The athletes are all pretty fine physical specimens--muscular and very fit, so what separates the great from the good?--It's pretty obvious that it's mental toughness that puts the athletes on the podium.
Am I mentally tough? That's a big fat no--but I'm working on it, and CrossFit is helping. If you've ever run any distance, you know that your mind plays a huge part in running. You're tired, your legs hurt and your mind is telling you to stop--you're not going to die if you keep running, lol, but somehow your mind convinces you that you will, and you stop--at least, I used to. No mental toughness at all, and I can't blame it on my age because I've never been mentally tough. But CrossFit is slowly changing that. When I'm in the middle of a killer word and completely out of breath and I see box mates pushing through their exhaustion it gives me the extra push I need to keep going, so I do.
I remember a particular workout consisting of running and front squats:
It was an extreme cardio workout and I was having a hard time catching my breath. I had come in from the run portion and cleaned my bar to begin the front squats. I was tired and just cleaning took an effort--I can't remember how many squats we had to do, but I was planning on splitting them up because I was so winded, but the problem with splitting the lifts up is that it takes a lot of effort to clean the weight from the floor. So I made the decision to not put the bar down and pushed through all of the front squats, resting with the bar on my shoulders when I needed to. I surprised myself and my box mates, but was pretty proud of myself afterwards for pushing through.
I was reading about one of the female competitors who has a chance to win it all in the Games this year, Sara Sigmundsdottir, and she said that to toughen her mind she will do 1000 burpees for time so when they show up in a wod, she knows she's done 1000 burpees so what's a few hundred? Lol. I've thought that I should try the same thing--maybe not 1000 burpees, but try to do 100 a day so when I have to do them in a workout, my mind will be prepared.
I've noticed that I use the mental toughness I've gained in CrossFit in my everyday life. When I'm tired and don't feel like cleaning, or folding, or going to the grocery store, ( first world problems, I know!) I recall my workout that morning where I lifted that extra weight or ran that extra lap and realize that my everyday chores really aren't that bad.
Just another positive that CrossFit has brought to my life--I hope you are encouraged to try it, and you can reap the benefits of CrossFit too.
Am I mentally tough? That's a big fat no--but I'm working on it, and CrossFit is helping. If you've ever run any distance, you know that your mind plays a huge part in running. You're tired, your legs hurt and your mind is telling you to stop--you're not going to die if you keep running, lol, but somehow your mind convinces you that you will, and you stop--at least, I used to. No mental toughness at all, and I can't blame it on my age because I've never been mentally tough. But CrossFit is slowly changing that. When I'm in the middle of a killer word and completely out of breath and I see box mates pushing through their exhaustion it gives me the extra push I need to keep going, so I do.
I remember a particular workout consisting of running and front squats:
It was an extreme cardio workout and I was having a hard time catching my breath. I had come in from the run portion and cleaned my bar to begin the front squats. I was tired and just cleaning took an effort--I can't remember how many squats we had to do, but I was planning on splitting them up because I was so winded, but the problem with splitting the lifts up is that it takes a lot of effort to clean the weight from the floor. So I made the decision to not put the bar down and pushed through all of the front squats, resting with the bar on my shoulders when I needed to. I surprised myself and my box mates, but was pretty proud of myself afterwards for pushing through.
I was reading about one of the female competitors who has a chance to win it all in the Games this year, Sara Sigmundsdottir, and she said that to toughen her mind she will do 1000 burpees for time so when they show up in a wod, she knows she's done 1000 burpees so what's a few hundred? Lol. I've thought that I should try the same thing--maybe not 1000 burpees, but try to do 100 a day so when I have to do them in a workout, my mind will be prepared.
I've noticed that I use the mental toughness I've gained in CrossFit in my everyday life. When I'm tired and don't feel like cleaning, or folding, or going to the grocery store, ( first world problems, I know!) I recall my workout that morning where I lifted that extra weight or ran that extra lap and realize that my everyday chores really aren't that bad.
Just another positive that CrossFit has brought to my life--I hope you are encouraged to try it, and you can reap the benefits of CrossFit too.
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