How this 37-year-old mom went from zero to multiple Bar Muscle Ups!

Too often, when people think of CrossFit® athletes, many envision freakishly athletic half-robot humans with perfect genetics and full-time jobs as worker-outers.

However, it just so happens that the REAL CrossFit® community is filled with people who are fathers, mothers, lawyers, teachers, grandparents, college students, and everything in between.

Today we want to share with you an inspiring story about Sarah, a WODprep athlete who has proven that you can do just about anything with a little grit, determination, and focus. Her journey with us has been so impressive so far, and from the looks of it, she’s just getting started.

Sarah’s path to CrossFit®

At the age of 34, Sarah felt something was missing in her her fitness life. She had grown up playing an array of sports, focusing on soccer as she got older, and years later she found herself yearning for the camaraderie that had come with team sports. As a wife and a mom of two active kids (son, 5 and daughter, 8) with full-time job, she started searching for the best fitness regimen to fit into her busy (really busy!) life.

Home workouts and running were an option for a period of time, until nagging achilles tendonitis from the longer distance race training left her feeling somewhat defeated. She also suffered from the chronic pain of fibromyagia, which never alleviated through these exercises.

“Even though I exercised regularly, my body felt fragile and I felt the effects of my age and ailments."

Enter: CrossFit®

Like many of us, Sarah found herself in search of something different, which eventually led her to a CrossFit® gym. Her boss convinced her to try it out, and she was hooked right away seeing almost immediate progress - especially with the barbell.

“As I grew stronger and faster, I was able to lift heavier weights, do more challenging movements, and move more quickly. More importantly, I felt great! My tendonitis completely resolved and, incredibly, my fibromyalgia no longer bothers me. I feel healthier and stronger than I have in my entire adult life, and it feels amazing. CrossFit® has been the best medicine for my body and soul.”

The Mindset Shift

After the proverbially ’drinking the kool aid’, Sarah’s goals started shifting. Instead of focusing on just being healthy, her competitive nature took over, and put purpose back into her workouts. 

“I love the competition, not only with the other athletes, but with myself, and now feel stronger and healthier than ever before in my adult life.”

Mental changes came alongside the physical ones, and she attributes her time at Yolo CrossFit® for her gains in confidence, happiness, and overall passion. She typically makes it into the gym (her second home, as she calls it) 5-6 days per week, over her lunch breaks on weekdays.

“CrossFit is really my only ‘me’ time. It really has had such a profound impact on my life, and it’s great to see the impression it has made on my kids, who think their mom is really strong.”

The Results of WODprep

Several months ago Sarah had a decision to make - would she try Bar Muscle Up Mastery , or would she stay in her comfort zone? She decided to join, but had her doubts at first.

 "I struggled with a lot of self doubt about whether I was truly strong enough and was capable of getting a BMU. I could just barely eke out five strict pull ups and my baseline attempts looked no better than kipping chest-to-bar pull ups. I compared myself with the baseline videos and strength numbers that others posted and thought maybe I didn’t belong in this group just yet – that I wasn’t really ready."

And THIS, ladies in gentleman, is where she made the critical decision to keep going....

"I dedicated myself to the process..."

Yes, Sarah trusted the WODprep coaches, even though she was struggling with self-doubt. She kept grinding. She kept practicing.

"I think around Week 4 I started to notice that I was getting a lot higher over the bar. It’s hard to remember exactly when, but in the last two weeks or so before getting my first BMU, I felt like I was getting really close. At this point was also when my frustration started to escalate because I felt so close yet so far away. There were many days when I was getting the bar to my stomach, but just couldn’t get over the bar."

Many athletes quit when things get tough. When they have self-limiting beliefs, they throw in the towel. But not Sarah.

Press 'play' to see Sarah's first BMU ^^^

"I was shocked that after 6 weeks I landed my first BMU, and it was the most amazing feeling ever. I actually got really choked up because I had been working so hard, really invested myself, and was so proud of what I had accomplished..."

Why WODprep?

Since August of 2017 when Sarah first joined Bar Muscle Up Mastery, she’s also gone through Double Unders Unleashed, and more recently the No Nonsense Nutrition course - seeing progress in all three areas.

Here’s some food for thought…. although Sarah has a gym that she loves, awesome coaches, and a great community, why in the world would she enroll in EXTRA programs? Why does she keep coming back to WODprep?

Here’s what she had to say...

“The WODprep programming is simple and easy to follow, the videos are fantastic, and the app works well. I like that I can follow along at my own pace and that the accessory work is easy to keep up with – an extra 15-30 minutes a day depending on what I’m working on is totally manageable. Everything makes sense and is easy to do on my own.”

No Nonsense Nutrition is one of WODprep’s newer courses, that was released earlier this year. When Sarah joined the program early on, we were excited to see where her hard work would take her in the realm of nutrition. Through eight weeks of consistency and education, Sarah saw fantastic progress. 

“The course gave me the knowledge I needed so that I now know how to fuel my workouts, maintain and gain muscle, and also trim the fat. Through the program I lost 10+  pounds and have seen my relative strict strength increase as a result – this really benefited my handstand pushups and chest-to-bar pull ups in the 2018 Open, and I’m finally able to do some strict ring dips without bands!“

What’s Next?

Like many of us, Sarah already has her sights set on the 2019 Open, primarily since it’s such a great marker to measure progress over the course of the year. Her goals this next year range from increasing strict strength, getting her first RMU, stringing together BMU’s, and continuing to be consistent with her nutrition.

“In general, I’d like to continue to improve my CrossFit® performance every year, put in my best effort, and be as healthy and strong as I can be for myself and for my family.”

Feeling inspired by this strong wife and mom of two? I sure am.

I hope you enjoyed reading Sarah’s story today. If nothing else, I hope you understand that no matter how busy you are, or what struggles you’re dealing with, you can and will make progress if you set your mind to it. All you need to do is trust the process.

Have questions about our programs? Comment below.

Leave a comment below and tell us about your journey! Who knows, maybe it will inspire another athlete just like you to finally trust the process! 🙂