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155# snatch
365# deadlift
280#back squat / 250# front squat
5:06 Karen
Sports and athletics have always played a role in my life. Through high school, I played tennis, basketball, and softball, and was on a traveling bowling team. In college, I was also on a club rowing team.
I found CrossFit 5 or 6 years after I graduated college, and had done very little athletically since. In all the years of sports, I'd played, I had never once picked up a barbell or done any strength training. It quickly became one of my favorite things to do. The barbell in crossfit then led me to the sport of weightlifting. I think I read every article and forum on the internet related to cleans, jerks, and snatches that I could find! Since then, I've competed in several weightlifting meets, and am looking to get back to competing postpartum. After many years of experience and building a strong knowledge base, I started coaching barbells in 2019.
I've always loved being on teams and being in a captain/mentoring role. That has always been something that comes easily to me. What has not come easily for me, has been performing or doing ANYTHING in front of a crowd. Before any game or match, I felt sick to my stomach, afraid to have eyes on me as I make a mistake or even in victory. Weightlifting forced me to confront this nervousness and perform under pressure, all while being "seen." This is my primary goal in the classes I lead: creating an environment where everyone is comfortable and confident in being seen.
