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CrossFit.com is THE mainsite, the place where it all started. Videos of workouts, movements, journal articles- everything is here and the vast majority of it is free. Any serious CrossFitter will find themselves referring to the mainsite over and over again. Icons that link to the mainsite and journal are below.
PsychSanDiego is co- owned by Alessandra Wall Ph.D., wife of Leon Chang and an avid CrossFitter herself. Dr. Wall specializes in anxiety and eating disorders and is available for clients who wish to formulate a comprehensive weight-loss or lifestyle plan and address the psychological component of eating and weight loss. Click on the "coaches" tab to learn more!
This doesn't get easier, you get harder
Paul Estrada
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We all remember our first CrossFit workout. Whether it was here at Elysium, in a garage, a globo gym or another affiliate, it probably was a terrible experience that involved panting for air, coughing up a lung, trying to stop the world from spinning or trying not to lose your lunch. Most likely if you are reading this you took that horrible experience and thought, “I think I am going to do this some more!”
The journey for everyone in their CrossFit career is different. The one thing that everyone has in common is that no matter who you are, you start as a beginner. While some people pass this phase quickly due to prior athletic experience, most people would be considered beginners for quite some time.
What is it that separates these advanced athletes from the beginners? You could point out some different strength benchmarks, gymnastic skill or benchmark scores that might separate these people, but that isn’t what I am going to talk about today. Today I want to talk about a part of the mental aspect of this program that I find to be very important which most people don't realize.
Understanding that this isn’t your old exercise program is key. We don’t do the same exercises or routine every time you come in. We don’t repeat things over and over until it becomes “easy” or “a routine.” We do different lifts day to day and aim to do them heavier, better and/or faster then we have ever done before. We strive to advance and develop, always looking to make new progress.
Once a new athlete understands this, they can can truly start to climb the ladder to greater strength, faster times and cleaner lifts. They gain the understanding that a new personal record in a squat or deadlift is going to be the heaviest thing you have ever lifted. It is going to feel heavier than the week before, because it is. When you repeat a met-con, whether you get 4 extra rounds or you shave 3 minutes off your time, it was “easier” because you did better, but I guarantee that it is not going to feel that way. Most likely it will feel worse then the last time you did it.
I have seen many members with the same look after a new PR lift or a met-con. Their faces show that inside they are asking themselves, “When is this going to be easier?” This look is typically followed by looking around the room at some of the more advanced people who finished the met-con earlier or are lifting heavier weights and seem so much more poised and calm. Seeing this only serves to frustrate and confuse the person who has been coming in for a month or two, or even out to a year or more (there is no set time frame beyond which you're "past" the beginner phase).
As a beginner, you need to understand that CrossFit isn’t easier for the more advanced people. It is that the advanced people expect things to be difficult and they are ok with that. To borrow a nice phrase from an athlete that I admire, they get comfortable with being uncomfortable. When someone can get here mentally training becomes something totally different. When you are 7 minutes into a 20 minute metcon and the legs start to burn and the lungs feel like they're going to explode, the advanced athlete pushes to see how much more they can deal with before they stop moving. They expect this feeling and work with it. They finish a wod and they shake it off. They don’t sit around and wonder why it was so difficult... because they know why. The fact that they came in and tried their best guarantees that it will be difficult. Put another way, if you ever finish a workout and it didn’t feel terrible, you're probably not pushing yourself enough or doing it WRONG.
Next time you are wondering to yourself, “when is the lifting, running, rowing, class etc going to get easier?”, remember that it isn’t. Know that this program never gets easier but you get harder. You get stronger and tougher, both physically and mentally. You become ok with trying to lift something you have never lifted before; you will try and move faster then you ever have before. You become comfortable with being uncomfortable. Remember this and know that this is what makes CrossFit so fun, powerful and effective. This is why we do it and why it works so well.
Coach P
The journey for everyone in their CrossFit career is different. The one thing that everyone has in common is that no matter who you are, you start as a beginner. While some people pass this phase quickly due to prior athletic experience, most people would be considered beginners for quite some time.
What is it that separates these advanced athletes from the beginners? You could point out some different strength benchmarks, gymnastic skill or benchmark scores that might separate these people, but that isn’t what I am going to talk about today. Today I want to talk about a part of the mental aspect of this program that I find to be very important which most people don't realize.
Understanding that this isn’t your old exercise program is key. We don’t do the same exercises or routine every time you come in. We don’t repeat things over and over until it becomes “easy” or “a routine.” We do different lifts day to day and aim to do them heavier, better and/or faster then we have ever done before. We strive to advance and develop, always looking to make new progress.
Once a new athlete understands this, they can can truly start to climb the ladder to greater strength, faster times and cleaner lifts. They gain the understanding that a new personal record in a squat or deadlift is going to be the heaviest thing you have ever lifted. It is going to feel heavier than the week before, because it is. When you repeat a met-con, whether you get 4 extra rounds or you shave 3 minutes off your time, it was “easier” because you did better, but I guarantee that it is not going to feel that way. Most likely it will feel worse then the last time you did it.
I have seen many members with the same look after a new PR lift or a met-con. Their faces show that inside they are asking themselves, “When is this going to be easier?” This look is typically followed by looking around the room at some of the more advanced people who finished the met-con earlier or are lifting heavier weights and seem so much more poised and calm. Seeing this only serves to frustrate and confuse the person who has been coming in for a month or two, or even out to a year or more (there is no set time frame beyond which you're "past" the beginner phase).
As a beginner, you need to understand that CrossFit isn’t easier for the more advanced people. It is that the advanced people expect things to be difficult and they are ok with that. To borrow a nice phrase from an athlete that I admire, they get comfortable with being uncomfortable. When someone can get here mentally training becomes something totally different. When you are 7 minutes into a 20 minute metcon and the legs start to burn and the lungs feel like they're going to explode, the advanced athlete pushes to see how much more they can deal with before they stop moving. They expect this feeling and work with it. They finish a wod and they shake it off. They don’t sit around and wonder why it was so difficult... because they know why. The fact that they came in and tried their best guarantees that it will be difficult. Put another way, if you ever finish a workout and it didn’t feel terrible, you're probably not pushing yourself enough or doing it WRONG.
Next time you are wondering to yourself, “when is the lifting, running, rowing, class etc going to get easier?”, remember that it isn’t. Know that this program never gets easier but you get harder. You get stronger and tougher, both physically and mentally. You become ok with trying to lift something you have never lifted before; you will try and move faster then you ever have before. You become comfortable with being uncomfortable. Remember this and know that this is what makes CrossFit so fun, powerful and effective. This is why we do it and why it works so well.
Coach P
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