Keep Your Eye on the Prize

First and foremost, I've made a lot of progress in the past few weeks. Really stepping up the intensity and trying my hardest to knock this weight off. Not only have I seen progress on the scale, but in the way my clothes fit too!

If a WOD leads me to write a blog, you know it was a tough one. Something that I've learned recently is if you show up to the box already defeated, you'll definitely lose. If you don't show up with the right mindset to work, you won't get anything out of it. Tonight was just one of those days...

I was tired, getting over a migraine from the day before, and honestly, just didn't want to be there. My knee is BAD, I even had to drop out of the upcoming competition. And if you know me, you know that's not something I take lightly!

But I showed up, regardless of my excuses. As always, we started off with a row. I did 10 rounds of 30 seconds max effort pulls, 15 seconds rest. If that makes sense, you know it's easy. But tonight it wasn't. It wasn't that it was physically challenging, it was mentally challenging. I was mad at myself that I didn't eat as well as I could have this week. Which led me to be mad that I didn't eat as well as I should have my WHOLE LIFE. Which led me to be mad that I quit tennis. If you've kept up with my blogs, you know that this is my personal lowest of lows. So basically, it was a downward spiral. It left me being angry that I have a knee injury and that I can't do anything about it. At least that's how I felt.

We moved on to the next workout and STILL, I was struggling. It felt like it was my first day in the box again. Why was everything so hard?

In the final workout, we did 6 rounds of 300m rows, with 1:30 slam balls as a "break." First of all, whoever thought of slam balls, is my worst enemy. I was mad, just mad that I had to do more work, and mad about all the things that I mentioned before. Thankfully, it turned around when something that my coach said, really stuck out to me. For those of you who don't know, I've recently began working with Justin, a trainer and a friend, at my box.

"Just remember why you're doing this. Just remember your goal."

This is something that Justin is constantly reminding me of, but tonight, I especially needed it. I was so hung up on why I got to where I am and not where I am going. I've worked so hard in CrossFit to get here and sometimes I neglect to remember that.

I've said this a million times and I'll say it a million more but thing I love most about CrossFit, is the support you get from those that surround you. Whether they have faced a similar journey or had a total different experience, CrossFit has a special way of unifying us as one.

Lately, as I have really zeroed in on improving my cardio, I knew that Justin was the coach for the job. He is fun, energetic, motivating, positive, and has really influenced my weightloss journey. Many people have helped me along the way, but Justin seems to have found a way to reach me in a way that no one else has. It's nice to have a trainer that genuinely cares about getting you to your goals.

In addition to the positive affect on my journey, he puts so much time and effort into his programming and has really personalized it to my needs. Always coming up with new ideas to keep me interested, engaged, and challenged. But whether I like it or not, they almost always include rowing!

Basically I just want to say thank you Justin for being such a great coach and getting me where I am right now. Can't wait to see where we are in 6 months! And I know, I know, it's up to me.

If I didn't mention it before, another reason Justin is the best coach ever is because he has the most ADORABLE baby ever. And if you read this far, you get to see the cutest baby in the world. Congratulations.

But really... 

Have a good night guys (:

Other things to check out:

My post about tennis: http://ecweigh.blogspot.com/2013/07/a-fallen-star.html

Justin's blog: http://liftinglikeaman.blogspot.com

What To Do When You're The Worst

Hello all,

The CrossFit Open has come to a close and the shock of the WODs have finally worn off. Honestly, I was disappointed in my first CrossFit open experience. I'm excited to get back to my normal workout routine and not have to worry about what was coming every Friday. 

Coming in last is nothing new to me. Ever since I started CrossFit, I knew winning would be a struggle. I knew even keeping up at my own box would be difficult. There is always someone stronger, someone faster, people that are good at gymnastics, and people that are good at lifting. 

While the CrossFit Open provides us with a great deal of community and camaraderie, the biggest frustration that I had, is the negativity that it instilled in beginners. 

CrossFit is the kind of community that supports the person that comes in last place, just as much as the person who comes in first. In fact, the cheers are often louder for those who are at the end of the race. 

While that's all great, I know better than anyone, you are your own worst enemy. What do you do when your mindset is your biggest obstacle? Being the worst isn't easy. I can't count how many emails I got from novice CrossFitters, filled with discouragement that they could not finish a workout and scored a 0. I'm in no way saying that the Open workouts should have been easier, because after all it is a competition to find the fittest person in the world. But what do you do when you're faced with failure?

Over and over again I found myself facing movements that I couldn't do. Honestly, I didn't get too down on myself. I know how far I've come and I know how much further I am able to go. The biggest frustration I faced was in 14.5, a WOD composed of thrusters and burpees, both movements that I can do. 20 minutes into the workout, my coach called it, I was limping through the whole thing, my knee was seriously ready to give out. I know that injuring yourself isn't worth one good score but it was still disappointing. 

So again I ask, what do you do when you're the worst?

First of all, you gotta hang in there. There is nothing sadder than seeing someone quit CrossFit after a few weeks because they can't keep up. CrossFit is for everyone, scalable for everyone. Quitting is the easy way out, an automatic loss, and definitely won't help you reach your goals. 

Next, change your time commitment. If you really want to be good at CrossFit, going 3 days a week won't cut it. CrossFit holds true to the statement, "you get what you put in." It will get you to your goals, you just have to give it time. 

Next, change your focus. Spend extra time in improving the areas you aren't good at. This week I have worked with my coach, Justin, every day on the rower. I HATE it. But it's one sure way to improve my cardio. While, making strides to improve on your weaknesses, it's also important to not neglect what you're already good at. Weightlifting is my passion and it's important for me to spend time doing what makes me happy. If you're feeling discouraged, spend some time revisiting the reasons you love CrossFit.

Finally, my biggest recommendation is coming up with your own definition of winning. Whether that's lifting 5 more pounds than a month earlier or just finishing a workout, both are progress. Maybe it's moving down a band in assisted pull-ups. The longer you hang in there, the better you will get. You may never be the best, but one day you won't be the worst.