Ninja Recognition: Stefanie Levy

Why Stefanie:

The coaches selected Stefanie for our Ninja Recognition because we were impressed with her humility and constant desire to improve.  After joining Crossfit 8 Mile in August, Stefanie reframed her mentality around nutrition and workouts and has boasted a 25 pound weight loss from her efforts.  Stefanie consistently attends the evening and weekend classes and never shies away from a tough workout.  Instead of being frustrated by new skills or challenging movements, Stephanie listens to her coaches, seeks out help when needed and adds extras to her programming to improve her weaknesses. We are thrilled that Stefanie gave Crossfit 8 Mile a try and that we helped her find her power, strength and perseverance through strength training and CrossFit!    

How Stefanie got started

I’ve always had an interest in lifting and tried to do several programs on my own over the years, but nothing really “stuck”.  When I first contacted Nick, I was thinking about joining Barbell Club to supplement my cardio focused workout regimen.  Then, the pandemic struck and shut down my gym. I spent the next few months like a lot of people – sitting at home, binge watching Tiger King, eating a lot and doing very little moving. That got old quickly, and I realized I needed to make some major changes to my lifestyle.

I reached out to Nick again shortly after 8 Mile reopened and decided to give CrossFit a try. I had only planned on staying for a month, until my gym reopened, but after a week, I was hooked. I haven’t looked back since. 

Why she continues to do CrossFit  

I love the changes that I’m seeing.  As a lifelong yo-yo dieter, diet and exercise has always been a means of becoming smaller. Now, I eat to fuel my workouts and I workout to get stronger and faster.  Change like this doesn’t happen overnight and it’s not always easy, but it’s worth working for.  I still have a ways to go, but I can honestly say I’m so much happier now than I have been in years. 

A big part of the reason that I love 8 Mile is the community.  The coaches are amazing and you can tell they love what they do.  Every time I’ve accomplished something new or gotten through a mental block (hello, box jumps), they’ve been just as excited (and sometimes more) than I have.  From day 1, the members have been really welcoming and helpful, but the women here are truly amazing!  Every day, they inspire and challenge me and I hope one day I can do the same for someone else.

Favorite movements

Cleans, squats, deadlifts, running

Least favorite movements

Box jumps, burpees and ski erg

Goals

Continue to build on the progress I’ve made so far.  Short term, my focus is on increasing my endurance and strength, getting more comfortable with box jumps and stringing together more DU’s.  Long term, I’d like to get TTB, maybe a pull up (or ten) and squat my bodyweight.