January Athlete of the Month: Julian Caustrita!

Our selection for January “Athlete of the Month” is actually quite fitting, because if we had to pick an “Athlete of the Year,” we’d be hard-pressed to find a better candidate than Julian Caustrita. No one at the gym puts in more time, effort or heart into his WODs than Julian. When one workout a day wasn’t enough earlier this year, Julian started coming to two, and two-a-days became just another amazing accomplishment that Julian somehow made look easy. Combining his sheer strength on movements like pressing overhead and deadlifts with the grace and finesse he shows on movements like butterfly pullups and double unders (Julian holds an untouchable 1-minute max double unders record at the gym: 130), Julian shows the shining marks of a quintessential CrossFit athlete. But athletic capabilities aside, Julian exemplifies the CrossFit spirit as well, always encouraging his fellow athletes, giving a helpful tip when needed, and being a true leader in class. Congratulations, Julian! You make us so proud!

Julian: It really all started before I joined. I’m a competitive person, but I was feeling nervous to try CrossFit because of a few bad injuries I’ve sustained over the past several years. The injuries changed my range of motion, speed and agility, and that kept me from joining the gym. Instead, I opted to do personal training with Coach Collin a few times a week to try it out. And he changed everything for me. He helped change my relationship with my injuries, taught me how to do the key lifts that are in CrossFit workouts, and he developed workouts that would strengthen the surrounding muscles around my injuries. He brought my confidence back. Once I had that again, everything started to change for me. I started to shed some weight, lift heavier and push myself harder during workouts. My mobility has even improved, which has allowed me to start chipping away at fun technical movements, like butterfly pull-ups!

Julian: I have so many favorites! The coaches, the workouts, the other athletes, the energy in the gym and pushing myself in the WODs. I do love that I don’t have to think about or plan what I’m going to workout when I show up to the gym. Having the workouts pre-programmed for each class has been such a relief for me coming from the traditional gym setting. But overall, I absolutely love the people that show up to class to sweat and get their butts kicked by the workout. We all have our reasons why we’re working out, but we all have fun and support each other during class. They are a big reason why I continue to go to CrossFit Sausalito.

Julian: I can see how CrossFit could be intimidating for some people; it was for me. My advice would be to go at your own pace. Know your limits and just pace yourself. People will be stronger than you. Faster than you. Better than you. And that’s great… good for them! Scaling the workouts to fit your ability and putting more time into perfecting your form will help you avoid injuries. Focus on that first, and then start increasing the intensity.