For this edition of athlete spotlight we feature Natalie Ferris – you might be surprised to know she is only 13! Please enjoy getting to know Natalie.
1. Tell us a bit about yourself. My name is Natalie Ferris and I am 13 years old turning 14 in December (86 Birthday Burpees…! yay… ). I was born in Tokyo Japan and lived there for 11 years going to an international school. About 6 years ago we moved my Grandma here from Zimbabwe to the Sunshine Coast. Every Christmas we would come down and visit her and after a while we decided to move here! So 2 years ago we moved to the Sunshine Coast. My parents started CrossFit just under 2 years ago whilst I jealously watched them go, so after a year of patiently waiting my birthday present was to join CrossFit with them!
2. You are our youngest CrossFit member (excluding our kids sessions) – how do you find training alongside people who are in some cases much, much older than yourself? I am an only child so I have been with adults all my life. Personally, I prefer to be with adults than people my age so I really enjoy the company of all the adults around me. Everyone is very encouraging and helpful. I can ask a question and people will help me improve. This environment helps me a lot because of how nice everyone is.
3. How did you get into CrossFit and what were you hoping to achieve by undertaking this type of training? After seeing Mom and Dad going to CrossFit all the time I got really excited about the whole idea. Everyday on the way to school mom would make me read out the CrossFit WOD to her and I would ask what everything meant. I had never done anything like it so when I started doing it was really exciting. On the way home after each workout we always talk about how hard it was or what was our favourite part. There is nothing in particular I would like to achieve besides being fitter and healthier. Although these are very broad words this means, to me, being fit for all my other activities beside CrossFit.
4. What are your athletic goals for the short and long term? My short term goals are to be able to do 3 strict pull-ups in a row. It is only recently where I have been able to do a strict pull up and very recently during the pull-up challenge where I could link 2 in a row.
My Long term goal is to be at the level of the older girls such as Madi, Rachel and Renee. They are excellent CrossFitters and I should use them for inspiration.
5. What are your other interests/hobbies outside of CrossFit? My main interest is musical theatre. I have always lived in a musical environment so was singing before I could talk. Both my parents sing so we put the Broadway radio on and sing in harmony from across the house. Musical theatre also includes dancing and acting which I love to do just as much as sing. I have been acting for a long time but only been seriously dancing since we moved here. I do Jazz, Hip Hop, Ballet, Gymnastic Aerobics, Cheer and Lyrical. I love participating in musicals and have been in many plays and musicals both here and in Tokyo. One of my favourite shows I have been in was when a touring company from America came to Japan and needed the children’s chorus for Joseph And The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. This was one of my first professional productions and definitely my favourite. Also I play the saxophone and am in 2 choirs at school.
6. Favourite Food? My guilty pleasure food would have to be crème brûlée or cheesecake. I love sweets but mom refuses to make them because her theory is “If we make a cake, that means we have to eat it”. At our house we eat VERY healthy and its all mom’s fault. But lucky for us she finds a way to make it delicious. My favourite food that she makes would be her fish tacos.
7. Favourite Band? Being the theatre loving person that I am, most what I listen to is songs from musicals. So that makes the question: What is your favourite musical, which is a question too difficult to answer since I love them all. Last year when we visited my grandparents (Mom’s parents) in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania in the U.S. we stopped by New York City and saw a few Broadway shows while we were there. One of which was Avenue Q and if I had to choose one it would be that.
8. Do you/did you have any other athletic/sporting pursuits outside of CrossFit? Besides dance, soccer is my favourite sport. I play soccer with the school and my position is Centre Forward. When I was little I did gymnastics but now CrossFit, dance, and soccer are the main sports I do.
9. Do you think that being involved in a regular exercise routine has any positive carry-over into your studies? CrossFit’s regular exercise routine has helped me a lot with time management. Since I am constantly juggling multiple activities this forces me to manage my time efficiently and properly.
10. You regularly train alongside your parents which we think is absolutely fantastic. Are there any rivalries that we should know about? Everyday after CrossFit we have debate and discussion about who’s approach to the work out was best. Also the “Who it hottest/fittest for their age” competition is often brought up. Dad is the judge so he usually declares himself the winner but we all know the true winner is me. 🙂
11. How long do you give it until you can Clean & Jerk more than your dad? Give me a month… I will see what I can do. Lets make that a goal for 2015!
