Anneliese is our March Member of the Month!
We’re proud to celebrate Anneliese as our Member of the Month! From the moment she arrives at the gym, her positivity and determination are impossible to miss. Anneliese approaches every workout with curiosity and a genuine desire to improve. She embraces challenges and continues to expand what’s possible through her strength and perseverance. Just as importantly, her upbeat attitude and willingness to try anything bring energy and laughter to the gym, inspiring those around her. We’re grateful she’s part of the PUSH community and love watching her continue to redefine what it means to be a strong and capable athlete.
This is why the PUSH511 team nominated Anneliese as Member of the Month:
Can't say enough about how awesome a person Anneliese is. A kind spirit with a hard-working work ethic. It's always a joy when she drops in on a class. She wants to get coached and is always looking to push herself and get better wherever she can.
Anneliese is a rockstar. Her smile and determination inspire others around her. She is super coachable and a real pleasure to work out with. Congratulations, Anneliese!
Anneliese is THE most determined (and the smiliest) person I know. She knows her limitations and how to push boundaries to make herself better every single day. She has lofty but attainable goals and knows when to engage coaches - and more recently, gym friends to help her get there (don’t turn down the opportunity to spot her on the pegboard, as it’s truly a feat of strength!). She is helping shape the definition of “adaptive athlete” with her capabilities & strength, not only for our members in the gym but in the fitness community as well. When she throws herself on the floor to join us for a stretch on the ground, I nearly have a heart attack every time I hear that THUD, but I am quickly reminded how thankful and fortunate I am to be one of her coaches. She is a kamikaze-athlete who will try almost anything. She’s up for testing new adaptations for movements, increasing her weights, or playing around on equipment. It’s almost as if her mantra is “That sounds like a terrible idea! Sign me up!” I have so many favorite memories of Anneliese telling me about a movement she wants to try, we devise a creative way to safely test it, and we usually end up in hysterical laughter at some point (like the time I nearly depantsed her while spotting her HSPU’s... we need to go back to the drawing board on that one). I’m so glad she chose B’More Adaptive & PUSH to be her fit-family, and am so proud of her for stepping out of her comfort zone to be Team Mario’s Captain this year!
Now, let's get to know our March Member of the Month!
When did you start CrossFit? I first started able-bodied CrossFit during the pandemic and resumed it as an adaptive athlete during the summer of 2023.
What's your fitness background? I grew up as a competitive soccer player, playing through my first year of college, before starting CrossFit during the pandemic. After my diagnosis, I dabbled in different adaptive sports but ultimately fell in love with adaptive CrossFit and wheelchair rugby, competing in both ever since.
What’s your favorite CrossFit movement? Peg board, pull-ups, or power cleans.
What’s your least favorite movement? Probably deadlifts.
What do you do for work? I am a researcher at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, studying how culture and communication impact the quality of pediatric cancer care in low- and middle-income countries.
Tell us a little bit about yourself and your family. I grew up in Indiana with six parents and nine siblings. After graduating from Purdue University, I moved to Baltimore to live with two of my best friends, who are like family to me. Outside of work, I do rare disease advocacy, compete in wheelchair rugby, and enjoy spending time outside - whether that be by mountain biking, skiing, skydiving, surfing, or hiking, I love it all!
Tell us something we don't know about you! I am an identical twin!
How has CrossFit affected your life outside of the gym? Nothing can prepare you to go from an athlete and independent young adult to a complete quadriplegic with no movement from the neck down. While a lot of rebuilding has been done in physical and occupational therapy, CrossFit has been integral in helping me regain my strength and independence. The strength and skills I have gained from CrossFit have made it possible to live on my own and successfully navigate day-to-day life as a wheelchair user, from performing transfers to lifting groceries and navigating curbs. CrossFit has also given me a space to explore my body’s limits and focus on what I can do instead of what I cannot do, which has helped me regain my confidence and feel like an athlete again.
What do you enjoy most about PUSH? The community: from the coaches to the other members, the kids, and the dogs, it all feels like a big family. On my worst days and my best days, when I roll into PUSH, I always feel safe, supported, and a sense of belonging. Those feelings can be hard to come by in the world these days, and I am so grateful to have a community like PUSH to work out with.
What tips would you offer someone who is just getting started with working out? Just show up. It might be uncomfortable at first - I know I felt a lot of anxiety stepping into a new community and questioning if I was “fit enough” and whether I belonged - but commit to a membership and workout schedule for a month and THEN reevaluate. There will be workouts that feel hard and like you want to quit, but hopefully in that time you will find a rhythm that works with your schedule, you will settle into a community that you enjoy working out with, and you will find that discomfort of being new being replaced with a sense of belonging…and if you still hate it after a month or two, remember there are so many ways to work out, maybe this one just isn’t the one for you. That doesn’t mean exercise isn’t for you: keep trying different forms of movement until you find the one that brings you joy!
What's your favorite song to work out to? Whatever song is playing at the moment.
What's your favorite restaurant? Thai Essence.
Who's your hero, real-life or fictional? Judy Heumann
What does your frequently used emoji tab look like?
Words to live by or favorite quote? “If hope were a person she would have mud on her knees, dirt under her nails, and determination on her tear-stained but smiling face” - Donna Ashworth
What's your favorite travel spot? Norway.
If you could win an Olympic gold medal for any sport, real or fake, what would it be? A Paralympic gold medal in wheelchair rugby.
What are your top five favorite movies? In no particular order:
- Instructions Not Included
- Murderball
- The Big Year
- Lilo & Stitch
- Pride
