Instagram story viewer> @coffeenkg> Posts

Sara Rubin

@coffeenkg

853

followers

3475

following

Masters 61kg weightlifter
CF L2 & USAW L1 @crossfitfactorial
🥂🐶🥎✡️🇮🇱

POSTS STORIES REELS TAGGED

I finally achieved my longstanding goal of snatching 70kg at the 2026 Illinois WSO Championship. I’m extremely proud of that PR, but this one was different. It was my small way to honor the memory of a special person who was taken from us on Saturday. Life truly is fragile and short, so do something every day that brings you joy and makes you proud because you can.

Rest easy John 💙

4/6
Snatch: 64/67/70 (154#) 1kg lifetime PR
Clean & Jerk: 86/90x/93x (205#) 1kg lifetime clean PR
Total: 156kg
BW: 59.8kg/131.6#
🥇 Masters 40-44, 63kg
🥈Open 63kg

@summit.barbell @crossfitfactorial @illinois_weightlifting @the.wellness.revolution @pltfrm_nutrition taken in Evanston Township High School (ETHS) by @coffeenkg

90

6

6 months ago

The USAW Masters National Championships 2026 was my best lifting day to date and the most fun I’ve ever had at a meet. I got to lift with old meet circuit friends from around the country, make new ones, and experience my first ever late night session. This one was close, exciting, and confirms that meet juice can fuel amazing things.

6/6
Snatch: 64/67/69 (152#) - 1kg lifetime PR 🥈
Clean & Jerk: 86/89/92 (202#) - 1kg competition PR 🥈
161kg total - 2kg lifetime PR 🥈
Body weight 60.75kg/133.65#

I’m proud of all of my @summit.barbell teammates who showed up & kicked ass this weekend, grateful for my excellent coaching staff in @jimmcginnes & @gschamberlin, and lucky to have a partner in @melvinstanislaus who flew to Utah for less than 24 hours to support me. I love this sport and the weightlifting community beyond measure, and I can’t wait to get back onto the platform later this month for the Illinois State Championships.

@summit.barbell @crossfitfactorial @illinois_weightlifting @pltfrm_nutrition @the.wellness.revolution @repsandrecover_
@lifetime.evanston taken in Salt Palace Convention Center by @coffeenkg

107

15

6 months ago

Masters Nationals 2025 was the most special meet in my competition career so far. Fierce competition this year shifted my focus away from medal standings toward achieving performance goals I’ve had since I started CrossFit close to 12 years ago. Not that long ago I didn’t believe I would ever clean 200#, let alone jerk it. Over the last year I put forth tremendous effort and consistency toward eating for performance, training, recovery, and resisting the temptation to overtrain. It was difficult and often uncomfortable, but I knew it was necessary for improvement. Over time, my incremental progress completely morphed that disbelief and self-doubt into an unwavering belief in myself and my ability to achieve that goal. During this meet prep I told myself every day I could do it. I told myself I would do it on Saturday. I did, and I’m damn proud of myself.

6/6
Snatch: 63/66/68 (150#) - Lifetime PR 🥉
Clean & Jerk: 85/88/91 (200#) Lifetime PR 🥉
Total: 159kg - 5 kilo Lifetime PR total 🥉
Competition body weight: 61.05kg/134.31#

I’m beyond grateful for the support and guidance of my coach and team at Summit Barbell & Performance. It’s easier to do hard things when your coaches and teammates are experts in their fields, care about you, are invested in your success, and believe you can achieve your goals. Thank you @jimmcginnes and @gschamberlin for working so hard this weekend behind the curtain and for making us all look good. We are all just getting started.

@summit.barbell
@crossfitfactorial
@pltfrm_nutrition
@illinois_weightlifting taken in Expo Idaho by @coffeenkg

112

24

2 years ago

Back lifting with @summit.barbell for MidAms prep. I haven’t had these numbers on the bar since the state meet in April, so today was fun. Five weeks to go!

#illinoisweightlifting
#crossfitfactorial by @coffeenkg

21

0

2 months ago

My fish bowl/algorithm, whatever you want to call it is filled with strong, muscular, & fit women. I know those aren’t the images most women see on social media. The broader cultural zeitgeist is producing more images of celebrities & influencers role modeling extremely thin physiques, restrictive diets, & unhealthy use of weight loss medications.

These pictures were taken the night before Masters National Championships in April 2022. From 2019-2023 I cut substantial weight to compete in the 59kg class (129.8#). I was adamant about competing in this class because I didn’t think my lifts were competitive enough to win medals in the 64kg class, but I also was hyper-focused on keeping a super lean physique for fear that putting on weight would hurt my CrossFit performance & make me feel badly about how I looked. The reality was that I was self-sabotaging my weightlifting progress in every way. I couldn’t put on muscle eating in a deficit so my lifts plateaued for years, my recovery was garbage, & my body fat percentage was so low that I had constant aches & pains. It wasn’t until I became so fed up with my stalled progress that I finally was willing to step out of my comfort zone by putting on mass & going up a weight class. Working with @pltfrm_nutrition to strategically achieve that goal was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. Over the last three years not only have I added double digit kilos to my total (medaled nationally at a higher weight class) & PRed all my auxiliary lifts, but I’ve become so much more comfortable with food & my body, particularly breaking restriction/binge cycles. My CrossFit performance didn’t suffer, and I actually became a better athlete due to added strength, consuming more calories to fuel workouts, & better recovery. Back in 2022 I thought I looked good in these pictures, but now I see someone who was so scared of gaining weight that she derailed her hard work. The process hasn’t been easy & I still struggle at times, but I’m so much happier now. I genuinely strive to get bigger & stronger for weightlifting & a quality health span. My own experience/acquired knowledge makes me want the same for every woman I know. by @coffeenkg

54

4

2 months ago

I planned to take a nice easy walk on the treadmill after lifting but when @crossfitgames athlete @erica.folo asked me to do a partner workout, I couldn’t say no. I have now already met my cardio quota for the week 😉

100-80-60-40-20
Double unders (each)
Assault bike cals (split)
Sit-ups (split)
Ski erg cals (she did most of the work here)

Second to last picture is how I felt mid-workout, last picture was how I felt to be done (all smiles).

@rally_point_endeavors @crossfitfactorial taken in Rally Point Endeavors by @coffeenkg

51

2

2 months ago

Closing out summer vacation in the most special place with my favorite person ❤️🐚🦀🏝️☀️ taken in Sanibel Island, Florida by @coffeenkg

61

0

3 months ago

Dominican Republic 2026 🇩🇴
☀️ 🏝️ 🍹 🏐 🎶❤️

Hasta el pròximo verano Punta Cana

*Note to self: don’t get robbed next year. RIP jewelry in this reel. taken in Secrets Royal Beach, Punta Cana by @coffeenkg

76

0

4 months ago

The last time I ran this race was in 2011, 15 years ago when I was 25. Before the days of social media and my involvement in strength sports I was a runner & triathlete (scary I know). I definitely did not run as fast today as I did then, but I also didn’t even know what a snatch or clean & jerk was in 2011. After the state meet I always experience the end of competition season blues, so I decided to set a totally different goal for myself and jump right in. For the last 5 weeks, I followed a 3 day/week running program to guide my training with the goal of running this 10K in under 60 minutes. I did it, and it was so much more fun because my family, friends, and Melvin did it with me. Goal accomplished and what a fun way to kick off summer break! taken in Lincoln Park Zoo by @coffeenkg

39

1

5 months ago

Sara Rubin is back on the platform this Sunday at the 2026 Illinois State Championships in Evanston.

Just two weeks removed from USAW Masters Nationals, where she delivered the best meet of her career and earned silver medals across the board.

Now she’s stepping back out again with momentum, confidence, and the kind of competitive fire that keeps raising the standard.

13 years in the game.
8 years dedicated to Olympic weightlifting.
Always ready to test herself.

Let’s go, Sara. Summit is behind you. ⚡️🏔️

#usaweightlifting
#weightlifting
#mastersweightlifting
#illinoisweightlifting
#olympicweightlifting taken in Evanston Township High School (ETHS) by @coffeenkg

54

3

6 months ago

Sara Rubin takes the stage Friday night at USAW Masters Nationals.

A full year of progress, consistency, and attention to detail has led to this moment.

Now it’s time to trust the work and compete.

🗓 Friday 4/10
⏰ 8:00PM MT / 9:00PM CT
📍 Platform: RED

Let’s go, Sara.

#illinoisweightlifting #usawmasters #weightlifting #mastersathlete #olympicweightlifting taken in Salt Palace Convention Center by @coffeenkg

63

5

6 months ago

Heavy singlet Saturday. We are now 2 weeks out!!
Happy with 97% in both lifts for a life time best 155kg training total.
First ever belt-less 94%/100kg front squat before topping out at 98%/104kg for a heavy single for the day. One more heavy week before some taper 😮‍💨
@summit.barbell @crossfitfactorial @pltfrm_nutrition @illinois_weightlifting by @coffeenkg

21

1

7 months ago