We sat down with Fina – a gal with lots of faces and a multi-lingual foodie at heart – and asked her the pressing questions so you could get to know her a little better.
Member since: November, 2019 – when Blues City opened at its current location on Manchester
Preferred class time: Typically the 5:45 am on M, Tu, W and F (reluctantly and with the help of “Good morning, get your ass to the gym!” texts from Sam, Becky and Joice – shoutout to those gals!) and 8:15 am on Saturdays. Sometimes the 5:20 pm on weekdays if I hit the snooze button one too many times in the morning or if I have early morning work meetings.
What the heck do you do outside of this place?
I’m a mergers and acquisitions consultant at Aon. I primarily work with private equity firms on risk and insurance diligence projects when they are looking at an acquisition or investment. Fun stuff! During my free time, I like to golf, but I do need some major help with my irons (bad habits die hard). I also love trying new foods, so if you have recommendations, send them my way!
Fun fact about you
Many know that I’m from Malaysia, but what many people don’t know is that my mom gave birth to me in the hospital elevator. Didn’t quite make it to the labor room because I was just too excited to enter the world I guess. Sorry, mom!
What’s something not everyone knows about you?
- Super nerdy stuff – I love learning new languages. I have a goal of being fluent or at least able to have conversations in at least five languages. I’m getting there, but it’s SO much harder learning languages the older you get and even harder when you can’t practice them with native speakers.
- I know I don’t look it but I’m half Malay, half Chinese and grew up primarily around my Chinese side of the family. When I was a young kid, I used to be convinced that I was adopted because I don’t look Chinese at all…like legit upset at my family for lying to me. It’s good, y’all. I am indeed not adopted.
What’s your guilty pleasure?
French fries/fried potatoes of any kind. I don’t discriminate.
What got you into CrossFit?
Lisa (shout out!) had been trying to get me to try Crossfit since forever. I’ve always been reluctant because I had this perception that you have to be super fit to do CrossfFit. Then BCA ran a holiday special, so I finally decided to give it a try and never looked back. The community and the programming are for real THE BEST.
What’s a goal you’re working toward?
My top goals right now are to be able to do strict pull-ups, string together T2B and be more confident with snatches. The strict pull-up is such a great foundation to have that will translate to so many other movements. T2B – Well, I just want to stop flailing around and look as graceful as all the other fit people in class doing them. And snatches – I don’t even know where to begin.
What’s your favorite workout?
Anything with descending reps. It makes my brain think the workout is less hard, which is a total lie.
What’s the hardest fitness-related thing that you’re always working on?
FOOD! Nutrition is such a key piece to one’s overall fitness. It’s been a constant evolution for me of trying to figure out the right amount of calories and the appropriate macros. It’s getting better, but it’s something that I need to continue to work on.
Why do you like Crossfit?
It may seem scary but take the leap and try out a class! The programming is built for all fitness levels and the variety keeps you from getting bored. The best part is the feeling you get when you reflect on where you started and how far you’ve come.
What’s your favorite part about Blues City (What? We had to ask!)?
Did I mention the community? I don’t think I’ve been part of a gym where people are so warm and welcoming from the start, and it’s not some fake welcome. They legitimately take the time to get to know you, invite you to coffee, push and encourage you during workouts, and celebrate your successes in and out of the box.
