Windy City Pulse

This is #WindyCityLivin

I love sports. Anyone who knows me knows how much I love all things sports related.  Sports has been a part of my life for as long as I can remember. To say sports have had an influence on my life would be a drastic understatement. I often think about how different my life would be if I never put on ice skates, or picked up a softball bat. When I do reflect on my 25+ years of playing sports there are of course fond memories of winning games or tournaments, but I always seem to come back to thinking about the teams I was lucky to be a part of. I never really competed in an individual sport. I've always been drawn to being part of a team. 

My mom and dad gave me ice skates, a softball bat and ball when I was about 4 years old and I haven't let go since. Family "vacations" centered around traveling in our Vanguard motorhome to whichever Canadian city my parents were playing thier next slow-pitch softball tournament in. My older brother Jeff was an avid golfer and my younger brother Jesse was a damn good little hockey player. Our family is an amazing team. My favorite team. Jesse would often have to be dragged to my softball games and I would have to drive for hours with my mom who was dropping off Jeff at his next golf tournament. My dad is our captain. He coached both me and my brother- sometimes even during the same season. My softball coach and Jesse's baseball coach. He'd run from game to game and often have to make the tough call as to which one of our practices or tournaments he'd have to miss. That makes Mom our owner. She runs the show behind the scenes and took care of my Dad when his plate was full. I learned the value of team very early on from my family- a trait I wouldn't trade for the world. 

I'm jealous my brother Jesse picked the right hat back then. HAWKS! 

 

 

In my opinion, being a great teammate means many things. It can mean sacrifice for the greater good. It means putting others need above your own, but it also means knowing when to put yourself above others. Are you dependable? Do your actions back up your words? Do you treat your teammates as you, yourself would want to be treated? 

I believe learning these traits at a young age made me a better teammate. I might not have always been the most skilled athlete on the field, but I always wanted to be the best teammate. Being a great teammate is a very controllable action. It's a choice. You can choose to offer support, you can choose to say the words that need to be said, you can choose to stay for 30 minutes after practice to help a struggling teammate. 

I try and make these choices everyday in my personal relationships as well. I'm so lucky to be in a relationship with someone who is an amazing partner. Servia and I are a team. I couldn't ask for a better partner. She supports me in any way she can. She balances me out and provides me with a stable, calming pressence when life seems anything but stable or calming. She says things I need to hear but don't necessarily want to hear. She constanstly surprises me with how selfless she can be. At times it seems to be a competition as to which one of us can put the others needs above our own the most. 

She even learned how to skate (and golf) with me! 

 

It's no surprise that when my athletic career was over, I began looking for a job that would allow me to be a part of a team. I needed a strong team atmosphere to be a part of. When I first joined Windy City CrossFit, it was at the encourgament of my Canadian Softball teammate Lauren Bay Regula. Lauren was already living in Chicago at the time and I was looking for a job within the CrossFit world. Lauren spoke very highly of Justin and I knew I could trust her. She had been my teammate for 8 years. Moving to Chicago was one of the easiest decisions I've ever made. I love the team atmosphere we have at Windy City. Justin is our captain and our coaching staff follows his lead. There's so much work that goes on behind the scenes to make Windy City run as effieciently as it does. Our team starts with Justin. This is a role that he full embraces. I will follow Justin because I know his heart is with his members and his message is clear:

We believe the quality of our health determines the quality of our lives—and nothing is more important than that. We believe real fitness is about strengthening and conditioning your mind and body so you can get out there, explore the world, seek new adventures and be the person you were meant to be. 

 

I love our Windy City team. I think we're pretty lucky to be able to work with eachother every day. Each coach has a unique personality and brings something different to the team. Our support staff (Austin, Ox, Tony and Doc) is quickly growing and I couldn't be more excited about the additions to our team. I'll speak today to about the 4 coaches I've worked with the longest.

These are my current teammates: 

Meagles: This girl is my rock. As many of you know, there is not a single thing Meagles won't do to help make your day just a little brighter. Break out into song? Check. Bust a move? Check. Impromptu Handstand hold? Check. Cover 3 straight hours of your classes when your sick? Triple check. Meagles is an amazing teammate who makes me want to be a better coach. She is always 100% willing to spend extra time with members to help them nail down whatever movement or skill they are working on. Seriously, how many people have acheived a kipping pull up after spending about 5 minutes with her?! 

Sam: Sam is smart dude and he always is willing to share his knowledge to help make his teammates better. I truly believe Windy City will be an injury free zone thanks to him. He wants what is best for our athletes. Sam also makes me want to be a better coach. I've leaned on Sam more than a couple of times trying to find that work/life balance as well. It's really great feeling to know that you can call on your teammate to help you out when you need a little break. I feel as though this email exchange perfectly illustrates Sam as a teammate: 

Dan: I loved working with Dan so much when we met in Miami a little over a year ago that I made him move to Chicago. True story (there are more details of course but those are the basics of what you need to know.) Like Sam, Dan is a smart dude who is always willing to share knowledge for the betterment of the gym. Dan has a contagious optmism- you can't knock this guy down. He has a gift for being able to find the best of any situation or making a good situation even better. I dare you to hang out with Dan for 5 minutes without cracking a smile. 

Cheston: He's kind of like our gym guardian. I'm sure there is a better term, but this is what I'll go with for now. Cheston has a tremendous gift for seeing the big picture that is Windy City. He's attention to detail is pretty remarkable to me. No stone is left unturned. Cheston has the task of supporting all our coaches, class schedules, facility operations. He's in charge of taking care of a lot of people and he does a really good job at it. Any time I've needed Cheston, he's been there. He's as dependable as they come. 

These are just a few of the characteristics I value in my teammates. I believe you have the opportunity every day to be a good teammate to someone, anyone. A co-worker, a family member, a classmate. Windy City provides the opportunity every class hour for you to be a teammate. Introduce yourself to someone new and find any way to be supportive, encouraging or helpful. Cheer each other on until everyone is done with the work out, stay until the end of class, give high fives, help eachother put equipment away. Small gestures go a long way to making Windy City even better! 

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