Instagram makes day to day training easy to share, but I thought I’d give you a little bit of long-form version on what I’ve been up to lately.
I feel like I’ve hit this place of pure joy with my training that has really been missing for a while. And I owe that to Fringe’s new Head Coach Angelo Fosco. My training is now a balance of traditional strength, HIIT, and some traditional CrossFit metcons. Honestly though, the last piece feels much more marginal than it ever has — and I’m surprised to find I’m really enjoying it.
I’ve actually been trying to write this post for a while, but having trouble describing what it is that I feel is changing within my fitness and outlook. Then, as I was driving down to Branson two weeks ago, I had the chance to catch up on Barbell Shrugged episodes and BAM — their 2-part series (episodes 190 and 191) with Julian Pineau said it all!
I know, two hours of podcasts is a long time. Seriously, even if you aren’t a CrossFitter/weightlifter, take the time to listen to these episodes, the principles and approach to fitness and wellness discussed will be valuable to athletes of all types and experience levels.
I think naively when I first started CrossFit, I just accepted that Glassman’s methodology was all I needed to succeed. And don’t get me wrong, it is revolutionary, and the way the CrossFit community continues to grow and diversify proves that it is infinitely scalable and inclusive. But I think I got wrapped up in what I call “Insta-CrossFit.”
When you look at social media, you typically see people doing heavy weight and heavy volume. I think I got caught up in thinking that was key to my success or enjoyment of the sport. Like if I just do “X” enough/more/heavier, I will eventually have the results I want, and I will feel and be more legitimate. But eventually, I just started hitting a wall — repeatedly. Remember, I don’t have any real fitness background, so I feel like the past few months have been kind of a turning point, and maybe somewhat of a coming of age. I love that I’m not only finally seeing the results I’ve long wanted, but that my base of fitness and understanding of how it is accomplished is growing. To be cliche, it’s like some fog has been lifted. I’m seeing opportunities that have been there all along, and I love finding new ways to incorporate different movements and methodology into my training.
Something that is also changing is my long-term outlook and perception of what I’m capable of. A big part of hitting the wall repeatedly was feeling like I had to live up to some image of what I thought an athlete and coach needed to look like. Talk about setting yourself up for failure. The grass is always greener in someone else’s training, and my reality is just different. My mantra now is…
Putting less pressure on myself has allowed me to enjoy training with others more again. I’ve especially enjoyed training with the girls at Iron Wolf CrossFit over the summer. I really wish I could train there more often, and I had no idea how much I really missed small group training like I did during HOA5 prep. Plus Charlie’s workouts are pure torture.
As Chris Moore says, “When the student is ready, the teacher will appear.” The traditional strength and accessory work Angelo has been programming over the past few months is building areas that were never working/activating properly, and I’ve really backed off any kind of heavy weights and volume to focus on building back my lifting forms correctly.
Take the time. Do it right, and enjoy the benefits for a lifetime. More is not better, better is better.
How do you feel about your training lately?
