Humans of LoLo, Andrea Torres Lopez. [Victoria Bc CrossFit Lolo]

Where are you from?  How long have you been in Canada and how did you get into CrossFit?

“My name is Andrea Torres Lopez. I have been in Canada for maybe 9 years, I don’t know. I’ve lost track! We moved to Canada because my husband, Nico had a job opportunity here so we decided to move north and explore.

I came into CrossFit because I needed to challenge my fitness in a different level.  Previously I had been doing some high intensity workouts but, I felt like I was ready to try something new to challenge my endurance and my knowledge about fitness.”

And Nico was already doing CrossFit?

“Nico was already doing CrossFit. I was already going to watch Nico, but now I understand what I am cheering for.  Before I would just go “Ya go Nico!” but I didn’t have a clue what he was doing, but now I have a better understanding of what it takes.”

How long did Nico do CrossFit before you got on board with it?

“3 years.  I felt like CrossFit was out of my league and wasn’t interested in it.  Weights was never something I was into so, seeing all the weights and barbells in CrossFit was a bit intimidating.  I liked fast paced, go-go exercise so that’s why I was doing high-intensity exercise but I felt like I needed to build more muscle, and I guess I am getting older so my perspective on trying new things has shifted what’s important for me.”

What has been the biggest surprise since doing CrossFit for yourself?

“I think the biggest surprise has been seeing what you can put your mind to and the result you can get.  Not telling yourself you can’t do something before you even try and knowing that there is a process to learning new skills.

Being out of my comfort zone has helped me make better decisions about my life and professionalism. Being aware of when my body is tired and when I need to slow down. My relationship with food and sleeping patterns have changed. What is important in my life has been put into perspective. I enjoy learning about how to exercise in a different way and it is reflecting on my personal life.”

What was the happiest moment of your life?

 “The happiest moments of my life was when Nico and I got married. It was completely unexpected, and it happened so fast. The wedding was planned  and only our friends knew we were engaged so, it was an incredible day about the two of us with 16-20 who were special to us. We had the most adorable justice of peace who couldn’t understand Nico’s and my accent. A funny moment was when I put the speaker on the roof of the house and we ended up getting kicked out of rooftop and somehow everything came together in the end.

My friends showed up with flowers and champagne for me and the guys took Nico out of the condo to get ready. All the girls came to me for hair styling, and we got drunk and served pizza at the wedding. The most special part was that I got married to the guy I love, and  the people I share my new life with. But also understanding how many people were there for us, our friends Mom flew from Calgary to be with us that day. If I could do it again I would!”

Do You have someone who is influential in your life?

“The two people who are very influential to me. My Grandma is one of the toughest people in my life. She is a soft spoken person who keeps the family united. She leads by her behaviour and her values which is what I’ve learned is important. My work ethic comes from my Grandpa, he’s the outspoken one, he lives life in a crazy way. However, he is always there for the family and works really hard to make everyone be successful. And those people have made a difference in my life.”

What was the scariest moment in your life?

“When I moved to Canada was one of the scariest times in my life. It was a new place, I didn’t speak the language and, I was going to be away from everything that was important to me, my friends and family. The distance was the scariest part, knowing that being so far away from them if they needed me, and that I couldn’t be there for them. It was just me, two suitcases and no home. As scary as it was, I am grateful now because it has made us grow closer as a couple and as Brazilians.

The realization hit me when I said goodbye to my family at the airport. I was flying all on my own and was like ‘holy smokes, this is real and there’s no way to go back. This is real, welcome to real life Andrea and now all the decisions you make have to be 100%.’  There was a lot of things we were trying to figure out, and it was a really scary moment. Now every time I’m afraid, I look back on my experience here and seeing how afraid I was, but it was worth it.”

Final Statements:

“It’s exciting to be here and it’s awesome to watch you guys grow. I was here when CrossFit LoLo opened and seeing the new trainers and the people come together, the community, the culture you are building and it is a really exciting process to be part of.

Everyone wants a positive result in the end, all of us are different, we all have different skills and we want to know when were doing well. Understanding how a community comes together, your success and everyone else’s successes and I think that CrossFit creates a very interesting perspective on how everyone comes together.”