How Loss Led Me to a Life of Purpose Through Fitness
Apr 22, 2025
On January 31, 2008, my middle sister Kerstin passed away suddenly in a car accident. She was just 20 years old—an artist, full of life, and about to start culinary school. Losing her shattered my heart and changed my life in ways I could’ve never imagined.
Kerstin always said, “Make the most of your life. Make the most of every opportunity that comes your way.” She lived with so much passion, energy, and zest for life. After her passing, I carried immense guilt. As her older sister, I felt I had failed to protect her. But over time, I came to understand that there are things in life we simply can’t control.
Her death strengthened my desire to help others. I began to ask myself:
How can I use this pain to impact someone else’s life positively?
How can I support others through hard times and show them that there is light at the end of the tunnel?
In the years that followed, I chose to embody how Kerstin lived: fully and with intention. I committed to making the most of each moment and using my time here to help as many people as possible through fitness and movement.
Movement became my outlet. It helped me process the deep waves of grief, frustration, sadness, and joy. I found healing in running, lifting, and attending fitness classes. That physical release allowed me to work through the emotions I didn’t have words for.
In 2010, I competed in a Tough Mudder race where friends introduced me to CrossFit. They said I’d fall in love with it—and they were right. By 2011, I was working as a Marketing Coordinator when I reached a pivotal moment. I had to choose: continue my career and move across the country, or take a leap of faith, leave my profession, and pursue a life of coaching and training.
It wasn’t easy. I had invested years in college and had a stable paycheck. But deep down, I knew what aligned with my values. I faced the fear of the unknown and chose to follow my heart. I left my job to chase a dream.
It turned out to be one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.
Over the years, my dedication to training led me to qualify for the CrossFit Games seven years in a row. I even had the chance to compete on NBC’s Titan Games, where I took second place and became friends with Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson.
Along the way, I began making wine at home as a passion project—something that eventually evolved into launching my own wine company at the CrossFit Games in 2017. That leap, like leaving my marketing job, was fueled by purpose, passion, and a desire to create meaningful experiences for others.
After more than 16 years in the fitness industry, I’ve been fortunate to offer not just a physical outlet but also a positive online community. My mission is to help others around the world move their bodies, take ownership of their health, and build sustainable, long-term lifestyle changes.
I approach every day with hard work, and I believe in “wining down”—celebrating small wins, embracing challenges, and staying grounded through it all.
I do this because movement helped me survive one of the hardest seasons of my life. It gave me strength, clarity, and the community I didn’t even know I needed. It led me to finding new ways to challenging myself, lifelong friendships, and a purpose much greater than myself.
That’s why I’m so passionate about helping others experience the power of investing in their own health and wellness, not just physically, but mentally and emotionally too. Life will always have challenges, but movement can help us face them with resilience, grace, and strength.
And that’s just scratching the surface.
Now I’d love to hear from you:
How has fitness or movement helped you through a challenging time?
What’s the biggest barrier keeping you from making a daily investment in your health?
Let’s open up the conversation, because your story matters too. Thank you for being here.
1 comment
Marguax, thank you so much for writing this lovely tribute to your sister and sharing what you did with the grief.
I will keep this short if I can. In 2022 I was caring for my father then my mother fell and broke her hip. A few months later my father fell and broke his hip and everything suddenly changed and I was well and truly out of my depth when dad came home from hospital.
My parents were now both living downstairs and I was sleeping on the sofa in the same room as my mum to look after her during the night. I slept on that couch for 28 months.
After a couple of months of round the clock care, doing everything basically, I was thoroughly exhausted and desperate for something to click, as giving up was not an option.whole schtick. I discovered the idea that what I was doing may be the greatest thing I will ever do and I would have to get to the end of it knowing I did my best. I did not believe it, I didn’t feel it in my heart. I pushed on.
The one day I listened to Joe Rogan talking to David Goggins whilst preparing lunch, and it lit a fire inside me. I downloaded some Goggins/Jocko mixes off Youtube, and the Can’t Hurt Me audiobook, and began training every morning, no matter the weather, no matter how tired I was. I needed to get stronger so I could help my dad, and I needed to get physically fitter so i could keep going for 18-20 hours a day.
Rucking, kettlebells, dumb bells, callisthenics, running, whether it was snowing, raining, sunny, cold, warm, whatever.
My dear mother passed away on day 366 of training, and my father passed away on day 490. I continued right up to day 500 to honour them both.
I am grateful to have found you on X and for having a chance to share my story with you here. Take care Margaux, you’re an outstanding person!