CrossFit Athlete Dani Speegle in Two-Piece Workout Gear Admires "the View"

Balancing Family Life with the Gym

“I think I’m able to balance it pretty easily because I approach training differently than most CrossFit athletes. I’ve learned that, for me, less is more when it comes to being in the gym, so I have a few hours of high intensity training, and then plenty of family time,” Arielle told The Barbell Spin. “I am in the gym from about 11 AM – 1:30 PM, and then sometimes back for an evening session after my daughter goes to sleep. I train around her schedule and am able to make breakfast and spend time with her in the morning, and then we get to enjoy the afternoon and evening together. If I need to take her to gymnastics, dance lessons or to the park, I can, because I’ve gotten my workout done.”

Macros

Arielle counts macros using MyFitnessPal. Her main focus? Consuming enough protein. “Here's a look inside what I eat in a day as a full-time mom & CrossFit athlete! I love when I hit my protein goal! I weight around 150lbs & my goal is to get 150g of protein a day!@myfitnesspalmakes it easy to see exactly how much protein I'm consuming a day 🥩🍗,” she captioned a post.

Cycling

Like most CrossFit athletes, Arielle spends a great deal of time cycling. Here she is on the airbike. The Cleveland Clinic explains that biking, a low-impact aerobic exercise, is great for building muscle, improving strength and flexibility, and improving balance. It can also boost mental health and help other health conditions, including arthritis.

Hiking

Arielle enjoys outdoor exercise. Here she is hiking in Scotland. According to the National Parks Service, the physical benefits of hiking include:

• Building stronger muscles and bones
• Improving your sense of balance
• Improving your heart health

Decreasing the risk of certain respiratory problems.

Training While Pregnant

Arielle didn’t let her pregnancy keep her from CrossFit. While she “scaled down her training significantly” she did a noon class four to five days a week. She also focused on eating “a good meal,” such as meat, potatoes, and veggies, throughout her pregnancy. As her pregnancy progressed she reduced intensity. “CrossFit was definitely good for my physical health, but also my mental health,” Loewen said. “Everything about my body was changing. But the one thing I knew was showing up to the noon class and doing the class workout was my mental escape,” she told CrossFit.

She Worked Hard

Adams took a year off from competing professionally. When she returned, she made sure to work hard. Adams talked about this in the caption of this Instagram post, “One year ago, I decided to compete again. Watching this footage reminds me of the challenging and humbling journey back after 10 months away. There were many many days I wanted to give up. returning to my previous level felt impossible. but I stuck with it, embraced the journey, and everything fell into place. comeback year complete 🫶”

She Lifts Weights

In the previous Instagram video, Adams is seen lifting weights. ACE Fitness states that this can have a lot of benefits. “Lifting heavy weights elevates levels of anabolic hormones—specifically testosterone, growth hormone and insulin-like growth factor (IGF-1)—which are used to repair muscle fibers damaged during exercise. This helps the muscle fibers to become thicker and capable of generating higher levels of force.”

She Doesn’t Stress About Her Diet

Adams has learned to not stress about her diet. She opened up about this in the caption of this workout video she shared on Instagram. “Celebrating the small wins ❤️🩹 Any kind of carb or calorie during training used to scare me. I already restricted my calories enough so I didn't want to ‘waste’ them. I PROMISE you, you’ll feel 100x better. drink the carbs. eat the gummies. our bodies need fuel to perform🫶”

She Does Lunges

In this workout video on her Instagram, Adams is seen doing lunges. According to The Mayo Clinic, these have a lot of health benefits. “The lunge is a body resistance exercise that works the leg muscles. Specifically, the lunge targets the quadriceps and the hamstring muscles in the thigh, the gluteal muscles in the buttock, and to a lesser extent, the lower leg muscles. The lunge is a great conditioning exercise for many sports, especially those that involve lunging movements, such as tennis, basketball or soccer.”

She Uses A Fitness Bike

Adams is seen using a stationary bike in this Instagram post. Doing this can have a lot of health benefits. Penn State PRO Wellness says, “Cycling is an excellent way to get your heart pumping. Cardiovascular or aerobic workouts, such as cycling, strengthen your heart, lungs, and muscles. They also improve the flow of blood and oxygen throughout your body. This, in turn, can benefit your health in a number of ways.”

She Lifts Weights

As you can see from her Instagram post, Nisler likes to lift weights to keep herself in shape. ACE Fitness states that using weights has a lot of benefits. “Using maximal loads for compound (multi-joint) movements like the deadlift, squat-to-shoulder press, bent-over row or chest press can improve intermuscular coordination, which is the ability of many muscles to work together to generate and control high levels of force through multiple joints. Lifting heavy weights elevates levels of anabolic hormones—specifically testosterone, growth hormone and insulin-like growth factor (IGF-1)—which are used to repair muscle fibers damaged during exercise. This helps the muscle fibers to become thicker and capable of generating higher levels of force.”

She Does Squats

Nisler is also seen doing squats in her Instagram video. According to Allina Health, squats have a lot of health benefits. “The squat is one of the all-around best exercises to do for your lower body. It strengthens and tones muscles in your thighs, butt and calves and improves posture, balance, flexibility and inner core strength. Squatting also improves bone mineral density to keep your bones strong.”

She Does RDLs

Nisler is also seen doing RDLs in her Instagram video. ACE Fitness states that the exercise has a lot of benefits. “The Romanian deadlift (RDL) is a traditional barbell lift used to develop the strength of the posterior chain muscles, including the erector spinae, gluteus maximus, hamstrings and adductors. When done correctly, the RDL is an effective exercise that helps strengthen both the core and the lower body with one move. Unlike the traditional barbell deadlift and other quad-dominant exercises such as leg presses, which place significant loads on the anterior portion of the knees, the RDL focuses most of the physical work on the muscles responsible for extending the hip and the knee from the posterior.”

She Uses A Fitness Bike

Nisler likes to use a stationary bike to keep herself in shape. She shared this video on Instagram of herself riding one at different intervals. Penn State PRO Wellness states that using a stationary bike has a lot of benefits. “Riding a stationary exercise bike is an efficient and effective way to burn calories and body fat while strengthening your heart, lungs, and muscles. Compared to some other types of cardio equipment, a stationary bicycle puts less stress on your joints, but it still provides an excellent aerobic workout.”

She Uses A Treadmill

Nisler also likes to walk on a treadmill to keep herself in shape. She is seen doing so in the beginning of this workout video on her Instagram. Healthy Talbot states, “Treadmills provide outstanding cardiovascular exercises, which can significantly enhance your heart health. Thanks to their ability to maintain constant heart rates throughout the exercise. If you’ve high cholesterol or cardiovascular issues, this can be very beneficial. They can help to diagnose cardiac issues like heart disease and artery blockages. Under normal circumstances, your body may not exhibit symptoms of these heart conditions. However, when put under pressure through a workout, those symptoms will be displayed.”