Say the word CrossFit in any room and you’ll receive a wide array of reactions. Some positive and others less so. For one reason or another CrossFit is a controversial topic. Everyone has a strong opinion on the matter, and freely shares it.
I am no different. I have very strong thoughts about CrossFit. The one thing that makes me only different on the subject is that my opinions have changed.
Once upon a time, I judged CrossFit from afar and made assumptions based on what I thought it was all about. Whether those impressions were true or misguided I did not know. All I knew was that I didn’t believe it would help me achieve my fitness goals.
I wasn’t unfamiliar with the barbell lifts. In fact, my training routine has always held these lifts as its foundation. I wasn’t new to the concept of hard work, or anything about the individual workouts themselves.
My issues stemmed from a lack of knowledge and experience with CrossFit itself. For all the years I’d worked out and trained my body, I hadn’t set my pride aside and allowed it a fair shake.
That along with my reservations about the program came crashing down late last year. I dropped my guard, set pride aside, and took the plunge. After years of watching and observing it from afar, I was now in the inside.
Day by day a difficult and painful reality began to sink in: I was wrong. Boy that stings! Few things in life are so painful as having to admit you’re not right. That you don’t know everything. That no matter how well-intentioned and careful you are, you don’t have it all together. To come to terms with thinking and believing things so contrary to your former self.
But it’s freeing. It frees you up to embrace and chase after a whole new life. To set new goals. Build new relationships. And reminds you that not all you think is gold.
At long last, I am now a CrossFit believer. It shows me where I’m weak, where to push harder, and that going it alone isn’t a good idea.
Drinking the CrossFit Kool-Aid taught me many things and reminded me of several lessons easily forgotten. To have uncomfortable conversations. To walk into difficult rooms, filled with real people who disagree with you. To draw as near as you can. That nearness won’t be the death of you.
Regardless of if your opinion shifts or not, it could be the beginning of a whole new you. A more well informed and relationally enriched you. One who isn’t fearful of opposing views or the people who hold them. Someone who is always ready to think, talk, and admit when they’re wrong.