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"This weekend I attended the 2011 Reebok CrossFit Games where they named the fittest female and male on Earth after a grueling (and inspirational) weekend of competitions.\\n\\nAnnie Thorisdottir, a student at the University of Iceland, took home the coveted title (and $250,000 prize). Her advice for pushing through tough workouts, \\\"Keep on going. No matter if it starts to suck, keep on going, it's going to feel better. And try to enjoy yourself while you train.\\\" And of course, \\\"the faster you do it, the sooner you get it done.\\\" And if all else fails, smile! Annie, who has a background in gymnastics and ballet, believes that smiling makes everything easier and more fun. ([Bonus: read what keeps top trainers and stars motivated](/fitness/2011/08/motivation-secrets-slideshow).)\\n\\n[#image: /photos/57d8df46f71ce8751f6b6c3d]||||||\\n\\n*Annie Thorisdottir* *was crowned the Fittest Female on Earth this weekend!*\\n\\nCali girls Kristan Clever and Rebecca Voigt took home second and third place respectively. \\\"We're competing against other people, but when it comes down to it's just what you have inside. It's about me against myself. You can always get one more rep,\\\" Rebecca says.\\n\\n[#image: /photos/57d8df47f71ce8751f6b6c3e]||||||\\n\\n*Kristan, Annie and Rebecca post Reebok CrossFit Games*\\n\\nThe toughest part of the weekend- not knowing what's in store. CrossFit is a [strength and conditioning program](/fitness) that develops competence in ten areas of fitness: cardiovascular and respiratory endurance, stamina, strength, flexibility, power, speed, coordination, agility, balance and accuracy. Life is unpredictable, so part of CrossFit's methodology is to train athletes (yep, even if we're not competing, we're all athletes at some level) for any task necessary and the Rebook CrossFit games tested just that... workouts were not announced until just before each event!\\n\\nThis year's fittest female on Earth recommends a clean diet. Not only will it help fuel [workouts](/goal), but it will keep the body lean. \\\"Try to choose as little processed food as possible. Know what you're putting into your body,\\\" Annie says. But don't worry about being overly strict, even Annie indulges in dark chocolate, \\\"I have it every single day!\\\"\\n\\nAnd her go-to pump-up song, \\\"Thank You\\\" by Dikta (an Iceland band). If it gets her through tough workouts, I'm considering adding it to my [playlist](/fitness/workouts/2011/07/calorie-burning-intervals-slideshow) stat!\\n\\n[#image: /photos/57d8df4746d0cb351c8c7006]||||||\\n\\n*Me and our CrossFit coach for the weekend, Kate Rawlings*\\n\\nThis weekend, the media was given their own CrossFit coach, Kate Rawlings of Coca CrossFit. Kate competed in the 2010 games, but has been sidelined due to a back injury (look for her in 2012 she says!). Kate was able to give a first-hand play-by-play of the physical and [mental strength](/health) competing in the games requires. But the beauty of CrossFit is that it's scalable to any level (it's really only the top one percent who are the elite athletes competing at the games).\\n\\n\\\"I got into CrossFit because I was shopping at Express and I didn't fit in a size 12 and I realized I was on an unhealthy path. Since then it's been about two years and I'm down about 70 pounds. But I got into it for quality of life,\\\" Kate says. \\\"The hardest part of CrossFit is walking through the door that first day. If you get through that door, there's going to be a welcoming community that will embrace you and support you through every step and every goal.\\\"\\n\\n[#image: /photos/57d8df4824fe9dae3283384b]||||||\\n\\nAnd since I didn't want to miss the opportunity, of course I had to snag a photo with the top three fittest men on Earth: Joshua Bridges (2nd place), me, Rich Froning (1st place), Ben Smith (3rd place), above.\\n\\nStay tuned for the October issue of SELF, which will have exclusive CrossFit workouts!\\n\\nRelated Links:  \\n[Find The Workout That's Right For You](http://www.selfworkoutfinder.com/)  \\n[Drop 8 lbs Now!](/goal)  \\n[10 Weight Loss Strategies Borrowed From The Guys](/fitness/workouts/2010/11/lose-weight-like-a-guy)\\n\\n--\\n\\nFor daily fitness tips follow SELF on [Facebook](http://facebook.com/selfmagazine) and [Twitter](http://twitter.com/selfmagazine).\\n\\nGet SELF on your [iPad](http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/id421088847)!"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.self.com/story/how-to-become-the-fittest-on-e>