Jan 2023--Angela Dowd

1.Tell us about yourself, your family, your occupation, hobbies/interests.

I was born and raised in the foothills of Colorado. My grandparents lived next door. Both being fully Italian meant food and family were very important things in life. I learned to cook and bake right alongside my mom and Grandparents. We spent a lot of winters Skiing and snowboarding, and we went hiking and camping in the summer. I met my husband, Joe when I was 16 and I haven’t known a day without him since then. We married a year later and are celebrating our 20th anniversary this January. I have 12 children ranging from 4 months to 18 years. Having an adult child and a newborn is a crazy awesome blessing.

St. Mary’s has long been a topic between Joe and me. I remember the night we met and how he was telling me about how he was going to move here one day. My answer was always emphatically, “NO!” NEVER!”. Well, just go ahead and put those words on a plate so I can eat them. In 2017, I started to feel a strong pull toward St Mary’s. God was laying down the directions and sending me on my merry way. Through some serious divine work, my parents were able to build a house right next to us. We moved in mid-2018 and I will never look back. While I don’t ski or snowboard anymore and hiking 14ers is a thing of my past, I still love to bake and cook. The amount of joy that I get from feeding my family and friends, some may find kind of creepy. My roots will lead you back to those foothills, but St Mary’s is my home!


2. When do you start CrossFitting? Why did you start? Why do you continue now?

My first experience with CrossFit was Aug of 2021. Robin Sullivan had been after me to start since I moved to Saint Marys and she invited me to a wine and WOD event. I’ll have to admit that it was the wine that got me there originally, but it was the WOD that got me coming back. I really enjoyed the varied movements and the team aspect. I remember we did slam balls and I thought they were so fun, and everyone was cheering each other on. I had never been so sore in my life as I was after that workout. To sum things up, it was the pain that got me hooked.


3. Do you remember your first WOD? What were your thoughts after your first WOD?

I don’t remember specifically my first WOD, but I do remember how I felt. I felt so intimidated. Like I had just been thrown into the wild. I was trying to remember every detail that I learned in on-ramp training, 100% overthinking everything

4. What do you enjoy most about CrossFit?

The challenge that every WOD brings and the camaraderie. Sometimes, I will look at a WOD and think, “how will I ever do this?” What even is a DB KB DL??? And yet, I always leave with another workout under my belt. Secondly, I love how CrossFit brings everyone together. There are some people that I only get to see at CrossFit and yet I know that they are on my team. We suffer together and we triumph together.



5. What is your proudest CrossFit moment?
March 17th, 2021…the first time I did a workout fully RX. It also happens to be my favorite workout. I had just gotten my cast off my arm earlier that day. Up until then, I had to scale pretty much everything and I was feeling free and strong! My coach (Jacey) encouraged me to go for it RX and I was so glad she did!



6. What is your favorite movement or lift? What is your least favorite?
My favorite would be a tie between deadlifts and back squats. My least favorite would have to be overhead squats…followed closely by box jumps.



7. Have you had one or two challenging CrossFit goals that you've achieved recently?
What are your current goals and how close are you to reaching them? I started 2022 newly pregnant, and my goal was to keep doing CrossFit throughout the pregnancy. I didn’t have a set number of weeks but I knew I wanted to stay active and keep doing what I enjoyed. I managed to go right until the end of my pregnancy and I felt stronger than ever.
A real, true pull-up is a current long-term goal of mine and quite honestly, I am pretty far away from achieving one. Overhead squats and push-ups are a work in progress and 2 things I’d like to work on improving.



8. What makes CrossFit different from other fitness programs that you might have tried in the past? I have always tried to stay active but I found that the more kids I had, the harder it was becoming to do it on my own. I would procrastinate and put it off and before I knew it, the day was over and I hadn’t done anything.
The difference in CrossFit is, it’s scheduled. I signed up so I have to go. There is no putting it off. I have workout partners. People who are going through the thick of it with one another. I love the challenge that each WOD brings. With each workout bringing such a variety of movements, I am never bored, that’s for sure. And the most important part, I have a coach. Having someone to guide and instruct me has made a world of difference. I don’t even have to think, the workout is programmed, my coaches tell me what to do, and I have friends next to me! I truly look forward to every CrossFit workout.



9. What impact has CrossFit Benedictus had on your life, in and out of the gym?
I put off this question and left it for last because I am overwhelmed with gratitude when I think of the impact CrossFit has had on my life. One word comes to mind, STAMINA! Physically, I am stronger. I can lift a bag of feed with little effort. I can whip a child around like a carnival ride. Mentally, I am stronger. CrossFit clears my mind, gives me a fresh perspective, and breaks up the mundaneness that life can be at times. Do not underestimate endorphins. Spiritually, I am stronger. I know that as long as I have a class, there will be a prayer. CrossFit allows me to offer up my sufferings, keeps me centered, and reminds me that without God nothing is possible. CrossFit is the reminder that I can sustain whatever is thrown my way!



10. Tell us about your nutrition and how it has changed, if any, since starting CrossFit?
I have eaten low carb/high protein for the better part of 18 years. Eating that way is definitely what makes my body feel its best. And while my nutrition has stayed the same since I started CrossFit, I have learned that the harder you work out, the hungrier you’ll be. My waistline hasn’t gotten smaller, but I am stronger, soooo there’s that.


11. If you could write a WOD for the classes to do, what would it look like?
When The Dog Bites
3 RFT
17 cal row
17 deadlifts Men RX:155 Women RX: 115
17 wall balls. Men RX: 20#@9’ Women RX 12#@9’
17 box jumps Men RX: 20 in. Women RX: 16 in.
25 min cap



12. What advice do you have for others about the importance of dedication to taking care of yourself, of investing in yourself?
I think self-care is often thought of as selfish. In reality, it’s quite the contrary. Investing in yourself is not just for you. I sometimes think of when you are on an airplane and they advise you to put your oxygen mask on first. It makes perfect sense, how can you help anyone else if you can’t even breathe??



13. What advice would you give to someone new to CrossFit or who is thinking about giving it a try? Just do it! Don’t overthink it. The movements can seem pretty intimidating at first. One movement at a time. One minute at a time. Just focus on what is in front of you and don’t worry about what’s to come. Some great advice from the great coach Doc Carrol, “Just lift the dam thing!”
Lastly, another quote from another great coach, Joe Thomas, “CrossFit is infinitely scalable”.
Scaling isn’t a sign of weakness but more so, a sign of strength. Sometimes you break your thumb doing a simple box jump, have surgery, and end up in a cast for a couple of months, so you have to scale everything and you end up being stronger than you ever thought. Let’s just say, my left arm took up a lot of slack this year.



14. Open Forum: I would like to first, thank my family for their love and support. A lot needs to happen behind the scenes for me to be able to go to classes and they pick up the slack without complaint. My husband for always encouraging me. No matter what it is, he has all the confidence in me. My children for always cheering me on. My Mom for making dinner on Tuesdays so I can attend the afternoon class. A special shout out for them listening to me talk about every detail of every WOD I’ve ever done, even though they have no idea what I’m talking about.
Secondly, thank you to all the coaches for your time and devotion. CrossFit could not happen without you.
Thirdly, to Robin Sullivan for nagging me for years to come to a CrossFit class and for not giving up on me joining.
And lastly, thank you to my fellow workout partners. Thank you for your motivation and your faith. It is truly an honor to work out next to you. You are not just my comrades or my friends, you are familia!