November’s Extraordinary Athlete is John Kerr. John almost always works out at the 5:30am class. He came to us in our old location, poking his head in the door for almost 3 months before he decided to give us a try. John is 53 years old and is incredibly active – although you might not guess it by his demeanor. He is quiet and maybe even a bit shy, but he is watching and listening and learning.

If I had to choose one word to describe John it would be “deliberate”. It means “to perform unhurried with care and dignity” and that is exactly what he does. We often use a phrase in our CrossFit box – “form over speed”. John is the epitome of that phrase. He only goes as quickly as his perfect form allows. There is another phrase you might hear John Mariotti say a lot… “slow is smooth and smooth is fast”. It means that when you go slowly enough to make each move perfect and keep your composure, then you never lose control and get behind… which eventually puts you in the lead.

Something you might not know about John Kerr is that he is the spelunking rope climbing world champion for his age group. This is not an easy feat! He also likes to get out and try a lot of new things, including yoga, yoga silks, rock climbing, tree climbing, surfing, parachuting and more. This guy sees life an an adventure and he doesn’t seem like he is afraid of much – his performance in the gym is evidence of that. He even was kind and generous enough to come set up some recreational tree climbing for John and I to give it a try!

John came to us trying to lose fat and gain muscle. He had a goal and a plan in mind and he has followed it carefully. His Body Fat Test 3 months ago put him at around 22%. He just retested and his body fat is now around 17% – that is a HUGE improvement! Congratulations John Kerr… you are indeed extraordinary!