Urheilijaprofiili – Caleb "Kaaleppi" Jordan

1. Who are you and where do you come from?
My name is Caleb Jordan and I am a Rotary exchange student from Berthoud, Colorado, USA.

2. What kind of athletic background do you have?
I’ve done a little bit of everything from: volleyball, swim team, soccer, cross country running, and track and field. However, I didn’t do any athletics during my time in high school except for doing a 5K and 10K runs just for fun.

3. Why did you start CrossFit?
I started CrossFit through my first host mom. Before coming to Finland, my host mom asked if I would be interested in at least trying out CrossFit because she has been doing for a long time and she really enjoys it and it would be cool if I did it too and it were like a (host) mom/(host) son sort of thing where we could see each other and talk about CrossFit together. So I got to Finland and I signed up for one of the On-Ramp courses and from Day 1 I was 100% hooked!

4. What has CrossFit been like to you? Has it been what you expected?
My introduction to CrossFit was very different from my other athletic experiences. Prior to CrossFit I had only participated in team sports and never really found that same drive, motivation, and passion I gained from CrossFit. CrossFit has been a really great experience and opportunity for me to learn about what actually listening to your body means and how if you put in the time, you are rewarded with the positive results. I’ve learned a tremendous amount about athletics and dieting and sportsmanship that I can use in my everyday life. When I first started CrossFit, the only thing I knew about it was what everyone just assumes of CrossFit: it’s a lot of work, a lot of sweat, and only crazy people do it. Which honestly, CrossFit is a lot of work, a lot of sweat, and crazy people do indeed do CrossFit, but the thing nobody talks about is the community that CrossFit is and how you make so many friends and everyone there are there for the same reason – self-improvement. It’s going to be long journey, but a journey that you’ll have a large community to support and encourage you along the way.

5. What have been your personal challenges and successes?
I think one of the biggest challenges I faced was getting over the mindset of ”it’s a race/competition and it’s you vs everyone else.” Once I finally understood that CrossFit is not ”You vs Everyone Else” but rather ”You vs yourself” I finally saw momentous improvements and gains in the work that I put in. Being able to see yourself grow overtime whether it be hitting a PR lift or doing a workout Rx is hands down one of the most satisfying and proudest feelings in the world. Also, another big challenge of mine was being able to adjust and understand my diet to accommodate to working out. My problem was not trying to eat less, but having to try to eat more and to figure out that you have to eat to be able to perform.

6. Is there something else you’d like to say?
Forget about what everyone says about CrossFit, you won’t know if you like it until you try it yourself. It’s a great way to not only get fit, but to teach yourself determination, patience, and that progress is only seen with the hard work you put in. If you want to try for the first time or continue CrossFit while living/moving/studying/etc. in Seinäjoki, Finland I 100% recommend CrossFit 60100. Heidi and Ville are excellent coaches (the best coaches I’ve ever had in any sport) that will accommodate and help you scale or modify your workout to the best of your ability. Also, there is absolutely no need to worry about a language barrier because both Heidi and Ville are fluent in English and are able to coach you at the same level as everyone else. CrossFit 60100, also has a great community of athletes that are from all walks of life that will encourage and sweat with you the entire way. CrossFit is literally blood, sweat, and (sometimes) tears and it is worth it!