Donna Regenbaum ~ November's Extraordinary Athlete
Donna Regenbaum ~ November's Extraordinary Athlete
If you want proof that it’s never too late to transform your fitness, look no further than Donna Regenbaum. Many of you already know her husband, John Kerr, who has been part of CrossFit Odyssey for almost 12 years, and possibly their beautiful daughter, Katelyn, who shows up every now and then. After years of encouragement, John finally convinced Donna to come give it a try, and she joined us just two years ago, in October 2024.
Donna came in with a clear purpose: improving her tennis game and improving her bone density, which is especially important for a woman who turned 60 last month. The results have been remarkable. Her bone density has improved significantly since she began, and her doctor said she had never seen such improvement before.
In that relatively short time, Donna has built an impressive foundation, but it’s what’s happening right now that makes her our November Athlete of the Month. She’s in the middle of one of the most electric performance stretches we’ve seen: 30 personal records in the last 90 days alone, out of 133 lifetime PRs.
Scroll through her recent logs, and the pattern is unmistakable. This isn’t a fluke; it’s a strength base being rebuilt from the ground up. Steady increases on Back Squat, progressive Sumo Deadlift jumps, and new bests on Split Jerk, Hang Snatch, Bench Press, and Seated Strict Press. She’s chasing PRs across the board — pulling, pressing, squatting, and jerking — which speaks to consistent, well-rounded training, not just one lucky lift.
Donna was also determined to get her first pull-up, so she added Cable Lat Pulldowns to her daily classes. All that extra work paid off: she now consistently gets one to three pull-ups! She even entered a pull-up “contest” with one of her young tennis partners just for fun! Backing it up, Donna has logged 154 visits so far this year. Showing up regularly is clearly part of the formula behind this hot streak.
What makes Donna’s story especially compelling for our community: she’s proof that the biggest gains don’t always come from the people who’ve been training the longest, or the youngest. Two years in, she’s still finding new PRs multiple times a week. For newer members wondering if the progress ever slows down, Donna is living proof that if you keep showing up, it doesn’t.
Congratulations, Donna, on your Journey to Extraordinary — keep chasing those numbers! (And John, thanks for bringing her in!)
