MAY MEMBER OF THE MONTH ~ JON
Jon first came to us in October 2018 looking to improve his general health and fitness for real life. He says he was working out mainly with calisthenics 3-4 times a week at home before coming to Ignite Fitness, now Red Sea CrossFit. Working as a Service Lead Coordinator in the Oil and Gas Sector, functional fitness is obviously an important aspect in his life. He says he was not a big sports guy growing up, with no extensive background in fitness or sports before playing rugby in Jr. High School. He also said that since that more recently, he has worked out to try to lose weight. Having had a ‘trigger moment’ with the scale a few years ago, it has been a journey to regain better health and keep weight off.
STARTING CROSSFIT WITH PREVIOUS INJURY
I asked Jon how he was feeling about joining a CrossFit gym. “Apprehensive” was the first word out of his mouth, but he quickly followed that up with saying “Since my very first day, all the members have been supportive, friendly and approachable. The atmosphere here is really good.”
This was pretty cool for Jon to say, as there seems to be such a strong assumption that CrossFit boxes are all loud and proud and highly competitive. While there are aspects of this and certain benefits to be had, our goal here at Red Sea Fitness is to meet each individual where they are at, and provide quality instruction with relative intensity in each class to help you along your fitness journey. We will certainly spur you on to dig deep and fight through the pain to keep moving for another rep, but we will not demand that you give more than you have on any given day.
Jon has certainly had his share of reasons to quit or scale back and take the easy road, having had 2 previous back surgeries and some nerve damage on his left leg, but he has chosen to keep pushing through and finding the courage to work hard every day to keep developing his strength and skills. I asked him how he has managed to overcome the difficulty of fitnessing with these past injuries, and he said that being taught to do the scaled movements, and drills has been really good for developing equal strength within his body. It has also allowed him to see the benefit of working scaled and seeing strength and stamina develop.
BIG ACHIEVEMENTS AND HARD WORK PAYS OFF
Next, I asked what he was most proud about achieving since joining the gym 7 short months ago. His answer was “Being able to Rx the workouts, and seeing the hard work pay off!” Working hard on the scaled movements to start and practicing drills etc to build the foundation has allowed Jon to gain strength and stamina to now be able to Rx our daily workouts and know that his strength and skills are increasing.
LOOKING AHEAD
Looking toward the future I asked him what steps are next? He mentioned wanting to keep working on the diet side of things, figuring out what works best and how his body responds to new foods or methods, and possibly seeing how his competitive side likes competing. He signed up for his first competition and will have just finished it days before you are reading this! (Remember to congratulate him next time you see him!) He and his partner placed 4th in a field of 23 teams at a competition down in Calgary! An excellent result for a first competition! Well done Jon!
YOU JUST GET BETTER
So if you are wondering about starting CrossFit here is what Jon would tell you. “Just try it. Expect some pain and to feel a lot better through the rest of the day.” Also, “It doesn’t really get easier, you just get better and do more.”
He says since joining the gym he sleeps better, feels better and happier in general. He said that waking up early is easy when you know you are coming to the gym! (I am not sure about that… obviously I’m not a morning bird.) But I certainly agree with him when he says that it is so encouraging to see positive changes in health and how that is motivating to keep working for more!
Thanks for sitting down with me and sharing some of your story Jon! I look forward to seeing you keep working towards your goals and seeing your hard work pay off!
Jennica
