Today we’d like to introduce you to Keisha Carrell.
Hi Keisha, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I found one of the loves of my life a little more than ten years ago. At the time, I was running a fitness bootcamp in my small hometown of Huntington, Texas, using my passion for fitness to help people lead more fulfilling lives. One day I read in a magazine about this new way of training that had started up in San Diego called CrossFit, and I would tear pages of the workouts to use in my bootcamp. When a CrossFit gym opened in our neighboring town of Lufkin, I absolutely had to go check it out. I thought I would attend a few classes and take what I learned back to my boot camp– but the opposite happened. I fell in love with that new way of training. I went back to my clients and told them to come join me and make the official switch over to Crossfit.
I knew immediately that I was made to improve peoples’ lives from this platform. I thought, “this is me!”. I quickly obtained my certification to coach and started helping that new Crossfit gym grow their business. It wasn’t long before I felt the growing pains of needing to branch out on my own, start my own gym, and give it my own personal touch. I opened a small gym in Lufkin and began fulfilling my purpose there. I saw people overcome debilitating physical pain, shake depression, and form bonds in the gym that became like family. Those people served each other in each of their times of need, and I saw how I was helping people find community with all-encompassing health.
Unfortunately, my personal life entered a state of turmoil and I became unable to keep running the gym. I fell into some of the darkest days of my life and could not show up to coach with such a dark cloud hanging over me. After being open for three years, I had to leave it. I sold the gym and took a job in The Woodlands.
I had thought a change in environment would help me heal, but losing my first gym was nothing short of true heartbreak in itself. It took a lot of will, but I knew I had to leave. I could not have healed staying where I was. The position I took in The Woodlands turned out to be exactly what I needed. I worked very hard to quickly get promoted in the company. They believed in me and supported me without ever knowing how badly I had been hurting. I will always love those people… but I always knew I was made to own a gym that would provide community and healthcare to my local community. It was something I absolutely had to do again. I knew I would.
One day, I drove past a warehouse for lease. I called to check on it out of curiosity, and the snowball started rolling. One thing led to another, and before I knew it… White Horse CrossFit had opened its doors. We didn’t even open in the original warehouse I had called about, but that phone call led to another, and another. Looking back, it was like God had been putting all the pieces together and dragging me along. I know this is what I was made for.
Throughout those dark days at the end of the first gym, very well-intentioned friends and family would tell me things like: “You will find someone to take care of you and your daughters” or, “I bet you can get government assistance now”. I knew these people spoke from a place of love, but I was insulted. I was not the primary breadwinner of my household for years because it had been the best option for my family at the time, NOT because I was incapable of supporting myself and my daughters. I decided then that I was not going to wait on Prince Charming to ride up on his white horse to rescue me. I set out to find my own ‘white horse’, and I did.
Not to say it was solely on my own. I am a Christian by faith, and there were plenty of prayers between every step I took. Pray, take another step, and repeat. White Horse CrossFit represents so much to me personally, but it is also my platform to improve the local community. Once again, I am starting to see people’s lives improve emotionally and physically. This is the nature of true health and community, and I get to be a part of it every day. This place has grown above and beyond what I ever imagined. People have been brought together in the community at a time that we need it the most.
White Horse opened in January 2020, and was forced to close in March. I cried the day we closed our doors and cried again the day we were able to reopen. People need community, they need to be in the same room with people, feeling their energy– it is essential for our health. We, humans, are creatures in need of a village, we cannot forget how important that is. How fortunate I am to be “..born for such a time as this” (Ester 4:14) and to be able to use my passion to help others in their time of need.
White Horse CrossFit will have been open for three years this January, the same length of time as the first gym I lost. We have grown from 0 to 132 members in that time, and I am amazed at the family we have built. Every day, our team of coaches pour their hearts and souls into our local community and the community that comprises our gym. This is more than a gym.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back, would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
One of the biggest challenges opening White Horse CrossFit was the lockdown. Like everyone else, we did not plan on having to close our doors for business in the first three months of opening. Luckily our landlord and members supported us through this time. Gym ownership is never a smooth road, small business ownership, in general, is never a smooth road. Once you realize and accept that, you can commit fully to entrepreneurship. Running a successful small business requires tenacity, you have to be determined.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
CrossFit is a fitness community with affiliates across the world. These communities work to improve people’s health and fitness. I own and manage a CrossFit affiliate in The Woodlands. We are known for providing quality, balanced workouts to keep people more functional for more of their life. I am most proud of the community we have built and how we give our talents to the local community. What sets White Horse CrossFit apart is the systems we have in place to help people continue on their journey to reach their goals.
Let’s talk about our city – what do you love? What do you not love?
I love the diversity of Houston. I love how you can find places to go out dressed as nice as you would like but also find awesome relaxed places when you’re in that mood. I love the weather also, heat and humidity are where I thrive. Living in The Woodlands is nice because of the trees and the great trails throughout the community. Dislike: Traffic and mosquitoes
Contact Info:
- Website:www.whitehorsecrossfit.com
- Other: www.whitehorsecrossfitwest.com
