CFKI – Coaching – CrossFit – Community
As the next part in our series of highlighting our outstanding coaches, I would like to introduce you to Coach Alicia!
* Ryan’s note: Alicia gave me some detailed bullet points, but it’s very hard to write about yourself so I might paraphrase and add on a bit. If you see an overuse of the word “awesome”, that was probably me.
Alicia Higginbotham, Coach (Level 2 CrossFit, Obstacle Course Race prep)
Alicia’s athletic background originally centered around basketball. In high school she scored over 1,000 points, and went on to play at Grove City College. If you’ve noticed the basketball hoop outside the gym, that was me sharing a fun idea to have a hoop at the gym and Alicia running with it, making it a Christmas gift from all the coaches. Thanks Alicia!
After college Alicia started getting into obstacle course racing (OCR) like Spartan Race, and has won or podiumed in her age group at races ranging from 3 to 10 miles long. Awesome!
I asked Alicia why she started coaching: “When I started CrossFit I was immediately hooked. After about 8 months I got my Level 1. I’ve always enjoyed the teaching/learning process no matter the subject. I love the challenge of teaching the same thing in a different way in order to better communicate with someone and help them improve. I also love watching someone piece the info together and work hard toward their goal.
Of course there’s the building relationships side to coaching. Not only do you better understand where a person is coming from and what they need because of it, but It’s always amazed me how close you can get to the people you workout with. There’s something special about suffering next to someone.”
After the rather traumatic birth of her daughter and a rough recovery, Alicia’s focus shifted more to pregnancy and postpartum, and also training women in general. “Women are not small men” and should be fueling and training differently. A large majority of research in health and fitness has been tested on men, and Alicia has found a passion for educating herself and passing on that knowledge to other female athletes.
As far as what is next for Alicia, athletically: “Throughout the year I like to dabble in various competitions. Weightlifting, the CrossFit Open, obstacle course racing, and some good old-fashioned CrossFit competitions. My goal this year is to make the top 10% in the Open which I just barely missed last year. I’m open to being dragged into other competitions and sports if anyone ever wants a training buddy for an event!”
Thanks so much to Alicia for letting us know a little bit more about your background, your goals, and your “why”!
Alicia currently coaches the majority of our 10am classes and is there for Open Gym 11am-1pm. And if you’re there, she will coach you up! And maybe take pictures of you. Come check out one of her classes! You’ll have a blast, learn a lot, and come out the other side a better athlete!
Ryan