Prometheus CrossFit

Just finished my first week at Prometheus CrossFit. It has been fantastic so far. Everyone has been so helpful, especially Amy who I’ve worked with in my first week. I can’t wait to keep going. If you’re considering signing up… sign up!

I speak from experience that Coach Archie is the Master of Progressions. He’ll identify where you’re at as you work on your clean, your handstand, your muscle-​up, what have you, and figure out what you need to do to get to the next level.
For about the past year those darn knees-​to-​elbows and toes-​to-​bars just frustrated me no end. Rep and swing, swing, swing… rep and swing, swing, swing… rep and swing swing, swing… Oh the time wasted! Oh the frustration while others are just ripping out the reps one after the other like well-​muscled metronomes, and I’m stuck there exhibiting the chaotic motion of a double pendulum.
Patience, patience, just work on your progression, I told myself. I got the cues, I know what I’m supposed to do, I just need to put in the practice. Well, today I figured maybe I was missing something, so I fussed to Archie. And after about two minutes of following his cues, it all clicked! Hooray!!! :D
Sure, maybe all the practice I put in had something to do with finally finding some success, but Archie certainly played a key role in identifying where I was screwing up and precisely what I needed to do to get out of my rut.

My 12 year old son was overweight, struggling in school and had a poor attitude. He did have one goal; to play youth football. He joined Prometheus hoping to lose 30 lbs in 8 weeks to get to the required weight for football. What Troy and Amy did in transforming this child is simply amazing. He made weight and is thriving on the football field, but more importantly, he is confident, positive and doing well in school! Prometheus changed our son which has had a great impact on our entire family!

I started at Prometheus last year in December. I was very apprehensive at first because of long term knee injuries, and I wasn’t sure this would be a good idea. Surely enough, I bust a ligament in my second week doing mountain climbers (poorly) and thought about giving it up.
I’m so glad I stuck around. Troy and Archie took it on themselves to make sure that I work my muscles back to good strength and they are sometimes stricter than I am about my not getting injured!
In the 6 odd months that I’ve been training since recovering from the knee injury, I have witnessed my body adapt well to the often intense workouts. I love the fact that my friends started noticing the change at first glance now.
For someone who couldn’t lift even a 100lbs off the ground, lifting nearly 250lbs six months later feels exhilarating! Especially on a mostly vegetarian diet. And no, it doesn’t even hurt because of the excellent coaching I’ve gotten!
Kudos to Troy and Archie!

After years of being inactive (because exercise was a chore), I finally started to enjoy weightlifting enough to become somewhat active. However, for three years I struggled to stay consistent about it. Prometheus is a wonderful community, and the sense that I would be disappointing everyone in that community if I didn’t show up (and, honestly, my desire to hang out with them) has been a huge aid in keeping me consistent about working out. Troy and Ben are also wonderful coaches, and by giving myself over to their programming, I’ve become a better power lifter, olympic lifter, gymnast, sprinter, endurance athlete-​you name it. Just do it.

6mo anniversary!
All the things I wrote in my previous review still apply– working out at Prometheus is fun and satisfying. It’s been 6 months since my very first session as a Firestarter, and I can say with confidence that I am stronger, faster, and have increased my endurance since January. Although my progress hasn’t been quite as dramatic as Justin S’s, I’m still very pleased with where I am now; although I haven’t lost much weight (no change in diet), I’m pretty sure I’m leaner and more toned than before.
On top of deriving satisfaction from physical changes, I also greatly enjoy interacting with Prometheus members. While I might dread the WOD, I always look forward to seeing my wodmates, and cheering/​being cheered on during the workouts.
BOTTOM LINE: HOORAY crossfit, and more importantly, HOORAY PROMETHEUS!

This New Years I decided to get in shape and maybe lose some weight in the process (been between «marginally» and «considerably» overweight about as long as I can remember). As a grad student, I couldn’t help but research potential methods/​venues/​etc. for this goal exhaustively; trust me when I say I slogged through academic papers, business reviews, recommendations from friends, and anything else I could get my mitts on. My conclusion was that my best shot would be Crossfit, and that Prometheus was the best venue in the area.
Can’t say this for most of my research, but I’ll say it here: My hypothesis was verified 100%.
The reviews on this page are spot-​on, and there’s no reason to repeat the virtues extolled above. Some aspects appealing to me personally:
1. As a guy who in the past didn’t just «forget» working out but actively avoided it, I still was comfortable joining and taking things at my own pace. The coaches are incredibly encouraging (see Bernie’s note #3 about Troy), knowledgeable, and attentive, and I’ve gotten considerable one-​on-​one attention — invaluable for those of us who wouldn’t know a squat if it hit us in the face.
2. The community is more reminiscent of a sports team (in the positive sense) than a gym class or – worse — the collection of egos you can encounter at 24 Hour Fitness. Folks at Prometheus know each others’ names, encourage each other, and never take things beyond lighthearted competition.
3. They focus on and track results, without espousing trendy diets or workout products. Personally, despite my best food consumption efforts, I’ve lost considerable weight since joining and am performing much better on our workouts than a few months ago. This summer I’ve even signed up for a few races and other athletic events with other gym members — something that I NEVER would have done a year ago!
So, give it a shot for a month or two, and I bet we’ll be seeing you around more often!

Lori and Troy have created an amazing community at Prometheus Crossfit. The coaches are all incredibly knowledgable, patient and supportive, and the training is absolutely top notch.
I spent years slogging through long runs and rides, but never felt like I was particularly strong, or well adapted to any other fitness endeavor. Prometheus Crossfit is changing that.
The required firestarter course gives you intensive coaching on basics of gymnastics, weightlifting, and various other fundamental movesments utilized in crossfit workouts… and life! But the teaching doesn’t stop there. Prometheus models their philosophy of lifelong learning in their approach to continued training and learning inside the gym. After 9 months I’m still getting focused and devoted training from the coaches to improve my form and master movements.
This unique community of scientists, academics, entrepreneurs, attorneys and others is incredibly welcoming and supportive.
If you’re just interested in a gym where you can throw some heavy weight around, chest bump with the guys, and leave when you’re done, this isn’t the place for you. But if you’re looking for a physical and intellectual challenge, and want to join a community of fantastic people that like to work hard, play hard (and occasionally eat and drink hard), I can’t recommend Prometheus highly enough.

I recently completed the «Annie» WOD prescribed at Prometheus and it gave me a chance to reflect on the 10 months or so that I’ve been with the gym.
When I first came to Prometheus I could not do a single pull-​up of any kind (dead hang or kipping). Fast forward about 10 months and I completed the 100 pull ups, 100 push ups and 100 squats of the «Annie» workout prescribed!
Under the guidance of Troy’s coaching, I’ve been able to participate in CrossFit in a safe and productive manner. Besides sore muscles and some calloused hands, I haven’t had a single injury from CrossFit during this time.
Not the slightest amount of poor form will go unnoticed by Troy; even when he’s not looking, he’s looking.
It’s funny, I’ve lifted weights off and on since high school and thought I knew what the proper form was for a squat, bench press, strict press, etc. But I don’t think I’ve ever done any of them correctly until coming to Prometheus.
I’ve dropped into a few other CrossFit gyms while I’m traveling and I’ve been able to do so with confidence knowing that Troy has given me a very solid foundation of skills and form.
The community around Prometheus is great as well; people are always helping each other out hosting potlucks, it’s like having a second family!
If you’re thinking about trying CrossFit, this is definitely the gym to try.

I discovered Prometheus CrossFit over a year ago and LOVE it. Troy and Lori the owners are great and very dedicated. They are very knowledgeable especially when it comes to power lifting techniques. The training is unlike anything I have experienced at any other gym and I have been working out for over 20 years! Troy is able to look at each individual and pinpoint what «ques» will work for them to complete the power lifts correctly, push the limits and or simply complete the WOD of the day. I love the camaraderie of our gym and how supportive everyone is. Thank You Troy, Lori and all of the Prometheus CrossFit members for making this a great experience and continuing to motivate me to improve my fitness level and keep the competitive spirit going. Highly recommend Prometheus CrossFit !!! If I could I would give this 10 stars.

Finally, Palo Alto has an official CrossFit gym! It’s actually kind of shocking that the citizens of Palo Alto have been deprived of a CrossFit affiliate for so long.
I participated in Prometheus CrossFit’s Grand Opening «Fight Gone Bad» charity fundraiser, and we all had a blast. Troy even had a local massage services company provide complimentary chair massages for us afterward.
I know Troy from CrossFit Sunnyvale, where he always put up the best numbers… I’m excited to see what he does from here. I’ll definitely stop by again, especially since there are 20% discounts for geeks and students/​educators. (Plus, if you’re a voting member of the National Academy of Sciences, it’s free)