COACHES SPOTLIGHT

Name: Duana Jones

Affiliate: Crossfit Northlake

CrossFit Coach: Level 1

Favorite CrossFit movement: Overhead Squats

Favorite song to WOD to: Drop the World by Lil Wayne and Eminem

Favorite Hero/Benchmark WOD: DT – 5 rounds: 12 DLs, 9 Hang Pwr Cleans, 6 Push Jerks Most recent PR: DL – 280# (15# PR 🙂 )

What inspired you to become a CrossFit coach? My desire to help others, especially women, accomplish their fitness goals.

What has been your best coaching experience so far? Seeing the growth and confidence gained by new members.

If you could give someone new to CrossFit just one piece of advice, what would it be? Be patient and take the time to learn proper technique and form…it pays off in the long run AND take time to mobilize properly before and after your WODs…take care of your temple and it will last you a lifetime 🙂

Would you share with us your favorite tip or cue that we might find useful to use in our training? I often remind members to “compress and squeeze” when preparing to attempt any overhead pressing motion. This reminds them to lock down their core and squeeze their glutes to stabilize the midline.

Do you have any success stories among your athletes you’d like to share? I don’t have any specific success stories to share, but I’m fulfilled knowing that a tip or word of encouragement that I’ve shared has helped someone set a PR, master a new skill, hang on to the bar for one more rep, row faster or push harder than they ever imagined they could.

If “Duana” was a WOD, what would it be? A fast triplet of double unders, power snatches and overhead squats

What’s your biggest goat and what are you doing about it? Cleans. I’m working on hip extension and proper positioning in the second pull by cleaning from the blocks with light to moderate weight.

What CrossFit athlete do you aspire to be most like? Elisabeth Akinwale, of course! She’s a quiet storm…strong and focused…a devoted mom who happens to be a bad@ss CrossFit athlete!