Kari Pearce had a huge 2016 season at the CrossFit Games in Carson and Aromas, California, taking fifth place ahead of legends like Annie Thorisdottir and Camille Leblanc Bazinet. Her gymnastics background and training methodology carried her into the Games in 2015 after just a few months of CrossFit and her dedication and her continued commitment resulted in a fantastic finish at the 2016 Games.

Heading into this year's big event, which begins next week in Madison, Wisconsin, Pearce is adding in not only more training on her weaknesses, but also a new tool to help her train smarter and better.

She uses the Halo Neuroscience headset during her warm ups to prime the mind-muscle connection before all of her training, and she's seen increased efficiency in her highly technical movements like the snatch and clean and jerk.

"I feel more focused and like I can pick up skills better," Pearce said. 

She's got a lot of clarity on what she needs to work on as well.

"My two worst finishes last year were the swim and heavy cleans."

With that in mind, she's been working on her swimming at least twice a week throughout the year and has a weightlifting-specific coach who's been working with her this year as well.

It seems like with the combination of her dedication, smart training, and use of tools like the Halo headset to work on her focus and efficiency, Pearce has her sights set on the podium.

"You learn the sport, you learn your body, you learn what you need to do to perform your best."