Drop Box CrossFit's very first member spotlight is a woman who comes in to workout with a smile on her face, gives everything she has and leaves looking forward to coming back for more. She has made incredible progress in a short amount of time though her journey has been a long one...

Marissa taking on overhead squats in the 5:30am class

Marissa Jimenez- A Different Kind of Testimonial

When asked to write about my ‘story’, I cringed. What would people think? What would I allow myself to share? The introvert inside me didn’t want to write anything. But the more I thought about it, my Crossfit story is quite simple. I fell in love. And before you snicker or roll your eyes at this statement, hear me out. I didn’t fall in love with Crossfit (though I do love it sometimes...Haha), I fell in love with someone else - the process.

My love story with him is a long one. It wasn’t love at first sight, but a love that grew over countless years of fitness highs and lows. During high school and college, I was my most active - varsity soccer, competitive cheerleading and collegiate dancing. But after I hung up my cleats and dance shoes for good, my weight started to climb. I was busy living my life and only used the process when it was convenient for me - for purely selfish reasons. I focused the next several years of my life using him to fulfill only short-term goals. I used the process to lose weight for my wedding, but I ignored him when I reached that goal. I used him again to lose the extra baby weight from my two boys, but I carelessly tossed him to the side when I reached that goal. Over time, I continued that cycle over and over again.

The truth is, I treated the process like shit. I only trusted him when I needed him. As my husband would say, “I used and abused him.” Haha. I should have paid more attention to the process, but I was too impatient, stubborn, and often lazy to do so; I wanted instant gratification. Though he loved me unconditionally, I cheated on him a lot. I ate cupcakes, I didn’t work out months at a time, and I drank a lot of sugary lattes and frappaccinos. Before I knew it, I weighed my heaviest at 204 lbs.! While watching my ultra-fit husband (surfer/adventure racer/SUP racer/former collegiate wrestler) horseplay with our two very active sons (soccer-playing/basketball-playing/paddleboarding), I knew something had to change. I was either going to participate in their active lifestyles, or I’d be left out. I saw myself in a picture one year, and I hated this version of me - the direct result of my on-again-off-again relationship with the process.

But even through my highs and lows, the process remained faithful.

When I wanted to run my first half marathon in 2012, I did my research and followed a 14-week running plan. I didn’t quite understand why it was best for me to run 2-3 short distance runs during the week and then end with a long run during the weekend, but I trusted him. I followed the plan religiously, and when it came time for that Shamrock run, I finished - injury-free and immensely proud of myself.

Shortly after that race, a friend convinced me to participate in a fitness/nutritional challenge with our mutual friends Alma & Gerry Ocampo. This was my first introduction into Crossfit and its lifestyle. I was hesitant, but I trusted the process again. The other challenge participants and I would complete workouts in the Ocampo garage, and both Alma and Gerry would teach us proper technique, correct form, and strategies to help improve our strength, endurance, and mobility. We’d share clean/paleorecipes with each other, both enjoying and complaining about the new foods we’d been introduced to. During the course of that first challenge, I lost 11 lbs. and enjoyed every sweaty, metabolism-pumping second of the camaraderie and physicality that the challenge and Crossfit afforded me. The support and environment was unlike any other gym or group fitness class I’d ever been a part of. There would be at least two more fitness/nutritional challenges I’d participate in until the Ocampos and Chevaliers opened their box this past January.

Excited to hear about the official opening of their box, the process and I had a heart-to-heart conversation. He gave me an ultimatum. He’d been with me for a long time but was understandably tired of being tossed to the side all those years. If I chose to officially become part of this Crossfit community, I had to stop the affairs with laziness and bad food. I had to trust him wholly. I had to remain committed, no matter how hard or how many times I wanted to quit, or he’d leave me. I agreed.

Today, when I see the WOD posted the evening before, my urge to hit the snooze button is strong. After all, my relationship with the process, like any relationship, is NOT perfect. I still drink mojitos and orange crushes. I still enjoy a slice of Cold Stone ice cream cake every now and then. But the difference is, I know those few moments of instant gratification can be balanced with dedicated moments at the box or daily healthful food choices. Having been part of the DropBox family now for sixmonths, those temporary urges are weakening, for I know I don’t have to tackle those moments alone. Shoot, even my coaches splurge in those instant gratification donuts, I mean moments (Haha), just as much as I do, and the process and I are still ok.

The coaches and members at DropBox all take part in each other’s lives (either in-person or virtually through our group texts and social media presences). We motivate and encourage each other. We attend or plan community events together. We host potlucks and share stories together. I get especially encouraged and empowered by my girlfriends who have been walking beside me at every step along my fitness journey - from our college days back then, to our professional working mommy days now. They are badass. They and everyone else at DropBox put me face-to-face with my commitment to the process every damn day. When Gerry, Art, or the other coaches remind me to keep my chest up during a deadlift, or yell “finish, finish” during a clean, or cheer “dip drive, dip drive” during a push press, what they’re emphasizing to me is not just proper form but my promises to the process. With each PR, each healthy meal I eat, or each WOD completed (Rx ornot), I strengthen my long-term, lifelong relationship with him. And we couldn’t be happier.

This is a picture of the quote...that inspired my ‘story.’

Marissa's close girlfriends keep her motivated!

With Husband Joel and sons Kylan and Ryder

Member Spotlight- Marissa Jimenez!