The Sevan Podcast - #86 - Sydney Michalyshen

Episode Date: July 24, 2021

The Sevan Podcast EP 86 - Sydney Michalyshen & Brian Friend The Sevan Podcast is sponsored by http://www.barbelljobs.com Follow us on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/therealsevanpodcast/ Sevan's Stuff: https://www.instagram.com/sevanmatossian/?hl=en https://app.sugarwod.com/marketplace/3-playing-brothers Brian's Stuff: https://www.instagram.com/brianfriendcrossfit/ https://morningchalkup.com/author/brianfriend/ Support the show Partners: https://cahormones.com/ - CODE "SEVAN" FOR FREE CONSULTATION https://www.paperstcoffee.com/ - THE COFFEE I DRINK! https://asrx.com/collections/the-real... - OUR TSHIRTS ... Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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The mic dangling from your ear pods. Oh, is that better? Oh, yeah, that's way better. But you can't do that the whole show you have a piece of scotch tape you could just tape that under your nose i can just like hold it here is that better oh dude you don't want to do that i mean it's way better but like we will figure it out that's fine we can still hear you maybe brian and i would just have to be more quiet. Other than that, your audio is good. Okay, good.

Are you in Canada right now? Yeah. Are you going to be able to make it to the games? Yeah. Yeah. There were some issues with the – because we're only 10 hours away. So like driving is like the way to go. But the land border is super weird to get across.

You can fly no problem. But to drive, they have like these crazy rules. So we're going to drive. We were very confident. I know someone that went today that got across with no problem. So we're confident. Let go of that. Let go of that thing for a second. And then I'll tell you if it gets bad again.

I'm feeling horrible if you hold it. It's really no big deal. My leg's right here. That's good. That's good. Hey, people, just so you know, like we don't sometimes you'll be listening to podcasts and I'll be like, like we talked about before we started recording, like Brian, have you ever met Sydney before? I have not. You guys should all feel really uncomfortable. This is just like three strangers meeting and you're like for the first time and you're just like peering into it. So like literally, like literally like it took six seconds after Sydney came on for me to hit the record button. So there's six seconds of our relationship that you don't know. And then the rest is, uh, you guys are being peeving Toms.

Yeah, I did. I did meet a big contingency of her support group, though, at Wadapalooza the last time that Wadapalooza was on. Oh, really? Oh, that's awesome. How many people were there cheering you on at Wadapalooza? I think like 10. So my coach and then I think like eight people from my gym came with. So there was a lot of us. Isn't that in Florida?

Isn't that in Florida? In Miami, yeah. And you're in Florida? Isn't that in Florida? In Miami, yeah. And you're in Canada? Yeah. Holy cow. Sorry, go ahead, Brian. It was like our first big trip, so everyone wanted to come. And they were all wearing the same shirts, I think, that said your last name on them.

Yep. And they were making a lot of noise. Yes, that would be them. That's my people. What's your hometown? Winnipeg, Manitoba. Oh, man, really? Do you know Mike Workington?

I don't think so. Is he from here? Yeah, he's the former editor of the CrossFit Journal. He knows more about CrossFit than about the methodology, the articles, the history. God, he may know more about the media than anybody. Yeah, he is a freak of nature. But I wanted to see – I'm looking on a map. Basically, he told me Winnipeg. When I used to work with him, he lived up there.

And he would send me screenshots of how cold it would get there and it was nuts. Yeah. Our temperatures are pretty extreme. Like right now, it's so hot and humid. It's like I think today was 38, but it gets like minus 40, minus 45, like Celsius. I don't know what that is in Fahrenheit. Listen to that, people. Minus 45.

So that's like you throw a bucket of water and it freezes, right? Yeah. Yeah. Like no joke, like no joke. Like that actually happens. Yeah. Have you done that? No, I haven't. But a lot of people do. It's no fun. I just try and stay outside as little as possible. I would do that shit every year. One year I was in Canada. I don't remember what city I was in. I'm scanning across the map right here. But wherever I was, it was negative 16. And I remember that was the only time in my life that I started feeling like the water in my tear ducts, like starting to freeze. And I was like, holy shit, this is bizarre. Yeah, like it burns your face. Like being outside, it's not a fun feeling. And you just, so when it's like that, when the conditions are that harsh, basically you just, you're at home, you get in your car, turn the heater on full blast,

drive to the gym, run into the gym and train still. Yeah, yeah, that's about it. I probably will wear like a hoodie for like the first half of me, like trying to warm up. It's super cold. Um, and then also I like, I'm a part-time university student, so I have to just like bear down, run outside, like run to my classes. It's super not fun, but I try and make it as minimal, minimal outdoors as possible. You must see some amazing outfits on campus, like people just completely bundled up, right? Oh, yeah. I see the full snowsuit and I'm the complete opposite. I wear my Nike slides, like sandals, all year round. So I'm a socks and sandals person. It doesn't matter if there's five feet of snow on the ground, I'm in my sandals.

So people look at me and they're probably like, what the hell? They think you're a jackass from the States. They're like, oh, this idiot's from California. She's an exchange student. Yeah. Yeah. They probably think this is my first time ever there. And I know what's going to happen every year. I'm like, oh, I got to go to school today. Oh, I'm wearing sandals. I'm not going to leave myself enough time to walk indoors. So I will go outside. And you live in a town where like someone would like fill their backyard up with water and have like, like people have their own little ice skating rinks, right? And their yards and shit. Yeah. We did that one year. We have like a bunch of space back in our backyard. So we've done that before, but it's pretty typical. Yeah. When I was talking to Chris Cooper and he

said he had a full ice skating rink in his backyard during the winter, I couldn't even like – I mean that's like for a Californian, that's like – I mean even in the winter, it's like every 100 miles, there will be a place where they poured water so that you can – and they have to still keep it really, really cold, right, mechanically so that people can ice skate. I mean, like ice skating is like – it's unfathomable to do it outside here except maybe like for the coldest two weeks of the year. And then still there's like a machine keeping it frozen. It's nuts. And you don't have those machines. You just fill your backyard with water and skate. Yeah. And like from where I live, I think there's like three outdoor rinks within like a 20-minute walk from me. So that's like the main thing that we do.

Like we have skating rinks everywhere. So that's like the, that's the place to, that's where you hang out in the winter in Winnipeg outdoor rinks. How old are you? 21. And, um, you don't have any tattoos. I don't know. Me neither. Me neither. I know. It's the minority now. Yeah. When I was a kid, if you had a tattoo, it meant something. You had a naked girl on your forearm or a teardrop on your eye or a spiderweb on your elbow. And you always smoked a cigarette or had cigarettes rolled up in your sleeve. Now it's – I don't know what it means now. Actually, I do know what it means now,

but I don't want to get into that. Yeah. None for me so far, but we'll see. Still 21. Um, and, uh, and in piercings though, you've got, you, you, you've gotten, uh, beyond the one, one piercing in your ear. Yeah. I like my ears pier pierced i have three in right now i like the big stuff the big hoops and will you wear those um during during your performance at the games so this is where like i've been testing some stuff out because all right hey that wasn't this for all you people listening i told you that wasn't a stupid question it's not a stupid question because frying out different jewelry all week to see what I can wear and what's probably a bad idea. So the ones I have now, I just bought specifically for.

So I think they're a go. The necklace was not good clean and jerking today. I like stabbed myself a couple of times. So I think the necklace will have to go. But I think earrings are OK. Even on the handstand walk? Even on the handstand walk. Yeah. I mean, I'll probably chicken out and take them out, but I wore them for semifinals, wore them for quarters. So probably I'll take them out just

to be safe. But if it was up to me, I'd wear them all the time. And what will you do with your hair? Will you wear your hair like up pretty tight? So I have specific hairstyles for specific movements. So if I'm skipping or if I'm doing ring muscle-ups, it has to be a low ponytail. If I'm doing any type of like lifting, it can be up high on my head. I don't know. So it'll probably be mixed up quite a bit. I don't have one specific look.

What about if you're doing GHG sit-ups? I never understood the women that like to have the hair come flying over in their face in every rep. I don't like that either. So it will be low for GHDs for sure. And people, just so you know, I don't really care what she does with her hair. I just didn't want to be accused of being sexist because I talked to Colton Merton about his hair so much and you guys were starting to call me sexist because I only talked to men about their hair. Oh, it's a big deal. I have to to think about it. Like hairstyles for each event. It's not about what it looks good. It's, is it going to fall out? You know, is it going to stay whip you in the eye, catch you in the armpit? Like there's so many things. Nah, you want to look good too. You want to look good. You want to look good. All those

cameras on you, all those people. Um, 21 years old. You said you're in school. What are you doing there? I'm slowly chipping away. I'm part-time at a degree in physical education. I'm in the faculty of kinesiology. I take two courses a semester and I'm slowly getting that done. Someone else was a kinesiology major we interviewed. Let's test Brian here. I think it was, it wasn't, it wasn't a physiology.

No, someone did kinesiology and I said, oh, it's, it's Medeiros. Cause I asked him what, what is kinesiology? Remember that? There you go. Justin Medeiros. See, Brian knows a lot of stuff and he's got a great brain for memory but i i'll give myself the first point of this podcast um and then what do you do with that did you become a teacher

so that was like the original plan um yeah now i'm not too sure if that fits like the lifestyle I want to live. Like I want to just train all the time. So I don't know if a teacher is like a good fitting job. Like it's definitely not. So I went into this being like, yeah, I'd love to be a teacher. That was way before I even knew what CrossFit was. So now I'm just going to finish it, finish my degree and then see what happens. But that wouldn't be

the plan for a very long time. Did you have any aspirations or professional aspirations before being a teacher? Like when you were a kid, did you want to be a cop or a ballerina or a firefighter? Like, yeah, so it was a little bit like smaller, but I grew up playing volleyball. So I was a gymnast when I was really young. So I've always been competitive, but then I got into the volleyball scene around like 13. So that's kind of where I was like, I want to make a university team. Like I want to play like that was kind of a big deal. Um, so that was kind of my goal. My goal was to go to university, but to be on the women's team for volleyball. So that was kind of my big thing. And you've abandoned that goal?

I have. I have. I made it. And it was kind of shitty. So I left. And what were the aspects of it that stunk? So I love the sport. I grew up just, I played for the junior team all the way from 13 until I was 16, 17. And that was a blast. The sport itself is like, will forever like hold a special place in my heart. Like I love it. The environment and the coaching was probably the worst environment I've ever been in, in my entire life. It was not a healthy place to be at all. So I spent two years playing there. My first year was okay. Like it was my first year on the team. I was still 17 and I was playing with some really good players that were 26. So the age gap was crazy. I learned a lot of stuff.

And we had a really good team my first year. But the environment was super unhealthy just to be around 24 seven, but I had, but it was my goal, right. And I made it and I was like, I'm going to just stick it out. I'm going to be here. Really glad I found something else. You know, I can't remember his name, but there's an Olympic downhill skier that I interviewed when I was running the CrossFit podcast and he didn't train with the Olympic team. He said the culture and the training was atrocious. He said that basically that it was a one size fits all. And that basically it was like, it was hurting people physically injuring people. And it was not, it was not a healthy training environment. And then obviously when you say that the – my words, not yours, that the culture was poor.

And I think of women's sports. My brain obviously goes to a really dark spot. Like I start hearing the cliché stories about, hey, you're too fat and making girls anorexic and shit like that. Is it all of that? Is it the training, training the social the cultural or yeah it was kind of just a mix of all i i'm lucky i didn't really have any type of horrible uh like super super bad situations happen but it was more just um uh like more mentally abusive that was probably more of the we had a leadership uh coach that was just mentally abusive every day you would show up to practice and you just didn't know if you were going to

leave there crying upset if you got kicked off the team if you yourself were going to quit like every day was a toss-up like what is this three-hour practice going to be like am i going to show up there and and i I'm just going to hand balls for the whole three hours. Cause he's mad at me today or, or am I going to get yelled at? I'm going to go home and cry. It was just bad, just a bad scene. And it's hard because we all love the sport. It's hard to be on a team when the leadership is aggressive like that makes you. Right. Let me ask you this and I'm, and I'm not trying to be hostile. I'm just putting this in perspective.

We interviewed a guy, David Eberhard. He was a TEDx speaker. He runs the psychiatric ward in Stockholm, Sweden, and he's been there since 1986. Sweden. And he's been there since 1986. And he said that for the first, I don't know, 20 years of his profession there, the people and the clients that would come through there, the horrors that they lived were fucking just like over the top, like the worst shit that you could possibly have into humanity. Now he says the clientele is people who went through a breakup or their dog died or their car got stolen. And basically he was saying that there has become this desire for comfort in society and safety that's paralyzed society, that we're unable to do a risk assessment. And so the easiest word to say is we've become soft.

I totally agree. But not in this circumstance, you're saying. Not in this circumstance. I full heartedly – I'm just checking. I'm just checking. You're being a good sport too. And I'm not accusing you of it at all.

I just want to feel it out because your generation takes a lot of your generation. The generation before you is taking a lot of brunt for that. They're like, come on, pussies. Yeah. So I totally agree with you 100%. I definitely think our generation is super soft. I think this case scenario, you can like there's in all sports and in all teams, you have to put up with some shit.

Like if you want to be good, like you got to like you gotta like yeah you're gonna get yelled at some days like yeah you're but i think when it relates directly to the sport and because someone wants to make you a better human being a better player at what you do that's coming from a different place um what we experienced on the team was coming from a really negative place. And it was more, I'm going to degrade you as a human being because I hate you. This has nothing to do with your, it was a, it was a very, very crazy place to be a part of. How long do you think it was like that? Do you think that your coaches there were also treated like that? So they were mimicking it, or this is just someone's own pathology, psychodrama they brought to this situation?

This has actually been going on for a really long time with the university that I played for. And there's been a lot of history behind it. Just for some reason, the leadership has never been able to change. No matter these things keep happening year after year,

it's been the same leadership for a really long time. So people know that these things are going to happen. It's a very old school mentality, um, and type of leadership that was there. Um, so we're definitely not the first or the last group that has experienced it and gone through it. It's crazy because once the person who's at the top is like that, the people below them are scared shitless to speak up to, right? So let's say I'm the assistant coach and the coach is acting like that. I'm just toeing the line, right? We just fire everyone below them and then we just – right? Yeah.

That's kind of the situation. Yeah, or you get brainwashed or – yeah. Well, how is your CrossFit coach? Is he or she abusive? He's the best. He's the best. Okay, good. And who is that?

Who is your coach? His name is Justin Weber. And is he in Canada? Yeah. So he owns the gym that I first walked into, I guess. And what's the name of it? Team Robo Strength and Conditioning. So I guess we And what's the name of it? Uh, team robo strength and conditioning. So I guess we're not technically an affiliate. And, um, so why did you walk in there?

Um, so I was transitioning away from volleyball. So the last year, so I played two years. So in 2018, I decided that it was going to be my last season, but I was going to ride it out because I don't quit, like suck it up. I'm going to finish the season and quit at the end. So it was riding out the year. Uh, but I was, but I guess the summer before that season started, I was like, I want to get fit. Like I didn't really play too, too much. I was a rookie. I was like, I was just like, ah, I want to do something. One of my girlfriends, one of my best girlfriends that I, that was on the team with me, she's like, you should try CrossFit. Like I do it in the off season. Like, I think you'd be good at it. And I'm like, what is that? Like, I have no idea what

that is. And she's like, I think you'd be good. Just look it up. So I looked it up and I was like, oh, cool. Like that looks super sweet. Um, so I Google maps the closest gym to my house and I, and I emailed Justin. I was like, hi, my name's Sydney. Um, I really want to join your CrossFit gym for the summer, but I can, I can't stay for very long because I have to go back and play volleyball. So he was like, yeah, okay. Sounds good. See you tomorrow. You bring your stuff and you can work out. And I was like, sweet. So I drove to the gym and met him, hopped in, did a WOD. And then I never left. And that basically long story short. hopped in, did a WOD, and then I never left. Basically, long story short.

Wow. And when did you realize that it was a fitness program that you could also compete in? It didn't take me very long to realize that that's what I wanted to do. I'm going to say two months. It was a very uh, fast transition into it. So I did it for the summer and I did it every day and I would do class. So I would, um, show up, I would do my one hour class. And then I'd be like, so I kind of want to do more. And he'd be like, awesome. Come back this evening and I'll write you some programming. So that's kind of how it started. I did class for probably like a month. And then he was just like, yeah, I'll write you some programming. So that's kind of how it started. I did class for probably like a month and then he was just like, yeah, I'll write you some more stuff. I was like, I just want to come back. So I spent my whole summer, um, in yeah, I think 2018 just working out lots. And then when I had to go back to play volleyball, that's when I had to

balance the traveling, the practicing, and then, uh, trying to get my workouts in. But I knew early on, especially during that last year, that my focus was training. And I just had to kind of get myself through the season so I could just focus on one thing after that. And you were living at home with your parents at this time? Yes, still am. And how far was your school from your home? School from home is like 20, 25 minutes. And the gym is like 10 minutes on the way.

So it worked out really good. Oh, okay. Yeah. So I would just like leave. So your house, the gym is kind of equidistant from your house and your school. Yeah, it's like a nice halfway point. We've recently moved locations, but back when school was in person, not during online stuff, that was perfect. This fucked up world.

Yeah. So, go ahead. Yes. When you first looked up CrossFitfit online do you remember what you saw that you thought was cool like did you see the crossfit games were you reading about the methodology yeah i saw katrin work out and i was like damn i want to be like her no word of a lie and to this day she's like the person that i just look up to and i'm like oh my gosh i saw katrin work out i was like i could do that I totally want to do that. I'm going to do that.

Have you met Katrin? I saw her at Waterpalooza and I was too chicken to go up and say hi. So no. Oh, you should have just gone up and said hi. She's so easy. I know. I guess I'll see her soon. Yeah, you will. Yeah. I hope you crush her. Thanks. Yeah, you will. Yeah. I hope you crush her. Um, so you're welcome. Um, so, so, uh, so you, so you, so you find Katrin and then you do CrossFit and you are at the gym and your coach starts doing extra programming for you. God, I'd love to, I'd love to hear his answer to this next question.

Was he tickled by you? Because coaches love people like you. I mean, they love people who are completely out of shape too, right? Because you get the most success and progress out of them. But was he tickled by you? Was he like, oh, this is interesting. I can take this piece of stone and start really chipping at it. Honestly, I think, I think I did surprise him out of the gate because I do remember, um, showing up there being like, I want to, I wanted to do the granite games online qualifier.

Um, and that was just 2018. Yeah. So, and I was only two weeks into CrossFit and I told him that I wanted to try and he was probably, and this is like two weeks into like meeting him. So like, he's like my best friend now. Like we are so close and he's my coach. I spend almost every hour all day with him. So like probably to talk to him about like me saying that back then, he'd probably laugh so hard, but he probably thought I was crazy. But I was like, no, I really want to do this.

I want to try. And I had like a lot of skills that i just naturally had like i just had ring muscle ups i just had bar muscle ups so things were just like in that sense i could it was not good i did not place well at all but that wasn't the point i just wanted to try so i think he was kind of like yeah like i think we can actually do something here so it was good I think I think people were really liking you in the interview until that last sentence now half the people hate you I just had I just had ring muscle ups come on people cut her a break it's not her fault so I was a gymnast I was a gymnast so I have like a lot of upper body strength just naturally I've never bar muscle ups would, of course I had bar muscle ups.

That's what I did. Ring muscle ups. It's just a little bit different, but. But you put on significant muscle. I mean, you have a whole parade of, I mean, your, your, your, your Instagram looks like you're a bathing suit model and you're in your, in your, you love the going to the lake or whatever people do in Canada and your body has changed tremendously.

It has. It has. Yeah. I've actually- Like especially in the last two years, a year. Yeah. I've put on a lot of muscle, but I ended up dropping like 20 pounds, which is crazy. I think it was just underneath.

Wow. Yeah. Wow. Yeah. Because you were never, you always looked fit. I can't believe you lost 20 pounds because you look 20 pounds heavier all, you always looked fit. That's I can't believe you lost 20 pounds cause you look 20 pounds heavier. Thank you. Thank you. That's what everyone says. And I'm like, that's awesome. Um, you're welcome. See that people see how

CrossFit girls are. You tell them their ass got big and they're like, thank you. It's like, yeah. When people say like, yeah, you, you, and I'm like, yeah, I wasn't even trying. I think it was just the intensity and the amount I was working out compared to how you work out to play volleyball. You don't really have to be fit to play volleyball. You've got to be good at volleyball. There's not a lot of fitness involved there. Man, that's easy for you to say. I hear what you're saying, and I believe you.

But, man, volleyball is hard, especially beach volleyball. Beach volleyball is a different animal. But I think, yeah, just getting into the gym and especially talking to Justin and being like, I don't really want to do class. Like, can I come back in the evening and just spend like three hours here and you can just write me workouts till I go home? Like, that was different. And my body just like changed without me even really trying. In the past year, I've definitely put more focus on like now I count macros and I do weigh myself just because I have a sweet spot like I like to stay at. But other than that.

How tall are you? 5'6". And how much do you weigh? Like 153 to 55. Off season, 57. And how much were you weighing when you played volleyball? 175. Holy shit.

You held that well. Thank you. That's incredible. When you went back after this first few weeks of training at CrossFit and you went back to volleyball, did your volleyball, was your volleyball better? No. My volleyball wasn't better. I was a lot fitter though. Like I could last in rallies longer.

Like my just pure like, I don't know what to call it. Endurance? Endurance, grit, just ability to want to stay in the rally. So much better. But skill-wise, it doesn't translate. Did anyone notice? Yeah, everyone noticed. The only person I did notice was my volleyball coach

because I had to keep that a secret. So I had to really hide the bruises on my legs while I learned how to clean my collarbone. It was a mess. Like it looked like I got beat, like my legs, me trying to clean. Oh, that was the funniest shit I've ever. It was so bad. Like my legs were just bruised so bad. My collarbone, I would like hit myself in the face with like my weight vest. Like it was just bad because I was just going like nuts. I was just like, let's just do this. So I was just going crazy. And I, sorry, Brian, go ahead. Before you went to Justin's gym, had you ever used a barbell only for back squats? So no. Did, uh, did the, the like technique aspectslympic lifting come easily for you or did it

take a while to kind of dial in because now i think it's one of the things you're you actually excel at thank you thank you uh yeah that was not a smooth transition that was rough for a really long time um it's still if yeah my clean is still a work in progress my my snatch was really bad at the beginning like really bad. My overhead mobility was terrible. Like I have decently broad shoulders and just anything overhead was like rough. So snatching was not great, but I slowly worked at that lots and they've gotten better. But the beginning was not good.

Yeah, you have a swimmer's body. I do, but I actually... This is actually another funny thing. I'm not a swimmer. And I would actually consider myself not great. And I know, Brian, you've been hyping me up for my swimming. I appreciate that. And I've been laughing.

Oh, shit. Kill two birds with one stone. She sucks at swimming and you're a horrible analyst. Tommy, tomorrow. No, no. We'll see. We'll see how she does in the swimming. I have confidence in her. We'll see. I'm not bad. But, Stefan, when she's saying she's gotten good at snatching, she might be selling herself short because, if I'm not mistaken, Sydney, you actually had the best score across any woman who did the virtual semifinals in the snatching workout. I did. I did.

Wow. Oh, you showed me this, Brian. 54. Yeah, that was cool. And like the best girls in Europe were in the low 50s and she had beaten all of them. Tell me about the event. Tell me specifically what the event was. What did you have to do? all of them. Tell me about the event. Tell me specifically what the event was. What did you have to do? Um, so it was, this was event four. So it was, um, 10 reps at 85 pounds. And then you got a minute rest, 10 reps at one 25 minute rest, 10 reps at one 45 minute rest. And then it was max reps of snatches at 165 until the 10 minute mark. So you had to get to those 30 as quickly as you could with three minutes of rest built in. And then you just got to go nuts and lift 165 as many times until the 10 minutes hit.

And you did 24. Yeah. And that was really fun for me because I practiced that event and I, my hands were ripped and I was bleeding and it was really bad. And I was upset and I was crying and I was like, this sucks. Like that, like I was just upset because when you practice something, you were like, I want to do well at this. And I honestly didn't know I was that proficient at snatching before I did it. So it was really eyeopening to me to be like, you know what? I can compete with these girls. I can move a barbell, especially since snatching wasn't one of the things that I thought I was good at. And my practice went really, really bad. I got like 10 reps, but my hands were like bleeding

and I was wearing white pants and I was just like wiping it all over my legs. It was really bad. So I was like determined to go into it and be like redemption. We got this. So when you tested that workout, you got 40 and then in the, and when it was showtime, you got 54. Yeah. Were your hands still cut up? Not at all. No, that made the biggest difference. Brian, how long did you have them how long before did you give them to heal how i mean it couldn't how did they heal um i i don't know i i i sleep with gloves on uh to make them heal quicker wait what's that like neosporin in there what do you mean yeah i mix like polysporin vaseline preparation h like that hemorrhoid cream that heals your hands super quick. Never heard of it.

Super quick. So like if you have hemorrhoids, that stuff, because it like stops the bleeding or it clogs. Yeah, I know what it is. I'm 49. Yes. So I put that all over it and then I sleep with gloves on and it just heals your hands like that. Like it's crazy.

So like three days, four days, I just wasn't stupid. Didn't do anything on the rack. You're fucking smart, man. I'm so impressed. You're smart and a hard worker. Brian, what's your max snatch? 175 is my max successful snatch. I think one time I was at Joe Westerlin's gym, and I think I'm lying when I tell you I snatched 154.

I think maybe I weighed 154, and that was my I tell you I snatched 154. I think maybe I weighed 154 and that was my goal and I snatched like 149. That's pretty decent. Just say 150. Those are strange weights. 149. Because I was creeping. I was trying to get every, you know what I mean? I was trying to get every last...

You had the fractionals on there. Yeah, all that stuff. Well, it was 148 and then I weighted. It was really dusty gym, so I gave myself an extra pound. Definitely counts. I'd say that counts. So this workout, what do you think about the fact, Brian, tell me if I'm wrong, that every single fucking girl at the CrossFit Games now knows who you are because of this workout? Is that true, Brian?

I would say it's, I mean, if you look at the other women that did the best on this workout there, a lot of them are going to be at the Games. There's a couple not. Like the second girl in Canada, Kalarina Key, on that workout didn't make the Games. But if my memory is correct, I think Laura Horvath and Katrin Davidsdottir won their respective semifinals on that one, and neither one of them beat Sydney. So that probably caught their eye. Yeah. I remember going into it, um, knowing Katrin's score, uh, and then knowing what I did in practice. Um, and I knew that my practice was not an accurate representation of what I could do. So I had Katrin's score in my head that entire workout. And I was like, you got this,

you can do it and just chip away. And away. And it ended up going super well. That's probably my favorite memory so far, even though it was on a virtual competition. Just I had all of my people from my gym come and watch. And it was just a really it was a really good event. Super fun, too. How many seconds did you have left after your final rep? I think I actually I think I failed my last rep. I think I only failed that one.

So a couple seconds. Trying to squeeze it in, yeah. Yeah. So I – yeah. I failed the last rep. And when you say failed, it didn't go overhead or you caught it without your arms locked out? Do you remember what the fail looks like? Yeah, my arms were noodles.

My left arm just bent. My arms were like, you're done. Gotcha. Yeah. I'm going to give her a 55. I'm giving her a 55 My arms were like, you're done. Gotcha. Yeah. I'm going to give her a 55. I'm giving her a 55. Sweet. Just to set her even further from the pack.

A 55. Thanks. If that would have been a class, she would have got a 55. Have you made it to the games before? Nope. Year one. You didn't even make it last year when like a bunch of people made it who I don't really think made it? No, so last...

That was two years ago, I think. Yeah. 2019 was that year when everyone made it, but last year was my first competitive season. Because, yeah, 2018, I was just introduced to it and I was playing volleyball. Or, yeah, 2018, 2019. And then last year, 2020, I went to Wadapalooza, but I didn't make the elite division. I made the RX division, so I competed there. We want to talk about that in a little while.

Yeah, that's very interesting. And then I was going to Atlas Games, but that was the event that got canceled. So that was my season, Wadapalooza, Atlas, and then we were going to see what happens. But no, I've been to like one in person event. Is the Atlas games, the one that got canceled. Is that the one everyone keeps talking about, Brian, that you told me about where like you got, everyone showed up there and then they're like, go home. Yeah. And I was there and Sydney was there. All the athletes were there. And actually of the women in the field, she was one of the two or three I was most excited to see that weekend. I did not get to

see, obviously. Did you guys meet? No. Even if Brian saw you, he wouldn't come up and say hi to you because he's really shy. But he claims that he doesn't want to disturb the athletes, but really he's... I would be more likely to say something

before the competition starts. And in that case, I actually might have said something just because I did talk to her family and friends in Miami. That's so funny. I didn't even know that. Like, I wish. What was I doing? Like, I don't even know.

You were getting ready to compete. Oh, maybe. That is cool. You did talk to her family, Brian? Yes. They stood out in the crowd, my friends and they were whoever, wherever the support group was. Yeah. Your friends, maybe your coach and stuff from the gym. They stood out, they were all wearing the same stuff. And I was just asking, I was like,

you know, who's this person that you're cheering for? And so they started telling me about you. And then I was like, Oh, okay. I'll check it out. Cause I'm always trying to, to learn about more athletes and see the up and comers in the sport, especially. And I started looking and I was like, oh wow, she's doing really well. And then you obviously won the competition, but you know, it's in the RX division and the elite field is very competitive. I started to think, I wonder, cause a lot of the workouts were the same. I was like, I wonder how she would have done in the elite division. So and then I saw your name pop up on the Atlas Games and I was working for them. Let me interrupt you here.

What do you mean? So the elite division is like you had to qualify. You had to do some pre-workout and then they stuck you in a certain class. Yeah. So we had the qualifiers that were, I think, like five months before the event. So it was like a lot of time before. But yeah, so I didn't finish in the top, what was it, 30 or 40? I don't really know.

Is that good, Brian? Sorry to interrupt you, Sydney. Should people get to choose which category they go in? Or do you like this method that they do? No, I think it's okay to have the various divisions. And actually, Wadapalooza is one of the few competitions where you'll occasionally see people in the second tier, this RX division that Sydney was in, that will often show up at other sanctionals in the elite field. Man. I think it was in the elite field. Man. I think it was just a deep field of athletes. There was a lot of people in the elite division.

The RX division was a big thing. And actually, she's not even the only person who was in the RX division at Guadalupe, who's competing at the CrossFit Games this year. Guillermo Mejeros, the Brazilian guy, was also in the RX division at Guadalupe and won it for the men's side. And he's made the games this year too. That's a little more understandable though, right? Because he's from South America where the competition

is not as stiff. I mean, Sidney's in there with animals. Yes. Sorry, Guillermo. I don't mean to take a dig at you, Guillermo. That's not a dig at you, Guillermo. Sidney's been drinking that Winnipeg water. Okay, so sorry to interrupt your story. So she's in that division.

She's in the baby division, and she's not in the big boy division. Okay, go on. Sorry, Brian. I interrupted your story. No, and I looked at her. She'd won the division by over 100 points. And so I said, wow wow she's got a lot of really good event finishes here and some of the workouts were the same and so i started to

to look at them and this is what i found out and this is what when i started to say okay i need to know who this person is so in this there was a rowing workout it was only rowing and on that workout she beat brooke wells tia claire toertumi, and Carrie Pierce. And it was identical? The baby division and the big girl division was the same workout? Wow. Holy shit. I think it was just a 12-minute max meter. Like it was disgusting.

Just 12 minutes max distance. Can she put in her bio on Instagram, I beat Tia at a workout? More than one, actually. I should, hey? Everything I can get. That might have been the only one that was exactly the same that she beat Tia in. But that workout was cool because every division from elite down to beginner and scaled even did the exact same workout. And you could actually rank the athletes from all divisions against each other because the workout was identical.

could actually rank the athletes from all divisions against each other because the workout was identical. And if I remember correctly, the winning, the best overall score didn't come from the elite division or the RX division. It actually came from the intermediate division because it's something that someone could potentially specialize in. But it was kind of cool for the smaller divisions to have that opportunity to do a workout, the same as some of the best in the world and see where they stacked up in that particular thing. And what else? How else did she do in the other ones?

Were there any others that were comparable? Did she beat up on any of the other big girls? I wonder if she even knows any of this. So I didn't know the rowing one. That one's pretty cool. So I think on the next one that was the same was called the pump sesh triplet, and they had to do dumbbell bench press dumbbell thrusters and rope climbs maybe legless rope climbs i can't remember yeah and her finishing time was was legless rope climbs and her finishing time was exactly between hayley adams and brooke wells with the same weights on the dumbbells yeah wow wow so then then they did – it was a two-part workout. And there were six workouts that she ended up doing that were the same as the elite division.

And in the elite division, she would have placed 13th or better in all six workouts. And it would have – the other ones weren't comparable. But just across those six workouts, her scores would have been good enough for her to qualify to the CrossFit Games that year. And let me – were people qualifying from that workout to the CrossFit games? From that competition? Yeah. That was that sanctional year. Emily.

Ah, see, so that, that kind of, that's interesting. I don't, I'm not Mr. O'Keefe. I'm not shitting on your event at all. Please do not take it this way, but it's kind of a bummer that the qualifier puts you in a category as opposed to letting people sign up for whatever decision they want to be in. Stand by. Boy, didn't I turn Spider-Man on for you? What are you doing? I feel like my screen is progressively getting darker. Say it out loud loud i can't hear you lights so i'm like oh no is it

gonna get dark it's scary i think okay is it gonna get dark outside ever over there take a bite take a bite of your sandwich or something yeah we're slowly dimming but i think it'll be okay sorry i put a movie on for the kids no i was someone else was supposed to watch my kids for the hour and a half i spoke to you sydney but they couldn't do it. So I nuked them with a movie. It's like heroin for kids. I usually don't do that when the sun's out. Do as I say, not as I do. Okay.

So what do you think about that? The fact that like, hey, if she would have went there, is that on – does that – why don't they just let people choose their own category? Why don't they let everyone just choose whatever they want? they just let people choose their own category? Why don't they let everyone just choose whatever they want? What would you think O'Keefe would say if you strolled up to Wadapalooza and said, I'm ready to throw down with Pat Vellner? Me personally? Yeah, I see your point. I see your point. So you're saying there's like some guy who's just a crazy fan boy would be like, hey, I don't care how I do. I just pray and that I get in the lane next to Pat Vellner so I can smell his B.O. while he does Fran. I get it.

You're right. They do. The qualifier is that competition. Everyone can sign up for the qualifier. And based on doing the qualifier, they've seed you so that you're competing against people of a relative physical proportion. What happened in Sydney's case is I would say is an extreme outlier. physical proportion. What happened in Sydney's case is, I would say, is an extreme outlier, but also

who knows if she would have done that well against those girls. That RX competition might have been exactly what she needed. Maybe she would have done even better because she would have pushed harder next to them. That also could be true. I think it was a great first competition for me because

I don't know. I guess I'm getting thrown into like kind of the same situation now going to the games but looking back then i didn't really want my first really ever competition to just be um in the elite division i went to can east games actually that was my very first one and that was a super small comp so that was still in person but that wasn't anything close to waterpalooza so i guess how did you do at can east super mediocre like seventh out of like 16 chicks and everyone was just kind of like meh but i mean back then they were not meh to me they were like these like these girls are

good and and how long was it before you went to waterpalooza after can east um uh july august like a year and a half so you've really you've really exploded your body is just responding incredibly to the to the crossfit protocol i think so i think so it's it hasn't been a lot of time but we've we've put in a lot of work and i think just also just trying to put in a lot of focus to it like i've just trying to put in a lot of focus to it. Like I've just kind of taken everything else out of my life that I didn't really want to focus on and just kind of put all my focus onto this. So it's crazy what can happen when you really put all your eggs in one basket and kind of go for it.

Do you have a significant other? Do you have a boyfriend or a girlfriend? I do not have either. And did you have either when you were, when you started CrossFit? Cause you're saying you took out things that were distract you from, from, from, I'm just imagining you going, yo, you've been replaced. So no, I, I haven't had a serious, uh, boyfriend for a while. Okay. Yeah. Just, that's good. That's good. Good's good. Good job. And so I want to go back to the Granite Games for a second. Can we do that in your first two weeks of training? Go ahead, Brian.

Sorry. I want to go back to the Granite Games. Okay. So you tell your coach you want to go to the Granite Games. Did he even know what the Granite Games were? I think so. Yeah. Okay.

And then did you actually enter those? Did you actually go to that competition? Yeah, but I didn't qualify. Okay. So I did the online. So you did the online qualifier. Yeah, I did the online qualifier, and I think I learned how to do toes-to-bar during it. And so when you're 13 and you start playing volleyball, you can be like, okay, I can get good at this. But here you are.

I don't know. Let's say you were 19 then. You're a 19-year-old. You're a mature woman. You're way behind the curve if you wanted to play professional tennis. Was there any party that's like, hey, I'm late to the game on this shit. Like that, like, this is just going to be a hobby. Like, there's no way I'm going to make it to the, to the pinnacle of the sport. Um, I don't know. I might be crazy. I didn't think that. No, I, I knew I didn't really

know much about anything. I didn't really know any athletes. I wasn't really involved in the sport. I just kind of was like, this is really fun. I like this. I just want to get good at it. So I wasn't really too worried about much. I just I just knew I wanted to be doing it and I knew I wanted to get good. So I didn't really know that people were older or younger or that some teens had been doing this for a while. I was just kind of like, I'm doing this. this i'm 19 have a good feeling about it and when you didn't qualify for granite games i'm assuming you didn't even really like you weren't heartbroken you're like oh that was a great experience that was so fun doing the online qualifier yeah like when i do the open like i know i'm not going to the games oh yeah 100 i had no expectations i just wanted to uh kind of get like a good benchmark um and then we started training for my, for the open. And that was kind of like a nice introduction. And then it's like, okay, this is all the things you really suck at. Let's get ready for the open. So that was kind of my focus. And that was 2018, the 2018 open?

No, 2019. 2019. Yeah. I didn't do the open in 2018. I don't even think I was in CrossFit for then. Yeah, because I explained in May. So the Open would have been over. So 19 was my first Open. And how did she do that year, Brian? I'm not sure.

Okay, Sydney? Bad. Maybe? 700th? That's bad? Well, now it is. But, like, back then, I had no expectations. It was ground zero.

So I think it was like 715th or something. And that's with all the big girls? Yeah. Wow. That was her worldwide finish. Yes, 712th. Holy shit. That is insane.

I did the Open in 2014 for the first time i think i finished 51 000 and that's pretty good dude holy shit um and uh so so after you do the open that year are you at the time were you still kind of naive like were you happy with that were you still like ignorant to your games aspirations i had no games aspirations really at that point i did i had long-term games aspirations i wanted to make the games by 26 that was my goal so i was by 2026 yeah by the time i was 26 years old so yeah 26 20 26 that was my long term I go if I can make it by then I'm good so me finishing 712th I was a-okay I was like let's just fix all the things that I'm not great at so that's kind of just where my head lies this is a crazy story when did when did you get game games uh aspirations do you remember was it sometime after that granite games and doing the open in 2019

it crept in it was right after um i think it was while i was training for the open i was just having so much fun i was like this is fun like i all i wanted to do was wake up every day and go to the gym and just train like that's all i wanted and i was like that's what games athletes do like i could like i would love that i want to do that i want to and we're and we're parents like, yo, Sydney, go get a fucking job at Starbucks so you can get health insurance. What are you doing? Yeah. Yeah, I did. I did have to work a little bit.

I didn't want to, but it was kind of like you should probably make some money. You can't just be at the gym all day. So worked a little. And where did you work? I worked at a plant store. Like a nursery? Yeah, like a little bit. And where did you work? I worked at a plant store. Like a nursery? Yeah, like a plant nursery. I like sold trees.

Sorry to anyone who bought trees. I definitely gave you the wrong tree. That's what I did. How big was this nursery? How big was this nursery? Very big. Very big. Like, I don't know.

Like, it basically is like a little like farm for like trees and plants. God, I would have loved to have had that job as a kid. I love plants. Basically just like water plants all day and like help people load trees into their trucks. And what kind of, um, what kind of fruit trees can you grow in Canada? Like what, what grows there? We can grow apples, pears, cherries. Okay. I don't know. Yeah. Cherries. I think apples, pears, cherries okay i don't know yeah cherries i think apples pears cherries

crab apples you can't eat that though right i don't know i have apple trees and cherry trees and my cherry trees don't do so good maybe it's because i'm in california um wow that's awesome that you worked in a nursery you're just scoring you're scoring points with me do you crossfit and you worked in a nursery yeah You live at home with your parents. Okay. So then do you tell Justin this also? Does Justin know that this new crazy chick in his gym has gone from the Granite Games to now she wants to be a professional games athlete? So I never actually – I don't think I've ever said the words to him. I want to make

it to the games. I think that was just kind of, he knew like it was kind of mutual. Like we both knew that that was our goal, but we never really talked about it. Uh, did you have any peers in the gym who have the same goals? No. Okay. So, so you're an outlier. Maybe one. One training partner I had early on did have long-term goals as well to make it. And does Justin know what he's doing? I know he knows how to work on really nice cars, but now he's working on a car that has to go so fast that the wheels could come off. He knows? It was definitely a learning experience for both of us um because i'm his first athlete that has made it to the games he's coached athletes to regionals before

um but i'm i'm his first games athlete i guess so that's kind of cool to say but yeah it was it's been a learning experience for both of us and we've both just been kind of figuring it out along the way, especially this past like year and a half, um, after the last open, because I guess the second open I did was the one that was twice in one year, the 2019 to 2020, that one came around really quick. Um, so it's honestly just been, um, every day we just kind of, just by working with each other, we figured it out, figured each other out, figured out what doesn't work for me, what does work really well. And we've been able to like make big crop, big progress in like a short amount of time.

And I don't, it didn't mean to make the insinuation by the way, that any coach knows what they're doing. But, um, so, so then you, you have these aspirations to go to the game and when you say you have these aspirations to go to the games is it actually even more than that is it like hey i'm gonna win the games like hey i want to go and win of course those are aspirations like i'd be crazy to say that i've that i would not want that like that is something that goes through my head 24 7 i think if you want to compete and you want to be the best, you would never strive for anything less than that. Um, I think step one was let's, let's make it there. Let's, let's do this thing first one step at a time. Um, but yeah, that, that goes through my head a lot and it did go

through my head a lot too. So like you would be in the shower and like you would you would just catch yourself thinking about like what it would be like to like oh thank you dave 100 yeah like like you're in the shower and as you pick up the bar of soap it's but it's really in your mind it's you taking the trophy from dave castro oh thank you dave oh 100 yeah yeah it's really like that huh yeah for me it is think about stuff all the time like that. I think that's how you motivate yourself and just kind of like stay disciplined in what you want. You just think about it 24-7. It broke my heart a little bit when we were interviewing Zach Watts. I'm sorry if it's wrong.

We were interviewing one of the male games competitors, and he had put in his signature future CrossFit Games champions. Games male games competitors and he had put in his signature future CrossFit Games champions and some people in his cohort laughed at him to the point where he took it out and when I when Brian and I talked to him I was like yo dude that means that's a good dream yeah so crazy that's you should have doubled down and written it twice two times CrossFit Games champion you know what I mean when someone laughs at you I mean can you imagine um elon musk telling his family he's gonna fucking build a rocket ship to go to mars like come on man yeah yeah i think stop doing the drugs yeah you gotta build shit you gotta you gotta aim pretty high because why not yeah i was telling i've been telling Brian we're going to take over the podcast space globally.

Definitely. I think you can. Starting with Sydney McAlishan. Did I say your name right? It's close. McAlishan. McAlishan. I'll take the blame on that one. I was not 100 percent sure. That's okay. McAlishan. You definitely were the closest, the closest for sure. I was definitely fine with Michael-ition, but it's Michael-ition.

Yeah. Michael-ition. And has anyone ever got that right? Michael-ition, like at any of these CrossFit events? No. Like in lane number three, Sydney, Michael-ition. No, no one's gotten it right. Shit, until we publish this, Brian and I are the only two people in the world who know this.

This is amazing. We might never publish this and and I are the only two people in the world who know this this is amazing we might never publish this and just keep it for yourself hoard that knowledge yeah I will I will do my best to make sure that people people learn how to say your name correctly thanks so you take 700th in the open in 2019 and then what happens after that in terms of your competition career um in terms of that the open was seven okay so that would have been in february right or was that the yeah that was in february april may and then there was one in october and then i went to canny's games and then i competed in the open so i got 712 went, went to CanEast, did okay, had a lot of fun, learned a lot of stuff. And then basically took like not a lot of time off, like a couple, like a week maybe.

And was just like, okay, I'm ready to train for the Open. And then we started training. You didn't have your feelings hurt in Canada? You're going a bunch against a bunch of Canadian chumps and you couldn't win it? You were like, fuck this, I I'm done I was fired up I think I actually I got dropped off at the airport and then I just was like can you drop me off at the gym I want to go work out so I think I just went straight there and I was like okay I'm ready like what's what's our game plan like the open is this many months away I want to do better so I'm I kind of need to be like pulled back a little bit

um but I think that's better than the opposite. Yeah, it's some froning and Fraser shit I'm hearing. Definitely some froning shit. Do you do weird shit like that? 10 o'clock at night, finish eating dinner, you're getting ready for bed and then you're like, actually, I got the keys to the gym. I'm going to go do something. You know what?

I would, but that's why I have a coach. So that's a really good thing for me because if it was up to me, I wouldn't know when to stop. No way. I'd work out exactly that. I'd sleep at the gym. I'd stay there just so I could work out. Do you ever think he's not giving you enough volume? I'm, I'd be more of like a high volume type of like training athlete. Um, there's some days where I'm like, holy shit, I don't know how I'm going to get this done. Um, but I do some days I'm like, I do have an active recovery day mixed into the week and I'm like itching to work out. And I'm like, oh my gosh, only one or two. I'm like, oh gosh, how can I make this day go by quicker? But I don't think it's, um, it's like fasting from working out you said sounds like one of my fasting days i'm like fuck i wish today would just blow by yeah but yours is that they're asking you not to

work out and what's an active recovery day like usually do one wad and it's just like cardio and it's not for time so it'll just be like a bunch of running wall a bunch of biking, burpees, stuff like that. Or I'll just ride the bike or I'll go to the track and do some running, stuff like that. And then lots of mobility. 80% of Americans can't even make it to the track, let alone get around it. Oh, gosh. oh my gosh oh okay so 2019 um uh the open and then so then basically then you go to canada east um you get whooped on you don't give a shit you come back and just start training again and then the 2020 open yeah that was a good open and and how I like this. That one went better. This is the first time you said you did something good. How did you do?

I can't remember. 150? 160? Mm-hmm. Somewhere between there. Yeah, right around there. Yeah. And why is that good?

That doesn't get you anything, does it? It doesn't get you anything, but I improved, and that's all that matters. Okay. Okay. Okay. And so then 2020 open comes in – go ahead, Brian. So I want to just see your perspective on this because sometimes – like there was one year in the Open where I placed 31,000. And the next year, I placed like 32,000.

So I actually regressed on the worldwide rankings. But I knew I had gotten fitter because I knew that in addition to however however, my scores were that my execution and understanding of where I could push and where I couldn't in the workouts was better. It only had been six months, but did you have any element of that? And, you know, in addition to the scores being better relative to the rest of the world? Like, I don't know, like, because it was such a short time period, like between. like because it was such a short time period like between no just like if you if you recognize that in addition to improving my overall placement just my my ability to see a workout and understand how i could execute it in it like were you developing that in addition to the skills the ability to attack a workout differently or understand your capacity within certain combinations and movements better? Oh, 100%. Yeah, I felt way more like my ability to understand how I could go through the workout was so much better.

So regardless of placement, I was like, I know I'm a better athlete. The higher placement was just an extra bonus. But I think regardless, I was way more confident in my ability to be like, see a workout, know my game plan, knew where I wanted to push and where I couldn't. So that was definitely something that was better. I call bullshit. She's just trying to make you feel good, Brian. Let me tell you what's going on here.

This fucking race car, Sydney Mickelson, God damn it. Mickelson. Mickelson. You got it. Mickelson Mickelson She wants This is the Daytona 500 And she took 8th place one year And 2nd place the second year And that's the only thing

She gives a fuck about Brian's over here Well I took 450th place in the Daytona 500 But I got 36 miles to the gallon Which is a little bit better than the last year. She don't give a fuck how many miles to the gallon she's getting. This chick wants to win. Honestly, I think it's a combination of both.

But I like your question, Brian, but this is like – she's a freak, dude. She's just a go. I think it is both. It definitely is both, but I am a competitive person, but I also am competitive with myself. So if I know that I put my best effort in, like, that's all that really matters at the end of the day. I just, I think regardless of placement, I would 100% just be doing what I'm doing. It doesn't matter how well I've done or that everything's going in the right direction. I just, I fell in love with the sport. So I think just regardless I'd be do, I'd just be right here doing this. Yeah. And you'd still be slinging trees too. Probably, but you're not, but I like it. I like it. I like it that an older gentleman like Brian friend is concerned with the gas mileage of the cars that run at the Daytona 500. That could be important. I feel like that.

Can you guys still see me? Should I move locations? Is it too dark? Now, Brian and I just look into each other's eyes, too. We never even looked at you once. Okay, good. Perfect. My coffee's kicking in.

My coffee's kicking in. My coffee is kicking in. My coffee is kicking in. Okay. So as Brian's uncovered, not only did you do better from 700th to 150th or 160th, but you were also pairing the workouts better, moving between the transitions better, pacing yourself better, more efficient at the movements. You were becoming better at the game of CrossFit. Yeah. Just overall understanding it better. I think that plays a big role. Okay. And then, so you're happy. And what happens after the 2020 Open? We get ready for Wadapalooza because I qualified in the summer.

So I did those quali- that's how far in advance they were. So I had done the qualifications to Wadapalooza in July or August, in August of 2020. Then I hit the open. And then after the open, it was, let's get ready for Wadapalooza in February. And then after the open, it was let's get ready for Guadalupalooza in February. When you leave Winnipeg in February to go to Guadalupalooza, how cold is it when you get on the airplane there? Oh, cold. It's freezing here.

Like negative 20 or some shit? February is the worst month. Yeah. So it could be like negative 40 for all you know. Yeah. And then when you land in Miami, what's the temperature in February? Hot. I don't know. Hot. hot 25 it was like crazy like the my sunscreen was sweating into my eyes like it was burning like

it was that bad that's awesome it was so good have you thought about moving to florida no oh but like i would definitely love to live somewhere hot. Then where would you go? Honestly, just not like nowhere where there's snow. Like it just doesn't – it just can't get cold ever. So like I think I have a lot of options. So why not Florida? Could be Florida. Then you'd have to leave Justin.

I would. I'd have to take him with me. So that would – maybe we'll go to Florida. Okay. So then you go to Waterpalooza. Are you disappointed that you make the RX division and not the Elite division? A little part of me, yes. But I knew that I had like my work cut out for me there too.

Like I was like, I'm just super like a competitive person. So when I got there and I was like, fuck, they're working out a day earlier. I want to do that workout. I saw them do that rock workout with the ring muscle ups. And I was like, I want to be in there. Like I, but I kind of was like, that's not you this year. Like you didn't qualify. Don't worry about it.

Just go, go do what you're supposed to do in the RX division. So I got over it and I just had a lot of fun. Like there was not one part of me that was really upset. Once I got there, um, it was just a really good time. So how did you place, uh,

at Waterpalooza? I won. I first fuck. Yeah. I love it. Yeah. Did I already know that? I'm this story is just unfolding perfectly for me.

That's okay. We're kind of going chronologically, so it makes sense. Okay. So you go from, wow, that's amazing. So you won. I mean, that's the best thing that could have happened. Yeah, it really was. We had no expectations going into it.

It was really just go learn, have fun. We don't really set expectations. It's just you do the best that you can and whatever comes into it. It was really just go learn, have fun. We don't really set expectations. It's just, you do the best that you can and whatever, whatever comes of it, the result. Oh, that's right.

Brian said you won by over a hundred points. How many events were at that? Um, uh, in that RX division, six, six, holy shit.

So that's even crazier, right? Brian to win by a hundred points with six events, as opposed to 13. They had seven scored events. She scored 650 out of 700 total points available. Hey, was this like, do you think the other girls were hating on her? This is like when you take your kid to a jujitsu tournament and he's wearing a white belt, but he should really be like a blue belt and he's just whooping everyone's ass. Were they like, what the fuck is this?

I don't know. I hope not. I didn't really talk to anyone i was just kind of focused they probably thought i was crazy i was just kind of standing there and they all know each other and i'm just like waiting to go but it was good i met a lot of people after so i'm a little bit more quiet uh when it was when it was time to compete but i everyone does it differently and then after it was nice to chat with people. And so you went there and then what happens after that? So you, so then you come home and then that's, uh,

that you said that was February has the two. End of February. So I had about two weeks until Atlas games. Okay. And what, what year is this? What year are we in? We're 2020. Okay okay so then the at so then there's atlas when was the open in 2020 october it was in october of 2019 oh okay that's why i'm getting

all fucked up okay so then you go to the atlas games and is it was that that's a real competition like you actually show up and see people yeah and that I could have, yes. And that was the sanctional. So I could have gotten my ticket to the games from that event. And how did you do there? That was the one that got canceled. Ah, right. That's when COVID started.

Okay. And were you sore when you got there? Were you fully recovered after Guadalupe? Yeah. Yeah, I was okay. Did you cry? Did I cry when it got canceled yeah yeah i i went back to my hotel room and i think i got um what are the donuts called in the states i don't know these really krispy kreme that's what i got i ate a lot of donuts in my hotel room. And you did week. Yes, I did.

Wow. Yeah. I'm a crier actually. That's kind of like my go-to. So I find it therapeutic. I like it. So I cried. Yeah. Even if you win,

like, did you cry when you won water Palooza? I did. Awesome. I like that. It's just a, it's a cleansing. It's healthy.

Yeah. It works for everything. Like sweating. You're just into dumping bodily fluids, basically crying, sweating, just whatever. Yeah. Yeah. I love that. It's just a – Cleansing. It's healthy. Yeah, it works for everything. Like sweating. You're just into dumping bodily fluids basically. Yeah. Crying, sweating, just whatever. Yeah. I love it.

Chronic perspiration. Okay. So then you finish the Atlas Games because you don't start them. Yeah, right. And then what happens? You drive home. Where were the Atlas Games? Where were they supposed to be?

Montreal. Montreal. Where was it? So we flew. I can't believe I got that right. And then so you fly home. You're out all this money. And then what happens?

So this is where it actually gets like crazy. This is actually kind of where it gets crazy. Because so I get back and then the gyms here shut down. So I bring all my stuff into my garage in, it was still very cold, very cold. Uh, what do you mean you bring your stuff to you for you? Justin lets you borrow stuff from the gym and you bring it home. Yeah. Cause our gyms are shut down. Um, and we weren't risking getting fines. It was at the beginning of COVID like where we're just like, no one's in the gym. So this was March. So snow on the ground, it's minus 20 when you wake up in the morning.

So I just had all of the gym equipment I could in my garage. And this was a weird time because technically my season was over. Like I had nothing. I had no other competitions lined up. I had no other way to qualify. I was done, but I don't think I was ready to let go that my season was done. I was just really fit for no reason. And I was like, this is annoying. So I just kept training. I just kind of was like, let's just pretend. And Justin and I are, our kind of idea was let's just follow the season, how it's supposed to like, let's train as if you're going to the games, let's train as if we're going to the semifinal,

let's not take an off season in the middle of uh competition season so we just kept training throughout so it was just really really fit in my garage for like two months um and that was really hard because it was cold and i just had to like sit by a heater in the morning with gloves on and warm up my hands before I touched my barbell. That was bad. Did your mom or your dad or your sister ever come in and watch you? Yeah. Yeah.

Sometimes. Sometimes. It was really cold though. I just had like this little heater and basically was in a snowsuit trying to do ring muscle ups. It was really good. Do you have a concrete floor in your gym, in your garage? Yeah. It's like slanted a

little bit. So snatching was a little tricky. Is your dad go in there? Your mom go in there and see 200 pounds over your head and they're like, yo, the fuck's wrong. Yeah. Or like I do handstand pushups against like our kitchen wall. Cause our garage is like there and just be doing handstand pushups and they're trying to make breakfast, but that sucked. But we did that, We're trying to make breakfast, but that sucked. But we did that. But I actually so I ended up getting injured, which was super shitty. I broke both of my first ribs clean and jerking in my garage. So that was bad.

That was like May of 2020. Yeah. May of 2020. I broke my left first rib. Yeah. May of 2020, I broke my left first rib. And then in June of 2020, May, June, one month later, I did the right one. Okay. Walk us through that. Sounds like some Taylor self shit. So it's – Did you drop a pig on you? You said you were clean and jerking. You were clean and jerking a bar. Yeah, so I was cycling 125, and this wasn't from that one instance. It was definitely like I was tired.

I was in the middle of my season. I think at this point, we were still figuring out what was working for me as an athlete. I was overtrained for sure. I was mentally tired working out in my garage. I probably was a little bit depressed. I was just seeing no one, just training. It was cold. My muscles were not warm. Brought it down onto my shoulders, was cycling it. And I was like, ah, what the heck? And I was like, this is super weird. And I felt a really sharp pain in like my back. Like I thought it

was like my scap. No one could figure out what it was for the longest time. Like saw physio stuff, saw doctors could not figure it out. Um, then months later, exact same thing happens to the right side. I'm like, Holy, this is weird. Like the exact same type of pain basically just tried to no one, no one could figure it out. I would see physio, all that type of stuff. They're like, it's muscular. It's muscular. There's nothing. There's nothing you can do except take some time off. So I took a lot of time off. Science.

Science. More science. So I took some time off, tried to just enjoy my summer because… Sorry, got to stop you. I still don't understand how you hurt yourself. If you're lowering the bar on your collarbone, how is one of your ribs broken? Yeah, I don't know. I think I was just overtrained. Like my body was tired. It was overuse. I think like it was a stress fracture before. Um, and then that one repetition like broke it. So I didn't know that it was my ribs at this point. So I just thought it was like a muscular thing with like my traps or whatever.

Um, and then it got really bad in july uh and then justin was like you should you should go to the hospital like you should like i couldn't breathe like it was really bad he's like you should go get this checked out so i ended up getting a bunch of like mri cts and they were like yeah both of your first ribs are like snapped in half and like those are those floating those are those floating ones down low? Right here. Oh, okay. The first one. That's okay.

I have my first one and last one confused. Gotcha. Yeah, they're the ones that are like right under your collarbone and they sit like this. Okay. Now I'm putting it all, visualizing it correctly. Yeah, so I brought it down here and you would think that your collarbone would break first, but it was not. It was my ribs. I don't have those. You don't have those. So you're good then. I'm not evolutionary of all, or I'm more advanced. I'm the weaker, softer human 2.0

that doesn't get a full rib cage. So, so they just had to heal by themselves you had to actually take yeah so it was this has been actually a really long process so i was like really injured for six months so i wasn't fully okay or clear to do things until uh january february of this year um uh they took a really long time to heal the left one was a stress fracture the right one was completely snapped in half so the right one didn't cause me very much pain because it was completely broken um the left one was the most annoying stress fracture of my entire life like it was just nagging and it was just like and it would not heal would go to doctors they were considering removing them like taking them out because it wouldn't heal um science science more science take it out take it out i was almost at this point begging for them

to just take it out because i was like you need that they're not going to heal i was like i don't think you need them but anyway they were like we're not going to take them out um just wait so i waited and waited and then in october of this year i ended up sneezing and breaking this one in half completely which was the best thing that could have happened because then it healed after. But it was so shitty in the moment. Like I sneezed, snapped in half. And it was like the worst thing ever, like breaking a bone, like just from sneezing. I was like, am I 90?

Like, what is happening? I broke a rib. I broke a rib. And then two months later, when it was pretty much healed, I bent over and picked up some weights and it snapped again. It was crazy. Yeah. It was nuts.

I know that feeling. And I know that not breathe, being able to breathe thing. Mine was one down low, but fuck it hurts. It's so bad. When you feel it, can you feel where it healed?

Like, can you feel like a little notch in there now? Like a little, like it feels like there's like a barnacle on your rib. So the left one's still broken, actually. That one's not healed yet. So it's still getting there. Yeah, that one's having some difficulty healing.

I got an MRI right before semis, and I was like, fuck, that's still broken. It was killing me. Yeah, so that one's still a work in progress i'm giving her 56 reps on that snatch workout with with a working rib thanks and put me up a couple points yeah let's talk about your parents for a second because are they concerned uh they were but i just don't uh it's you know what is actually doing okay right now yeah they're concerned a lot actually about a lot of things yeah i just uh all of a sudden they're like couldn't you get into motorcycles yeah yeah no they're they're cool they're they're really good sports with everything because this isn't uh this isn't typical like it's not your usual stuff that you do every day

and you get injured and it was hard to re-break it. And then like my open season went great this year because I wasn't really hurting. I think my goal this year was to honestly just compete because I was injured for so long that like, I was like, if I'm cleared to do all the movements by the time the open comes around, I'm happy. Like that was my, that was our goal. So what, what is this insane pressure you're putting on yourself? Why are you so passionate? I think it's, uh, just, I like to set goals. I like to wake up with a purpose. I like to have, I like to have something to strive for always. When did you, when did you, um, identify that as a characteristic?

I think early, like very early, like maybe like five years old, like doing gymnastics. Wanted to be the best at what I did there for some reason. What about relationship development? Like shouldn't you like be like – shouldn't you be like at home right now crying because your boyfriend of three years just cheated on you and like you're trying to figure out who you're going to meet on Tinder next? Like all of this energy going into CrossFit, into sports and like your CrossFit career is going to be like over at 30 and you're going to be like, well, shit, I didn't have a boyfriend yet. And then you're going to be like, I guess that shit can wait. Like, do you ever think about that? You know what?

I don't really. i think it can wait i think there's a really small window of time where you can physically be as fit as you can be and you can't do that your whole life uh you can do a lot of these other things a lot of these other things your whole life but i would definitely regret not striving for this right now there's such a small window and when i look back at my life i think that this right now. There's such a small window. And when I look back at my life, I think that this, however long I compete, is such a small part of it that why not just go all into it for the short amount of time you have? You sound smarter with every question you answer. And dudes between the age of 18 and 35 are dipshits anyway.

I don't mean that. I mean that in a loving way. I mean that in a loving way. I mean it in a loving way. They're fun. They're fun. They're fun. But they're just – They can wait.

Yeah. They can wait. And like even if you win the CrossFit Games and you're 40, you could still pick from that litter of men. You'd still be stronger than all of them. Yeah. Definitely be smarter. Okay. So you finished the – you finished this – no. So sorry. They still be stronger than all of them. Yeah. Definitely be smarter. Okay.

So you finished this. No, so sorry. So we're in January of 2021, and the story was going to look like you were healed and ready to go. But now we find out it's actually July of 2021, and you're still not healed. So that year you do the open in 2021. And how do you place? Really, really good. This Open that we're talking about, yeah, I guess I've only done three. So, yeah, this Open, good, 38?

Yeah, 38 this year. 720, 150-ish, 32. 38. 38. 38. And, Brian, how did you do this year? I also advanced to the quarterfinals, so it was by far my best Open. Amazing.

Holy shit. All right, making moves. Yes. The best part is that Savan always forgets that, so every time I tell him, he's surprised and impressed. Yeah, that's amazing. I like you more every time I hear that. That being said, I think the Open numbers were about as low as they could possibly be. Only a quarter million people this year, but still amazing. Still amazing. Still amazing. But that's not a dig at you, Sydney, because the top cats are still the top cats. Just a dig at Brian then?

Just a dig at Brian, yes. It had been like 30 minutes. He was due. Yeah. So then you take – is it past your bedtime? How old are you? No, I'm okay. I drank some coffee. One of my friends is calling me.

I only have two, Brian and this guy. So you take 38 and you're stoked. And what does that mean when you take – and that's in February of 2021. What does that mean? Was it February this year? Yeah, it was. March. March.

I'm wrong so often that Brian has to choose carefully when he corrects me or the whole show will be correcting me. He's like, he's only one month off. I don't need to correct him. Okay. So what does that mean? You get 38th. And what does that like signify? What do you get to do next? you get 38th and what does that like signify what do you get to do next that's like um that was the first time that a lot of my scores were comparable to like the top girls this was kind of my first my

goal this year was to break the top 100 uh since my last open was 150 i was like i think i can break the top 100 this year um and that was it that that was my only goal. So to see the 38th, I was like, damn, good job. You did it. That's awesome. Now get ready for quarters. You're in the heat of your season right now. So that was great. And then also just because our goal was to just participate, to be able to do the Open with all the movements in it, because of how shitty the past six months went with my ribs,

it was the biggest win. I couldn't have been happier with it. to do the open with all the movements in it because of how shitty the past six months went with my ribs. That was, it was like the biggest win. Like I couldn't have been happier with it. The, um, you did, you did very well on three of the four workouts. And then your,

by far your worst score was on the hand, the wall walks workout. Did, was your injury affecting that at all? I mean, obviously no, not at all. I wish I could say otherwise.

Yeah, no, that was purely my ability to do wall walks. What happened? You got gassed or you're just goofy upside down or what? No, I'm great upside down. It's just fucking hard. It's hard. My shoulders just lit on fire with me staring at the floor dripping sweat for 15 minutes.

I almost finished. I tried it twice. I tried it twice. I almost finished it the second time. So you're like 30 double unders away or something. Yeah. Something dumb like that. Yeah. Okay. So, so then you take 38th and that, how many people get to go to the quarterfinals? A lot. Top 10% of the open. Yeah. So it was like 5,500 women in North America or something like that. Okay, so then you go to the quarterfinals, and how do you do there? And what month is that in?

It's two weeks later. Two weeks later. Wow, okay. I did well. I got 15th in North America. Wow. That was a fun weekend. That was fun. Was it fun before you got the score or it was fun regardless of, you know what? I actually

really enjoyed that weekend. Uh, I really liked all the workouts. Um, and I like competing that style. I, the open I enjoy, but I really like volume and I like it condensed. That's kind of where I, I think one of my stronger points is just because i do train a lot of high volume um so i like doing two a day i like that style um so the whole weekend for me was really fun the workouts that were programmed were right up my alley i liked it hey she's more miko salo and matt fraser than rich froning okay yeah you know why i say that because she trains in a fucking closet miko used to row in a closet she trains in her fucking garage she doesn't give a shit about boys she didn't give a shit like she's surrounded by her parents like she's like you know she's just me you know me and

justin yeah she's the gym got my training yeah she's yeah she's just grinding okay so 15th brian tell me something. Make her feel proud. Who took 16th? Do you have to go, Sydney? You keep looking around. I don't. Is Moose going to eat you?

I'm just making sure it's not too dark for you. You're twitching like there's a coyote out there or something. No, you look great. You look great. So she finished two. She beat Carolyn Prevost and Emily Rolfe. What? The only other two Canadian women that will be at the CrossFit Games this year.

I'm a huge fan of Carolyn. That's why Brian's saying that. He's trying to hurt my feelings. I'm a huge fan of Carolyn Prevost. Have you worked out with her? Me? Yeah. No, I haven't met anyone really.

Okay. That's right. You're Miko Salo. You work out in the closet. Okay. And who finished ahead of her? Who else finished ahead of her, Brian? Or who finished below her? Of the 14 girls that finished ahead of her, I think every single one of them is a CrossFit Games athlete of some kind or another. By that, you mean individual, not team?

By that you mean individual, not team. Two of the girls were the Mallory O'Brien and Emma Carey who had competed as individuals – well, as teenagers. Now they've qualified as individuals. A couple of them didn't qualify this year, but they all had previously qualified as an individual. The only exception is Andrea Nistler who's on Rich's team at CrossFit Mayhem Freedom. Otherwise, they're all individual games athletes. Who took 16th place? Christine Kohlenbrander.

Okay. Don't know who she is is She's on the demo team this year Oh, of course I know who she is So then you take 15th In North America And that means you're going to go to the semifinals Yeah And you did the semifinals You did the atlas games and it's a virtual event yes and you've proven that you're good at virtual events so this is like the weird thing i i would

say i'm not good at virtual events that would be uh kind of uh i would say more of a disadvantage to for me so i was a little bit bummed i got put in Atlas, but I guess none of us had a choice. Um, but yeah, I would say virtual is not where I would excel as much because, because you flourished and a water Palooza with the crowd. Yeah. I like having my competition right next to me.

I, I, that really drives me to, to be in the, in the middle of it with everyone. God, are you loving all this shit you're hearing? Brian likes to train alone, likes to compete with the best. Yeah. Yeah. It's like, Jesus Christ.

It's like, she's reading from a cue card. Say this and they'll believe you're an athlete. Right up here. Yeah. She's, she's an apex predator, you know, as they talk about the men's athletes, she's one of them. You're hearing it all. Okay, so in this event, basically, you do all these workouts and you're doing them in the dark. You don't know how anyone else is doing. It's fucking not only hard, but it's a complete stress shit show, right? Yeah, that was a really stressful weekend, especially now knowing how close it was.

I didn't really know it was that close to be honest like just because we didn't get the the scores released after every workout we got the scores released after every two so it was harder to follow along um like it would have been in a real competition but it was a really good weekend the virtual aspect and having it also be the semi-inal was way more stressful than quarters. Like, it was a very different weekend. I've never experienced it, like, ever. So it was cool. Brian, tell me how close this shit is. I mean, because I'm looking at it and I just see 20 points.

19 points, 20 points, 21 points between her and first place. First place. Who was first place? Carolyn Prevo. I just wanted you to have the opportunity to say that. Thank you. I think prior to the final day, Sydney was either in first or second place, but it was super tight. Maybe the top 10 women were all within 40 points of each other with two events to go.

I mean, it was and there was a lot of shuffling around on the last day. And then even after the competition, there were a couple of penalties assessed. So it was definitely I would imagine holding your breath. Yeah, it was super close. Like I think after the second day, I was sitting in second, but our point spread was I think anyone one through 11th had the ability to take a game spot. So no one was really safe, I think. And Gretel was crazy because, well, I actually didn't know it was crazy until after because I think the majority of us did it backwards. I did Gretel before I did the rope climb rowing workout.

I think the majority of people did that. did the rope climb rowing workout. I think the majority of people did that. Um, so to see the, where I sat after that rope climb workout and then what I needed to get in Gretel to get that fifth place. Cause I was sitting, I think in seventh before the final event, which I didn't know. But you didn't know it, right? Yeah. That's so weird. Yeah. So I didn't know any of this. I just, I knew where I sat after day one, which was the first two wads I was sitting in just, I knew where I sat after day one, which was the first two wads I was sitting in seventh. I knew where I sat after day two, which was second. And then my final placement of fifth after day three, didn't know anything in between.

In that workout, in that workout, Gretel, did you have to modify the movement at all to consider the rib? Like, were you like missing your body completely on the way down intentionally because of that? Uh, no. Um, so the good news is, is, so I did that for speed. I I'd like to, um, graze it down my legs. Um, if it's super heavy, but with it being 95, I was like, this is light enough where I'm not even going to let it touch my body. I'm just going to go for it. Um, but my rib was really good all throughout semifinals. It was really, really agitated after quarters doing that

four rep max front squat. And that's where the concern was. But it somehow pulled itself together and knock on wood, but I haven't had any real, I haven't had any concerns with it since then. What was Gretel, Brian? 10 rounds, three clean and jerks, three bar-facing burpees. Okay. And it was for time, as much as you can do? Yeah, just ten rounds. Yeah, that's the workout that –

Oh, no, ten rounds. Sorry, you said ten rounds. Sorry. Yeah, that's the workout that Jason Hopper first told you about, that he wasn't happy with his performance. And it's like that sprint workout, but in a virtual setting. A couple of athletes who've had on have said that they don't love that, that workout program in a virtual setting.

They preferred in a live competition. I think that I agree with that. Is that the one that Emma tall's boyfriend was holding the bar down for? Yes. Were you penalized at any point city? Yeah, I got a major penalty in event two which was shocking to me but not as shocking because i i i knew after that a lot of people got the same penalty it i was pissed i was so pissed off i'm like who yeah i don't even i'm not too sure why i just got an email saying that basically every single movement i did there was something wrong with it.

And I knew of a couple reps. I knew of a couple for sure that I missed. So I go, okay, I could see I'm going to get a minor penalty here for these three things. Did not know that I was going to get two minutes added on to my time. What was that workout? Workout two? It was a big workout. There were like 300

dumbbell reps in that workout. It started with 50 dumbbell deads, 50 dumbbell shoulder to overhead, 50 GHDs, 100 dumbbell overhead squats, and then back down, 50 GHDs, shoulder to overhead, dumbbell deads. I got penalized

on everything. Even your GHDs, shoulder to overhead, dumbbell dead. So I got penalized on everything except- Even your GHDs? Yeah. So that was my fault. I missed the plates on two reps. So I was like, okay, they could take two GHDs away from me. They didn't like my deadlifts. They didn't like my shoulder to overhead. They didn't like a lot of my GHDs. My dumbbell overhead squats were surprisingly okay. Then that was the one thing that I was like, iffy on, they liked that. But everything else they didn't like.

Was Carolyn Prevo penalized? Do you know everyone who was penalized or those public, the penalties? They did publicize the penalties. I don't have the list up in front of me. I would say in just that weekend, I feel like there were like 10 to 12 people that were penalized at least two minutes on that workout hey they got to put an asterisk here on the scoreboard because it makes it's hard like so so sydney here got 1431 and carolyn got 1207 and part of you is like man she smoked sydney but as soon as you find out she was penalized two minutes then you're like okay

like that shit was close yeah it it was closer i'd be curious to know what the other girls times were without their penalties um i think that would have been a more accurate representation personally because we i know you're all doing the same stuff like it's really hard on a video camera especially the angle it was set at to get all of the movements in to accurately see if you are locking out your deadlift if you are but no one's intentionally cheating like in my eyes like you're ready for this one seven yeah so emily rolf a minute 48 penalty on that workout bailey rail a minute 48 mackenzie riley minute 53 cindy mccaylish and mini 53 all four of those girls made the crossfit Games despite those penalties.

Wow, and those are big penalties. And Carolyn wasn't penalized, which would then put all of their scores kind of in line with each other. Which kind of bolsters your argument, not that it's an argument you make, Brian, but it's a point that you show about competition that if there were fewer workouts, there's more room for error of taking the wrong person. Sure. Yeah. I mean, that's obviously –

That easily illustrates it. Yeah. I mean, you're talking about – like these four girls just in general, they probably all would have been something like third through sixth, and they would take in 90 to 80 points. Instead, they all dropped down to ninth through 12th, where they're taking 20 less points, and we already see how tight the leaderboard is. So just a 20-point hit like that on one workout could have been – it easily could have kept one of them out. Do you know any of these girls, Sydney?

No. So I've briefed – yeah. You've got to meet Freya Moose Bruger. So I've like – yeah, I've meet Freya Freya Moose Bruger. So I've like, yeah, I've never met anyone really. I've just been like. What a name. Talking to them through social media because of the semis, because of quarters. And then I briefly was talking to Carolyn about some games, logistics, like driving, flying, stuff like that.

Just because I know she knows what's up, but haven't met anyone. You want to know how much she knows what's up she drove to california two months ago i mean she's here she's somewhere in california she's been here a long time yeah she's not fucking around cool yeah um okay so so so that weekend passes, and that's on Monday at noon. You kind of know, right, that you made it to the CrossFit Games, but they tell you that they're not going to finalize it. And I think it was July 10th, which I'm guessing was the following Saturday. So are you kind of shitting bricks the whole time?

Oh, yeah. You don't like what I just said, Brian? It's not July 10th? Yeah. You told me that, Brian. You're thinking of the last chance qualifier dates so they finalized the leaderboard for the semi-finals um before you know much but obviously before the last chance qualifier okay but yeah and then like a week i think uh i think it was finalized on like the like we got the leaderboard released on the sunday and i think it was finalized on like the – like we got the leaderboard released on the Sunday, and I think it was finalized on the Thursday.

And you basically – do you not really believe you're going until you get the email? Yeah. Yeah. Like, I mean, I was really happy, and I had a really good feeling about it, but it was hard to really relax until I got that email. So once I got it, it was, it was a really good feeling. And then, uh, and so you're going to the games. Yes. We're going to the games this year. Crazy, right? Like, yeah. It's absolutely nuts. You're, uh, you're five years ahead of schedule.

Five years ahead of schedule. Yeah. And this year was not ideal. So it's really good to know that even though it was a shitty year, not ideal, like six months of it was spent just trying to figure out what was going on with my ribs. And we still figured it out. So that was a really good. out. So that was a really good. You're in a really trippy situation kind of, um, because you're, you're coming into the sport where there's a lot of, um, athletes who've been in it for a long time. And there's almost like a moment of the changing of the guard, I would say happening both in the

men and the women, like how many more years can Tia do this? How many more years can Annie do this? How many more years can catch and do this? It almost more years can Annie do this? How many more years can catch news? It almost seems, and I don't know this, I'm making this shit up that they're almost, everyone's just staying in it to prove one or two things to themselves. Their last hurrah or they're in denial, but no,

they're not. They're still doing great. All right, fine. But Brian, don't ruin my story. Don't ruin my story. Don't ruin my story. Don't ruin my story.

But this incoming class is just savages. You almost wish these old bags would stay around and this new class wasn't so good. Because these guys, this Mallory O'Brien and Emma Carey and Haley Adams, I mean, this is your cohort. Yeah. and Haley Adams. I mean, this is, this, this is your cohort and there there's no, uh, I mean, it's, it, it, it's nuts. Do you look at them and are like, Oh my God, what am I getting myself into? I think it makes me more excited than anything. Um, but yeah, yeah, they're all insane. And they're people that I've looked up to, uh, going into this. And now I'm just like, okay, like you, you have the opportunity, like you get to compete with them. Like you get to compete against them. Like, let's like, you earned it. Like you can do it. So it's, it's, I'm nervous. There's obviously nerves, but it's more of an excited, like, this is your, this is your group of people. And if you want to be here, like this is who you're going to have to compete with. And yeah. So, so Brian, okay. Before I go on, cause I got a great follow-up to that.

But so what you're saying is, is it's not like that. You're saying that, that, that Katrin and Brooke Wells and Tia and all these, these, these ladies are like coming in here in their prime. This is just... It's not necessarily that they're on their way out. They're actually peaking. Well, no. What I was going to say was similar to you, actually,

is that it is a very fascinating time right now because the old guard, if you will, that have been there for seven plus years at the games, of which there are several women, are still very good and relevant. But there's a bunch of younger women coming into the space that you listed some of them and who I think can start to push some of them out. And I think that's what makes this year so exciting. Is that there are more women I think are capable of finishing in the top 10 than I've ever seen before. And obviously only 10 can do it. So the big question is,

and what everyone's waiting to see is which 10 is it going to be? Which three is it going to be? Like one of the girls you're competing against this, we interviewed her. I'm trying to remember her name. She's qualified. Danielle Brandon. I was was gonna say bethany shadburn she i think she's qualified for the regional what is it like five times or four times and she didn't go because because she was a collegiate athlete and she and she she had obligations to her college because of her scholarship and now she's just gonna pop up on the scene i mean it really is the this list is a who's who. Do you look at this list and you're like, oh, yep, there I am, Sydney

Mc... Oh, shit. It's okay, you got it. McAllition. McAllition. I'm just going to write it like how it looks, how it sounds. Have you looked at this list? Yeah, I have. It's bizarre to see my name there,

just because it really hasn't been super long since we've started this. But it's really – I don't even know. It's honestly like I have no words for it. It's crazy. It's crazy. You could win an event here. I could. I could win an event.

As a rookie. Have any female rookies done that? Yeah, yeah. I could. I could win an event. As a rookie. Have any female rookies done that? Yeah, yeah, of course. I think it happens all the time, honestly. Didn't Emily Rolfe win that ruck event in 2019? Yeah, Laura Horvath, I think,

won three in her first year, two or three. Holy shit. How... Do you think, Sydney, won three in her first year, two or three. Holy shit. How, do you think Sydney, from just listening to her this last hour and a half and what you know about her, do you think she's just starting, Brian? That's what it seems like to me. Like, oh my god,

this is a duckling that snuck into the big duck event and she's didn't even sneak. By sneak, I mean earned her way in, but she's a duckling and the rest of these people are like seasoned. They must... Yeah, but she might be an outlier in that sense this season, but there's other people who've been like that who've only taken a couple of years to rise to this level. And they're just, you know, they just have something that the rest of us don't have. And it's great for them.

And it's like you said earlier, when she's talking about the muscle ups, it's frustrating for a lot of other people. But I think she's in, you know, the broken rib thing is I definitely didn't know about. And that actually kind of fascinates me because I think about, you know, someone like Sam Briggs, like she's always, she's, she's had a few years where she's seemed to be healthy, but she's always had these little nagging injuries, but she's able to manage them and still competed at super high level. So it's definitely doable, but you know, 21 years old doing this well with less than optimal conditions, if she can, you know, get healthy, really healthy, it's kind of scary. Yeah, it is scary. I'm excited for a full season of being able to,

to kind of ride out the season, how it should be. I guess I've, I've never even taken really an off season just because I've never really known when that should be, I guess, not having like the games to compete at or a sanctional near the end of the year. You're just kind of always working out. You're always trying to get ready. So I think it's going to be really good for my body to take a break

and then to come back and start the 2022 season. This is the start. We peak for this. So it's actually set up in order, which is something I've never had. So I'm looking forward to that. And that's not, that's not really your fault. You just happened to enter into the sport at a time where it was in the most tumult, tumult, tumultuous state that's ever been in for years prior to you finding a CrossFit. It was very predictable. If you wanted to do the open regional games format, you could plan your season accordingly. The same

year you started a bunch of of question marks entered the scene. The next year it changed again. Now we're back to it. It looks like a season that's fairly predictable. So that's not, that's not on you. That was just like weird timing thing. Yeah, I guess. Yeah, not on me, but still I'm like, oh, an off season definitely could help my body out

and probably could have prevented a lot of things that happened. But I mean, it's hard to know when your season's not clean cut. But I think moving forward, that's going to be something that's going to be super helpful in getting ready for these comps and just feeling and staying healthy all year, taking time. Well, now that you're a games athlete, too, you know, you know what your goal is. Yeah. Once you're a games athlete too, you know what your goal is. Yeah. You know, one thing for certain, and not every woman can say this or every man can say this who goes to the CrossFit Games,

is no matter what happens this year, you'll be better when it's over. Yeah, 100%. Which is just awesome. There's nothing that can happen outside of Godzilla blowing fire on the stadium that could be bad for you. I mean, you will leave here smarter, faster, stronger, more prepared for next year. And you've got to think half the class won't be that way. Yeah, I'm really looking forward to that opportunity to just leave. And it's going to be a weekend full of firsts.

There's just so many things I haven't done. And that just excites me because I have no expectations. It's just let's see where we're at. Like, let's go in here. Like, we've been training everything super hard, giving it our all, but it's going to be a bunch of firsts the whole weekend. And it kind of scares me, but it's more exciting. Let's see where we're at.

Let's see what we need to build on for next season. Ground zero, kind of. Who will go with you? Will your mom and dad go? That was the plan. But the border is not looking great for non-essential travel. So just my coach and I, just Justin and I will be going. And hopefully some people from the gym, if they can make it, but really

just the two of us. I have nothing nice to say. Fuck. Well, the good thing is that you and Justin have a great relationship and have been doing this together from the start. And we talked to a lot of athletes about this, you know, the physical capacity to do the workouts is important, but having someone there that you trust in between events to make sure you're eating, get you the things you need, make sure you're in the right place at the right time. So you don't have to worry about those things. Yeah. It's super important. And as long as, like I said, it's someone that you have a good relationship with and can rely on that can go a long way towards making the weekend a lot more enjoyable and successful.

Oh, yeah. This isn't the Super Bowl where a bunch of fat fucks sit around and drink and eat hot dogs and beat their wives because they had too much fucking beer. This is the fucking CrossFit Games, the pinnacle of a community that wants to better itself and try to help people become the best expression of their fucking DNA. Let her fucking parents cross the border and come. This is like the pinnacle of religion and church and health and fitness. This is why we're alive. This isn't the fucking NBA or the NFL or the Major League Baseball, this bullshit, although it could be headed that way if they're not careful. This is like, it just fucking frustrates the shit out of me

that her parents can't come. I know, that's super frustrating. And it's all just because we are trying to drive and flying is a whole nother thing. But the plan was to drive and yeah, there's no way that if it's non-essential, you can't cross. But there's no one else I'd rather be there with me than Justin. So it's perfect.

We're going to be good. Yeah, I'm sure you're going to be great. I'm sure you're going to be great. I'm a dad, so it just breaks my heart. Your mom and dad can't be there. Your parents would experience some fantastic emotions if they went. And that's why we're alive, to experience fantastic emotions. Brian, how many men or women, since it is the CrossFit community,

beat their spouse on Super Bowl weekend because they drank too much? What are the stats on that? Most of them don't even enter into relationships because it just distracts them from their goals. Right. You just hear about that shit, right? When you hear about the Super Bowl and you hear about

it's a weekend of buying big screen TVs and spouses getting beaten and people going to jail. It's just a misunderstanding of what we're doing. Anyway, Sydney, sorry for putting in my rant in the middle of your beautiful journey. I like it. Just add it in whenever.

Um, you are, uh, you're, you are an amazing lady. You're a spectacular human being. Uh, you scared the shit out of your parents. Uh, your journey has been just amazing. Thank you for sharing it with us. Um, from next time. Well, we started when you were 13. This time we dabbled a we started when you were 13. This time we dabbled a little bit when you were five, when you started gymnastics. After the games, hopefully you'll still come back after this experience and we can dig into what happened in your childhood that's made you, when you turned into a lion.

I would love to. Lioness. Lioness. She's both. She could be whatever the fuck she wants. It's 2021. so thank you uh please if you see brian um during the weekend make eye contact with him take a picture send it to me tag me an instagram story so i can repost i'd like to keep track of brian this weekend over sure brian have to meet up with you at some point There's no way that I'll let you walk past me without saying hi. He's good. He's very respectful, and he won't want to bug me. I'm going to know no one.

I'm going to be talking to no one, so it will be great to know someone. And introduce him to Justin because Brian loves coaches. Brian would love to take a scalpel and pick Justin's brain. 100%. Justin would love to meet you, so I'll definitely meet up with you yeah all right cool thank you for your time thank you so much nice to meet you guys