St. Thomas teacher wins 2nd at HYROX World Championships in Sweden

St. Thomas teacher wins 2nd at HYROX World Championships in Sweden

Annette Barry placed second in the 60 to 64 women's category

A high school teacher from St. Thomas, Ont., just earned her spot as one of the top Hyrox athletes in the world.

Annette Barry, 60, placed second in her age category at the HYROX World Championships in Stockholm, Sweden, in June. The four-day event brought together the top Hyrox athletes from around the globe to compete.

"It was incredible," Barry said, who has been teaching physical education at St. Joseph's Catholic High School in St. Thomas since 1991.

"[It was a] pretty cool novel experience for my 60-year-old self to be in an international competition."

Hyrox has seen a global boom in popularity over the last few years. It combines running with basic functional exercises — movements like ball throwing, lunging and pushing sleds — in a timed competition.

During a Hyrox race, competitors must run one kilometre, then complete a set of functional exercises, such as sled pushes or wall balls, then repeat the whole process seven more times, doing different exercises.

Barry qualified for the event after winning first in her age category at Canada's national competition in Ottawa in May. After winning nationals, Barry wasn't certain she'd go on to compete in Sweden because of the busy school year and an upcoming family wedding, but her family changed her mind.

"My sons put a healthy amount of pressure on me to do it, and my husband was extremely supportive," she said. She's also had support from the fitness community at her local gym, the HIIT Crew in St. Thomas.

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Competitive sports aren't new to Barry. She was a competitive athlete in her youth, playing ringette, volleyball, baseball and hockey. Barry said she got more serious about running after her fourth son was born, when she began prioritizing running and exercising alongside her busy life as a mother and teacher.

"I think just with the busyness of life, I needed to put a check mark in the win category, so I would get up in the morning and go for a run," she said. "Those years of consistent running really paid off in the Hyrox competition."

The benefits of exercise aren't just physical, she said.

"It sets your day up for a little bit of better emotional regulation. That dopamine that you get after you exercise goes a long way energy-wise," she said. "After all these years, it's a habit. And once it becomes a habit, it's just like brushing your teeth."

Today, she and her husband have five sons, some of whom also compete in Hyrox. "It seems to be the way we choose to have fun," Barry said.

Teaching for 35 years, Barry said she hopes to inspire her students to be active, but not from a place of competition or achievement.

"Not everyone is going to be the best athlete or have that driven competitive spirit," she said.

"I really aim to get them to realize that life-long [exercise], one hour bare minimum per day, is what they need to thrive, not just physically, but emotionally, mentally, intellectually — that it's probably the most important thing they could do besides get enough sleep every night."

Michelle Both is the producer for CBC London. She has roots in rural Ontario and holds a master's degree in journalism and communication from Western University. You can reach her at michelle.both@cbc.ca.