July Athlete of the Month: Nicole Wigston
Congratulations, Nicole! You are the NoCoast Athlete of the Month!!
Nicole has been CrossFitting for almost 2 years now and, in that time, she has transformed herself from the inside out! Her dedication to the journey and her commitment to nutrition and our challenges have truly paid off. She is not only stronger, but her conditioning has and continues to improve. She has become leaner and healthier every step of the way.
It has been a crazy few months to say the least, but Nicole and her family have done an amazing job staying active, remaining positive, and working hard inside and outside of the gym. We appreciate the dedication Nicole has to her nutrition and fitness, not only through this pandemic, but over the past few years! Keep it up, Nicole! Your progress has been inspiring!
Quotes from Nicole:
“I am amazed at how much more endurance I have when doing the things I love. Trails I have ridden for 20 years are markedly easier for me to ride both up and down (hello, core and stabilizer muscles!). I have way more endurance now than when I was triathlon training, which I definitely did not expect. I am stronger, fitter, healthier than I have ever been in my life and I know I am only going to be more so as I head toward 50.”
“Nick's and my enthusiasm for CrossFit has definitely been imprinted on our children. Our daughter, Zoe, is looking forward to joining us when she's old enough (which is way too quickly approaching!). Rhys had a blast competing with the kids at the Turkey Challenge last year. The CrossFit mentality of dedication and leaning into a challenge and hard work fit with our values. Work hard, play hard!”
Age/Weight:
44 / 128
Athletic/Sports history/highlights:
I was a late athletic bloomer, having channeled most of my energy into partying in my youth. In my mid-20s, I moved to Colorado and got into whitewater kayaking, mountain biking, snowboarding, and any other sport that meant downhill fun. I wasn't so much into the uphill. I credit natural childbirth with bringing the athlete in me to life, as after that I truly knew what my mind and body together were capable of.
How long have you been CrossFitting?
Nearly 2 years.
How did you get into CrossFit?
I held out for a while! I worked with Beth Romero, and was/am impressed by how strong she is. She would tell me how she thought I'd love CrossFit, but you know Beth, she's not pushy about it. I had gotten into running and short mountain triathlons to get in shape 5-6 years ago (after the athlete in me awakening). I was reluctant to start CrossFit because I knew I would be all in with it. Honestly, I was a little scared of all those reps. I had never done anything with barbells. Anyway, then my friend Matt joined up and couldn't stop talking about it. Then Nick! I still held out another year. My very first Saturday at NoCoast I was hooked.
What is your favorite WOD/CrossFit movement?
Pull ups because of how far I have come with them. I had 1 strict pull up on a good day when I started. Now I have 8 unbroken! I really enjoy kipping pull ups because I worked hard to get them. The snatch is also a favorite. I love the complexity of the movement, and the feeling when I do nail it as well as knowing it is something that will always need more work!
What is your least favorite WOD/CrossFit movement?
Anything involving the airdyne. It is not a bike.
What is your most memorable CrossFit moment?
The Festivus Games competition I did with Cat. We had a partner WOD that was time capped at 15 minutes where we each had to do snatches and wall balls. I think my set was broken into numbers of reps and hers was straight through the snatches, then the wall balls. I went first, and I kept getting no-repped on the wall balls. With a bunch of people watching, and the pressure on, I continued to no-rep and started to take well more than half those 15 minutes to get the work done. I got pretty emotional about it (failing, letting Cat down), and Elsa coached me through that emotion. She helped me rally to cheer Cat on, who 100% saved us and finished just under the time cap. Having my NoCoast friends there to cheer me on, to support me when I was low, it meant so much to me. That's the thing with CrossFit, it seems like an individual sport, but you have this whole team, this whole community behind you.
How does nutrition play a role in your fitness and recovery?
Nutrition is absolutely the base of the pyramid of wellness and fitness. It's really simple (but not necessarily easy). It's like Michael Pollan says, "Eat food. Mostly plants. Not too much". NoCoast's January challenges fit this very well, with the clean/Whole30 challenge educating us on what "food" is and the Zone challenge hitting those second two sentences. There's absolutely a direct link between how we fuel our bodies and how they are able to perform.
How has CrossFit improved your overall wellness?
I am amazed at how much more endurance I have when doing the things I love. Trails I have ridden for 20 years are markedly easier for me to ride both up and down (hello, core and stabilizer muscles!). I have way more endurance now than when I was triathlon training, which I definitely did not expect. I am stronger, fitter, healthier than I have ever been in my life and I know I am only going to be more so as I head toward 50.
How has CrossFit changed your family?
Nick's and my enthusiasm for CrossFit has definitely been imprinted on our children. Our daughter, Zoe, is looking forward to joining us when she's old enough (which is way too quickly approaching!). Rhys had a blast competing with the kids at the Turkey Challenge last year. The CrossFit mentality of dedication and leaning into a challenge and hard work fit with our values. Work hard, play hard!
Advice to new people:
Focus on the foundation work and not the weight or trying to Rx a workout. A big part of what makes CrossFit addictive and fun is the huge variety and complexity of skillful movements. It takes time to build skill. Pick a movement you want to achieve (kipping pull ups, handstands, double unders, etc.) and work with the coaches to build the fundamental strength and mobility to get there. Spend 2-5 minutes every single time you go to the gym working on that one movement. It's so gratifying to put in that kind of work and see the results! Also, soft tissue work and mobility are valuable ways to spend just 10-20 minutes before bed to deregulate.