Athlete of the Month

congratulations to Sarah S!

Hometown: Zieglerville PA. Unless you ski you've probably never heard of it. It's a tiny little town next to Spring Mountain.

Current Location: Bridgeport PA

Age: 34

Occupation: Social Worker

College: bachelors from Shippensburg University and masters from Temple

How long have you been a CrossFitter? I initially joined KOP back in 2010

Did you ever play sports? I did a long time ago...primarily field hockey and cheering.

Got some cool (or uncool) hobbies you'd like to share? I'm pretty low key. I'm very outdoorsy and love camping, fishing, hiking with my dogs, tooling around on a 4-wheeler in the woods or just laying in the sun for hours on end reading.

What is your biggest achievement at CrossFit? I'd have to say qualifying for master's nationals. When I started to focus on the olympic lifts 9 months ago I would have never imagined I'd qualify for anything this year or possibly ever.

What do you feel that you still need to work on? Everything!! I could write pages on this. Primarily my form with the olympic lifts. Also getting past the thought in my head that it might feel heavy and just lift it. I also need to do conditioning. I've let that take a back seat lately.

Goals for the rest of this year?
Everyone would think I'm crazy if I went in to the weights I want to be lifting by specific dates. I'm way too detail oriented with goal setting...so I'll just say not to bomb on the platform at masters nationals.
What's your favorite WOD? This is general but anything that's all body weight. Let's face it, I'm not Rxing anything with weights. I can dream but I'm being realistic here.

How about your favorite food/snacks? Cake, cookies, milkshakes, crab, steak...and so on. I love to eat.

What is the craziest workout outside of CF you have ever done? I've never done anything crazy. I was just happy I didn't feel the need to slow down or walk when I ran my first 5k.

What’s your least favorite WOD?
Anything that includes both rowing and wallballs.
Favorite lift/movement? I'd have to say the snatch. I love it when it feels good, which is rare these days. It's complex so it's so easy to have a piece (or ten) be off which makes it all the better when you have a good day. In a wod I always appreciate burpees though. I'm so low to the ground already that it's one of the few movements that help me catch up to the rest of the class.

What’s your least favorite lift/movement? Can I say the snatch again? On a bad day?! Really though I hate rowing and wallballs. They are not meant for short people.

What skill re you planning working on in the new year 2015 the most ? I'm being repetative but my form for both the snatch and clean.

Whats your favorite piece of workout "gear"? I don't know if it's a favorite but I won't go without my hand grips for pull ups again if there are a ton in a wod. I ripped once and almost cried like a baby.

What you say is your biggest improvement since starting CF? I think it's more of a mental gain...realizing I have the ability to lift more than my body weight above my head and not being scared to do it. I'm not such a weak little girl and I'll carry my two big bags of dog food out to my car on my own, thank you.

Who is your favorite coach? Steph. She is why I tried the BBC developmental and stuck with it. She has just the right balance of support and encouragement with constructive criticism that I need. She knows what to say when I get frustrated and in my head. She also does a lot behind the scenes, coaching me at meets, writing my program, watching videos I send her and giving me feedback, and letting me tag along to lift with her. I also need to include Jim. Most people don't get to work with him. He's extremely attentive even if he doesn't say a lot. He too takes extra time helping me outside of formal coaching. It means a lot to have coaches that take their personal time to help you. I can definitely say I have learned something from every coach at KOP, whether it be in a class or just in passing as they stop to give tips and encouragement.

PR's to mention? Goals Reached? Nutrition highlights?.. My primary goal these past few months was to hit a qualifying total to go to masters nationals in April with Steph and Jim, which I was able to do at a meet in Jan. I also hit a C&J PR of 44k that meet and exceeded my needed 70k total. I appreciate the great showing of support from the gym who came to encourage me:) That is exactly why I love KOP...it's about the supportive community more than anything.