Spent a week in Tokyo a couple weeks ago. Didn’t really get the opportunity to work out much the first couple of days there because I was too busy walking around and taking pics of Akihabara, Shibuya, Ginza, etc. Plus, there was hardly any room to exercise. There was no chance in hell I could do a quick body-weight metcon in my icky capsule hotel in the red light district of Shinjuku or get a run in the city streets (didn’t live near a park and still didn’t know where any were located at the time). Eventually, I switched hotels for more space and to escape the sketchiness and insecurity of my first one. After having reliable wi-fi access at my new hotel, I started looking up CrossFit boxes in Tokyo. Unlike Korea, CrossFit and Reebok in general isn’t as big in Japan, but there were still 3 boxes a couple subway stops away.

my spacious capsule suite temple and Tokyo Tower Selfie! Tokyo Tower View of Tokyo Brunch in Sukiji Sukiji Fish Market restaurants

Based on the layout, I decided to visit Sukiji Fish Market, a temple, Tokyo Tower, and then walk to Reebok CrossFit Roppongi the next day. I did the first 3 things rather quickly, but it took me a couple hours to find the box. It was 5:30 in the afternoon, and I hardly ate anything except the sashimi at Sukiji for brunch. My feet were falling off from all the walking I did including trying to find this box, and I got frisked by the Police in Roppongi because I guess I was too suspicious-looking taking pictures of the neighborhood. Without any cellular or wi-fi access, I was about to call it a night. Shortly after, I got a hold of public wi-fi at a mall, looked at a map of the box’s location, and realized I was just across the street from it.

The box was a part of a nice, fairly new looking building kind of tucked off to the side of one of the busy streets there. The entrance looked new and very modern similar to the nice boxes in Seoul. I walk in and was greeted by one of the trainers who squared me away with a spot for me in the next class. The other trainer was in the middle of a WOD. A couple minutes later, another guy walked in, and we started a conversation. I soon realized he was the man from this box’s homepage I looked up last night and from another one Reebok CrossFit Heart and Beauty. This man was Nicholas Pettas, the owner of both.

Anyway, the WOD was about to begin. I was joined by one other person, another fellow American who went to the same university as me coincidentally. We first did a warm-up that consisted of rowing, broad jumps, and lunges. Then we delved into the strength portion: 8-minutes EMOM 3x deadlifts at 80% of your 1RM. Nic decided to take my pic and post it on their Facebook page. Finally, the metcon: 250 meter row or run followed by 15 wall ball shots for 4 rounds if I remember correctly. It felt like a full on sprint with how short it was. Anyway, I got my money’s worth with how tired I was. After the WOD, I hung out and talked some more with the trainers. I learned this box was really new only opening a couple weeks ago, and Nic Pettas was a K-1 kickboxing champion. I later found out he’s an actor, Karate champion, and was the host of a Karate documentary I saw a couple years ago – I knew I recognized him from somewhere else.

I just want to say that I had a great time at Reebok CrossFit Roppongi with the WOD, quality coaching, and friendly staff they provided. It’s across the street from the fancy Tokyo Midtown shopping complex and Roppongi Station. I plan on visiting again when I’m in Tokyo.

The front desk post-WOD pic again post-WOD pic the upscale Tokyo Midtown mall

@ReebokONE: Nic Pettas | Fuel the Fire | Portrait of a Trainer – YouTube.