Things That Scare Me: Crossfit Edition
Let’s be clear. I am not a naturally athletic person.
I am an artsy, nerdy, high-heel-wearing, makeup-loving, orchestra/chorus/theatre kid who couldn’t kick a ball into an apparatus if her life depended on it (and believe me, I tried ALL the sports). I may have done the odd back hand-spring or two and I loved tree climbing for a stint there, but I am not a sports-y girl.
Enter Crossfit.
Somewhere nearing the end of grad school, I wasn’t the healthiest— big shock there, being a full time student and working 2-3 jobs isn’t naturally optimal for one’s health. I mean I wasn’t in a danger zone or anything, but after years of drinking way too much coffee (I was a barista, after all) and not eating very well, I tended to have issues with my heart racing. Before I go on, let me be clear that I am not here to judge anyone’s definition of personal health or start getting into diet culture. Frankly, the skinniest I’ve ever been was also one of my least healthy phases, so I am not here to talk about “the perfect size” or sling any kind of fat-shaming poison. I’ve been healthy and not healthy (and happy and not happy) in a lot of different sizes, so while I am enthusiastic about health and fitness and how it improves my own life, I also respect others’ body types/sizes and the decisions they make for their own health. I might talk more about this topic one day, but for now, we’ll leave it at that. Only body positive vibes here!
Back to Crossfit.
I tried for years to get into something exercise-related that I actually enjoyed— I ran, I did exercise DVDs (if I ever hear Jillian Michaels’ or Tony Horton’s voices coming through my TV again, it’ll be too soon), I did globo-gym, spin classes (the WORST), and while I’d obviously heard about Crossfit, it looked intimidating and expensive. And it was. But eventually, a friend of mine invited me to try out her gym and I. got. hooked.
Fast forward a few years. After about two years off and on at one CF gym (now closed), I wound up at Crossfit Potentia in Greenville, which I still like to joke was kind of like Crossfit 2.0 compared to what I was used to— and nothing against the previous programming at all, but Potentia was/is much more intense. That being said, it’s also just about the most supportive group of people (coaches and members) I’ve ever come into contact with (and I doubt I would have met any of them had it not been for the gym). That still seems so crazy to me— again, not naturally athletic, and yet I LOVE this. All kinds of people, all shapes, sizes, nationalities, what-have-you in one place suffering through a grueling workout for useless bragging rights. (It’s like how on Whose Line Is It Anyway? everything’s made up and the points don’t matter— only with barbells and excessive sweating.)
After nearly a year at Potentia (and going along with a prior goal to do more things that scare me), I signed up for my very first Crossfit competition— scaled division all the way, but still, this is pretty big for me. I’ve done loads of competitions in my life, but all of them have been for music or writing. And I’m a really competitive person by nature— just ask my husband. Words With Friends gets reaaaaaal ugly in our house. I tend to avoid playing board games altogether because they just get me all riled up and I say mean things. So you can understand why I might hedge at doing an athletic competition— buuuut after surviving the Crossfit Open and not yelling at anyone, and only getting mildly snarky with the coaches (but who doesn’t?), I thought, “eh, why not?” And ya know, there’s something very freeing about competing in something that doesn’t directly impact your career. I went into it with no expectations — I just wanted to finish it and have fun in the process.
Goal accomplished! My team (amusingly named Get Ovary It) competed in the Savage Games yesterday— these ladies are so awesome and so supportive. We had fun, we stayed consistent, and managed to not come in last, which was really just a bonus.
What are some things that scare you? It doesn’t have to be this huge, earth-shattering thing to be valid or scary. If it’s scary to you, then that’s it. It just is. So when you go out there and do it anyway, that’s worth celebrating. Personally, I celebrated this time with my favorite gluten-free pizza.
xoxo
Laura