Vanessa’s April blog

Hey CrossFit Dubuquers!

I wanted to take a quick moment to feed off of Phil’s excitement for the month of April just to let you know how lucky I feel to have become a part of such an awesome community!

Eight months ago I moved here from Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania. It’s a super small town in the north east part of the state. I worked an early morning shift at a locally owned fitness center as a personal trainer. It was the kind of place “where everybody knows your nameeee…. and they’re always glad you cameee”. Seriously. The morning crowd who came in to work out there were all friends, including the people who worked there. They would come in, workout, then hang out with each other for two hours afterwards while drinking coffee and shooting the shit. My clients were awesome and my co-workers were great friends. It really was the best place to work and I loved my job every day.

The closest CrossFit Box was a 40 minute drive. Too far for me, but I ended up getting connected to a guy who was a Level 1 Coach who held classes out of his garage. He was just 20 minutes away. After working out there for a year, I had to tell him I was moving. He responded with a little disappointment because he was about to ask me to start coaching with him. Needless to say I was upset as well. Training at the gym was fun because of the people, but CrossFitting was my passion. I thought I had missed my chance on ever becoming a level 1 coach.

When I first looked for CrossFit Boxes in Dubuque, there were none listed (This was 6 months before CFD opened). But I was persistent, stalking the affiliate finder map every month. And then one day there it was, CrossFit Dubuque. The first day i met Phil and Mike, I was visiting the area and I dropped in for an afternoon class. I WAS THE ONLY ONE THERE. It’s funny to think about now because everyone knows not to be the only athlete in class, for fear the workout would be much harder. What was the workout they had me do you ask? Oh, well after a bunch of facing the wall squats and some GHD sit-ups, they had me do 7. MINUTES. OF. BURPEES. A$$holes. Ha ha.

That was just over a year ago.

It may sound like I’m rambling, but here is my point: One year ago, I thought I was leaving the best job I could ever ask for. I thought I would never find a group of people to work with or work out with that could measure up with the people I was leaving.

I couldn’t have been more wrong. Since my first step into CFD I have been shown nothing but respect, enthusiasm, and encouragement. The camaraderie and friendships I continue to build with other athletes at CFD have proven me wrong again and again to which I am incredibly thankful for. And to top it off, I was finally able to achieve my Level 1 CrossFit Certificate and start coaching at an affiliate. Life is good.

Thank you all for letting me be a part of it. Long live CFD!

–Coach Vanessa