I AM ALFA because I am not afraid to lose and am always up for the challenge. As a mother, my goal is to ensure my kids have a strong, positive mindset.
Photography: ALI SOHRAB
Venue: Olympians Gym
I was born and raised in Abbotsford. I have two younger brothers who one could partly blame for my love of wrestling, boxing and fighting so to speak. I was very skinny growing up - to the point that I was teased in high school for being “too skinny”. Even when I got married and moved to New York City with my husband, I continued to remain active and in shape. After becoming a mom is when I really noticed that I wanted to be more athletic.
Taking my kids to their sporting activities is what peaked my interest in martial arts even more so than what interested me growing up with my two brothers. I took my first jiu jitsu class in 2012. I also owned and operated my own kickboxing studio as well. For me personally, I have always just done what makes me feel good. Looking a certain way or like everyone else has never been a priority to me. I have no desire to fit in. There is only one Angie Crasto.
I AM ALFA because I am not afraid to lose and am always up for the challenge. Being strong is not just what you can do in the gym, it is also about your mindset. As a mother, my goal is to ensure my kids have a strong, positive mindset. That type of resilience will always ensure that my children can handle anything life throws at them.
What are the most rewarding things that Fitness has brought you? Fitness has allowed me to build the most solid relationship with myself, mentally thanks to my family. My husband and sons are my greatest cheerleaders - always there to help me grow and believe in myself. My youngest brother has also helped me greatly on my fitness journey.
When was the most ALFA moment in your life, and why? I always think back to not one but two actual moments where I have proven to myself just how strong I am mentally. These two moments were when I went skydiving and completed Tough Mudder. Skydiving was huge for me because it’s not every day you jump out of a plane. I had it all planned out with a friend. We signed up together to do static jumps - the jumps where you exit the plane by yourself (NOT tandem where you are attached to a trained professional). I was so excited that my friend agreed and that I will have company when I try this amazing thing for the first time ever but that excitement was short lived. When we got to the training site and they handed us our waivers to sign, my friend backed out after reading the line that mentioned “up to and including death”. They didn’t want to jump anymore. For a moment, I began to second guess my own decision as well. Several thoughts crossed my mind such as… “Maybe I shouldn’t skydive either, what am I even thinking? I’ve never jumped out of a plane before. What if something does happen?” But, I decided to do my jump anyway.
I went by myself and it was the BEST feeling in the world to know I was able to face my fears and just go for it. The second ALFA moment in my life sort of played off the coat-tails of my skydiving fiasco. I really wanted to do Tough Mudder but could not convince a single soul to join me. First of all, it takes a certain personality in my opinion to want to compete in such an event. The people I asked either couldn’t work it into their schedule or they simply said it wasn’t their cup of tea and gave me a hard no.... so I did what I knew best - did it by myself. Best decision ever because yet again, I proved to myself I am capable of all things. It was a great day; my hubby drove up to Whistler with me and cheered me on as I crossed the finish line.
How Has Covid-19 impacted your daily life? I have always been super OCD about cleanliness and germs etc. so it really has not impacted me in that essence. I’ve always liked my personal space, have always been the person with her disinfecting wipes on the plane or in the restaurant wiping down surfaces haha. My husband used to tease me about it and tell me to relax or just thought my paranoia was silly. Look who’s laughing now! On a more serious note, not being able to just hang out and do things with family and friends is where I feel it’s toll. This year, I turned 45 and I wanted to have a huge birthday celebration but couldn’t do it due to all the social distancing rules. Also, being involved in the Jiu-Jitsu community, Covid-19 has affected training and competing in a huge way.
When the pandemic first started, my son was signed up for a few tournaments which initially were postponed and then eventually cancelled. We recently started training again in late June but it’s definitely different now. Even with a few tournaments coming up now, I personally still consider it risky because you don’t know if everyone is being truthful about their “bubbles” and the number of people they have been in contact with etc. Health and wellness supersede medals in my opinion any day of the week.
If you had to choose any positive thing about isolation, what would it be? Spending more time with my family. Working from home has been enjoyable - not having to commute two hours a day has been amazing. I love having the extra time to do other stuff at home.
How have you been maintaining your emotional, mental, and physical well-being while in isolation? We have a gym set up at home. My husband has always been consistent about working out so he’s been helping keep me accountable. As a family, we have also enjoyed hanging out and doing more activities.
How do you envision the social, business, and family life to be after the lockdown? What would be your message to the world? I hope our society learns from the lockdown. It seems like most people have but there’s always those select few that just don’t care. It’s disheartening when I see news about individuals not supporting the social distancing guidelines. The people that don’t take this seriously upset me. Just because they feel safe or don’t have to worry about anyone that may be at high risk for the virus, they are being ignorant. My heart also goes out for all the small business owners who have been affected financially and emotionally due to the pandemic. I really hope people come together to help keep each other safe and follow the rules so everyone can get back to hanging out with their friends and family and continue to enjoy the social activities that we all took for granted. I also understand, things will never be back to normal as they were pre-pandemic. This virus has definitely kept everyone on their toes, that’s for sure!
Please share up to 5 things people don’t know about you.
If I care about you, I would fight the world for you.
I cannot be fake if my life depended on it.
I was crowned Miss India North America by Akshay Kumar.
I am a Blue Belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.
I am super artistic - drawing/paint/art/design.
Please name few ALFA people you know.
Roman Crasto
Kabir Bath
Sandy Dosanjh
Jessica Nelson
What would be the ultimate tips, in point form, you could share with everyone about LIFE?
Do what makes YOU happy.
Quality over Quantity (followers and likes don’t matter.)
Always be kind.
Never assume anything.
Make people feel good about themselves.
Choose a Health-related topic of your choice, and give us tips on “how to” achieve it. THIS WILL GO ON YOUR COVER.
How to get back into a fitness routine:
Set your fitness goal.
Know your “WHY”.
Give yourself a realistic timeline.
Don’t try to do everything all at once.
80% nutrition 20% exercise.
Progress over perfection.
Do not give up!
Your top favorite quote.
“I don’t go by the rule book. I lead from the heart, not from the head.”
Where people can find you?
Instagram: @hustleandroll
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