Adventures in CrossFitting

There is something wrong with me. (Well, actually there are a lot of things wrong with me, but I'm being specific here.) Yesterday, while I was at the Fort and we were practicing our Power Cleans, I kept having college basketball flashbacks. I could see the bleachers filled with people donning white and blue, the giant bluejay over the court designating this Bluejay Country, and the refs herding the other players around the free throw line; I could feel the fabric of my jersey clinging to my wet skin, the way it scratched against my shoulders when I'd tuck it under my bra straps, and, most importantly, I could still hear my coach's voice ringing in my ear from when he called me over while both teams set up for free throws:

"You're not in high school anymore, Brit. Wrap your head around it, get back in there and shoot the damn ball."

Apologetically, these were words I heard often. So what does my former college basketball coach's words of wisdom have to do with power cleans? All high school angst aside, the latter part of his advice is still as true for me today (particularly yesterday) as it was so many years ago: I am (or am sometimes) a head case.

Throughout high school and college, I was a respectable athlete. I was never a stud, but I was decent. In fact, in some cases, I seemed to have some kind of untapped potential that (no matter how much my coaches tried to coax or even scream out of me) I could never get to and a lot of that seemed to be because of my head. Now, I'm not trying to get all sad and throw some sob story at you because I don't have one. I've come a long way in regards to confidence in my abilities since that freezing day in February so many years ago. Yes, I still have a way to go but we all struggle at some point or another with our confidence; however, the point I'm trying to make is that so much of what we do in athletics, and particularly in CrossFit, is mental. Take yesterday's strength workout for example.

We were completing three sets of three power cleans. I did one rep at 30 kg just to see how it felt because I haven't lifted in awhile. It was too light so I moved onto 35. I did three reps at 35; it still felt pretty light and so I then bumped it up to 40. I did three reps of 40 and then was told that it still looked too easy for me. So we put 50 kg on the bar. I stepped up, thought to myself "This is going to be heavy," and sure enough, epic fail - not once, but three times. Jennie then suggested that I end on a good note and try it at 45 kg. I did one rep and then failed the remaining two. Now, I know that my form was a little off and prevented me from catching the bar, but there was a part of my epic fail that was all thanks to my head. I had cashed out too early; I thought it was going to be too heavy - and guess what, it was.

This brings me back to my original point: So much of what we do at CrossFit is mental. If you believe that the push ups are going to suck; believe me, they are really going to suck. If you believe that you can't run that 10k, then you're right. You'll be walking while dozens of other people pass you by. Further, if you believe that you're not going to be able to complete those handstand push ups, then be sure you have a spotter nearby because you're probably going to fall on your head (Side note: You should probably have a spotter around anyway. Be safe, people.) Yes, CrossFit is physically tough, but it's just as Michele Vieux of Crossfit Invicus said: "In CrossFit, mental toughness is maybe even more important than your physical ability or God-given athletic talent. CrossFit requires mental toughness to be able to perform at YOUR peak level" ("Mental Toughness" King CrossFit). You hear that? You need mental toughness in order to perform well. Weird.

While you may be saying "No duh, Brit" to my latter point, we all need to be reminded from time to time that it is sometimes our head and not our abilities that are holding us back. Confidence comes from good performance, and with practice and persistence, you will eventually gain the needed confidence to perform at your peak level. Here are some other tips that Vieux provided (and I've only very slightly altered) to help you through those difficult times:

1. Psyche yourself up, not out: Think about what you need to do to complete the task at hand and NOT how hard or heavy it is going to be. Don’t let fear hinder or block your performance.
2. Don’t hang onto prior mistakes or failed attempts: Instead use them as learning devices and stepping stones to success for your next try.
3. Set a goal: It may be a pace time per round, completion of the WOD in under a certain amount of time, getting in a set number of reps completed before resting, giving yourself the best prep for your upcoming race, or even keeping a fellow member within your sights. Remind yourself of this when you want to stop.
4. Start next round or exercise BEFORE assessing if you need a rest: Getting in at least a couple of reps of the next task not only gives your mind a confidence boost but also gives your body a chance to assess if you still need the break. Sometimes moving in a different way can relieve some of the stress on your tired body parts.
5. The countdown: Stick to it! If you do need to rest, no problem, but give yourself “the countdown” of a preset time limit in which you solemnly swear to restart your WOD. ("Mental Toughness" King CrossFit)

These are all good points and are ones we should heed as CrossFitters. We all want to perform well, especially in regards to those WODs, movements and lifts that we feel we are less than stellar at. Now, I fully intend on taking Vieux's eloquent advice and applying it to my own workout regime as well as continue telling myself what I tell Jennie all the time in regards to running and she aptly pointed out to me about my cleaning: "Take that [insert chosen hated WOD, movement, and/or lift here] and own it."