MEMBER OF THE MONTH: ROI
Ten Years Into CrossFit, Roi Rollins is Stronger at 44 than 24, Thanks Kea Coaches
In 2015, one of Roi Rollins patients planted a seed in his ear.
“You should try CrossFit. I think you’d like it,” he told Rollins, a long-time RMT.
Rollins, a former swimmer, thought, “Why not.”
And so he did a free session at a gym in Coquitlam and vomited at the end of a workout with push-ups and pull-ups, and a 400-meter run with a medicine ball.
While this might have turned some people off CrossFit, for Rollins, it was just the kick in the pants he needed, as his body’s physical reaction to the workout let him know that endurance wasn’t where he wanted it to be, he explained.
“Challenge accepted,” he said of how he felt.
Since then, Rollins was a member of two other gyms, one in New Westminster and one in South Surrey before joining Kea Athletics.
As soon as he began working with the Kea coaches two years ago, though, he knew he was here to stay.
“We have the best coaches here at Kea that I have ever seen in my life, and I have been a member at four gyms and I travel a lot and go to gyms in the US when I travel,” he said. “All of the coaches at Kea care so much.”
He added: “I have had a few injuries this year and they’re all able to help me work around them.”
A Decade In
Ten years into CrossFit, Rollins can do things he said he couldn’t do in his 20s.
“My endurance is way better, and I’m the strongest I have ever been in my life and I’m 44. I’m stronger than I was when I boxing. I am stronger than I was in my 20s,” he said, adding that when he started CrossFit he could deadlift just 185 pounds, and now is able to deadlift 385 pounds.
Further, CrossFit helps him as an RMT, too, where he works with as many as 15 patients a day.
“My techniques are way better. I’m like a heavy duty mechanic,” Rollins explained of how he’s able to tolerate the demands of working long, demanding days because of his overall fitness and strength level from CrossFit.
But maybe most importantly, coming to the classes at Kea each week helps keep him calm and balanced.
“I have anxiety and I’m neuro divergent…I come across as sometimes awkward. I’m different. I think differently. I know I’m different and they have been so accommodating with my anxiety and mental health issues,” Rollins said.
He added: “Coming here helps keep me calmer…It provides that balance into my life and keeps me a little bit more positive. It gives me that positive injection for the day.”
Rollins’ Message
Ten years in, to those who say CrossFit is a fad and isn’t sustainable long-term, Rollins is proof this is not the case.
“You just have to be mindful about your movements and workouts instead of focusing on winning. Focus on good mechanics and ask questions. The coaches here are here to help,” he said.
As a result, a decade in, in some ways, Rollins feels like he’s just getting started.
“I want to keep challenging myself and continue to be stronger, healthier, lead by example for my family and friends and the people I love to show them it’s possible to be old and healthy and strong,” Rollins said
“If at 44 the strongest I have been in my life, and I have always worked out, then age is just a number. I’m still going to become stronger next year, and stronger the years after that,” he added.
If you’re looking for an RMT, Rollins has 10 years of experience and works out of Clayton Heights Sports &Therapy Center.
written by: Emily Beers
