Success Stories

 
I thought I was an active person coming out of college playing both ice hockey and lacrosse. I found my workouts were pretty basic not exciting and I would attend some classes at my local gyms through the years but had no push or drive.  Not being in my best shape I had a hockey injury that lead to a torn labrum in my le
ft hip followed by a herniated disc in the L4-L5 area of my back all within 3 months in 2012. I thought I would have a tough time playing hockey again let alone getting back into a gym setting. Of course after both surgeries and some lengthy rehab I started to run and bike and lift weights again but I wasn’t finding that my energy, strength
and my appearance were improving. I heard about CrossFit and decided to shop around to make sure I felt it was a good fit with all the pros & cons I had heard. I was hooked the moment Tucker lead me through the free WOD on a Saturday which was only 9 mins long. The feeling I felt that day and just the few words of motivation that Tucker showed in that  “free” session confirmed this was a good fit. This interval training was exactly what I needed and wanted. Along with a community of athletes who are seeking the same goals and carry the same drive to be their best.

64 years young and getting stronger every day!
I came from a fairly active group class at a regional gym where all around aerobics, body and hand weights were our medium.   Except for a torn rotator cuff that kept me from many movements and a knee that hurt to bend I thought I was physically fit!  An orthopedic Doctor looking at my MRI said my shoulder could only be fixed through surgery and my knee was an age issue….he said I was old!!  The more my son Tucker told me about CrossFit and the more I watched his physical improvements, the more I wished to join.  But I thought I was too “elderly”.    Somehow the conversation came up and Tucker said it was never too late to get in shape, so I made the commitment to begin.  I joined CrossFit during the Foundations class in May 2014 and I expected to “try” it out for 2-3 months.  Within weeks my “try” turned to a very positive addiction even though I had to make the time commitment to drive more than 20 minutes to get to Ballston.
The encouragement (and education) to do mobility before and after class has been a most positive affect on my ability to hold correct positions and then increase my weights as strength improved. When I started, my shoulders and hips were so tight that I could not even do an overhead squat with PVC (using weight was impossible).  After months of mobility in the shoulder and hips I can now do an overhead squat with 35lbs and good form! Here are some other things I have accomplished

• 12 full rope climbs to a 15′ height
• Can do 10 “real push-ups”!!
• Double unders w jump rope (52 in a row – can you believe it?!?)
• Jump on a 24″ box
• Power clean 75lbs
• Back squat and deadlift over 100lbs
• Bench Press 50lbs

The other blessing about Ballston CF and CFR7 is that no one seems to mind how old I am.  The point for each individual is to improve their strength, function, mobility and nutrition.  Some people practice and some don’t but the obvious successes are by those athletes who improve because of focus and the work they do on both mobility and strength training.
I wish I would return to those orthopedists who said I was old and needed surgery, to show them my massive improvement (and share that I’ve lost 8lbs doing CF and gained new muscles).  CrossFit and all that goes along with its focus such as chiropractic care (ART) and Thai massage which have all been parts of my rehab and reconditioning.
I am very thankful to my son Tucker, his excellent standards at BCF and CFR7, his incredible team of coaches, and the wonderful encouraging community which he has built for introducing me to the wonderful world of CrossFit. I have had an incredible improvement in my fitness since starting CrossFit and can’t wait to meet my new fitness goals! See you in the box!
 

After graduating college and moving 300 miles away from home, I found myself in a fitness rut. This was the first time in eighteen years that I was not a part of a team and felt lost without the support and bond of a team , which I had grown accustomed to while running cross country and track in college. I accepted the fact that my “glory days” of running were over and joined a run-of-the-mill gym.
Months of 5lb dumbbell curls in a smelly room of meatheads I finally attended a free class at Ballston CrossFit. The camaraderie and dedication was apparent from the moment I stepped through the doors. Several days of hobbling around and being sore told me that this was the place I needed to be to get in shape.
Within the first few weeks I had achieved several physical accomplishments and, more importantly, gained numerous friendships. Each day I look forward to going to the gym, seeing friends, and setting new personal bests. The BCF coaches and members motivate you to push yourself beyond limits, setting and accomplishing goals on a regular basis. In addition to setting goals in the gym, the BCF community supports and motivates you in all other aspects of life.
I have recently begun racing again, and, much to my surprise, begun setting personal bests that were unachievable while running in college. Having only ran 3 times in the month leading up to my first half marathon I maintained a 7:00 mile pace for a time of 1:31. Most recently I achieved a lifetime goal that a year ago I considered impossible, I ran my first ever sub 20 minute 5k (setting over a 30 second personal record) with only a handful of training runs to supplement my CrossFit training!! I attribute all my running success to Crossfit. It has strengthened my entire body from head to toe and taught me how to persevere through hard workouts by relying on mental strength.

I could not be happier or more excited with my transition 8 months ago starting with Ballston CrossFit and CrossFit as a workout overall. The Coaches at Ballston Crossfit have pushed me to truly make the most of the strength components each day and challenge my limits in every WOD. When I first started, I had no idea what an Clean and Jerk was, how to do a hand stand push up or work my way to completion with one, or how proper technique combined with mobility would help me with so many movements, even with everyday life! I can say that withhard work and 8 months Crossfitting and Coaching have truly paid off; I have increased my back squat and front squat 100 lbs, I can dead lift 300 lbs, double unders have become second nature (almost 100 unbroken), I can complete pull-ups and ring dips without bands, I can even do a hand stand pushup, and when I look at the WODs every day I say to myself “I can do that!” – all of these with even better accomplishments to come. Most of all, the community and Coaches at Ballston Crossfit have given me the confidence and competitive drive to take on the 2014 Open Workouts! Eight months ago I would not have imagined being here physically, mentally or competitively; now I look at each day thinking how am I going to get fitter, better and stronger every time I set foot in BCF! 3…2…1…GO!

It is not an exaggeration to say I’m not a gifted athlete. I was always the spaz that the other athletes would run right by. My solution was to give up and over the years I got fat. I spent many years struggling with my weight through exercise and diets. I trudged for hours on robotic machines, lifted weights with no plan, and watched the needle on the scale go up.
After all those years of work, at 42 years old, I was lying in bed one night and started feeling chest pains. I ended up in the hospital with a cadre of doctors and nurses trying to figure out the medical diagnosis. They settled on a “heart event”, but I knew it was a sign that something had to change. The next day I went to a stress-test and I remember stepping onto the scale and it reading a big fat 218 pounds. I was in a haze from my night in the hospital, but I knew with crystal clarity at that moment, I was a fat guy.
At some point I heard about Crossfit and found Ballston Crossfit in June 2012. I went for a free class and decided this was going to change my life. I went through Foundations and learned most of what I thought I knew was wrong. The coaches have worked with me to ensure I’m doing things correctly and safely while pushing me to achieve greater things. Even though Crossfit has not come to me easily, I’ve found a community of athletes and coaches who want me to accomplish my goals. They push me to I succeed, but support me when I struggle. In addition to amazing coaches, BCF offers yoga, mobility seminars and nutrition challenges, so you can fix all those achy spots and learn how to feed your body for optimal fitness.
The result? I’m down to 190 pounds and still going, but I’ve stopped the yo-yo diets, the fitness fads, and the decline in my health. Crossfit frees you from the Gazelle, the Thigh Master, the Butt Blaster or whatever weird machine you are tethered to. Plus, you can ditch all those crazy diets and begin eating delicious food.
I’ve been doing Crossfit for about 18 months and I’m in the best shape of my life. If I could take on my 20-year-old-self in a WOD today, this 44 year-old-man would win! Today, I’m not even close to the strongest or fastest athlete at BCF, but I’ve worked hard and feel incredible about myself. I constantly get comments from people in my life about how fit I look these days and my daughter noticed that I have become “really really strong”. Even a spaz like me can make it at BCF.

Like a lot if people, I was a slave to cardio and thought it was the end all, be all for weight loss. I would spend hours and hours on the treadmill, running outside and on the elliptical with little success. One marathon, 3 half marathons and several other road races down, I was bored, frustrated and anxious for a change to my fitness routine. I had heard of Crossfit and had friends who had done Crossfit and swore by it, but I was a little intimidated. I had seen the games on ESPN and didn’t think I was fit enough to even try! A friend encouraged me to try the free class with her and immediately after, I was hooked.
Tucker and his coaches are all professional, encouraging, knowledgeable and interested in your goals and success. The community at the box is incredibly supportive. In 16 months, I had seen such incredible gains in my fitness that I never saw while doing strictly cardio. I went from not lifting at all to having a 305# deadlift, 250# back squat, 175# split jerk and 155# clean (to just name a few). The idea of doing a pull-up seemed laughable when I first started, but now I can complete several in a row. I have had the pleasure of competing in some local competitions, both as part of a team as an individual. I have lost about 15 pound over the last 16 months, but lost several inches overall and dropped 2 clothing sizes.
Crossfit has allowed me to challenge myself physically and mentally and I have become a part of an amazing community that encourages, supports and constantly improves it’s members. If you are considering Crossfit, do not let your fears hold you back and give it a try; you will be so incredibly grateful that you did!

I’ve tried a lot of fitness regimens, and a couple of CrossFit gyms. But I really found a home at Ballston CrossFit. The coaching is tremendous and the community is really something special. When I think of my CrossFit “success story,” a big theme is the support I’ve found at BCF.
Let’s review just how much I needed that support! When I first showed up, I was the scrawniest thing in the gym. I honestly didn’t think I could hack it. I was so weak! The weight plates were so heavy! I couldn’t do a pull-up! I had to use the little baby box for box jumps! Handstand push-ups were for alien life forms—no way would I ever be able to do one! Surely I should retreat to some girly exercise place smelling of vanilla and lavender! I might not have come back to BCF, but I saw how the group encouraged everybody. I saw trainers devoting themselves to other people’s well-being. And I saw the difference in fitness between newbies and veterans. Clearly, if I kept coming back, this thing could work.
And it did. The support helped me stick with it long enough to begin surprising myself. When that starts to happen, your fixed ideas about your capabilities fall away. Then you go from surprising yourself to amazing yourself. It really is mind over matter, and the great thing about a strong CrossFit community is that you have more than one mind working on your matter! I’m a self-motivated person, but I seriously doubt that I’d be doing these:

So my story is really about transformation, which is more than just fitness. It’s about dismantling limitations and believing in your own potential. Sometimes I look around the gym and I think: all these people have gone beyond what they thought they could do. (And awhile back, on ’80s night, we wore more shiny spandex than we thought possible, too!) And I realize: my idea of what I’m capable of has changed. And thankfully, so have the workout clothes…
The most remarkable thing may be the sense of constant progress. How many areas in life offer that? There are goals I haven’t hit yet, a lot I’m still striving for, but with all the great people who have my back, I know I’ll get there. The group lifts you up. If you’re like me, standing on top of all that support will give you a whole new view of yourself. That’s what BCF gave me. And I’m incredibly grateful for it.