Emma Spath is a fifteen-year old freshman who can deadlift two-hundred and fifteen pounds and back-squat two-hundred and five pounds. For the CrossFit games of 2018, she is ranked twenty-second out of 1,582 girls between the age of fourteen and fifteen worldwide. For Emma, however, it has never been about placing. “The placement is something that proves how hard I work, but it would mean nothing if I didn’t work as hard as I do,” she says.
Hard work under Emma’s terms is something admirable and almost unachievable by any young adult. Crossfit is a sport focused on strength, of course, but it is the constant building of this strength that distinguishes the sport as one of a kind. In Crossfit, hard work always beats talent. Perhaps this is why Emma has found herself so successful in the sport… At fifteen years old, she has fully committed to crossfit and set her goals onto the table.
Emma’s Crossfit journey began when she was eleven years old. “Once I tried Crossfit, I absolutely fell in love with it.” Although she may be the only eleven-year old girl to have said such a thing- it is this mentality which makes her so authentic and utterly awe-inspiring. For two years, Emma participated in the teen classes at Crossfit West, then switching to adult classes for one year, and now, since one and a half years, the young woman has been on her own path, working from a program that has been personalized for her goals and her abilities.
Every day in Emma’s life revolves around Crossfit. She truly loves it. “One has to focus on training, recovering, and eating properly. This requires an immense amount of self-control, discipline, and motivation,” she comments, in regards to her training regimen. Emma also enjoys eating healthy. Every day, her coach will give her a certain amount of macronutrients which she must consume. Emma enjoys tracking them and watching what she eats. What may be harder to believe is that she also thoroughly enjoys her workouts. Oftentimes Emma will perform for time. Being ranked twenty-second in her age group meant that Emma was only two places away from qualifying for the Crossfit games (top 20). Preparation, of course, was no question. Before the games, her workouts would orient themselves around speed and power, say, for example, a set of long rowing sprints followed by a set of bench press at 125 pounds, finishing with a set of split jerks at 165 pounds… and then all over again.
Unfortunately, Spath did not qualify for the crossfit games this year. Luckily Emma is only at the beginning of her career as an amazing athlete, and she is not looking to stop or give up any time soon. “My major goal for the future is to win the CrossFit games competing as an individual woman (18-34 yrs old). I also want to focus on being able to compete and be healthy as long as I can,” she says optimistically. There is no doubt that the future of Emma Spath will be promising. Her self-awareness and commitment to her sport will fuel her success as an individual. Today, she is an inspiration to all athletes at the high-school level, no matter what sport they may play. What is her motto? “Trusting the process,” she says, “ and being the best athlete I can be while still enjoying myself.”
The Claw 