“If you’re not having fun training—in competition and in life—then you’re probably doing the wrong thing!”
GG: Everyone who met you at the Granite Games said you were always joking and laughing and having a blast between workouts. Is that how you always are or is that how you deal with competition jitters?
SB: I like to relax and have fun. If you’re not having fun training—in competition and in life—then you’re probably doing the wrong thing! As soon as it counts though, I can flick that switch, and the game face is on!
GG: You have a lot of experience with competing at the biggest fitness events in the world. Did you find the Granite Games programming to be challenging?
SB: I loved the programming. They weren’t frightened of going heavy, which some competitions shy away from. Saying that, none of the workouts were there to destroy you! After the weekend of competition, I took the Monday as a rest day, then was back to normal the Tuesday, which is a perfect off-season competition.
GG: The competition certainly seemed to go your way. You dominated several of the workouts over the weekend. Was there one that you enjoyed most?
SB: I enjoyed all the workouts. The one that sticks out though is the sprint and HSPU one. Me and Emily Bridgers were full-out sprinting against each other, giving everything we had and thinking we were fighting for 2nd place. Little did we know, the earlier heat had gone faster and we took 4th and 5th!
For me, the most nerve-racking was The Snatch Ladder, as so many girls are proficient lifters now! I managed to hold my own, but it showed me I need to work harder at being more consistent at my top-end weights!
GG: Have you changed up your training at all this year after the European Regionals?
SB: I’ve tried to pack on some more mass in the hope that weights like the 135 overhead squat don’t throw me around so much! Trying to find the ideal weight so I can lift heavy but still be efficient at the gymnastics is going to be trial and error for the next few months, but I’ll hopefully have found my optimum weight by Regionals next year!
GG: Now, you don’t seem to have any, but are there any weaknesses you’re working on dialing in to prepare for next year?
SB: We always have weaker areas to work on! Right now I’m working with an Olympic Lifting coach trying to tweak my technique. I’m never going to be the strongest athlete, but I can become more efficient at moderate weight.
GG: It was really cool that you were out there in Halenbeck Hall signing autographs on Friday night. Do you get any odd requests or strange items to sign from fans?
SB: Ha ha, there’ll always be one that wants something weird and wonderful! It keeps things interesting!
GG: What’s your take on the Granite Games as a whole?
SB: I felt the competition was extremely well run with a great variety of workouts testing a wide variety of fitness components. Everyone who had previously competed at the Granite Games spoke highly of it and past programming looked fun and challenging. I thoroughly enjoyed the whole weekend and it was great to compete against other top level athletes in a fantastic venue.
