That wasn’t so bad. I mean if you take away the burning forearms, the feeling of not being able to breathe, the shoulders that felt like they were carrying the world, and the sheer exhaustion; then yeah… that wasn’t so bad. However, I’m not sure that I can explain just how amazing it actually felt, not only after all the pain and exhaustion had passed, but actually in the moment. When everyone is cheering you on; friends, family, and people you’ve never met before are telling you to keep going…that feeling is amazing. That’s what I was looking for, and to be honest, I’m not sure that I even knew it.
When I walked into 803 Crossfit that morning, I still wasn’t sure what it was I looking for, or hoping to achieve. I knew I wanted to get a higher score than last time I did this workout. I also felt like I had something to prove; to the coaches, to the people there, and of course to myself. But as I got ready for my heat to start, it became about more than that. I got excited to see my friend Eddie not only do his first ever double-under, but get through over 3 rounds of this workout. I found myself trying to motivate people through their workout, and as my heat approached, I found that in itself to be motivating.
The heats were broken down into groups of three or more and as my heat prepared, it appeared that there would only be two of us. My two thoughts were to do as best as I could, and to try and stay one rep ahead of Soma, the other competitor in my heat. I picked up my rope; 3…2…1…GO! I started my double-unders knowing I would need to be good at them if I was to improve on my last attempt, and I was…30 unbroken; on to the snatches. I looked over, and saw Soma holding his shoulder, and squatting down near his bar; his day was over. Now it was just me against the clock. The following 8 and a half minutes or so seemed to take forever, but when it was all over…I did it, I beat my previous reps by 24.
I was short of my goal, but had accomplished so much more in the process. I had competed, not against any one individual, but against the clock…against myself. I congratulated Soma on his attempt and wished him well, and he also congratulated me. We were never competing against each other, just with each other. I was congratulated by many of the people there, and through my complete exhaustion, thanked every one of them. The feeling of exhaustion didn’t nearly compare to the feeling of accomplishment I felt walking out of there yesterday. When I tell people I do crossfit the first question they usually ask is, “How much does that cost?” To someone who has never done it, it can be hard to justify that cost. I wish they would ask me “What is the reward like?”, because after completing 14.1 of The Reebok Crossfit Games Open, I’ve learned that the reward of doing crossfit is so much greater than the cost.
