Watch Twin Sisters Brooke and Sydney Wells Prepare for the CrossFit Semifinals
Several elite CrossFit athletes happen to be siblings competing in the 2021 Semifinals: the brothers Panchik (Scott, Spencer, and Saxon), the brothers Smith (Ben, Alec, and Dane), and notably Brooke Wells and her twin sister Sydney. The Wells sisters are currently preparing to compete in different Semifinals events by training with the four-time Fittest Woman on Earth Tia-Clair Toomey-Orr at PRVN Fitness, led by Shane Orr in Nashville, TN.
Brooke Wells recently shared an inside look at what their training looks like and the mindset of her and her sister leading up to their respective Semifinals. Brooke will compete in the Mid-Atlantic CrossFit Challenge in Washington, D.C, scheduled for May 28-30, and Sydney will compete in the Granite Games in Minnesota the following week. Check out the video of their training below courtesy of Brooke’s YouTube channel:
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Semifinals Mindset
Brooke Wells finished fifth overall in North America in the Quarterfinals to the surprise of no one. She has been an elite Crossfitter for years and finished fifth at the 2020 CrossFit Games. Sydney Wells impressed many people with a 69th-place overall finish in North America in the Quarterfinals. One of those people impressed was her sister, who praised Sydney’s mental toughness for sticking to the training regimen while also working a full-time job. Sydney’s mindset is fairly straightforward:
My mindset…has been to keep going.
In the video, the sisters perform overhead presses, thrusters, toes-to-bars, prowler pushes, snatches (both standard and with dumbbells), ring muscle-ups, double-unders, and handstand walks. They also put in work on the ski erg and Concept2 bike. The bulk of the current training consists of high-volume gymnastics and heavy lifting.
Brooke’s mindset has been about staying focused on herself and less so on what others are doing around her. Rather than competing and/or strategizing during each workout, she is “staying in her lane” and getting the work done. That is not to say she doesn’t recognize the value of the caliber of athletes she is surrounded by; she trusts the process:
I train with a group of people that are so fit. Doing that and training is going to pay off huge in competition.
When the Wells twins were younger, they were rivals when it came to sports and other forms of competition. They have since grown to work together and support each other by letting the other help when possible. While training them, Orr recognized how Brooke has assumed a “mentor” position to her sister — a fitting role considering how much experience Brooke has in the elite ranks of the sport.
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Learning From Experience
Sydney isn’t the only one benefiting from her sister’s tutelage. Brooke admits that she and her sister naturally have similar movement patterns. Seeing Sydney’s less refined mechanics, by comparison, has allowed Brooke to recall notes Orr has given her on similar movements previously and better understand them.
Trying to help her is also helping me in a way.
It seems as though training together among some of the best and fittest CrossFit athletes on the planet is paying dividends both mentally and physically for the Wells sisters. We’ll see if they can secure two of the 40 available slots for female athletes at the 2021 NOBULL CrossFit Games set for July 27 through August 1.
Featured image: @brookewellss and @sydneywells on Instagram