted a heavier weight. It sounds weird but “the weight felt good”. My grip was struggling toward the last rep but I managed to stabilize it. I had a lot of encouragement and cheering from my class. Another member even gave me some tips which will definitely help in the future.
I love using my Fastlifts now. I fee really stable in the bottom position which gives me a lot of confidence in my lifts. I even did a metcon in them. I will probably do a write up on them eventually. I need to log more hours in the box with them. Thanks for reading, happy lifting.

Hope and JAW Grips

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My shoulders are sore after today’s WOD. I managed to RX the weight which is not too heavy. I’m still getting used to the snatch and the lighter weight was great for working on form and technique. Need to focus on opening up my hips and my shrug. I noticed I’m getting a lot better at my pull ups. I’m starting to string together almost ten pull ups before my grip gives out.

JAW hand grips are amazing. I use them for almost every WOD that has bar work. I haven’t had a single tear since. I just add some chalk to these bad boys and away I go. They do not need to be broken in which is a plus over gymnastics grips. If you’re having trouble with hand tearing, try these out. I hate missing a day or two because my hands are torn and now I may not miss another day. I picked these up from Wodshop.com check them out here.

Let me know if you have any questions, leave a comment at the bottom.

My first post and it’s a doozy!

Nick Palomo1 Comment

Hello everyone! I decided to start a blog that combined two thing I love, CrossFit and nerd anything. I hope you enjoy reading these as much as I enjoy writing them. Disclaimer: I am a horrible writer and bad with grammar. Hopefully, it will not be painful to read.

April 22, 2014

This is my first time doing a WOD of this type. I barely came under the time cap of 20 minutes. By my fifth round my shoulders were burning and needed a longer rest period. I think I could have been faster with a lighter weight. Hopefully I will be faster the next time we do this WOD. Thanks for checking out this blog. I will have more content soon.