Trust the Process
Why do we have coaches at CrossFit Spur?
They cheer you on, encourage you to work hard, motivate you to do your best, celebrate your victories and help you through bad days. But that’s only a tiny piece of their job.
Coaches are guides.
Without them your path to becoming better would meander and wander off track. Coaches understand the process because they’ve experienced it, witnessed it and live it every day. They have the experience you need to find success.
The path they lead you down, this process of progression may no be the shortest path.
It’s most often the less appealing route.
Many times it’s boring.
Repetitive.
Difficult.
Not what you want to be doing.
We all want to reach a goal yet too often we lack the desire to perform the work necessary to get us there.
Instant gratification is in your face everywhere you turn. Especially in the fitness world.
We all know the truth even if we don’t want to admit it.
None of that shit works.
Best case scenario you’ll end up right back where you started, but often times people end up worse off.
There’s no cutting corners. No tricks to speeding up the process. Just hard work with a lot of obstacles and temptation along the way.
Your coaches know how to keep you on that path because they’ve already walked it.
They know how to make you better and they know it takes time. That’s why they became coaches.
Listen to them.
Follow the process.
Coaches can guide you down the path to success but it’s your job to follow them.
Don’t skip steps.
Don’t cut corners.
Don’t get hung up on what someone else is doing.
Eyes ahead. Keep moving.
Every time you stray from the path, think you can bypass the process or give in to the temptation of the “fun stuff” over the necessary stuff you’re only wasting time.
Sometimes trusting the process sucks. But, trying to take shortcuts only to end up frustrated or injured sucks way more.
RX does not mean better
With the open around the corner people start to let their competitiveness get the best of them.
Remember, while CrossFit is technically a sport it’s also the best way to stay healthy when done properly.
To go along with what was said previously, coaches know best. Scaling a workout does not make it less of a workout. 99% of the time it actually makes the workout harder (in a good way!)
Let your coaches help you scale appropriately. They know exactly how you personally can get the most out of every workout.
Below is an example of a workout and 4 athletes of varying ability levels.
The Workout:
– 1 Clean and Jerk every 0:30 for 5 rounds
*225lb for men / 205lb for women
Performs all 5 clean and jerks with near perfect form.
This athlete has no problem performing the workout RX and could increase their weight safely.
Performs all 5 reps with good or near perfect form.
This athlete can also safely perform the workout RX, however they may consider reducing the weight slightly or staying at this weight until all 5 reps are more consistent.
Performs all 5 reps with mostly poor form.
This athlete can not perform the workout safely with RX weight. While they may be able to get the job done they are reinforcing bad form, putting their joints at risk of injury and impeding their progress. This athlete should reduce the weight.
Only performs 4 reps and fails the 5th.
This athlete has no business attempting the workout with RX weight. They are unable to complete the task and are putting themselves at a very high risk for injury. Each rep was so inconsistent that nothing was practiced appropriately or improved upon. They should drastically reduce the weight and focus on consistent form each rep.
This same idea of “hitting the bullseye” applies to every workout. If the target time is 6 minutes and it takes an athlete 12 they are not achieving the appropriate stimulus therefore impeding their progress.
The beauty of CrossFit Spur is that our programming and coaching makes it very easy for anyone get the perfect workout every day!
Heavier isn’t always better.
Faster isn’t always better.
Better is always better.