Drops of perspiration rush down the side of Lacy Beckler, PE teacher and coach, and Chad Redwine’s, science teacher and coach, face as they push themselves to the limit in order to finish first in the gruelling series of full-body workouts. Beckler took inspiration from various sources to begin Crossfit as well as inspiring coach Redwine to also begin.
Coach Beckler started Crossfit about two years ago, and continues to attend a gym in Midlothian called Athletes Enhancement where the CrossFit Mansfield gym presides, while coach Redwine attends a box in Arlington called CrossFit Boom. The sessions are held at a gym or warehouse known as a “box” and participants compete with certain people in their box or at another facility. The goal is to be the fastest one or get as many reps in as possible during the workout. Beckler’s trainer, Ryan Mentzel, makes her perform a lot of metabolic conditioning workouts or “metcons”, which are organized into a “workout of the day” (WOD).
“It really benefits your whole body because it’s never the same thing,” Coach Beckler said. “ Everyday is different.”
The WODs are programmed in a variety of ways such as the “as many rounds as possible” system (AMRAPs). Some of the AMRAPs include military style workouts like running, push-ups, pull-ups, box jumps, squats and jump rope, and gymnastic variations such as handstand walks and handstand push-ups.
“We have a similar workout mentality, but she is in insane shape,” Coach Redwine said.
At first, she did not like the idea of crossfit because of the injuries, but her trainer begged her to come to his gym. She won her first team event only before winning three more and finishing top three in others. One day her gym brought in Andrea Ager, a professional athlete, to demonstrate an Olympic lifting seminar and Beckler got a chance to workout with her.
“I just fell in love with it,” Beckler said. “I hadn’t worked out like that or had that feeling in a workout since college.”
Beckler wanted to continue her desire to be competitive since she was a college track athlete, and coach Redwine started because he wanted a change in his workout routine. The best way to compare themselves to the pros are through benchmark workouts which are named after professional women such as Fran, Karen and Angie. These are test workouts that are difficult and measure your fitness level over time.
“I was a college athlete and I like to be competitive, it gave me the ability to combine working out with my desire to be competitive,” Beckler said. “I was doing a lot of 5k’s and got bored with just running all of the time, so it kind’ve gave me a change in my workout routine.”
The hero WODs are named after military soldiers that were killed in the line of duty such as Murph, Daniel and J.T.
“The Hero WODs are usually brutal,” Redwine said.
Ryan Mentzel trains professional football and baseball players such as Noah Syndergaard with the test workouts every once in awhile.
“Those athletes are in and out all of the time,” Beckler said. “They think that crossfit is crazy.”
Crossfit companies or particular boxes can host competitions in various places in the metroplex, but most are ran by a company called WorldWarFit. The competitions can either include a team or individual workout and range in various age groups.
“Before a hard WOD or competition, I always get a nervous feeling like I want to throw up, even after 2 years,” Redwine said. “It usually goes away right before the start, when you hear the countdown.”
During team workouts, Beckler and her teammates usually review tactics before the event since the workouts are released ahead of time.
“In team competitions, I’m motivating my teammates because I don’t like to lose,” Beckler said. “I’m usually thinking about how I’m about to die.”
Beckler recently attended three competitions in Southlake, Fort Worth and one at the CrossFit Mansfield gym with a partner.
“The first WOD we finished first by a significant amount,” Beckler said. “It was so hard I threw up afterwards, and I hadn’t done that since I ran track in college.”
Between her coach, inspiration from professional crossfit athletes such as Jackie Perez and competing Beckler got pumped up about crossfit.
“I like Jackie Perez because she is a really good athlete, but she is also down to earth,” Beckler said. “She shows you how it’s good to have a balance of eating healthy, but it’s okay to eat something bad every once in awhile.”
Having crossfit in P.E. or as a school sport would higher the risk of injuries to students and athletes, but coaches must also be certified to be able to coach the sport.
“I think that’s a little far-fetched to have it in school, kind’ve in a sense, powerlifting is a part of it,” Beckler said. “That’s just one part of crossfit, but I think if they made it a school sport, it would be awesome.”
While Beckler loves the idea because her favorite athlete Jackie Perez promotes it, Redwine thinks it wouldn’t be the best.
“There is the potential for a lot of injuries, if not supervised and coached properly,” Redwine said. “The competitions would be awesome, but I do not think enough coaches do or are qualified to coach crossfit.”
Beckler has seen people over weight come in and lose most of their weight, so most people need to understand that they should focus on where they start and improve from there.
“The only way to be good at crossfit, is to do crossfit,” Redwine said. “Prepare for a very hard workout and be prepared to feel sore.”
Fear prevents most people from beginning crossfit because of its intensity, but there are people in her box that range from 50 to 60 years old.
“Don’t worry about everybody else in the gym,” Beckler said. “Everybody starts somewhere so don’t be afraid to start.”
