COMMUNITY

I can’t believe I used to do this…

What separates CrossFit from the hundreds of other fitness trends that have come and gone? It is not the unbelievable results you will see by following its program. It is not the amazing things you will do that you never knew were possible. Without a doubt, it is the CrossFit community that makes this worldwide fitness program different from any other.

I have exercised in some form or fashion since gaining my “freshman fifty” in college. I have done aerobics, step aerobics, spin, butts-and-guts, kickboxing. Heck, I even did Reebok slide classes (remember how lame that was?). I have spent countless hours in a gym running on a treadmill, reading a book on an elliptical, and doing strength training on nautilus equipment or with 5-pound dumbbells. The funny thing is that in all those years, I never met anyone new at the gym. I never spoke to anyone unless I already knew them outside the gym. I never high-fived someone after a step class. I walked into the gym, eyes averted so as to not make eye contact with anyone, did my thing, and left.

When CrossFit was first brought to my attention, and I learned that it was done in a group class setting, I didn’t think I would enjoy working out with others. I wanted to put my headphones on (they weren’t called ear buds yet), tune out, and be left alone. No one could have been more surprised than I by how much fun the group class format ended up being.

CrossFit Family

These people become your family. They see you at your most vulnerable- pushing yourself harder than you ever have, making ugly workout faces, crying out as you go for one more rep, sweat pouring, chest heaving, and red-faced. They yell at you to keep going. They encourage you to challenge yourself. And they are always there at the end to tell you that you did great. You end up becoming friends with people that most likely would have never made it into your inner circle. Young, old, rich, poor, black, white, male, female, fit, out-of-shape. It doesn’t matter. Greg Glassman, the founder of CrossFit, put it best: “Nothing builds a team like common discomfort.”

This past weekend, ALL IN CrossFit celebrated its Grand Opening. What a testament to the power of the CrossFit community! Chris and I had out-of-town friends show up that we have met through local CrossFit competitions. Athletes from the three other CrossFit gyms in our area showed up to support us. And we were especially touched by the number of friends who travelled from our old gym to wish us well. It meant so much to us to have everyone there, and we hope it showed our members and those who were just there to check it out that CrossFit is about so much more than just getting in shape. It is about community and human interaction, something lacking in the impersonal technological world we live in today.

Getting through it with help from her friends.

I have met so many people from all over through CrossFit who have made my life so much richer. We may not always appear on the outside to have much in common. But CrossFitters, in general, are a group of people who want to be better. When you have a group of people striving for that, you will find yourself surrounded by good people. I shudder to think how blah my life would be if I had never stepped foot into my old CrossFit gym.

If you are tired of just being another member at your local gym, give CrossFit a try. If the person at the front desk doesn’t know your name, it might be time for a change. Everyone is welcomed in a CrossFit gym. Give it a try, and I promise you will find yourself working out next to your soon-to-be best friends.