“The improvements this past year have been countless — from kipping pull-ups, pistols and stringing my double-unders together ... the list goes on and on. I am in better shape now than at any time of my life.”
Above photos courtesy of Joy Barker
One year after starting CrossFit, Mary Schwing won the 60+ Division of the 2012 Reebok CrossFit Games. But that wasn’t her goal at the start.
“One day, in one of the high schools (where I work as a counselor), I happened to notice this woman who worked there who seemed rather fit. I started talking to her about what she was doing to help her stay fit, and she explained (CrossFit),” Mary says.
She had been looking for something to do with her 27-year-old daughter, Brie, who was recently sober.
“I knew that she needed something more in her life as she was moving into a new life path,” Mary explains.
Soon after, she and her daughter walked into CrossFit 808 in Honolulu, Hawaii, for their first workout.
“When Brie and I attended our first WOD (at CrossFit 808), we were left in a puddle of sweat on the floor and totally hooked,” Mary says.
Her daughter agrees.
“At 27, my mom and the rest of my family helped me to make a choice, to make a decision to choose to live, and not long after that, CrossFit came into my life at the most ideal time,” Brie says. “Through my journey in the early period of my sobriety, food began to replace drugs and I gained a considerable amount of weight.”
Over the next few months, Brie got deep into CrossFit. As her daughter stayed sober and grew healthier, Mary’s attention turned back to her work. By the time the 2012 Open rolled around, Mary was spending more time in the office and on the water than at the box.
While Mary had no plans to compete, her daughter was determined to get her to enter.
“Brie had approached me several times before the Open and asked if I wanted to enter. I repeatedly told her, ‘No,’ as I did not feel I was of the caliber of fitness that I had watched at our box,” Mary explains.
Undeterred, Brie used her last $20 to sign her mother up for the Open. Immediately after, she left a message on her voicemail telling her she needed to report to the box at 6 a.m. to do Open Workout 12.1.
The next morning, she gave it a try.
“I looked at it as just another workout,” she says. “(Seven minutes of burpees) was perfect for me as a surfer. I simply thought of it as a great exercise that mimicked a movement similar to a takeoff in surfing.”
At the end of the week, she held onto third place in the 60+ Division with a score of 84 burpees. She got the news second-hand.
“Everyone told me I was in third place on the CrossFit Games Leaderboard. I had no idea what the Leaderboard was, and I had never been on the Games site before the Open, so I really didn’t know what this all meant,” Mary says.
Five weeks later, she locked into sixth place overall. Delighted by what her mom had achieved, Brie explained that she had qualified for the 60+ Division of the CrossFit Games Masters Competition.
At first, Mary didn’t believe it.
“I assured her there was probably a typo somewhere along the line. I couldn’t even string two double-unders together,” Mary says. “It didn’t really sink in until my coach told me that I should look into hotel reservations and flights for California. I really had apprehensions. I didn’t feel like I was in the same league as the other competitors, but my coach told me to just go, have fun and do the best I could.”
She booked the flight, and made a serious commitment to “have fun.”
“As Brie and I made our way to the Games, I began to think, ‘What am I doing?’ I never thought I would be going to the Games. Time and again, I had watched our coaches work out in preparation for the Open, and I didn’t think I had a chance at anything.”
Over the three days in Carson, Calif., she gave it her best and tried to learn as she went. By the end of the weekend, she stood at the top of the podium.
“My goal was to just do the best I could,” Mary says. “I surprised myself when I found myself on the first-place podium. I continue to be humbled by the warmth and the supportive energy of the CrossFit community.”
Today, with a deadlift of 235 lb., a snatch of 85 lb., a clean and jerk of 115 lb. and a back squat of 160 lb., Mary continues to hold her own in the 60+ Division. On 13.1, she logged 162 reps, for 13.2 she scored 270 and on 13.3 she completed 240 reps. After three weeks, she holds onto fourth in her division.
“My goal is to stay in the top five in the Open for a return to the Games. Last year, I completed the (workouts) several times. This year, after conferring with the coach, we decided once was enough as long as I stayed in the upper level. Competing in the (workouts) helps me look at areas I need to work on when combining more than one skill like wall balls and double-unders.”
Mary trains diligently five to six days per week, working with different coaches on her skills, as well as Olympic lifting and technique. She also incorporates beach runs a couple of times a week and surfs three to four times a week.
“The improvements this past year have been countless — from kipping pull-ups, pistols and stringing my double-unders together, to better executing lifts like the snatch and clean and jerk … the list goes on and on,” she says. “I am in better shape now than at any time of my life.”
