Jason ring dips . . .
It’s hard to change. Really hard. Pre-CrossFit (P.C.) I was a globo-gym addict. Five days a week, sometimes six. Waiting on the doorstep at 4:45am for the Air Force base gym to open at 5. Free weights, cardio equipment, leg presses, and even some machines. Leg days, tri/bi days, chest and back days. Quite honestly, I loved it. I felt great and really thought I was getting somewhere. My muscles were growing and I was a better cyclist because of it. Sure, I only had one kind of pathetic-looking pull-up but I had one! No other girl in the gym ever came close. I was the Queen of what the front desk girls called “The Testosterone Room.”
Then I found CrossFit. I tried one workout. It was supposed to be 20 min. I barely made it to 10. But it seemed like it had lasted for hours — and I was wrecked for the next day. I had finally met my match.
I tried another and another and another. Still cycling my “CrossFit-style lifting” sessions (that’s actually what I wrote in my training log) with long road rides, some sprinting, and swimming. I was still trying to break things up into “Leg Days” and “Upper Body Days.” Oh — and toss in 40 minutes on the elliptical and maybe the treadmill.
It worked for a while.
But then a funny thing happened. I realized I was an idiot. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t separate all the CrossFit workouts into upper body or lower body days. A power clean involved the whole body, as did clean and jerks, deadlifts, push presses, squats, snatches, kettlebell exercises, rowing, and even the famed pull-up. (Oh — and I had five of those now — something I had never been able to achieve in all my globo-gym days.) CrossFit made me mix up all the body parts, just like life did. It made me intertwine cardio and lifting — just like life did. CrossFit — when I went hard enough — was leaving me gasping and exhausted in 20 minutes — like hours in the globo-gym never had. It became my drug of choice. I still went to the gym five days out of seven, but what I did was soooo much harder, even though it was shorter. I felt better, looked better, was better.
See, what it took me so long to realize was this: more does not always mean better. We live in a big society, with big appetites — and this attitude bleeds over into our gym culture. We (mistakenly) think that more time in the gym means that we’re achieving more. Not necessarily so. What matters is effort and skill and attitude, not just time punched on the clock. That’s pretty much true for success in all walks of life — so why would we think that things would be any different in the gym?
To see that though, you have to turn things on their head. Look outside the box. Take a different viewpoint and don’t be content to just do what everybody else does. Kind of like Jason on the rings in the photo above. From the ring dip position, the world looks one way. Flip upside down and he’ll see things very differently.
Every once in a while, I think about taking two hours and doing one of my old globo-gym workouts – maybe a “back and bi’s” day, followed by 45 minutes on the elliptical. And then I remember how impersonal, soul-less, and boring it was — and I realize I’d rather shoot myself in the stomach. CrossFit is a better way. You just have to wrap your head around it.
(Words by Lisbeth Darsh of CrossFit Watertown.)
March 24th, 2010 at 10:12 am
“…And then I remember how impersonal, soul-less, and boring it was — and I realize I’d rather shoot myself in the stomach.”
Exactly.
Great post Lis.. I think of how much time I spent on an eliptical going nowhere & it makes me sick. I’m so glad Mike woke me up and that I found your blog and came to you! lol
March 24th, 2010 at 10:23 am
Very true words, Lis, but the difference between me and you is that I was NEVER addicted to my Globo Gym. I always searched for reasons to skip the gym, to skip reverse curls and calf raises and other joke exercises like that. These days, I carefully plan babysitters so I can hit CFW, and I look forward to my workouts like a kid on Christmas morning. I’m constantly planning and trying to find the time to get to CFW. Like today. I can’t wait to get out of work and get down and dirty at the 5 PM!!!!!
March 24th, 2010 at 10:49 am
When no one is looking I try to hit some hammer curles at CFW!
I had a kinda different issue with Globo gyms. I was a member for a short time right after I got into CF. It was a small gym and I really had no idea what I was doing as far a CF or just the standard gym stuff. So I would go to the free weight area and do slamballs and DB inclined bench presses. Then as a cool down I would do some wall-ball in this little room off the back followed by that leg press thing where you can put 5 million pounds on it and press it with your legs. I would leave on cloud nine thinking that’s what everyone was doing there and how did I miss out on this for so long…then they asked me to stop doing these thing or leave, so I joined CFDC.
Oh and one other time I joined WSC so I could go to spin class ( I would go to 4 or five in one day..issues I know). On Friday night I would take a spin class and then go to the steam room with a water bottle of White wine and get trashed! I do kinda miss that!
Ok, on the serious side. I had a huge issue with cycling and also doing CF. It was very hard for me to find a balance. If I did CF my legs were toast and if I rode to much my legs were toast. It took a year of playing with days on and off to get it nailed down. This summer it’s back to some playful Mountain biking, chill and run into trees! Whoot!
March 24th, 2010 at 11:06 am
hmmmm, we might have to get a steam room at CFW.
March 24th, 2010 at 11:34 am
When I think of globo gyms, and I get a nauseated feeling in my stomach because that’s just how I felt when I had to go to them. I couldn’t work the God for saken machines. There was always the “socialite” clique that would stand there looking judgementally at you as if you had a third eye. I swore I never step foot in a gym again but when my skinny jeans started to “get smaller” I knew I had to do something. A friend mention Crossfit Watertown and Lisbeth the owner. By coincidence I met her at the b-day celebration of a mutual friend. She told me “come down and give it a try”. I told her I would be her toughest client because I hated exercising, I like to drink and I like to eat. March 20th marked my 3rd year at CFW. Since then, I threw out my skinny jeans because I needed a smaller size. I’ve toned and become stronger both physically and mentally. I look forward to my workouts as if there were a pair of stilletos given away at the end of wods. I’ve never heard anyone that works out at a globo gym…”Can’t wait to go work out”
March 24th, 2010 at 11:49 am
Any place with hex plates is a no-go.
March 24th, 2010 at 12:05 pm
IMHO (I love these 21st century texting acronyms that all the cool kids are using these days.) I think there are a number of issues with the globo gym and there are some ok things too. I do take issue with a business model that would rather take someone’s money and provide them no service regardless of what the dollar amount is.
I’ve never gotten that feeling from any of the CF affiliates I’ve been lucky enough to WOD with. It seems that their primary concern is to get people to be better. They take an interest in my goals, my level of fitness and how I move. If I’m not doing something right I am corrected. I feel very fortunate to be part of the CFW family.
March 24th, 2010 at 12:11 pm
Any one interested in the Brass City Dash, Saturday April 17th? Running or volunteering?http://www.waterbury.uconn.edu/student_resources/paper_registration_form.pdf
My kids are working on good deed type stuff so I am trying to get us in as volunteers. I plan on flying my CFW colors.
March 24th, 2010 at 12:16 pm
Kirk, you took the words right outta my mouth! Christmas is my favorite thing in the WHOLE world (just ask Melissa, Jay, or Pete if you think I’m exaggerating.) And I look forward to CrossFit all day/every day just about as much as I look forward to Christmas each year!
March 24th, 2010 at 12:22 pm
When I hear people talking about going to the gym for 2 hours at a time, it makes me cringe. I try and explain to them that you can get more out of a 10-minute workout than spending days on an elliptical or some other silly tool. People need to wake up and forget what they think they know about fitness. I was never a gym goer before CrossFit and always said I would avoid it. CrossFit is different. I wish people would see that.
March 24th, 2010 at 12:51 pm
Rock Star,
I sooooo can’t see you in a Globo gym…yelling at someone to get moving you MoFO! It would be a fight for sure! Maybe as a field trip we could go to a globo gym and see what happens when we start yelling at each other to go faster..pick up more weight….don’t drink that pu#$%^ juice MoFo!
March 24th, 2010 at 1:20 pm
I was never even close to being an addict to the globo gym, primarily because I never cared for “working out”. I would say the fact that I dig this whole CrossFit thing speaks volumes. It essentially made me go from despising the very little mundane gym exercising I would do to looking forward to working out every night.
Though I am in the same boat Jen was with biking – CF usually wipes me out too much to have an enjoyable ride!
I must return to the trail this year….
March 24th, 2010 at 1:31 pm
Oh yeah, forgot about this:
http://www.crankfire.info/stuff/Slomo.mov
I got my new camera that can do slow motion video up to 1000fps, so I have been playing around. The fluorescent lighting at our gym messes with its overall clarity, but it is still pretty cool. That video has Sue and Mary’s last power cleans from last nights wod, and a little parkour, errr, dogkour by my pup
March 24th, 2010 at 2:25 pm
Soooooo cool, Nate! You’re the man!
March 24th, 2010 at 2:30 pm
Nate you rock! Got this plan…we need Nate’s camera, the big fan and cold water…leave the rest to me….
March 24th, 2010 at 3:10 pm
Who brought that big rock into CFW and how did you get it out so fast? Geeesh!
March 24th, 2010 at 3:43 pm
I guess I’m like N8. Never a big gym rat, never enjoyed “working out”, spent most of my time running, stretching and playing ball 5-6 days a week. Now, I look forward every day to CF (if Jen would let me come 5 days on)I make excuses to leave work in time to get there early. When I travel, the first thing I do, before I book flights or hotel is I search the Affiliate Blog for the nearest CF. Talk about “addictions”. Is health and total fitness an addiction? If it is, bring on my next fix!!!
March 24th, 2010 at 7:32 pm
Omg, Rockstar . . .