Member of the Month

Tell us a little bit about you and your family?

I live with my boyfriend Eric and more recently, my Dad Robin. My boyfriend is a mechanical

engineer and my father is a retired police officer. I have always had an affinity for animals and

luckily Eric does too. We live in a100 year old ranch house in old town Los Banos and have 3

dogs, 3 cats, a bearded dragon and a bunch of chickens. ��

Writing this down is a good reminder that this has been a major blessing.

Occupation?

I am a 7th grade Science teacher and work at Los Banos Junior High. Go Tigers!

Tell us something we don’t know about you?

I am a Polish citizen as well as an American citizen.

When did you start CrossFitting?

I have been doing Crossfit on and off since around 2020. I really appreciate what it allows me to

do outside the gym. The idea of putting oneself through difficult circumstances on purpose in

order to be able to handle the challenges of life appeals to me.

What did you think after completing your first CrossFit workout?

I think I was mostly just in awe of the abilities of the other Crossfitters in the gym. I really had

no concept of building muscle or barbell technique and I remember just looking at the people

around me and going “WOW.” I still do. I’m pretty sure I just tried not to stop or throw up after

the first workout! I remember being really proud and wanting to come back for more.

Main reason for joining CFVV?

In the beginning I joined merely to maintain my appearance. It’s somewhat ironic because

Crossfit has begun to allow me to begin healing my relationship with my body. When I started

to be able to lift heavier weights, for the first time in my life I wasn’t concerned with how my

body looked but what it could do. That was incredibly freeing and healing. Now I go for mental

health and to purposely expose myself to difficult things.

What is your fitness background?

I have been working out on and off my entire life. I really loved surfing when I was younger and

started lifting weights on my own in my mid twenties. Crossfit fills the space of surfing. It’s an

adventure.

How has CFVV changed your life?

I am hugely indebted to CFVV and its coaches. I really can’t thank the team enough. Thank you

for putting up with me! I’m giving you a big cheesy grin right now even though you can’t see it!

A couple of years ago I had hit a bottom. I decided to change pretty much everything about my

life and approach it from a very different perspective. CFVV has helped me move from a place

of chronic illness, and feeling bad in my body to having healthy routines to focus on to handle

the ups and downs of life.

When you heal your body and start to develop healthy habits, your relationships with people

and the community also changes. Your relationship with yourself changes and your ability to

also just HANDLE things increases.

What results have you seen so far since coming to CFVV?

There are so many good things that I’ve seen from myself since coming to CFVV. Here are a few

of the big ones.

I can meditate. I am able to forget there is anyone in the room and just focus on what I am

doing. It is such a blessing.

I was able to get off medication. I have been able to handle crowds and noise again! I have

been diagnosed with generalized anxiety disorder several times in my life. The methodologies

at CFVV have given me coping skills so that when times are hard this is just something I manage

that doesn’t control me. I am not a product of my environment but rather a product of the

choices I make and the work I am willing to put in. Take that Freud.

I just hit a clean and jerk of 110 and recently hit a deadlift of 230. This summer I climbed a

glacier in the Alps! I don’t think I would have even tried this without the training I received.

What is your favorite workout?

I love anything to do with barbell class. We do a lot of snatch work and complexes. If I can hit a

previous PR in a complex I know I’m going to go up in a 1 rep max and that’s a great feeling.

Sidenote: I have a picture of myself in my mid twenties learning to lift weights and the trainer

bar and even the barbell used to be a lot for me. It’s kind of neat now to see newer members

learning and to be able to help and encourage them.

Do you have any special or successful CFVV memories/moments?

I really enjoyed it when my boyfriend Eric came to buddy day with me. ��

What is your future CrossFit goal?

When I do wellness checks we talk a lot about perspective taking. My most recent homework is

making a list of things I don’t care about…. because my October and November has been

somewhat challenging. For example I am sitting here writing this with a case of the flu. I am

trending upward with my health, so my goal is to get that list done and just focus again on

consistency and not giving in or giving up for the rest of November and December. Overall I

would like to move to STEER because I believe I would be moving a health category further

away from illness.

What advice would you give to a newbie or someone just joining CrossFit?

If you let it, it can become about so much more than just a workout.

Crossfit helps you get strong, and not just physically. It builds resilience that you can carry with

you.

When I was able to climb that glacier in Switzerland there were a few moments on my way

where I was just thinking “God why did I even do this?” Those moments were similar to the end

of a few difficult WODS that I had and I was able to think back to that saying to myself, this is

temporary, its almost over.

I made it to my destination. Nobody can ever take that away from me, and it was a moment in

my life I will always remember.