Wanda Brenton of Grand Cayman has made a name for herself within the CrossFit world.

As one of the only competitors from the Latin America Region to have made five CrossFit Games’ appearances, she has managed to hold her own against some of the more competitive regions around the world.

Her secret to success?

Her unwavering perseverance—particularly this year, after having incurred a shoulder injury following the Games last year that left her out of her usual training for about six months.

“I’m not exactly sure how it happened. I played a lot of volleyball and had lots of shoulder issues over the years. I’m sure it was a combination of that and CrossFit,” she said.

Brenton’s injury could have easily side tracked her from her Games’ endeavors, but she did not allow it. In order to earn a ticket back to Carson (in spite of the injury), she worked closely with her coach, James FitzGerald, who she has now worked with for the past two years.

James committed to helping her get back to the Games—if that’s where she wanted to be, helping her train around her injury, focusing on lower body strengthening and completely avoiding upperbody training, while helping keep her motivated in the process during the days she second-guessed herself. Wanda committed to listening—and avoiding any overtraining or pushing herself harder than she knew she should.

“Dealing with that was really tough! It was a long wait. But I knew I wanted to try to compete this year and did everything I could to make it happen,” she said.

Wanda’s training schedule looked a little like this: Up by 4:30 a.m. to coach from 5:30–8:30 am at her box—CrossFit 7 Mile—and training afterwards, before picking up her daughter from school, spending time with her and her husband, cooking dinner, bath and bed.

“Every day is a full, busy day but I wouldn’t have it any other way!”

With another year of training under her belt, Wanda is definitely more seasoned, and if anything she said she is smarter for moving forward.

“If anything, this past year, I have definitely learned to listen to my body better. Before I was injured, I just would try to work through anything. Now, I won’t do that. If something is bothering me I won’t push through. I guess I learned the hard way. I do not wanna go down that road again,” she said.

Wanda dedication to her self-care paid off. This year, now at age 40, will be her first year competing at the Games as a Master’s athlete.

Looking forward to a new arena with challenges of its own, Wanda is simply thankful to be part of the experience.

“My thoughts this year are to just soak it all in and enjoy my experience. I wanna walk away and feel like I gave it everything I had and be proud of that,” she said.