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- Samantha Briggs retired from professional CrossFit in June 2022.
- She won the title of Fittest Woman on Earth in 2013.
- She said staying in shape is important as she returns to her pre-CrossFit firefighting career.
Samantha Briggs retired from professional CrossFit in June 2022 and is now returning to her pre-CrossFit career as a firefighter, she told Insider.
Briggs started CrossFit in 2009 at the age of 28 and did the Games for the first time in 2010. won the competition that same year she went full-time as an athlete, winning the title of Fittest Woman on Earth in 2013.
Having competed in CrossFit competitions nine times, Briggs, 40, is considered a legend in the sport. And even though he quit to become a firefighter, he said he will continue to train as much as he can.
Being fit makes everything in life easier, Briggs said.
“You don’t realize how important movement is until you lose it,” he said.
Briggs’ inspiration to stay fit and healthy comes from her grandmother, who has always been active but recently had hip replacement surgery, Briggs said.
Her grandmother, who is in her 80s, never lets anyone else pick things up off the floor for her and walks up a steep hill every day.
“If you can do something when you’re younger, in your 20s and 30s, that means when you’re in your 80s and 90s you’ll still be able to take care of yourself, that’s the most important thing,” Briggs said. he said.
It can be as simple as taking the stairs instead of taking the elevator or escalator, he said.
“Don’t be afraid to start,” Briggs said. “Some movement is better than no movement.”
You don’t have to be in shape to start CrossFit, Briggs said
Briggs worked as a firefighter and competed in triathlons before CrossFit, so she was already strong when she started training. But you don’t need to have an athletic background to get started, he said.
“You can start at any level and CrossFit will make you fit for CrossFit,” he said.
Although founded in 2000, the sport was still in its infancy when Briggs began training, and the standards for elites are much higher now, he said.
Many of today’s top athletes started CrossFit as teenagers, including Justin Medeiros, Aimee Cringle and Mallory O’Brien. Others came from backgrounds in gymnastics, like Katrin Davidsdottir, or track and field, like Tia-Clair Toomey.
“You can’t get to the Games if you’re just fit, because everyone is fit now,” he said. “Everybody’s strong, everybody’s good at gymnastics, so it’s a lot harder when you first get into the sport. If you don’t have a special background, you won’t see many athletes going to the Games in their first year of training.”
On an amateur level, Briggs believes the community aspect of CrossFit and other types of group training appeals to people more than the Covid-19 pandemic.
“There’s more of a need for local pageants because people just want to have a reason to go celebrate and get together with friends,” he said.
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