Tuesday, July 17, 2012

How Much Work It Takes To Be Average

I just need to get this off my chest: do you have any idea how much work it takes to be average? 

I have been thinking about this topic for a few weeks, and it started to come together while I was having my mind blown watching the CrossFit Games last weekend.  It ispretty awesome to watch people do the same thing I do, just better than everyone else in the world.  If those men and women can't do it, then it can't be done yet. 
 
There will probably be a surge in membership inquiries at CrossFit gyms as viewers decide that those workouts look like more fun than walking on a treadmill while reading a magazine.  CrossFit IS fun (if you are totally fucked in the head and love to beat the living shit out of yourself with training).  I fall into this category, and I will never be able to coach myself because I would set an unofficial world record in "reaching over training for time."  Luckily, if you combine an athlete that enjoys soul destroying exercise with a coach that doesn't put up with bullshit, you can get quite a bit done.

So you want to "do CrossFit?"  You have two choices: training will suck, or you will suck... and here is the disclaimer... you won't be good for a long time, and you may never be great.  Shame on anyone who tells you otherwise.
 
I have been training for 9 months with few missed workouts and very little deviation from my coach's programming.  In the time it takes to make a baby, I have put on more lean mass than the weight of two babies.  I have roughly doubled my general capacity to do work, and I am average.  FUCK YEAH! + fist pump.  I am not merely speculating either - compared to everyone who participated in the 2012 CrossFit Games Open and everybody who submits workout scores in beyondthewhiteboard.com, I am an average crossfitter.
 
CrossFit is becoming SUPER popular.  I am always excited to talk to someone who is thinking of starting or who has just started, because training has had such a profoundly positive impact on my life, but the biggest misconception I have encountered is people who think they can do this shit on their own terms.  "Doing CrossFit" with the same amount of effort and attention that you have given your elliptical workouts doesn't make you tough - it makes you a pussy in a more expensive gym.

Some like to collect gold stars for participation, and combine mild hardship with out of context quotes to feel good about mediocre effort.  Here is the thing about CrossFit... if you give a medicore effort, you will be bad.  If you give 100% effort for months, you can be average.  If you give 100% effort for years, you could be great (maybe).  If you are dedicated and hard as fuck, you will always continue to get better and you won't have that nagging empty feeling that anybody is lying to make you feel better

Not everyone has to want to be great at exercise, but everyone should want to be honest, and nobody is entitled to having sunshine blown up their ass.  

And if one more person tells me "you look great, but I don't really want to bulk up." then I will bitch slap you like I did to Jessi McCain outside of Blanc Burgers.
Posted by at

4 comments:

  1. MaureenJuly 18, 2012 at 1:02 PM

    This is SOO awesome! Totally humbling to do push presses and jerks this morning and realize I was one of the weakest ones. Did I whine or pat myself on the back for "trying my best"...HELL NO! It made me thirst for more because I know I'll never be on that awesome stage for CrossFit Games, but I'm sure as hell not going to quit just because I might get to be average at best.

    ReplyDelete
  2. SamanthaJuly 18, 2012 at 1:18 PM

    You could be great, because you clearly have the heart and aren't scared to toughen the fuck up. I am excited to hear about your progress, and no matter how good you are, your attitude will be an asset to your coaches, fellow athletes, and the cf community. Welcome home.

    ReplyDelete
  3. AnonymousJuly 19, 2012 at 2:47 PM

    I am still in the SUCK stage but I am enjoying it and working on it! And yes, it is FUN, I often read the WOD and think what makes people keep coming back for more of this... but then I do.

    I enjoyed reading your thoughts! I am blogging mine also to hold myself accountable and spread the CF word!

    ReplyDelete
  4. james phillipsJuly 27, 2012 at 5:09 PM

    Your observation about how hard it is to be "average" in a competition venue is spot on. I've experienced the same thing in both motorsports (SCCA) and running. On a local level, you may even dominate, but national-level competition has a very humbling effect.

    No matter how rich, smart, strong, or fast you are, there's always going to be someone richer, smarter, stronger, or faster. It's what *you* do with *your* competitive drive that matters. Competition has to be personal and varied in order to sustain itself.

    stay hard.

    ReplyDelete

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)

About Sam

I am a writer in Omaha, Nebraska sharing my adventures in the foundations of healthy living - nutrition, being active, and being funny.

I was born in Kansas City in the sweltering summer of July, 1986. I was nearly born in the car because I was so pumped to get my life started. I have been bouncing off of the walls ever since. Growing up I hung out with the big kids who were even older than my sister (and best friend) Allie. I quickly developed an "I'm over it" 'tude toward kids my own age whose pastimes seemed juvenile - an interesting perspective coming from a preschooler. My snobbish worldview was hard earned however, as I was forced to learn both multiplication and division early to keep up when we played "school," and I was always forced to do dangerous stuff first to make sure it was okay, like eating unidentified berries and making the first run on super steep hills while sledding. We biked all day, ate wild honeysuckle, painted the house with mud, and collected cicada shells for no reason other than they stick to fabric and freaked my mom out.

I quickly realized that even little legs can get you as far as a car can, and as a young child, you really have nothing but time. My adventures were only restrained by the fact that adults do not find it acceptable for young children to explore the town on foot unaccompanied. I prematurely developed a desire to be an independent self-supporting person, so I opened a Kool-Aid/popcorn business to finance my big plans. Looking back, I would say that the only issues holding me back were my limited advertising budget and the fact that I was still too short to ride roller coasters. People just don't take you seriously when you can't go on the upside-down rides.

I was moved to Omaha in the second grade. I continued walking all over the place, exploring surrounding neighborhoods and visiting grocery stores to pick up my favorites: Goldfish, Sprite, and sugar cigarettes. I don't even think you can buy those anymore, and for the record, I never started smoking.

I never lost my hard work ethic, and I needed to increase my income to afford my new hobbies of beading and Polaroid photography. At the age of ten I mailed in a response to an advertisement for paper delivery routes without discussing the issue with my family. Sometimes you need to take matters into your own hands when people don't share you vision. The people at the Omaha World Herald must have had a good feeling about me becuase they contacted my parents to tell them that they wanted to hire me but would feel better if there was an older family member onboard. I still wonder if Allie holds any resentment toward me for pulling her into the labor force when she was only twelve.

In third grade, I followed Allie's lead and began taking dance classes at Mary Lorraine's Dance Center. For the next eleven years it became "what I did." Nowadays, I train more like an athlete, but I will always move like a dancer, and being in a studio will always feel like home.

After high school I relocated again (this time of my own volition) to study "everything" in the College of Business Administration at the University of Nebraska - Lincoln. I acquired a degree in marketing and finance that I may use someday. More importantly, I became a close friend and Alpha Phi sister with a cross country runner who easily persuaded me to train for the 2005 Lincoln half-marathon. I have been running ever since. In April 2011 I developed plantar fasciitis after jumping into an intense 50-70 mile/week schedule. This is the first athletic injury in my life. Although it has been indescribably frustrating both physically and emotionally, the silver lining is my increased receptivity to more variety in fitness disciplines.

I enjoy Pilates, yoga, enjoy Zumba, plyometric interval training, running, walking, and seeing how quickly I can run up stairs without losing my lunch. When I am too exhausted to move, I read and write. I love fiction, non-fiction, cookbooks, poetry, philosophy, song lyrics, and comedy. I have been writing for as long as I can remember. I love spell check, and felt tip pens.

I am happy and optimistic most of the time. I enjoy living simply and deeply. I hope you enjoy what I have to share.







Followers