While the holiday season may be upon us, CrossFit Games athletes like Emily Bridgers don’t take too many off-days or ‘off-seasons’ when they have one goal on their minds: Qualifying for another trip to the CrossFit Games.

 

After putting nearly four years of sweat into her CrossFit journey (as well as 16-years as a gymnast prior to CrossFit), the 27-year-old owner of CrossFit Terminus of Atlanta finally qualified for her first trip to the Games this past summer.

 

“It was a long journey (getting there).  I started CrossFit in 2010 and Regionals 2011 was my very first competition.  I placed 9th in 2011, 4th in 2012, 5th in 2013.  Each year was more and more disappointing, but something inside me knew I could not give up.  I was continually getting better and I knew I was good enough to compete at the Games, but it took many tough days of training and a lot of people believing in me to finally make this dream a reality,” Bridgers said.

 

Despite recent buzz of the heightened competition and threshold for entry to Regionals and the Games in 2015 (only 20 athletes from each region will advance to Regionals), Bridgers is looking forward to another go in Carson for year two. Since the Games in July, she has been keeping busy with plenty of friendly fitness competition experience to stay in the game.

 

“'Now, I’m pretty much always in competition training mode.  I train hard all year long.  The only difference is there are more two a day training sessions leading up to Regionals and the Games and a little more focus on running and swimming leading up to the Games,” Bridgers said.

 

In November, Bridgers represented Team USA at the CrossFit Invitational, alongside Froning, Khalipa and Foucher, to a victory, and said the opportunity was a dream come true.

 

“Representing for Team USA was very surreal and it felt like I was living out my childhood dream of making the Olympics.  It was also cool to get to work with and become friends with some of the best in the sport,” she said.

 

On tap post-Christmas and New Years, Bridgers is looking forward to throwing down at the Kill Cliff East Coast Championships in Boston, and Wodapalooza in Miami, both in January. She is excited to put to practice the lessons she learned about herself as an athlete at the 2014 CrossFit Games in the local competitions and hopefully, come out on top.

 

“I learned a lot about my mental game at the CrossFit Games.  Over the course of the Games’ week, you go through so many ups and downs, nerves, mind games, and self talk, which is all so important to how you perform.  Learning to react to something that doesn't go as planned and keeping an overall state of positivity is crucial to making it through the entire event.  The last day of competition is always my best day (Sunday at the Games jumping from 15th to 6th).  This year, in particular, I learnedthat I need to always have a fierce mentality throughout the entire competition (not just on the last day) and leave nothing on the table in any of the workouts if I'm ultimately going to make it on top of the podium,” Bridgers said.

 

Bridgers’ daily grind, inside the gym, is training her for this battle. A look at her workout log reveals the need for some serious mental toughness:

 

Prep: 1 Mile Run for Time

A:  Muscle Snatch

7 sets x 2

Building  rest 120 seconds after each set
85/90/95/100/105/110/115

 

B1: Muscle Ups

Max UB set

Rest 30 seconds

 

B2: AMRAP x 60 seconds

5 “UB” Hang Power Snatch

115/105/95/85

Rest 2 minutes

(4 Total sets B1+B2)

Sets are ascending on B2

 

C: Clean Pull

3, 3, 3, 3, 3

Rest 120 seconds
Up tp 235

 

D: OTM x 16 min

Evens: 2 Rope Climbs- First 2 Rounds Legless

(legless If possible)
Legless for the first half

Odds: Wall Ball Shots 20/14 to 11’

15 “UB”*

( * 250 meter + 10 Burpee over row penalty for every break on WB Shots to be completed immediately after OTM)
Complete 2 penalty rounds for dropping the ball 

 

And, while she works her butt off, Bridgers also said it is a must to keep the big picture of life in mind.

 

“I think balance is important in all aspects of a healthy life.  This can be tough to do with this sport becoming so competitive, but outside of many hours of training, I still try to make time for friends and social events not related to CrossFit.  I take at least one rest day per week, but most importantly, I just try to be smart in my training and listen to my body,” Bridgers said.

 

This includes “a lot of preventive body work.” From weekly Chiropractic visits, to dry needling/physical therapy every other week, massage every other week, use of the Marc Pro for recovery on top of that, epsom salt baths, and Progenex Recovery shakes every day after trainings. Not to mention, breaks away from fitness and other life to-dos in order to now, make time for wedding planning.

 

On December 4^th, Bridgers was engaged to her boyfriend, Ben Benson, during a trip with Team Progenex in Oahu, Hawaii. Ben is not only her fiancé, but also her coach of four years and her partner in the mission of spreading their joy of fitness worldwide.

“He has been my coach since day one of CrossFit and has been there for all the ups and downs.  We have grown and learned together during the 4 years of competition and his programming has evolved with the growth of the sport.  He developed the 'Squat Mafia' competition program.  We have about 15 people inside CrossFit Terminus who follow the program with me, and starting this season, we have remote athletes from around the country as well!  We are hosting our first athlete camp this month where we get to bring all these athletes together to train and better each other!