Crossfit: The fitness-training program that makes you become a paraplegic as my boyfriend would say. The fitness training program that everyone is skeptical and judgmental of before they even try it. Truth be told, I’m guilty of that myself. This is a training program that as soon as you “drink the Kool-Aid” you become wrapped around Crossfit’s little finger.
This is how the conversation with my boyfriend went down after I told him I was going to try a local Crossfit gym (he might hate me for posting this):
Me: I’m trying out Crossfit on Monday.
Boyfriend: No you’re not.
Me: Yes I am.
Boyfriend: No you’re not.
Me: Yes I am.
Boyfriend: No you’re not.
This continued until the conversation eventually died out. I guess you could say this was our first argument as a couple and despite him being worried about me becoming a paraplegic, I went to my first Crossfit lesson anyways. And let me tell you that I think he has changed his mind about Crossfit. He likes poking my six pack. 🙂
My first lesson was as follows for time: 500 meter row, 40 air-squats, 30 sit-ups, 20 burpees, and 10 jumping pull-ups. My score: 10:07
It was the worst 10:07 of my life. I went home slightly dizzy and fell straight on to the couch when I got home. (Notice that this entire workout is body weight minus the rowing.) I could barely turn the steering wheel of my car and my walking looked like a baby giraffe. What I remember from that workout was I couldn’t even get my chin above the bar on the jumping pull-ups. By the tenth sit-up my abs were on fire. I couldn’t make it through all 40 squats unbroken and the burpees were, well, burpees. Even though I suffered through the worst 10:07 of my life I still made an appointment for my next lesson that coming Thursday.
Lets travel back in time really quick. I was your typical Crossfit hater six months ago. I would watch videos on YouTube and wonder why that ever looked like fun to anyone. It looked absolutely terrible for your body, especially your knees. I would talk trash about it to my trainer at the time and nearly disowned my brother as my brother when he told me he joined a Crossfit gym. Plus I saw the way the elite girls looked and thought about how I never wanted to look that buff.
So how did I go from being a Crossfit non-believer to a Crossfit believer? I was stuck in gym rut. Going to the gym was becoming a chore and I hated doing the same thing every day. My brother, who was pretty new to Crossfit at the time, told me to go try it out and that he thought I would really like it. I trust my brother a lot and know that before he makes any decision he puts in the time and research. After talking to him in depth about it and putting aside my stubborn ways I did a little research myself and ended up joining a somewhat small Crossfit gym near my house. Although the paragraph above sounds like a miserable experience, I’m not a quitter and decided to stick it out. I instantly became hooked.
Crossfit offers the challenge of how far I can push myself mentally and physically. Not to sound stuck up, but sports in general come really easy for me. Crossfit is probably the first sport that has challenged me in multiple ways. I love that every day when I step foot into my gym I know I’m going to be pushed and stretched in every direction. I love that I have days in the gym where I get frustrated because things don’t go my way. It only means I have an opportunity to grow mentally and physically. I know that I will always be able to grow within this sport and that gets me excited! Besides tap dancing, Crossfit has become something that I look forward to every day. Going to the gym is no longer a chore.
Choosing a gym with a great coaching staff was top priority for me. The news these days highlights so many bad things going on (ex. all the ways Crossfit is terrible for you). I believe that a coaching staff has a large part in injuries. My number one thing was to find a coaching staff that cares about each of their clients and that doesn’t have a problem with modification. As soon as I walked in for my first lesson, one of the first things my trainer/coach said was, “we don’t want you to get injured.” As he coached me that day he put into practice exactly what he said and to this day he still does. I love the programming at my gym and love each trainer there. They are so good about warming up, making sure we are comfortable with the weight we have been given and correct technique. You know your coaching staff is doing a great job when they start sounding like a broken record. It’s nice having a coaching staff that genuinely cares about their clients. I think a lot of gyms out there have coaches who don’t really attend to their clients needs. They don’t modify when someone needs it and they don’t correct people when they do something wrong. All they want to do is push, push, push and ultimately that is what leads to injury.
How has Crossfit helped me? I have an abundance of energy. My body has never felt better (minus being sore of course!). In the month of February I dropped three percent in body fat. I’m more toned throughout my body and much stronger. In October when I started I couldn’t pull my chin above the bar without being assisted by someone or a resistance band. In January, I strung together two unassisted, strict pull-ups. Today, six months later, I can string together five unassisted, strict pull-ups. Endurance wise I can tap dance for a good chunk of time without getting super winded and still be able to hold a conversation after. Six months ago I was dead after a three-minute dance and talking only happened after I caught my breath. I am proof that Crossfit works. That it is safe when taught correctly. That it improves outside sports. I am Shay and I drank the Crossfit “Kool-Aid.”
CountlessPassions 