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Trained as a gymnast in her youth, she thrived on conquering the next challenge, mastering the next task. She brought this same mental and physical discipline to her chosen career path.

She had a clear vision. She wanted to own her own business.

“My family owned the Nodak store in Fargo,” she says. “I started working for them at 19 and ended up going full-time. My career goal was 20 years down the road to buy the family business and be a fourth-generation business owner.”

Grondahl is a fourth-generation business owner, all right. But when the family sold the store to an outside buyer in 2013, Grondahl, the mother of a now 11-year-old son named Sterling, pivoted.

Looking for a way to stay active and mentally disciplined, she tried CrossFit, a branded fitness regimen that combines strength training, deep stretching, nutrition and metabolic conditioning (structured periods of working and resting) to maximize performance. She found more than a workout. She found her calling and a new business as well.

In June 2013, CrossFit Fargo was born. Grondahl and her business partner Jeremy Donais moved it to the present south Fargo location in March 2014. The bustling gym offers group fitness classes, personal training sessions and nutrition coaching in a high-energy atmosphere that can sometimes feel like a training montage in an action movie. Members kick into handstands, hoist kettlebells and execute Olympic lifts with massive barbells.

“It’s very empowering for women,” Grondahl says. “There are no mirrors. It’s really about what your body is capable of doing versus what you look like. You never get bored of your workout. It’s about being healthy, being functional and celebrating what your body can do.”

Shannon Neustel is 47 and has been doing CrossFit for over seven years. She sees the benefits inside and outside the gym.

“I am so much stronger than I was in my 20s,” she says. “I notice my cardio is better when going up the stairs or even going for a walk or hike with my family. Regular, everyday tasks are easier — carrying groceries in from the car or putting heavy boxes on a tall shelf are just a couple of examples. CrossFit also increases mental toughness. Sometimes the workouts can be long and hard, but you learn to get through them. And that crosses over to everyday life situations.”

The workouts have a way of pushing people out of their comfort zones, both mentally and physically. And that’s where the real growth happens.

“Without fail, the first time I look at the workout of the day, I think that it must be a joke,” laughs Jessica Lee, age 41. “I think, ‘There is no way people can do that!’ But when the workout is finished, and you’re laying on the floor because you’re not sure if your legs work for standing, you realize not only can people do that workout, but you can do it too. It’s a crazy realization that leaves you wondering what else you can do that you don’t currently think is possible.”

Tapping into this wellspring of strength is physically and mentally empowering. And for women, who are blasted with messages that link fitness with appearance 24/7, it’s so countercultural, it’s practically revolutionary.

“As women, we associate our exercise routines with our physical appearance,” says Lee. “We eat right and exercise and if we stick with it, we'll look good in our jeans. With CrossFit, there’s almost an unconscious mind shift from how our bodies look to what our bodies can do. And before you know it, you are so spun up in how much stronger you're getting that you forget to fuss about how many carbs were in your oatmeal.”

Grondahl wants everyone at CrossFit Fargo (women and men of any age and fitness level) to experience that kind of boundary-shifting freedom. So they’re teaching those skills to the next generation as well.

The facility is a CrossFit Kids Affiliate and Youth Empowerment Systems (Y.E.S.) gym. Structured like as a series of skill levels, much like the martial arts, this integrated, character-driven fitness program teaches athletic, wellness and mental health lessons to kids 6-17. Plans are in place to expand to K-12 students soon.

The Healthy Steps Nutrition Program offers nutrition and lifestyle coaching for adults in the gym. A program called The Incubator provides a customized 90-day health and wellness plan. Members receive personal training sessions, non-invasive InBody scans to analyze their unique body composition, access to group CrossFit classes, and an app to track their long-term progress. Individual nutrition coaching, personalized meal plans and grocery lists are tailored to each individual.

F“Our nutrition program assists clients to have a healthy relationship with food while also helping them achieve their specific goals — muscle gain, weight loss, maintenance, etc.,” explains Michaela Swanston, RN and CrossFit Fargo nutrition coach. “We do not cut out a specific food group or expect perfection. We hope to help establish balance for our clients. The member's whole life and goals are taken into account — if they work out, have a family, want to focus on something small or make large changes. We are there to coach, assist, aid in accountability, and cheer on our members.”

“Our body is like a car,” adds Ashley Bourgois, CrossFit Fargo general manager and nutrition coach. “We need to give our body fuel to function every day. If we make changes in the food we eat, our body will change. Many women have struggled with their weight off and on in their life. They have tried so many different fad diets and had good results, but in the end, gain everything back, plus more. Our goal is to help you find a lifelong nutrition journey, not one that works for two to three months. With a well-balanced diet, you can eat more, have more energy, feel good about yourself, and lose weight.”

Members have seen dramatic results by integrating physical activity, nutrition, wellness and mental health. Members aren’t just building their muscles — they’re changing their internal health markers, managing chronic health conditions and transforming their sense of self.

Norma Maxwell walked into CrossFit Fargo as a 48-yearold with aching knees, 25 pounds she couldn’t lose and a series of chronic health conditions. She was looking for a yoga class. She found a new way to live instead.

“I joke that CrossFit saved my life, but it's very much the case,” she says. “It was without question the missing link in my health journey. Prior to CrossFit, my doctors told me it was not if but when I would have a heart attack, since my mother had two in her 50s and my grandmother had three in her 50s.”

That prognosis was heavy. So Maxwell fought it. And she blew her doctors away.

“Within my first year of CrossFit, I dropped all of my excess body fat, reversed nearly all lingering symptoms associated

Twith my autoimmune condition, and was taken off all but one of my medications,” she says. “When my doctor ran my health markers to tell me my current risk for heart attack, it was less than 1% risk — .07% to be exact; the average healthy person that age has about a 7% risk. She couldn't believe my results and told me I should never stop doing whatever I was doing. Now at 54, I am far stronger and healthier than at any other time in my life.”

Now Maxwell is a CrossFit Fargo coach and teaches a class for adults over 40. Grondahl’s admiration is palpable.

“She went from never lifting a weight in her life to being able to deadlift 250 pounds,” Grondahl says. “It’s cool to see those transformations.”

Jasmine Joy, age 27, found her own transformation and a new perspective on her own health through CrossFit Fargo. She manages the youth program and her own chronic health condition, multiple sclerosis, using lessons she learned within these walls.

“Through CrossFit, I have discovered that I am entirely capable of taking control of my own health, as well as my perspective on life's adversities,” she says. “For me, that means overcoming and keeping multiple sclerosis in remission, strengthening the muscles around the rods along my spine, and keeping the factors that affect my mental health a priority.”

While Joy’s situation is unique, she insists that the lessons she learned here are not. She says people of all ages and abilities can use the discipline and connections forged in the gym and the greater community to expand their own capabilities.

“CrossFit is for anyone,” she insists. “Whether 14, 40 or 64, whether you have a strong background in sports or have never set foot in a gym, and whether you are a part of the general population or an adaptive athlete, CrossFit meets you where you are at and teaches you all of the amazing things your body is capable of doing.”

Anyone is welcome at CrossFit Fargo. You just have to show up to take the next step in your own health journey.

“CrossFit is a way to get a new lease on your life,” says Grondahl. “Take control of your life and your fitness and you can make a difference in your whole life. But you have to take a step and just try it.”

a difference for good. BE A HERO!

rooms and the supplies were sorted for global missions. In 25 years, HERO has prepared over 2200 pallets and shipped over 1.1 million pounds to mission groups around the world.

For 25 years, HERO (Healthcare Equipment Recycling Organization) has been serving the Fargo-Moorhead community by providing affordable healthcare equipment and supplies for all, through the collection and distribution of donated materials. The HERO volunteers dedication and hard work are one of the main reasons that HERO has been so successful for so long. HERO’s mission continues to grow year after year thanks to our HERO volunteers.

Please take some time to consider what HERO, with the help of our volunteers, has accomplished in 25 years. Over 7,700 individuals have donated over 60,000 hours to the operation of HERO. The value of those volunteer hours is $1.6 million dollars. HERO exists so that no individual goes without the medical products they need to preserve their independence, dignity and health.

HERO’s first mission was global, it was not until years later that HERO started serving our local community. HERO originally was started by a few operating room nurses that saw the wasted medical supplies daily. After a while, these nurses were able to get bins stationed in the operating

HERO has supported our local community through our retail and donation center. You can find all of your basic medical equipment such as shower chairs, walkers, canes, toilet risers, medical beds, wheelchairs, electric scooters and so much more. All of the items are donated, sanitized and distributed back to the community at typically half of the cost that you find them in other stores. In 25 years, HERO locally has served over 50,000 individuals that needed medical supplies or equipment. HERO has also supplied $825,000 worth of medical equipment and supplies through our waived fee program. Our waived program is in place to help individuals that might be overwhelmed by the cost of healthcare perhaps by the sudden change in health status from an accident, difficult illness, injury or economic circumstances.

HERO celebrates 25th anniversary

2O21 completes

Celebrating 25 Years of HERO in numbers

7,700 volunteers

$1.6 million value of volunteer hours

2,200 pallets + 1.1 million pounds of medical supplies prepared for global missions

50,000 individuals served

60,000 hours donated waived fees for over $285,000 worth of medical supplies

1.7 million pounds of medical supplies kept out of the local landfills life979.com

HERO’s environmental impact can also be felt in our community. When an item is donated to HERO, it is given a second chance. Items that are beyond repair will be salvaged for parts and recycled. HERO has kept 1.7 million pounds of medical supplies and equipment out of our local landfills.

As HERO looks to the future, we are proud to have been able to do so much but wonder how much more we can do? Thank you to all the wonderful volunteers that have supported HERO. Your impact has been truly amazing.