Our May Athlete of the Month is no surprise to any of us here at CrossFit Big Rock… Congratulations to JAKE HOLMES!
Jake came to Big Rock about six months ago. Jake is not new to CrossFit, but it had been a little while. Easing back into the cardio was the fun part (right Jake? Ok, maybe not). But lifting heavy, you could tell, was his favorite and it didn’t take very long at all to get those heavy weight plates back on the bar. Then you bet, just a few months back into it and he was PR’ing all over the place! Pretty exciting! He attends the 5:30am classes pretty regularly and now is mixing it up and WODing at night too so he can get his lifting in during Open Gym time. Jake, thanks for always walking into CFBR with a smile on your face and ready to tackle whatever is on the whiteboard. It’s been fun watching you get stronger and faster!
What’s your CrossFit story?
— Hey guys, I started Crossfit in November 2015.
What is your CrossFit favorite? And what’s not your favorite?
— Some of my favorite CrossFit favorites include team-based competitive activities, along with compounded movements that make each set excruciatingly painful (that’s when I start laughing from the pain). However, my least favorite has to be burpees, or thrusters.
You recently got a new job. What draws you to that profession? Tell us about it…
— I am recently employed by King County in the Department of Adult and Juvenile Detention as a Juvenile Detention Officer. Over the past few weeks, I can sum it up as going from having no responsibility of children, to having 10 children I am responsible for during my shift. I hope to have this be a building block into other possibilities within King County.
Other than work, what keeps you busy outside the box?
— What has kept me busy outside of the box. Over the past two months I have been house searching, so my weekends have been goners. Outside of that I enjoy video games. *insert super nerdy joke here.*
Most embarrassing moment?
— My most embarrassing moment… at least at the Box… was during Box Jumps early in the morning and biffing it, and eating rubber with my face.
Did you play sports growing up?
— I grew up playing Little League Baseball until age 11, where I switched over to Select baseball for the Riverview Ravens… in Middle School and High School I played both Baseball and Football.
What is your favorite cheat meal?
— Every meal is cheat meal. Just kidding. When I take my diet seriously, and I am trying to alter my food intake, my biggest cheat meal is breakfast… waffles, eggs, syrup, butter, bacon, and a milkshake.
Any advice for CrossFit newbies?
— I can say with confidence I came into CrossFit with strength, but no functional movement ability compared to the majority of others. CrossFit can be extremely daunting, and looks like a lot of work… and it is. However the community CrossFit brings with it far outweighs any difficulty one may have in choosing to begin at a CrossFit gym. Every coach I have had or come across is extremely welcoming, thoughtful, thorough, and wants the best for you. You have no idea what you are missing until you experience it.
