CrossFit Midtown is very excited to announce our July 2017 Member of the Month,Tony Huinker! Even though he has been here less than a year, Tony is quickly becoming one of CFM’s most consistent members! He is consistently in the gym, pushing himself, and setting PR’s all while doing it with a great sense of humor! Read on to learn more about Tony and his CrossFit journey. Thank you for being such an outstanding member of the CFM community!
Name: Tony Huinker
Age: 31
Hometown: Peosta, Iowa
How did you get exposed to CrossFit?
I’m the kind of guy that who watches people work out on TV and thinks “there is no way I could ever do that”. Like most people, I was introduced to CrossFit by a friend and CrossFit fanatic who was always talking about how fun it was and why I needed to join. For a long time, I was convinced it wasn’t for me. I don’t think of myself as a competitive person and the idea of scoring your workouts, posting them on the board, competing, and AMRAPs all seemed a little… intense. Eventually though, the persistence and enthusiasm of my friend won and I decided to give it a try and started looking for a gym.
What brought you to CrossFit Midtown?
Once I decided to join a box, I really didn’t do any research. CrossFit Midtown was the closest gym I could find according to google maps. I never looked at any other.
What was your very first day at CrossFit Midtown like?
It was a 6am Foundations course with Mike. I remember wondering to myself if Mike was always at the gym that early or if he only had to be there because of me and I was ruining his day. I’ve since learned he’s always at the gym that early 😉
I remember my first attempt at a hand stand push up. I “jumped in with two hands” so to speak and ended up landing right on my head. I remember Mike looking concerned, asking if I was alright, and then suggesting we move on and try hand stand push ups another time.
What changes have you seen in your overall health and fitness level since starting CrossFit?
I’ve learned to appreciate the emphasis coach Mike has put on setting goals and tracking progress. In the past, moments where I’d doubt progression were always demotivating. Since joining Crossfit Midtown, I can always refer back to my lift and WOD notes to get a level set. It helps me stay out of my own head.
Since joining, I’ve blown past several “lifetime PRs’ in things like squats and strict pull ups. Other lifts, like deadlift and bench press, have progressed slower but still moving in the right direction. In some of the skill exercises, like double unders, I’ve gone from not being able to do any to doing them as prescribed in most wods.
What kind of changes have you experienced since starting CrossFit that were completely unexpected?
I’m becoming a morning person. I’m waking up early even on days I’m not joining the 6am class, and actually have a somewhat consistent sleep schedule. Also, I was not expecting to participate in The Open this year, and I definitely was not expecting to have as much fun doing it as I did. From the first “Friday Night Lights”, to sharing times and scores with friends from across the country, it was a blast and something I’m looking forward to again next year.
Favorite WOD:
Part A
Least favorite WOD:
Part B
Favorite CrossFit Midtown moment:
I’ll share two.
One happened when Ellen (Thomas) was coaching, and Dave (Thomas) was participating. We were all holding barbells during the instructional portion of the class, and then during instructions Ellen was interrupted by the sound of a plastic bucket being knocked over. Eyes turned towards a bucket of chalk, knocked over, with chalk everywhere, right at Dave’s feet. The look of “Oh no you didn’t” from Ellen followed by the “It wasn’t me!” look of innocence from Dave was a riot.
Another favorite moment was during class where the wod included double unders. I have a favorite jump rump I use and feel like I pretty much can’t do any double unders without it. I was unable to find it that morning even with several members of the 6am class looking around the gym to help. We eventually gave up and I settled on a different rope. Later, right before the wod was about to start and the “10 second” countdown timer had already begun.. out of nowhere, Zac, who was on the other side of the gym yells out “Tony I found your rope!” and runs across the gym to hand it to me right as the timer sounded. I grabbed it from him, and proceeded to set a PR for double unders. Thanks Zac!
Hobbies, Talents and or Interests Outside of CrossFit:
Enterprise IT(servers, databases, Hadoop, programming, etc), biking, non fiction books, and my new dog.
Advice for new CrossFitters:
Introduce yourself and get to know the people you take classes with. They’ll be the ones who will inspire you to get better, notice if your gone, build you up after failure, and acknowledge your progress.
