CrossFit Summa Owner Builds Community, Makes Fitness Fun

Everyday Inspirations is a series that features people in Patch communities who inspire others through their work, or people who have faced extraordinary situations and grown from them. They have been featured by other people in the community that have been inspired by the nominees.

Name: Matt Herman
Town: Doylestown, PA
Nominated by: Gail Rose

Why is this person an "Everyday Inspiration?" 
In less than two months, this 25-year-old man has built a community of compassionate, health-conscious, motivated, determined, fun-loving, civic-minded, close-knit but welcoming individuals all working together to improve their lives through fitness and volunteerism.

As the co-owner of CrossFit Summa, Matt puts the needs of his clients above his own. And it shows. You will never meet a group of more devoted people. Matt has a team of people who volunteer their time to help he and his partner out just because they want to see the "good guys" succeed.

As an athlete, he quietly goes about training and improving. As we enter the second week of the Reebok CrossFit Games Open, Matt is ranked among the top 300 athletes (out of thousands) in the Mid Atlantic Division. He is clearly an athlete to watch.

His quiet, modest determination inspires everyone around him. Most of the members of CrossFit Summa are beginners at the sport, but improving quickly and safely. His insistence on proper form and technique has helped many avoid injury while getting stronger and healthier.

His enthusiasm for helping others is just as contagious. CrossFit Summa is involved in Habitat for Humanity and other worthy causes.

Has the nominee's life been changed in an extraordinary way? 

Ask Matt how he became interested in CrossFit and he will tell this story:

“I can remember the first time I saw people doing a CrossFit demonstration. It was in the parking lot of a sporting goods store in Quakertown, PA. At the time, I was working at a gym as a personal trainer. I was right out of school and very idealistic. I didn’t just want to help people get fit; I wanted to change their lives. I wasn’t quite sure what that meant until I saw all those people in the parking lot, pushing themselves to the limits – and having a blast doing it.”

What Matt witnessed that day was transformation. He saw all these people, most complete strangers, coming together as one cohesive unit, cheering each other on until the very last person completed the workout.

He knew he wanted to be a part of it. He wanted to instill something in his clients that was sustainable and real. It’s what’s been driving him ever since.

How does this person work to make others' lives better?

Matt makes fitness fun and safe. He brings people together and unites them in a way that everyone is empowered and working toward the common good of the group.

The result? People want to come to his gym. You can't keep them away. They are getting healthier, happier and stronger every day.

At a time when so many people are suffering the effects of a sedentary lifestyle and poor nutrition choices, Matt has created a community of people who don't see health as a chore or necessary evil but as the best part of their day.