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Athlete of the Month

January 2021: AOTM Melana Lex

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January 2021 AOTM: Melana Lex
We have so much love for our community, and love to highlight one athlete each month that exemplifies hard work and perseverance. Melana is a core member of our 7:30pm class. Get to know Melana here, and make sure you say hello to her next time you’re at the gym!

Q: How long have you been doing CrossFit? What changes have you seen in yourself (physically or mentally) since beginning CrossFit?

Crazy to believe that Feb 2021 will make 12 months (- quarantine break)…Since joining the most notable change has been the sense of friendship that has developed with the new class format. Physically, I’m finally starting to lose my Beyonce kneecaps, while slighty getting bootylicious, haha.

Q: How has CrossFit helped you outside the gym?

CrossFit has helped continue to take the limits off of myself mentally and physically; whether due to age, postpartum, weather-based aches or new parent fatigue. Terminus in particular has also reinforced the importance and influence of those who share like values, “iron sharpens iron.”

Q: Who inspires you at the gym, and how do they inspire you?

Oh man inspiration…all my fellow 7:30pm athletes, many are new but we are about this CrossFit life! Patrick and Trent can always be counted on to help me “get my life” with a daggone pull-up or bur-pay (insert eye roll). Marcie “Shero” and Sam welcomed me with their smiles and couple’s goals from day one and they are my low key motivation. Jacquawn is now my official CrossFit Battle Buddy, always pushing, positive and looking to take it to the next level.

Q: What is something that we may not know about you?

Hmmm….no secret talents, but I’ve teleworked since Nov 2019, so seeing my fellow athletes each week has been a tremendous blessing as a stress relief and social interlude to my often solitary but hectic work week.

Q: Any advice for someone considering trying CrossFit for the first time?

EVERY athlete in the gym had a first day. Commit to showing up each week and you will be surprised at how much you progress in the months to come. Join the 730 class for inspiration 😉

Q: What are your top 3 memories in CrossFit?

*Run Against Racism 5K/10K – this campaign confirmed for me that I was in the right place to grow and build friendships
*The first time I ran 400m under 1:50 sec. (It only happened once, but it happened LOL)
*The first time I was able to reach 90% of a leg tuck (new Army requirement). This is huge, when I started, I had zero, 0, ZE-RO hang time or grip strength.

Q: What’s your proudest accomplishment?

Making it to class on time 🙂

Q: Moving forward, do you have any short term or long term CrossFit goals?

Short-term: 3 leg tucks (commitment to my Battle Buddy)
Long Term: Be able to keep up with Marcie

December 2020: Athlete of the Month= Will Dodgen

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December 2020 AOTM: Will Dodgen
We have so much love for our community, and love to highlight one athlete each month that exemplifies hard work and perseverance. Will is living proof of the transformative power of CrossFit and the Terminus community. Get to know Will here, and make sure you say hello to him next time you’re at the gym!

Q: How long have you been going to Terminus? What changes have you seen in yourself (physically or mentally) since beginning CrossFit?

So I’m coming up on 2 years at Terminus and honestly can’t believe how the time’s flown. I’ve seen countless changes in myself both mentally and physically. I first decided to come because I wanted to be coached, and knew my personal workout regime wasn’t pushing myself hard enough. I wanted to be challenged! After 2 years I can honestly say I’m in the best shape of my life. I’ve always been active and worked out a ton, playing sports and what not, but nothing has come close to how I feel when I look in the mirror from crossfit. I’ve never been a big guy and I’ve seen myself bulk more, my legs feel actually muscular, and my chest feels broader. I feel a lot of changes can seem small, but they are HUGE to me, and things I’ve been trying to improve on for years but never saw results until I came to Terminus. But also, my mental health has been the biggest improvement since joining the gym. I found myself in a sort of depression a few moments out of the last 2 years, and going to the gym was definitely the number one cure for my anxiety. I’d say physically and emotionally, Terminus has allowed me to become more of the person I want to be.

Q: How has Terminus helped you outside the gym? 

Dang I feel like I could ramble on about how Terminus has helped me outside the gym (Emotional regulation, confidence in who I am, friendships/relationships). But I’d have to say helping me deal with my anxiety has been the top one. There would be days I would feel like I was paralyzed by anxiety and I couldn’t accomplish anything, but I knew that if I just got to the gym, got myself in the building, my coaches would do the rest. In those times of anxiousness I’d leave the gym with a new sense of confidence and pride in who I was!

Q: Who inspires you at the gym, and how do they inspire you?

I have 2 answers to this… First off my roommates (Josh and Bryson) who attend regularly as well (and who I convinced to join Terminus haha). Every day I ask how they did in the workout, how it was, what was fun, what was hard, and we all celebrate our accomplishments and growth! I started before both of them but once they got in the gym they took OFF, and I definitely feel like some days I’m playing catch up to them but it’s all good competition! We push each other and celebrate each and every win or PR. They keep me coming back to the gym even when it’s hard. There have been multiple conversations with Bryson where I told him I wasn’t going, I felt lazy, anxious or just like I couldn’t do it. And he’d encourage me, and push me (sometimes drag me haha) to just show up, and I always came out better for it!
Second is the coaches, because honestly everyone of you is awesome and keeps me moving and inspired! (Yall should check out Sonya’s 1 on 1 classes, that will for sure inspire you)

Q: What is something that we may not know about you?

Me and Bryson actually have a few songs on spotify (Bryson has a lot more than me… he’s the talent honestly) that we have written together. It’s something we like to do every now and then, just hang out, drink and write music. Look Bryson Eller up on spotify!!!

Q: Any advice for someone considering trying Terminus for the first time? 

Just get in the building! It can seem daunting sometimes because of the high intensity. But ever since I’ve joined I’ve found that if I can just show up, my coaches will help me figure out the rest. The movements that might scare me, or the weight I don’t think I can lift, they got you! Also make some friends, because the community is by far the best part about Terminus. And bring your friends because working out with people you do life with is one of the best decisions you can make.
Also watch what you eat before a workout… stay away from spicy food.

Q: What are your top 3 memories at Terminus?

1) Sappy alert, but the car rides to and from the workouts with my roommate Bryson will always be special to me. Super fun to workout with some of your best friends.
2) Teaching the first ever Terminus “spin class.” Still waiting to be hired on a permanent basis! haha
3) Our first Terminus happy hour during COVID me Bryson and Sirena logged on together and we all had such a blast and felt like we connected with the community. We logged off so grateful for our gym and the support we had even through the pandemic!

Q: What’s your proudest accomplishment?

At the gym? Getting a muscle up. In life, I’m just proud of where I am in life and the people I’ve surrounded myself with. Community is everything.

Q: Moving forward, do you have any short term or long term training goals?

Nutrition for sure. I feel really good about going to the gym and where I’m at physically. But I think that the next step in my fitness journey is to stop eating out so much and cut back on eating… well whatever I want haha.

November 2020 AOTM: Iris Nevins

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November 2020 AOTM: Iris Nevins
We have so much love for our community, and love to highlight one athlete each month that exemplifies hard work. One key to success in the gym is making a commitment to consistency and not deviating from that plan. Iris shows us how that strategy can transform your body and mind. Get to know Iris here, and make sure you say hello to her next time you’re at the gym!

Q: How long have you been going to Terminus? What changes have you seen in yourself (physically or mentally) since beginning CrossFit?

It’s been 1.5 years at Terminus and 2.5 years overall but prior to Terminus I was not consistent at all. Since Terminus I’ve seen lots of growth in my upper body strength, I have more endurance, I’ve lost about 20 lbs, and I’m no longer pre-diabetic 🙂

Q: How has Terminus helped you outside the gym?

Terminus is a key part of my routine. I juggle a few projects outside of work which can be overwhelming, and emotionally I can sometimes be all over the place. Crossfit helps me stay centered. It helps me reset, de stress, and stay focused. I’ve also made some friends which makes living in a new city much more enjoyable.

Q: Who inspires you at the gym, and how do they inspire you?

I’m inspired by Emro’s upper body strength and I’m striving to get on her level! I admire Hannah’s hard work, she puts it all on the table at every class! But overall I admire all the badass women who always push themselves. Some days I feel lazy and wanna do the bare minimum but these women have been inspiring me to try harder even on those days that I feel depleted!

Q: What is something that we may not know about you?

Ummm. . . I guess I love to travel and I’ve been to 4 continents 🙂

Q: Any advice for someone considering trying Terminus for the first time?

Don’t let what you can’t do yet discourage you. Take it day by day, some movements will take years to get and that’s okay. Also showing up is the most important thing. Just come to class!

Q: What are your top 3 memories at Terminus?

I remember my first Saturday workout which scared me from coming back on Saturdays for almost a year. Getting my first strict pullups was a great feeling. And Monday classes with Patrick are just HILARIOUS!

Q: What’s your proudest accomplishment?

Finally being able to do strict pull ups! I can now do 3 unbroken. Hopefully I can double that next year.

Q: Moving forward, do you have any short term or long term training goals?

I want to keep getting stronger and building endurance. My cardiovascular and lung strength needs a lot of work. Long term I want to be able to do less scaling on things like pull ups, pushups, handstand pushups, etc and just do the original workout all the way through.

October AOTM: Allison Namie

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October 2020 AOTM: Allison Namie
We have so much love for our community, and love to highlight one athlete each month that exemplifies hard work. It has been truly amazing to watch Allison not only build her fitness, but most importantly gain confidence. Get to know Allison here, and make sure you say hello to her next time you’re at the gym!
Q. How long have you been doing CrossFit? What changes have you seen in yourself (physically or mentally) since beginning at Terminus?
I started CrossFit last year, beginning of the summer. Before that, there was no gym. No workouts. Once in a while, I would get a wild idea to try something but nothing ever stuck until I jumped in the deep end at Terminus.
Physical changes – where to begin? I’ve gained weight but almost all my clothes are too big! I’ve slowly started to remedy that situation, but I hate shopping so there is that. The muscle tone that has developed is wonderful. A year ago, I wouldn’t ever wear shorts because I just didn’t like how I looked. I’d cringe at the idea of having to wear a swimsuit. But now, I’ve become so comfortable with myself none of that enters my mind. People seem genuinely surprised when I tell them I’m 40. Perhaps it’s that I’m so full of whimsy, but I suspect my time at Terminus has a large part to do with that!
The mental changes have been even bigger. Not only have I become more confident at the gym, but that confidence has translated to everything outside. Mentally, the gym has become necessary. Working out is one of the very few things that can completely check my overthinking brain. For that hour nothing else exists. There’s no room for it. Once I’m done with a WOD I’m calmer, collected, and have a level of clarity that otherwise I would have struggled to achieve.
Q: How has Terminus helped you outside the gym?
I’m far and away more positive than I used to be, which if you met me at the beginning of this little CrossFit adventure you’d know, was no small feat. With the confidence that I have gained my views of myself, and how I spend my time and energy have all shifted for the better. My relationships have improved across the board. I’ve let a lot of things go that hadn’t been working or that weren’t in my best interests. It seems I’m always actively looking to better myself now in many ways.
Q: Who inspires you at the gym, and how do they inspire you?
Vickie Navarra – you! You are the reason I’m at Terminus. You gave me something I didn’t know I needed by encouraging me to try and to stick with it. You have been at this for far longer than I have and each time you come in with the wonderful attitude ready to rock it to the very best of your abilities. You are impressive my friend!
Robin Warnick and Jen Eastman – both of you ladies give me so much inspiration and helped me so much when I was just out of intro. You both always encourage me, push me, and you have always believed in me. Thank you.
I want to say that being at terminus has shifted my ideas of what beauty means for women. To all the ladies at Terminus, ALL OF YOU, I am in awe of you. Not only are you strong physically but in every aspect. You are all so capable, and the confidence that you all possess because of that is truly beautiful and inspiring.
Q: What is something that we may not know about you?
Fun fact – I’m half Syrian. I know, look at me. I promise it’s true!
Q: Any advice for someone considering trying CrossFit for the first time?
Just keep coming. Don’t give up. There is nowhere you are / will be that I haven’t been. I’ve thrown up, fallen off my rower, totally missed a pull-up bar when I jumped up for it, felt so completely defeated by things just not clicking that I’ve almost cried in the middle of the floor. Everyone expects it to be difficult physically but what I didn’t expect was just how difficult the mental portion would be. It takes a lot of courage to try something new, and to stay with it when it just sucks. Keep showing up. I promise you that you’re going to surprise yourself and keep surprising yourself. You’ve picked the very best, most encouraging community to help you accomplish it all. Also, and most importantly, be kind to yourself.
And when you’re done with intro, buy a pair of grips. If you buy nothing else, buy the grips.
Q: What are your top 3 memories at Terminus?
Sonya feeling so bad for me on one of my first workouts she told me not to worry about any time or distance on the rower but to just keep moving. I was so embarrassed, but she was so kind, so I kept moving. You guys, it was bad.
The first time Patrick told me an enthusiastic “Good Allison!”. I used to get a lot of head tilts and “better!” from Patrick. When that first “Good” came without a suggestion or correction to follow I almost dropped my bar. It was a great day!
Post quarantine, this summer when we did Annie. I managed to keep pace with Logan. Just maybe 3 seconds behind him – I was so proud. I felt great about that until I got home and realized the massive raspberry in a delicate place, I had created from doing so many sit-ups so quickly without the squishy mat. That took a while to heal!
Q: What’s your proudest accomplishment?
Honestly, that I’m still here. There were rough days. Lots of them. Getting over the mental and emotional hurdles was so much worse than the physical in many ways. The fact that I’ve been at it for over a year with no intention of stopping, that I’m coming even more than ever is huge for me. Also, this past week I finally got toes to bar. I was so surprised I completely stopped. But then I got up and tried again, did it again, and again!
Q: Moving forward, do you have any short term or long-term Fitness goals?
So many goals, but the main one is just to keep working on all the things and try and get a bit better each time! I think a lot of you all know I have some background with training dogs (agility mostly). My favorite instructor for that told me a long time ago that beginners always want to work on advanced handling, advanced handlers want to work on a master’s level, but the masters always work on basics. I try to apply that to CrossFit. I have a lot of little things that need ironed out, so just trying to work on checking those boxes as I move along.
That being said, I do want a muscle up, bad. And to handstand walk more than a few steps. I’m getting closer!!

September 2020 AOTM: Roger Parilla

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September 2020 AOTM: Roger Parilla
We have so much love for our community, and love to highlight one athlete each month that exemplifies hard work. Roger exemplifies one of the most important characteristics when it comes to finding success at Terminus. Through his ability to build friendships and mesh with the community, Roger has surrounded himself with a support system to keep him accountable and consistent. Get to know Roger here, and make sure you say hello to him next time you’re at the gym!

Q: How long have you been doing CrossFit? What changes have you seen in yourself (physically or mentally) since beginning at Terminus?
I started doing CrossFit last year at the very end of Oct when I signed up for the Intro class at Terminus. It was awful, I threw up in the parking lot at the end of my very first class! Thank you Patrick!
I started coming Monday-Friday when I joined the normal classes the following month. Since then I have seen a lot of changes.  Physically, I’m down 40lbs since joining and have gotten much fitter. I literally could not finish the 250m route without walking on day 1 but just last week was able to complete Jerry (1mile run, 2k row, 1mile run). The biggest changes for me have been mentally though. When I first joined I wasn’t happy with my weight at all and my expectations for each WOD were always very low. I would come in and expect to fail most workouts and would. But the more I got in there and the more comfortable I got with the coaches and members the higher my expectations got. Now I feel great! I’m confident in my fitness, I’m confident in my body and I’m confident with myself.

Q: How has Terminus helped you outside the gym?
With the weight loss and new confidence I just move differently, physically and figuratively. When it’s time to get ready I’m not worried about what I’ll look like in what I choose to wear. Instead I can get dressed and think about what I’ll be getting into that day. Think about the fun to be had. I’ve been getting my family out of the house at least once a week for some physical activities now. That time spent with them outside together is much more enjoyable than sitting around all day in the house.
My favorite part is feeling more comfortable being the leader in my family. I’m happy, healthy, confident, disciplined and much more. Knowing that, that’s what I’m putting out for my wife and children to see makes me feel amazing.

Q: Who inspires you at the gym, and how do they inspire you?
This question can go so many ways! I’m inspired by everyone at Terminus and I’m inspired daily by everyone in the 8am class, which is the class I attend on the regular. I will try to keep my list short although I could name each person from my class and how they inspire me. First I would like to state the obvious, and that is that Terminus is full of the most bad a** women I have ever met.
I’m thankful for Sara who made me feel welcomed on day one and has pushed me to finish workouts since I joined the 7am (now 8am) class. I have heard her voice many times encouraging me to finish every WOD. She is also always down to do the cool down with me! DEFINITELY an inspiration.
I’m also inspired by Wyatt and Ben Davidson, who peer pressure me into pushing heavier weight everyday! I still don’t know how those two are so fast. And I would also like to thank the 4 people who inspire us all, in no particular order, Emily, Sonya, Trent and PATRICKKKKK.

Q: What is something that we may not know about you?
Most people know I tattoo but most of them don’t know I also illustrate children books!

Q: Any advice for someone considering trying CrossFit for the first time?
Just give it your best try! It’s not easy but if you give it your best every time, you will get better!

Q: What are your top 3 memories at Terminus?
1) Patrick making me throw up on Day 1 and making me consider my life decisions.
2) Trent feeling bad for me being so far behind, he told me to just do 4 rounds instead of 5!
3) Me dying in the middle of a workout and Sonya yelling “It’s suppose to be uncomfortable!”

Q: What’s your proudest accomplishment?
For the first month, maybe even 2 months, I was doing every workout at level 1 and I still timed out on every WOD that had a time cap. My proudest accomplishment was finishing my first workout within the time limit.

Q: Moving forward, do you have any short term or long term Fitness goals? 
BEAT CAM IN A RUN! 🤣🤣 LET’S GOOOOOOO

Thank you Ben and Emily for creating this space.
Thank you to the coaches for leading us and helping us.
Thank you to all the members for being amazing!