Jay Bertovich “They just think I’m nuts but my wife says I look great”

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1) Jay we know you have your own Landscape company (Big Time Plug!) and you were a strong competitor in the nutrition challenge. But what else can you tell us about yourself?

I grew up in the beautiful town of Cohasset where I graduated high school in 2002. I then went to Syracuse University to study industrial design where I met the love of my life. We now live in marshfield on an old tomato farm with our two dogs (pugs) and 8 chickens. On the weekends after work we love taking our jeep on duxbury beach with our dogs. Other than that it’s work work work. 

2) You have this quiet, determined, and methodical approach to your workouts. How do you keep your emotions in check?

My wife says jokingly I have no emotions. But to be honest I attribute my quiet, determined, methodical approach to yoga. In past Winters during my time off I have practiced yoga. My work is very physically demanding so yoga was a low impact way to stay active and stay loose during my offseason. Yoga teaches you to stay calm through deep slow breathing techniques even in the most challenging of posses. I guess I have applied those same breathing technique to help stay calm and collected in my crossfit workouts. It’s just a way to take your mind off the pain. 

3) Jay it was quite impressive to see your transformation during the nutrition challenge. Is that prescription for wellness something you will adopt going forward?

I have always tried to eat very healthy. You are what you eat. The paleo challenge however was very refreshing. With only a few minor changes to my previous diet I was able to cut a few pounds which really helped me in almost all aspects of crossfit. I’ll admit during the challenge I was struggling at first with minimal energy for workouts, but I feel that towards the end I hit my stride and now combining the paleo diet with a few added carbs I have been able to maintain my current weight and still have energy for my workouts. 

4) What did your friends and family think?

I guess I haven’t really heard that much from my friends and family other than the paleo diet has kinda rubbed off on a few of them. They just think I’m nuts but my wife says I look great. 

5) I believe this is your second go around with CrossFit as an fitness regimen, what sparked your interest in CrossFit Scicoh?

So I started my business in 2008 and I use to work out with my friends at that time when they still lived in the area. One of those friends was always very passionate about alternative methods of working out well before crossfit gyms were a thing. We use to go to his parents house where he had a great gym set up. We use to flip tires, do farmers walks with fat grips, chop wood, sledgehammer and do Olympic lifting. He actually started a very successful crossfit gym on the south shore a few years back. Ive never been, its just too far for me. Anyways, I stopped working out around that time because I felt it was too much to be hitting the gym after a long day of landscaping. More recently seeing the crossfit games on TV sparked my interest and my plan was to try it out over last winter. I did on ramp until the Winter of 2015 hit and was sidelined for a while cleaning up the snow. I can honestly say I never thought I would have made it this far. I thought working out and then working all day would just start adding up and taking a toll on my body, but it was just the opposite. By working out in the morning it really helps me get warmed up for my day. Crossfit workouts are very intense but usually short, so it is manageable. Combined with warm ups and great Coaching it has become a permanent part of my daily routine. 

6) Jay more so than any other member, you spread the love with your presence at various class times. How would you describe the community as a whole?

I do sometimes come later in the day so I get a chance to meet a few other members. As a whole I feel our members are all very friendly. We are in it together through the worst of the worst. 

7) You took a vacation to Europe recently, how was that? 

Yes, last month I was lucky enough to travel to Paris with my wife and my parents. My wife and I have plans to start a family soon so it was kind of our last big trip for a while. We rented an apartment for a week and we just tried to blend in with the crowds and do like the locals do. We woke every morning had a few fresh croissants with our cafe and planned out our day. It is a beautiful city and a blessing to have had an opportunity to see it. 

Pray for Paris. 

8) Lastly how would you define your short and long term goals?

My short term goals are to continue following the paleo diet and this winter once I finish up my season I plan to really go hard at crossfit to see what I’m capable of. I figure with a last name like Bertovich with Croatian descent I’m destined to be one of those strong men or a crossfit competitor. So I’ll just keep chipping away and we’ll see what happens. 

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