Madeline is our I AM BSHEmoth for the month of September! Madeline started with us in January as one of our inaugural B-Fitters. She has since progressed into our Group class! Madeline is one of the most uplifting personalities to be around and a true B-SHEmoth!-Who are you? Tell us a little about yourself or something that would surprise us.My name is Madeline, but my friends call me “Mad” (or Maddie). I work hard, play hard and laugh even harder. I enjoy good books, good eats, good friends, and slapstick comedy – but maybe not all at once. I am an explorer by nature. I like to try and learn new things.-How and when were you introduced to Behemoth?My brother, Thomas, introduced me to Behemoth CrossFit. He has been an athlete with Behemoth for a few years. I asked to him about Behemoth when I was looking for a fun and intense workout after I had battled breast cancer in 2014. We agreed that Behemoth could be a major component of the healthy lifestyle I needed to minimize the risk of getting sick again.I was diagnosed with breast cancer in February 2014 and went through chemotherapy, surgery and radiation. Cancer treatment is really rough on the body and left me with some unpleasant side effects, including weight gain, fatigue, muscle pain/weakness, and neuropathy (numbness in the hands and feet). However, I am thankful to have beaten cancer with the help of so many friends, my family and an awesome medical team. I have been in remission since September and have been doing my best to ‘live it up’ in healthy ways ever since!I joined Behemoth’s B-Fit classes in January of 2015 knowing I had a long road ahead of me to get into shape. B-Fit was exactly what I needed to push past the health issues. The WODs were fun and challenging, but scaled so that I could accomplish the workouts and find room to continually improve. Personally, I think that anyone who is on the road to recovery after injury or illness should give B-Fit a try (with their doctor’s support, of course). After a few months, I overcame most of the side effects from cancer treatment. Many cancer survivors report that the same side effects I was experiencing affected them for years afterward, so I didn’t expect that so much success so quickly. My doctors are as happy about my progress as I am!-What are you most proud of, physically, mentally or both since beginning with us?I’m proud of how far I’ve come and how quickly I’ve been able to turn things around with the support of the coaches and the Behemoth Family. I arrived at Behemoth as a person in recovery. Now I feel that I am not only a survivor, but also becoming an athlete.-Why Behemoth?Thomas introduced me to Behemoth CrossFit and I quickly understood why he and all the other Behemoths/BeSHEmoths call it home. Once I experienced the excellent coaching, informative seminars, the fun and supportive community and the beautiful, clean, well-equipped box…I didn’t need to look anywhere else.-What next? What are you excited about pursuing here in the future?I am looking forward to attending On Ramp classes and adding some regular CrossFit sessions to my workout schedule. I’m positive that I will create new fitness goals once I start participating in those WODS. In time, I’d like to participate some local fitness events, like the Memorial Day Murph.
“3, 2, 1…Go” Mad Lib section
-My favorite lift (movement) is… Does flipping tires count as a lift? I love flipping tires. It’s very satisfying to push one of those bad boys over and hear the “whomp” sound it makes when it hits the concrete! I also love KB/DB snatches.
-My most frequent class I come to is… You can always find me in B-Fit at 6:00 AM – burpees at sunrise!
-I have always wanted to… My bucket list includes visiting Paris, learning a martial art, seeing mustang horses in the wild, petting a whale, learning to surf, traveling to Japan, being the boss (career goals), going on a trail ride… I have lots to do, I better get on it!
-When I’m not crushing weights, my favorite thing to do is… My favorite pastimes are anything that gets my creative juices flowing. I always have a project or two happening. I love to make things, whether it’s arts and crafts, home improvement, cooking or whatever. I’m like a “Martha Stewart” that lifts.
-Favorite “application of fitness” outside of the gym is… My favorite application of fitness is horseback riding. I ride English style and it’s definitely constantly varied! You never know what kind of ride the horse is going to give you! Lugging saddles and horse gear around is my favorite “junk carry”. I’ve loved horses and riding all my life and used to teach riding to children. It was fantastic to get back in the saddle (literally) this spring. Being strong enough to ride again was my first major fitness milestone after starting at Behemoth.
-Favorite Pandora station… I tend to flip around between the “Today’s Alternative” station, the 80’s station and sometimes some classic rock thrown in.
-Beast mode engaged when this song comes on… “You Think I Ain’t Worth A Dollar But I Feel Like A Millionaire“ by Queens of the Stone Age.
