Occupation?
Financial Advisor
Favorite movies, books, TV shows, etc?
Books – Lymond Chronicles, Chronicles of Narnia
Movies – The Lives of Others, Bridget Jones Diary (only the first one, and I’m not ashamed! )
When did you join DCCF?
July 2012
What sort of changes have you seen in your body, health and fitness since starting?
I had been doing boot camps and Body Pump for a couple of years before and was bored out of my mind. There is only so much you can do to perfect a bear crawl, and Body Pump was tortuously dull. My much younger cousin suggested CrossFit to me and I started researching online. At the time, there were only a few places open and most of them had very limited class times available, except for DCCF. The first time I walked in, I felt so out of place! I swear it smelled like testosterone. After the Elements class, I would come to class and stay in the way back and just try to figure out what all the abbreviations meant on the board. I think it was Heather who finally dragged me towards the front and that’s when I got hooked. I did everything wrong for a long time. I tried to get heavy weight before I understood the technique, I compared myself to those around me (who were freaking 20-somethings!), I ignored the parts that were hard or scary and did the stuff that I felt comfortable with, I stayed at low weights in some lifts (snatch, cleans, anything overhead), and then I met Clinton (who won’t do one of these so here’s a little bio from my point of view). Clinton was all in and had a million ideas for how to approach this stuff. He told me to eat better (which is a science and all-consuming obsession on top of your CrossFit obsession), read the articles posted on the website and THINK about the WODs. If the RX weight was heavy – it’s not a fast WOD, if it’s light, it is, etc. To work on form and to stay late and do extra work. This opened my eyes to a whole new world.
The best part about CrossFit is that you will never know how to do CrossFit. That is an exaggeration, but true in so many ways. The more I learn, the more I have to learn. This is the first time in my working out life that the method is dynamic. This year, my focus has been technique. I spent last year fighting a back injury that had forced me to back way off my deadlift and back squat weight. My back was hurt because I was doing it all wrong. I’m really excited for the next round of 1 rep max testing, because I think I’m going to see pretty good improvements.
And this brings me back to the question – what changes have I seen? Most of them are on the inside. Sure I can lift far more than I could when I started, and I did several kipping handstand pushups the other day, but it’s how I feel about myself and how I look at myself that has changed. I like what I’ve learned and I like feeling strong. I love leaving DCCF after doing something I was afraid to do – and this happens ALL.THE.TIME.
I love the fact that I’m old AF and yet I know that I’m not a strong as I’m going to be. There is so much to look forward to!
Tell us about one of your goals for 2015.
I looked at my goal card the other day and had to restrain myself from ripping it down and setting fire to it. WHY did I put deadlifts and squats on there??? But then I realized that I was doing the other stuff. And that I just exceeded my snatch goal by 5lbs a couple weeks ago. And my technique is better. So my new goal is to get 140# clean and 95# snatch by year end.
Did you have any athletic role models when you were younger? If so, who and why?
Nadia Comenici. She was the first female athlete in my generation to capture the attention of the whole world.
Give us some background on your history with sports?
I dabbled in basketball (I was a disaster) and swim team (consistently mediocre) and I did synchronized swimming for a few years. Recreationally, I spent my high school years in San Diego and would spend entire days in the ocean getting my friends into life-threatening situations in the name of adventure.
What are your hobbies, interests or talents outside of CrossFit?
I’m a very talented reader
Favorite thing you’ve done or seen in 2015?
I drove on the wrong side of the for the first time. Alone, at night. Twenty kilometers under the speed limit.
Any upcoming trips you’re looking forward to taking?
Ireland, San Diego
Tell us something interesting or surprising about yourself:
I won a Spelling Bee at my junior high and went to state finals. I know, I know – fascinating.
After a couple beers, ask me about that time I met the Scorpions and Motley Crue