International Women's Day 2021 - Q&A with Aoife Burke
Below is a ten-minute interview with someone very kind, very humble and very badass in the gym. Aside from being the second fittest Irish woman, Aoife coaches and PTs all levels of CrossFit, spreading love and good spirits along the way. Read on for the full conversation!
Who are you and what do you do?
A: My name is Aoife. I'm a personal trainer and CrossFit coach and pre-Corona back when CrossFit competitions were a thing I would do a little bit of competing.
S: A little bit?! How fit are you in terms of Irish women?
A: I'm second in Ireland.
S: Woooo! I've got a question…
Can you share one thing that you are proud of yourself for?
I know you have a few so you can say 2.
A: So I was thinking about this and when I first started CrossFit I was amazed at all these really strong, fit women and I’d be like, oh my God, I want to be like those!. They were so inspirational and I would watch CrossFit competitions and be like, I'd really love to do something like that! So I think making it to the regionals back in the day was one of my biggest achievements CrossFit wise and I think I'm quite proud of myself for getting there.
S: We are very proud of you too! You're allowed a second one too if you have one.
A: I’m very proud of my clients. These are the ladies that I work with that come to the gym, work hard and show such determination. I'm proud to work with people like that and feel privileged that they trust me to be their coach and take them on their fitness journeys. So yeah, there’s that too, which is really nice.
S: I know how that feels!
A: And then to see them achieve the things that they set out to do is just a really nice feeling as a coach. As well to be like, oh I helped them do that and now they're so happy and it's good. Sharing the love!
S: Oh, yeah. You got me doing some pull-ups back in the day! So not everyone likes this question, but…
Can you tell us one thing that you would say is a failure but that you have learnt a lot from?
A: There's a lot of things that come to mind when you say this question, but I wouldn't like to call them failures. There's a quote that I really like - “Either you win or you learn” and there's lots of things that I have learnt from.
Going back to competing when I competed in one of the very first CrossFit opens I was like, oh yeah, this will be so much fun, I wonder how well I will do. It went okay and then I thought okay right, what's gonna take me to that next level that all these amazing girls are getting to?
The answer was really outside of the gym; looking after your nutrition and your recovery. I think it clicked when I started to look into that more being like okay, how can I get better recovered between sessions and better fuelled to be able to perform well and train hard all year round. It was like taking that next step from I love going to the gym and working out, but how do I go to that next level? Nutrition played a big part as well as looking into recovery.
So yeah, that was one big thing I learned from being like, I've done well, now how do we do better?
S: Do you have a specific example of nutrition and recovery that made you think “This works!”
A: Yes, so I actually reached out to the guys at pH nutrition, I know you know Becs who works with them. Back in the day I met with Liam and was so impressed by his knowledge and his help of showing me how to eat the right types of foods, like anti-inflammatory foods and getting enough carbohydrates to fuel yourself. They all help with performance and recovery. It was just a fountain of knowledge coming from them and I was like okay amazing, here we go!
S: Anti-inflammatory and more carbs!
A: Yeah. And just good foods, like whole foods as well. But yes, carbs and anti-inflammatory were two big things. When you train you build up so much inflammation in your body and you need to think about what’s going to help you recover a little bit better.
S: And in terms of recovery was there like a specific sleep thing or a rest thing that changed your game?
A: As a PT you'll know that sleep is quite something - some days you get loads and other days you get maybe not so much. Trying to get eight hours of sleep would make a big difference. Coming up towards competitions I would really try and prioritise that but then during normal life you gotta do what you gotta do.
S: Just get as much as possible!
A: Yeah, those days of some cheeky daytime naps!
S: Are you able to?!
A: I used to be but not anymore. I've got a lot better at putting myself to bed earlier and allowing myself to sleep in more and I think lockdown has helped a lot with that.
S: We've made peace with sleep finally! It's not a luxury, it's a basic thing.
I know you've just shared a quote that you like; “You either win or you learn”. It's a great one. Is there anything else that you like to keep in mind?
A: I watched the Michael Jordan documentary recently on Netflix and he was talking about taking a shot and someone asked if he ever thought about not making it. His answer was just amazing. He was just like; “Why would I think about missing? That thought wouldn’t even enter my mind. I only focus on making the shots.” And I thought that’s such a good quote.
It's like when you approach a bar to do a lift. Why would you ever think about missing? It's like right, I'm going to visualise myself nailing this snatch or clean or anything that you want to do really. I just thought that’s such a good way to live. Why would I think about what I don't want to happen?
S: I mean, it's so plain right? Like why would we?
A: Exactly. I think of that now when I'm about to do a lift like, I'm gonna make this, why would I ever think about missing it?! It was just something cool that really resonated with me.
S: That’s so good. That documentary is full of great nuggets.
What are some words of wisdom that you would say to either a younger Aoife or a woman in fitness out there trying to make it in the fitness world?
A: I would say focus on yourself. Don't worry about what anyone else is doing. Try not to get caught up in that Instagram web of watching people doing things. Just focus on yourself. I know how hard it can be at times but do what you enjoy like, if you don't enjoy it why would you want to do it? So find something that you're really passionate about and just focus on yourself and do that. I would tell myself to stop worrying about what's happening on Instagram.
S: Yes! But ironically we are on it!
A: I know! But you know when you get stuck into that little world of scrolling sometimes... but yeah, focus on the good stuff like this.
S: Yes, because it can be a good thing. You can learn so much from people like you or it can be a comparison trap, exactly.
A: That's what I mean. Don't get stuck in that comparison trap. You are good enough as you are. People should believe that about themselves.
S: Absolutely. Thank you so much Aoife. I know you have hours of wisdom to share, but we are going to cut it here and hopefully follow it up.
A: Oh amazing. I would love that. Thank you for having me and great to see you.
S: I know, likewise! Speak soon!
Did you enjoy getting to know Aoife? Yes? Stay tuned for the follow-up!
If you’d like to follow Aoife’s fitness journey and find out more about her coaching services, follow her on Instagram.