Life is better when you are better at life, but life is hard.
I can tell you firsthand that owning your own business is hard. However, I got my first job at a material yard when I was 15 years old. One of the older truck drivers there kind of kicked my ass about six months into the job. The foreman found out about it and told me he was sorry and to just avoid that guy since he was a grump. I didn’t tell my parents and worked there for another six months before we moved. (I went back about 12 years later but he didn’t work there anymore). I tell that story to tell you that I’ve also had jobs with a boss and a job description for around 20 years and I learned early on, and continued to learn as life went on, that there are challenging parts of that too.
Dealing with family is hard. Coordinating between your parents, your siblings, your nieces and nephews, cousins, and your kids can be a lot. You love them but they kind of drive you crazy sometimes.
Paying bills is hard.
Going to school is hard.
Driving in rush hour traffic is hard.
Getting up early is hard.
Eating healthy is hard.
And working out is hard.
The list is extensive, you get it.
This past Friday (2.28.20) we did a Hero WOD called “Rahoi” in class, which is a classic CrossFit triplet of Box Jumps, Thrusters, and Burpees. We have done this workout previously in class, about 6 years ago. Back in 2014 at the tender age of 42, Michael Taylor did “Rahoi” at our old Box. 6 years later, and about 5 weeks away from turning 48, Michael PR’d “Rahoi” by 2 reps. Stacy Mikolajczyk also did “Rahoi” 6 years ago. She is now older (and wiser), owns her own business, and has also just started a new job. She made it to class before work and PR’d “Rahoi” by almost an entire round. Emma, Eddie, Teresa, and Jamie all did “Rahoi” back in 2017 and almost 3 years later they all beat their old score as well.
“The world wants to know if you have cojones. If you are brave?” -Cormac McCarthy
A good GPP (General Physical Preparedness) program challenges us on a daily basis. Getting more fit takes hard work, there is no way around that. CrossFit will find your weakness and shine a light on it. Whatever movement or type of workout you are not good at will seem to come up all the time in class. Why should you come to those? Why not just come to the ones you are good at? That is still getting a workout, right? Tackling the types of workouts you don’t want to do head on will not only make you more fit, it will make you better at life. There are a lot of things in life to be afraid of. There are also a lot of things in CrossFit that make us nervous/afraid. Everyone who did “Rahoi” this past Friday knew burpees and thrusters are no fun. They are exhausting. Everyone still came and did them anyway. The kind of workouts we do will push your buttons, and doesn’t life push our buttons as well? CrossFit (aka, functional fitness/GPP) doesn’t just make your life better, it makes you better at life.
Because here is the thing: every time you come to class, you win. You get a little bit tougher, a little bit more fit, and a little bit better at life.
CrossFit increases your abilities in all of life. The challenges of working out like we do don’t just make you physically able to handle whatever life throws at you, but also emotionally, mentally, and spiritually tougher. Working out in a way that challenges your weaknesses and pushes you to your limit transfers into every aspect of life.
This is a big part of why this will never be for everyone, because it is very hard and feels uncomfortable. A lot of people simply will not do that to themselves. Not everyone is good at life.
In my mind true “functional” fitness doesn’t just mean your physical body. Functional fitness can be applied to every aspect of life: your attitude, your mental determination and acuity, and your emotional resolve. All are improved at a well- programmed and well-coached CrossFit Box whose goal is to increase your general preparedness for all of life.
Life is hard.
But life is good.
-Dan