December Featured Athlete - Tabitha Cary
1. Where are you from? Spencer, NY
2. What do you do for a living? I'm an archivist by training and am currently the Digital Projects Assistant at the Division of Rare and Manuscript Collections of Cornell University Library. My role is to plan, prep, and coordinate the digitization of our various collections and the different media found in them. On any given day I can work with something that's a couple thousand years old to something that's less than a year old!
3. If you aren’t from Ithaca, what brought you here? Local!
4. What brought you into CFP? My local gym closed due to the pandemic and I was looking for something that would give me a similar intensity and drive that I found from those HIIT workouts. I was also in the middle of my run streak, prepping to begin half marathon training, and knew that I needed some cross training to complement all that running. After some research, I found Pallas and I'm so glad I did!
5. What keeps you coming to CFP? No contest, the people are what keep me here. Everyone has been incredibly welcoming since my first day, and the coaches are knowledgeable, motivating, and encouraging, but most importantly to me, they're approachable! The programming is great, but without the community of people, it wouldn't be fun or worthwhile.
6. What are some CrossFit goals you’ve crossed off of your list? Using the wooden box for box jumps and consistently increasing my weight in deadlifts. Most importantly, I feel comfortable enough to continue to try movements that make me uncomfortable and push myself to the point of failure, both of which used to scare me a lot!
7. What are some future goals you have here at Pallas? I've only been coming to Pallas and doing these style workouts for seven months, so I have a lot of movements I'd like to master, such as strict pull ups, double unders, the snatch, and increasing my height on the box jumps.
8. What’s your favorite movement? Burpees, box jumps, and deadlifts
9. What’s your least favorite movement? The snatch--it makes me feel so uncoordinated!
10. Chipper, couplet, strength, burner, all/none? I don't think I have a favorite style... It's more about the movements that are in the workout. If I feel confident in the movements or I notice I'm progressing in a movement, it'll be more enjoyable.
11. Where is/was your favorite vacation spot? Ireland has been my favorite place to visit so far, especially the time I spent in Derry and also visiting Giant's Causeway and the Carrick-A-Rede Rope Bridge. For a more local spot, I love camping in the Adirondacks and challenging myself to push past my fears while hiking.
12. Where’s your favorite place to eat in Ithaca? It's not in Ithaca, but Nickel's Pit BBQ in Watkins Glen is one of my favorite local restaurants.
13. What’s your favorite dish to cook at home? Celery-celery soup with curried croutons or Yuengling chili with cornbread.
14. Winter/spring/summer or fall? Summer for the longer days and Fall for the crisp air and changing leaves.
15. Do you have a favorite book or author? The Pendragon Cycle by Stephen R. Lawhead, especially books 1 and 6, and James Rollins's Sigma Force Series.
16. What would you tell someone hesitant about starting CrossFit? It's 100% okay to be nervous!! Everyone you'll see in class was new at one point and had to learn and put in the work to master the movements. We all understand where you're coming from and will be here to cheer you on every step of the way.