The Everyday Athlete 002: Zoe Young

The Everyday Athlete is not defined by podiums, perfect routines or unlimited time. It is the person who keeps showing up while work, family and real life continue around them. Zoe Young’s story is a powerful example: a mum, long-time CrossFit athlete and competitor who has used training not only to chase performance, but to rebuild confidence and support her mental wellbeing.

From BodyPump to CrossFit

Zoe’s route into functional fitness started with Les Mills BodyPump. When a friend invited her to try CrossFit, one session was enough to change direction. She was hooked, and the sport became part of her life for around eight years.

The appeal was never only about getting fitter. CrossFit gave Zoe challenge, variety and a community in which effort mattered. It offered the chance to learn new skills, test limits and become comfortable with being uncomfortable—qualities that would matter far beyond the gym.

Motherhood, recovery and rebuilding

Becoming a mum changed the shape of that challenge. Zoe navigated postnatal depression and birth trauma, experiences that can make progress feel anything but straightforward. Training and nutrition became part of how she rebuilt: not a quick fix, and not a demand to return to an old version of herself, but a practical way to create structure, recognise progress and make space for her own wellbeing.

Her story is a reminder that consistency does not always look dramatic. Sometimes it is entering the gym when energy is low. Sometimes it is changing the session, starting again or accepting that recovery has its own timetable. The meaningful work is often quiet, repeated and fitted around the needs of other people.

For my daughter — to show her we can do hard things. To show her it's about what our bodies can do, not what they look like.

Training for the next challenge

Today, Zoe continues to train for CrossFit events while taking on longer running events and HYROX. Each format asks something different of her, but the reason for competing remains familiar: she enjoys the test, the focus and the opportunity to discover what she can do.

That willingness to step into discomfort is central to the Everyday Athlete mindset. It is not about pretending hard things are easy. It is about meeting them honestly, doing the work available that day and building belief through action.

Helping busy parents find their own way

Zoe is also developing a career in fitness with a clear aim: helping busy parents make training and nutrition work in real life. That perspective matters. Advice is more useful when it recognises school runs, broken sleep, work commitments, changing energy and the emotional load that comes with caring for a family.

For parents who feel that fitness has to wait until life becomes less complicated, Zoe’s example offers a different idea. Training can be adapted without becoming meaningless. Progress can be personal. Strength can be physical and mental at the same time.

An Everyday Athlete

Zoe represents what WoDLETE means by an Everyday Athlete: someone who trains with purpose, takes on difficult things and brings that strength back into everyday life. Her story is not polished into a perfect transformation. It is real, ongoing and grounded in the decision to keep moving forward.

Explore the WoDLETE women’s collection or see the Everyday Athlete sweatshirt created around the same belief: what matters is what we choose to do.

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Continue the Everyday Athlete series

Read The Everyday Athlete 001: Steve, then explore the women’s collection or the Everyday Athlete sweatshirt.