Total Nutrition Takeover Summarized

The Total Nutrition Takeover (TNT) doesn’t technically have an ending, so we won’t call this the conclusion but we do want to summarize our biggest and best event to date. One week ago, we celebrated and handed out awards. We were blown away by everyone’s results! The top three male and female places were very close! Out of 71 participants, our top 6 finalists were:

  • 1st | Jennifer Nichols & Michael Evans
  • 2nd | Brittany Ann Metzner & Jordan Cummings
  • 3rd | Lisa Susee & Nathan Cruchelow

Of those top six finishers, four were from the 5am class, two from the same team and two are a couple! We love it when families get on board with health and nutrition and, interestingly, our couple reported saving $300/week by preparing food at home and not eating out. The expense of enjoying a night out on the town is REAL, guys.

In case you missed it, Colin finally put his money where his abs were and took the challenge as well! Below you will hear directly from participants on their personal experiences. Some were returning champs and others were first-timers – all are winners!


When I first heard about TNT, I wasn’t so sure it was for me. I mean, sure, I wanted to lose a little weight but didn’t need to lose much.

The more I thought about it though, I figured it’d not only benefit me but my family as well. We were never good at meal planning. We eat on the fly more often than not. Pizza, tacos, spaghetti just to name a few of our weekly favorites. Let’s not forget macaroni and cheese! I love my sweet sweet wine and drink a bottle during the week and one on the weekends. Oh, and raspberry blended margarita with a sugar rim from Ganzo’s every Friday. Speaking of Ganzo’s, have you had their chips and queso? O. M. G. Don’t forget my 420 calorie Starbucks Cinnamon Dolce Latte with whipped cream daily.

Some days, I’d even skip meals in order to try and slim down after all the crap I put in my body. 

But still, I only wanted to lose 8 pounds. Yep. Just 8. So, I decided to give TNT a go. I always heard 80% of abs are made in the kitchen, so I thought, “Let’s prove it.”

I was sacrificing a lot of good stuff going in to this! A week in, eh. Not loving life. Then, my husband had to leave for a month (without breaks) for the military (US Navy Seabee and a Heavy Equipment Operator) – he was also participating in the challenge. How the heck is this gonna work? I do the 5am WOD 4-5 days/week but that wasn’t going to happen now. How am I going to find time to work 43 hours per week, get the kids to their after-school activities plus homework, baths, etc. and maintain a healthy diet when I’m not even able to go to the gym now? So, I messaged Coach Gerald to tell him this wouldn’t work out for me after all and I’d have to drop out.

Speaking of Gerald. I chose him before he had time to even think about actually being a TNT coach. He looked surprsied when I told him at a gathering that I was choosing him. I’ve only had him as a coach for a few WODs and his geniune care for helping people stood out. He takes the time to listen, demonstrates and has very helpful feedback and patience. I knew he was exactly who I needed.

Anyhoo, back to dropping out. Gerald wasn’t letting that happen. We were going to figure it out. He was going to give me workouts to do at home, and that he did. He was so dedicated to helping our team and that alone pushed me to do the best I could with what I had to work with. His daily check-ins and uplifting words kept all of us going. He had so much knowledge!

Week 2 was rough. Weeks 3-5 were much better. Week 6 seemed to drag. I was kind of feeling over it. Then I weighed myself – 9 pounds lost?! What?! No. That could not be. I didn’t get my good workouts in. I often ate deli meat on the go. I was impressed by my before and after pics. Pretty excited actually. In my eyes, I’d already won. Never did I even think from day one to the last day that I would make it to the top 10. When I heard I did, I was amazed that others saw what I saw. In the past, I never took my kids to the pool because I was so uncomfortable and now my picture was up for so many to see…and I was ok with it!

I feel so good about myself (it’s been a while).

When my name was called for the 3rd place winner, I can honestly say I was shocked. Never did I expect that. I learned the truth about kitchen abs. I put the theory to the test with the help of a great coach and team that was so encouraging and the best cheerleaders around! They are what helped me through the 6 week challenge.

– Lisa Susee | 3rd Place Female | Mom, Wife, NCMA and Group Prenatal Coordinator, Little Engine That Could


I started off the TNT challenge about as unhealthy as you could possibly imagine. I had a longstanding work trip planned in Chicago following our “before” pictures where I ate like I was at the State Fair and drank like Charlie Sheen during most of his career.

Since then, with a little help from Coach Brock, I’ve been laser-focused on two things: diet and gym performance. It’s been a little over six weeks since my last drink or chili cheese dog and I couldn’t be more pleased with the results. I’m down 27 pounds and my pony keg is starting to resemble more of a sixer.

It’s pretty easy to see the diet, sleep and the absence of alcohol translate not only aethetically but physically, too. My TNT WOD (workout of the day) time was reduced by 3:39 and I have come to expect a PR for basically anything that is programmed, especially timed WODs that involve body movements like pull-ups and burpees!

Looking back a few months, it’s hard to imagine now how much I underestimated what a CrossFit “gym” could do for an individual.

I thought of it as just another gym when, in reality, it’s the motivational community that you become a part of that’s most beneficial. The idea that I would have done all of this hard work in the gym and the kitchen without the CrossFit OC3 group pushing me along the way is laughable. I have to credit the members who are in there grinding every day and continually forcing themselves to the next level because, in the end, they were pulling me along with them. I owe them each a drink, maybe two.

Prior to the challenge, I’d weighed 205 for a while. On Friday, the last day of the TNT, I weighed in at 178. I was pretty shocked to say the least!

Jordan Cummings | 2nd Place Male | Beer Enthusiast On a Smaller Scale Now


I wasn’t going to share because it was mortifying enough seeing the muffin top I had acquired after a couple years of unchecked debauchery, nacho platters and denial plastered on a large screen for all to admire. However, I need to give credit where credit is due.

I couldn’t be happier with my results from TNT.

I am able to comfortably fit into the size clothing that my brain somehow thought I could still wear and bounce back to the fitness level that I was at (plus or minus a couple burpees) prior to my year-and-a-half hiatus from CrossFit.

More importantly though, I have ended a six-week challenge of no booze, dairy, time-consuming macro counting and missed nights out only to resume meal prepping and MyFitnessPal entries immediately after. Am I going to get s***-faced on St. Patrick’s Day? Abso-freaking-lutely, but we all need some balance and TNT gave that back to me.

Thanks for the awesome coaching, Colin, and motivation from my team. Special thanks to Jordan for putting up with my OCD levels of macro textris. Couldn’t have done it without ya!

Jenn Nichols | 1st Place Female | Airport Celebrity & She’s Baaaaaack!


The TNT made me rethink a lot! I was of the mind set that all I needed was protein. The diet that Coach Gerald and I decided on was completely manageable and, after a few days, almost second nature! So six weeks no sugar, no booze and more broccoli than anyone should ingest. I may have taken only one rest day, too! I’ve had more energy, more strength and a better mood (might have to verify that)!

My team “Geronimos” were a great resource for both support and information and we’re still going strong! I don’t think I would have been as successful with out the coaching and a lot of the ladies’ conversations plus Coach Colin’s challenging workouts!

Michael Evans | 1st Place Male | Abs, Construction Worker Works, Kindest Soul in All the Land


“How much weight did you lose?” is the most frequently asked question I get. The truth is, it’s not about the weight I’ve lost but what I’ve gained. I’m physically stronger at a weight I haven’t been in 10 years. The goal was abs, shoulder, back and arm definition. That goal was obtained and then some – I got my first muscle-up! I look and feel better than I ever imagined possible! Thanks to Coach Gio and his wife, Christina, for making me sign up for TNT! Thanks to Coach Brock for coaching and encouraging me and always having my back. Thanks, Danielle, for her help in dialing in my macros!

Brittany Ann Metzner ‘BAM’ | 2nd Place Female & 3-time Placer in the Top 3 | Mom of 2, Wife, Nurse, PR Enthusiast


TNT has made us look at food in a totally different light. I was eating once a day, had no energy to workout and felt sick all the time.

I thought this way of eating was a healthy way to lose weight but it was doing more harm than good.

Over the six week challenge, I learned that my body needs the right food and in the right quantities in order to have the energy and strength to live and work out. Eating healthy is a new way of living in our house, and I want to give a big thank you to Danielle for taking time out of her schedule to help us with the meals. I also want to thank Coach Gio for pushing us and for being a great coach! They both made a huge impact in our lives – and were the keys to unlocking our successes – and we can’t thank them enough.

Lastly, additional water and sleep helped out in recovering from tough workouts. Thank you OC3 TNT!!!

Kimmy & John Diipla | Husband and Wife Duo who commute from Galesburg for the “Best Hour of their Day”


Going into the TNT experience as a newer member of our gym, I really didn’t know what to expect. The things that I knew to be factual were my goals. Everything else was an unknown.

GOALS:

  1. Make the CrossFit Games masters qualifier
  2. Gain strength
  3. Build lean muscle (no more skinny fat girl)

And the fact was that in order to meet those goals, my diet needed to change. I would have to go from my version of healthy to trying something completely different.

The first couple weeks into the challenge, I lost weight. This worried me as my energy level was a bit sluggish, which started changing around the third week or so. My body was adjusting. Then my abs came back out of nowhere!  They were always there I guess, just hiding a bit. The next big boost was when Coach Colin programmed a WOD on February 12th which included a heavy Karen in the MIDDLE of a another WOD.

I did it!

First EVER 20 pound Karen and I did it in the middle of another workout.

The next thing that improved was my strength. My 3×3 back squat weight is now my 5×5 weight and I felt strong and solid. My cardio stamina through the workouts has improved and, at one point just recently, I wanted to cry mid-workout. It hurt – and I mean it hurt something awful – but I looked up, saw Coach Gio and Brittany. They said, “We are beating Gary!” and I went as hard as I could. All out! (My husband and I are great partners but ultra-competitive with each other.) I also PR’d my power clean in 18.2, which was great considering I don’t typically like to power clean.

Overall, the TNT experience was fantastic. Coach Brock has been supportive and encouraging and given suggestions throughout the challenge. Our team has cheered each other on, shared recipes and posted a lot of encouraging meal pictures.

What has brought me the most meaning is 1) the new relationships that have been made and 2) watching others make progress. From Brittany’s new PR clean and weight loss, to Julia gaining more muscle, Danielle hitting a PR, Samantha losing weight for her wedding, my husband seeing improvement in his workouts, Colin Steifer making daily gains, and finally seeing Colin Cartee PR and have probably one of the top ten worst PR dances ever.

Ultimately everyone’s own specific goal is to be a better version of what they were yesterday and the TNT challenge helped make that a reality. I’ve met two of my three goals and am working my ass off to get that third goal, which is very possible.

Do I think that I am more deserving of anyone else to be a finalist in the TNT challenge? No. We should all be included. There are tons of improvements in the TNT WOD. One thing is for certain, I am not the strongest, leanest, fastest athlete at CrossFit OC3, but I am persistent, head strong and determined to be the best I can be!

Karla Carpenter | Superwoman Strong & Strict Musle-Ups Only


Regardless of where you are on your fitness journey, there’s always a beginning and a middle but there should never be an end. Of all of the events we put on throughout the year, this is the ONE event we strongly encourage our members to partake in because we believe health comes first. Until next year!

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