"I was always the fun person at parties who blazed the trail on shots, and then led everyone to Waffle House after."
Former party girl, Amanda Greaver never anticipated CrossFit would change her life.
Often known as the life of the party, Greaver, 34, says she was a girl gone wild — always up for a good time at a bar or party. While she participated in athletics growing up, she began to let her fitness go by the wayside once she began working as a real estate agent. She says she found happiness outside of a miserable job by indulging in cocktails. After many weekends spent out on the town, and two children later, she found herself 50 pounds overweight.
“At first, I decided this was what it meant to be a mom, but one day, I just woke up mad about it and decided to change,” Greaver says. “Part of the weight gain was in bad food decisions and lack of exercise, part of it was alcohol. I was always the fun person at parties who blazed the trail on shots, and then led everyone to Waffle House after. Horrible combo.”
Greaver’s transformation was a process that began with running.
“I ran, and ran more. And after logging hundreds of miles, including half marathons, I had lost some weight, but realized I was skinny fat,” she explains. “That’s when CrossFit came in.”
In 2008, a friend introduced Greaver to CrossFit at a Christmas party.
“What exactly my friend was in love with I wasn’t sure, but it had something to do with weightlifting, doing everything as fast as you can and some main website,” Greaver recalls. “I was curious about all this, so about a week later, I looked up this website she mentioned and I thought to myself, ‘OK, I can at least try this if housewives and grandparents can do it. I really don’t have anything to lose.’”
Greaver watched CrossFit videos online and gave it a shot on her own.
Sometimes she worked out at home and sometimes she would go to a globo gym. It wasn’t until late 2009 that Greaver got her first taste of CrossFit with a group of people — and she loved it.
“A friend told me about a new CrossFit Level 1 instructor in my area leading a boot camp. I was nervous, and it took me weeks to say OK, and when I finally gave in, I walked into a WOD like the Filthy Fifty. By the end of it, I was in tears, but surrounded by a bunch of strangers cheering me on,” she remembers. “I was going to finish this workout if it killed me. I left feeling proud of myself for finishing and wanting to crush whatever was next.”
She lost 50 pounds in nine months, and her body fat decreased from 35 to 12 percent.
“All of a sudden, I had a body better than back in my college soccer days. I was stronger and faster, too,” she says. “To this day, it’s still surreal that my 34-year-old self could kick my 18-year-old self’s butt.”
Today, she is also impacting the lives and health of others as a box owner and coach.
“After CrossFitting for about a year, I got my Level 1 … switched from a very successful career in real estate to coaching, and just recently, less than six months ago, became the affiliate owner of Orange Beach CrossFit in Orange Beach, Ala.,” Greaver says.
“Before CrossFit, a typical day involved sitting behind a desk for me. All my food was processed and about twice the serving size it should have been. There was always dessert and always cocktails. I was tired, and sluggish and miserable. I blamed it on my job. I went out every weekend to try to have a good time.”
Greaver still maintains her zest for a good time as the life of the party in her affiliate.
“I charge full-speed ahead at life. I’ve been described as both a force of nature and a steam-roller,” Greaver says. “I coach six days per week and my daily decisions for health are both for myself and for those around me. I’ve learned to lead by example because most people watch and learn … I still go out and have a good time, I just may do it a few times a year rather than every weekend. It is possible to have a balance, and finding that balance helped me grow up.”
Her members are grateful for her new balance. “Meeting Amanda Greaver and finding CrossFit was a divine intervention,” Orange Beach CrossFit member, Billy Wilkerson, says.
Wilkerson is in recovery from a severe traumatic brain injury from a car accident in July 2011. He found CrossFit when Greaver reached out to him and wanted to help him in his recovery. She let him join her affiliate for free.
“With severe traumatic brain injuries, you are told, ‘You will have disabilities … You have to redefine who you are,” he says. “It takes about two years to get back to near normal.
“Amanda and the other CrossFit trainer, Andrew Forbes, became my new physical therapists. They sometimes were like my counselors because they would always listen to me, help me talk things out and guide me in positive directions. I always finished last on the WODs, but the CrossFit community would always cheer me on like I was winning the Olympics,” Wilkerson says.
Greaver has faith in anyone who is willing to give CrossFit a shot.
“Certainly, if I could do it, anyone else could, too,” she says.
