by Craig Hysell
We train hard at CrossFit Hilton Head. You train hard. We are driven. You are driven. But are you having fun?
This gym is a school and sometimes, school can get tedious. Especially for those of you that have been here awhile. At first, everything is new. You are learning so much. You can practically walk in the gym and PR every day of the week. The community is new, the intensity of the sessions are new. You make new friends and see amazing results in 3 to 6 months. It’s exciting! CrossFit is all you talk about. How can this not be fun? You had the balls to try to change things for yourself, you stuck to your plan and it’s working!
Then you settle in, you start walking around with a bit more confidence. You become acclimated and start working on your weaknesses. You get your first legit pull-up or push-up or catch a glimpse of what an efficient power clean feels like for the first time. Your legs are strong, you’re wearing clothes you never thought you would fit into. Your friends that haven’t seen you in awhile ask you what’s going on, deeply impressed with the changes you’ve made since the last time they saw you. This lasts another 6-18 months. This is the sexy time. It’s awesome. You deserve it.
After a year and a half to two years you’ve got the CF swagger. You begin to settle in. And you start to notice something: PR’s just don’t come as easy anymore. You have your core group of CF OG’s and all these newbs keep coming in and taking up the trainer’s time with questions you’ve heard answers to hundreds of times. (Questions, you once had yourself, mind you.) You don’t come to as many CF community events as you used to. You begin to ask the question: what’s in this for me anymore? You might even be telling yourself, “I already know all this.” This is the dangerous time. This is when things can get tedious.
I can tell you this, after two or more years doing this in a structured environment and coming more than 3 times a week you need to finally start paying attention. Real attention. Broad sweeping strokes no longer are going to help you out. Now is the time to pursue diligent practice on all the minituae of details that get you to next level. Now the real work begins. Now is the time to settle into your practice, your discipline, your lifestyle and commit to focusing on the little things. Do that, and things get fun again. Really fun.
Plateaus will cease to exist for you. New personal goals expose themselves to you. You will learn so much! You are calmer, re-focused, re-energized, reinvigorated. You become patient again; with newbies and yourself. You practice diligence. You become a fuller and more fulfilled human being. This is a different kind of fun. Your path is revealed.
This is a more mature type of fun for a more mature and growing human and holds much more translation into your family, friends, work and daily life. It’s like paying close attention to your children, to nature or in church if that is your cup of tea and being one hundred percent completely present; no distractions, no expectations. There are daily revelations on this plane that existed always but you were not yet wise enough to notice. But you must practice with a purpose to earn them. You must leave your swagger behind. You must remain humble, prepared, aggressive and patient all at the same time. You must be willing to laugh again and enjoy the process instead of the goals the process gets you.
Have you lost that loving feeling? It’s okay. It is not uncommon for those that have been at school for some time. Reassess. Regroup. Talk to more than just your core group of CF BFF’s. Show up to more community events, seminars, workshops. Schedule a goal setting session, nutrition talk or skill session. Try out a specialty class. Reinvest in yourself, your community, your training.
All those good times and smiles are right where you left them. You just need to look in some different corners and under some different blankets.