MOTIVATION: FOLLOW YOUR BLISS...but keep score.
Over the years, I've been through several cycles of the
typical gym routine: alternating days of working different muscle groups on
various weight machines and 30+ minutes on a treadmill or some other cardio
machine - all in the hope of achieving the vaguely defined goal of getting
"in shape."
I had been overweight for years, but it hadn’t affected my
vanity enough to motivate me to lose it. I always felt perfectly healthy and
didn't feel any desire to work out regularly in order to "feel
better." It was only some pesky numbers on blood test results that my
doctor insisted were "outside normal parameters", and her suggestion
of putting me on additional medications, that got my attention like nothing had
in the past.
I began looking for a form of exercise that could hold
my interest more
than my somewhat unfocused gym experiences had several times
before.
Eventually, I discovered CrossFit. I was immediately drawn to the
variety it provided: different workouts everyday, consisting of a range of
activities like, running, jumping, gymnastic/body-weight movements, Olympic
weightlifting and Powerlifting - anything BUT a predictable routine. A quick
online search led me to the nearest CrossFit gym and I was off to the
races.
Another thing that was attractive about CrossFit was that
all workouts could be modified to match anyone's level of fitness. In the same
class, there can be teenagers and 60 year olds; firefighters, police, former
and current military people; soccer moms of all sizes and fitness levels; and
seriously overweight and out of shape guys of all ages. We're all doing the
same general workout, but some are lifting more weight or jumping on a higher
box and some finish before others.
I've heard people say that they need to get in better shape
before starting something as challenging as CrossFit. The best comeback I've
heard for that is:
"Saying you're too out of shape to start exercising is
like saying
you're too dirty to take a bath."
In a typical CrossFit workout, we all start together with a
running clock. Some workouts are meant to be finished in a predetermined time,
while others take as long as it takes to finish all the prescribed exercises.
We work out together and encourage each other all along the way. CrossFitters
like to say that CrossFit is the only sport (and it IS also a professional
sport) that has more cheering for the last person to finish than for the first. The
last ones are always cheered on and encouraged by the ones who have already
finished.
All of this working-together makes it feel like a bit of a
family and I have found that even people of VERY different
cultural/economic/political backgrounds find common ground through CrossFit and
get along swimmingly.
"CrossFitters: Creating bonds through shared
agony."
As this blog post is about motivation, you may be thinking
all this motivational stuff I've mentioned so far is my main point, but I
haven't even gotten to the MOST motivating part yet, at least for me.
