At the inaugural Adidas “Primer” in Herzogenaurach, Germany, athletes attended lectures and participated in workshops covering topics ranging from nutrition and performance-based eating to the advantages of a healthy mind and mindset coaching.
- One session was led by Dan Donachie, a mental performance coach from the UK with decades of experience working with professional athletes.
Donachie discussed techniques for recovery, stress relief, and meditation, emphasizing diaphragmatic breathing, engaging with one’s inner critic, goal-setting, and journaling, among other practices.
For Bethany Flores, everything resonated.
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Some background: In 2021, Bethany Flores won the West Coast Classic, qualifying her for a fourth trip to the CrossFit Games. However, she was unable to compete due to a serious case of COVID-19.
Once recovered, Flores faced further setbacks in late 2021 and early 2022, including a high ankle sprain, nerve pain, and the return of chronic back issues that had plagued her for years.
She withdrew from the 2022 season during the Quarterfinals.
At that time, there was very little Flores could do physically. She was in pain every day. The only training she could engage in was mental. She pursued breath therapy and meditation as ways to take control of her mental state.
- “There have been points in the last three years where all I could do is work on the mental side and breathing,” Flores told Morning Chalk Up in an interview. “Because I was in that much pain. I was in so much pain I couldn’t even take my dog for a walk. Sleeping? I was in pain. It was a very helpless place to be.”
“But adding in the breathing stuff,” she continued, “gave me a sense of purpose in life, and it allowed me to feel like there was still something I could do when everything else physically was taken away from me.”
- “I was basically living in a sympathetic state all the time. Sympathetic means fight or flight. Just always on edge. And I didn’t even know it. I had no idea,” Flores said.
Learning to breathe and meditate, along with her physical therapy and treatment, has been transformative, but it didn’t happen overnight. It has taken time.
- “It’s not instant gratification. Over time, you’ll start seeing slight benefits. And they’ll only really pop up in those highly stressful moments,” Flores said. “You’ll know you did the correct things, mindset-wise. So I’ve been able to get little glimpses of that in competition.”
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After hearing Donachie discuss breathing strategies, calming techniques, journaling prompts, and meditation exercises, Flores shared that it reinforced her belief that she is doing the right things, both in and out of the gym.
Overcoming Obstacles
Although Flores has overcome her injury, it continues to be a part of her daily life. Some days are pain-free, while others bring discomfort. Consequently, her training, recovery regimen, and priorities have shifted.
- “There’s just more intention now with my training, before and after, particularly after, to get into that parasympathetic state,” Flores said.
Flore shared that her breathing and relaxation techniques have particularly impacted her sleep.
- “I’ve never been a good sleeper. But this has changed my sleeping quality immensely. If you can’t sleep, you can’t recover. It’s going to bleed out into your performance, your brain, your mindset, your decision-making. I just wasn’t aware,” Flores said.
She reflects that this has always been something missing in her career – a proper mindset and headspace. The opportunity to work on this, and in a sense being compelled to do so due to her injury, is something she’s grateful for.
Looking Forward
Flores shared that she is the kind of person who believes events unfold for a reason. She tends to view most of life’s obstacles positively. Moreover, she acknowledges that over the past three years, “there has been so much beauty that has come from this injury.”
She wonders if she would be the person she is today – the wife, the friend, the elite athlete competing on CrossFit’s biggest stage – if her injury and setbacks never occurred.
In recent years, Flores has found fulfillment in writing. It’s just for her, for now, but she hopes to share her writing with the world someday. One idea she has been contemplating and reflecting on is that “pressure is a privilege.”
This saying has become popular in recent years and is often referenced in the sports world.
- “I think pressure can be used in a good way, it’s just about how you see it and how you perceive it. At the beginning of my career, I did not let people in […] because I was scared to let people down. I was such a people pleaser, and that’s something that has really changed in my life — allowing people to be part of the journey — the good, the bad, the ugly,” Flores said.
She values that this realization has occurred not at the end of her career but in the midst of it.
- “When my back acts up, which it still does, I have other things I can do […] You can be grateful and still say, ‘This sucks.’ It’s not black and white. There’s a dichotomy that can live in your heart where it’s both fun and exciting and stressful and confusing. It can be both at the same time. So that’s been freeing when I allow myself to feel both,” Flores concluded with a smile.
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Featured Image: Scott Freymond
