The other day I was reading over ultra-marathoner and CrossFit Zoner Rob Mackay’s running blog, and I was particularly struck by his latest entry. Rob often comments on his training, both as a runner and now as a CrossFitter. He was recently reflecting on his feelings about his fitness regime, and I thought they were rather profound. Have a look at what he wrote about his experiences at CrossFit Zone:
CrossFit and Ultrarunning – By Rob Mackay
It’s obvious to me now why I enjoy Crossfit so much. It is very similar to ultrarunning and shares the same ‘community’ feel. Here are some more similarities:
1) Even though you are competing with the group, the competition is really against yourself (and the clock). I go into the workouts now with the attitude of “I’m here so I will give it everything”. (Yesterday was the first workout where I came close to puking.)
2) The workouts are intense – everyone hurts and the hurting builds camaraderie.
3) The ‘quitting Sirens’ call you constantly and it is by force of will that you finish.
4) The community is varied in athletic ability but shares the collective goal of ‘improving’. Stronger, faster, more flexible.
5) You train and compete with the elites.
6) Everyone wants everyone else to get better.
7) In the end, this is a solo challenge. Your ‘team’ can only take you so far, then it is up to you to motivate yourself to finish.
Rob has highlighted some very common feelings about the CrossFit community and training regime. Ultimately, your fitness success is entirely up to you. Dedication and motivation are key to your progress! Even more so, it is very true that the camaraderie within our CrossFit community is a thing of beauty. We all experience the same downfalls and difficulties, and are able to bond over our shared experiences, good and bad. And best of all, we truly want our fellow CrossFitters to succeed! Very well said, Mr. Mackay! Thanks for sharing your thoughts with us.
To read more blogs by Rob, visit his blog site at http://robertmackay.wordpress.com/
And also a shout out to Turts! Happy Birthday!!!!
Today’s Workout:
Buy In – Dynamic leg warmup followed by a 500m jog.
WOD – “Nicole”
AMRAP in 20 minutes:
- 400 M run
- Max pullups
Score by total pullups. Scale pullups as needed.
Cash Out – stretch
