Shownotes
This week, Sara and Kelly dig into the CrossFit Games — crowning "the fittest woman on Earth" this weekend, Aug. 1-3 — and the challenges CrossFit has been dealing with.
Plus, CrossFit Games podium finisher and entrepreneur, Arielle Loewen, joins The Feist to give us the inside scoop on:
- Her path to becoming a top CrossFit competitor
- A detailed look at her training and mindset
- The state of CrossFit after a tragic death at last year's Games
- Why she is favored for 2nd place (behind 7x winner, Tia-Clair Toomey)
But, as always, Sara and Kelly first share their favorite women's sports highlights and picks from the week, including a breakdown of the thrilling Euro Final between Spain and England, the chaotic stages and intense sprints at the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift, a U.S. Track & Field National Championships preview, and a look ahead to the much-anticipated showdown between Katie Ledecky and Summer McIntosh in the 800m free.
Highlights:
- 00:30 Kelly's WNBA Game Experience and Fan Reactions
- 03:45 Euros Soccer Recap
- 07:44 Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift Highlights
- 12:19 Ledecky and McIntosh go head to head
- 15:07 U.S. National Track and Field Championships
- 18:20 CrossFit Games Preview with Arielle Loewen
- 31:18 Balancing Career and Family
- 31:58 CrossFit Games 2023 v. 2024
- 37:24 Games Competitors and Predictions
- 38:15 CrossFit's Safety and Reputation Issues
- 42:42 The Evolution of CrossFit and Functional Fitness
- 50:39 Arielle's Training Regimen
- 54:25 Arielle's Entrepreneurial Ventures: Pretty Strong for a Mom
- 58:16 Body Image and Social Media
- 1:00:53 Closing Thoughts and Picks of the Week, including a 12-year-old swimmer at the world championships
Subscribe to The Feist, our Free Weekly Newsletter covering Women's Sports: https://feisty.co/feistnews/
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Transcripts
Foreign.
Speaker B:Feisty fans.
Speaker B:It is your favorite podcast, we determined talking about your favorite sports.
Speaker B:I'm Kelly, this is Sarah.
Speaker B:This week we are talking to third place.
Speaker B:Is that right?
Speaker B:For the CrossFit Games, Ariel Lowen, to talk all about CrossFit Games.
Speaker A:Yes, we have a very CrossFit Games heavy episode.
Speaker A:And I, you know, I'm going to lean into that, Kelly.
Speaker B:Well, we, yes, we will talk about other sports, too, first, but I was still letting people know to stay tuned or skip ahead if that's all they want to hear, is about CrossFit.
Speaker A:Yeah, sure.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker A:So, Kelly, what sports did you watch?
Speaker B:Right, so first, though, I went to a Valkyries WWE game on Friday with my mom.
Speaker B:I was telling you my mom is hilarious.
Speaker B:Because she does.
Speaker B:She does.
Speaker B:She's like, I'm not.
Speaker B:I'm not really following.
Speaker B:And then she's like, you know, the trade deadline's coming up soon, and they need to get an outside hitter if they want to make a playoff run.
Speaker A:It like, okay, okay.
Speaker A:I think.
Speaker A:I don't know.
Speaker A:I would never underestimate your mom's knowledge of anything.
Speaker B:Honestly, I.
Speaker B:But the one thing I reason I wanted to tell you about this game, though, was because it was another, like, sold out at Chase center in San Francisco.
Speaker B:And every time when they were doing the fan cam around the stadium, every time they got to somebody that was holding a pay the player sign, which was pretty frequently, the whole stadium would start screaming and cheering, which made me think that they're gonna.
Speaker B:The players are gonna win this labor battle.
Speaker B:Because whenever it comes down to, like, strikes, like, because, okay, so I used to be a local news reporter, covered a lot of strikes and, like, labor negotiations and stuff.
Speaker B:And it always comes down to, like, public opinion, right?
Speaker B:And, like, are they with you or are they against you?
Speaker B:And a lot of people would tell you that, oh, you know, we get all these bots saying the WNBA doesn't make money, or like, oh, they should.
Speaker B:I don't know what.
Speaker B:I was getting much notifications because I said something and people were like, oh, they should pay their debts first.
Speaker B:And you're like, one, they don't have debt.
Speaker B:Two, that's not how that works.
Speaker B:Whatever, Anyway.
Speaker B:But so people would probably argue that, oh, the Jet.
Speaker B:Like, there's all these people out here who think they don't deserve it, but those people don't matter because they're not the fans.
Speaker B:The fans are, like, very much there.
Speaker B:That was what I took away is I was like, the fans are with the players.
Speaker A:I'm with You.
Speaker A:Okay, I have two questions.
Speaker A:Were people wearing the pay them what you owe them or pay us what you owe us shirts?
Speaker B:No, because people at the Valkyries games go deep on the, like, Valkyries merch.
Speaker B:Like, they like their purple and their right daggers.
Speaker B:Daggers is a big thing.
Speaker B:Ballhalla is what we call it the stadium.
Speaker A:Ballhalla.
Speaker A:Love it.
Speaker B:Like, Valhalla.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker A:And then did the cam come around to anybody who then, like, reacted and ducked down and turned around?
Speaker B:No.
Speaker B:That would have been great, though, right?
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker A:I just saw that in a lot of, like.
Speaker A:Like referencing the obviously now infamous Coldplay concert where, anyway, we don't just talk about it.
Speaker A:Everybody knows what happened, but, like, a little.
Speaker A:Lot of different sports events where people were, like, ducking and turning around.
Speaker A:So that didn't hit the wnba.
Speaker B:No, it didn't hit the wnba.
Speaker B:Or at least it hit the stadium.
Speaker B:They do do the segment where they always show you, like, the celebrities that are in the stadium.
Speaker B:And Aisha Curry was there, which is Steph's Curry's wife, and they introduced her as a chef, author, and entrepreneur.
Speaker B:And my mom, who's new to the Bay Area, was like.
Speaker B:They didn't mention she's Steph Curry.
Speaker B:Swipe.
Speaker B:And I was like, mom, she's a chef, author, and entrepreneur.
Speaker B:Okay.
Speaker A:I mean, good for them for realizing not to, like.
Speaker A:Not to introduce someone in relation to their partner.
Speaker B:You know, the Curries are like, the power couple of the Bay Area.
Speaker B:Like, whatever they.
Speaker B:What they say is gospel.
Speaker B:So.
Speaker B:So she had worn a pay the players shirt.
Speaker B:It'd be over.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:Well, next time.
Speaker A:Next time now.
Speaker A:I mean, I. I'm so glad to hear that, actually.
Speaker A:That, like, people had all those signs and everything.
Speaker A:Oh, I need to get a shirt.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker A:I'm going to a WNBA game in August in Vancouver.
Speaker A:So I. I better.
Speaker A:I better order my shirt.
Speaker A:Kelly, you better.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:And then I feel like I watched so much Forzas Veen, though, because then I went to that game on Friday.
Speaker B:I was watching a bunch of Twitter friends, fans, which we'll talk about in a second.
Speaker B:And then I watched Euros Sunday morning.
Speaker A:Yes, it was Sunday morning for us.
Speaker A:And.
Speaker A:Sorry, you told me that you watched part of it.
Speaker B:Well, so I turned it on.
Speaker B:I saw Spain score, and then I had to, like, go, okay.
Speaker A:You literally missed, like, the entire best part of the soccer game.
Speaker A:Right?
Speaker A:So, like, nothing.
Speaker A:Really.
Speaker A:Nothing happened.
Speaker A:And then Spain scored, and it was kind of like the game was.
Speaker B:It was a nice.
Speaker B:It was a nice.
Speaker A:It was a nice header into the yeah, it was a nice goal for sure.
Speaker A:And then it like the game was kind of slow, right.
Speaker A:And like, so I didn't think it was slow until what happened after.
Speaker A:So then when England scored, also with a header, right.
Speaker A:Also a nice goal, then like the speed of play just went like it just like it was more, I don't want to say frantic.
Speaker A:That's too extreme.
Speaker A:But like everybody was just moving more quickly and people were like.
Speaker A:And they were like trying harder.
Speaker A:Is that.
Speaker B:I think that's fair.
Speaker B:Like, there was a lot of analysis that Spain might have kind of been like a little too.
Speaker B:We have this in the bag too early.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:And I can see, I can honestly see why.
Speaker A:Like, so one of like they had control of the ball for a great, much greater percentage of the game.
Speaker A:Like, it was clear that they were playing really well.
Speaker A:And so that's where like the England's goaltender, Hannah Hampton, like, honestly, I feel like it in part, not totally because England did also play well.
Speaker A:So I need to give them credit where credit's due.
Speaker A:But like England's goalkeeper really kept out a lot of good shots.
Speaker A:You know, like, she really was after it.
Speaker A:So I think they owe her.
Speaker A:And because it went to a shootout, like a penalty shootout, obviously you, you're a lot of pressure there on your goaltender.
Speaker A:And it was like very low scoring shootout.
Speaker A:Like England scored three.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:And then Spain scored two.
Speaker A:And that was it.
Speaker A:Like, so.
Speaker B:It was a really big deal.
Speaker B:I didn't even know how it had ended because I had left and then I was getting texts from like my.
Speaker A:British friends who were.
Speaker B:This was what somebody texted me.
Speaker B:C Isn't Euros better than the Olympics?
Speaker B:Because the US Won the Olympics.
Speaker B:Right.
Speaker B:So.
Speaker A:Know it was pretty okay.
Speaker A:One thing that, that I like loved was watching the.
Speaker A:Especially during the penalty shootout.
Speaker A:But also before that they kept.
Speaker A:Whenever something would happen, like a play that like you weren't sure if there was a penalty or like, you know, somebody or somebody scored or like they scored, scored during the penalty shootout, they would immediately go to like the coach's faces reactions and like both the England coach and the Spanish coach, like, or the coach of the Spain team, like brought their game in terms of like their faces.
Speaker A:I kept just thinking, go to the coaches, let me see the reaction.
Speaker A:So that was fun.
Speaker A:And honestly, I love watching soccer because like my like put me in coach reaction to watching all the women's sports is like amped up when I watch soccer.
Speaker B:So.
Speaker A:Yeah, loved it.
Speaker A:Sad it's over.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:They did have huge numbers too.
Speaker B:Record Numbers of attendance at Euros, there's like 650,000, something like that.
Speaker B:And then TV viewership's a little weirder because obviously it's regional.
Speaker B:So like in the US it got like 1.8 or 1.2, something like that.
Speaker B:But it's like the US.
Speaker B:The US didn't care because as much because it wasn't us playing.
Speaker B:So that's still.
Speaker B:That is still massive for a non US soccer game.
Speaker B:And then in the UK, it peaked at 16 million.
Speaker A:Wow.
Speaker B:Which is huge.
Speaker B:So that's like.
Speaker B:Obviously everyone in England wanted the lionesses, which is.
Speaker B:I just think it's such a funny name.
Speaker B:The lionesses.
Speaker A:Yes.
Speaker B:So it was exciting, though.
Speaker B:And now I have to tell you, there are also the Copa America is going on right now for South America.
Speaker B:And then the Africa cup also just ended.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker B:And Nigeria won that one.
Speaker B:So everyone's kind of having their, like.
Speaker B:Because it's all different, like World cup qualifiers and that kind of thing.
Speaker A:So.
Speaker A:Cool.
Speaker A:And you also watch the Tour de France Femme, right?
Speaker B:So that is if you haven't.
Speaker B:If you're like, tour de France Femme.
Speaker A:What?
Speaker B:Go back and listen to last week's episode.
Speaker A:Yes, definitely.
Speaker B:And we explain, obviously, Tour de France Femme is the biggest week in cycling for women.
Speaker B:I was gonna say for everybody.
Speaker B:Um, for everybody.
Speaker B:For everybody.
Speaker B:Yeah, for everybody.
Speaker B:Uh, it's nine stages.
Speaker A:We.
Speaker B:Whenever.
Speaker B:When this comes out, it'll be Thursday, and that's when the climbing really starts.
Speaker B:So the climbing stages really get going, like Friday and Saturday and Thursday.
Speaker B:Up till now, it's been kind of these, like roller stages and flash stages and it's been chaos.
Speaker A:Oh, yeah.
Speaker A:I mean, everything I've learned about the Tour de France Femme this year so far is.
Speaker A:I do hope to watch some stages in the next few days, but it has been on Instagram, so apparently there were some crashes.
Speaker B:There was a lot of.
Speaker B:I mean, there were crashes.
Speaker B:But it's also that, like, two of the favorites, Marlon Rousseau and Elisa Longo Borghini, are out for illness.
Speaker B:Like, they got food poisoning or one of them got food poisoning, one of them sick.
Speaker B:And then we had Marian Voss win the first stage and she's just like, she.
Speaker B:Here's.
Speaker B:You know how a lot of people have said, like, oh, as the level of women's sports increases, like the old players couldn't hack anymore, or like, they had to.
Speaker B:She is defying that.
Speaker B:She's like, I will just continue to win.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:And then we had a 41 year old win stage two, which I know is not Old, but it's like old in stock cycling.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:And.
Speaker B:And then Kim Lacourt took the yellow jersey.
Speaker B:Who's from Mauritius first Mauritius writer.
Speaker B:And.
Speaker B:But then.
Speaker B:Yes, then there's a bunch of crashes and Demi Vollering, who is the race favorite, crashed hard.
Speaker B:This will be yesterday, as when we're recording this and.
Speaker B:And it's.
Speaker B:I don't know.
Speaker B:So I was trying.
Speaker B:She has a very French man, team manager, and he came out and he gave this speech about, like, how there is no respect in the peloton anymore, which was like a very French.
Speaker B:I was trying to decipher what he meant by there is no respect in the peloton anymore.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker B:And I think what he means is that as the race has gotten bigger and there's more and more writers who are come.
Speaker B:Like, writers are getting better and better.
Speaker B:There are more and more people now who think they can win.
Speaker B:And so there isn't just a.
Speaker B:Like, ah.
Speaker B:She is obviously the best.
Speaker B:Like.
Speaker B:So there's more and more fighting for position now and less and less deference.
Speaker B:And obviously I think there's some development still happening and all of that.
Speaker B:I think that was what he was saying is, like, why there's been a bunch of crashes.
Speaker B:Because there's more.
Speaker A:There's just more jostling, there's more Jo.
Speaker B:People are being chippy.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:I think that's good for the sport overall.
Speaker A:But.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker A:So is Demi Vollering okay?
Speaker B:Well, she.
Speaker B:She got.
Speaker B:She had to get concussion protocol.
Speaker A:Oof.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker B:Yes, she went down hard.
Speaker B:And so there's a rule in cycling.
Speaker B:If you crash in the last 5K, you get the time of the group you were with, which is supposed to help with.
Speaker B:You have a lot of crashes at the end as people are sprinting.
Speaker B:So she was within 5k, so she got the time.
Speaker B:And because she was going to get the time, you would have hoped that she would have then just stopped and gotten medical attention before finishing.
Speaker B:But instead she got up, her teammates were pushing her back all the way to the finish.
Speaker B:She was like.
Speaker B:She was like, my head hurt.
Speaker B:She rode to the hotel and she didn't get apparently like checked for a concussion until she got all the way to the hotel, which is not awesome.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:That's not awesome.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:Huh.
Speaker A:Well, I. I seriously hope she's okay.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:So she started today and I, I mean, I guess we'll see by the time this comes out if she's still doing there.
Speaker B:You gotta feel like she is the happy favorite.
Speaker B:She is all in on winning.
Speaker B:This race this year, and then things happen.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:So, but I will say, everybody, if you haven't watched yet, watch starting when you hear this right now, go and turn on Peacock or NBC in the U.S. flow sports in Canada.
Speaker B:Um, because now it is, like, Thursday, Friday are massive climbing, and you have all of, like, you have the last year's winner, you have Demi, you have Pauline, who's, like, the Olympic mountain bike champ, are all still, like, right up there within, like, 20 seconds of each other.
Speaker A:Oh, wow.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker A:That could be some exciting climbing days.
Speaker A:And do they finish on the top of a mountain or do they finish on descents?
Speaker A:Or.
Speaker B:Saturday, there's one, I think Friday stage is a climb and then a descent, which, like, you got to pray that we don't see big crashes.
Speaker B:And then Saturday is they finish on, like, a massive, massive climb.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:So great.
Speaker A:That circle that it's happening.
Speaker A:The biggest event in women's cycling.
Speaker B:You know the other thing I'm circling this weekend in terms of what you should watch?
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:Katie Ledecky versus.
Speaker A:Sorry, could I just.
Speaker A:Good transition, Kelly.
Speaker B:Thank you.
Speaker A:Circling.
Speaker B:Circle it.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker A:Katie Ledecky.
Speaker A:Yep.
Speaker B:And Summer McIntosh.
Speaker B:They are head to head in the 800 meter free on Sunday.
Speaker B:And it's, like, super early.
Speaker B:It's like 5am Pacific time, which is where we both live.
Speaker B:So you're, have to, like, press record.
Speaker B:But I can't quite decide who I'm rooting for.
Speaker B:Sarah.
Speaker B:Okay, so it's the swimming World Championships.
Speaker A:Really?
Speaker A:You mean you're not just automatically rooting for Katie Ledecky?
Speaker B:I. I think she's also been kind of sick.
Speaker B:Okay, well, of course, obviously, yes.
Speaker B:I'm rooting for the American.
Speaker B:I'm just saying.
Speaker B:All right, so here's the thing.
Speaker B:Swimming World Championships are going on right now.
Speaker B:Summer Macintosh is going for, like, a record five individual gold.
Speaker B:She would be the only other besides Michael Phelps to do that.
Speaker B:She's won her first two events.
Speaker A:Yes, she's been crushing it.
Speaker B:She's been crushing it.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:She beat kayla deci to 400.
Speaker A:That's not.
Speaker B:But that.
Speaker B:But in order to achieve her five, she has to beat Kayla Deci in the 800.
Speaker B:And the 800 is for Kayla Decky owns, like, 19 of the 20 top times in the.
Speaker B:Right.
Speaker B:And so Katie Ledecky is also going for a record seventh straight world title in this event.
Speaker B:So that's also, like, a big deal.
Speaker B:So you're like, well, so it's gonna be crazy.
Speaker B:Everyone agrees it's, like, the biggest race of the world.
Speaker B:Championships.
Speaker B:It's a huge deal.
Speaker B:The US team has also had some kind of stomach bug gastroentis.
Speaker A:Yes.
Speaker A:Yikes.
Speaker A:So, okay, so you gotta.
Speaker A:Yeah, we don't want that.
Speaker A:We want, like, when they're going when.
Speaker A:When Katie and Summer are going head to head, we want them to be.
Speaker A:To both be well.
Speaker B:Right.
Speaker A:You know what I mean?
Speaker A:Like, we don't want there to be an asterisk if Summer wins.
Speaker A:Like, so.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:We hope Katie Ledecky can get her stomach to good.
Speaker A:Back to good.
Speaker B:I always wondered how.
Speaker B:I mean, obviously, when we were in Paris last year, there were, like, stomach.
Speaker A:Bugs sweeping, sweeping through, swept us, swept me.
Speaker B:But it's kind of amazing that athletes, like, who all.
Speaker B:When they all stay together in hotels and dorms and stuff, that they don't get more sick.
Speaker A:They don't get sick more often.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:Maybe they're just really.
Speaker B:I mean, athletes are very paranoid about germs.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:I think some people might take extra precautions.
Speaker B:I would think so.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:I know.
Speaker A:I mean, I definitely know people who, like in.
Speaker A:In my own pro athlete world, who would, like, stay away from anyone.
Speaker A:Oh.
Speaker A:And during the Ironman World Championship weeks or would, like, not normally, say, travel with a mask on, but would travel with a mask if they were going to a race.
Speaker A:Like, little things like that, you know?
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:I mean, I don't regret them that at all.
Speaker B:Like, you don't want your entire.
Speaker B:Everything you've been working for to be.
Speaker A:Yeah, yeah.
Speaker A:Jeopardized.
Speaker B:So that is this weekend.
Speaker B:And I will tell you the other super US thing that I'm sure I will end up watching a ton is the U.S. national track and Field Championships this weekend.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker A:What's on the line there?
Speaker B:Everything.
Speaker B:Everything's on the.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker A:Could you, like, elaborate?
Speaker A:Well, yeah.
Speaker B:Well, okay, I will say so.
Speaker B:Olympic, US track, Olympic Trials is like the best meet, best race in the world.
Speaker B:It's, like, more exciting in some ways than the Olympics because US's system is so brutal.
Speaker B:Like, it's so top three, go.
Speaker B:No if.
Speaker B:And it's doesn't matter if you're like, best in the world, you fall down, you're done.
Speaker B:Right.
Speaker B:So it's like, it's the highest stakes thing.
Speaker B:Like the highest stakes meet that we have, like, out there.
Speaker B:Now, obviously, this is not the Olympic trials.
Speaker B:This is just to qualify for the World Championship, so it's like, less of a big deal.
Speaker B:But the World Championships are in, like, September, so that's still a big deal.
Speaker B:And it still is, like, top three, period.
Speaker B:And us is very, very deep.
Speaker B:Right.
Speaker B:There are like 28 athletes in the hundred who are currently qualified with the world standard.
Speaker A:Wow.
Speaker B:So that's where it gets just like insanely deep.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:And the US Goes deep in multiple track and field events.
Speaker A:Right?
Speaker A:I think that's part of it too.
Speaker B:So.
Speaker B:Yeah, so that's why it's just.
Speaker B:And I love, I mean, I remember watching the Olympic trials, the US Track limit trials at like a random bar in like a tiny town in eastern Oregon.
Speaker B:And like, you know, just on NBC, just regular tv, and no one in that bar had any idea who any of these people were.
Speaker B:And they got super, super into it because it's very, very easy to understand and get into.
Speaker A:Right?
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:And that's what I think is like why it like tracked one of my favorites because it's just like very straightforward.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:It's.
Speaker A:Yeah, it's easy to see like you jumped the highest or furthest through the thing.
Speaker A:The.
Speaker A:For the furthest you ran the fastest.
Speaker A:Yeah, there's something very pure about that.
Speaker B:So.
Speaker B:And I mean obviously there are some big names everybody cares about.
Speaker B:Like I was trying, I was trying to have Shikari Richardson.
Speaker B:I was like, it's like, yes, the.
Speaker B:I was like the biggest sprinter that everyone cares about.
Speaker B:Shikari is, is obviously racing, um, Sydney.
Speaker B:Sydney McLaughlin is doing the 400, not the hurdles.
Speaker B:And then here's the crazy.
Speaker B:So Shelby Houlihan who got the four year doping ban and said it was because of a Tate burrito.
Speaker A:She had the burrito woman.
Speaker A:Okay, Burrito woman is back and trying.
Speaker B:To make her her first world team since her burrito.
Speaker A:Since that, since that faded burrito.
Speaker A:It's.
Speaker A:I love that.
Speaker A:I think Shikari Richardson, like, I still like when you, When I hear her name, my heart still breaks a little bit because that's what I missed when we got sick.
Speaker A:Not you, but the rest of us got sick in Paris.
Speaker A:And that was like the day I had specifically purchased track tickets for that day to see her.
Speaker A:Do you remember?
Speaker A:And then for the 100 meter, the women's 100 meter final.
Speaker A:And I didn't get to go because I was at home with norovirus instead.
Speaker A:So maybe I will take in some of this track and field national championships too.
Speaker B:And I mean she, you know, I feel bad for her, right?
Speaker B:Like she's had some, some tough breaks.
Speaker A:So anyway, very exciting.
Speaker B:I'm sure I will watch a lot.
Speaker A:Of that also this weekend.
Speaker A:Of course we have the CrossFit games, which exciting for me because I actually do CrossFit.
Speaker A:And love it quite a lot.
Speaker A:Unlike house people right now.
Speaker B:How much you actually.
Speaker B:Oh, wait.
Speaker B:So one of the things I think that's weird about CrossFit and I'll be.
Speaker B:I guess it's very similar, like triathlon or running is you can do it recreationally and not care at all about the pro side.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:And then there's people who really, really follow.
Speaker B:How much do you follow the pro side of CrossFit?
Speaker A:Oh, not very much, but, like, I do.
Speaker B:It's like my mom doesn't follow it.
Speaker A:Um, possibly to an outsider.
Speaker A:Possibly.
Speaker A:Like, I definitely have an understanding, like, of, like, how the competition works, who some of the favorites are.
Speaker A:I know some things about them.
Speaker A:I've been to multiple.
Speaker A:Okay, this is gonna make me sound like a super fan, but I've been to the games twice just to watch.
Speaker B:We went once.
Speaker A:We went once.
Speaker A:No, that.
Speaker A:I'm counting the time with you.
Speaker A:So one time I watched the whole thing, and then there was a time I dragged you there when we were in Milwaukee.
Speaker A:We went over to Madison.
Speaker B:Sarah's like, I'm not that into it.
Speaker B:And then she's like, it's only an hour and a half drive.
Speaker B:Kelly and I convinced them to give us media passes.
Speaker A:Yeah, we got our media passes and we got to see, like, the final two or three events.
Speaker A:I. I feel like that was really worth it on that.
Speaker A: the last day on the Sunday in: Speaker A:And so, yeah, okay, yes, I am a bit of a super fan, but I have lots of friends who I do crossfit with who know who are, like, super in the weeds.
Speaker A:Sure.
Speaker A:Who?
Speaker A:I literally.
Speaker A:They'll say something to me and I'll just be like, who is that?
Speaker A:Or like, when I was at World Fitness Project this year, which is kind of a pro.
Speaker A:It's a competition.
Speaker B:It's like, it's like.
Speaker B:I would say it's trying to be a competitor.
Speaker B:CrossFit.
Speaker A:Yes, it is.
Speaker A:On the pro side.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:But they don't have this.
Speaker A:All of the other business development parts that CrossFit has, but they like.
Speaker A:So then these, like, famous CrossFit interview, like, you know, like YouTube famous people.
Speaker B:Right.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker A:Influencers.
Speaker A:That's the word, like, for content creators, came up to us and interviewed and they were like, asking, like, who do you think is going to win on the women's side?
Speaker A:And, like, I'm just there with a blank face, like, I don't know.
Speaker A:So I neither know who the guy is who's interviewing us, nor enough of the players to, like, really be in the weeds on like whose strengths are going to come through on these particular events.
Speaker A:Does that make sense?
Speaker B:Interesting.
Speaker B:Okay, so that's, that's where I sing this up.
Speaker A:Well, that's where I sit.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:Now, if you were going to explain to people who are not into CrossFit.
Speaker A:Yes.
Speaker B:What CrossFit is.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker A:Oh, gosh.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker A:You should have prepped me for this.
Speaker A:Okay, so essentially you have to get.
Speaker B:This question all the time.
Speaker A:I do.
Speaker A:And there's like, I was like, yeah, there's like an official definition that's like, oh, I'm gonna look it up, sure.
Speaker B:But when my father in law goes, I, I see those guys running with those sacks up and down the street, what do you tell him?
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:So hold on.
Speaker B:I don't think you should look up the official.
Speaker A:I'm going to look up, look it up.
Speaker A:But I'm also going to talk in the meantime.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker B:I think you should just tell us what you look at your elevator pitch.
Speaker A:They're going to have 10 to 12 events over three days.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:And those events will include some combination of like high end cardio, strength stuff, gymnastics.
Speaker A:And they often have an endurance event too.
Speaker A:So it's really designed to find out who is the fittest man and the fittest woman in the world.
Speaker A:Now you have a whole bunch on Earth.
Speaker A:Is on earth, that is how they phrase it, the fittest woman on Earth.
Speaker A:And so then there's a lot of debate about whether that setup really does find you the fittest woman on earth.
Speaker A:And whether there would be a better way.
Speaker A:And there's not enough endurance stuff is one of the common criticisms.
Speaker A:So there's, you know, that's debatable, but that's essentially like the premise of what.
Speaker B:It'S set up, that is the games.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:And then like if you just go to a CrossFit gym, as I think I'm, I always, I think I'm the only person in existence who like casually crossfits.
Speaker B:Right.
Speaker B:I go like every now and then to a gym and if you go, people are always like, well, what do you actually do when you go to a gym?
Speaker B:And like, generally speaking, you do some kind of like mobility and warmup type thing.
Speaker B:You do some kind of technique working on some lifting skill or other skill that day.
Speaker B:Right.
Speaker B:Like whatever the, whatever the gym has been working on.
Speaker B:And then you do some kind of like 20 ish to 30 ish, 10 minute ish minute workout.
Speaker A:30 is a pretty long day.
Speaker B:Pretty long.
Speaker B:At any given gym, it's usually like 18 or 12?
Speaker A:Yeah, like 10 to 20 range.
Speaker B:And those are usually like as fast as you can go or as many rounds as you can go of a bunch of things like box jumps and deadlifts and over presses and rowing and like, whatever.
Speaker B:I just made that up.
Speaker B:I said overhead presses, but I was like, whatever.
Speaker A:You didn't need all the words.
Speaker A:We knew what you meant.
Speaker A:Yes, and so, like, yes, you're correct.
Speaker A:And there's a huge difference between what someone might do.
Speaker A:Well, not a huge difference.
Speaker A:Sorry.
Speaker A:There is a difference between what someone might do in like a regular CrossFit gym and like what these folks do in the Games, you know, so if.
Speaker B:You ever go to the gym and do like a workout, you almost always are what they call scaling it.
Speaker B:Like doing lighter weights or not being able to do the thing that the pros do because the workout will be recommended based on like what the pros can do.
Speaker B:And then you have to be like, I can't do that.
Speaker B:And there's always versions that are lower, like lighter weight or, or modified.
Speaker B:And once you do it, then you become, then you realize how hard it is to do certain things.
Speaker B:But I feel like you watch people in the CrossFit games and if you've never watched, like my husband watches and he's like, this looks ridiculous.
Speaker B:Like, why are they like, it looks like you're like exercising at speed, right?
Speaker B:Like, why are they jumping up and down on a box as fast as they can?
Speaker B:Um, it also looks really easy.
Speaker B:You're like, oh, I could obviously do that.
Speaker B:And then it's actually not like, yes.
Speaker A:And I mean any elite athlete tends to make their sport look really easy for us average folks.
Speaker A:Um, and like, I think we, the outsider probably associates CrossFit a lot with like the strength piece because of the way the athletes look, because they tend to look very muscular and that kind of thing.
Speaker A:But like, and then underestimates like how much skills required for the gymnastics or how much like high end cardio fitness you need to actually, like you said exercise at speed.
Speaker A:Like, you do need a lot of like your lactate threshold has to be pretty high to move from one thing to the next or you have to be able to recover very quickly from like heavy lift to go do something else, et cetera.
Speaker A:So and you have to have that recovery, recovery piece, like session to session.
Speaker A:Like, because if you're doing three events a day and then three events the next day or four, even like your day to day recovery also matters too within the context of the competition, right?
Speaker B:So yeah, so the competition itself is 3 days, 10 to 12 events.
Speaker B:They don't tell you what all they are because part of the deal is like being adaptable and all of that stuff.
Speaker B:They always start with some kind of crazy endurance event which if you are from an endurance background is always hilarious because they make them like ride bikes or swim or like run up a mountain.
Speaker A:Although Kelly, I have to tell you.
Speaker B:They'Re very good bikers.
Speaker B:For not being bikers.
Speaker A:For not being bikers.
Speaker A:But like even the level of swimming in like, like, like we saw in Madison one year, there was a pool, there was pool swimming and I think ski erg or something in one of the events.
Speaker A:And like over time it used to be almost kind of funny because a lot of the athletes weren't great at swimming and like now it's just like self selected into like the people with swim backgrounds just do better and actually make it to the elite level.
Speaker A:So you do have this.
Speaker A:There's not as much of that like people have these massive weaknesses in the sport.
Speaker A:There's actually like, oh my goodness, that person can like lift a huge barbell over their head and also sprint.
Speaker B:Right.
Speaker A:100 meter freestyle.
Speaker B: ke that because it started in: Speaker B:And so of course, or like, of course it's developed because I do remember early on when they had the games down in SoCal watching one of those very first ones was on ESPN and they were just like walking through the mountain, like the, the mountains up there up above Carson.
Speaker B:And I was just like, what the is this?
Speaker A:Yes.
Speaker A:Like I could reference watching some of Those early day CrossFit things too, just out of intrigue, like actually with no desire to do it at all.
Speaker A:Just like, oh my goodness, how are they doing that handstand push up thing and what is that?
Speaker A:But like, and, and it was like there were certain parts where collectively as a group and more it was better for a strength athlete.
Speaker A:So those endurance pieces were more challenging.
Speaker B:But it's gotten crazy now.
Speaker B:It has, it's super, super tough now in order to even get to the games.
Speaker B:It's super, super tough.
Speaker B:It's only 30 women in the world and you have to qualify.
Speaker B:And so we did talk to, I would say she's like the favorite for second this year.
Speaker B:And she's been on the podium before, Ariel Lohan.
Speaker B:And you talked to her a little bit about how she got into it and previewing the games.
Speaker A:Yeah, and Ariel, just before we go to her.
Speaker A:I, you know, I looked her up on the CrossFit Games website before we talked and.
Speaker A: she was from coming third in: Speaker A:But she had this, like, very gradual, like, I don't know what you call it, route into progression into CrossFit.
Speaker A:Like, you could see all the years where she came a thousandth in her age group, and then she was up to, like, 300th.
Speaker A:I'm just making this up.
Speaker A:But it was just like, this progression into finally being third, which was, like, very interesting because, like, that's not the same for everyone.
Speaker A:Like, there are some people, like, we'll talk about Tia Claire to me later, who like, show up and come second accidentally, you know.
Speaker A:So, anyway, really fun to talk to Ariel.
Speaker A:Let's hear from her.
Speaker A:Hi, Ariel.
Speaker A:So good to have you here on the podcast.
Speaker A:How are you today?
Speaker B:I'm good.
Speaker C:Thank you for having me.
Speaker A:Yeah, I'm so excited to talk to you because as we were just discussing, I do a little bit of CrossFit casually as well.
Speaker A:So I'm going to try not to get too geeked out on CrossFit.
Speaker A:But I am excited to talk to you.
Speaker A:So let's start from the beginning.
Speaker A:How did you.
Speaker A:When did you first do CrossFit?
Speaker A:How did you get into it?
Speaker C: Yeah, I started in: Speaker C:So I've been doing CrossFit.
Speaker C:Was it 20, 25, 13 years.
Speaker C:It's been a huge part of my life.
Speaker C:Oh, wow.
Speaker C: t of high school, I graduated: Speaker C:I was a track athlete.
Speaker C:I did cheerleading.
Speaker C:So I was used to being put through workout routines.
Speaker C:So out of high school, I was like, I don't know what to do.
Speaker C:Everybody's always told me what to do.
Speaker C:Like, how do I stay fit and not gain?
Speaker C:The freshman 15.
Speaker C:So I was working at a cheerleading facility at the time, and my boss named Charles went to CrossFit.
Speaker C:And Charles was just like, ariel, you would love it.
Speaker C:Show up.
Speaker C:Just try one class.
Speaker C:And I did my one class as fresh out of high school, and I just fell in love with it.
Speaker C:But I couldn't afford it because here In Midland, Texas, CrossFit gyms are pretty expensive.
Speaker C:You're looking at $150 or $150 a month, up to 200amonth.
Speaker C:So I was hooked.
Speaker C:But I couldn't afford it.
Speaker C:So I went to the owner at the time, and I was just like, hey, I love this.
Speaker C:What can we do?
Speaker C:Can I clean the gym in exchange for membership?
Speaker C:Can I do this.
Speaker C:And so we worked out a deal that I would clean their sweat towels in exchange for a free membership.
Speaker C:And that's how I got into CrossFit, which is so fun.
Speaker A:Okay, so then when did you start to think that you could be actually good at this?
Speaker A:Like, were there some moments where you started to think, oh, hey, I could maybe.
Speaker A:Maybe I could go to the Games?
Speaker C:Yeah.
Speaker C: So I started in: Speaker C:I'm going to try and go to the Games.
Speaker C:I'm going to learn all these movements because CrossFit has a little bit of running, weightlifting, gymnastics, agility, so there's quite a few movements to learn.
Speaker C:So those five years, I felt like I was great.
Speaker C:And I'm like, I'm going to go to the Games.
Speaker C:This is going to be my year.
Speaker C: So from: Speaker C:Always fell short.
Speaker C: But it wasn't until: Speaker C:So I actually retire from competing.
Speaker C:I'm never making it to the Games.
Speaker C:I'm just going to focus on my family, my daughter, and building a healthy family unit.
Speaker C:And then wouldn't you know, a few years later, I felt stronger and better than ever.
Speaker C:And that's when I officially made it to my very first CrossFit games.
Speaker A:Oh, wow.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker A:That's so, so interesting.
Speaker A:I also had.
Speaker A:I have one daughter.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker A:I had, like, half of my career before she was born and then half after.
Speaker C:Which one was better.
Speaker A:After?
Speaker A:Well, I. I did get better after, but, like, several other things fell into place.
Speaker A:I don't know what it was like for you.
Speaker A:Like, what?
Speaker A:You tell me, like, what do you think it was that kind of made you better after your daughter was born?
Speaker C:Okay.
Speaker C:For me, the first part of my career pre my daughter was all focused on me.
Speaker C:How can I get better?
Speaker C:How am I doing?
Speaker C:And then the after shifted to health of other people besides me.
Speaker C:And I realized once, like, my family was healthy, my daughter was healthy, my marriage was healthy.
Speaker C:Jim was just a fun bonus.
Speaker C:And I feel like, God, really blessed that.
Speaker A:Oh, wow, that's so cool.
Speaker A:Yeah, I think I.
Speaker A:We hear that a lot, like, with moms that, like, having that, like, being so centrally focused on one thing can sometimes detract from the actual performance, you know?
Speaker C:Right.
Speaker A:And then.
Speaker A: Okay, Fast forward to: Speaker A:There you are on the podium, third place.
Speaker A:Amazing.
Speaker A: And then you come back: Speaker A:Could you tell us a little bit about what happened?
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker C: So: Speaker C:I had my most successful CrossFit games.
Speaker C:I got third place.
Speaker C: So going into: Speaker C:We're training hard.
Speaker C:Let's do all the right things.
Speaker C: to: Speaker C:So we do the run and then we do the swim and it's chaos everywhere.
Speaker C:And we've come to find out one of our athletes who we were competing with, Lazar Du K, needed help and actually drowned and nobody saved him after that.
Speaker C:It kind of puts everything into perspective.
Speaker C:I mean, we train really hard, but at the end of the day it doesn't matter.
Speaker C:My family is more important, my health is more important, and mentally I was not okay.
Speaker C: So I had to withdraw from the: Speaker A:Yeah, and you weren't the only one.
Speaker A:Um, and I know there's been kind of a lot of a lot has happened kind of in the CrossFit world since then, but you're.
Speaker A: decision to compete again in: Speaker A:So what kind of is behind that decision as well?
Speaker C:It was a hard decision to make because even January 1, when it rolled around, because our season is.
Speaker C:There's a bunch of qualification processes.
Speaker C:It starts in January and then we qualify for the next stage in May, then we qualify for the CrossFit Games.
Speaker C:So I really like January 1st.
Speaker C:I wasn't ready because nothing has been resolved, but I was like, you know what, I'm just going to sign up, do part one.
Speaker C:Hopefully I'll feel better as it gets closer and slowly as it's got closer, I've had a little bit more peace.
Speaker C:But there's still the question mark of what will this year's Games look like?
Speaker C:Did I make the right decision?
Speaker C:And ultimately you don't know that until you go through it.
Speaker A:And so you said there's 10 to 12 events and five of them, is that right, have been released so far.
Speaker A:I think you're right.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker A:Do I have that right?
Speaker B:Yeah, I think so, yeah.
Speaker A:Tell us a bit about, like, how does that work?
Speaker A:So you're kind of, you're training generally, like, you know that CrossFit has a lot of as you talked about, like a lot of different factors, moves, you know, I'm still trying to learn many of them and then.
Speaker A:But you don't actually know like what you're going to be doing on the competition floor until like very close to the event.
Speaker A:So.
Speaker C:Yes.
Speaker A:What are the, what are the, what do you think of the five that have been released and how do you like prep for that?
Speaker A:Unknown.
Speaker C:Yeah, this is my favorite analogy I've heard as CrossFitters are training to be Batman.
Speaker C:So we're training to run the fastest, jump the highest, lift the most, do the most handstands.
Speaker C:Like we're training to just be this supernatural human essentially.
Speaker C:So training for the Games, we train everything from running, weightlifting, handstand walking, gymnastics, agility, jumping over things just to prepare for what they throw at us.
Speaker C:Right now we know five events.
Speaker C:One of them is a max back squat, one of them is you run in a row, one of them is handstand walking.
Speaker C:So at this point in the game, I know they're going to throw a long run at us.
Speaker C:I know they're going to throw heavy weights.
Speaker C:So it's just training those leading up to the games and making sure you're not doing too much heavy lifting or too much running.
Speaker A:Interesting.
Speaker A:There's a run row.
Speaker B:Yes.
Speaker C:Yeah.
Speaker B:So this is a.
Speaker C:What does that look like for us CrossFitters?
Speaker C:This is a lot.
Speaker C:Yeah, we run four miles and then we'll row 3,000 meters and then run two miles.
Speaker A:Wow.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:I mean that is a lot for anybody.
Speaker A:Okay, okay.
Speaker A:And, and then talk to me about the handstands.
Speaker A:Yeah, you.
Speaker A:I feel like lately there's been, I mean when I first, you know, I first started CrossFit maybe seven years ago, I, I did like handstand push ups and people did, people other than me did handstand walking.
Speaker A:But like now it seems like people, there's a lot of like holding handstands or doing push ups in a hand freestanding handstand or like a pirouette and a handstand.
Speaker A:Just have they added like do things get added like that often?
Speaker C:They do.
Speaker C:This year I'm actually really hoping they do what's called a press to handstand.
Speaker C:So picture you start in an L sit and then you have to lift your feet up and straddle to get to handstand.
Speaker C:So the more weird movements they can give us, I think the better because it's just like, okay, who's been training it?
Speaker C:Can you do it on the fly?
Speaker C:But so far this year, the only Handstand they've implemented is handstand walk.
Speaker C:So this workout would be five rounds.
Speaker C:You're running 300 meters doing 12 deadlifts, and then a hundred foot handstand walk.
Speaker C:So you do that five times.
Speaker C:That's an example of one of our handstand workouts.
Speaker A:Right, okay.
Speaker A:And then who are your main competitors this year?
Speaker C:There are quite a few.
Speaker C:So the main competitor who is expected to win, like hands down, her name's Tia Clear Toomey.
Speaker C:She's won the past, I believe, seven years in a row.
Speaker C:This will be her eighth year.
Speaker C:So all of our competitors, all myself, we go in knowing she's a person to beat, but she's probably going to win and that's okay.
Speaker C:And then we have athletes like somebody named Daniel Brandon, who's from Florida.
Speaker C:We have a girl from the UK named Amy Kringle who's very good.
Speaker C:So it just depends what events they throw at us, which athlete will do good.
Speaker C:I did have an analyst come out like across the analyst in the space and he predicted me to get second place, which would be phenomenal.
Speaker C:Oh, we'll see what happens at the end of the weekend.
Speaker B:Ariel mentioned there, like what happened last year at the Games and just.
Speaker B:Yeah, but I think we should talk about that a little more because it really obviously she had to deal with it like kind of her choice for herself.
Speaker B:But as a sport overall, it's really kind of shaken the CrossFit world a ton.
Speaker B:A ton.
Speaker B:A ton of people are not competing this year.
Speaker B:Kind of either out of protest or like you briefly mentioned the world fitness front.
Speaker B:There are other options now and they're going over to Hyrox or they're going to World Fitness Project over these concerns about safety at the CrossFit Games.
Speaker B:You know, they're just not sending the pro athletes up for.
Speaker B:To not hurt themselves.
Speaker B:And I.
Speaker B:It's not just the pros like the CrossFit Open, which is how people qualify the Games registry.
Speaker B:So like every, like Sarah's done it.
Speaker B:Amateur people can do it.
Speaker B:Registration was down.
Speaker B:Even I have done it everybody.
Speaker B:But like registration was down 30% which is like massive because it's one of their big how they make money.
Speaker B:And I was looking like reading because I was curious if this was really as bad as, you know, it is sounding in some places and the number of franchises because the way CrossFit works is a franchise.
Speaker B:And so you pay to have like the CrossFit name and brand and get like the licensing and the affiliate and.
Speaker B: franchises in the US and like: Speaker B:That's a lot.
Speaker B:That's not like a small amount.
Speaker A:It's not a small amount.
Speaker A:I actually thought it was even more than that.
Speaker A:I thought it went down from 14,000.
Speaker B:Well, that was at the peak.
Speaker B:Okay, so at the peak of CrossFit, like back, you know, six, seven years ago, when everyone was like Crossfitting it up, they were at 14,000.
Speaker B:A lot of that went down in pandemic times.
Speaker B:And now you're seeing people be like, well, it's just not worth it to even be called CrossFit.
Speaker B:I'll just be TJ's gym, which is like the one here is right.
Speaker B:Like, because everyone knows what I am anyway.
Speaker B:Like, I don't need that.
Speaker A:They don't feel like they need the.
Speaker B:Affiliate shit and they don't even want it necessarily now.
Speaker B:Especially because along with the safety concerns, CrossFit has long been like pretty tied to a lot of the US military.
Speaker B:And like that obviously is getting super.
Speaker B:Like the Border Patrol sponsored the games last year, which meant something different a year ago than it means right now in the us so people don't really want to be affiliated with that.
Speaker B:There's also like, they also had a really, really shitty anti trans policy before.
Speaker B:One of the first ones, before everyone started having shitty.
Speaker A:I forgot about that.
Speaker A:I forgot about the anti trans policy.
Speaker A:And then I was also thinking of like Greg Glassman's who was the founder and then later came back as a CEO as well.
Speaker A:Like terrible comments during the.
Speaker A:George Floyd, like during COVID about George Floyd.
Speaker A:And so I feel like it's been, I was going to say like death by a thousand cuts, but it's not really a thousand cuts.
Speaker A:It's just like four or five, like very big deep cuts that like just hit CrossFit's reputation over and over and over again.
Speaker A:And I think when we're talking about the pros too, like, I, I was aware that the pros were kind of like, even before, even before they had death in the pro field last year.
Speaker A:Like that was poorly handled.
Speaker A:Like there was already safety concerns amongst the pros, there were already other concerns and like some like strife between the pros and CrossFit itself.
Speaker A:And so like it just like hit at this really bad time when communication wasn't that.
Speaker A:And I have to say, not surprised a lot of the pro.
Speaker A:No.
Speaker B:And the, the death, which for people, like, I, I mean she mentioned it, but obviously like, I mean she explained what happened and someone drowned that first time event.
Speaker B:But I was like, I don't think it was handled well.
Speaker B:And I think that like that is also what stress a lot of people out is that like, like I do a lot of triathlons.
Speaker B:You do a lot of triathlons.
Speaker B:Like people do die in these things sometimes, but usually that is a different situation.
Speaker B:This was like 30 athletes like that with life.
Speaker B:Like 30 athletes who are pros should be able to be saved by lifeguards.
Speaker B:Like, that's not like thousands of people where like you can't see something happening.
Speaker B:And there is a lot of evidence that people on shore, like saw something going on or trying to get Lifecraft's.
Speaker A:Attention, were stopped, were stopped from going into the water to save him.
Speaker B:And so that's I think where people are really struggling with like it just wasn't hand.
Speaker B:It wasn't just like, oh, accidents happen.
Speaker B:It was also that like they did not have protocols in place and it wasn't handled well.
Speaker B:And then like statements were made by the executives that like the family didn't agree with.
Speaker B:So, yeah, a lot of people withdrew last year and then many have not come back.
Speaker A:So, yeah, I feel like we're just like, we've just sunk into a like sad crossfit.
Speaker B:No, I just think it's, it's an interesting thing because I do remember like I started casually crossfitting when it was at its peak.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:And everyone was just like, it's amazing.
Speaker B:The CrossFit is the most amazing thing.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:And I like, I have to tell you, like, I still.
Speaker A:The reason that I love like the sport, like whatever the, whatever we're going to call like the sport more broadly like the sport of functional fitness or whatever is because of like the variation of things.
Speaker A:Like it still is.
Speaker A:There still is something like essentially good about doing all of those things or in, in one workout.
Speaker A:And I think a lot of the people.
Speaker A:There's a misconception around how healthy it is or like it's bad for your knees or people get injured or like you hear this kind of stuff and that's just like you hear that stuff about running to.
Speaker A:And it's just not, you know, I, of course I've seen people injured at the gym, but not any more than like any other sport I've competed in, you know, and decidedly less than sports that have contact like hockey or football or soccer.
Speaker B:So no, it is super fun.
Speaker B:I, I haven't gone back casually since before the kid.
Speaker B:I should.
Speaker A:But I do like it when we hang Out.
Speaker A:Kelly and I can, like, take you to a CrossFit gym or you can take me and.
Speaker A:And then you can.
Speaker A:I don't have to, like, babysit you.
Speaker B:Oh, good.
Speaker A:Like, you know how to do things.
Speaker B:I like, because it's very good when you're traveling.
Speaker B:It's a great workout to just find the local CrossFit gym and be like, hey, can I drop in?
Speaker B:Because then you get, like, a really hard workout in an hour.
Speaker B:You get to, like, go somewhere, like, some gym that, like, without having to, like, figure out another gym facility and like, whatever.
Speaker B:And they almost always will let you do just like a drop in for class.
Speaker B:So I feel like we've done that a few times.
Speaker A:Yeah, yeah.
Speaker A:And then.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker A:So then Arielle also gave us her predictions for who she thinks are the favorites.
Speaker B:So obviously Tia Clair Toomey, like you said.
Speaker B:I mean, it's just.
Speaker B:It's unbelievable.
Speaker B:She has won seven in a row or not.
Speaker B:She has won seven.
Speaker B: She did not win in: Speaker B:She was pregnant.
Speaker B:Laura Horvath won, though.
Speaker B:I will say, I think even if she had to be that year, it would have been close because Laura Horvath was very, very good that year.
Speaker A:Was pretty dominant that year.
Speaker B:But then Laura is one of the ones who pulled out last year and isn't back this year.
Speaker B:So it's like, everyone, this is why Ariel is saying she is the best pick for number two.
Speaker B:Because I think everyone's sort of like, I cannot imagine Tia Claire not winning.
Speaker A:Yeah, imagine the pressure, though, of winning seven times.
Speaker A:And.
Speaker A:And when you come back, it's like, it's like.
Speaker A:And I think, like, I watched a bit of the YouTube Road to the games.
Speaker A:The episode with Tia Claire too, wasn't.
Speaker B:It titled, like, Tia versus the World?
Speaker A:Yes, it was.
Speaker A:Which is, like, accurate.
Speaker A:Right?
Speaker A: coming second as a rookie in: Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:But then by the next year when she came second again, she was completely heartbroken that she didn't win.
Speaker B:Sure.
Speaker A:So, like, her expectations of herself just went from, like, just went like, through the roof.
Speaker A:And she's like, she literally said something like she felt like her heart had been ripped out of her chest when she came second the second time.
Speaker A:Like, and you're like, oh, my God.
Speaker A:What?
Speaker A:Like, and so.
Speaker A:And as an athlete myself, too, I feel I understand that struggle.
Speaker A:Like, as someone who, like, came second and third in, like, multiple Ironman races where you were trying to win and then did not.
Speaker A:Like, I feel her pain and like, I can only imagine how that must feel now.
Speaker A:Like she's won seven.
Speaker B:Right.
Speaker A:She's back again.
Speaker A:And she was saying how like she keeps trying to retire but she can't.
Speaker B:Yeah, there's this whole, like, she was labeling all her YouTube videos like, am I gonna retire earlier this year?
Speaker B:Watch to find out.
Speaker B:Right.
Speaker B:Like, and I was getting a little annoying.
Speaker B:I don't think she ever.
Speaker B:I don't think she was actually planning to, but she definitely like clickbaited it a bunch of.
Speaker A:Yeah, yeah, I think that.
Speaker A:And literally in this video that I literally just watched before I started recording, she does talk about how she keeps deciding she's going to retire and then undecided.
Speaker A:So I think that's just genuine.
Speaker B:She I low key obsessed.
Speaker B:I don't actually like, again, like, I could not name more than like two or three CrossFit, like Games athletes, but she's crazy.
Speaker B:And I was watching all of her training during her pregnancy and it was like next level.
Speaker B:And like my toler, I'm like, not that I think it was bad like, because I have.
Speaker B:I think that you should be able to do anything you want in pregnancy compared, like it's all relative to what you're able to do before.
Speaker B:But she was just doing like she was all in because she was not going to miss her next Games world title the next year.
Speaker B:And I think she trains just like harder than anyone.
Speaker A:Yeah, I mean that's the impression I get.
Speaker A:Like, it's hard to judge that.
Speaker A:Right?
Speaker B:True.
Speaker B:Cuz it's all Instagram clips.
Speaker A:Yeah, because, because Instagram.
Speaker A:But yeah, I do think that she knows, she definitely knows how to do the work.
Speaker A:Like they might, there might be other women who know how to do the work.
Speaker A:He really obviously knows how to do the work.
Speaker A:And I'm glad you brought up the pregnancy piece too because like, I really think she did a great job of like pushing the bar on what women can do during pregnancy and how it really is like relative to what you already do.
Speaker A:Um, and I, I know to, to us it looked like like some of those, some of the barbells she was lifting with that big belly looked like a lot very heavy and would be very heavy for me, but probably there like it's.
Speaker A:She's probably scaled it a little bit.
Speaker B:Yeah, it's kind of like I was at the National Track and Field Championships the year Alicia Montano ran the 800 when she was eight months pregnant.
Speaker B:Like I was there and people were like, oh, this was eight years ago.
Speaker B:And so people then were like, oh, she should be doing.
Speaker B:She ran so fast.
Speaker B:She ran a 230 and she was the defending national champion, like, right.
Speaker B:It was very slow for her.
Speaker B:They made her get a doctor's note to, like, let her run.
Speaker B:And so anyway, sometimes I am like, well, we've come a long way.
Speaker B:And then sometimes when people say crazy shit that, like, oh, you shouldn't be in the gym pregnant, which, like, if you've been lifting, you can be in the gym.
Speaker B:There's lots and lots of research out there showing that, like strength training, resistance training, high intensity training is totally good and is, like, good for the outcome.
Speaker A:Well, and I remember when I was pregnant and training.
Speaker A:So we're like going back 15 years, right?
Speaker A:Then Paula Radcliffe, the runner and who's the American, who was her training partner?
Speaker B:Kara.
Speaker A:Yes, Kara Goucher.
Speaker A:They would do.
Speaker A:They were doing, like, track sessions, I think.
Speaker A:I think Paula was having her second and Kara her first, and they were doing, like, track sessions together.
Speaker A:And you.
Speaker A:You had.
Speaker A:That was like, unheard of, actually doing intervals while pregnant.
Speaker A:Like, so if you think of how far we've come, even in 15 years.
Speaker B:Like, I will say, though, as the one who went to the CrossFit gym casually.
Speaker B:But then it became like the one like, up until month six or seven, something in pregnancy.
Speaker B:This was back in like, November.
Speaker B:We are making it the up.
Speaker B:Like, I went to the one class where I knew I liked the coach and that his wife had just been pregnant and he had coached her through it.
Speaker B:And so I, like, knew he knew what he was doing and it was still like, I don't know.
Speaker B:How do you want to adjust this?
Speaker B:Let's try something.
Speaker B:We're just making it up, man.
Speaker A:Of course.
Speaker A:And of course.
Speaker A:And as a coach, too, like, you can't.
Speaker A:How can you know?
Speaker A:Like, how can you tell?
Speaker A:You can't.
Speaker A:You can't then push someone to do something they're not comfortable with.
Speaker B:Like, it's just really funny.
Speaker B:I just thought it's like, we act like we know all these things and we're just.
Speaker B:We're just like, making it.
Speaker A:Oh, we're just.
Speaker A:At the beginning, we didn't even know pregnant women could do intervals, like 15 years ago when I was pregnant.
Speaker A:So we're.
Speaker A:It's.
Speaker A:There's a long way to go.
Speaker B:So, speaking of speaking, are you ready for this transition, Arielle?
Speaker B:We also talked to her about her training and how she actually came back to your point, on the whole Progression.
Speaker B:I mean, she told us earlier that, like, she came back stronger after she had her kids.
Speaker B:But then you wanted to know way more details about her training and, like, how much she trains.
Speaker A:And I needed to know.
Speaker B:I needed to know the body because she has a whole brand that's, like, pretty strong for a mom.
Speaker B:And so she talked to us a little bit about, like, how she got that started.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker A:I would love to talk a little bit about, like, your preparation.
Speaker A:I think there's a lot of people, like, very interested in kind of the, like, the nutrition side and, like, how you actually train too.
Speaker C:Yeah.
Speaker A:So when you're like, like when you're right now, I mean, I guess you're probably coming to the end of, like, a big training block, but in, like, the biggest training days that you do, what do your days and weeks look like?
Speaker C:The crazy thing is I probably train less than most of my competitors.
Speaker C:So my day might sound crazy, but my competitors are all doing a lot more than me because I find less is more.
Speaker C:More intensity.
Speaker C:So my normal, normal week, if I were to lay it out for you, Monday through Wednesday, I'll do a cardio classic CrossFit piece, which is basically like 40 minutes of high intensity movement with some rest built in.
Speaker C:So about 40 minutes of cardio.
Speaker C:And then I'll follow it up by an hour and a half of strength work.
Speaker C:Monday is a pull day, so working on all the muscles that have to do with pulling.
Speaker C:And then Tuesday, I'll do cardio and then do push day, so working on all the muscles that have to do with pushing cardio, another pull day.
Speaker C:And then Thursday I'll take just like an accurative recovery day, which is just doing machines or some type of movement.
Speaker C:And then Friday again, I'll do the 40 minutes of cardio, hour and a half of strength working on either a pusher or pull muscle.
Speaker C:And then Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, I'll do an additional evening piece, which is just spiking the heart rate.
Speaker C:So if you guys know the Echo bike, it'll be things like, okay, you have one minute on this Echo bike.
Speaker C:Get as many calories as you can.
Speaker C:Things that are just gonna blow up your heart rate and just get you panting on the floor.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker A:Wow.
Speaker A:So, okay, so you're talking double days.
Speaker A:So you've got this sort of two hour chunk in the morning, extended cardio lifting, and then.
Speaker A:And then kind of a higher end, like anaerobic workout in the evenings.
Speaker A:And then what is your.
Speaker A:Like you said, there's.
Speaker A:You said Thursday, you're doing a kind of a.
Speaker A:What did you say?
Speaker A:Like an easier aerobic recovery focus session.
Speaker C:So Thursday would be machines.
Speaker C:So if you guys know the rower, I'll row, I might run a little bit.
Speaker C:I'll be on the Echo bike again and maybe the skier.
Speaker C:But Thursday we'll have nothing with any type of weights.
Speaker C:So that way your central nervous system can have a little bit of a break, your muscles can kind of recover.
Speaker C:So I'm not touching any dumbbells, kettlebells, anything makes sense.
Speaker A:And then what does the weekend look like?
Speaker C:The weekend, my Saturday actually is one hour long and then I'm done.
Speaker A:Wow.
Speaker C:But it's a one hour of very intense.
Speaker C:So there's six different movements and you have a 10 minute window for each movement, like each workout I'm going to do.
Speaker C:So it's one hour total with six different workouts back to back.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker C:So it's basically just like a big punch in the gut and then you're done for the weekend.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker A:That is, I, I mean, I don't know that much about elite CrossFit training, but that does sound like it's a little lighter, at least on the total overall volume side.
Speaker C:It is nice because I have from, let's say 2:00pm to 6:00pm every day where I'm doing nothing but eating, taking care of laundry if I need to, running errands, getting groceries, making dinner.
Speaker C:And then so I have a good chunk of my day that is just living life.
Speaker C:Whereas Most of my CrossFit competitors are in the gym 8 to 5pm and then they get four hours in the evening to live their life.
Speaker C:So I feel like I have a good balance of not live, eating, breathing, CrossFit all day long.
Speaker A:Okay, so I do also want to talk about your entrepreneurial side that immediately I went to your website and I see like you're selling hair clips and shirts.
Speaker A:So tell us like for first of all, let's start with the hair clips and tame the mane.
Speaker A:Did you call it tame the mane?
Speaker A:What's behind that?
Speaker C:Yeah, so loen.
Speaker C:So like a lion's mane.
Speaker C:Tame the mane is where we got it from.
Speaker C:Loen.
Speaker C:My last name is German for lion and then my first name is Ariel, which means like a lion.
Speaker C:And then my husband's name is Dylan.
Speaker C:No, I'm sorry.
Speaker C:Ariel means lion of God.
Speaker C:Dylan means like a lion.
Speaker C:So my, me and my husband and our whole family is just like woven through lions.
Speaker C:So my whole brand is built off a beautiful lion.
Speaker C:And I was like, if I'm going to Do a hair clip.
Speaker C:It's going to be called tame the mane.
Speaker C:And what had happened is I had a competition called the Rogue Invitational this past November in Scotland, Ireland or in Scotland, I'm sorry.
Speaker C:And in Scotland, I wore a hair clip on the floor because it's just usually what I wear.
Speaker C:It's the easiest thing, keeps hair out of my face.
Speaker C:And social media went crazy and I was like, all these people are freaking out that I'm working out in a hair clip.
Speaker C:And a ton of people were like, where did you buy this from?
Speaker C:I want one.
Speaker C:And I'm like, I don't want to redirect them to a third party site.
Speaker C:I would like to market off this.
Speaker C:So I found the hair clips I love, I bought a laser engraver and I buy, engrave, package, ship out these hair clips all in my house.
Speaker A:Oh my God, I love that.
Speaker A:What, what do you engrave on them?
Speaker C:I engrave tame the mane and then I have my lion logo.
Speaker C:So I, I usually have a hair clip on me at all times.
Speaker C:But if you guys want an example, if you go to my website and look at the hair clips, it's just like really small on the border.
Speaker C:Tame the mane.
Speaker A:And then let's talk about what is it Pretty strong for a mom.
Speaker A:That's the phrase I'd love to know, like what's kind of behind that.
Speaker A:Did someone say that to you?
Speaker A:And then you thought, oh, this would, this would make good shirts or what's.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker C:This is probably my favorite and most proud entrepreneurial thing I've done.
Speaker C:But I went to a competition in California back in September and one of the events was how much can you clean and jerk?
Speaker C:So you pick the bar up, you get it to your shoulders and then you push it overhead.
Speaker C:So you're trying to do as much weight as possible.
Speaker C:And I did £250.
Speaker C:And in the moment I was so proud.
Speaker C:But then after about an hour went by, I kind of self reflect and was like, man, that's good.
Speaker C:But other athletes in my field can do 270, 275, 260.
Speaker C:Don't be too proud of it.
Speaker C:And I had this moment of like, no, I'm a mom, I'm taking care of a daughter, I'm helping the household.
Speaker C:I'm pretty strong for a mom, considering all the other things I have to do.
Speaker C:I'm strong.
Speaker C:I'm proud of this.
Speaker C:So I posted my max lift 250 pounds and then put the caption.
Speaker C:Pretty strong for a mom.
Speaker C:Same thing.
Speaker C:Social media loved it.
Speaker C:And they're like, make this a T shirt.
Speaker C:I would love to buy it.
Speaker C:And so what started as something silly of I'm struggling with comparison.
Speaker C:I'm going to be proud of my strength has turned into a movement of all these moms wearing the shirt and just telling me their strength of like, I am strong.
Speaker C:Look what I've overcome mentally.
Speaker C:Thank you for making this shirt.
Speaker C:I am strong.
Speaker C:I've overcame this horrible C section and now I feel strong in my own skin again.
Speaker C:So it started as something silly, but now it's turned into empowering women to be proud of their strength regardless if there's £1 on the bar, £0 on the bar, £50 on the bar, and just owning, owning that strength.
Speaker A:I mean, I know this even from personal friends of mine.
Speaker A:Do you get like negative comments online or stuff like that about, like, you have the most amazing arms, for example.
Speaker A:Sweet, right?
Speaker A:Like, I just look at them and think.
Speaker A:I just think, oh my God, how do I get those arms?
Speaker A:But I know that, like, not everyone thinks like that.
Speaker A:Right?
Speaker A:So like, how have you sort of come to terms with like that kind of muscularity that comes with doing what you love to do?
Speaker C:Yeah, I do get that online.
Speaker C:So any video I upload and I'm wearing a tank top and if it gets over a thousand likes, whatever views, there will be negative comments.
Speaker C:And I almost expect it at this point.
Speaker C:But I also come up to the realization that social media is fake.
Speaker C:So whatever this one person would say to me on social media, they would not say to my face.
Speaker C:So I take it with a grain of salt.
Speaker C:I don't let it hurt me because I used to in high school.
Speaker C:Even in high school, I've always been muscular.
Speaker C:So I've been commented on my body a lot.
Speaker C:But I've learned that the way I look has helped me do things that others cannot.
Speaker C:So just owning my strengths and being like, yeah, of course you're going to make fun of me, but I also work really, really hard to have these muscles.
Speaker C:So I'm proud of them.
Speaker C:You might not like them, but that's your opinion.
Speaker C:I'm really proud of how they look.
Speaker A:No, I'm sure that you've had the opposite.
Speaker A:Also, like a lot of positive comments about your appearance.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker C:Yes, almost that as bad as it sounds like, I wouldn't wear this in public because I would get comments.
Speaker C:And some days I just don't want to deal with any comments like, don't talk to me about my body, just let me buy my groceries and leave so it's like a double edged sword.
Speaker A:Yeah, that's funny.
Speaker A:It's an interesting perspective because like, people don't necessarily think like, oh, like you live in.
Speaker A:You're used to that body, you live in it.
Speaker A:You don't necessarily need to chat about it with a stranger who exactly uses your arms while you're choosing your oranges, you know?
Speaker C:Yeah.
Speaker C:And it's hard too, because I am out of touch with reality.
Speaker C:So when they say, what workouts do you do?
Speaker C:I'm like, I literally can't even tell you because I'm doing stuff nobody should do because I'm just crazy.
Speaker C:And I love, you know, being in the gym for three hours a day.
Speaker C:I don't recommend you do it to get these arms.
Speaker C:It's like, I don't know what to tell you.
Speaker A:Yeah, exactly.
Speaker A:Like you're not doing it for aesthetic reasons too.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:Like you're doing it to perform at a sport.
Speaker A:So that's like a different.
Speaker A:Exactly.
Speaker A:Completely different thing than like literally trying to make your bicep bigger or whatever that goal might be.
Speaker A:If at least aesthetics was your goal.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:And then if someone wants to watch the CrossFit games and they're living in the U.S. how do they watch?
Speaker C:Easy to find.
Speaker C:Just go to YouTube.
Speaker C:So be prepared.
Speaker C:I believe it's.
Speaker C:I'm gonna look at my calendar, August 1st through the 3rd on the CrossFit Games.
Speaker C:YouTube.
Speaker C:All the events will be on there.
Speaker C:I don't know the schedule, so I cannot tell you exact times, but for free on YouTube you can watch.
Speaker C:There'll be 30 men there competing from all around the world and then 30 women from all around the world.
Speaker C:Two separate categories.
Speaker C:But you've got people coming from Australia, the United Kingdom, Brazil, United States, Canada.
Speaker C:So it's just the best in the world coming together.
Speaker A:Cool.
Speaker A:Well, I wish you all the best.
Speaker A:I hope they add a handstand press for you because I would like to see that.
Speaker A:Thank you.
Speaker A:And I hope that your.
Speaker A:Whoever did your prediction of coming second, I. I hope that they are right.
Speaker A:So I appreciate it.
Speaker A:All the best.
Speaker C:Thank you for having me.
Speaker B:When she.
Speaker B:I was about to ask you if you've ever had people comment on your arms.
Speaker B:I was like, have you, sir?
Speaker B:Had people comment on your.
Speaker A:And then you were like, Then you remembered my arms and were like, no, no.
Speaker A:Although I do have friends who have.
Speaker B:Right.
Speaker A:So I like, vicariously.
Speaker A:I have had a couple comments on.
Speaker A:Because.
Speaker A:Partially because, like, since I've been doing CrossFit now for seven years and before I was a triathlete because, like, my body has changed.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:But I've never had it.
Speaker A:Comments to the point of minding or not being, like, someone close enough that, like, where I'm like, oh, I appreciate your comment.
Speaker A:Like, where they're like, you look strong and they know that I've been working on trying to get stronger.
Speaker A:So it has it pushed out into a broader.
Speaker A:At least that I know of.
Speaker B:I always talk about it.
Speaker A:Sure.
Speaker A:There's someone behind my back being like, sarah's gained a lot of weight.
Speaker A:Probably.
Speaker B:Probably.
Speaker A:Yeah, probably.
Speaker A:But, yeah, nobody really cares about me.
Speaker A:But I just.
Speaker A:I did.
Speaker A:Like, I wanted to ask her.
Speaker A:It's funny because, like, when she said.
Speaker A:When Arielle said.
Speaker A:When I asked her the question about body image, that she was like, oh, just.
Speaker A:I'd prefer people didn't comment to my body.
Speaker A:At the supermarket, at the grocery store, I was like, oh, literally, I just asked her about her body.
Speaker B:Yeah, yeah.
Speaker A:But she seemed to respond fairly well.
Speaker B:I could get how it would be old, right?
Speaker B:I'm sure the same with, like, if you're like a basketball player or like a swimmer and people are like, oh, you're tall.
Speaker B:Like, it gets old.
Speaker B:Right?
Speaker B:You're like, I'm not.
Speaker B:I'm very, very short.
Speaker B:And people are always.
Speaker B:And I'm actually not that sure.
Speaker B:I'm actually like an inch shorter than average.
Speaker B:But people are always commenting on it, and I'm like, it's not that interesting.
Speaker B:Guys, like, say something interesting.
Speaker A:Like, I have a friend who's 6 foot 2, and, like, when I'm with her, at least one person in every time, like, we've had coffee or there's like somebody just commenting before walking down the street together, somebody's just commenting on her height.
Speaker A:Just.
Speaker B:It's weirdly.
Speaker B:It's weird.
Speaker A:And then she.
Speaker A:She's always like, I've never heard that before.
Speaker A:You know, like, thinking about those things from the other person's perspective.
Speaker A:Very interesting.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:This may be our kid.
Speaker B:We are five months old, is very short.
Speaker B:He's a normal weight.
Speaker B:He's very short.
Speaker B:And everyone's always commenting on how chunky he is.
Speaker B:And then my husband's response, because everybody always asks you, like, how big is.
Speaker B:Like, it's the thing that people ask.
Speaker B:They're like, what is his height?
Speaker B:In the first.
Speaker B:For the first, like, I was like, I don't know.
Speaker B:I'm not, like, I'm not like, running a basketball team.
Speaker B:Like, I don't have stats on my kid.
Speaker B:And then everyone's like, oh, well, he's gonna be short.
Speaker B:And my husband's response was I'd rather be good at things than tall.
Speaker B:I was like, I don't know.
Speaker B:Think those are mutually exclusive.
Speaker B:So anyway, people.
Speaker B:But it is weird.
Speaker B:People comment.
Speaker B:People comment all the time.
Speaker A:People call.
Speaker A:I bet they.
Speaker A:I say that, oh, of course he's going to be blonde.
Speaker B:Right.
Speaker B:You're like, okay.
Speaker A:There's some, there's some level where it's like, it's just people trying to be nice or whatever.
Speaker B:Well, they just have anything to say.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:Also that we're not talking about parking spots.
Speaker B:So what that's what people always want to talk about.
Speaker B:Right.
Speaker B:Is like where are we going to park?
Speaker B:The weather.
Speaker B:Anyway.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker A:Do we have any other sports related.
Speaker A:Oh yes.
Speaker A:What are we need to do?
Speaker B:Yeah, we're finished with our picks of the week.
Speaker B:Are you ready?
Speaker B:I'm ready.
Speaker A:All right, ready.
Speaker B:Here is my pick.
Speaker A:I.
Speaker B:So I write our weekly newsletter called the Feist that has like a bunch of different.
Speaker B:It's very similar, like similar topics but we have a whole list of highlights.
Speaker B:So I was going through all of my highlights this week to like try and find like different ones and I came across this woman in England for mile.
Speaker B:70 year old woman, ran a new age group world record for 70 year olds of 6:33 for the mile.
Speaker A:That's wild.
Speaker B:That's crazy.
Speaker A:And I saw we did an Instagram post about that today which is Tuesday a couple days ago.
Speaker A:If you're listening to this and just like even watching her and the way that she moves, it's like honestly goals for me.
Speaker B:So that was my pick.
Speaker B:Anna Garcia, 70 year old six 33 mile.
Speaker A:Yeah, amazing.
Speaker A:Okay, my pick and I'm gonna have to like give a shout out to my CrossFit coach who actually recommended this pick.
Speaker A:And then I looked it up but.
Speaker A:And I'm gonna mispronounce her name but is it Uzd?
Speaker B:The 12 year old swimmer?
Speaker A:The 12 year old Chinese swimmer.
Speaker A:And she.
Speaker A:So I just like quick google searched her because 12 year old swimmer at a world championships is wild.
Speaker A:Um, and so she.
Speaker A:I found it.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker A:She swam 210 for the 200 IM at the Chinese national championships.
Speaker A:And, and how she got into it was like kind of late for a swimmer especially I think for a Chinese swimmer or any swimmer.
Speaker A:Cause you know how swimmers start when they're like three.
Speaker B:I was like she's 12, it's not that late.
Speaker B:Sarah.
Speaker A:She was well but she's 12 and she's competing at world champion level.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:And at 6 years old, she was just like swimming at a local pool and a coach came up to her and said, like, do you.
Speaker A:I think you could be faster.
Speaker A:Do you want, do you want to come and train?
Speaker A:And she like, like, she got discovered.
Speaker B:Interesting.
Speaker A:Like, how many people get discovered as a swimmer?
Speaker A:Like, that's.
Speaker A:I feel like that's not even really a thing anymore because there's such a huge feeding system of like, kids swim clubs and like, yeah, you know, like, you don't get just like.
Speaker B:I dream that I'm gonna get discovered and like, secretly, like, be amazing at some sport that I just haven't figured out yet.
Speaker B:And someone's gonna come up to me and be like, oh, have you tried netball?
Speaker B:You would be amazing.
Speaker A:We're recruiting 40 year olds for netball.
Speaker B:You know, I'm also like, low key convinced if I really, really, like, committed in three years, I can make the Masters CrossFit games.
Speaker B:You know that because I told you.
Speaker A:That we've had this discussion before.
Speaker B:Even though I could do none of.
Speaker A:The skills, I'm like, I don't think.
Speaker B:So, but you don't know.
Speaker C:What if I try really hard.
Speaker A:Now that I.
Speaker A:Okay, we have had this discussion, like years ago on a different podcast.
Speaker A:And then I was skeptical.
Speaker A:Now that I know several people who have gone to like, the age group CrossFit games, I have to say I'm even more skeptical.
Speaker A:Do I think you could be a significantly better crossfitter than you are now?
Speaker B:Sure.
Speaker A:Yes.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker A:Anyway, back to my pick.
Speaker A:Anyway, I also found out she swims with like a lucky cartoon dog on her cap.
Speaker A:And then also, like, swimmers, like, they do tend to be young.
Speaker A:Like Summer McIntosh was 14 in Tokyo at the Olympics.
Speaker A:Katie Ledecky was 15 when she went to her first Olympics.
Speaker A:So it's not like that unusual to have a young swimmer but 12 years old.
Speaker B:There is some debate because they waived the rules, the age limit rules for her.
Speaker B:And so there's some debate about how young is too young.
Speaker B:Like, why do we have rules if we're just gonna ignore them?
Speaker B:But, yeah, hopefully.
Speaker B:I hope she is enjoying it and having fun and not being forced to do it as a 12 year old.
Speaker A:Exactly.
Speaker A:It kind of flies in the face of don't specialize too early.
Speaker A:But it's swimming, so you have to specialize early.
Speaker B:All right, those are our picks.
Speaker B:We're going to try and watch all the things this weekend.
Speaker A:All the things?
Speaker B:All the things.
Speaker A:The CrossFit Games.
Speaker B:Tour de France.
Speaker A:Oh, yeah.
Speaker B:Track and field, national champs swimming summer versus Katie.
Speaker A:Great.
Speaker B:Great.
Speaker B:And then we will.
Speaker B:We'll be back next week.
Speaker B:I'm trying to think if we have a top.
Speaker B:We don't have someone scheduled next week yet.
Speaker B:Oh, we will hear from the Tour de France on the ground.
Speaker B:And then otherwise, we'll just have all the news of the week.
Speaker A:Great.
Speaker A:And if you're listening, rate us, give us a review, share us with your friends.
Speaker A:And, yeah, share the love about the women's sports movement.
Speaker A:We're here for it.
