When 15.3 was announced, my heart sank.

After 6 years of CrossFit, I’ve finally made it to a place where I’m not scared of 30 double unders. 100 still gasses me like no other. Let alone more than one set of 100...

"CrossFit is torture." We’ve all heard that before.

And I couldn’t agree more with that statement. 

My understanding of why torture works is that it makes a person so uncomfortable—puts them in so much physical pain—that they snap mentally and end up doing things like revealing information they would never otherwise never reveal. When this happens, the torturer wins.

It’s no secret that from the moment Nate Beveridge and Robbie Perovich opened Hybrid Athletics, one of their missions was to produce world-class CrossFit athletes—something they’ve managed to do year-after-year.

Brett Marshall of CrossFit Calgary has found a way to run a competitor's program that's helping both his business and his athletes, all the while keeping his community cohesively intact.

Gill admits that her life today is much different than she ever would have guessed it would have been five years ago. Five years ago she was hell bent on holding a traditional media job—a full-time position with a TV or radio station. But today, she wouldn’t trade her life for the world.

Between her CTV appearances, her gigs with companies like Reebok and Can Fit Pro, her writing endeavours, her personal training expertise, and the launching of her new company, Gill has managed to think outside the box and piece together her perfect lifestyle.

“Be more like Emily Abbott.” 

My boyfriend said that line to me more than once over the course of the week in Carson. At the time, I wanted to swat him across the face (I may have once) because I felt so insecure that week as it was; I didn’t need him telling me to be more like someone else. 

But at the same time, I knew his words were meant to help me. And I couldn’t have agreed with him more. 

I wanted to be more like Emily Abbott that week—not because she won an event at the Games, but because of how she won it: Fearlessly.

I’m proud beyond belief to be able to call myself a CrossFit Games athlete, and more motivated than ever to continue to improve.

But I’m not a courageous athlete.

It’s not that I didn’t have to overcome my fears, but the truth is competing is second nature to me. It would actually be more difficult for me to stop competing than it is to continue doing something I’ve done my entire life.

It would take far more courage for me to stand up and sing and dance in front of a crowd, which—trust me—nobody wants to see, than it was to qualify to the CrossFit Games. And the chances of me singing, even happy birthday, as a solo are less than tiny.

That being said, I did witness courage this summer. In a big way. In two of my longest standing clients: Jennine Stockall and Mike Fransblow.

The Friday of the Games, I could definitely feel my quads more than I would have liked - after the gnarly KB thrusters on loose sand on the beach - but Saturday felt more fresh than Friday, and Sunday I felt even more recovered than the day before. I truly felt like I actually could have done another 5 workouts - not that I wanted to!

My hands are ready, and RIPT will be with me in my carry-on. I just wish I felt ready for 300 double unders and a 3-mile run.

The dreaded ring rash. A bane to athletes from CrossFitters to Gymnasts. If you have ever done a muscle-up or ring dip for even low reps, you have probably met with ring rash at some point. 

Ring rash, otherwise known as a friction burn can be a painful experience and if left untreated can even leave a pretty nasty scar across both forearms.