Work in progress

#respecttheoldseekoutthenew2022

"All progress takes place outside your comfort zone." 

Over the last few years, it’s been no secret that my passion for CrossFit has increased. However, my level of interest in the CrossFit Open (An inclusive worldwide competition) has interestingly decreased. I think participating in the CrossFit Open can be an amazing experience for various reasons (e.g. community building, personal goal setting, taste of competition, pushing yourself just a little more because you paid to participate…), but for me personally, it's really not been the driving force behind what I do inside the gym on a daily basis. Though I absolutely love competing, I am also quite selective on when I “turn it on” and when I choose to focus on different elements of my training.

That said, I have been doing the CF Open workouts for several years now and again this year, I have every intention on testing them out, whether I am a paying participant or not. I expect every workout to have something that will challenge me and that will push me to reflect further on my strengths and weaknesses. This last week, when the first of 3 workouts was announced (22.1), I actually felt a tad annoyed with myself. I was upset that I had somewhat avoided working on wallwalks (1 of 3 movements in the workout) over the last 12 months; this movement came out in last years’s CF Open and was highlighted as one of my weaknesses back then. Seeing wallwalks come up again this year was a brutal reminder that I really need to stop avoiding certain movements that I dislike and rather work on improving them. 

Now, CrossFit is an interesting sport that requires you to learn a variety of movements and skills, so it can be quite challenging to work on everything simultaneously. At the same time, one of the reasons I love CrossFit is in fact because I enjoy constantly being challenged and learning new things. This last year, I was committed most of all to improving my Weightlifting technique and the progress has been evident. My dedication to training, along with the support of a knowledgeable coach, most definitely has led to great success. 

Moving forward, I want to continue progressing with my Weightlifiting, but I recognize that I must also step out of my comfort zone and focus on other things I don't like as much and/or find difficult; mostly my gymnastics skills which unfortunately have taken a backseat for far too long (e.g. toes-to-bar, handstand push-ups, bar and ring muscle-ups, handstand walks, butterfly pull-ups, rope climbs…). 

I am, like everyone else, a work in progress, both inside and outside of the gym. I know that to develop, grow and experience success, I must of course put in some effort by stepping out of my comfort zone, but also by being open to struggle and change, being intentional, being patient, being dedicated, being consistent, being hardworking, being persistent, being and constantly being reflective. 

"All growth depends upon activity.

There is no development without effort and effort means work."