My New Crush

There's something about those CrossFit girls, man. I was watching some of the 2011 CrossFit games on ESPN this Sunday and was quickly struck by one of the competitors: Julie Foucher.

swoon.

If you know me, you know why she is the one that struck me. Brown hair, brown eyes and lifting weights. Boom, smokeshow! Not only is she very pretty, she is also a monster. The event I watched showed her keeping pace with Annie Thorisdotter; the eventual female winner of the games (Foucher ended up coming in 5th). Not only is Foucher easy on the eyes, but she's also a med student at the University of Michigan. Beautiful, smart and strong? Sign me up, thanks!

Why am I writing this post about her? Because it's always nice for women to see someone who is strong and beautiful. No one in their right mind could call this woman "too bulky". She is 5'4" and 125 pounds, completely "normal" stats. She doesn't look bulky because she's not covered in a layer of fat over her muscles.

Something else that I wanted to mention very quickly is my recent interest in the elite-level CrossFitters; the one's who compete at the games. The men, it seems, have all been CrossFitting for several years before making it to the elite-level. Interestingly, the women seem to be able to achieve elite-status within a year of starting CrossFit. Why is this interesting to me? Because it means that these women are coming into the sport with a really strong base of athleticism/strength, and all they are really doing is learning the movements necessary to compete. Thorisdotter actually had trouble at her first games competition because she hadn't learned how to do muscle ups yet! From a few profiles that I've read, a lot of the elite level women have a heavy background in gymnastics (which helps to explain their fantastic power:weight ratios). I'm not suggesting this is a hard and fast rule, but just something that I noticed a little bit.

Go lift something heavy today!