1) Who is Taylor Williamson? (where are you from, what do you do, a bit about yourself (hobbies, etc)I am a student in Physician’s Assistant school, a member of CrossFit Mayhem Freedom, and a 5x CrossFit Games athlete. I grew up in Kansas and currently live in Tennessee.
2) How many years have you been training? (Including how you got started, etc)
I’ve been working out and involved in athletes pretty much since I could walk. I played volleyball in college. I started CrossFit in 2012. I initially started CrossFit to get in better shape to play college volleyball, but eventually realized I loved CrossFit as a sport itself.
3) Whats been the most challenging/hardest part of your journey so far? and how have you overcome them (set backs, rejections, injuries, basically anything difficult that you have had to overcome)
The most challenging part of my CrossFit journey so far has been balancing it with the demands of PA school! Time management is essential with achieving this goal. A very close second most challenging thing would be balancing my drive to get a little bit better every day and with the need to let my body rest and recover and not get injured. Being able to make yourself rest even when you don’t want to and making the things to do to train really count is really important for longevity and continued progress.
4) What does your typical workout/diet routine look like? (With any particular protocols you rate).
All of my days are a little different and scheduled around my class schedule. I am generally in class or studying 40-60 hours a week. I try to get at least 2-3 hours of training in a day, with much more on the weekends.
5) What new knowledge have you learned over this past year regarding training, lifestyle and nutrition? (And How has it changed your focus for the future)
In the last year I have shifted a lot of my training emphasis to high volume gymnastics with Mayhem Athlete programming. This has allowed my body to be a little less beat up and has really increased my comfort level with gymnastics movements in competition
6) Whats your favourite cheat/Treat meal?
Anything involving peanut butter
7) Whats one supplement that you could not live without?
Caffeine!
8) If you had to start your Journey from scratch with both your health & physique what would you do differently and why?
I would put a lot more emphasis on developing strict bodyweight strength early on! As a female it’s much more difficult for us to develop upper body pulling and pushing most of the time.
10) If you had to give one bit of advice to people starting out what would that be?
Try and find a small victory every day! Find something to focus on and achieve with each of your training sessions.
11) What new goals do you have on the horizon?
Win the CrossFit Games again with my team!
12) Where can people find you? (website, social media accounts)
Instagram: t_will7
