21-15-9 reps for time:
dumbbell thruster (45/25)
ring push-up
abmat sit-up
then, 400m run

Broccoli Made Cool?

The Boulder-based advertising firm Victors and Spoils is trying to make broccoli cool.  In a recent experiment, investigative New York Times reporter Michael Moss posed the following questions to the firm, “How would you get people to want to buy and eat broccoli? What would your campaign look like? What would the message be? What would you do that all the well-intentioned government-funded campaigns have failed to do for generations?”

And with that line of questioning, the firm set out to come up with an ad campaign to make broccoli cool and desirably edible.  Check-out Moss’ article, Broccoli’s Extreme Makeover.

When I think back to broccoli and my childhood I picture a warm summer evening and sitting at the dinner table with my family.  The doors are open and if we finished our dinners we could go play outside for the last few moments of daylight.  But broccoli stood between us and the backdoor.  We’d sit at the table for the next hour watching the sun set…and watching our broccoli.  The idea of chewing it made me gag.  How could I get out of this?  Maybe my brother would eat it for me?  Where was the dog?  Why were my parents so mean?  And didn’t they realize that this was really hard for me!?

Flashforward to two weeks ago.  Eric and I ordered carryout from Aloy Thai (which has a great gluten-free menu folks).  I shouted my order down the stairs to Eric, “I’ll have the Panang Curry…and can I get extra broccoli please?”

What caused this change?  CrossFit and Paleo and Zone.

The more I did CrossFit the more I wanted to do better in every workout, be lean, and be healthy.  PR’ing was fun and fueling my body to enable this was my priority.  I took the CrossFit dietary prescription to heart (Eat meat and vegetables, nuts and seeds, some fruit, little starch and no sugar. Keep intake to levels that will support exercise but not body fat.”) and all of the sudden, broccoli became cool.

Did you eat your broccoli as a kid?  Do you now?  What caused the change?  And can an ad campaign make broccoli as desirable as junk food?  Post to comments.