so pretty recently i have started doing crossfit(ish) competitions. which i have to say i really never thought i would do - because A) crossfit and B) well, crossfit. but i love them. love love love love love. even though both have been super interesting experiences. and in true deni fashion, i've wanted to die both times. which somehow makes me love them more :)
"In training, you listen to your body. In competition, you tell your body to shut up."- Rich Froning Jr
but first, let me address the giant CROSSFIT in the room. or maybe thats just in my room. but everyone who has worked out with me or at SiB KNOWS that i am not a crossfit fan. in the sense that i havent had great experiences with it AND i sincerely dont believe anyone should lift as much as they can, as fast as they can. its just not my personal style of fitness. also, i'm 45. and i like having the use of all of my limbs and joints at the same time. BUT, with all of that being said, if crossfit had existed when i was 25, i probably would have jumped on the bandwagon. because if given the choice to lift weight or lets say, do cardio - i am ALWAYS going to pick lifting. and if i can parlay my need to compete with a bit of weights, as opposed to RUNNING, count me in. and THAT, my friends, is how i came to be talked into doing my first crossfit competition in october. and then anther one in december. here is where is gets fun.
"Always make a total effort, even when the odds are against you." -- Arnold Palmer
the only thing these two things had in common was the word crossfit. oh, AND the fact that we were the only participants in each that are not "affiliates". meaning we dont really "belong" such as it is. when the rules start out with, "you know the basics from your box", we are pretty much in trouble. as we dont have a "box". we have a studio. and let me be perfectly clear - we will never be a box. i LOVE my studio. i'm just learning some box-like rules as we go along. and i have to give Ashley & Sig at Coal Road Crossfit huge props for welcoming us - pairing us up with a super cool crew to judge us- and basically running a super organized, top notch event. if this had not been my first event, im not sure i would have done another. because it gave us the confidence to try again. and i think we caught the competition bug. which is always fun. 
BUT. we arent a box. we didnt know how the scoring worked. we had to learn how to snatch (literally) from the very beginning - with only 3 weeks to do it. we have some mobility issues. and i cant even begin to talk about our kip/butterfly/osprey styles of pullups. but it was so much fun to have a goal to work towards. and a TEAM to do it with. i cant ever see myself wanting to do this as an individual - because its the whole team/group thing that drives me. and it was AWESOME to watch my team kick ass each week. get stronger. hit new goals. and just enjoy being able to COMPETE. with that being said, i think we finished 12 of 13 :). we totally didnt know how the scoring worked. i didnt let any of my people try the heavy snatch (which counted double points - who knew). and the ASSAULT BIKE kicked our collective asses. never seen one. never been on one. lost 100 points on it. needless to say, the day AFTER competition, we bought one. that won't be happening again. BUT. we kicked ass on the bodyweight workout. and held our own on the other two, assault bike aside. so we were VERY HAPPY. and also totally beat, when it was over. the outcome was the spawning of the SiB Bar-barians. a cheesy team name derived from the warriors/knights high school mascots of the team members. and it stuck. i love it. and so its our official competition crew name.
its just another element that is helping us to keep growing. and i might have VERY quickly forgotten how hard the competition was. just saying.
"You have to push past your perceived limits, push past that point you thought was as far as you can go.”- Drew Brees
so i signed up again. just me and my sis this time. everyone else was "busy"- can you believe that?? this was an "ugly sweater showdown". totally awesome idea, right? i find all of my events based on one of two criteria - cool swag or a fun name. because apparently when it comes to sports, i'm still 12. ANYWAY. this was way outside of my comfort zone. in another state. in an actual crossfit box. and the workouts were not posted until the week before and night before. so no time to practice or prep. we were basically the guinea pigs. lisa loves when i do that to her. lets do a triathlon. that went well, right???i'm just going to fast forward here. suffice it to say, this one was not quite as well run. and the space was MUCH tighter. and the people were quite a bit more crossfit gung ho. oh, and we were FIRST. like, hey deni, you can do the first wod in front of the entire box full of people will no direction or example. it was super awesome. it also involved MATH. and i needed WAY more time to figure out the strategy that we should have taken. and then lisa went second. so seriously, we were totally thrown to the wolves. but we finished 4 of 7. on a clean and jerk ladder - so we ROCKED.
‘It’s not whether you get knocked down; it’s whether you get up again’ – Vince Lombardi
and then workout 2 came about. team 8 rounds. i'm only explaining because its kind of relevant. 8 deadlifts. 8 burpee over bar. 8 pullups. and while my sister is a total rockstar, she has yet to get an unmodified pullup. because most people havent. but this workout had NO MODIFICATION for pullups. super. which meant yours truly had to do 64. plus a smattering of burpees. in 8 minutes. and then this happened.....(dramatic pause) - i literally FLEW backwards off the pullup bar on round 2. somewhere around pullup 14. of 64. i landed on the chalk buckets and my back - on the ground. and i'm pretty sure i gave myself a concussion. because i am SUPER talented like that. and OF COURSE jumped up like its totally normal to throw yourself backward off a pullup bar. i proceeded to take off my grips (because those were clearly the problem - as opposed to, you know, my actual grip) and jump back up to finish. 6 more rounds of 4 burpees and 8 pullups. well, almost 8 pullups. we finished at the time cap with 6 pullups to go. i just couldnt make myself do anymore - thru all the BLOOD on my ripped up hands. and still we finished that round 5 of 7 - i have no idea what horror befell the teams who finished after me, but i'm guessing it had to be pullup related as well! workout 3, we finished 4 again - which ended up being our finish. which totally rocked. and then i drove to lunch, dropped salsa in my open wound, screamed like a crazy person and watched my sister struggle not to pee her pants! great finish to the day :)
“Lots of people want to ride with you in the limo, but what you want is someone who will take the bus with you when the limo breaks down.”— Oprah Winfrey
"If you aren't going all the way, why go at all?" -- Joe Namath
the point is, i closed off possibilities when i said i would never crossfit. i still stand by my weight/time issue. and SiB will continue to be a functional fitness studio. i just needed a reminder that i can keep growing and exploring. and that its ok to push some boundaries - as long as i stay true to the vision. as we get close to the end of 2016, i want to thank all of you for being either a participant in or a spectator to the wonderful world of STRONG is Beautiful. it has truly been built, year after year, by what i have learned in working with all of you - and trying to get us ALL to reach our next level. fitter. happier. stronger. that's what its all about. how we get there will take us on some interesting roads. and i cant wait to see them.
“I do it as a therapy. I do it as something to keep me alive. We all need a little discipline. Exercise is my discipline.” – Jack LaLanne
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