Sally is by far one of the smartest girls I know, apart from knowing so many facts, she's always ready to myth bust any experiment I bring to her. Her continuous commitment definitely shows in her improvements, smashing PB after PB.
Sally is a hard worker, humbled and takes on every piece of advice that has been given to her.
Below is Sally`s journey in her own words.
You're in the thick of your second year of CrossFit. Tell us about your journey so far.
I’ve gone from total newbie to box regular, and seen steady improvements in all my lifts. I’m really loving training with the other metal therapists (we can all just agree our box is fantastic, yeah?).
You moved from interstate to Melbourne and stumbled across Metal Therapy. Can you tell us what made you choose the box and become a part of the community?
I had decided to give CrossFit a go and was checking out a few boxes online, when one day, I saw a sign. Literally. I drove past the sandwich board on Princes Hwy on my way home from work. From there I got in touch with Gab and he invited me in to check the place out. Once you’ve been doing CrossFit for a little while you forget just how nerve-racking it is to walk in the door the first time, but I felt like I was instantly part of the family. I know how lucky I am to have found such a great community, almost completely by accident.
Tell us a little bit about how the community at Metal Therapy helped you settle into Melbourne life?
I moved here from Wollongong to start a new job, and knew basically no one in Melbourne. Having a little community to be part of certainly helped me find my feet and became a good way to let go of the day when my new job was challenging. I’m not sure the CrossFit crew know just how much they helped me settle in in those early days when I didn’t have many familiar faces around!
You recently moved from the Westside, but decided to stay at the box and commit to the 6AM class before heading to work as an Engineer. What motivates you to get to the box before work? How does starting your day in that way impact on the rest of your day?
I would attribute this less to motivation than a strong internal auto-pilot. Most days I don’t even understand why I am driving to the box before dawn, I just am, and once I’m there it’s too late. As well as this, I backed myself into a corner last year when I somehow convinced my work colleagues (who are largely not CrossFit people) that I am the strongest woman alive. Now I'm worried that if I turn up to work without my gym bag and a fresh-off- the-gym- floor hairstyle they will grow suspicious and think I made the whole thing up. In all seriousness, I would say it’s easier to develop a routine than to find genuine motivation every single morning. I’m starting to quite enjoy my morning routine. I want people to think of me as someone who is dedicated, disciplined and consistent, and so I need my actions to reflect those values, which sadly means my alarm snoozing days are over.
Lately, your name has been splashed all over Wodify with gold star after gold star showing up next to it. You're hitting so many PBs. Tell us a little about how that feels? What have you been most proud of?
The most satisfying thing is to reflect on where I was a year ago. I remember Gab coaxing me into a 50kg deadlift when I was still fairly new. I was thinking “I dunno Gab, this is pretty heavy!” It seemed impossible at the time. These days I can lift a fair bit more without thinking twice about it, and recently,
Matt helped me get a 90kg PB Deadlift. I’m probably most proud of that because I felt like I’d somehow summoned some strength I didn’t even know I had just to get that bar off the ground! It’s also pretty exciting to think about how much further I’ve still got to go (and what I might get next time…). It’s a cliché’, but I’m really enjoying the journey.
Have you felt a shift in your mindset or the way you have approached your training lately?
Lately, I’ve been trying to turn up as often as possible, take on as much advice from the coaches as I possibly can and work on the things I know I could improve at. I’ve picked a few key things I’d like to get better at and I keep them in my mind while I’m training.
It's not all roses at times. Tell us how you work through the challenges that CrossFit has a habit at throwing at us?
I think this is what I was alluding to when I talked about being on auto-pilot. Some days I’m on Wodify the second I wake up getting keen for the workout, other times I don’t really find the motivation, or once I’m in class, every lift feels heavy and I’m worn out. I think the key is momentum – just keep turning up and working your way through the class, even on a bad day.
You've battled through some niggling injuries on your CrossFit journey. How did you manage those injuries whilst still maintaining your training?
It was frustrating at the time, but I've benefited from fantastic coaches who are great when it comes to training around and recovering injuries. Besides, my bad elbow gave me a chance to work on my lower body strength and my knee gave me the chance to work on my upper body strength. I’d say this has worked out pretty well. For the second time this year, I’ve gone to work with the work clothes I packed the night before and found that my biceps no longer fit in my sleeves. I’ve had to take to my clothes with a pair of scissors at my desk in an impromptu tailoring session, which I cover up by wearing a blazer all day and hoping no one notices (this is actually not a joke. It’s a real thing that can happen if you shower at work and have fantastic arms). For most of you, this is probably an aspirational level of gains, but I am beginning to think it might be calling into question my credibility as a young professional.
We've all got that one movement that makes us groan. What's yours?
| Burpees.
What are your other favourites and what's to love about them?
Deadlifts are cool. I also really like cleans, I think because I learned the movement relatively quickly and so enjoyed practicing them. I won’t lie though, one time I checked Wodify at 2am and saw the workout had 60 cleans in it. Then I fell back asleep and had a really bad dream about cleans, which has somewhat damaged my relationship with the lift.
We've had a few dark horses come through the box and you're definitely one of them, with some killer funny stories that have revealed themselves over time from your nickname "Potty Mouth Reynolds" to us finding you hungover and asleep in the grandstands at Regionals.
So it's time for the rest of the box and the CrossFit world to find out who the real Sally Reynolds is....
.... If you could have an unlimited storage of anything, what would it be and why?
Strapping tape, for practical reasons. I’m quite accident prone, and I’ve used it for everything including band-aids and wrapping presents.
.... If you could love in any period of history, what would it be and why?
A time in which I could thrive – so nothing which predates Netflix, Uber and googling your symptoms on Web MD.
.... If you could read one person's mind, who would it be and why?
I would forego that superpower… there are things I don’t really want to know.
.... If your name went in the dictionary, what would the definition be and why?
Sally: a lifting machine who’s secret skills include calculating percentages in her head and convincing herself that running is really not that bad.
.... If you could do one thing in life with the certainty that you would not fail, what would it be and why?
Pick the lotto numbers!
.... if you had to sum your life up in five words, what words would you choose and why?
Always sleep-deprived, somehow manages.
.... if you could come back as someone or something else, what would you choose and why?
I would choose to be someone completely different to myself in as many ways as possible – just for something different (love of CrossFit would still be non-negotiable).
.... if you had one day in your life to live over, what day would you choose and why?
So many to choose from, but maybe the day I climbed Mt Batur in Indonesia so I could experience the rush of finally reaching the top, followed by doing a better job of protecting my knees on the way down.
Looking ahead, what are your goals in CrossFit over the next year?
I’d love to master pull ups and snatches. I’m also working toward a body weight back squat, and am getting pretty close.
In the middle of a WOD, what animal would best represent you?
An elephant, because they are incredibly slow-moving. But also because they eat 200kg of food per day.
You've been asked to write a sales pitch for CrossFit. How would you pitch it?
Give it a go, even just once. I wasn’t convinced til I walked through the door, but after I did I was sold.
CrossFit Inc. decide to name and design a WOD in your honour. What would the Sally`s WOD be?
For time:
10 Dead Ball Cleans 35/55
20 T2B
30 Box jumps 20"/24"
40 Alternating KB Snatch
50 Sit-ups
60” Hand Stand Hold
50 Sit-ups
40 Alternating KB Snatch
30 Box Jumps 20"/24"
20 T2B
10 Dead Ball Cleans 35/55