Siobhán Horgan is currently finding her way in the sport of CrossFit and yesterday, she took part in her first competition and came home with a silver medal. The Aquablue rider has no plans to race on the road this year.
One of the country’s most successful ever road riders is now sating her appetite for competition by immersing herself in the “addictive” sport of CrossFit.
Well-known ex-international Siobhán Horgan only up the sport a few months ago but has already made some good progress and yesterday, she won her first medal in a beginner level event in Navan.
Horgan, who still rides the bike and is a member of the Aquablue team, said she was looking for something different this year after fully committing to the road last year.
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It was her sister Ruth who initially coaxed her into it but since swapping dumbbells for derailleurs she hasn’t looked back in the competitive strength and conditioning sport.
Horgan riding against the clock for Ireland at the World Road Championships in the US last September (Photo: Sirotti)
“I still go cycling once a week and running once or twice a week but CrossFit is fairly addictive, no more so than cycling I think,” she said.
Horgan left cycling, became national duathlon champion and got injured so came back to the bike and won the women's TT title at the National Road Championships last year.
That was her seventh road title and she was then selected for the World Championships in the US.
“The good thing about (CrossFit) is there’s a really nice social network where I train," she added of Red Iron CrossFit in Middleton.
“There are what’s called WOD's which mean work out of the day and they vary from day to day.
“They can range from three minutes to 20 minutes but generally, they’re 8-10 minutes long.
"They usually involve a flat-out effort mixing different resistance exercises like squats, deadlifts and hip-thrusters with some cardio like rowing or running.”
Sessions are usually an hour long and she'd train three or four times a week.
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Horgan looks focused and ready to perform a set of chin-ups. Still sporting the national champion socks and killer tan!
So the biggest change for Horgan has been the shift from longer endurance efforts – and the associated hours - to the more explosive efforts that CrossFit demands.
And that focus has seen a change in her body shape from slender to strong.
“I’m carrying a bit more weight now - some is muscle but obviously I’m not training as seriously as before so a bit of extra fat is probably there too.
“I’ve about 2-3 per cent body fat more now that when I was cycling.”
Going hell for leather in yesterday's Rookie Games contest in Navan where she went home with a silver medal.
Yesterday, the event in Navan was called the Rookie Games and Horgan came home with a silver for her efforts.
“There were three workouts and the top six got into the final,” she explained of the format.
“My goal was to make the final so I was absolutely thrilled to get second.
“Our coach Sarah, and another teammate Ava came up to support me and my other teammates Jen and George Ruth were competing so it was a really fun day.
“I plan on taking a break for a while now and going on holidays but I’ve another team competition coming up in September.
“II want to improve but I'm not taking it too seriously either.”
In case you think this looks like a piece of cake, it's not. Some of Horgan's personal bests for exercises are:
- 1 rep max deadlift: 75 kg
- 1 rep max squat: 70kg
- 1 rep max push press: 39kg
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