Level 2 CrossFit
Precision Nutrition Certified Nutrition Coach
I played very little sports growing up as it was not something allowed in my religion back then. When I finally was allowed to play sports I was a teen and a beginner and didn’t play as well as other more experienced kids so I never really got into sports. I was always overweight and never really went to the gym or worked out. I played a lot of basketball as a kid but that was the extent of my athletic experience. At the age of 32 I wanted to get into shape and started bike riding. I just picked it up on my own and learned as I went along. I lost some weight but was still about 280 pounds or so. I had a friend who introduced me to CrossFit about a year later. I had fun but it was just too expensive for me at the time. Later on this same friend asked me if I would join a CrossFit gym if he were to open one up. I told him yes of course but thinking no way he will ever open a gym. Maybe about 6 months later he came back to me and said, well gym is open. Come on out. Me and my wife did a trial and were hooked. The membership was affordable so we joined. I ended up losing a significant amount of body fat and I was the healthiest I’d ever been in my life. After about 3 years, I felt the passion and need to help others that are in the same boat that I was in before CrossFit and save people’s lives because I truly felt that CrossFit saved my life. So I got my level 1 and Rudy and Elaine hired me on as a coach. At my 5-year mark, I decided to get my level 2 rather than just recertification of my level 1.
I never knew I had an enemy. I never paid much attention to my health. Being healthy and active was not part of my upbringing. I guess I had a silent enemy. I always thought things are how they are and can’t be changed. The thought of health and longevity never really entered my mind. Around the age of 32, I remember being drunk and laying on my belly and really feeling how big it was and how big I was. I remember not being able to tie my shoes because of how big my gut was. This was when I started wanting to lose weight. I never really thought about being healthy, just losing weight. I was my enemy. I was hurting myself without knowing it. It took Rudy and Elaine to teach me not just about working out and CrossFit, but about being in a general state of health through proper diet and nutrition. I have learned so much more just through being in this environment and listening to professionals on all aspects of health. From nutrition and exercise to mental health. I would have to say Rudy and Elaine are my hero’s.
My motivation and passion is seeing someone walk into the gym, scared and not knowing what to expect. Coaching a new member who is having a hard time getting through the warmup. Having some difficulty with basic movements but continuing to move. Talking to that member after the workout. Telling them it’s ok and I feel their pain and doubt. Assuring them this will pass with consistency and determination. Watching that member come back the next day and the next day and slowly start to see changes in that person. Movements getting better and easier. Positive changes in body composition. Congratulating them on every victory whether small or big. Then years later they are still there. Still coming in. Surprising their peers athletically who may have been at it longer. Seeing these people day in and day out keeps me motivated and is my purpose for coaching.
