CROSSFIT MIGHT NOT BE FOR YOU

 

"To be a winner, all you need to give is all you have."

It’s that time of the year. It’s rainy and cold outside. The kids get holiday vacation time. Your favorite TV shows are in the thick of their story lines. It’s the season of comfort food and the couch. You can cover up those extra holiday pounds with your One World sweatshirt. The month of December is the month that you start telling yourself it’s okay to skip the gym because New Year’s Resolutions are right around the corner

It’s the time of the year you have to ask yourself one question. Do you have a commitment to your training?

I am not asking if you are a diehard CrossFitter committed to trying to qualify for the CrossFit Games. I’m just curious if you are committed to your training at One World. You may not hear this from other CrossFit gym owners, but if you aren’t committed to your training, have you ever thought that maybe CrossFit is not for you? It costs a lot less money to tell people you have a gym membership (that you never use) at 24 Hour Fitness, than it does to tell your friends how awesome the workouts (that you don’t do) are at CrossFit One World. You might be able to save yourself some bucks if you reconsider your commitment.

Before you send me an email telling me how you need to quit because blah blah blah blah..... Let’s take a quick look at exactly what commitment means.

First and foremost, I have always believed that if you can train three days a week, you can improve your fitness and thus improve your life. Time for more math.... three sessions a week. That is only THREE HOURS. A week has 168 hours in it. If you take out work, 40 hours for most, and sleep, 40-50 hours if you are lucky, that’s at least 78 hours left to train. Now take into consideration travel time from your work or your house, and most of you should (ideally) have time to make it in three days a week for THREE HOURS of training. 

Three damn hours to live a better life! Get a grip on that statement. How many hours a week do you watch television? So many people are ready to give up training (and living better), but how many of you are willing to cancel your cable or satellite TV? What about the internet? How many hours a week are you on Facebook? More than some of you think you are.

Life throws you curveballs. Some of us have jobs that demand more than the 40 hours that most people put in in a week. Some of us have families and family emergencies that can change up the daily routine in a heartbeat. But the fact of the matter is that almost everyone who starts training at One World has those challenges to deal with when they start. A few months (or for some of you a few weeks) later, and you realize that this thing we do called CrossFit is fucking hard. Excuses come easy when the shit hits the fan. 

I am one of those crazy ass CrossFitters committed to qualifying for the CrossFit Games. It means that I have to train at least 8 hours a week or more. I am also a full time police officer on the SWAT team. I’m a co-owner of One World with owner responsibilities to the gym. I coach six hours a week. I’ve posted on this blog every night for six years. In the last few weeks I have had SWAT callouts and have put in long hours at the occupy protests (on two occasions eventually leading to 24 hours without sleep). I have managed to miss only two training days in the last 18 training days, and in all, I only missed a small amount of my programmed training by doubling up on other days. I have had days when the last thing I want to do is go to the gym, but I force myself to go, and in the end, I always feel 100% better afterward. 

I don’t need a commitment like that from you, but if I can do it at 46 years old, I am quite positive that you can give me a simple commitment. I NEED THREE HOURS FROM YOU. Is that really asking for much????

Boys and girls, we aren’t done yet.......

After you commit to three hours, I need one more commitment from you. Three hours a week only works if you commit to the work. Give me THREE HARD HOURS. Stop being a bitch. Ask your trainer what the timeframe for your workout should be and shoot for that time with as close to “as prescribed” as possible. Go as heavy as you can and give it your all. When we want you to lift heavy, LIFT HEAVY! Don’t be afraid to fail. Embrace it. Push yourself for three hours. Does it suck to work that hard? HELL YES! Is it an uncomfortable place to be when you push yourself as hard as you possibly can? Well, those of you who are avoiding the gym already know the answer to that question. It’s why you are home watching Glee and not getting your FIT on at One World.......

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MAKE-UP DAY   11/29/2011

Make-up a workout you missed in the last cycle....OR....work on a skill....OR....rest!!!

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Comments

[Chris]

"Don't be a bitch." please please put this on a OW sweatshirt.

[Bianca]

F'ing LOVE this post!!! Thanks for always keeping it real Freddy!

[kingrat bozo]

Stop being a bitch? you're bitching at people and then telling them not to be a bitch. The ideal gym has 400 members and nobody showing up. Be grateful you got a lot of slobs in your gym.

[alex]

great post freddy One of your best ones, and to the haters if you have a better philosophy hit me up at xfitalex@gmail.com I am interested not only why the hate exists in a gym that allows so much personal freedom in training but also how you would handle this gym if it was entrusted in you?

[@sushi]

..................... AAAAHWWWWWESOME!!!!!!!

[J]

NICE POST.

i LOVE the motive.

[Radler]

Outstanding! And make that shirt!!

[CraigH]

Posting to our FB page. This is CrossFit. I love CFOW's commitment to clients: they want you in the gym, not just paying for a membership. 3 hours a week IN the gym - and, you're really only "training" for about hour!

[jluk]

Well said Freddy!

[Marty]

Hi from Canada,

Great call-to-arms, Freddy. Well said.

[Big Tony]

This POST is CHINGON!! CROSSFIT is very much like Kung-Fu.It takes a little bit of your Time but you get so Much benifit from it ,i always start these classes with lofty goals,like I'm going to do something special.And after a point of body deterioration,the goals get evaluated down to basically whwere i'm now-where the best i can hope for is to avoid trowing up on my shoes and i just f@#$%G loved that feelin. by the way Kung-Fu means TIME in chinese.It takes Time x WORK to get better in anything in life.There is no success without hardship. AND TO ALL THE "HATERS AND PUSSIES" OUT THERE IF "A" EQUALS SUCCESS THEN THE FORMULA IS : A= X+Y+Z X:is hard work Y:play and Z: KEEP YOUR MOUTH SHUT!!

[tracy]

I luv ya Man! Another great post. I'm 47 and have consistently worked out all my life. I hear all the bitching from people complaining they have no time. Doing CF in my garage has been a godsend. I have so much time and way more quality work outs. I'm more fit now than 10 yrs ago. The same people bitch about how they can't eat right either! I don't know how Freddy does all the stuff he does. Just thinking of what to post wears me out!

[Gerard McAuliffe]

Fantastic post Freddie! Very enjoyable read and very true!

[dan lau]

FREDDY...I have always been a fan but this post make me a ONEWORLD FAN for LIFE! So true, so badass and so needed to be written. CrossFit is doable by everyone, but not everyone can do crossfit if you get my meaning. It take a mentally right person to "get it" and to stick with it. and then a great coach, like yourself to keep them coming and learning and achieving. I'd rather have a gym of 20 super hard core smart fun loving committed badass athletes then 200 wishy washy blah blah people that may or may not come in here and there. CROSSFIT FOR LIFE!!!!! everyone else do what the hell you do and we will see you back when you start to get sick and weak and need to do "something" about it before a chronic diease is one step behind you about to eat your ass up! We will be here to help you help yourself.

ps buying a one world tshirt right now becuase of your post :)

[Rach]

Thanks for this. Honestly, I wouldn't have guessed you to be any older than 35. That's pretty awesome..Cheers!

[Lyn C]

We don't need no stinking cable to watch your soap opera. We got enough drama episodes in "AS ONEWORLD TURNS" lol

Every time I miss a couple of days or a week of CrossFit, I feel cranky or irritated & sleep-deprived. I love being in One World. It's my second home. I even bring my well-behave kids.

[Mickey Rooney]

Great post, Freddy. I love sin city!!!!

[jeee]

man pants on sale at WalMart. You can pick up some balls in the sporting department. Fake it till you make it biatches!

[Jahed]

Hahaha, nice post. With your post in mind, I think you might like this vid:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=EHuJsw5OXFI

[Harmeet]

Well said!!

I recently saw an advertisement on Runner's World or Lulu or something that said "Someone who is busier than you is running right out." That's true for any sport.

[Ray]

Ok thats it!! i'm drinking the kool aid :)

[Maria Dita]

I take my sombrero off to you sir!

http://bit.ly/tmX86w

[Ben B.]

....but GLEE is my favorite TV show.... GBO!!!

[Todd]

We are a brand new affiliate as of last week, and already I am telling some of our members "maybe it's just not for you.". Great article. I often break down the hours in a week like you did here. I'll definitely be sharing this article. Keep it up!

[funbobby]

"Excuses come easy when the shit hits the fan"
best quote ever! thanks coach if its ok with you, ill be ripping this off and posting on our blog tomorrow. amazing work!

hugs and high fives
funbobby

[BK]

This is the most cogent thing I've heard from an Occupy protester.

[Mike Havill]

Freddy,

I enjoyed your blog. I am,like you, in my late 40s and training for the 2012 Masters Crossfit Games. I would enjoy putting together a "community" of Masters Crossfitters who can share and discuss training programs and the like. My email is msh111963@cs.com if you have an interest to discuss this idea further.

Cheer,

Mike

[Mike H.]

By far one of the best comments posted. I to am a police officer in my forties. Been doing Crossfit for 2 years. Recently changed positions which has caused me to not have access to my local box. I didn't come up with excuses, I built my own in my garage. Still meet up with one of the trainers on off times and making great gains. I believe in it so much that my kids and wife do it and my daughter has made the junior Olympics in swimming at age 10. You can make excuses, or you can make progress---but you can't do BOTH!!!!