Here’s my story: Coach Chandler
My name is Chandler and I am the head CrossFit coach here at SRC FIT. I have been doing CrossFit for 8 years, competing for about 5, and coaching for 3. It is not an exaggeration when I tell you…that CrossFit is my life. I can also tell you wholeheartedly that CrossFit has changed my life.
I grew up in a sport where image, especially body image, was at the forefront. I had a quick stint in gymnastics followed by 18 years of competitive cheerleading. What you looked like was just as important as the skills you were doing and unfortunately that affected me and sent me down a pretty rocky path.
If you know nothing about competitive cheer…don’t worry you’re not alone. It is honestly its own little world and those on the outside don’t quite have a grasp of the athleticism it requires to jump, stunt, tumble and pack it into a two and a half minute routine. This has helped immensely in CrossFit. Body awareness, gymnastics, stamina and endurance are all skills I gained by being involved in cheerleading and I am grateful to have that background!
Things started heading south when I became a D1 cheerleader in college. Body image became a hyper fixation to most of us on the team and that was exacerbated by monthly weigh-ins and constant lectures about appearance. The cherry on top was a conversation with our head coach where she told me that I needed to see a nutritionist ASAP because I had gained too much weight and it was “unacceptable.” As a young girl, I was devastated. I did what I was told. I felt threatened, I felt ashamed, and I began to hate myself and my body. There’s no sugar coating it. This one conversation triggered something deep within me that eventually led to an eating disorder.
After cheerleading ended, I closed a chapter of a very long book that I had dedicated my life to. I didn’t know what to do next. My mom had been doing some workout thing called CrossFit so I thought I’d give it a try. I walked in on my first day and had no idea what was going on. What’s a power clean? Why is everyone shirtless? Why does everyone look like they are about to die? What had I gotten myself into?
After a few classes…I was hooked. I had never been in a sport where being strong and having big muscles as a female was celebrated. I truly felt a sense of belonging and acceptance that I had not felt in a very long time.
I wish I could tell you that my self confidence was restored, my eating disorder was cured immediately and everyone lived happily ever after. But, that’s not what happened. My eating disorder ran rampant and controlled my life for many years. I was in a very dark place and I could never quite get my head above water. I can tell you, however, that CrossFit gave me something to look forward to everyday. It gave me hope and a purpose. I began to really catch on to movements, improve, and I decided I wanted to give competing a shot. I fell in love with competing but I wasn’t very good at competing. I am 100% sure that in my early days of competing I got last place in every competition I did. But, it lit a fire in me to continue to get better and it also brought me to a strange realization that I had never really been able to comprehend.
If I wanted to be competitive in CrossFit and get stronger, I needed to eat more. Food was fuel and food was necessary for recovery. I began to eat more and I felt better.
It was a hard but necessary adjustment. I was scared to eat but I was so incredibly hungry that I did it anyway. I worked with a nutritionist specializing in clients with eating disorders and we tackled all those feelings head on. I can never thank Meg enough for being the life preserver during that time where I was drowning. I can never thank this sport enough for being the lifeboat that got me through undoubtedly the darkest times in my life.
Fast forward to today… I am eating more than I’ve ever eaten in my life and my body is grateful. Oftentimes you will find me training at the gym between coaching classes with many snacks on hand (and extras in the fridge.) I have been lucky enough to compete at some pretty big competitions including The CrossFit Games North America East Semifinals in 2023.
I quit my full time nursing job to pursue being a full time athlete and CrossFit coach because of the love I have for the sport and the belief I have in the methodology of CrossFit. Seeing members of SRC FIT achieve goals and skills that they never believed they could do is the reason I love coaching the most. Having a platform to encourage people to love their bodies as they are right now is something I take very seriously. One rule I have in my classes is: we don’t talk bad about ourselves. I try to be the coach I wish I had in college. You have an impact on the people you coach and quite frankly, 19 year old Chandler deserved more.
My life was changed by CrossFit. CrossFit saved my life. My life gets better everyday because of CrossFit.
I would LOVE to continue this as an ongoing series where we feature our members’ stories about how CrossFit has impacted their lives. If you have a story you would like to share please email me here and it could be our next post!