The thing I enjoy most about Albany CrossFit is definitely the community. I love people’s willingness to help each other be the best versions of themselves. I think this is most evident in people’s reactions when someone PRs, or finishes a WOD they just weren’t sure they could complete, or post about weight loss, or fitting into that new dress. People are genuinely happy to see another person inch closer and closer to success. This sense of camaraderie is unparalleled and is fostered through the hard work of Jay and the awesome coaches who devote so much time to the success of each and every member. I just don’t think you can find this kind of support in many other places and it is one of the unique aspects of being a member of Albany CrossFit.
I just can’t deny the results I’ve seen since joining Albany CrossFit and it keeps me coming back for more. Personally, I’ve seen almost a 30 lb weight loss, dropped clothing sizes, huge health improvements, increased energy and just overall feeling great. I’ve been active all my life, I was always involved in many sports as a kid and then I devoted all my time to playing volleyball. Even through all this I was always overweight. I’ve probably tried close to all diets, exercise programs out there (and I’m pretty young) and I’ve never had the overall success that I’ve had since joining Albany CrossFit. It’s not just about hitting a really intense workout a couple times a week, it’s becoming a member of a community and working to see results. So between the results and the community, it’s hard to not keep coming back. In fact, when med school “gets in the way” of me getting to class, I miss it.
The biggest improvement for me has definitely been my health. Seeing as I’m currently in my second year of medical school I felt that if I was going to be telling my patients to get healthy I should take my own advice (no one likes a hypocrite). Albany Crossfit gave me the tools to do just that. I completely altered my diet, adopting a mostly paleo lifestyle specifically cutting out processed carbohydrates that my body just couldn’t handle properly anyway. I now have regulated blood sugars thanks to diet alone, so much more energy and am just overall so much healthier and healthy feels good.
The physical and health improvements I’ve seen give me more energy in everyday life but I think the mental aspect of CrossFit transfers so much into everyday life. First off the general vibe at Albany CrossFit is one of positivity. Thinking positive and removing negativity from life is just a better way to live. Secondly each workout is a challenge and showing up to the WOD is accepting the challenge and by doing so it provides the opportunity to grow and learn about yourself and your limits. It gives me the confidence to attempt things that seem hard in my everyday life because I see how much I’m capable of when I push myself to get one more rep, or run that last lap.
The most recent Friday night fights was beasts and ninjas and I was participating as a beast. The last event they did a role reversal, challenging the beast to get in touch with their inner ninja (which believe me there is not much ninja in me) and the ninja to bring out their inner beast. In doing so each beast was chipping away at way too many lateral burpees as the time cap approached it was just me and one other competitor still going. Everyone there crowded around us to cheer us on and with their encouragement and excitement I finally finished that last god forsaken burpee (I appreciated the challenge after the fact). I joined in cheering for the other first timer and as she finished she was engulfed in a group hug. In that moment I wished I had my camera because it is exactly what I mean by community. It’s really true when they say that CrossFit is the only sport where people cheer loudest for the people finishing last.