For this Member Spotlight, the coaching staff recognized an athlete who has put in a lot of hard work and dedication over the last few months of training at The Foundry. Congratulations to Gabe Cuevas for being this week’s Member Spotlight! Read on to learn more of where Gabe started, how training with others motivates him, and how he takes advantage of all the opportunities The Foundry has to offer.
The Foundry: What brought you to The Foundry? What were you doing for exercise Pre-Crossfit?
Gabe C: I am a triathlon/road running burnout who was looking for a new lifestyle before trying CrossFit. I had a few seasons of great aerobic fitness almost ten years ago from all the triathlon training. After moving to LA, I joined a triathlon training club but trying to capture every heartbeat and (centi)meter of every workout via heart rate monitor/GPS became an overwhelming obsession. You can add getting married, traveling for work, and the fact that having kids wrecked my body and sleep schedule to that sorry list of excuses. (Apologies to my wife who breastfed and handled 90% of the night nursing for both of our kids.)
The cardio just wasn’t effective anymore and I was too heavy to run with any volume and frequency. I needed new tools. I had been researching Crossfit for over a year and was intrigued by the Olympic lifts and general nuttiness. I was worried I wasn’t going to be in shape enough to get started. My initial hesitation ended after two of my friends started at other boxes. That reawakened my competitive drive and motivated me to sign up. Lucky for me, The Foundry had the best schedule and proximity to work.
The Foundry: How has training affected your lifestyle?- eating habits, social interactions, priorities etc.
GC: I finished my foundation classes at the end of July, so I’m still learning the way. Even in this short amount of time, it’s been transformational. Physically I’m down over 20 pounds and 4 inches off my waist. Much more than that; I’m a much happier person when I’m working out regularly and eating well. I’m more focused at work and more present for my family. I took advantage of a Whole30 challenge to really experiment with my diet and see how my body responds to foods.
I tend to max-out in my hobbies and really embody them (from triathlete to coach potato) but they’ve never felt sustainable. I think there’s room in this training approach to sustain and build a balanced lifestyle. I may even buy some board-shorts!
The Foundry: What was your ‘ah-ha’ moment in training? When/how did you start to feel the affects of your new lifestyle?
GC: The love started for me when I realized I had very few strengths and a growing list of weaknesses. Even with that humbling reality, I found I could adopt a “don’t think-just do” approach to training because of the staff. I trust Brad and tease him about being a mad genius. I know the programming will be challenging, effective, and fun. All I have to do is show up and work hard. I’ve had my ass handed to me by workouts that looked easy on paper. I’ve finished a few workouts that I thought I’d never be able to do. I appreciate the coaches ability to safely extract my unrealized potential. It’s a delicate balance. It was very intimidating at first and being an introvert doesn’t help, but it’s very energizing to work out with everyone else and see people working hard together to make progress.
The Foundry: What’s something we don’t know about you already?
GC: I learned how to DJ in 1994 and have over 2000 vinyl records. Genres cover Soul/Funk, BeeBop, Afro-Cuban Jazz, Salsa, Disco, House, Rock, and a lot of 80’s – 90’s Hiphop. I still have my Technics 1200 turntables can’t imagine ever getting rid of them.
Awesome work Gabe, we can’t wait to continue to see your progress. Be sure to congratulate Gabe and continue to WoD hard!
Love it! Great job, Gabe! The things you find out about people you work out with, hehe…
I love these! There are members I haven’t met yet because our workout times are different. Hope I get to meet these awesome folks soon!
Awesome Gabe! We’re gonna have to talk about music for the West Gate grand opening!!
Aw, shucks
NICE! Well said and honest sir, can’t go wrong with that!