We decided to try CrossFit because we were tired of working out on the same machines doing the same thing day-in and day-out. In the past we had been successful in losing weight (which was our goal at the time) but as the weight came off we felt weak. We started hearing things about CrossFit on social media sites and the internet and were intrigued by it. We really liked the fact that there is a focus on building strength as well as improving cardio. Now weight loss is becoming a bi-product of our new goal of increasing our health and fitness level.
We joined Catalyst in August, 2013 and decided to start with the ‘personal training with a partner’ package that was offered and have gone three days a week ever since. We both liked the idea of having a trainer as we were new to both CrossFit and Catalyst and wanted someone to show us the ropes. We really were fortunate to have Charity take us on as clients be our guide in our CrossFit journey. The personal attention has been great in that we have learned a lot about CrossFit and the skills and techniques required to do the exercises properly and safely. We have been able to focus on our own weaknesses and areas we would like to improve upon and we continue to surprise ourselves on a regular basis on just what we can actually accomplish. Having Charity as a trainer has really kept us on track as we needed someone to be accountable too, keep us motiviated and to give us the proverbial kick in the butt when required. She pushes us to go outside of our comfort zone and to try things that we never would have thought possible if we were on our own. She has a great sense of humour and we have a lot of fun joking around but she also has the patience needed to demonstrate proper techniques and helps with the ‘overthinking’ issue that pops up when we are learning a new skill.
We are both continuing to work on increasing our overall fitness and health level. We are realizing just how much nurtrition is a factor and have recently met with the nutritionist to help guide us there as well. Tammy is working on getting over her mental block when it comes to the ‘dreaded’ box jumps and is hoping that she can graduate from the ‘beginner’ size box. Chris is still working on flexibility and is hoping one day soon to actually be able to touch his toes as well as working on his pull ups.
Every workout we do has elements that we like and dislike. They all are challenging. We seem to favour the workouts that consist of a declining number of reps per set. We enjoy these because as the workout goes on and fatigue is setting in we are able to stay motivated knowing that we don’t have to do as many reps as we just completed. We both really like working with Charity because she tailors the workouts specifically for us and our capabilities making sure that we are always pushing ourselves but also staying within our limitations. This is one of our favorite aspects of Catalyst because before when working out on our own we never really knew if we were pushing ourselves hard enough or not or whether we were lifting too much weight or too little. We have full confidence in Charity in that she will make sure we are doing exactly what we need to be doing.
We have really enjoyed our time at Catalyst. Everyone we have been in contact with has been very friendly and supportive. Some of our best memories have consisted of ‘flipping tires’ till we were so tired and dirty we could hardly move and having our names written on the wall because we attained a new ‘PR’. We have enjoyed the personal training so much that we have renewed once already and are planning on doing so again. I am sure that soon we will try some of the regular groups as our schedule allows because we have heard nothing but great things about them and as we continue upon our journey towards health and fitness we are looking forward to making many more friends and memories.