Jamie Simmonds Trains for 2022 Games Season After Shoulder Injury and Prepares to Launch Coaching Program – Morning Chalk Up
Photo Credit: Athlete’s Eye Photography
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The 2019 CrossFit Games may have been the last time you saw her compete in person as she stood on the podium as the third fittest woman on Earth — but the past two years have been anything but downtime for five-time Games athlete, Jamie Simmonds.
The New Zealand native moved to Cardiff, Wales at the start of the 2021 season after spending about seven years living in the United Arab Emirates with her husband and fellow CrossFit Games athlete, Elliot Simmonds. As Jamie worked to make a return to Madison after finishing 12th in stage one of the 2020 CrossFit Games, her 2021 season was cut short after week two of the Open.
“I literally was just doing some accessory work on one of the sessions between [2021] Open workouts like a dumbbell pull-over and it just dislocated (her shoulder)…I felt really fit that year but obviously my body disagreed with that,” Simmonds told me during an interview.
“From there, I just tried rehabbing it for three or four months…I could then do all of the gymnastics stuff again, I was lifting again, and I went and did a snatch, maybe it was the tenth one and it just went a little bit behind me and dislocated again.”
At that point, Simmonds decided her best option was to have surgery if she wanted to continue to compete and potentially stand on the podium at the Games again.
Fast forward four months post-surgery, Simmonds says she has full range of motion back and plans to compete in the 2022 season — especially knowing that she doesn’t necessarily need be at 100 percent by the Open to make it through and advance.
“Maybe during the Open I don’t need to be as fit as I was or pushing the boat out early, and just waiting to trust my coach and trust myself and build up properly and get to the Games in top form.”
As Simmonds prepares for the 2022 season and continues to let her shoulder heal — something working in her favor is the decision to become a full-time athlete…atleast “mostly” full-time. Simmonds, her husband Elliot, and partners Andy Edwards and Antony Monks are getting ready to launch their new training program come the new year, Quintessential Health and Performance.
For years, the team has been creating their own programming and nutrition for people — but with more downtime since moving to the UK, the Simmonds duo decided to put their skills into a coaching company.
“For years working at CrossFit Yas just teaching people about health and fitness who have never been involved in that before was just so rewarding so we just want to give more information about what we know and just get it out to people. The more we can help the better.”
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