The cat is out of the bag. Actually it has apparently been out of the bag for a little while now so I'll make it official.
This weekend marks the last weekend that Michelle and I will be your coaches at CrossFit No Limits.
Today and yesterday were my last classes and last Monday was Michelle's last class. For those who don't know we live an hour away (on a good day) and I have another full-time "job" near Seattle that when coupled with being a co-owner of the gym has been a heavy workload. Having to choose every weekend between spending time as a family unit or going to run classes or train and run Elements has been a necessary part of being part-owner and living far away but tough nonetheless. So the difficult part for us is that we are choosing to focus on being a family unit and not a "gypsy unit". This by no means was an easy decision for us but one we felt was necessary.
When I started down this path with Amy over 5 months ago it seemed sort of a pipe dream. Some of you may recall that besides Amy's classes outside at Anytime "Fitness" we also were having weekend park WOD's in Dupont. At that time the biggest obstacles seemed to be how to plan for WOD's with a big turnout and limited equipment and also placating the school district to keep from getting kicked out of Chloe Clark after being run off from Pioneer Middle. Michelle and I started as two faces that came to workout with many of you two years ago and through shared sweat and effort you allowed us over time to seamlessly integrate into becoming some of your trainers.
Fast forward to now and CrossFit No Limits has grown to become a successful affiliate populated with a group of individuals who have all come together for one simple purpose; "to get fit for life". Getting fit is evident each and every day inside these bay doors as many of you have realized goals and skills you didn't know were locked away inside you. The side benefit of this is the community that you all have joined has grown and most likely positively impacted your life somehow. I know I can speak for Michelle, Ashley and I when I say that it has definitely impacted our lives positively. So we want to say thank you.
Whether you came once to the gym or are a regular, each and every one of you have taught us something invaluable. You have taught us how to be trainers; coaches even. You have shown us that when a group of people care about something and each other as much as we all do, that many can come together and do the necessary grunt work to make it happen. Like painting, cleaning, flooring, drilling, moving and building. That is community in action. You have taught us how to handle chaos, battle stress, have fun, build confidence in ourselves and others, and eke more out of each of you than you may have thought.
We carry with us lessons learned about how to build trust with you as clients, instruct and teach all levels of fitness and age, and program for limited space, equipment, time, and ability. You have taught us it's okay to share our wacky love affair we have with CrossFit and how it seems to find all of our collective and individual weaknesses and showcase them front and center. You have given us the lesson of how rare and amazing it is to do something that you love and are passionate about. You have shown us that with pure determination and effort you can conquer obstacles both in the gym and in life. We count all of you as our friends and are honored to have witnessed or even been a small part of your firsts, PR's, or achievements in the gym. We can't thank you enough for your trust in letting us be responsible for you each class with your most important personal possession, your health.
Thinking about the whole experience I wouldn't trade this for anything. I went from reading and thinking about someday owning a business and being a trainer to actually being able to partner with a friend and doing it. What I have learned about small business start-up challenges has been incredible but most of all though was the personal growth as a CrossFit coach that will stay with me forever and push Michelle and I to find a way to continue this closer to home. We will most certainly not end our relationship with CrossFit or as affiliate owners and trainers. It has become too large a part of our lives that to us wouldn't feel right without it. So with that said we are going to focus more time at home as a family and endeavor to bring CrossFit to the masses of the Snoqualmie/North Bend area slowly but surely. We will still plan to share in collective misery on weekend WOD's with you all so please leave the light on for us. That should be easy since the gym has no light switches and they are always on!
Always remember to "train to not suck at life". CrossFit because you love it, love yourself, and love those closest to you enough to live long and healthy. Plenty of other people will make excuses for you. Show them that you don't need any.
3-2-1 GO-ing, going...gone. :)
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