I am quite pleased to announce our December Athletes of the Month, Lauren Hansen and Ben Capistrant! One thing they have in common is love of a stylish workout ensemble. Let’s dive into the details.
Lauren became a Solcanaut last May. The first time I met her, she said she was here because she wanted to work on getting stronger. I did not realize at the time just how serious she was. When she started, she already an amazing amount of mobiity. She had enough mobility for like, five people. But she was lacking the stability to move the bar well. Lauren has been very consistent in attendance and focused on sticking with the program, and as a result she’s gained some impressive strength and learned how to express it through her mobility. She stays focused on her own path, and from a coach’s standpoint she is a dream to work with: present, prepared, patient. Lately she has been tearing it up on all her lifts and making amazing progress, like a 45# PR on her overhead squat which helped her win “most improved” for the Fall Challenge. She has also improved her gymnastics game considerably and can now do kipping pullups like a boss. Recently, Lauren joined the Oly team and has started to prepare for her first meet, working on the weightlifting programming in addition to crossfit. We are all impressed and can’t wait to see what she does in the next year.
Ben is another Solcanaut whose amazingly consistent attendance has paid off big time. I haven’t had the pleasure of having much face time with Ben yet, so I interviewed the PM coaches to find out about him. I learned that he is very coachable and always asks for constructive criticism to improve his technique. He is confident, willing to take cues from coaches, and is all-caps DEDICATED. Marijke quips: “His squat has gone from ‘WTF?’ to ‘looking good’!” She adds “He’s been working so hard on getting better form, and it shows in his improvement during the Fall Challenge. Also he’s super witty and works in public health, so I love that.” Coach Jenn adds “BEN IS THE BEST! He is so full of joy and hilarity and is so consistent with his training. It is fun to watch his mad gainz as a result of his hard work. Plus, his headbands are the bomb.” And Coach Ariel says “Ben is kind, funny and has the best answers to the questions of the day. He loves dogs and has the best gym outfits”. Keep up the good work and slay those goals, Ben! You add so much to our family and we love having you here.