I am a product of Northern California and its unlimited supply of rivers, lakes, open spaces, and big hot sun. Team sports became an obsession at an early age, filling my free time in every season. Swimming, baseball, basketball, soccer, tennis, and football were all passions but by the time high school arrived I found myself undersized and outmuscled by my peers. Training became my only way to compete.
4 years of hard work and a growth spurt landed me a spot at Princeton where I would play wide receiver for the duration of my University experience. Many of the same challenges arose as I competed for playing time, respect, and self-confidence. As before, I was drawn to the pain and simplicity of training and found myself surpassing expectations again.
After graduating with a BA in History, I spent 1 year teaching 7th grade math in Sacramento and three years personal training at Balance Gym in Washington, DC. Here I was exposed to almost everything the fitness world had to offer. From bodybuilding to Pilates, Functional Movement to Yoga, I either saw it, practiced it, or taught it during that time. It was during these years that I really began to believe that fitness would become more than just a tertiary element of my life.
In 2009 I left the United States to study European History at Universiteit Leiden, Sorbonne, and Oxford, and received my Masters Degree in 2010. During this time I was forced to re-imagine what fitness was and could be for an individual living without the standard resources of a gym. I began writing this blog to detail that re-imagination and I have been overwhelmed by the impact it's had on my life to this point.
I competed and placed 7th in the 2009 CrossFit Games. In 2010 I finished 23rd. More than anything, I am dedicated to the pursuit of the physical challenges our bodies were built to face, and the mental fortitude that comes from the ability to overcome them.
