Chrissy Mayernik
Age: 46, Married to Mike and we have 2 awesome boys, Michael Patrick and Kyle. This is our family business and everyone, even the kids pitch in to help!
Favorite Workouts: Max Burpees on the minute for 10 consecutive minutes! And anything involving getting a bar off the floor!
Least Favorite Workouts: Mountain Climbers (they are a clothing disaster:)
Claim(s) to Fame: I love to test the CrossFit fitness claims by jumping into events with little to no training. I have done this many times and although I do not come in first, I hold my own. The last triathlon I did I hadn’t taken my bike out since the same triathlon the year before! A few of us ran the 10 mile Broad Street Run with literally zero training. We did just as good as folks we know trained for months to run 10 miles. And I was not even sore the next day. I may not come in first but I do ok at a very broad spectrum of fitness activities, which is exactly what CrossFit is about.
I also think I’m pretty good at talking people into doing crazy shit. We call doing crazy stuff “Shitting in the Box.” From this phrase we ended up calling each other SIBlings. This phrase came about by one of our SIBlings explaining to a friend over dinner a 200 mile relay race I talked her in to, and the friend said “Wow, if TUFFCAMP asks you to Shit in a Hat it seems like you guys would all just do it”…Over the years it got changed to Shit in the Box…but basically it means to reach outside your comfort zone and push yourself to do crazy things!
My story: I started eating right and training with Greg Tymon (owner of CrossFit Advanced and Primed Fitness) in 2009. He came right to my house three days a week, and it was JUST the jumpstart I needed. My life has changed for the better in so many ways. I lost 44+ inches, and I got fit as a fiddle with one set of dumbbells, an Olympic bar, a jump rope, rocks, log bundles, and my stairs.
I learned to run steps (two and then three at a time), sprint, dial up the intensity, jump on high things, keep workouts random, and to get an Olympic bar off the floor in what seemed like a zillion different ways: clean, snatch, power clean, hang power clean, push jerk, etc… I loved it and got really good at it. My father was very athletic and held all kinds of records but he passed away in a car accident when I was 3 years old. I like to think the athlete in me has lots of him in there and I know he’d be amazed at some of the stuff I do, and talk others into doing:)
During my quest since 2009, I’ve run 5Ks, bought a bike, learned to swim, completed triathlons, learned to jump on high things, carried heavy loads, learned to do handstands, learned how to eat right and of course spent countless hours trying to show my kids the importance and what it means to take control of your own health and life. I’ve completed Tough Mudders, Spartans, Ragnar Relays and Warrior Dashes, and talked a small community into doing the same! I purchased and ran TUFFCAMP, and last but not least I opened up the first CrossFit gym in the area in November 2012. I also learned that what happens and unravels on the floor at our box influences sooo much more that your physical health! You take the confidence, mojo and friendship bonds with you in everything you do!
I started this journey fat, insecure, and fairly miserable; getting FIT has made everything in life just a bit better. Now I spend my time helping others get in the best shape of their lives.
