Meet Our Athlete of the Month

Meet our IAMFAM Athlete of the Month, Colten Mertens! Colten just competed at the Granite Games and qualified for the 2022 Crossfit Games. 

Tell us about yourself?

I am a CrossFit athlete and also work on my families farm growing corn, soy beans and raising pigs among many other things at the farm. 

How and when did you come to be a member of the CrossFit community?

I started CrossFit in 2017 at CrossFit Kilo in Cedar Falls, Iowa. It was my freshman year of college and I wanted to try out CrossFit with the hopes of competing. 

What advice would you give anyone starting CrossFit and a healthy lifestyle?

My advice to someone starting out with CrossFit and a healthy lifestyle would be to stay as consistent as you can. Try to keep making small changes that are manageable and making incremental progress. It isn't an all or nothing type of thing, if you stumble just keep moving forward and keep focused on being consistent. You'll be surprised how much progress you make over time. 

Have you noticed any change in your performance at the gym since using Ice Age Meals?

Since I started using Ice Age Meals I've noticed having more energy during my training sessions. Before, I would skip meals or eat lower quality food because of having very little time between farming and training to prep a proper meal with good nutrition. Ice Age Meals make getting my macros in easy and fast and I can tell the difference in training. 

What is your favorite Ice Age Meal and what do you enjoy most about the products?

I've had many favorite Ice Age Meals over time but right now I'm loving the Huli Huli Chicken with Rice. The macros are great for pre-training, in-training or when I want a filling, high protein meal that doesn't make me feel slow during the day. 

When you aren’t working out or enjoying Ice Age Meals, how do you like to spend your time? 

Outside of training I spend most of my time at the farm or working on recovery but I also love to read books and learn new things. I regularly read 50-100 books each year or listen to them in audio format. Outside of competition season I enjoy trying a new whiskey or wine and watching movies with my girlfriend, Ally. Other than that I really just live to train right now!