Why I Became a CrossFit Coach

Posted by on February 26, 2015 with 0 Comments

 

IMG_1607A year ago I would have laughed you off if you told me I was going to be a CrossFit coach. Sure, I’d entertained the idea in my mind before. CrossFit is a non-negotiable part of my life and has been for 3 years. I planned my first month in the United States around the 2014 Open and every day I was in Los Angeles I would catch the bus 30 minutes to get to CrossFit. That was my kind of vacation. I even stood my now husband up on our first date because I was too tired to get out of bed after the 14.1 snatch and double under couplet. My insistence that I would not miss a training session and newfound healthy lifestyle played a part in the breakdown of my first serious relationship a few years ago. CrossFit and I come as a package deal. It even featured in my wedding vows.

 

IMG_0535A year ago I would have told you I was going to be a lawyer. I decided that at age 8 and until recently it was the only reality I considered. I really, really loved CrossFit, but I just wasn’t good enough to be a coach. I couldn’t do a muscle up, my abs didn’t pop and my arthritic knee meant I’d never do a squat clean. I moved well but I was a mediocre athlete and I was too scared to pursue what I daydreamed about. Despite my limitations, when I moved to Michigan something clicked. I signed up for my Level 1 on an exhilarated whim. The course was inspiring and made me hungry to share what I had learnt. Jordan and Hillary gave me the opportunity to shadow and learn under the fantastic coaches at CFB, and so I showed up, and kept showing up.

 

For the first month I observed how our coaches taught the movements in our On Ramp class and was blown away by how concisely they explained the snatch, and how easily they spotted a fault on the deadlift. The CrossFit L1 course might qualify you to teach CrossFit, but it does not make you a good coach. I was at first overwhelmed by how much there was to learn, and every night I would go home and make pages of notes on each movement and spend hours watching videos and reading.

 

Slowly, I became more confident, and the coaches would let me lead a new section of the On Ramp class, until I was able to instruct each class on my own. Ino longer needed to read my notes before each class, and at some point I found I could explain the movements and spot and fix incorrect movements like the coaches I admired so much. These first few months were the most humbling and rewarding experience of my life, and the gratification that came with teaching quality functional movement was, and is, immense. I learned that the one thing I love more than CrossFit is the people who walk in here and want to improve their lives through CrossFit. Some days, I come to the box feeling tired and unmotivated, but I always leave feeling energized and inspired by the physical and mental feats our members display daily. When I help someone finally hit full extension on their snatch, or successfully string together toes to bar, it gives me such an incredible rush and fills me with pride. As your coach, I am lucky enough to be able to experience these moments alongside you, so thank you for letting me be a part of this.

 

Every day that I coach, I am highly aware of my limitations and the fact that I am only at the beginning of my coaching career. Being a young,female CrossFit coach in a male dominated industry is at times intimidating. Guys are always going to lift more than me. However, I am lucky enough to say that my passion is now my profession and coaching has given me an insatiable drive to become a better athlete and trainer. I still can’t see my abs, my knee will always bother me and the muscle up still eludes me, though I’m getting closer to that goal. I learn from every interaction I have with each of our members, so thank you for everything you have taught me over the past 6 or so months. In the middle of the day, when the box doors are closed, I am devouring articles from Greg Everett, Mike Burgener and Mark Rippetoe, and watching and trying drills from Mobility WOD and Gymnastics WOD.

 

I have the greatest job in the world and it is my mission to continue my education, every day, so I can improve your lives as positively as you improve mine.

 

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Filed Under: CrossFit Bloomfield

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