Dave "Toad" C.'s Profile

Great coaches, friendly faces, infectious energy, and all the fun and competitiveness of Crossfit without the intimidation that can scare off newbies and breed ogres. I'm so happy with my decision to join PCF. It has renewed my enthusiasm for working out, something I never really lost, yet never knew how much better it could be.

Previously, I was an Equinox member and loved every second of it for two years. I was the Foursquare Mayor of Equinox Westwood for three months! I took classes twice a week (Tabata, Whipped, any cross training classes), lifted heavy once a week, worked on gym tricks, and chose a workout off http://Crossfit.com once a week. Sometimes, I rested.

Gradually, I got more into Crossfit workouts after noticing that the people who were "beating" me in fun gym competitions were almost always Crossfitters. It was becoming impossible for me to complete most Crossfit workouts (equipment-wise) at the Eeq, so I tried out nearly every Crossfit gym on the Westside - Brick, Crossfit LA, Focus Culver City, Dogtown, LAX Crossfit (which I loved), and Paradiso. After a month of gym hopping, I signed up for Paradiso's On-Ramp program and I couldn't be happier that I did.

Why did I end up joining PCF?

- PCF's on-ramp/intro program is a month long. If you're in pretty good shape, your compression shorts might groan at the thought of doing intro classes for a month. IMO, it's 100% worth it to take the time to learn proper form and the coaches at PCF really hammer that home in effective ways. There is nothing more terrifying than being thrown to the wolves in a workout with tons of snatches and cleans when you don't even know what they are or how to do them without destroying yourself and future generations of your clan. This month prevents that from happening.

- They have a great website with instructional videos and previews of the next day's workout. If you're like me, you can go full-on gym nerd and watch the videos while eating dinner. The best part about the site videos is that they're demo'ed by the coaches at a speed everyone can understand, not just taken off YouTube showing Crossfit superheroes that are smashing WODs in the face and then ripping doors off cars with their neck muscles to demo the advanced kipping door rip.

- Lots of smiling faces before, during, and after the workout. I think that people don't forget the fun part of working out here. It doesn't turn into a nightly f-bomb filled gruntfest (I do drop the occasional s-bomb when pushed, cannot lie). Nice Shrek who has a donkey friend would be here. Mean pre-meeting-Fiona Shrek would not. If you're looking to find friendly faces in your Saturday intro class, start it and be that first smiling face. It makes everything a lot more fun.

- No pressure to jump into heavy weights or "RXed" workouts if you're not ready, but encouragement to be awesome if you are. I feel safer doing the movements here than I did in some classes at Equinox, despite the fact that the weights are heavier and movements of higher intensity. Instead of just letting everyone go for speed in the name of all that is Paleo Burgener Zone Burpee Wall Ball Kipping Air Squat Thruster, there's an emphasis on doing things right (and I feel like I'm learning so much every day).

Sure, I miss my cushy stretching mat that I used to fall on my face on, spotless yoga studio where I would suck at yoga once a month and try not to let one go, my heated massage table, sauna and steam room, and all the cardio ass-kicking (yes, cardio ass, that thing) fun I had at Equinox, but joining PCF has gotten me excited about working out all over again.

There are gym superheroes all over this box and you'll have no problem finding gym idols for pretty much every lift, movement, or skill who will help you find your way to joining the League of Extraordinary Gymmery. Really, who doesn't like superheroes?

I've been to a lot of Equinoxes in my day (2 in NYC, 1 in Boston, and all but one of them in SoCal) and the OC Equinox is definitely on the better end of the spectrum.

Like the South Bay Equinox, the gym is largely laid out on one big floor. I came on a weekend at an off time, so it was pretty empty for me, but I could definitely see how it would get packed during the week. I really liked the layout and it was nice that they had an ample amount of space for people who wanted to do Olympic lifts and use free weights. They also have a big rowing room, which is pretty unusual for So. Cal Equinoxes and it was really fun to hear all the positive energy and crazy screaming of the members that were just loving their workout!

You can definitely get your space here, but if you're a big machine guy (I'm not), you might find the facilities a little lacking compared to some other gyms. If you're a fan of open spaces for plyos, oly lifts, and free weights, I think this is a great spot. It's really confusing to find the front door, but I figure that only happens once :)

Good gym overall. It's a vortex for cell service if you have Sprint, but that's not the gym's fault. An old guy drank my water and didn't offer to get me a new one, but that's also not the gym's fault. They also have a ton of jump ropes in great shape, so if you're a big jump roper like me, you're set!

Out of all the Crossfit gyms I've visited (Crossfit LA, Focus, Dogtown, Paradiso, Brick), I found the vibe at LAX Crossfit to be the most comfortable and inviting for new people. The facility is bright, big, and the equipment is well-kept and treated with respect - impressive considering the beat down it goes through on a regular basis!

I'm fairly familiar with Crossfit from doing WODs on my own at Equinox (if you're thinking of doing the same thing, it's not easy, the cushy embrace of Equinox and social atmosphere are not made for timed workouts) and dropped into LAX Crossfit to do their Tough Mudder workout. Because I'm doing the Tough Mudder next year, I wanted to check it out and well, it sounded like a ton of fun (and it was!).

Beyond the workout and the great encouragement from coach Dan, I LOVED the fact that every single member that made eye contact with me came up to me, shook my hand, asked me my name, and was totally willing to chat it up and joke around before and after the workout. Sure, once the workout got going, it was all business, but that's the way it should be. There were no egos, just support and positive energy from this amazing facility and group of members.

I LOVED LAX Crossfit and if I lived closer, I'd join this gym in a second.

Hooray, another 6 months goes by and my debit card gets charged AGAIN for the same amount! I didn't sign for it, wasn't called about it, just $80 down the toilet because these crooks felt like charging my account again.

I'm going to have to prepare for this bi-annual charge for nothing. What do you do when this happens? Does the Better Business Bureau care about "doctor's" offices?

Add me to the list of satisfied customers that have found their way to Voltec via Yelp!

After taking my car in for a recall at the dealership, I was told that the battery on my car was in "poor" shape by the dealer. While this was realistic considering my car is five years old (typically the life of a battery), as a huge skeptic to anything the dealer tells me, I knew I had to get a second opinion. So I found Voltec on Yelp and drove down.

For context, I have a Honda Civic Hybrid. As any hybrid owner knows, you get absolutely destroyed when it comes to $ for everything from routine maintenance to things like batteries and oil changes because EVERYTHING is "made for the hybrid." Regardless of how much you know about cars, a lot of times you just have to believe them because you don't want your car to break.

I stopped by Voltec and asked them to check out my battery to see if it was really donezo and if it was, I was happy to get a new one. When they tested it, we saw that my battery was giving about half of the juice that it should have been, so it was time for it to go.

Joe explained to me that I didn't need to get a "hybrid battery," a smaller battery that "fit" under a random plastic cover under the hood. He said that I could get a battery used for the non-hybrid  Honda Civic without any modification that was twice as powerful, a bit larger, but still able to be mounted under the hood without a problem. With that alone, I saved $100 because I wasn't getting a "special" battery unnecessarily for my car, which anyone at Pep Boys or O'Reilly's would have recommended because that's what the book would say to put in there.

Joe specializes in batteries and car electrical systems, so he knew that I'd be more than ok with a less expensive battery that was more powerful, even if it meant that I was no longer using a stock piece of plastic under the hood that held the smaller battery in place. I was all for it.

After 15 minutes, my car started up fine with my bigger, 7 year battery in place. I got my 5% Yelp discount, chatted it up with the guys replacing my battery and was on my way. Chances are, this battery will last longer than my car and I was more than happy to pay for the level of service and honesty I received at Voltec.

If you need to replace your battery or get work done on your starter or alternator, trust the guys at Voltec!

With all the pizza, burgers, and fried everything on the Venice Boardwalk, Fruit Gallery is one of few places to pick up healthy sandwiches and drinks. And they're really good!

The people that work there are really nice and the sandwiches are consistently great. The prices are reasonable for what you get and you never feel like you need a nap after eating here.

While it's not a fruit gallery inside, this is one exhibit you won't mind visiting a few times.

I randomly ended up here the other day and was very pleasantly surprised!

With a similar selection to a Gelson's or Whole Foods, this Sprouts is just a big, big open layout of produce, nuts, and regular grocery goods. They have a good selection of organic produce along with a ton of different nuts, dried fruits, and all kinds of other stuff that you don't find as much of at your local Ralph's or Albertson's.

What I really liked here was the quality of the selection. Like Whole Foods and Gelson's, you'll find some things here that you don't find everywhere, but you'll also find a few things here that you don't see at either of these larger chains, which makes for a pretty fun shopping experience. All the produce looked pretty fresh and there is an absolutely HUGE vitamin area if that's your thing.

A little cheaper than Whole Foods and Gelson's (and even Ralph's and Albertson's for some of the bougie items that are found in their "natural food" aisles) and really nice cashiers (even with the long lines). It's out of the way for me, but I think I'll be back!

It's amazing how many reviewers are talking about the clowns at this Jiffy Lube breaking something on their cars. I have now joined the club!

Scott N., I feel you, bro. After getting an oil change here for OVER $100 (I had to go to a funeral that day so I was going for speed over price), I left with synthetic oil in my car and the relief of knowing I probably don't have to get another oil change for the next 5-6 months.

I jumped on the 10 East to head to the funeral, then I hear a huge slamming sound followed by "CHCHCHCHCHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!" and I realize I'm unable to turn my wheel completely to the right anymore. The entire skid plate (it's this big plastic piece under your hood that basically is the "shield" under your car) under my car wasn't reattached properly because all the clips were broken off by the folks at Jiffy Lube.

I dragged the huge black plastic piece under my car until the Fairfax exit (from Overland) and had to exit because it was clearly not workable to make it down to San Diego like this. With homeless people pointing at my car (yes, thank you homeless people, I realize the whole front of my car is dragging on the ground) and a very melted plastic skid plate from the heat generated from the 10 Freeway, I pulled into another shop that attached everything with wire ties for free because they saw what a terrible job the people at the shop on Overland did.

Yes, I assume I got oil changed in my car, but the fact of the matter is that I have a $120 fix waiting for me the next time I want to go carless to fix the skid plate that these guys ruined.

It doesn't matter how much Lube these Jiffys use, do not let them take you for a ride, no matter how desperate you are. I'm sure there are other Jiffy Lubes that don't break things.

And the manager is a really terrible guy.

Every now and then, a business is so bad that you almost have to write a review of them as a public service to everyone who uses the Internet. This is one of those reviews.

It's fine that the business owners here are insistent upon people paying cash - what they do between themselves and Uncle Sam is their own business. Like Thomas G., the problem with this place is the level of service and the attitude of the business owners.

Like with every car I've owned, I blew out my stock speakers and needed to get them replaced. After reading the reviews here, I figured it would be nice to support a local business. I should have listened to Thomas G. After giving them $70 in cash (you can only haggle if you pay in cash) for a pair of speakers, I left for a half hour and came back to pick up my car. I was told that they did a great job and they sent me on my way.

Little did I know that because of their "work," my door was now incapable of opening and my stock automatic door locks were now completely malfunctioning. When I called them to let them know, their first response was that it had to be my car or that it was already like that. I think I would know if I had to get out of the passenger side of my car this whole time.

They begrudgingly told me to bring it back in and that they would "take care of it." When I told them that they should refund the cost of labor (I am a firm believer that it doesn't make any sense to pay people to do damage to your property), the owners became irate and said that it was "clearly stated" that labor couldn't be refunded as he pointed to a 8.5x11 piece of paper with size 18 Times New Roman font randomly taped behind a desk (of course, I didn't get a receipt because I paid in cash because I don't think they want a record of the sale) so I never was told or was given this notification. If that's the rule, that's the rule, but these are the kind of guys that  you think are going to screw your car up just for fun.

I was definitely upset and wasn't being particularly kind myself, but I still found it extremely inappropriate that they said that they're "not like a Black (meaning African-American) shop"  when it comes to their level of service. Wow.

It doesn't matter if this place seems cheaper, go ANYWHERE else on the Westside and let this miserable business find victims that don't have the Internet.

The Veggie Grill opening in Santa Monica is truly a Christmas miracle to the food loving citizens of the Westside. No longer will we be forced to drive down to El Segundo to delight at their delicious vegetarian fare AND they have a parking lot (oh yes, it's true).

Like the El Segundo location, The Veggie Grill in Santa Monicaserves some of the best non-meat meats you'll ever have in delicious sandwich and salad form. Every single non-vegetarian I've taken to TVG (as it is known in the streets) has loved it and been pleasantly surprised at how good the food is. This location is significantly smaller than the El Segundo one, so I could definitely imagine it getting crowded, but it deserves to be. For around $10, you'll be eating happy, relatively healthy, and you won't have that fast food hangover feeling the next morning.

My favorites are the Santa Fe Chicken Sandwich with kale, though the sweet potato fries are definitely good as well. I have a few friends who love the Carne Asada sandwich, which I've enjoyed in the past as well.

Ho ho ho, my favorite vegetarian restaurant that anyone will like has arrived to the Westside!