Joining our community in Summer 2019, Lori has transferred her running background to CrossFit and exemplifies a go-go-go mentality. Most often appearing at the 5:30 am or 5:30 pm class, Lori trains in and outside the gym, 1-2 times daily on top of an already packed schedule. From academic studies, to social life, to dedication to fitness, Lori is fun to be around, enthusiastic, and is a person who dives into any challenge. Keep reading to learn more about Lori and her approach to fitness, life, and motivation.
What does an average day-in-the-life look like for you? (food, training, work, recovery, leisure time, etc.): As a med student going through my clerkship rotations, my schedule often changes from week to week. And now with COVID, I've had to become very adaptable. But a typical day starts when my alarm goes off at 5am. I get dressed and head over to the 5:30am class or head out for a run/bike ride. Depending on my timing that day I'll do some extra work. Then it's home, shower, get dressed, quickly eat breakfast and head over to the hospital/clinic. Once the day is done, I head out for a run/bike ride/swim or go to the 5:30pm class, depending on what I did that morning. In the evenings, I spend time with my friends playing euchre or watching Jeopardy (because I'm 90 apparently), and making dinner. I try to get into bed around 9-9:30pm, but because I'm a TV addict, I usually watch TV until I doze off around 11-12. The weekends are definitely my time to chill. I try to sleep in though I usually don't make it past 8-8:30 and spend most of the day vegging out, hanging with friends, doing chores and dreading Sunday night.
Have you changed the way you eat since you began CrossFit, If so, how?: I think the only thing that's changed since starting CrossFit is the amount of food I eat. I would definitely say that my caloric intake has increased significantly to keep up with my increased activity levels. Like a lot of women, I struggled with an eating disorder as a teenager so I try not to spend too much time thinking about food to avoid falling back into negative habits. That being said, I try to eat a generally healthy diet. On the weekdays, I usually have yogurt with peanut butter, granola, blueberries and chocolate chips for breakfast. Lunch is usually a salad with arugula, sweet potatoes, feta cheese, chickpeas, dried cranberries and a hard boiled egg. For dinner, me and my roomie make a GoodFood/ Hello Fresh box which are honestly the best. I'll snack on protein bars, cheese and crackers, and fruits throughout the day. I'm a sugar addict so every day ends with a minimum of one baked good. I love to bake so if I have free time I'll make some cookies or cinnamon rolls. But I have spent $$$ on crave cinnamon rolls and Card's bakery chocolate zucchini cake for my nightly dessert. The weekends are honestly a free for all. I'm a sucker for a fried chicken sandwich from KBC or pizza from Score. Honestly, as long as I'm maintaining my weight, I try to just be happy and move on!
How does training/CrossFit fit into your life?: CrossFit has become an integral part of my life in so many ways. I started coming to Queen Street when I was in grad school. Grad school can be really isolating and I found myself itching for something to be a part of. I had some friends who went to the gym and I'd been to a couple of trial classes so one day I just decided I was going to start! Since then, the gym has become so much more than a place to work out. I have made some amazing friends, become part of a community and learned so many new skills. Knowing that I'm going to start my day off with my friends at the 5:30am class is a huge driver to get out of bed. There is no reason for me to be up at 7:30am on a Saturday to go to the gym, but I could never let my Saturday morning squad down! Whenever I travel, I always look up a CrossFit gym and I've found that everyone is so inviting. The community truly extends no matter where you go! I love being active and this is such a fun way to do that.
What reasons did you have to train when you started CrossFit? Have those reasons changed? If so, how?: I started training for a couple of reasons. One was to make friends and be part of a community. Another was to change things up. I came from a running background and had never done weightlifting or gymnastics so there were lots of fun new things to learn! I would say those things all apply. I still look forward to the community the most and I still have so much to learn. I would say I also have more directed goals now for what I want to improve on.
What improvements have you made in the past 6 months that you are most proud of?: Of everything I've learned, the improvements I've made in gymnastics have made me really proud. I never thought I would be able to do a pull-up or toes-to-bar. Fast forward and now I can string them together and do things like handstand pushups, so that's pretty cool! The other improvement that I've made is pacing. I'm always tempted to crank out calories on a cardio machine or rip through a run but it always comes back to bite me when I have to move on to the other parts of the workout. Learning to pace those things, even though I know I can go faster has really helped me improve on my other skills.
Do you currently have a main focus or goal(s) with your training? : I would say gymnastics and the Olympic lifts are my main goals for improvement. These are definitely things that I struggle with so I am trying to work on my technique! But really my main goal is just to have fun and be happy. I was having post-wod life chats with Cal one day, as one does, and we were talking about my goals. I spent a lot of time talking about how I wanted to do this and that, how my lifts are bad and my gymnastics are bad and how I felt like I wasn't improving. And he brought up all of the things I had improved on and asked me if I honestly wanted to make any changes in the way I was training. For example, if I wanted to lift heavier, would I do a dedicated strength program and reduce my cardio. I said no, not really. And then he said "honestly, then you're reaching your goals, because if you're having fun and staying healthy, then that's really all that matters". I still think about that all the time and try to incorporate it in my mindset!
What would you consider to be your greatest strength as an athlete?: JJ once said that I live in the dark zone of cardio and I think this encases me in a nutshell. As my friends will tell you I am a person who lives only in the extremes of life. Moderation is just not something that is in my vocabulary. I definitely bring intensity, competitiveness and 100% energy to every workout. I always challenge myself to try the heavier weight, do the gymnastics movement I'm not comfortable with, and generally push myself out of my comfort zone. I'm always down to try a new skill! I think this has really helped me improve quickly on a lot of things at the gym.
What is one thing that you do every day that you feel is essential in contributing to your success in the gym? : Being engaged with fellow members and the coaches! I always get to class early enough to chit chat and get settled in with everyone before the workout. I feel like this bonds us and forms a camaraderie that makes it a lot easier and more fun to get through the workout. We all showed up at 5:30 am to suffer through the workout together and there's something strangely comforting about that.
If you could give yourself one piece of advice when you started CrossFit, what would it be?: Pattttiiieeeennnccceeee. I am a super impatient person. I want to be able to do everything right away. I remember being so frustrated with the gymnastics and lifts at the beginning (and don't even get me started on double unders). I spent so much time complaining about how I just couldn't get it, something wasn't clicking, yada yada. But eventually, with practice, these things come. Everyone improves at their own rate and there's no point comparing yourself to anyone! There will always be people who will be stronger than you, more flexible, fitter, better at gymnastics, faster. You will find your strengths and your weaknesses and you will learn a lot, so just have fun in the process!
Do you have a go-to self-pep talk? (i.e. something you tell yourself when things get hard with training or during a workout): This is going to sound so contradictory but something I always tell myself is "no one cares about this but you". I can be really hard on myself if I don't hit the weight I want, if my gymnastics falls apart, if I'm not running fast enough. I always try to remind myself that I am doing this for my own health and happiness, not to impress anyone. I find that helps ground me and just bring whatever I can to the workout.
Is there anything you would like to add? : This community means the world to me. It took me out of some dark times and has become a really huge support for me during COVID. No matter what I do or where I go, I know I will always have my CFQS family with me <3