The "Hart" of CRCF
When two-time All-American hammer thrower and former bobsled Olympian Bethany Hart retired from competition in 2008 and 2010 respectively, she longed to find a new athletic outlet. An injury to her Achilles had forced Bethany to retire early from bobsledding, and it took her a long time to adjust to her new life outside the elite athletic realm. “It was a rough couple of years trying to fill the void that was left behind. You live, eat, breathe, and sleep your sport, so when it’s gone, it feels like half of your life is missing. It’s hard to find something to replace that feeling.”
After watching the CrossFit Games on ESPN last summer, Bethany was intrigued. The athletes she saw were fit, healthy, and strong, and the workouts were appealing. Yet Bethany hesitated; she was afraid she might aggravate her Achilles and a low back injury she suffered in 2006. When she finally decided to join Charles River CrossFit last October, she initially modified her CrossFit WODs to focus on technique and improve her endurance while taking precautions to protect her Achilles and low back. Even though the strength component of CrossFit is similar to her Olympic training, CrossFit was an adjustment for Bethany, who had to get used to the conditioning aspect of WODs. Bobsled and hammer throw are fast, intense sports that require power and short bursts of energy, but provide time for full recovery. “To come to CrossFit and do your Olympic lifts with your conditioning was a completely different world for me. I remember thinking; ‘we have to do what for 20 minutes?’ But I’m getting accustomed to it. I surprise myself in some of these workouts and have [handled] conditioning better than I thought, but it has definitely been an adjustment. It’s a misnomer that Olympians are good at everything. I was built for throwing hammers and pushing bobsleds.” But even with the changes that came along with a new sport, CrossFit has been a great fit for Bethany. She placed 18th in North East CrossFit Opens and fifth at the North East Regionals, where she took first place in the Snatch Ladder Workout by snatching 150 pounds.
CrossFit has provided Bethany with the athletic outlet she had been searching for. “After retirement, I needed a change of pace.” For Bethany, competing in the Opens and Regionals was an “awesome" experience, which “allowed me to feel like the athlete I used to be.” Mostly, though, Bethany is simply enjoying CrossFit. With its constantly evolving WODs, varied programming, and supportive community, CrossFit has opened “a whole new world for me to push myself and compete in. It’s been a lot of fun.” In the fall, Bethany will compete in local competitions and train for the 2013 Opens.
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