Thursday, January 16, 2014

MissFit Athlete Spotlight: Krysty Geesey

Athlete: Krysty Geesey

Age: 25

Sport: CrossFit

Location: Hardbat CrossFit (Newark, DE)
 
Here a CrossFit athlete that you should keep in your radar.  Krysty is young, strong as hell, super athletic, and competitive!  I met Krysty sometime ago at a local CrossFit competition, and didn’t really take notice until I saw this:

 

In case you're wondering, that is 205 on the bar! This woman is a beast!  She is not shy to share her goal of making it to the 2014 CrossFit Games Mid-Atlantic Regionals that is coming up this summer.  If you are a fan of sport, CrossFit you should keep your eyes peeled for Krysty.



Krysty sandwiched between CrossFit Games competitor Emily Friedman and Champion Sam Briggs

Can you tell me about your background? 

I was definitely a tomboy when I was growing up and enjoyed being active and competitive. I was the only girl who would play kickball at recess in elementary school and would kick all the boys’ butts. I grew up in the small town, Dover, PA. I lived in Lancaster, PA for 7 years while completing my Bachelors and Masters degrees. I recently moved from Pennsylvania to Maryland after accepting my first job as a school psychologist.
 
Where do you train?

I am currently training at Hardbat CrossFit in Newark, DE, owned by Ian Hardin and Derek Batman (Yes, that’s really his last name—haha). Ian has been doing all of my programming. His program, Hardin-Fast, is solid (http://hardin-fast.com) for anyone who wants to be a competitive CrossFit athlete.  

What is your sport/fitness background/competitive background?

I didn’t get involved in any organized sports teams until I was in junior high and finally convinced my mom to let me play basketball. I played volleyball and ran track in high school. I also ran indoor and outdoor track at Millersville University. I was a sprinter, dabbled in long jump, and ran on the sprint relays. I’ve always had some natural ability and speed, but was never a standout athlete. I have now been doing CrossFit for over 2 years and also got my Level 1 CF certification over a year ago. I have done numerous competitions since beginning CrossFit and really enjoy that aspect.

 
How did you find CrossFit?
 
Annie, a friend in my graduate school cohort, was talking about CrossFit before one of our summer classes. She told me that she thought I would really like it. In September 2011, I went to my first CrossFit class at 5:45am. After trying it out, I knew that CrossFit was what I needed to kick my butt back into shape. It had been over 2 years since I had trained with any kind of intensity. I knew if I was paying for a membership and a coach was telling me what to do, that I would actually get myself out of bed to workout. That was the kind of motivation that I needed to become active again.

Are you competing?

I am competing. I think that has been one of the largest draws of CrossFit for me. I really missed being a competitive athlete after college. I have done a lot of local competitions over the past few years, as well as some partner and team competitions. I am also looking to compete in some Olympic Lifting competitions, as well. I think it would be really cool to qualify for the American Open next year.

What are your goals & ambitions?  What is your greatest accomplishment in CF thus far?

Right now, my goal is to make it to the 2014 CrossFit Games Mid-Atlantic Regional competition this year. I have a lot of smaller goals that I am working on daily in order to make that goal a reality. I am really working to improve my conditioning and gymnastics skills with a lot of help from my coach. I think that if I can make it through the Open, I could do pretty well at Regionals. Regionals tends to be much more strength-biased than the Open. That strength piece is definitely more within my wheelhouse, but I am trying to become more balanced in all areas of the sport.

I am not sure if I can pick a single greatest accomplishment. I am pretty proud of my 185# snatch. I would absolutely love to hit 200# before the Open. I am also proud of being able to consistently do muscle ups now. They are still a work in progress, but they are coming along.

What would your advice be to other women and/or young girls that want to try this sport (or any sport) but are afraid to try for any reason?

Trying something new can be scary. I was nervous when I first began CrossFit. I wasn’t sure what it would be like, if I would like it, or what the people would be like. You just need to take a leap of faith. Give it a try. If it isn’t for you, then at least you figured it out for yourself instead of just wondering. You don’t need an athletic background to try it either. Just give it a try and give yourself a chance to become a stronger version of your awesome self.
 
CrossFit has truly been one of the best things in my life for the past two years. With the stress of a break-up and graduate school, it was great to have a place to go to escape and focus on me. I’ve met countless people since beginning CrossFit. The community aspect is one of the best parts. I have friends from many gyms in different states and I consider many of those people as part of my family now. I have gained so much through that support system. I love going into the gym and watching others put in hard work and reach their goals. It makes me even more motivated to push myself.
 


 
Why are you a MissFit? 

I have never been good at acknowledging my own accomplishments because I am a perfectionist, and my own worst critic. I am a MissFit because I can now be happy with my accomplishments, but good is never good enough. I feel there is always a way to better myself—mentally, physically, emotionally, or intellectually.

I have worked hard to obtain both of my college degrees by myself. I’ve worked to become the athlete I am now in a sport that I love.  I have been blessed to be surrounded by amazing people throughout my journey who have believed in me, and pushed me to be more. It catches me off guard when other women say that they look up to me or they want to be like me. It makes me step back and acknowledge how far I have come and that I need to give myself credit sometimes. Those women have become the voices in the back of my mind telling me that I can’t give up.  I think this quote embodies me:

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do, so throw off the bowlines, sail away from safe harbor, catch the trade winds in your sails.  Explore, Dream, Discover." –Mark Twain

 
In the last 6 months, I took a leap of faith accepting a job, moving to a new state, and training     at a new gym where I literally knew no one. When I decided to make that leap, I never anticipated that I would have made the gains that I have made or that I would be living and training with a Games athlete. I believe that everything happens for a reason and will work out the way that it should. I would advise all of the MissFits out there to continue on their own journeys and take a few chances to get where they want to go. It will be worth it.

 

 
 

 
Good luck in the 2014 CrossFit Open, Krysty!  The MissFit Movement is pulling for you.  Go all in and don’t look back!