How Olivia Kerstetter and Sydney Wells Trained Right Before the 2023 CrossFit Games
2023 CrossFit Games athletes Olivia Kerstetter and Sydney Wells are making their elite Individual debuts at the 2023 CrossFit Games. In the final days before the competition, they offered the PRVN Fitness audience a glimpse of what a training day was like during their Games prep.
Wells qualified for the 2023 Games via a seventh-place finish at the 2023 North America East Semifinal. Kerstetter did the same via the 2023 North America West Semifinal. On July 28, 2023, PRVN Fitness posted a video to their YouTube channel of Kerstetter and Wells’ entire day of eating and lifting. Check it out below:
[Related: 2023 CrossFit Games Day One Results]
Sydney Wells and Olivia Kerstetter’s Morning Meals
Kerstetter and Wells started this particular day with oatmeal and almond butter for breakfast. Wells paired her breakfast with coffee before hitting the gym for weightlifting.
Wells’ meal preps her lunch, which is comprised of three ounces of ground turkey and 130 grams of rice, though her typical carb of choice is sweet potato. Her meals forego sauce to avoid processed sugar.
Kerstetter’s morning routine and lunch prep are similar. The main difference is Kerstetter’s addition of vegetables throughout the day, whereas Wells only eats veggies at night. After breakfast, Kerstetter and Wells train at their respective gyms.
[Related: The CrossFit Games Will Not Return To Madison, WI, in 2024]
Wells and Kerstetter’s Strength Training Workout
Wells programming features strength training for two hours twice a week on Tuesdays and Fridays. She trains solo as increasing strength is her primary focus before the 2023 CrossFit Games. Wells and her coach, Dwight Upshaw, had approximates of what the opening events would be comprised of, so they practiced snatches and power cleans.
Wells’ tried different cues from people other than her coaches to prevent her from becoming too complacent when the same voices repeatedly. This helped her prep for the anticipated crowd noise and various judges calling out instructions throughout the Games.
Kerstetter lifts at a different gym, performing clean-and-jerk ladders and front squats before ring muscle-ups and thrusters. Kerstetter lifts five times a week, with a half hour of stretching and warming up. Kerstetter is still in school, so she typically fits three and a half hours of training in after her classes.
Kerstetter’s coach, Shane Orr, believes Kerstetter is mentally prepared for her Games debut as an Individual, stating, “With any world championship, you don’t know what you’re in store for until you get there. So to be mentally prepared for something you’ve never done is hard… You lean onto those [training] experiences to develop…calluses in your mind of how mentally focused and prepared you are.”
Wells and Kerstetter’s Cross-Training Regimens
Later in the afternoon, Wells trains echo biking, kettlebell thrusters, medicine ball throws, muscle-ups, and rope climbs while Kerstetter continues to lift weights. Both athletes put in three to five hours of gym time daily to get ready for the 2023 Games.
Orr coached both women and was asked about Wells’ biggest progress. “I think finding her own rhythm, finding her own self, particularly in workouts,” Orr said. “That’s been…a big discovery the past seven or eight weeks… Comprehending or understanding what her limitations are in workouts.”
According to Orr, Wells’ gymnastics, strength, and work ethic are all improving:
She recognizes that she’s still trying to find out what her ceiling is.
The 2023 CrossFit Games are currently underway at the time of this article’s publication. Kerstetter and Wells will take to the competition floor on Aug. 3, vying for a podium spot at the conclusion of the Games on Aug. 6, 2023.
Featured image: @sydneywells on Instagram