BACK ROOM HOMIES

Oh what a great day it is! The weather is warming up and that alone should bring a smile to your face, it sure does mine!

Something else that brings a HUGE smile to my face is my "back room homies!" I can't say enough about these rad humans. Each day I walk into the gym after work and I know that no matter the day I had, it is going to end great!

Well, if you followed the last five Friday posts you know that I participated in the CrossFit Open, and it is officially OVER but the training for 2018 started the same day I repeated 17.5. I went into this season with a goal of making the Top 100 in the Mid-Atlantic and this group of back room homies, whom I consider family, were going to do anything they could to help me reach that goal. This group, as well as my dad, brother and many other CFHers and friends cheered me on, helped me set a plan, celebrated my accomplishments and kept me up during my "unsatisfied" moments. I was 7 spots out of making that goal. I finished 107th in the Mid-Atlantic and 1260th worldwide. This was my best open finish to date, and I would not be where I am today as an athlete or person without these awesome back room homies!

During the summer of 2015, I had told myself come January 2016 if I had not rediscovered my love for fitness, which I seemed to have lost, then I was possibly going to stop CrossFit for a bit and really considering moving away from Harrisonburg. I did a lot of my training alone, and I thought I was pushing hard, but when I started training with others, I realized how much more I actually had in me. Well, fall of 2015 is when I met some of these people, we started all training together and in the fall of 2015 I rediscovered my love for fitness. I laughed at the gym daily and laughing, as you know, is my favorite medicine. This group has grown as the years go on and I LOVE IT!

They say you are the average of the five people you spend the most time with and am I thankful that I get to be around these humans EVERY DAY. I have many other RAD humans in my life so I am thankful that my number doesn't stop at the average of the five people I spend most of my time with; I would say I am the average of THIRTY PLUS people! :) What can I say — my friends and family mean the WORLD to me!

I am so blessed that they became apart of my life when they did. The laughs, tears and excitement shared with the back room homies cannot be replaced. I have so many wonderful memories to think back on already, and there are endless memories to be had.

I love this quote: "Let us be grateful to people that make us happy; they are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom." - Marcel Proust.

Boy am I grateful. Grateful for you all as people. Grateful for the smiles you bring to my face daily. Grateful for the nonstop laughs. Grateful for the support you all give me through my best days and my worst days. Grateful for all the adventures we have gone on. Grateful for the daily push to be a better athlete. Grateful for the better person you all make me. And extremely grateful for the person you are. Keep being you.

All I can say is you ALL rock, friends. Thank you Hannah, Maria, Olivia, Brendan, Grady, Jake, Justin, Ryan, Sam, Taylor and Zach for being flat out amazing!

Take a moment today to send a special message to at least one friend or family member letting them know how much they mean to you. I am telling you it will be well worth your time.

Have an absolutely AMAZING day!

#ohhappyday, T