COMING SOON: Hit the Hills not the floor

Hill repeats, everyone's favorite workout. More often then not they get avoided. However, I'm here to tell you that pushing yourself up to the top of that hill not only provides you with an often spectacular view but provides you with strength, power, and focus. Find out why hills are an important aspect to your training coming soon. 

PARADOX, HUMOR, and CHANGE

For female weightlifter Amy Hay it began as young girl growing up as a gymnast in the beautiful and active town of Hood River, OR.  With a passion for competition and an inane desire to push her-self to the limit athletics defined who Amy was causing people to quickly jump to the conclusion that she was an unstoppable power house.  Over the last couple years Amy has paved a new path in her life by following three simple words; paradox (life is a mystery don’t try to solve it), humor (don’t be afraid to laugh at yourself), and change (change is inevitable, embrace it).  LifeStyle Fitness (LF) recently spoke with Amy about her journey towards creating positive change in her life through choosing to follow a healthy lifestyle of strong body and mind.

LifeStyle Fitness (LF): I know you started your athletic and competitive ventures as a gymnast and track athlete.  What was the shifting point for you as an athlete from gymnastics and track to competitive weightlifting?

Amy: I began doing weightlifting competitively as injuries ultimately kept me from competing in either gymnastics or track in college.  During my first year in college, and my first year not doing anything competitive, I began to feel the “competitive itch”. I missed it. Local cross fit gyms lured me into their gyms and I competed for them for a while, however, I didn't find it challenging enough both physically and mentally so I looked into Olympic Weightlifting. I contacted a local coach and he agreed to assess me and see if I had any talent. It turned out I did, so he began training me.

LF: How does competing in the weightlifting circuit compare to the gymnastic world for you?

Amy: I find the two very similar as they are both largely individual sports so the pressure is all on you; there is no one else for you to fall back on when things do not go well an aspect I really

love as it forces you to hold yourself accountable. This can be really hard to get used to, you have to be so brave and learn how to block everyone else out. I haven’t been able to find anything else in life that really tests you all the way down to your core. Gymnastics was and always will be my number one passion, but weightlifting is a close second due to the similar mental and physical reward.

LF: Not only are you competing at a high level but you are working on finishing up school to receive your degree in Exercise and Sports Science with a minor in Spanish.  How do you balance your studies and training?

Amy: Finding a balance is very hard, and sometimes I have to make school a priority and skip a training session. I currently train twice a day on M, W, F, and once on T, Th and Sat. That means getting up early and getting my morning sessions in before my classes. Often times I am not finished with classes, homework, and my internship until late at night and so my evening workouts sometimes go as late as 11pm.

LF: Do you follow a specific training and/or diet plan to help you find that balance? What does a typical day look like for you?
Amy: A typical training day for me starts at 8. I wake up and eat a bowl of oatmeal or eat a banana. Then I am doing my morning workout by 9am. Morning workouts are usually shorter and only take me about an hour and a half. I am usually in classes until 3, and then I come home and have a snack of either yogurt or an almond butter and honey sandwich. Then I am working with athletes for my internship until about 8:30pm with a more intense, usually around 2 hours, evening workout. Sometimes I do conditioning after lifting, depending how late it is. When I get home I always cook green veggies with rice or potatoes and meat, either chicken or grass fed beef. I don’t particularly follow a strict diet; I just try to eat a wide variety of healthy foods with a balance. 

LF: Despite being a lifelong athlete you didn't always follow the healthy lifestyle you do today was there a wake up call for you that caused you to start making positive changes in your life?

Amy: I think that the biggest wake up call came for me when I had put so much stress on my body through extreme exercise and eating disorders that I became anemic, my thyroid stopped working, I developed adrenal fatigue, and my body fat percentage was so low I no longer

Post workout smoothie

menstruated. During this time I also developed a stress fracture in my leg due to over use. Part of me knew that I had done all of this to myself. But I was very stubborn and I tried to lie to myself about it for a long time. The pivotal moment during all of this came when a coach of mine said to me, “Amy, people will still love you if you don’t do gymnastics.” This may sound like common sense to most people, but in my mind I was nothing without sports. I was worthless—a failure. These intense ideas led me to my eating and exercise disorders. When I heard what my coach said I broke down into tears on the floor. It was something I needed to hear for so long. I had forgotten that I am AMY. I am a person. Someone who matters outside of sports, outside of having a perfect body. That was the moment that changed my entire life. That’s when I began to make changes.  Three simple words became my everyday inspiration:

Paradox, meaning life is a mystery, no use wasting time trying to solve it.

Humor, don’t be afraid to laugh at your mistakes, and don’t take yourself too seriously.

Change, change is inevitable, so don’t resist it, embrace it!

Thinking of these three aspects of life help to keep me grounded. I laugh at myself often and don’t tear myself down when I make mistakes. When things don’t go as planned I realize that it is meant to be that way and I let it go. You have to keep moving forward as life comes at you.

LF: What helps you to continually push past those obstacles and what advice would you have for others who may be or have struggled with similar obstacles?
Amy: I have learned to love myself and pay attention to the love that others have for me. I have begun to view life as something so precious, so rare, and something to cherish. Ultimately you have to completely love yourself. Just like you love your family unconditionally, you must too love yourself unconditionally. Imperfections are meant to be there and so you must embrace them, don’t try to cover them up. They’re part of you!

LF: What was the journey like going from whom you used to be to the confident vibrant person you are now?
Amy: It definitely wasn't easy, but it has been very fun! I finally was able to relax and not constantly stress about my body. I have become entirely care free and I can enjoy food and exercise without obsessing about it.

LF:  What has been the biggest obstacle for you to overcome in your training?

Amy: I would say the training is definitely the hardest. Physically it is exhausting; you have to be able to maintain technique and form while fatigued. It’s especially hard during school when many of my workouts are late at night. So many times I would rather be getting into bed and instead I am putting on my lifting shoes. The tough workouts take so much confidence. I am constantly telling myself that I can do it, you can’t think for a second that you’re going to miss, otherwise you will. I think this mindset translates over directly into my everyday life and the confidence I have there as well.

LF: As a female weightlifter do you feel pressure from the stereotype that often follows the sport that it’s meant only for men?

Amy: Yes at times! This question actually made me laugh a little because it reminded me of some of the comments I get from men on this subject. I have been accused by men countless times of using steroids, usually it’s because I am stronger than them and they can’t handle it! I have also been told that I am getting “too bulky” and that I should stop so I don’t get any more muscle. None of these comments ever come from women. Women are always very supportive and think what I do is awesome. I think a strong woman makes some men insecure and so they come up with hurtful things to try and bring me down. I laugh off any comments like that.

LF: As with anything in life there are days (even weeks were you just want to throw in the towel; what inspires you to keep motivated and constantly pushing your body to a new level
Amy: Weightlifting takes so long to get good at, and so I remind myself on bad days that day does not define me or my potential as a weightlifter. The only way I can survive this frustration is my not being too hard on myself. I have developed so much patience. My competitors and coaches are my biggest motivators. I stay in contact with my competitors and we share videos with each other of our lifts and that really helps to push all of us. When I see women in my weight class making lifts, it makes me think, “Wow! She did it, then that must mean I can too!” Even though we’re all trying to beat each other, we’re also very supportive and want the others to do well.

LF: So we understand that training and school make up a majority of your time but in your downtime, when you aren't training or in school, what do you like to do?

Amy: Any free time I have I take my dog with me to trails in the gorge, both in Washington and Oregon, sometimes every day of the week! I have a huge passion for the outdoors. It’s very relaxing for me and I love the views. I also get to run! Typically my coaches won’t let me do any running at all, but my dog keeps a fast pace so I am constantly running to keep up with him. It’s a nice change of pace from lifting weights all the time.

LF: As you have competed on the national level for two years now you must have a competition that stands out in your mind as one of your favorite experiences.
Amy: I would say my most memorable and fun competition was at a meet in the fall in

Washington.  There was a HUGE crowd watching (which is rare for weightlifting meets). Everyone was cheering me on, the energy was fantastic and I ended up getting personal records in both the Snatch and Clean & Jerk and ended up winning the meet, which got me prize money and new weightlifting shoes. It was so much fun!

LF: Should we look for you in the Olympics any time soon?
Amy: I would like to compete on an international stage however as it takes such a long time to get that elite of a level in weightlifting that is a VERY long term goal.  Currently I am focusing on medaling at nationals.

LF: Outside of the competition world what do you see yourself doing in the future?
Amy: I would love to help and reach out to teens that are going through the same struggles I faced and to help them move past it towards living a healthy lifestyle.  Eventually I would love to be a teacher either at the middle school or high school level.

LF: The goal of LifeStyle Fitness is to promote a healthy way of life through exercise and clean eating; what advice do you have for those who are looking to make positive changes in their life?
Amy: I would say that baby steps are key! If you want to make changes in your life you must do them progressively and work them into your daily routine. Maybe that means changing just one meal a day at first, or going for a walk instead of watching a movie. Eventually that will get easy and you can continue to add healthy choices into your life. The biggest mistake people make is trying to change everything all at once. That can be overwhelming and frustrating and usually sets you up for failure. Baby steps are the wisest way to go about it. And once you have reached your goal of living a healthy lifestyle, don’t be afraid to treat yourself or take the day off when you need it. Life is too short to completely restrict yourself.  Don’t be afraid to laugh at yourself and have fun. 

Never forget that life is a journey and if you don’t keep moving forward as it comes at you, you will miss it.