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Witness The Fittest 2019

#PresentOverPerfect2019

In the early hours of Friday, May 17th 2019, I flew out to Manila in the Philippines, with my coach and a fellow gymmate, to take on my biggest CrossFit challenge yet.

Having barely qualified for the competition nearly two months ago, I had very few expectations for the weekend. I worked incredibly hard in the weeks leading up to the competition and I had seen massive improvements, however I wasn’t sure if it would be enough to truly compete against the other women in my division. So, when asked what my goals were for the weekend, I said: to gain more competitive experience, to do my best and to put all my hard work to the test. After all, the only thing I can control is my own performance, right?

The week before the competition, I did a run-through of all 5 events and I focused on strengthening my weaknesses. When it came time to travel to the Philippines, I truly felt like I had done all that I could within the time I had to prepare.

Upon my arrival at the venue Friday night, I found out that after the first 4 events, only the top 8 would qualify for the final Championship workout. TOP 8? I barely made top 24 and now I’m aiming for TOP 8? I was getting anxious, but I was determined to do all that I could to try to make it there.

Saturday morning, although I felt quite nervous, I knew I was capable of doing really well in the first part of the first event – and I did! I also did really well in the second part of the event hitting a new PR for my hang snatch, which was super exciting for me as olympic lifts never been a strength of mine.


 Dancing away with weighted box step-overs and calmly completing my 400m run!

I wasn’t quite sure how my second event would go Saturday afternoon, as it did contain pistols, which are not my strongest and fastest movement, but luckily I did really well which helped me reach 4th place after Day 1. It was a little hard to believe, but sitting in 4th after two events made me think that anything was possible.

Airbike staredown!

Sunday morning, when I woke up, I felt ready to give it my all. Unfortunately, my first event was a complete let down. My gymnastics skills were nowhere close to being on point and I was so disappointed with my performance. I would have to pull myself back together quickly in order to prepare for the 4th event.
Hang to overhead - the only movement that went relatively well in event 3.

I went into the 4th event ready to win and though I didn’t come out right on top, I completely demolished the workout finishing a close 2nd. This was most definitely one of my proudest moments of the weekend as I truly felt like I had given it my all and performed the workout nearly flawlessly.


Not the best form on my deadlifts, but I made up for it with my Double Unders and Chest-to-bars!

So, there I was, sitting in 4th after 4 events, qualifying for the final Championship workout where I would be competing against the best of the best in my division. I was SO pumped!

Going into the last workout, I knew that I couldn’t reach the top 3 spots, so my goal was to secure the 4th position. I had a plan in mind. I had done a run through of the workout, so I knew what I had to do and what I wanted to do. Within seconds of the start of the workout though, I knew I would need to change my plan if I wanted to continue competing with the other women; they were FAST! I changed my strategy immediately and boy oh boy did it pay off! I finished 4th in the final event, which would secure my fourth place finish overall.  What a relief!


I've finally trained my mind to "love" thrusters and bar-facing burpees!

The weekend was challenging, both physically and mentally, but it was also incredibly rewarding. It was seriously better than I could’ve ever imagined! I had an absolute blast competing, but also socializing during the "down" times around the events.

Thanks to my family, friends, colleagues, fellow competitors and of course my coach for all the support! I could not of done this without all of you! 

I’m back in Vietnam now, enjoying a few days off from working out, but the truth is that I really can’t wait to get back to it and to see what more I’m capable of doing. 

"I'm grateful for where I am and excited about where I am going."

Bring it on!

(*Pictures: Ria Narciso Photography)

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