I find myself lying face down in a pool of my own sweat. I’m supposed to be doing handstand press-ups against a wall, but after a few reps my exhausted shoulders give way.
I’m racing 26-year-old Grenade athlete Aimee Cringle. Stationed a few feet to my left, she flips upside down and cranks through eight easy reps before jumping onto an exercise bike. I might have bitten off more than I can chew here.
For context: I’m a fitness writer. Athletes including Alex Yee and Daniel Dubois have laid down gauntlets for me before, and each time I’ve emerged tired but unscathed.
Cringle, however, is a professional fitness athlete. Such is her level of fitness that people pay to watch her train, and earlier this year she was named the “eighth fittest woman on earth” at the CrossFit Games – an annual fitness competition.
I only have myself to blame for this situation – I asked to train with Cringle, perhaps spurred on by the same senseless curiosity that causes people to touch hot plates after a waiter’s warning. Now, athletically speaking, I’m being burned. But I’m also learning some valuable lessons along the way.
This all started with a couple of emails with Cringle’s team and a drive to Worcester, where a surprising number of the UK’s top fitness athletes can be found.
“When we built the gym, we didn’t try to get all the top athletes to come,” Blueprint Training cofounder Will Kane tells me. “Everyone just migrated to us. We’ve got a good environment and everyone loves their training, but we haven’t done anything extra to attract them – we’re a member’s gym.”
What this means is that members of all ages and fitness levels have the chance to train alongside some of the fittest athletes in the world – picture a casual kickabout at the park with Jude Bellingham, only with more barbells.
I’ve been invited to Blueprint Training to copy Cringle for the day on one of her more chilled sessions. “This is just to keep things ticking over – I’ve got a competition coming up and I had one last week too, so I won’t be able to go very fast,” she tells me.
This humility and unconscious competence is a theme of our chats. But before we begin training, a friend of hers quickly leans in to warn me that this is just an affable character trait, and I would do well to ignore it when Cringle downplays her abilities.
“She’ll take you for a ride,” another adds with a grin. As it turns out, he is spot on.
How to do Aimee Cringle’s CrossFit workout
After a thorough warm-up, Cringle scribbles down the workout on a whiteboard – a ritual which helps her focus for the training ahead.
It’s a trio of three-move circuits blending cardio work with gymnastic movements. Each circuit is performed for 10 minutes with the aim of racking up as many reps as possible – otherwise known as an AMRAP format. Then, when the timer is up, you immediately start the next 10-minute block.
Read more: CrossFit Games champion reveals the training method he used to add 20kg to his squat
What happened when I trained with professional fitness athlete Aimee Cringle
Circuit one: 10-minute AMRAP (as many reps/rounds as possible)
- SkiErg x12 calories
- Sled push @80kg x50ft
- Bar muscle-up x8
Three shrill beeps erupt from a timer on the wall, then the workout begins. My aim is to not get lapped by Cringle, and I make a solid start.
We reach 12 calories on the SkiErg at a similar time, and there is a point where we’re pushing our sleds side by side. However, when I peer over at her, I can’t help but notice she looks remarkably calm. My chest, on the other hand, is already heaving.
“I like a sled push – you can’t fake it, you just have to move the weight,” she later tells me.
Next we make our way to a huge metal rig in the middle of the gym for the eight muscle-ups – a movement where you start hanging from a pull-up bar then propel your torso above it so your arms are locked out and vertical.
I manage five then, quite proud of myself, lower myself to the ground for a brief breather – Cringle does not stop. She powers through all eight then jogs back to the SkiErg and starts the circuit again.
I manage another two muscle-ups in my next set, but my fatigued shoulders cause my form to fall apart. The final rep comes a few seconds later, but by this time Cringle is well into her sled push – my goal of not being lapped is quickly fading away.
This is what I imagine being hunted by the Terminator feels like. She never slows, never tires, just keeps on moving at a relentless pace.
To maintain the intensity of the workout around my tired muscles, I resolve to do two muscle-ups per round instead of eight, but Cringle still tracks me down. By the end of the 10 minutes, I am just into my fourth round, while she has almost completed her fifth.
Circuit two: 10-minute AMRAP (as many reps/rounds as possible)
- BikeErg x15 calories
- Sled push @80kg x50ft
- Wall-facing handstand press-up x8
Overall, I’m not too disappointed with my first-round showing. My second round is a different story.
As we start on the exercise bikes, I attempt an awkward joke to disguise my tiredness. But Cringle is locked in, and my words are lost to the A380-esque whirring of her bike’s fanwheel.
Like the first AMRAP, I manage to stick somewhere near her for the first two movements, then I’m stopped in my tracks by the gymnastic challenge: wall-facing handstand press-ups.
This exercise is exactly as it sounds – you manoeuvre yourself into a handstand position, facing the wall, then perform press-ups. Cringle does her eight then moves on, but my shoulders are knackered after the muscle-ups and I only manage a few.
After taking an age to finish my first set of eight, I again drop to two handstand press-ups per round. Cringle still smokes me.
Circuit three: 10-minute AMRAP (as many reps/rounds as possible)
- SkiErg x12 calories
- Toes-to-bar x25
- BikeErg x15 calories
By this point, Cringle has me on toast. It’s like watching a Ferrari race a push-bike – she continues to glide effortlessly between movements, then I follow a few minutes later in relative slow motion.
Still, I signed up for this, and I’m in it until the end. I manage 25 toes-to-bar, with several breaks built in, then reduce my target to 10 for subsequent rounds.
The exercise machines are more my speed – they respond well to mass and long levers, and I’m a fairly lanky person – so despite my tiredness I don’t completely disgrace myself on this one. I still finish second by a considerable margin, but not quite as considerable as during parts one and two, which feels almost like a win in the circumstances.
What have I learned?
When I was watching the Olympics last year, a friend suggested lobbing a couple of “ordinary people” in with the athletes to provide a reference point as to just how good they are. This is essentially what happened here. While I floundered, Cringle cruised, and it was mightily impressive to witness.
My biggest takeaway was how well Cringle moved. Every exercise was performed with flawless efficiency, allowing her to breeze through reps. This underlines the importance of prioritising movement quality, whether you’re looking to improve your strength training efforts or sporting performance. Pair this with Cringle’s inarguable strength and conditioning levels and you have a recipe for success.
My other learning centred around the power of your environment. Training side-by-side with Cringle persuaded me to push harder than I might have done otherwise. Despite my many evident shortcomings, I finished the full 30 minutes and had a far better crack at it than I would have done training solo.
A rising tide lifts all boats, as the saying goes, and the very capable community at Blueprint Training is testament to that.
For those not within striking distance of Worcester, this could be your sign to try training with friends, or give a group exercise class a go. It’s not for everyone, but I’ve found the accountability and camaraderie of training with others can be a catalyst for consistent exercise – the common denominator behind any successful exercise routine.
Just think twice before picking Cringle as your workout partner.
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