February Athlete of the Month: Matt Broadus
Congratulations Matt on being the NoCoast Athletes of the Month!
Matt has been a part of our NoCoast community for 7 months. He’s found a home at the 6:45am class and has been a consistent member of the morning crew. His hard work and dedication has been paying off as his strength and fitness gains have already had significant improvements over this short time. He is such a great addition to class as he is fun, always has a great attitude, and is eager for feedback! He is a true testament to why many of us do CrossFit - he takes his increased fitness onto the ski hills each weekend and loves an all around active lifestyle! Thanks for being such an awesome addition to our community, Matt, and keep it up! We can’t wait to see the additional gains that will come your way!
Quotes from Matt:
“CrossFit has completely changed my overall happiness and well being. I like going to the 6:45 class because it forces me to get up early and head into work (I am lucky that my office is right next to the gym). I am done with my workout and ready to start my workday at 8 which means I start my day off on the right foot. I love this routine and I really feel like it has improved every aspect of my life. I've been sleeping better, I'm more productive at work, this is the most fit I have ever been, and I have more time to pursue things outside of work. CrossFit has also introduced me to such a fun and welcoming group of people, I love our little 6:45 crew!”
“Don't worry about not lifting as much or being as fast as anyone else, there will always be someone stronger/faster than you. We are all at NoCoast to better ourselves and be healthier, so no matter if you're brand new or have been lifting your whole life, we're all striving for the same goal. Also, I get absolutely smoked by everyone at the 6:45, but I love it! So take solace in the fact that if you're new, you will probably still beat me.”
Age/Weight:
26, 165 lb.
Athletic/Sports history/highlights:
I grew up playing basketball, lacrosse, and soccer, playing for different club teams all through high school. When I got to college, I (for some reason) decided to pick up running. I started off on the treadmill in the gym and before I knew it, I was running 25-30 miles a week. I ran a few races here and there (10 milers, 5k's, all sorts of stuff) and decided that I should go all the way and do a marathon. I am from the Washington DC area, so I grew up hearing about the Marine Corp marathon and how special it was. I chose this as my race and started training for it while I was in college. I ran a few qualifiers for that including a half marathon and the Marine Corp 17.75k. I qualified for the Marine Corp marathon and ran it my junior year of college. I have never been a fast runner, so I was just happy to finish! I didn't do very well, but I really enjoyed the preparation for the marathon. It was nice to fall into a schedule of what distance/speed/interval I was running on a certain day of the week. After I graduated, I moved out to Colorado and quickly determined that I needed a winter sport, since it was way too cold to run. My girlfriend is a huge skier and she passed the ski bug to me. 19/20 was my first winter skiing and I absolutely loved it! My friends and I go skiing every weekend in the winter, typically at Steamboat or Winter Park. I finally conquered moguls, so Mary Jane has been particularly fun this season #DontGroomTheJane.
How long have you been CrossFitting?
I started in July of 2022
How did you get into CrossFit?
I work at Sierra Space and there are a ton of people who go to NoCoast! I have to give a shoutout to Marisa and Kristine, they are the ones who convinced me to join.
What is your favorite WOD/CrossFit movement?
Before NoCoast, I had never powerlifted or done any CrossFit movements. After getting used to the WODs we do, I think my favorite thing is cleans. Cleans were the first Olympic lift that I picked up and I find them fun to cycle!
What is your least favorite WOD/CrossFit movement?
Without a shadow of a doubt, not up for debate: burpee box jump overs. I absolutely hate them. No one likes burpees, so naturally someone decided to pair them with jumping over a box. I haven't found a way to fly through them, so they always take forever. They spike your heart rate so I feel like I fatigue by like the third rep. There was a WOD a few months ago where we had burpee box jump overs and on one of my reps I absolutely ate it on the box. I jumped, slammed my knee, and belly flopped on to the box. Totally knocked the wind out of me mid-WOD. Is this why I hate burpee box jump overs? Probably. Will I keep coming to class when I see them in btwb? Absolutely (but in protest).
What is your most memorable CrossFit moment?
Has to be the first time I figured out kipping pull ups. For the first few months at NoCoast, I couldn't quite get the kipping pull ups, I always had to do ring rows whenever pull ups were in the WOD. Then one class, Christian gave me some tips about conserving momentum and it finally clicked! I remember being so excited that I just started ripping through pull ups. Now I love pull ups, they're probably my second favorite movement behind cleans. My next goal is butterfly pull ups, so ask me this question again in a few months and hopefully my favorite CrossFit moment will be figuring those out!
How does nutrition play a role in your fitness and recovery?
I can definitely feel a difference when I’m not taking care of my body. I got a few tips early on at NoCoast to drink tons of water and eat enough protein and that advice has made huge differences. If I don't drink enough water one day, I don't rebound as well after a tough class. I've also tried to eat more calories since I'm working out more and that has made a difference as well. Outside of those things, I try not to be too hard on myself about what I eat. I generally try to eat healthy, but if I'm craving an M&M blizzard from the Dairy Queen two minutes down the road from my house, I'm gonna get one.
How has CrossFit improved your overall wellness?
CrossFit has completely changed my overall happiness and well being. I like going to the 6:45 class because it forces me to get up early and head into work (I am lucky that my office is right next to the gym). I am done with my workout and ready to start my workday at 8 which means I start my day off on the right foot. Since I've already hit the gym, once I'm done with work at 5 I am done for the day, which means I have all night to cook dinner and relax. I love this routine and I really feel like it has improved every aspect of my life. I've been sleeping better, I'm more productive at work, this is the most fit I have ever been, and I have more time to pursue things outside of work. CrossFit has also introduced me to such a fun and welcoming group of people, I love our little 6:45 crew! Before CrossFit, I didn't really feel like I was a morning person, but now I have no problem waking up at 5:45 ready to go for the day.
How has CrossFit changed your family?
It has inspired my family to get out and be active. I share my apple watch fitness with my sister and she uses me finishing WODs as her motivation to get up and be active. After all, I am her little brother and she will never let me beat her at something. It has also encouraged my girlfriend to start going to the gym. Ever since I started at NoCoast, she has been asking me for tips, tricks, and workouts that she can do. She has never been a huge gym person, but she started going, which is exciting!
Advice to new people:
1) Find a time that fits into your schedule and go to class consistently. As soon as I found a time that fit in my schedule, I started to go consistently. I saw increases in my lifts and a change in my happiness quickly!
2) Don't worry about not lifting as much or being as fast as anyone else, there will always be someone stronger/faster than you. We are all at NoCoast to better ourselves and be healthier, so no matter if you're brand new or have been lifting your whole life, we're all striving for the same goal. Also, I get absolutely smoked by everyone at the 6:45, but I love it! So take solace in the fact that if you're new, you will probably still beat me.