EFFICACY

“I was on Wellbutrin for anxiety. I was on cholesterol medication … . I wasn’t getting any advice to work out. It was just, ‘Here’s another medicine,’” Bob Soulliere recalls. “The gift was that I got laid off.” With his newfound free time, Soulliere started taking CrossFit classes. “When I walked into CrossFit, no question, stress was managing me, and now I manage stress,” he says.

When she came to CrossFit Wilsonville, McDonald was in a wheelchair. The coaches were in awe of McDonald’s story and were ready to begin helping her on the journey to recovery.

“It’s phenomenal,” Wilford says. “It was magic. Before I started going to the gym to CrossFit, I was walking with a stick all the time. I’m using it less and less. … I can walk unaided.”

From overweight to winning the Open: Years ago, Zack George embarked on a weight-loss journey with a new mindset. In 2020, he was the Fittest Man in the U.K. in the CrossFit Games Open.

In 2010, Diane and Jim opened CrossFit Oyster Point in Newport News, Virginia, to help people improve their life and fitness.

On an unassuming industrial street in Long Island, New York, a three-time Grammy Award-winning artist does deadlifts. His name: Wyclef Jean.

“When I started (at CrossFit Round Rock) I was 263 pounds, and now I fluctuate between 215 and 220 pounds,” Workman says happily. “I feel like (I’m in) Army shape again.”

A longtime member of CrossFit Cedar Park in Austin, Texas, Bowers says she turns to CrossFit when she finds herself falling back into the hole of depression.  

How a 330-lb. man fell in love with fitness and became a CrossFit coach.

"I think CrossFit helped Ali—in a time where you could feel like you’re in such despair—provide an outlet where you physically have to be strong."

Brooks Laich played in the National Hockey League for 15 years. CrossFit made him fitter and more prepared for the challenges of staying healthy through a grueling NHL season.

Sheila is 78 years old and probably more active than you. After suffering with chronic back pain for 57 years, she found CrossFit Cedar Park. “This is the first time in my life … that I have not had back pain,” she says. “I’m looking pretty good, I’m feeling good, and I’m staying younger,” she adds.

“I started to believe that CrossFit was going to be the way for everybody to become more fit,” says Ute, of the Eastern Shoshone Tribe.

Mike now has the strength, stamina and endurance to fight fires and save lives—without fearing for his own.

Nick Decker weighed 270 pounds at 27 years old. Nicknamed “pudge” as a kid, Decker had numerous markers of chronic disease already in his early twenties. His a-ha moment came when he found himself out of breath while playing with his 10-month-old son. “I think sharing my experience is going to help people because I’m just a normal dude,” Decker says. 

Jonathan Stoops was your typical American kid. He played football and lifted weights, but he was fat. During high school, he was diagnosed with diabetes. Jon had to take a medical leave of absence his first year of college. He kept treating his diabetes like it wasn't there, but over time it caused him more and more problems until he wound up in the hospital with pancreatitis. When he finally got serious about his health, Jon tried triathlons, but running was too painful. It wasn't until CrossFit that Jon finally turned his life around.

Haley Morrone’s personal experiences taught her that many who struggle with their physical appearance or capabilities are dealing with trauma. “Everyone has a story,” she says. As an affiliate owner and CrossFit trainer, she has one goal: “I just want to be that hand reaching out for anybody who feels like they’re hopeless.”

Nigel Barber was 16 years old when he broke his neck. He had to spend a year in the hospital learning how to adjust to his new life as a paraplegic. When he first joined CrossFit Pi, he sometimes would struggle even to sit up. But over time, the workouts strengthened his core and helped with that. He now feels less alone and like he’s part of a team because of the community at CrossFit Pi.

At the urging of a neighbor, Evans visited Reebok CrossFit 365 in Skewen, South Wales, at the age of 92. Since then, he’s come into the box every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. “I think when people get over a certain age, they think, ‘Oh, I shouldn’t really do that because I’m too old.’ But you’re never too old, and it’s never too late to start.”

Brittany Hoover was 8 years old when her dad noticed her back “didn’t look normal.” After undergoing surgery for sever scoliosis, Hoover was told she would never be able to play contact sports, do gymnastics, or perform any repetitive movements ever again. Now a CrossFit trainer and yoga instructor, Hoover is in less pain than ever, and she says she hopes to use CrossFit “to change people’s lives. … CrossFit changed my life.”