CARRISSA AYOUB – SPOTLIGHT ATHLETE

Let’s hear it for Carrissa – Our hard-working, gritty, bad ass athlete of the month!  Carrissa always shows up and always gives her best effort.  She is an inspiration to everyone in the room!  Carrissa brings the same spirit and effort into her nutrition journey that does she does in the gym.  She does anything asked of her and stays steady for the long haul to reach her goals.  Congratulations Carrissa!

What do you do for work?
I’m an Information Security Consultant. I work with multiple companies (mostly financial
institutions) to assist, train and test them on keeping data secure. I do anything from creating
policies, to auditing, to social engineering. Most people think the social engineering part is the
coolest, that’s when I pretend to be someone else either over the phone or in person and try to
gain unauthorized access or information by means of deception. So if you ever see me
somewhere and I tell you my name is Christina and I work for Comcast just go with it! Haha!

What would you like us to know about you and your family?
I’ve lived in Abington for about 8 years. My boyfriend Ryan and I have been together for a year,
and he has two daughters that are 3 and 15. The 3-year-old always keeps me on my toes! My
family and I are very close, I’m the youngest of three and have a brother and sister. I also have
1 niece and 3 nephews. My sister does CrossFit at another gym close to her work and we
competed together earlier this year.

What is one thing that we may not know about you?
I got my motorcycle license about 2 years ago and bought my first motorcycle last year. Still
getting comfortable riding it so you can catch me in a parking lot near you!

How long have you been CrossFitting?
A long time… 10 years I think with a few short breaks worked in there.

What time do you typically train?
6am! …. (Unless Rosie convinces me to join her at 5am or I oversleep and then you’ll find me at
7am) I never understood how people worked out in the morning before but now that I’ve been
doing it the last year or so I don’t think I could ever go back to working out at night!!

What is your favorite lift and why?
Hmmm… this is a hard one. Lifting is my favorite part of CrossFit! I’d always rather have a
barbell in my hand! It’s a close tie between Push Press, Deadlift, and a Clean.

What is your favorite WOD and why?
My favorite WOD is Murph…. Even with all the running! I just love how it brings the community
together and what it stands for! And the feeling you get once you’ve completed it is pretty
awesome as well!

What are your current life goals?
My current life goals are to continue my nutrition journey. Working with Charlene has helped me
feel strong and healthy and more confident. I would also like to purchase a house and continue
to excel in my career. The focus for me is to continue to build a life a happy life I don’t need a
vacation from!

What is your most memorable time as a CrossFitter?
Was probably my first competition. I was always so nervous to compete but being able to
compete on a team made me feel better. I had a lot of fun and got to experience the rush of
competing. Also my first competition at Cynergy!! It was such a great day with a great team. It only further showed what a great community we have at Cynergy and getting to compete with
alongside the new friends I’ve made just made it that much better.

How has CF impacted your life outside of the box?
CF has shown me how amazing our bodies really are. Even if I’m having a bad day and feeling
less than confident, I focus on what my body can do not how I feel it looks. It changes your
mindset knowing what your body is truly capable of. It also helps me start my day on a positive
note which carries throughout and helps me be more productive all around!

Any additional comments:
I want to thank everyone at Cynergy for being so welcoming! I went to Workplay after taking a
break from CrossFit gyms so when it closed, I was upset I’d have to find a new gym. However,
everyone at Cynergy had been so great. I’ve met so many great people and really feel like
Cynergy is my home! Just goes to show everything happens for a reason!

Please create your own WOD:
AMRAP 25
5 Deadlift 125/85
5 Hang Power Clean 125/85
5 Front Squats 125/85
5 Push Press 125/85
5 Back Squats 125/85
200m Run