After losing 34 pounds, Hailey Mohrain realized that she didn’t want to just be skinny. She wanted to be strong.
She joined the Don Sjogren Community YMCA’s CrossFit motivate program in November 2020 and has gained much more than strength. CrossFit has given her more energy, better health, new friends, confidence, a mental health boost and of course, a stronger body.
The 28-year-old mother of three and business owner (Diamond Dogs grooming) said CrossFit is the best decision she had made for herself in years.
“The feel of completing a workout and saying, ‘Yeah, I just did that!’ is addicting and I’m constantly going back for more,” she said
Hailey had successfully started her weight loss journey with Ideal Protein.
“But, when I got down to a certain weight, I felt like there was nothing to me. It was then that I realized that I didn’t just want to be skinny, I wanted to be strong,” Hailey said.
A friend’s social media posts about CrossFit motivated Hailey to ask questions and give the program a try.
Hailey said before starting CrossFit, the last time she had exercised was in high school gym class.
“Even though I never seriously exercised, Tasha (the instructor) was absolutely amazing at adapting the workouts to make them hard enough to push me without overdoing it,” Hailey said. “She slowly worked me up to being able to do the full workouts and adding weight on the bar.”
Hailey started her workout just six months after giving birth to her third child, so she had lots of modifications, such as banded sit-ups, seated pull-ups, modified push-ups, and light weights on the bar. After six months of CrossFit, she now does normal sit-ups, banded pull-ups, and has a good amount of weight on her bar.
“My life and health have changed drastically since joining CrossFit,” Hailey said. “I’m pretty much an introvert, but since I joined, my confidence has grown and I’ve started coming out of my shell more. I now feel stronger in my own body, and I have more energy to keep up with my three small children and better mental health to get through my day.”
CrossFit has helped Hailey maintain her weight and lose inches.
“Mostly, I have managed to tone up pretty well,” she said. “I do suffer from pretty bad anxiety and depression, and going to the gym to work out the stress of the day has helped me to be more level and get that me time that I need.”
She attends CrossFit nearly every weekday (it’s offered M-F at 5 a.m., noon and 5:30 p.m.) and sometimes on Saturdays when weekend classes are offered.
“My favorite thing about CrossFit is the people,” Hailey said. “Everybody is so supportive, and it’s a very light-hearted, no judgment atmosphere. When you walk into that gym, those people truly care about you and want you to succeed. That makes you want it more for yourself.”
Hailey encouraged anyone who is considering CrossFit to give it a try.
“There is a common stigma around the word CrossFit,” she said. “Everybody immediately thinks, ‘Oh, no I’m not that hardcore,’ or ‘I can’t do that.’ The truth is though that everyone has a starting point, and everyone’s starting point is different. The workouts are adaptable, and even if you can’t go all out the fact that you show up and you’re still doing something means improvement. Anyone can do CrossFit!”
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