Wednesday 1-14-15

COUNTDOWN TO OPEN REGISTRATION.... TOMORROW!!! 
Head over to games.crossfit.com and sign up

IN TEAMS OF TWO
50-40-30-20-10
Power Clean (135#/95#)
Box Jump Over (24"/20")
Push Jerk (135#/95#)
Toes 2 Bar

*Break up reps however you wish, but only one person working at a time and you must finish each movement before moving onto the next.

Top 8 Things I Learned in 8 Weeks of Doing CrossFit

Today, I wrapped up my 8th week of CrossFit at All Heart CrossFit in Kent, OH. I have learned so much in these first 8 weeks and continue to on a daily basis. Today, though, I’d like to give you the Top 8 things I’ve learned in my first 8 weeks:

1. Show up ready to give it all. There is no other way and a complete and devoted commitment to the task at hand has to be your focus.
2. Resist the urge to compare yourself. Every person has a different reason for being there, has been there for different lengths of time, has a different physical makeup, and different levels of commitment. Focus on getting better and stronger every day. Focus on you and no one else. 
3. It’s not about the weight, it’s about safety first. It is imperative to get form and safety first and the weight will come. 
4. Listen to your coaches. There was a day where we did an EMOM followed by a WOD using the same overhead press. It was stressed over and over again to “lower your weight” after we finished that EMOM because the WOD would be very tough. My coach said it over and over again (which I learned later was pointed towards me because I wasn’t removing weight). The WOD began and halfway through, I had to remove some weight and I was called out. It was humiliating, frustrating and I left angry. I learned a humbling lesson that day: listen and follow the coach’s instruction. (This plays big with regards to safety as well.)
5. Work hard and watch yourself change. I still run but not nearly as much. However, my running has become stronger and more confident. I am still able to go long distances and my endurance has not decreased. Physically, I have gone down two jeans sizes and my upper body is developing for the first time in 41+ years. As the changes progress and I see more changes, it’s simply more fuel to keep charging forward.
6. Eat right.  If you’re following my first point of giving it all yet you still eat like garbage, my opinion is that it’ll all be for naught…or darn close to it. Not eating right only makes recovery worse and waking up for that 5:30am class feeling “bleh.” If you truly want change, it’s a lifestyle change and not just “one hour a day at the box” change.
7. CrossFit YouTube Channel. In my spare time, I have found myself watching short training videos or competition videos on the CrossFit YouTube channel. I often seek out one that’s covering a lift or movement that I just did and want to get better at. With so many lifts and movements, it’s tough to keep them straight this early but in time, it will get easier and is.
8. Remind yourself why you’re there. If you don’t know why you’re going, you need to know and keep going back to that. If not, you’ll feel defeated, compare yourself, and probably quit. I won’t forget what my coach told me on day 2: “It never gets easier.” It’s true. As you get stronger and faster, the bar just keeps getting raised. There is no top. Know why you’re there and you’ll keep challenging yourself.