If you’re a Crossfitter, there’s no such thing as too much Crossfit which means you inhale everything Crossfit related on your news feed. For you, hopefully this will be another article to passive aggressively forward to one of your non Crossfitting friends before you lose them.
If you’re not a Crossfitter, sick of even hearing the word, and this title alone angers you… I mean really, “drop what you’re doing?” To do what? Eat my bodyweight in bacon, pick up heavy weights, and join a cult?… I’ve saved you some time by pouring the whys into a shot glass. Here are the top six reasons why you should try Crossfit. I hope they challenge your thinking in some way or at the very least, bring some clarity to the chaos.
1. CrossFit scares the shit out of you.
The peripheral always creates room for our imagination to turn shadows into monsters. Or in this case, “beasts”. Many are intimidated by what they see and hear about Crossfit. And I get it. All you have to do is watch a few internet videos to see the freak show – people lifting an absurd amount of weight over their heads and workouts that look like one time bucket list events. But that’s why they’re on the internet. What you don’t see are assisted bands for pull ups, scaled weight, and the elements training session with a one on one coach before you even jump into your first class. Just like we don’t see the half day inside the classroom before one’s first skydive jump. Instead, all we see is the paid video footage of the terrified mother with squirrel cheeks at ten thousand feet. What many people don’t know is that CrossFit is completely scalable to your fitness level. This means it comes with a parachute. In other words, it’s safe. So if the idea of doing a CrossFit class scares you, you should try it just to challenge that fear, not only making you stronger physically but also mentally which is what CrossFit is all about.
2. You’re not seeing results with your current workout program.
There are many reasons why CrossFit has become so popular. But at the end of the day, people are doing it because they see results. Or they wouldn’t be doing it. You can Google the Crossfit methodology and why it’s so effective. I’ll just tell you what it’s done for me, plain and simple. I’ll also take out all the mental growth and rewiring benefits and just tell you the physiological effects, because let’s face it, you want summer abs with the least about of effort, like everyone else. At 41, I am in the best shape of my life due to CrossFit. And I was never overweight or an athlete. I was just your average John who founded CrossFit while eating frozen yogurt one day. I’ve been using it to keep myself fit for the last five years. Nothing’s been more effective. The results you’ll see are almost instant as long as you’re not inhaling donuts daily and hittin’ up late night drive thrus like a sex addict cruising porn sites. So if you’re not seeing what you want in the mirror with whatever fitness you’re currently doing, you have nothing to lose in giving CrossFit a try except fat. And a new mindset.
3. You’re looking for some new friends.
Creating sweat angles on the floor with twelve other half naked people four days a week forms quite a strong bond. What is unique about CrossFit isn’t just the high intensity but also the high level of comradery that grows from something as simple as working out. I say “working out” but what I really mean is changing lives, both yours and others through common goals and firery passion that strips veneers and allows people to be themselves. Simply put, CrossFit forces you to show yourself. And since that process requires vulnerability, it connects and creates relationships fairly quickly. So stop downloading social phone apps and kill two birds by getting fit while you’re creating a new tribe.
4. You’ve never been an athlete.
Leaderboards. Times. Reps. Rounds. Crossfit is inherently competitive its design. Everything is scored and timed. You may not choose to chase the fastest or strongest person in the class but if you CrossFit long enough, you will eventually chase someone. Ideally yourself. But let’s get real. CrossFit is now a sport. There’s no escaping our natural desire to “win”, whatever that looks like for us. Combine that with the competitive energy that climaxes at the end of every hour and you’ll be facing your inner athlete every time that red clock starts it’s countdown. This is not a bad thing, especially if you’ve never played sports or met your inner athlete. Discovering a new side to you can be an extremely empowering process, one that will bleed into other areas of your life.
5. You want to have better sex.
Dull ears are all you need to hear the proud scream of someone’s first non-assisted pull up, handstand push up, or the king of all screams, a muscle up. These screams that can be heard from miles away. They come directly from the surprise of what one thought they couldn’t do. Enough of these surprises and your belief system changes. There is a mental shift behind each scream and the by product of this process is the building of one’s worth. Or simply put, confidence. Yes, the metabolic conditioning will translate directly into the bedroom and your partner will thank you for all the burpees you’ve done. But that’s secondary. Crossfit will make you feel more confident and better about your body, the peanut butter and chocolate for better sex.
6. Judgement.
“Fran”, “Wods”, “Burpees”, “Paleo”, “What was your time?”, “I PR-ed today!!!!” I get it. Friends speaking a different language is not only rude but annoying. Super annoying. But right behind the annoyance door is usually judgement and if you follow that down, way down, you’ll probably land in a puddle of fear. We judge when we are afraid.
Well, Crossfit isn’t going anywhere. This means you’re only going to hear more and more about this madness and get more and more annoyed, building a higher wall between you and whoever Crossfits in your life. If no one around you does, someone will soon. Trust me. And you’ll hear their screams. So instead of building a wall, why not turn you dial from hate to investigate. See what everyone’s talking about. Taste the Kool Aid for yourself. It may not be for you. I don’t know. But at least you can finally know what’s behind the curtain. Use Crossfit as a tool to squash judgement and stretch your resistance to new experiences, promoting your personal growth.