Member Spotlight

CONGRATULATIONS TO TAYLOR TOMPKINS… Our first 2018 Athlete of the Month!
Taylor has been with us since April 2017, but seems like she’s been with us since the beginning. And man, does this girl impress! Taylor has the strongest work ethic of any member we’ve seen. She works incredibly hard and it shows! She is constantly improving her movement, skill, strength and speed. “Taylor has this amazing attitude and is so fun to work out with!” She basically kicks ass everyday. She recently competed in her first CrossFit competition, coming away with a ninth place finish in a team division. Super awesome! We love having you here at Big Rock with us Taylor!

Get to know Taylor a bit more…
What drew your attention to trying out CrossFit? – A combination of things really.  When I was in college my friend made me join the “Crossfit club,” which was my first real exposure to it.  It met once a week, and despite there being no weight lifting involved, it literally kicked my ass.  Then, I got out of college, and went back to doing nothing.  Eventually, the weight I gained in college and my laziness really started to catch up with me, so I decided I should do something.  And, because I hate running, and I generally quit traditional gyms after at least a month, I decided I should go try that thing I did in college, only for real this time.  So here I am 😊

What were you most excited about and what were you most nervous about CrossFit? – I’m not totally sure what I was most excited about… maybe just the prospect of getting in shape lol.  The weight lifting though, that was definitely the part that intimidated me the most.  And like most girls, I was raised to believe that if you lift too much weight you’ll bulk up and it won’t be pretty.  Turns out though, that the weight lifting is my favorite part.  So I’m super glad I got over that whole thing.

Now that you’ve got months of CrossFit under your belt, what keeps you coming? – I see results in so many different ways that don’t relate to the number on a scale.  Which is funny, because its really why I joined to begin with, and now its the part I care the least about.  But its fun, I love watching my weights go up, I feel stronger, and I’m not dying after just 5 burpees anymore.  I’m competing with myself, and proving to myself that I can do things I never thought I could, and that has been a really tremendous positive factor in my life. The sense of community is also really awesome, and I love the part about how I come in and someone else tells me what to do and I don’t have to think about it.  It’s really nice lol

Outside of CrossFit, what keeps you busy? – My 6 year old mostly lol.  But I work part time as a personal chef.  I spend a lot of time menu planning, recipe developing, and cooking.  Basically, when I’m not at the gym, I’m thinking about, making, or eating food.

Where did you grow up? – I grew up in New York.. Long Island to be specific 😊

What brought you to Duvall? – We spent a lot of time on the I-5 corridor when we were in the Navy, and we hated everything about it, so we decided we wanted to go east. We also wanted a smaller town vibe and a house with some acreage; so Duvall is where we landed.

Did you play sports growing up or as an adult? – haha… well technically yes I played softball and basketball when I was really young.  However, I sucked at basketball, and I hated softball so much that they always sent me outfield… where I would pretty much dig for worms the entire time.

Favorites:
Food: French fries
Drink: honestly.. plain old water.  But outside of that.. Alcoholic ? German style Beers.  Non Alcoholic ? Coffee
Color: green
Movie: 10 Things I Hate About You
Vacation: My vacations are pretty much always spent in New York. If i could go anywhere though…. probably Thailand or New Zealand.

CONGRATULATIONS TO MARTA MCCREARY!

This girl always walks in with a smile and a get-after-it mentality.  Even during the toughest workouts, her smile is still there!  Thank you Marta for being apart of our family. We love watching you get stronger!!!

Here is Marta’s CrossFit Story…

Before starting CF in the fall of last year, I had been searching for something to supplement my running and yoga routine. I recently ran my 4th marathon and it was not a great race. I felt I needed a change and I needed to get stronger. I was happy to discover there was a CF gym in town (I didn’t know then it’s called a box).

I was a little nervous, afraid everybody is super fit and will laugh at me, since I couldn’t even do a pull up or a push up. The thing that convinced me was that CrossFit Big Rock is owned by women and there are more female coaches than male. That could only be awesome, I thought. And I was right! The community here is so welcoming and encouraging that I keep coming back. I also really like that it is not all about more weight, that there is a lot of stretching and real emphasis on the proper form. The coaches are actually coaching! And doing a great job!

I love doing CrossFit. There is a whole lot of things I still can’t do (pull ups) but I made huge progress with others (push ups). I am getting stronger every week. I plan my work, my weekends and even my vacation around CrossFit. My husband thinks I am a little bit crazy 🙂

What was supposed to be an addition to my routine, became my primary focus. I still love running and there will be a time I will need to start training for the next marathon. But until then, CrossFit it is.