Turning the Curve

Joel Zayas • May 10, 2022
Kayakers paddle on a river under a stone bridge, surrounded by trees.

Sun is shining, the weather is sweet. Makes you wanna move, your dancing feet…

Bob Marley; Sun is Shining

Here we are, we’ve arrived at the warmer weather months (finally!). While the pollen is in full throttle, and my budget is now geared toward purchasing antihistamines. The optimist in me is excited for more sun around these parts, which usually means there’s an opportunity to get up and get out more often — even at the cost of a few sneezes along the way!

My most nostalgic moments always occur during the warmer seasons. The opportunity for taking on new hobbies and exploring new areas in the northeast; discovering new places I never knew existed, or taking on challenges I never thought to do.

Sometimes I wish I took more advantage of these things when I was younger. For example, I’ve only recently gone kayaking on the Charles River after years of seeing people out on the water having fun. Have I been living under a rock all these years? What’s prevented me from exploring and doing more? Why does it seem like something always comes up when I try to make time for myself?

Kayaking on the Charles. Tip: keep 6ft away from the swans. They bite!
Kayaking on the Charles. Tip: keep 6ft away from the swans. They bite!

Becoming opportunistic

I’m sure there are some folks out there who can relate and if you are anything like the old me (past tense, but I am old), you’ve probably passed up on many opportunities to take on new challenges because there seems to be always something going on.

Jim Carey giving the thumbs up

Have you ever seen the movie “yes man” with Jim Carey? If not, spoilers ahead… but the one thing I took away from that film was how sometimes our defenses can interfere with the potential for being the best version of ourselves. In the movie, Carl (Jim Carrey’s character), has gone through a lot of tough events in his life and his outlook and energy becomes increasingly negative. That is, until he visits a conference where the speaker convinces the masses – in cult-like fashion – to always say “yes” to every opportunity that presents itself.

Obviously this is a dry witted, humorous film and I’m not suggesting that you say “yes” to everything, but if there’s something to take away from the film, it’s the chance to allow more fun and adventure into your lives especially now, given all that we see going on in the world and having gone through an era of limited human interaction.

Hiking trip with the R3VIVE crew!
Hiking trip with the R3VIVE crew!

As I sit here today, moments before I take a mini-vacation to Puerto Rico (which almost did not happen due to all the excuses I constantly play out in my head), I think of all the things I want to do this summer and beyond, such as:

  • Continuing with swimming lessons;
  • Continuing with Salsa dance lessons;
  • Lose 10lbs over the course of the summer by eating healthier;
  • Go on longer walks and hiking with my dog, Olaf;
  • Read more books, especially outdoors;
  • Play more outdoor sports…

In closing

Rather than avoiding the chance for new experiences, I’m going to allow myself to be open to what may come, rather than overthinking and / or expecting the negative. Can you relate to being this way at times? If so, I hope that I have motivated you to make a small change in your life and allow things to come by saying “yes” more often.

Not to toot the horn of my gym, but a majority of the new things I want to try have all come via the motivation of others, mainly from our gym. As an owner, I’m extremely proud of the community we have cultivated at R3VIVE. We don’t only change lives for our members, we inspire extended change beyond our facility!

To those listening, whether you are a member or not, I challenge you to do the same!

The post Turning the Curve appeared first on R3VIVE FITNESS.

By Derek Saffold February 19, 2026
Strength expression is our ability to show or utilize the strength we have. We call it expression because in the world of lifting, CrossFit, functional fitness, or training, our ability to show that strength varies. Even though our potential strength is the same, we are not always able to fully express it the way we want. Whether that is hitting a max back squat, doing heavy thrusters in a CrossFit style workout, or hitting that heavy clean complex when olympic lifting, we will not always be able to hit our maxes, this is because of factors outside of just our strength itself.
By Derek Saffold January 27, 2026
Ever walk into the gym and not sure what to do? We put together a program to help eliminate that feeling and give you confidence and the accountability to reach your goals. Introducing EL3VATE where we want to EL3VATE your strength, habits, and mindset!
By Derek Saffold December 26, 2025
Hey R3VIVE Athletes, The Apex training cycle, going from January 5th to April 3rd, is our next training cycle! This will be the firt training cycle of the new year! this is a chance to refocus and get in some good work to help you reach your goals! lets all work together to crush this training cycle! Functional Fitness: The Apex Cycle is designed to make your year-long strength work truly functional, focusing on controlled, powerful movements, complexes under fatigue, and mandated touch-and-go reps to prepare you for mixed-modal workouts. Our strength culminates in the classic CrossFit Total and the "R3VIVE Other Total," while conditioning features a wide variety of time domains, movement volume builds (like wall balls, toes-to-bar, and burpees), and regular Friday retests of past workouts to track your progress and ensure you perform your absolute best. Build: Designed to bring together all your training from the past year and prepare you for your strongest performance yet. Our strength work will focus on controlled, powerful movements, building you up to test your limits with both the classic CrossFit Total and the "R3VIVE Other Total," which challenges your skill and strength balance. Expect a well-rounded program including unilateral strength, skill work, and core stability, with dedicated days for deadlifts, squats, gymnastics, and varied accessory work to keep you healthy and constantly progressing. For conditioning, we're tailoring the work to challenge you in new ways, featuring a wide variety of time domains and movements, and a specific volume build on common movements like wall balls, toes-to-bar, and burpees. Instead of a standard test/retest, we'll be performing regular retests of past workouts on Fridays, allowing you to easily track your progress and see how far you've come. Our weekly template balances intensity—with short, fast metcons on Mondays—with recovery, incorporating lower impact endurance work on Thursdays, and a strategic taper toward the end of the week to set you up for success on Friday! Partner workouts will wrap up your week every Saturday, bringing the whole community together.
More Posts