The Groupon That Changed My Life

Lynne Steiner • September 9, 2026

Have you ever done something just to get someone off your back, and had it change the entire direction of your life?


That's what happened to me in 2012.


My then-fiance and a friend strong-armed me into buying a Groupon for a month of CrossFit Roselle membership. I didn't want it. I'd never had a gym membership in my life. I was half-heartedly doing workouts from the Nike Training app and calling it exercise. I was a very skinny, non-gym girlie who had zero interest in changing that.


I didn't have the clothes.

I didn't have the shoes.

I definitely didn't have the mindset or the athleticism.


But I showed up anyway, at 5:30am on Monday, Oct. 1, with absolutely no idea what I was doing and feeling way in over my head.


That was before I saw a CrossFit Games Regionals athlete repping out ring muscle-ups 2 feet away from me. (She’s still here, by the way. Hi Monica!!)


I should have walked out. Actually, I wanted to walk out. 


Instead, after that first week, I was hooked.


I spent 4 years as an athlete before I became a coach. Then 5 years as a coach before I became a co-owner. Five years after that, my now-husband and I became the sole owners of the gym that started with a Groupon I didn't even want.


14 Years Later

This October marks 14 years since that Groupon changed everything for me. In honor of it, I'd love for you to see what happens here, and what makes it worth showing up for.


Yes, there are still athletes knocking out ring muscle-ups. That part hasn't changed.


But mostly, what you'll find are people looking to make their lives better outside the gym. Not for a podium or a scoreboard. For their actual life.


They want to mow the lawn without needing a break halfway through. They want to take their dogs on long walks. They want to play with their kids on the floor and get back up without thinking about it. They want to carry laundry up the stairs without being out of breath. They want to hike in national parks instead of watching everyone else do it.


That's what CrossFit Roselle has become for hundreds of people who walked in exactly like I did: unsure, unequipped, and pretty sure they didn't belong there.


Come See For Yourself

Join us for free workouts on Saturday, Oct. 3. Classes are at 8:30am and 9:30am.

You don't need the clothes or the shoes or the mindset either. I didn't have any of it, and 14 years later, here we are.

Book your spot here.


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