WODzilla and Paco Suricato: the two protagonists of StreetWOD finally have a name

1. Official statement: we have baptized two adult animals

There are events that change the course of humanity.

The arrival of man on the Moon.

The invention of the Internet.

The discovery that you can do squats without posting an Instagram story.

And now, after weeks of deliberations, discussions, and a worrying number of absurd proposals, StreetWOD's gorilla and meerkat have a name.

Yes, ladies and gentlemen.

No more calling them "the gorilla" and "the meerkat."

No more referring to them as "the big one" and "the little one."

And that's over about "the one who really trains" and "the one who comes to talk."

Well, probably not the latter.

We officially present:

WODzilla and Paco Suricato.

Two names.

Two completely different personalities.

And the same hobby: paying a monthly fee to end up lying on the ground wondering what the need was.

They are not new characters. They have been appearing in our stories, training and adventures for a long time.

We've seen them prepare for competitions, argue about shoes, face impossible workouts, and question sports decisions that seemed reasonable five minutes before.

They just didn't have a name until now.

And after seeing how they behave, it would possibly have been better to remain anonymous.

2. WODzilla: a mountain of muscles with minimal patience

Name: WODzilla.

Species: gorilla.

Occupation: training, lifting heavy things and supporting Paco.

Specialty: strength, discipline and looks that make words unnecessary.

Biggest weakness: his training partner.

WODzilla is a huge, muscular gorilla with an expression that seems to permanently say:

"If you ask me another stupid question, I'll change box."

He is the typical colleague who arrives on time.

Heat correctly.

Prepare the bar.

Listen to the coach's explanations.

And when the WOD starts, it does exactly what it says on the board.

All rounds.

All repetitions.

Even the ones that no one is looking at.

A behavior that Paco considers unnecessarily extremist.

WODzilla doesn't need big motivational speeches.

He's not wearing a T-shirt with the phrase "NO PAIN NO GAIN."

He doesn't shout before lifting a bar.

Just train.

And when he finishes, he picks up his records.

Because WODzilla has a revolutionary theory: the material you use does not just return to its place.

A theory that he has not yet managed to prove to Paco.

Why WODzilla?

Because a gorilla of that size couldn't be called Manolito.

Well, power could.

But imagine hearing:

"COME ON, MANOLITO, YOU HAVE TEN THRUSTERS LEFT!"

It's a pretty epic loss.

WODzilla combines two fundamental concepts of its existence:

The WODs.

And a gigantic monster capable of lifting weights that would make a forklift cry.

Although there is an important difference compared to movie monsters.

WODzilla does not destroy cities.

He only destroys his legs on Mondays.

3. Paco Suricato: the only athlete who warms up his credit card before his muscles

And now we come to the second protagonist.

The little one.

The restless

The one who always has something to ask.

Name: Paco Suricato.

Species: meerkat.

Occupation: part-time athlete, depending on availability.

Specialty: finding excuses, buying equipment and negotiating reps.

Greatest Talent: Getting WODzilla to lose his temper without uttering a single curse word.

Paco is a small, nervous meerkat, with huge eyes and an extraordinary ability to detect any activity that involves resting.

It's not that he doesn't like training.

He loves CrossFit.

He likes the environment.

He likes the camaraderie.

He likes clothes.

He likes sneakers.

He likes smoothies.

He likes to take photos after training.

What is a little worse is the training part.

Paco has more sports equipment than some professional athletes.

A watch that measures sleep.

Another device that measures heart rate.

Specific running shoes.

Weight lifting shoes.

HYROX shoes.

And some sneakers that he bought because they were on sale, although he still doesn't know what they are for.

It has creatine.

Protein.

Electrolytes.

Energy gels.

And an app that reminds you to drink water.

But when the coach says it's time to do 50 burpees, Paco asks if there is a less aggressive alternative for his nervous system.

How to sit.

Why Paco Suricato?

Because after so much time starring in our stories, our little meerkat deserved something more than a generic name.

I needed one with personality.

A close, friendly and easy to remember name.

And among all the possibilities, one appeared that fit perfectly:

Paco Suricato.

No world champion titles.

No unpronounceable last names.

No superhero names.

Paco.

A traditional name for a character who, precisely, has nothing ordinary about him.

Because our Paco is capable of turning a mobility session into a twenty-minute conversation.

From showing up to training with a backpack that seems prepared to cross the Himalayas.

And to convince WODzilla to sign up for a competition before asking him if he himself is ready.

—Hey, WODzilla, do you like my name?

-Yeah.

—Do you think I should use Paco RX?

-No.

—Paco Elite?

-No.

—Paco Pro Series?

—Paco, please.

-Okay. But if one day I win HYROX, I want to be called Don Francisco Suricato.

WODzilla sighed.

The baptism had just started and I already needed a vacation.

4. How they met: a friendship that started with a bad decision

No one remembers exactly when it all started.

WODzilla claims that Paco showed up at the gym one day and started asking questions.

Paco claims that it was WODzilla who approached him because he detected enormous sporting potential.

The witnesses have another version.

It was Monday.

The coach had programmed a For Time with a Time Cap of 20 minutes.

Five rounds of running, thrusters and burpees.

WODzilla was preparing his bar.

Paco showed up with a coffee, brand new sneakers, and completely unjustified confidence.

—Sorry, have you been here long?

-Yeah.

—And this is CrossFit?

-Yeah.

—And do you have to do everything it says on the board?

-Yeah.

—Also burpees?

-Also.

Paco watched the training for a few seconds.

—And isn't there a simpler version?

—You can do it scaled.

—And an even more scaled version?

—It depends on your level.

—And a version that I can do sitting down?

WODzilla put the bar down.

He stared at him.

And he understood that this Monday was going to be much longer than expected.

Since then they have trained together.

We don't know exactly why.

Possibly because WODzilla is too good of a person to abandon.

And because Paco has discovered that having a huge and strong partner is very useful when you have to move pucks.

5. Two ways to understand CrossFit

WODzilla and Paco are completely different.

WODzilla believes in consistency.

Paco believes in sports equipment offers.

WODzilla works the technique.

Paco looks for videos titled "How to improve your performance without training more."

WODzilla respects rest times.

Paco too.

Especially the breaks.

WODzilla tries to improve your personal brand.

Paco tries to remember what his personal brand was, because he wrote it down in an application that he no longer has installed.

WODzilla prepares competitions months in advance.

Paco buys the official t-shirt and considers that the preparation is practically finished.

But, oddly enough, they have something in common.

They both enjoy sports.

They both celebrate the progress.

They both know what it means to suffer in training.

And the two return to the gym the next day.

Well, Paco comes back whenever he doesn't feel sore, sleepy, a meeting, calf discomfort or a sufficiently convincing excuse.

Because behind all his nonsense, Paco has something that WODzilla values.

He never loses his sense of humor.

Not even when he's doing wall balls and discovers he still has 70 left.

6. The adventures you have already had together

Although they did not have a name until now, WODzilla and Paco have been starring in our stories for some time.

We have seen them prepare their first HYROX as if they were going to war.

WODzilla reviewed the training and prepared the essentials.

Paco carried a backpack with enough supplies to supply an Olympic team.

We've seen them investigate the mysterious partner who always finishes first.

WODzilla was trying to find a reasonable explanation.

Paco was convinced that this individual was using an unknown mathematical system.

We have also seen them prepare for HYROX Barcelona.

WODzilla organized his rhythms, rested and reviewed the competition.

Paco was looking for ways to cancel his registration without losing the money.

And in our stories about training, recovery and nutrition they have proven time and time again that the world of fitness can be as useful as it is absurd.

Because at StreetWOD we like to talk about sports seriously.

But we have no intention of taking ourselves too seriously.

And much less Paco.

7. First official interview with WODzilla and Paco Suricato

To celebrate the baptism, StreetWOD has organized an exclusive interview with the protagonists.

The conversation lasted five minutes.

Three of them were lost because Paco wanted to know if the interview was paid.

StreetWOD: WODzilla, what do you think of your new name?

WODzilla: Okay.

StreetWOD: Do you like it?

WODzilla: Yes.

StreetWOD: Do you want to add something?

WODzilla: No.

StreetWOD: Paco, what about you?

Paco: I am very happy. I have some questions though.

StreetWOD: Go ahead.

Paco: Now that we have a name, are we famous?

StreetWOD: Not necessarily.

Paco: Are we going to get paid?

StreetWOD: No.

Paco: Are you going to sponsor us?

StreetWOD: We don't know.

Paco: Are they going to give us sneakers?

StreetWOD: We don't know either.

Paco: So why the hell did they baptize us?

WODzilla sighs.

StreetWOD: WODzilla, how would you define Paco in three words?

WODzilla: He won't shut up.

Paco: That's three words, but it seems like a fairly limited description of my talent.

StreetWOD: Paco, how would you define WODzilla?

Paco: He is my best friend.

WODzilla looks at him.

Paco: My training partner.

WODzilla nods.

Paco: My sports reference.

WODzilla nods again.

Paco: And my free personal trainer.

WODzilla: I'm not your coach.

Paco: But you correct my technique.

WODzilla: Because you're going to hurt yourself.

Paco: And you help me with the weights.

WODzilla: Because you don't collect the discs.

Paco: And you cheer me up when I'm tired.

WODzilla: Because you've been sitting for fifteen minutes.

Paco: See? It's like having a personal trainer.

The interview ends before WODzilla does something stupid.

8. What can we expect from them from now on

Baptism does not mean that they will change.

WODzilla will continue to be the huge, disciplined gorilla of few words who tries to train calmly.

Paco will continue to be that little whirlwind of questions, occurrences and excuses that turns any training into an adventure.

They will continue to appear in our articles about CrossFit, HYROX, DEKA, competitions, nutrition, recovery and all those situations that anyone who has ever stepped foot in a gym knows all too well.

Because StreetWOD is not a community of perfect superheroes.

Here we know that there are days when you lift more weight than ever.

And others where bending over to tie your shoes after doing squats seems like a test of survival.

We know that training is important.

Than rest too.

That doing reps correctly matters more than bragging about results.

And that you can take your training very seriously without losing the ability to laugh at yourself.

WODzilla represents that discipline that we would all like to have.

Paco represents that little inner voice that asks us if it is really necessary to do the last round.

And between the two of them they represent quite well what it means to train.

Strive.

Err.

Improve.

Return the next day.

And laugh along the way.

9. The official baptism: a ceremony that ended as expected

To close this historic event, we organized a small ceremony at the gym.

There were two names written on the board.

WODzilla.

Paco Suricato.

A solemn moment.

Emotional.

Almost historic.

Paco appeared with a bow tie.

WODzilla appeared in his training clothes.

"Today is a very important day," Paco announced.

"We have a For Time in ten minutes," WODzilla responded.

—Aren't we going to celebrate?

-After.

—With a cake?

-No.

—With a toast?

-No.

—With a speech?

—Paco...

—And don't we have a day off for baptism?

WODzilla started preparing his bar.

—Warm up.

Paco looked at his name on the board.

He smiled.

And he approached his companion.

—Hey, WODzilla.

-That?

—Now that we have our own name, can we have a representative?

-No.

—And merchandising?

-No.

—And a supplement sponsor?

—Paco.

—What if we sell t-shirts with our faces on them?

WODzilla closed his eyes.

He took a deep breath.

And for the first time in his life he seriously considered moving to a gym where no one talked to anyone.

Paco remained silent for three seconds.

A new personal record.

—WODzilla...

-THAT?

—Do you think that if my name is Paco RX I will do the training faster?

WODzilla grabbed the rope.

And he went to warm up at the other end of the gym.

10. Officially welcome to StreetWOD

After so many adventures, discussions and training, we can finally call them by their names.

WODzilla and Paco Suricato.

Two companions.

Two completely different ways of understanding sport.

And a friendship built on sweat, aches, jokes and the occasional argument over who has to pick up the records.

From now on they will continue to accompany us in each story.

WODzilla will try to put things in order.

Paco will try to avoid it.

And we will continue enjoying their adventures.

Because if we have learned anything after all this time, it is that CrossFit can be hard, demanding and exhausting.

But with the right partner, even the worst WOD becomes a good story.

Even if that partner is Paco.

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StreetWOD Moral: you can change your name, buy the best sneakers and wear a t-shirt that says "BEAST MODE." But burpees are going to continue to be just as sons of bitches.

Officially welcome, WODzilla and Paco Suricato!

Two companions. a gym. Thousands of repetitions. And a patience that runs out long before the Time Cap.