Why compete in the Games?

When my husband starting getting all geeked out on signing our box up for the CrossFit Games Open Competition, I shook my head and thought "What's the point?  It isn't like I'm going to make it to Regionals anyway."   His response, "You don't run a 5K race always expecting to win, you run it for fun."   He had a good point.  So I did it.  I signed up for the Open as did 14 other athletes from our affiliate.   I think we may have initially went into it to humor my husband, Matt, but the outcome was an experience I am very thankful for. What i couldn't prepare myself for was the camaraderie that ensued from all the athletes, competitors and non competitors alike, coming together for a common goal.  

Every week, we chalked up our hands, we slid on the weights and we gripped the bar in an effort to put our name on the roster with the likeness of the fittest on earth.  Our goal wasn't to be named the fittest on earth.  Our goal was to give it all we had!  Every workout tested our strength and made us dig deep to put up weight we never thought we could.  We made PR's, we contemplated re-doing a WOD for a better score, we cheered louder than ever for our team mates and with every competition WOD we formed a deeper relationship with each other.   

What is it about competing together that seems to bring people closer together?  Is it the shared jitters?  or the adrenaline that we all experience, or diving head first into the WOD with the thought "There is NO way I can do that",  or just knowing we are all suffering together?  Maybe it is a combination of it all, but it seems to be that those that suffer together, stick together! 

I am thankful for each and every athlete at CrossFit Manitowoc, those that competed and those that didn't.  We couldn't have done it without the support of the non competitors who came out and cheered us on.  And having 14 other athletes to compete with, made this experience so much more enlightening.  I am thankful for those that took on the challenge with me, pushed me past limits I didn't know I could, and gave me a lot of memories and laughs in the process.  I may never share the floor with the elite CrossFit athletes, but as far as I am concerned, I am sharing the floor with some of the greatest people I know, and I couldn't have asked for a better group of people to be surrounded by while taking on the Games OPEN.  

13.5 Cool Down!

Some of the cheering crowd! 

the CFM ladies that rocked out 13.5 together!   We rocked the shorts and tall socks!!

And just for fun, us ladies took on the hand stands!! 

At the end of it all, I ranked 7,921 worldwide and 685 in the North Central Region.  I won't be going around bragging that I am the 8000th fittest woman in the world, that is for sure, and I probably won't even remember these stats when next year rolls around.  The point of the Games wasn't for me to "rank", it was for me to prove to myself that I can do more than I think I can when put in a position that I have no other choice. I could either quit or keep trying. So no matter what challenges you face, remember:  "Your untapped potential is revealed when quitting is not an option and trying is all you've got!"

Humble Pie

CrossFit is humbling!  This is one of my most repeatable phrases when talking to athletes about CrossFit.  I am sure that makes someone just want to dive right into it.  After all, pride is the part of the human spirit that brings us confidence, right?  Or is it?

We want to be good at something.  We want to hear that we did great. We want to put up the best time or the best score.  At the crux of it all, we want to be recognized!  Face it: It is human nature.  So we'd rather not be faced with our inadequacies, in the middle of a workout, when we are gasping for breath, and our heart rate is through the roof.  This, though,  is where CrossFit is different from any other type of workout regimen.  With a constantly varied routine programmed by a coaching staff, you can't avoid your weaknesses.

When faced with our weaknesses, we have two choices, we can avoid them or we can take them on.  Those that choose to take them on, realize that they want more than the status quo.  They know the results are worth the path it takes to get there.  CrossFit athletes stand apart from many others, not because they are better, but because they want to be better.  This is why I think CrossFit breeds an extraordinary sense of community, because no matter if you are just beginning or if you are an elite athlete, everyone knows it is hard.  Pushing your limits in the company of other athletes builds a bond that is hard to relate to, unless you are experiencing it together.

I have the utmost respect for those athletes that can face their weaknesses and have the self control to work on mechanics first before jumping into intensity; those athletes that are more concerned with listening to coaching tips than trying to throw up the heaviest weight or the fastest time.  That attitude takes self control,  humility,and a confidence in yourself that says, numbers don't determine who I am, but the effort I put into it and the determination not to quit does. 

If you are strong enough to acknowledge your inadequacies, you are strong enough to take on a CrossFit workout.  Acknowledging you are not good at everything is the first step toward finding the true potential in yourself.  In your journey through CrossFit, you will inevitably be crushed by a WOD and will conquer others, but you should know that CrossFit does not discriminate.  Everyone, no matter their fitness level, will be crushed and will conquer, but in the end our confidence should come from embracing humility, facing our pride head on, conquering our fears, and digging deep withing ourselves to find what we are truly made of!!