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Alison Scudds | Clydesdale Media Semifinalist Series · Clydesdale Media Podcast

0:09
I
0:34
what is going on everybody
0:35
welcome to the Clydesdale
0:37
media presents the athletes
0:39
of the semifinals we are
0:41
west coast classing it this
0:43
week and we have Allison
0:44
Scuds with us Allison
0:46
what's going on hey um not
0:48
too much just my rest day
0:50
and I'm happy to be here to
0:51
chat all things life and
0:53
semifinals with you
0:55
Yeah, you are, of course,
0:56
one of our favorites.
0:57
You are hometown girl, Columbus,
1:00
Ohio native.
1:01
That's right.
1:01
You know,
1:02
that's why we root hard for you
1:04
and follow you so closely.
1:07
Thank you.
1:07
Got to represent.
1:09
Yeah.
1:10
So I'm going to dive right into it.
1:13
I have notes.
1:15
They're in no order, no format.
1:17
We're going formatless.
1:18
We're just going to bounce all around.
1:20
Love it.
1:22
Okay.
1:22
So I'm going to,
1:23
I'm going to dive in real quick.
1:25
Last time we spoke was at semifinals.
1:30
Yep.
1:30
I remember.
1:31
And it was a tough weekend.
1:34
It was.
1:35
What it showed me is how
1:38
much this stuff means to you.
1:42
Right.
1:42
Yeah.
1:43
Like it, can you describe like,
1:49
is it your competitive
1:50
nature that you just love
1:52
to compete or is it
1:54
something bigger than that?
1:57
I think it's, um,
1:58
it's a little bit of both and it's,
2:00
it's kind of crazy, you know,
2:01
like we're almost a year from that, uh,
2:05
conversation that we talked
2:06
about and even just like
2:07
talking about it I'm like
2:08
whoo hope I don't start
2:09
crying um but yeah I think
2:12
it's you know I've I've
2:14
always been competitive and
2:16
in athletics my whole life
2:18
and um so I think that is
2:20
definitely a part of it but everybody is
2:24
you know inspired or
2:25
motivated in their
2:27
competitiveness for various
2:28
different reasons and I
2:30
think for myself I just
2:33
know like you said how much
2:35
it means to me and the work
2:37
that I put in and have
2:38
dedicated you know years
2:40
and years almost a decade
2:41
of my life towards and
2:46
I have really high
2:48
expectations for myself because I've,
2:52
you know,
2:52
that's just the way that I do
2:54
everything is I'm kind of
2:56
like an all-in type person.
2:59
And so I think that it just,
3:02
it does mean a lot to me
3:03
because I know how hard
3:06
that I work towards it.
3:07
And I just also,
3:09
for the love of the sport as well,
3:11
like I love being able to
3:13
challenge myself and learn
3:15
new things and improve at
3:17
things continuously, even when
3:20
you know, I feel like I've got them down.
3:22
There's always a way to get
3:23
a little bit better and more efficient,
3:25
uh, movement wise and so much to uncover,
3:29
um, even on,
3:30
on the stuff outside of the
3:31
gym with the recovery and
3:32
the mindset and perspective
3:34
and all of that.
3:34
So yeah,
3:36
I think that kind of answers your
3:37
question.
3:39
You said almost a decade.
3:41
Your first open was 2014.
3:42
Yeah.
3:45
We are 2024.
3:45
Yeah.
3:46
That's a full decade.
3:48
Yeah.
3:49
I guess when I say almost a decade,
3:51
I mean of competing very seriously.
3:56
Like many people, when I started CrossFit,
3:59
I wasn't competing super seriously.
4:02
But unlike a lot of people,
4:04
I also knew that I did want to compete.
4:06
That was one of the things that really...
4:08
motivated me.
4:11
The first time I ever saw
4:12
CrossFit was at Wadapalooza and I saw,
4:15
you know, people competing.
4:17
And like I mentioned before,
4:19
I come from a competitive
4:20
athletics background and I
4:22
knew right away, I was like,
4:23
I want to be out there like
4:25
on the floor doing that.
4:26
And so, yes,
4:28
it has been over a decade of
4:30
doing some sort of CrossFit.
4:32
This will be in the
4:34
semifinals will be my ninth individual
4:38
appearance so from six 2016
4:41
when it was regionals
4:44
including the weird seasons
4:46
where it was uh sanctionals
4:47
there for a little bit but
4:49
every year I've competed um
4:50
at the at this level you
4:55
you came into the sport
4:58
surrounded by that miami
5:00
hotbed right like keto and
5:02
noah and all of that yeah um
5:07
They kind of have that as well.
5:09
They have that same desire
5:12
to continue to compete.
5:15
What was it like at the time
5:16
when you guys were training together?
5:20
I think it was just like, I,
5:22
I was very lucky to have found, you know,
5:26
Peak 360.
5:27
Um,
5:27
I'll include Dylan Malitzky in there as
5:29
well.
5:29
Um, some people know him.
5:30
He's, uh,
5:31
I think the president or I don't
5:33
know his exact title at Modern Live now,
5:35
but he's helping run all of those events.
5:38
And, um,
5:39
We were,
5:41
Dylan and I were really good friends.
5:43
We knew each other through
5:45
school and were resident assistants.
5:48
And he was like, oh,
5:48
I think you'd really like
5:49
this like CrossFit stuff.
5:51
And he was the one that
5:53
invited me to come check out Wadapalooza.
5:56
which was at the time run by Guido,
5:58
which Noah was competing.
6:00
And I believe he won that year as well.
6:02
The first time that I went to go watch.
6:04
So it was kind of just this
6:05
whole coincidental, um, you know,
6:10
meeting of people that are
6:11
like truly your people.
6:14
And, um,
6:15
I just feel super grateful
6:16
that that was my first
6:17
introduction to CrossFit
6:19
and my first CrossFit gym.
6:21
And then my first experience
6:24
coaching CrossFit and being
6:25
around high level athletes.
6:27
And it was just so inspiring.
6:31
I think that's like, you know,
6:34
seeing Noah compete at the
6:36
highest level of the sport.
6:38
That was really inspiring to
6:40
me and also just being kind
6:42
of like a full time athlete.
6:45
I really admired that.
6:46
And, you know,
6:47
in my summer breaks from college,
6:49
I would kind of like live
6:50
that life a little bit,
6:52
was always still working
6:53
like here and there.
6:54
But I that's I remember vividly one summer,
6:58
I think it was between my
6:59
junior and senior year,
7:02
I stayed in Miami and I was
7:04
training all day.
7:05
We had like a big group of
7:07
people training and it was just awesome.
7:10
Like you would go in the
7:11
morning and crush yourself
7:12
and come home and like rest
7:14
and eat and then go back to
7:15
the gym and do it all over again.
7:17
And I just loved that lifestyle.
7:21
And I was really excited by
7:23
the prospect of being able
7:24
to do that once I graduated.
7:26
And I mean, Noah,
7:27
I think was probably like,
7:29
One of the only people that like,
7:33
I was like, I want to do that.
7:35
And so kind of just like
7:36
trying to like model what
7:38
he was doing in a sense.
7:40
And that's what really
7:41
encouraged me to take the
7:42
leap once I did graduate
7:45
into trying to be a full
7:47
time athlete in the CrossFit space.
7:50
But yeah, it was just very supportive,
7:53
uplifting environment.
7:55
Everybody was trying to get
7:56
better and better those around them.
7:59
Guido very much led by example.
8:01
And I think, you know,
8:02
in those types of environments,
8:04
you need that strong, you know,
8:06
leadership from the top and,
8:08
his thing was iron sharpens iron.
8:11
So the better that I am,
8:12
the better that you're going to be,
8:14
the better we're all going
8:14
to be as a community and as
8:16
individuals and as athletes
8:18
and as humans.
8:19
So it was very strong
8:22
leadership and just focus on, you know,
8:26
character and,
8:28
and also just being a good athlete.
8:32
Did that set expectations that were high?
8:37
appropriate or were you
8:38
going to set those
8:39
expectations for yourself
8:40
regardless can you
8:43
elaborate a little bit more
8:44
on what you're saying
8:45
you're around noah who wins
8:47
wadapalooza yeah like jumps
8:49
in the space competes with
8:50
rich froning and competes
8:52
with him like hits the scene and
8:57
Balls to the wall, right?
8:58
Yeah.
8:59
Now you're kind of following
9:00
in his footsteps.
9:01
Did that set an expectation
9:02
that that's what you wanted
9:04
to do is immediately jump
9:05
into and be as competitive as Noah was?
9:09
Or were you going to be that
9:10
way whether Noah showed you that or not?
9:12
I think I was going to be that way,
9:14
whether Noah showed me or not.
9:16
Just before I was even
9:17
really close with Noah,
9:19
that was when I saw CrossFit and,
9:22
you know, saw Talena Fortunato, like,
9:24
crushing bar muscle-ups at
9:26
Guadalupalooza.
9:26
And I was like, I want to do that.
9:28
I want to be out on that floor.
9:29
And, yeah.
9:31
Being like a badass athlete
9:33
like like I'm watching and
9:34
so that was kind of like
9:36
self I guess expectations
9:39
and like I kind of
9:40
mentioned before just you know,
9:43
if I'm gonna do something
9:44
it's usually all in and
9:47
Yeah.
9:47
Corey Leonard corrected me.
9:49
Noah always hits the ground
9:50
running sprinting really way too fast.
9:53
And I think that he's kind of, you know,
9:56
in his,
9:56
in his years have learned to pace.
9:59
And I think he was kind of
10:00
like known for coming out hot and stuff,
10:02
but you can't deny he's an
10:04
incredible athlete and a
10:06
legend in the sport.
10:08
Andrew Sten says,
10:09
I hope Allison gets over
10:10
the hump and makes the
10:11
games as a competitor
10:12
enough with the devil.
10:13
Yeah.
10:15
thank you andrew appreciate
10:16
it uh john jenkins let's go
10:17
scuds such a great person
10:19
very humble ultimate
10:20
encourager and great thank
10:22
you john appreciate that I
10:23
didn't even realize we were
10:24
live this is awesome yeah
10:27
we're live on four
10:28
platforms okay facebook x
10:30
twitch and youtube let's go so um
10:38
Another thing I want to talk
10:39
about is you always have a
10:42
smile on your face on the floor.
10:44
And what I think I love
10:46
about you the most as a
10:47
competitor is when I'm at
10:50
Wadapalooza and a Good
10:52
Journey song comes on and
10:54
you are belting it out with
10:56
everything you have on the
10:57
floor while holding a barbell.
11:04
How important is music when
11:06
you're working out?
11:08
That's a great question that
11:10
nobody has ever asked me before.
11:12
And I think that, you know, for me,
11:17
music is super important.
11:21
My dad was a musician and
11:22
both my parents very musically inclined.
11:25
And I think it's just always
11:27
been a part of my life.
11:28
And I think it's kind of one
11:29
of those things that
11:31
you just kind of assume is
11:33
the same for everybody.
11:36
But music is super important.
11:38
And I feel like I develop
11:40
very strong emotional
11:42
connections with particular songs.
11:45
And I use it to manipulate
11:49
my energy levels.
11:50
And I pretty much always
11:53
have some sort of music,
11:55
or even if it's just
11:57
ambient kind of stuff,
11:59
that I use for you know down
12:01
regulation or when I'm
12:03
getting ready to go compete
12:05
or you know the morning
12:07
before the open workouts
12:08
like I'm getting something
12:09
on it's like making me feel
12:10
like excited and and happy
12:13
um so yeah it's it is very
12:16
important to me so now
12:18
now's the tough part of the
12:19
question if you could only
12:21
have a three song playlist
12:25
what are the three songs
12:28
for every part of life or
12:29
just working out work it
12:31
we'll go working out we'll
12:32
make it a little easier okay hmm um
12:43
I think, well,
12:44
so there's this electronic artist,
12:49
they're called Two Lanes,
12:50
and they have these,
12:51
what they're called escape mixes,
12:53
and they're kind of just
12:54
like short mini sets of like a lot of,
12:57
it's more than three songs.
12:59
But those are definitely,
13:01
I feel like I could...
13:02
put those on at any time and
13:04
really vibe to them.
13:05
They're a little bit slower,
13:06
which some people don't love,
13:09
but I like that chill kind
13:11
of music for most of the
13:14
time when I'm working out.
13:17
So if I could have a cheat answer,
13:18
I would say the Tulane's Escape Mixes.
13:22
Check those out on SoundCloud.
13:25
My all-time hype song is Loyal by Odessa.
13:30
But I feel like if I only
13:31
had three song playlists,
13:33
it would get overused.
13:35
I don't like to listen to it
13:36
too frequently because then
13:38
it kind of loses its zest.
13:41
But I like to throw that one
13:42
on when I'm going for a big
13:43
lift or a PR or something.
13:45
And...
13:49
I don't have two other
13:51
specific songs off the top of my head,
13:53
but Fred again and Duke
13:54
Dumont are also big go-to artists there.
13:59
Well, when you reference SoundCloud,
14:02
that shows how much into music you are.
14:05
Yeah.
14:06
And you know what's even
14:07
funnier about those escape
14:09
mixes is that they actually,
14:12
the artists kind of like
14:14
took a different route than they were,
14:16
I guess,
14:17
than when they first started
14:19
creating those mixes.
14:21
So they took them off of SoundCloud.
14:23
I was able to find them on Discord,
14:26
join their like private
14:28
group where they gave like
14:29
a secret link to access all of the list.
14:33
And so now I have that like bookmark.
14:36
wow yeah that is deep diving
14:39
it for sure yeah yeah I'm
14:42
like I'm the other
14:43
direction I have gone back to vinyl okay
14:47
And so I can't play that
14:48
when I'm working out,
14:49
but like I collect vinyl.
14:51
My daughter got me back into it.
14:53
We go to record stores and
14:55
dig through old records and
14:57
stuff like that.
14:57
And, and so like nothing is,
15:00
nothing is like, I do have Spotify,
15:02
but like nothing is.
15:04
Yeah.
15:06
But when I first started podcasting,
15:08
I was on SoundCloud.
15:09
That was how I, my platform.
15:11
Nice.
15:12
And I saw all the other
15:13
artists trying to get their
15:14
stuff out there.
15:15
So yeah.
15:16
Yeah.
15:18
So with this, the,
15:20
the preface that you love
15:22
to have a good time on the floor,
15:24
you are actually selling
15:25
some merch as a way to help
15:28
support yourself.
15:29
It's a, to semifinals, all that stuff.
15:31
I'm going to share my screen.
15:33
Oh, let's go.
15:35
It falls in line with everything there.
15:40
Oh, where did it go there?
15:43
I got it.
15:44
Okay.
15:46
Boom.
15:48
Yeah.
15:48
So I designed a couple of t-shirts here.
15:52
Obviously on the back of the Scuds one,
15:54
it says it doesn't have to
15:55
be fun to be fun.
15:56
And that's just a quote
15:58
that's always resonated with me.
16:00
And it really just means
16:01
like your perspective on
16:04
what's going on can really
16:05
impact like your experience.
16:07
So, you know,
16:08
a lot of the times when we're
16:09
doing a really tough workout, it's like,
16:10
Oh, this is like very painful.
16:13
It's uncomfortable.
16:14
And yeah,
16:16
It's in those moments that I
16:17
try to be like, this is awesome.
16:19
How lucky am I to have this
16:22
experience where I'm just
16:24
deep in the pain cave?
16:26
You have to really earn that
16:27
experience as well.
16:29
And I love to just kind of laugh at it.
16:32
Just be like,
16:32
this is kind of silly and crazy,
16:35
but it's fun too.
16:37
And so that's where that one comes from.
16:40
and um obviously has my name
16:42
on the front um and I
16:44
wanted to design another um
16:46
option before we get to the
16:48
other option yeah yeah go
16:49
ahead so the the silhouette
16:53
of you yes that is of me
16:55
yeah right it is also your
16:57
profile picture on
16:58
instagram yep where where's that from
17:01
So that move is what's called a toe touch.
17:04
And I came from the
17:06
competitive cheerleading
17:07
world and part of the sport
17:10
is different jumps.
17:12
So that is one of the jumps
17:14
that they do in competitive cheerleading.
17:17
And, um, I, I kind of forget that people,
17:20
you know,
17:20
that I'm pretty far away from
17:22
that history of myself now.
17:24
But, um,
17:24
when I was actually talking to the, um,
17:28
the,
17:28
the guys Sherpa works who were making
17:29
the shirt for me, he was like, oh yeah,
17:31
the gymnast logo.
17:32
And I was like, that's a picture of me.
17:34
He was like, oh, that's, that's cool.
17:36
Um, so yeah,
17:37
that is an actual photo of me.
17:39
Yeah.
17:40
So cool.
17:42
Yeah.
17:42
And you were a,
17:42
an all-star cheerleader here in Columbus,
17:44
Ohio.
17:45
Yep.
17:46
That's where I started off.
17:48
Shout out to step on all stars.
17:51
Whoops.
17:53
There you go.
17:54
Yeah.
17:54
And so I wanted to design a
17:55
secondary one for people
17:57
who wanted to support me,
17:58
but it wasn't necessarily like, you know,
18:00
my name plastered all over
18:01
it for people who, you know,
18:03
maybe don't know me or want to wear it,
18:05
you know,
18:06
outside of just supporting me
18:08
for semifinals.
18:10
And this is a quote that I
18:12
found this year.
18:13
And I felt like going into
18:15
my ninth attempt at making
18:17
it to the games, I really resonated with,
18:21
I want to see what happens
18:22
if I don't give up.
18:24
And, yeah,
18:25
that's kind of something that's
18:28
really been in my ear all year.
18:31
The front says, do hard things,
18:32
and it's kind of like a
18:33
line drawing of a weightlifter.
18:37
And, yeah, I think it pretty much...
18:41
sums up what I'm doing.
18:44
And I thank you very much
18:46
for sharing these.
18:47
And if you guys want to snag one of those,
18:51
I'm sure we can drop the link for you.
18:53
But it's also link in my bio on Instagram.
18:57
And we also did a couple
18:58
little stickers with each
19:00
of those designs as well
19:01
that you can add on there.
19:02
But yeah,
19:02
all the proceeds go to help me
19:04
get to semifinals and pay
19:06
for the registration and
19:08
Airbnb gas and all that good stuff.
19:12
Oh, and if you order before Wednesday,
19:14
I think they're guaranteed
19:15
to get here before semis.
19:17
If you're happy happening to
19:19
come on out to Carson,
19:20
are you coming out this year?
19:22
Well, I just, I, it's funny.
19:23
You mentioned Dylan.
19:24
I just talked to Dylan today.
19:26
Okay.
19:27
I just got a verbal approval
19:29
for media credentials today.
19:30
Nice.
19:31
Now I got to figure out, can I afford it?
19:33
Yeah.
19:34
Yep.
19:34
So that is my evening plan.
19:37
Cool.
19:38
Um,
19:40
So this is SherpaWorks.com
19:42
and they have a collection, Scuds,
19:45
and you can go check it out there.
19:47
And it's actually a perfect
19:48
segue to something on your Instagram,
19:51
that shirt.
19:55
And that is, I have your Instagram here.
20:00
You have like a little
20:01
collage of all the year.
20:04
Wrong one.
20:07
There we go.
20:09
So,
20:10
2016.
20:11
These are all the years
20:12
you've attempted to make the games.
20:14
Yeah.
20:17
And that's 17.
20:18
17.
20:18
Yep.
20:19
The year, the infamous no barbell year.
20:24
18.
20:24
Yep.
20:26
I love the hair changes.
20:33
And then was it sanctionals or did you?
20:34
Yes, this is sanctionals.
20:36
This was the French throwdown.
20:41
And this was Strength and Depth,
20:43
also one of the same shows.
20:44
20, The Cancelled Year.
20:45
Yep.
20:45
21.
20:45
Yep, and that was the West Coast Classic.
20:48
Yep.
20:50
And then 22.
20:51
Yep.
20:52
And 23.
20:52
That is so freaking cool, though,
20:53
having that timeline.
20:57
Thank you.
21:11
Um, any,
21:13
any big memories from that like
21:15
slideshow?
21:18
Um,
21:20
I think just my evolution as an athlete,
21:25
I think, you know, every time I compete,
21:27
it's very special and emotional and, um,
21:32
you know,
21:33
so many lessons learned from each one.
21:36
that is really the
21:38
compilation of what makes
21:41
me up as an athlete and person today.
21:43
So just grateful for all
21:44
those experiences and memories.
21:50
So what's funny is I think
21:54
this is where I've met you
21:55
for the first time.
21:56
I think so.
21:57
Yeah.
21:57
I remember that.
21:58
Yeah.
21:59
I interviewed you in the
21:59
back hall in the hallway.
22:00
Yeah.
22:02
You had a really good event.
22:04
Don't really.
22:05
And that was probably the D-Ball one.
22:07
Yeah.
22:07
I was with Morning Chalk Up.
22:09
Yeah.
22:10
Yeah.
22:10
And so I was interviewing then.
22:11
Yeah.
22:12
And that D-Ball event was actually.
22:14
So that year at West Coast Classic,
22:17
they were able to program
22:18
all the events and they
22:18
were all either repeats or
22:20
revamps of old events.
22:23
um regionals and games
22:24
workouts and that um they
22:28
repeated what was the
22:30
sandbag event in 2017 the
22:32
final um and they use a d
22:33
ball this year and um
22:36
that's still one of my
22:37
all-time favorite events I
22:38
love just like a grip and
22:39
rip event and so they are
22:42
repeating another one this
22:43
year they are with that was
22:46
repeated that year yeah and
22:48
2016 so this will be your third
22:50
Third time doing it.
22:53
And that is the snatch ladder.
22:54
How much better are you
22:56
going to do this year than
22:57
previous years?
22:58
Well, in 2016,
23:00
I think something that's
23:01
really interesting in 2016,
23:03
I believe I got three out
23:05
of the six reps on the third bar.
23:08
So the 155.
23:11
And, um,
23:12
that was good enough for 11th
23:13
place at regionals.
23:16
And then this year in 21, um,
23:19
at West coast classic,
23:21
I finished it was super
23:22
pumped to finish it.
23:24
Um,
23:25
and that was good enough for 20th place.
23:29
And, but yeah, I definitely, um,
23:32
If you haven't been
23:33
following my journey at all,
23:34
the last year I put on
23:36
about 10 pounds of body
23:37
weight and have really been
23:39
focusing on my
23:40
weightlifting and strength.
23:43
And so I'm really excited to
23:44
do to get another shot at
23:46
it and hopefully improve my time.
23:49
So I want to get into that
23:52
change this year.
23:53
Yeah.
23:55
Just to finish up West Coast
23:56
Classic that first year.
23:59
I had dinner with Justin on
24:01
the Monday after that.
24:02
Okay.
24:03
And he told me that day that
24:05
he was in talks with you to
24:07
come to underdogs.
24:09
Yep.
24:10
Right after that weekend and
24:13
the rest is history.
24:14
Yeah.
24:17
How big,
24:17
how big of a move was that for you?
24:21
Um, it was not that big of a move.
24:26
I mean, I think it was as far as like,
24:29
it just felt like what I needed to do.
24:31
And I think I'm very much live my life,
24:35
trusting in that intuition
24:36
that I have for myself.
24:38
So I basically, you know, in 2020,
24:41
I was training alone in my garage and
24:46
Um,
24:46
not even at like really a CrossFit gym
24:48
anymore because of all the shutdowns.
24:50
And it was tough.
24:52
Like I was pretty much just
24:53
doing my own programming and, um,
24:56
just very disconnected from
24:57
any type of like community.
25:00
And I was really good for,
25:01
or I'm really good,
25:02
still really good friends with Bethany.
25:04
But at the time I was like, Hey,
25:06
can I just come out and visit you?
25:08
You guys look like you got a
25:09
good crew there and just
25:11
want to kind of like shake
25:12
things up a little bit.
25:13
I've always, you know,
25:14
kind of going back to my peak 360 days,
25:16
like always valued that
25:18
community and people who
25:20
are better than me pushing me to,
25:22
you know,
25:23
become the best athlete that I can.
25:25
So I went out and literally
25:28
it was such an awesome,
25:29
like welcoming experience.
25:31
Everybody was super supportive and,
25:34
and it was just so,
25:35
it was like exactly what I
25:37
needed at the time.
25:39
And one day into the trip
25:41
with no intentions of like
25:42
this happening before the trip,
25:44
I called Raph, my partner, and I was like,
25:46
Hey, so I think we need to move to Vegas.
25:49
Yeah.
25:50
And he was like, oh, okay.
25:54
And it was just one of those
25:55
things that just felt like
25:56
that was the next move that
25:58
I needed to make.
25:59
And yeah, I'm really,
26:01
really grateful for my
26:03
experiences with underdogs
26:05
and with Justin.
26:08
So you bring up Raph, and I love Raph.
26:11
He did Raph, right?
26:13
Raph?
26:14
Yeah, either one.
26:16
And he did some commentary
26:18
work for us at the 22 games.
26:21
Him and Mitch,
26:23
we had them on doing some stuff.
26:25
And he actually had his
26:27
wisdom teeth pulled and
26:28
still came on our show.
26:29
I forgot about that.
26:32
Forgot about that.
26:33
Um, which, which was hilarious.
26:35
But my question to you is
26:38
now your partner's
26:39
competing on the same
26:40
weekends you are on a team.
26:44
Does that complicate things?
26:46
Does it make it easier?
26:49
I think it's about the same.
26:51
You know, before he did team last year,
26:54
we were, we had done some competitions,
26:57
like both competing individually as well.
27:00
And so I think it's just
27:03
something that was pretty normal.
27:06
Obviously, if he wasn't competing,
27:09
he could be there, you know, to be,
27:11
you know, everything helpful that I need.
27:14
But he still does an amazing job of,
27:16
you know,
27:17
helping me and supporting me even
27:19
when he is competing.
27:20
And so I think it's a net
27:23
positive either way.
27:26
And yeah,
27:28
just both of us having each other
27:31
to support each other,
27:31
whether we're competing or not,
27:34
is always great.
27:38
And then like last year,
27:40
his team makes the games.
27:42
And we've already talked
27:43
about the emotions you're going through.
27:45
Does it help you get over
27:48
that when you see him have the success?
27:51
Yeah, for sure.
27:52
I mean, that's, it's like...
27:57
his success,
27:58
I feel like it's also my
27:59
success and just being
28:01
super happy for him to, you know,
28:03
live his dreams and get to
28:05
be there to support him.
28:07
So, um, I think it's still, you know,
28:09
like it's very separate.
28:12
Like I can be feeling both
28:14
kinds of things at the same time,
28:15
like disappointment for
28:17
myself and also happy for,
28:19
for him and his dreams.
28:21
Yeah.
28:22
So you talked about this last year,
28:25
putting on some weight.
28:26
Didn't notice the weight
28:27
being put on lifts that you
28:29
haven't PR'd in several years.
28:32
Yep.
28:33
So what does that do for
28:35
your confidence going into
28:37
semis this year as opposed
28:38
to the last couple?
28:41
I think that...
28:45
It's not necessarily over...
28:48
I wouldn't describe it as confidence,
28:50
I guess.
28:50
I think I just... Or lack of
28:53
confidence in years past.
28:55
I think it's just every year
28:58
I'm working on filling in
29:00
the gaps of my weaknesses
29:02
and becoming a better athlete overall.
29:04
I think...
29:06
If anything, it's kind of exciting.
29:09
You know,
29:09
I did start this season off with
29:12
two new coaches as well.
29:14
And so just like a slightly different,
29:17
you know,
29:18
programming and training and experience.
29:22
peaking philosophies.
29:23
So I'm just really like after quarters,
29:27
especially with like,
29:28
there was a heavy barbell event there,
29:31
which I felt like I really
29:33
surprised myself on.
29:34
So I'm more so just excited
29:37
to see what I can do.
29:39
And, you know,
29:41
I am confident in my
29:42
preparation as far as like
29:46
doing everything I can to show up
29:49
and be the best athlete that I can.
29:50
But I think, you know,
29:52
something else that I've
29:53
been really working on this
29:56
season with my mindset is
29:57
just like accepting however
30:00
good I am is how good I am
30:02
and not trying to like
30:03
force confidence or force
30:06
being better than I actually am.
30:09
And just kind of letting it
30:11
rip at semis and having a
30:13
good time and seeing what happens.
30:16
yeah I maybe confidence was
30:18
the wrong word like I
30:20
started crossfit in 2011 a
30:22
pr is few and far between
30:24
yeah this far in right yep
30:28
you know you've been doing
30:29
this since 14 maybe a
30:31
little bit before prs are
30:33
hard to find yeah I mean
30:35
you're hitting a couple of
30:36
them in a row like
30:40
We're doing something right.
30:43
Yeah, for sure.
30:45
And I think, you know,
30:47
like as cliche as it is, like, you know,
30:50
progress isn't always linear and,
30:52
you know, PRs don't necessarily mean like,
30:56
you know,
30:57
that I'm going to perform better
30:59
at the semifinals or whatever,
31:00
but it's just all these
31:01
like indicators that we're
31:03
doing something right and
31:05
we're on the right track.
31:06
Yeah.
31:07
And moving that needle and
31:09
in ways that I wasn't able
31:12
to the last few seasons, hopefully.
31:16
So you said you're starting
31:17
with two new coaches.
31:18
Are you still with underdogs and?
31:20
No, I'm no longer with underdogs.
31:22
I haven't been with them for
31:23
the last few months.
31:25
I think I made the change in like December,
31:29
November, December.
31:31
But still training at Camp
31:33
Rhino with all the
31:34
underdogs and still have a
31:36
great relationship and huge
31:37
respect for everything that
31:39
they're doing.
31:39
And
31:41
you know, still train with,
31:43
with everybody there.
31:44
And, but yes,
31:46
I did start with two new coaches,
31:48
David Spurr and Jeremy Meredith,
31:51
and they both also coach Brent Fikowski.
31:56
Okay.
31:59
That, well, that's cool.
32:01
Do you ever train with Brent
32:03
or is it just kind of you,
32:05
you both are remote and
32:06
just kind of doing your thing?
32:09
Yeah, so I went up,
32:10
I think it was in November,
32:11
I went up to Kelowna and Vernon,
32:14
which is where they're,
32:17
that's where Jeremy lives.
32:20
And so I was training with
32:22
Jeremy and had a few
32:23
sessions with Brent when I was up there.
32:25
Wish I could train, you know,
32:27
more frequently with him.
32:28
He's awesome and has always
32:29
been like an inspiration to me.
32:33
So, but yeah,
32:34
not obviously on a daily basis.
32:36
I'm still here in Vegas and yeah.
32:38
He's up there, but yeah.
32:42
If you're willing to share,
32:43
Heidi Kroom is in the chat asking,
32:45
I'm going to combine hers
32:47
into one question.
32:48
Okay.
32:48
If you love them and still train there,
32:50
why the switch?
32:53
Yeah, that's a great question.
32:54
I think, you know,
32:55
as a competitive athlete,
32:58
you kind of have different
33:00
needs at different times.
33:03
And I ultimately just felt
33:06
like I was needing
33:09
something a little bit different,
33:10
kind of like fresh pair of eyes and...
33:14
I didn't,
33:16
I think just as far as like
33:18
moving logistics,
33:19
like it's a little bit
33:20
harder to like pack up your
33:21
whole life and move somewhere.
33:24
But was really just kind of
33:26
like looking for,
33:28
I'm a very like analytical
33:30
type of athlete and very
33:32
technique focused.
33:33
And I felt like I was
33:35
missing that a little bit.
33:36
And I think you can still
33:39
love and respect people, but just focus.
33:43
figured that I needed
33:44
something a little bit
33:45
different to get me to
33:47
where I wanted to go.
33:48
And yeah,
33:50
that's kind of ultimately why I
33:52
made the change,
33:52
just looking for a new set
33:54
of eyes and different perspective.
33:58
And I think, you know,
33:59
I've had a handful of
34:01
coaches through my CrossFit
34:03
career and even, you know,
34:05
through other sports in my life.
34:06
And I think you can always, you know,
34:09
you get a ton of value from
34:10
everyone that you work with.
34:12
And it's just kind of like
34:12
your job to keep
34:14
accumulating that and keep
34:16
asking yourself the questions like,
34:18
what are my needs as an athlete?
34:20
And are those needs being met?
34:22
And if not, like, how can I...
34:25
get those needs to be met
34:26
because I think there's a lot of, um,
34:29
like buy-in as well.
34:31
Like if you don't believe in
34:32
like what you're doing, then there's,
34:35
then it's kind of like that
34:36
self fulfilling prophecy as well.
34:38
Right.
34:38
Like you need to feel like
34:40
you're getting what you need,
34:41
even if it's, you know, um,
34:45
might not be actually what you need,
34:49
I guess.
34:49
Yeah.
34:51
So my follow-up to that is, why them?
34:55
Did you see something that
34:56
Brent was doing that fit what you wanted?
35:00
Or did you shop around a little bit?
35:03
Honestly,
35:04
it was a very organically the way
35:07
that it happened.
35:08
I wasn't necessarily
35:09
shopping around or even looking for...
35:13
changing things up.
35:14
I think just at the end of the season,
35:16
I was kind of like,
35:19
I had already decided that
35:20
I was going to like,
35:21
I was determined to gain
35:23
weight and gain strength.
35:24
So I was kind of looking for like,
35:27
maybe like a strength specialist.
35:28
So I was talking to a few
35:30
different coaches.
35:31
Jesse Burdick helped me a little bit.
35:34
One of my friends, Josh,
35:36
just like a few perspectives
35:38
on just like strength and
35:40
like what people thought
35:41
was like the best move there.
35:44
And I actually reached out to, um,
35:47
David who's my coach now
35:49
and him and I have been
35:50
friends for years.
35:51
He, um,
35:52
I met him back when I was before
35:55
even the West coast classic, like we, uh,
35:58
he was like working for
35:59
brute at the time.
36:00
And, um,
36:02
under Nick Fowler.
36:03
So him and I had just become friends, um,
36:06
through that and had
36:07
maintained a friendship and, you know,
36:11
really respect him.
36:13
And, um, I,
36:15
I actually reached out to David
36:17
and was like, Hey,
36:17
do you know of anybody who
36:18
might be able to like, you know,
36:20
kind of like,
36:20
just give me some advice or
36:22
advice on my programming.
36:23
And he said,
36:25
the smartest guy I know in
36:27
strength and conditioning
36:28
is Jeremy Meredith.
36:29
Like I'll set you guys up on a call and,
36:31
And just, you know, just chat with him.
36:34
And I just had a call with
36:36
Jeremy and he was just like,
36:38
I had never met a coach that was,
36:40
that spoke to me like Jeremy did.
36:42
Like, I just felt like he really, um,
36:46
knew what he was talking
36:47
about and not that other
36:48
coaches don't know what
36:49
they're talking about but
36:50
he just had this way of
36:51
like he was clearly very
36:53
smart but then he was able
36:54
to really translate that
36:57
into like what I needed to
36:58
do and I felt like it was
37:00
very specific and very it
37:03
made sense and it was
37:04
something that no like
37:05
things that no other coach
37:07
had noticed or like had told me before
37:11
And so I, I kind of just like started,
37:14
I had a couple like weekly check-ins,
37:16
like he would give me
37:17
homework and then he'd be like, okay,
37:18
let's check in the next week.
37:20
We started doing that.
37:21
And I was like, Hey, like you're,
37:22
you need to like be my coach.
37:24
Like I need to like hire you.
37:25
Cause like he was just
37:27
giving me so much value and
37:29
just kind of like
37:30
reigniting my love for
37:33
training because I felt
37:34
like I had these things to
37:36
work on that nobody had
37:38
really noticed before or had, you know,
37:40
Like, oh,
37:41
like that's something like I
37:43
think it's easy to see like
37:45
me move and just be like, yeah,
37:46
you move really well.
37:47
But he has like this very
37:49
specific eye for things that it's like,
37:52
yeah, you move well,
37:52
but like you need to like
37:54
these are areas that you
37:55
can like actually improve on.
37:57
And so that was just a very organic,
37:59
like natural fit.
38:00
And I just really loved the
38:04
what I was getting from him.
38:05
That's why I went up to
38:06
visit him and train with him in Canada.
38:11
And I kind of pitched to him like, hey,
38:13
I'm really liking what we're doing.
38:16
Like,
38:16
is there any way that you can kind of
38:17
like take me on full time?
38:19
Because at the time it was
38:20
kind of like he was
38:23
advising some of the stuff
38:24
that I was doing.
38:26
with underdogs and with Justin.
38:28
And then, um, he ultimately,
38:31
I don't think he has like a
38:33
gym that he owns and a family.
38:34
And I don't think he had
38:35
like the bandwidth to fully take me on,
38:38
but he had his partnership
38:40
with David that they do with Brent.
38:43
And he was kind of like,
38:44
I think we should just do
38:45
what we do with Brent.
38:46
Like I'll continue to advise, um,
38:49
do like the strength and
38:51
the Olympic lifting and, you know,
38:52
breathing and, and,
38:54
Um, you know,
38:55
he knows a little bit about every,
38:57
a lot of bit about everything.
38:58
So, um, and then,
39:00
so that's when I officially, um,
39:03
started with David,
39:04
talked to him and that was
39:05
kind of like a no brainer
39:06
just cause we had had a
39:08
friendship for years and, um, yeah.
39:11
And I,
39:12
I've also been friends with Brent
39:14
for awhile and he's always
39:15
been like an inspiration of mine.
39:16
So that was just great.
39:18
Just kind of like all happened, you know,
39:21
right time and right place.
39:24
Wow.
39:24
Learning so much on this episode.
39:26
Yeah.
39:27
You didn't even know we were
39:28
going down this road.
39:30
Yeah.
39:30
And like I said,
39:31
it was kind of the thing that just, again,
39:34
is like a theme in my life
39:37
of just intuition.
39:38
I felt like I needed
39:39
something a little bit more
39:40
technical in what I was doing,
39:42
which led me to Jeremy,
39:44
which then led me to David.
39:45
And that was just...
39:48
it wasn't something that I
39:49
was necessarily searching
39:50
out but it it felt like
39:53
something that I had to do
39:54
and it felt right and so
39:56
I'm just going with that
39:57
and trusting it and it's
39:59
been a great season so far
40:01
so Denise uh legend 65 plus
40:04
champion uh she has a
40:06
comment and a question okay
40:08
that's very smart every
40:09
coach brings different
40:10
skills to the training yep
40:12
and then she says now that
40:13
you put in more time
40:15
weightlifting do you love
40:16
weightlifting more
40:19
I think I've always loved
40:21
weightlifting and all
40:22
aspects of CrossFit.
40:23
They're so challenging and
40:25
you're never really there,
40:27
no matter how much you
40:30
practice and everything.
40:34
But I think the biggest
40:35
difference that I've
40:36
noticed these past few
40:38
months with my
40:38
weightlifting is I actually,
40:41
going back to the confidence thing,
40:43
I do feel a lot more
40:44
confident in my weightlifting.
40:45
Like I feel like I was doing
40:47
a lot of like pull and pray
40:48
before and I moved, you know,
40:51
generally well, I have good mobility.
40:53
I had okay, like strength base.
40:56
And so that kind of like,
40:57
I felt like got me by for quite some time,
41:01
but I wasn't like
41:03
significantly improving.
41:05
I was,
41:05
and doing a lot of like intentional
41:08
technique work.
41:10
And so I think that the
41:11
really big emphasis on that
41:13
this off season,
41:14
just spending like hours on
41:16
technique and like very
41:18
lightweights and really
41:19
dialing in like how it feels,
41:22
I've developed like a confidence in like,
41:26
I know what I'm supposed to
41:27
be doing and I know how to do it.
41:29
And like, obviously, you know,
41:31
still fail lifts and stuff,
41:33
but I feel like when I do fail, I'm like,
41:35
oh,
41:35
I know what I need to do to like not
41:38
fail it again.
41:39
Or I know like specifics of
41:44
just more tools for the technique.
41:49
So you've said multiple
41:50
times you move well.
41:52
It's obvious because
41:53
CrossFit picked you to be
41:54
the face of movement.
41:58
Is there any additional
42:01
pressure being the face of
42:04
this is how you move and
42:05
it's you up there on the screen?
42:08
Not really.
42:09
I mean, I think that's just how I move,
42:13
right?
42:14
So I think I always try to
42:18
hold a standard of movement and, you know,
42:22
that's just kind of, that's what I do.
42:25
I don't really think of it
42:26
as pressure too much.
42:28
I was,
42:29
I was thinking as the penalties were
42:30
being leveled, you know, and,
42:32
and you're the face of the movement,
42:35
what would it be?
42:36
Would it be a big hit if you
42:38
got a penalty for movement standard?
42:41
I think yes,
42:42
but I think that's any
42:44
high-level athlete.
42:45
I think there's nothing
42:47
special about me
42:49
necessarily that they use
42:51
me for the movement library.
42:53
I think all the high-level
42:55
athletes tend to move fairly well.
42:58
Otherwise,
42:58
it's more efficient to move well.
43:01
Let your abilities say something else.
43:04
Yeah.
43:05
Um, and, but I actually did, I mean, I've,
43:09
I received a major penalty
43:11
two years ago when they did this,
43:12
it was pretty much this people,
43:14
I thought it was interesting this year.
43:15
People were like, Oh,
43:17
they're doing things so
43:17
differently this year.
43:18
And it's like, no, they're not.
43:19
They've always done this in quarterfinals.
43:21
And, um,
43:24
I used to call it the pistol gate.
43:25
It's like joke, but yeah, I got,
43:28
I got a major penalty and
43:30
the pistol workout and yeah,
43:31
of course it doesn't feel good.
43:34
And like you, you know, and I think I can,
43:38
like I wasn't penalized in
43:40
the step ups and maybe, you know,
43:42
the pistol experience kind
43:44
of did help me learn that lesson of like,
43:46
there are certain movements
43:48
that are easy to get in the
43:52
gray area when you're
43:53
trying to move really fast,
43:54
like opening up your hips totally.
43:56
And especially like my, um,
44:00
My posture in general is a
44:01
little bit arched,
44:02
and so even when I feel
44:04
like I'm standing up straight,
44:05
my hips aren't all the way open.
44:06
I have to really make an extra effort.
44:09
So I can definitely
44:10
empathize with the athletes
44:12
that did get penalized for that.
44:19
Yeah, it was a tricky...
44:22
tricky scenario for everybody.
44:23
I think I I've thought about
44:26
it a lot and I kind of
44:27
think it was like the
44:27
perfect storm of
44:29
coincidences that led us to
44:32
what happened this year in
44:33
the quarterfinals.
44:35
So my argument,
44:36
which is very different
44:37
than most of the world is
44:39
that it's what CrossFit needed.
44:42
I've too many times seen
44:44
good movers not make it to
44:47
the next level because
44:49
someone submitted a shitty video.
44:51
Hmm.
44:53
And then they get to semis
44:54
and they don't have the
44:56
capacity or the skill to do
44:58
the movements at semifinals.
45:01
And they're more forced to
45:02
watch a first heat of
45:03
people who can't do the movements.
45:07
Yeah.
45:08
Right?
45:08
Yeah.
45:09
And I think that CrossFit
45:10
should lean into it and
45:12
keep going forward,
45:13
but give themselves more
45:14
time to review all the videos,
45:16
not just one.
45:17
Yeah.
45:18
Yeah, I think that's true.
45:19
And I think also, I think the biggest...
45:22
issued this year was, was like the,
45:25
the size of the penalties.
45:27
And I don't know,
45:29
I haven't seen the videos
45:30
of the people who got penalized.
45:32
Um, but they, nobody's showing them.
45:35
Yeah.
45:35
It appears like they were
45:37
potentially a lot worse, like kind of the,
45:41
you know,
45:41
the punishment didn't
45:42
necessarily meet the crime.
45:44
But like I said, I don't,
45:45
I haven't seen the videos and
45:48
my videos were good.
45:50
So you're pitching me a softball here.
45:53
If I was accused of
45:55
something that I didn't do,
45:57
the first thing I would do
45:58
is show the evidence of me
46:00
doing it correctly.
46:01
Yeah, that's true.
46:06
Just saying.
46:07
Yeah.
46:08
So, and I, and I am very athlete friendly,
46:12
like all the athletes I
46:14
want to give everybody their due.
46:15
And, uh,
46:17
but I want the right people
46:18
to be there too.
46:19
For sure.
46:20
Yeah.
46:21
Yeah.
46:21
I think the biggest like
46:22
question is like whether, you know,
46:25
whatever kind of reps that
46:26
they had was that deserving
46:28
of being disqualified from
46:29
the next level.
46:30
And it's like,
46:31
that's kind of like what
46:33
CrossFit decided was the, the punishment.
46:36
And so like,
46:37
I think most of the athletes
46:39
like sentiments that I've seen are like,
46:41
yeah,
46:42
some of my reps might've been a
46:43
little bit shoddy, but like,
46:47
so are everybody else's, you know,
46:49
or so are the people, you know,
46:51
the hundreds of people that
46:52
I was placed in between.
46:53
And I don't know,
46:54
there's a lot of wants in there.
46:57
I mean,
46:58
there's some stuff that could be
46:59
cleaned up around the edges for sure,
47:02
but I think they need to
47:03
keep going in this
47:04
direction and clean that up.
47:06
Yeah,
47:06
and I think exactly what you're saying.
47:08
It's like if you're going to
47:09
hold the standard for like
47:10
one specific movement out
47:12
of all the workouts,
47:13
like if you're able to,
47:15
like I get it's like a manpower thing,
47:17
but try to do that for all
47:19
the things then if you're
47:21
really trying to send a
47:22
message because it's kind
47:23
of like almost unlucky, right?
47:26
Like if, you know,
47:28
other athletes were
47:29
skirting the lines on other
47:31
movements that didn't even get looked at,
47:32
then that's not really fair, but...
47:36
Yeah.
47:36
Especially like handstand pushups,
47:38
the muscle ups and the
47:40
clean and jerks should have
47:41
all been reviewed on three and four.
47:43
Yeah.
47:43
To make it fair across the board.
47:45
Like those are all full
47:46
extension things that we'd want to see.
47:48
Yeah.
47:50
But, but I also get it from CrossFit side.
47:52
It's like, they only have so many people,
47:54
so much time, so much resources, they,
47:58
and thousands of athletes.
48:01
Right.
48:01
Yeah.
48:02
but I want to be negative all the time.
48:04
I want to be positive
48:05
because this is cool.
48:08
So you're going into semis.
48:10
You said like this year,
48:11
you're really working on
48:12
the mentality of just let
48:15
it rip and have a good time.
48:17
Yep.
48:19
For a very competitive person.
48:20
How hard is that?
48:23
I think it's hard because I want to like,
48:32
think everybody feels a
48:33
sense of like hey I've
48:35
worked really hard I
48:36
deserve something for that
48:39
at least that's something
48:40
that I've kind of like you
48:42
know battled um and I think
48:44
that I'm just trying to
48:46
like remember that the I
48:49
know the work that I've put
48:50
in the people closest to me
48:52
my coaches my you know
48:55
partner my family my my
48:57
closest friends like they
48:59
all see and respect and the
49:01
work that I've put in and
49:04
just and having some sort
49:05
of like external validation
49:07
for that is not necessarily
49:09
necessary like it feels
49:11
good but at the end of the day like
49:14
it's not the end all be all
49:17
and it's obviously still a
49:19
very like that's a goal of
49:21
mine but it's ultimately
49:23
out of my control and all I
49:26
can do is just train hard and
49:30
show up the best athlete
49:32
that I can be and learn
49:34
from those lessons and, you know,
49:36
keep doing it over and over
49:37
until I don't want to do it anymore.
49:40
And I think it is,
49:42
it is difficult because people,
49:44
myself included,
49:45
like especially younger athletes,
49:47
like you put a lot of value
49:49
in like your placement and
49:51
that is your value as like
49:52
a person as well.
49:54
And as a athlete and yeah,
49:57
think you just have to
49:57
remember like that isn't
50:00
the full picture um and you
50:04
can't just like put all of
50:07
your value into that I
50:08
guess um and just learning
50:10
to be proud of of the work
50:13
that you put in and I think
50:14
a lot of the ways like I've
50:17
talked myself into like I would rather be
50:21
the person and athlete that
50:23
I am knowing how hard and dedicated, um,
50:26
I've,
50:27
how hard I've worked and how
50:28
dedicated I've been and,
50:30
and not achieve the
50:31
external validation versus
50:34
being somebody who like
50:35
didn't necessarily work hard,
50:36
wasn't a good person.
50:37
And then, you know,
50:38
did receive those things.
50:40
Like I would, at the end of the day,
50:42
I'd rather be the person that I am, um,
50:45
Well, and that was kind of my follow-up is,
50:47
is it easier knowing you've
50:50
done everything you can
50:52
possibly do this year to be
50:55
the best Allison you can be?
50:58
I think there's aspects that
51:00
are easier and that are harder.
51:02
I think a lot of times
51:03
people don't go all in on
51:05
things so they can kind of
51:06
have that exit strategy of like, well,
51:08
I wasn't really trying or I
51:11
didn't really care because
51:13
they can kind of have that.
51:16
But, you know,
51:17
since basically since I
51:18
started competing seriously in CrossFit,
51:21
I was like,
51:22
I'm going to do everything in
51:23
my power to what's available, you know,
51:26
with the resources that are
51:27
available to me to go all in.
51:30
Because for myself,
51:32
it is a little bit easier
51:33
at the end of the day to be like, I...
51:37
feel fulfilled and knowing
51:40
that I did everything that
51:42
I could and gave my best effort and yeah,
51:45
it sucks when that's not
51:46
good enough and it's not a good feeling,
51:49
but it's, it's a feeling that is more,
51:52
I think, um,
51:56
like sustained like I feel
51:59
very proud you know when we
52:00
were going back through
52:01
that slideshow of all the
52:02
years like yeah I never
52:04
punched my ticket to the
52:05
game any of those years but
52:07
I know the journey that
52:13
I've been on and and the
52:15
lessons that I've learned
52:17
uh you just cut out for
52:18
just a brief moment but I
52:19
think we got the gist okay um and so
52:25
So it's such good.
52:26
Are you say like,
52:28
as long as you want to do it,
52:31
is there an exit strategy?
52:33
Is there,
52:34
or are you always going to want
52:35
to compete?
52:37
I don't know.
52:38
Um, that's,
52:40
it's kind of going back to like
52:41
the intuition thing.
52:42
Like right now it's still
52:44
really calling me to like keep going.
52:46
you know,
52:47
pounding away and like keep
52:48
training and keep getting better.
52:52
Cause I feel like I still am
52:54
getting better.
52:54
I think just to compete at
52:56
the regional level for
52:57
almost 10 years in a row,
52:58
you have to get better every year,
53:01
even just to, you know,
53:03
remain in the more or less
53:04
the same placings and,
53:07
Um, so I think I don't have a specific, um,
53:11
kind of like next step, um, as of now,
53:14
but that's just because I
53:16
still really love the, the,
53:19
the game of it and the,
53:20
the training and the lifestyle.
53:23
That's so cool.
53:25
Cause if you love the process,
53:26
then the rest of it's just gravy.
53:28
Yeah.
53:29
Um, you've,
53:32
did you design the shirts
53:33
yourself that you're selling this year?
53:35
Yeah, it was a collaborative effort.
53:37
I kind of had like the
53:38
initial like brainstorm, you know,
53:40
rough sketches of everything.
53:43
And then Chad Mueller helped
53:44
me really put the designs
53:48
on the shirts and brought
53:49
my vision to life.
53:51
And you've created signature
53:52
lines of clothing.
53:54
I have, yes.
53:54
And apparel.
53:55
Is that something you want
53:57
to dive into at some point or...
53:59
That is something I would
54:00
love to get back to.
54:03
I actually considered kind
54:05
of like starting up my own line.
54:07
This was like an uncovered,
54:11
Passion of mine that I found
54:13
when I was doing that
54:14
designing clothing like
54:16
athletic clothing for women
54:18
to really like help them
54:20
feel like they look good,
54:23
but also like can stand up
54:24
to their like tough workouts.
54:27
I just loved designing those
54:29
and bringing this life so I
54:31
would absolutely love to do
54:32
something like that in the future.
54:34
I definitely have that like
54:36
creative side of me that.
54:39
and like the entrepreneurial
54:40
side to like create stuff
54:41
and put it out there.
54:42
Um,
54:44
haven't had the right opportunity to do
54:47
so yet, but, um, if anybody has any ideas,
54:52
hit me up.
54:54
So you're looking at any
54:55
apparel companies that
54:56
would like to collaborate.
54:58
Yeah.
54:59
Yeah.
55:00
Let that be really cool.
55:01
Yeah,
55:01
because I think just for where I'm at
55:03
right now,
55:04
the prospect of doing something
55:06
ground up all by myself is
55:09
just not realistic with the
55:10
time commitment of being a
55:12
full-time athlete right now.
55:15
You graduated from the
55:16
University of Miami?
55:17
Yes.
55:18
What was your degree in?
55:20
Biomedical engineering.
55:24
Two left turns from there.
55:28
Yeah, you're nowhere,
55:29
nowhere near that degree anymore.
55:31
Nope.
55:33
But I think, you know, it's,
55:34
it's really about the,
55:37
the character type that it
55:38
takes to get a degree like that is,
55:40
is very much who I still am.
55:43
And I take with me through
55:45
everything that I do of just like,
55:46
I like doing really hard
55:48
things and seeing if I can
55:50
figure them out.
55:51
And,
55:52
and I want to see what happens if I
55:54
don't give up.
55:56
i mean I'm really nowhere
55:58
near my degree anymore
55:59
either so so that I mean
56:01
like it's I think college
56:03
is just a test can you get
56:05
through yeah can you make
56:07
it to the end if you can
56:08
we'll give you a piece of
56:09
paper good and good luck um
56:13
and it shows you're you're
56:14
probably really freaking smart thank you
56:21
Well, this has been awesome.
56:22
I'm not going to push anymore.
56:24
I think this has been an
56:25
amazing interview.
56:26
And I was only supposed to go 30 minutes.
56:29
And we're at 56.
56:30
So I'm going to let you have
56:32
the rest of your rest day back.
56:35
As always, Allison, this is just,
56:38
you're always amazing to have on.
56:40
Thank you so much.
56:40
I appreciate it.
56:41
And thank you to everybody
56:42
who was watching live and
56:44
asking those questions.
56:45
That was super fun.
56:47
I always love to interact
56:49
with people following the sport,
56:51
following me.
56:52
So please slide into the DMs
56:55
whenever you have any
56:55
questions about stuff.
56:58
Love to just be connected
56:59
with everybody and just
57:00
share my journey because
57:01
that's really what...
57:03
part of you know like what
57:04
really inspires me to keep
57:06
going is just to enable
57:08
others to go after their
57:10
dreams and and all that uh
57:13
and denise more more to
57:15
leave you with this just to
57:16
let you know most of us 60
57:17
plus women's athletes don't
57:19
care for booty shorts all
57:21
right good to know yeah if
57:22
that's my market I will uh
57:25
mix the booty shorts off there you go
57:28
thank you allison thank you
57:29
everybody in the chat
57:30
you've made this awesome
57:31
and we'll see everybody
57:32
next time on kleistel media
57:35
podcast interviews the
57:36
athletes of the semifinals bye guys