Dancer Iselin Brogeland on Competing at Semifinals and the “Performance” of CrossFit

CrossFit is well known for it’s supposed “savagery”–blood, sweat, and the occasional visit from “Pukie the Clown,” loud music and big weights, big muscles and calluses all shown proudly for the world to see. CrossFitters pride themselves on this intensity. On the opposite end of this spectrum? Dance. With the typical stereotypes of delicate, small girls with graceful, beautiful clothes and beautiful classical music, there isn’t much of an expected overlap between the two sports. 2023 European Semifinals athlete Iselin Brogeland may have just found one, though. This content is available exclusively to Members Become an member and start enjoying full access to all our community and sports content, and an ad-free experience. PROMO Exclusive content Ad-Free web/app experience Comments on articles Exclusive 15% WIT discount $1 per month for the first 4 months, $8 each month after Get Started for $1 Exclusive content Ad-Free web/app experience Comments on articles Exclusive private Facebook Group Regular coffee breaks hang outs Exclusive 15% WIT discount Get Started $5/month billed annually Already a member? Log In. As a freelance contemporary dancer, lifetime artist, and PhD student in performance arts, Brogeland loves to dance because of the connection it provides–with other performers and with the audience. She also loves sharing her love for movement and expression with others, all of which she can do through dance. However, in 2018, she felt a hole in her life where competitive swimming once was in her younger years. While the dance industry is competitive (between dancers vying for gigs, for example), she wanted a new outlet for healthy competition. When she tried CrossFit, it immediately clicked. Not only did she thoroughly enjoy it, but her athletic background made her excel right away. “I’m quite a competitive person, and it sort of just became natural to go into (competitive CrossFit,)” Brogeland said. “My base of understanding movement and how my body is tackling movement and body awareness really helped me to have a huge learning curve straight away.” Five years since beginning CrossFit, Brogeland is balancing getting her degree, working as a dancer, and training to be a high-level CrossFit athlete. This can mean anywhere from 90 minutes to six hours of dancing every day, half an hour to recover, and then a full training session in the gym. While she says this balance can be “heavy” but has led to huge benefits in both arenas. “I was a bit worried about how I was going to lose (my flexibility), but then it was really positive for me in CrossFit because the positioning wasn’t so hard for me to get into. For example, the squat and shoulder mobility,” Brogeland said. “In dancing, I became much stronger, had more control and had more stamina in my legs.” (function($) { $.ajax({ url: '/wp-admin/admin-ajax.php', data: { action: 'mcu_get_wa', page: 'https://morningchalkup.com/2023/05/17/dancer-iselin-brogeland-on-competing-at-semifinals-and-the-performance-of-crossfit/', hide_ads: , show_ads: , hide_advertisers: , show_advertisers: , }, }).done(function(msg) { res JSON.parse(msg); var ad_html ''; if (res.type 'image') { ad_html ` From Our Sponsor Continue for More Content `; } else if (res.type 'video') { ad_html ` From Our Sponsor Continue for More Content 0) { window.open($(this).data('link')); $.ajax({ url: '/wp-admin/admin-ajax.php', data: { action: 'mcu_track_ad_click', page: window.location.href, ad_id: $(this).data('id') }, }); } }); if (res.type 'video') { const vidAds document.querySelectorAll('.video_ad_video'); observer new IntersectionObserver(entries > { entries.forEach(entry > { if (entry.intersectionRatio > 0) { entry.target.play(); } else { entry.target.pause(); } }); }); // var node document.createElement("LI"); vidAds.forEach( vidAd > { observer.observe(vidAd); $(vidAd).closest('.from-sponsor-vid').prepend(""); $('.volume').click(function() { if (vidAd.muted) { vidAd.muted false; $(this).find('svg').attr('data-icon', 'volume-mute'); } else { vidAd.muted true; $(this).find('svg').attr('data-icon', 'volume'); } }); $('.play').click(function() { if (vidAd.paused false) { vidAd.pause(); $(this).find('svg').attr('data-icon', 'play'); } else { vidAd.play(); $(this).find('svg').attr('data-icon', 'pause'); } }); } ); } window.dataLayer window.dataLayer || ; window.dataLayer.push({ 'ad_id': `${res.id}`, 'advertiser_id': `${res.advertiser_id}`, 'campaign_id': `${res.campaign_id}`, 'event': 'Ad Loaded', }); }); })(jQuery); Of course, this intense level of volume isn’t without challenges. In 2023, it’s rare to find an elite athlete with a full-time job outside of the gym, let alone another that is so physically intensive. This is something Brogeland finds really interesting, she says. Plus, Brogeland says that there is a strong culture within the dance industry of mental stamina past the healthy point. Where she is used to possibly pushing through an injury in the past, she’s had to learn how to mitigate losses when issues arise and how to prioritize one sport over the other depending on the season. Also, the conflicting body image ideals of the two worlds have been a challenge Brogeland has had to work through. She says that while she hopes this stereotype in dance is going away, it still nags at her mind sometimes. “Even now I question myself. Can I go to this audition, is this what they’re looking for? Or will they look at my arms instead of my dancing?” Brogeland said. ‘This is something I’ve been working on in terms of mindset. Not trying to fit in in both places but rather appreciate what my body can do and appreciate that my body is able to to two really hard things.” Brogeland has plenty of goals for her athletic pursuits. She had her eyes set on Semifinals this year, but now that she’s achieved it, her goal is to be in the best shape she can be in. While CrossFit is a big player in Masters sports and promotes fitness through all stages of life, Brogeland is actively working against a stereotype in the dance community that says otherwise. Turning 33 this year, she is intent on dancing and continuing to move as long as she’s able. Brogeland: “I’m a huge believer that if I keep my body fit, then I can be able to do this for a longer time. In dancing, it’s continuing to perform for however long I want to and am interested in it.” Something that Brogeland appreciates about her two-sport life is the ways in which they interact with each other in her world. She says that there are things she takes for granted, like understanding what a difference a simple tilt of a pelvis can make. Her body awareness is so integrated into her every day life and she loves being able to pay that forward through coaching. The one way that CrossFit and dance intersect the most in Brogeland’s mind, though, is through performance. While dancing is obviously a performance, meant to be consumed by others, she says that she sees CrossFit, especially at competitions, as very similar. “I started to think about how when you’re on the competition floor, that is also performing in a way. Both performing like utlizing your potential but alos perform in front of people,” Brogeland said. Just like how dancing is special to her because of the connections it fosters, she holds CrossFit close to her heart because of the power of sharing movement. “I love sharing this love of movement and the capacity of the human body.” Brogeland will take on her first CrossFit Semifinals in Berlin, Germany at the European Semifinal in June.

Dancer Iselin Brogeland on Competing at Semifinals and the “Performance” of CrossFit

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