Tell us a little bit about yourself. What do you do outside of the gym?
I am a statistician/data engineer in the pharmaceutical industry. I code in R and Python and do data visualization work to support data managers on clinical trials. This year, I’ve challenged myself to do new things and have been taking tango lessons and improv classes. I also enjoy running. I’m part of a few running clubs and completed my third marathon this past August.
What initially got you into training and what keeps you coming back?
I started at Hardware because I had signed up for a 10k “fun” run and at the time I had done absolutely no training of any kind and there was about a month left before the run! I thought to myself what is the fastest, most efficient way to get in shape…and of course being only a block away from Hardware, I had to try it out. So I signed up to try it out for the month, and I’ve just kept coming back ever since. Also, the community is amazing and I felt the encouragement from day one.
What are your fitness goals? How close are you to reaching them?
I’ve set my sights on mastering the handstand next and completing my first bar muscle-up. I feel like I’m very close to getting a solid handstand, but I know the muscle-up will require more work.
What’s an accomplishment or goal you’ve reached at Hardware that made you the most proud?
Getting my first pull-up felt amazing! I had been training for it for a while doing different progressions, but hadn’t actually tried doing the pull-up so it surprised me when I did manage to knock out a couple solid ones during a workout. It just goes to show that sometimes we are stronger than we think!
Favorite WOD/movement?
Rope climbs and pull-ups (now that I can!).
Least favorite WOD/movement?
It used to be burpees and battle ropes, but HIIT has made me partial to them :). I still go slow on them, though! Least favorite I think is now a WOD with an echo bike.
Any advice for someone interested in trying out Hardware?
Just do it and trust the process! It doesn’t matter if you are starting at zero, we have great coaches that will scale to your ability and progress and results will soon follow.