Name: Jordan Smith
Hometown: Mombasa, Kenya
Age: 24
Occupation: entrepreneur/personal business owner
When did you first start CrossFitting? August 2013
When did you first start training at CrossFit Katy? August 2013
What class do you generally attend (morning/afternoon)? I’m a 4:30 pm girl!
Favorite WOD:
I love the gymnastics side of crossfit, so anything with pull-ups, toe to bars, handstand pushups, and chest to bars! On the lifting side, I love hang cleans and overhead squats. I also discovered I have a hidden talent for fast burpees (the most random talent ever), and everyone tends to enjoy what they’re good at! It’s a love/hate relationship!
Least Favorite WOD:
My least favorite wods include front squats, thrusters or snatch! Those are three moves I mentally and physically struggle with the most in crossfit!
Tell us about you sports & fitness background:
I was a swimmer in high school, but that’s as far as my athletic career went. My parents always taught me that exercise was a part of daily life, but until crossfit, fitness felt like an uphill battle that wasn’t fun and was the only way to ‘get skinny’. I have always struggled with being heavy or overweight, so fitness for me used to be connected to an unattainable goal and guilt when my body wouldn’t change.
How did you first get exposed to CrossFit? Take us back to your first WOD… what was it, and how did it feel?
My parents were the first to expose me to crossfit. They started and got all their kids involved in it. I did my first wod at their box in San Antonio. It was a base wod of 500 m row, 40 air squats, 30 sit ups, 20 pushups, and 10 pull-ups. For the pull-ups, I had to stand on a box and jump up to the bar and back down each time. I couldn’t even do one pull-up and could barely do pushups on my knees. I could hardly breathe after the rowing. I remember thinking there was no way my body could handle such intense workouts every day! I’ve learned that I could handle that and so much more!
What sort of changes have you seen in your body, health and fitness since starting CF (before/after)?
In the 2 years that I’ve been doing crossfit I have lost close to 25 pounds of fat while gaining quite a bit of muscle. My legs and arms are defined and strong! I look in the mirror and flex and bam! Muscle! For someone who used to look in the mirror and hate how I looked, this is such a major accomplishment for me! My eating habits have changed. I try to eat what is going to enhance and fuel my body for my workouts. I’ve learned that my body is tougher than I thought. I went from forcing myself to try to exercise to being excited for every wod and working very hard through them. I can now RX most workouts now too!
What sort of changes in your life have you experienced out of taking on something like CrossFit that were totally unexpected?
I’ve learned to how to work hard. Crossfit is the area in my life that I push myself the most. If I’m going to do it, I’m going to do it well. I’ve really seen how hard work pays off. One of the biggest changes is with my husband, Matt. Until crossfit we were too competitive with each other or ended up getting frustrated trying to exercise together. With crossfit, we can work out and be competitive with each other but we both enjoy it and it has become a hobby that we share in common.
Name one goal you have reached since joining CFK and one goal you want to achieve (example: deadlift/squat/press ___ pounds; do a pullup; do a WOD RX’d, etc.):
Getting my weight down has been a major goal for me since I started. I have lost 20 pounds this year and am proud of it! I also just competed in my first partner crossfit competition which was intimidating to me and was so fun to accomplish. Next on the list, individual competition!
My goals right now are butterfly pull-ups and chest to bar and handstand walks!
Please share with us any favorite CrossFit / CFK moments:
The Open at CrossFit Katy is probably one of my favorites. There is so much encouragement and the camaraderie level is high! I also really love the endurance class swim wods!
Any advice for people just getting started?
My biggest advice would be to work through the soreness, give it some time and don’t compare! It feels so hard when you first start, but it’s worth it and remember it takes time to see results. Changes don’t happen overnight, and it’s not fair to yourself to compare your ability when you start to someone else’s ability who has been there. Leave your ego at the door and work hard and have fun!
What are your hobbies, interests and/or talents outside of CrossFit?
Outside of crossfit I love to travel spontaneously, fly, spend hours on the beach and create things. I love all things international and I am passionate about fighting human trafficking!
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