I’m Intimidated!
You are not the only one. It can be intimidating coming into the gym for the first time. It can be intimidating for the first month. Again, you are not the only one.
Why do I say this, and why am I writing this on the front page of my website? I sure don’t want to scare anyone off, so what gives?
Taking that first step is the hardest thing, but you should understand, that the things you see people achieving inside these four walls were once you. Intimidated. But, for whatever reason, they took on that fear, and walked in the door to give CrossFit a try.
There is also the notion that you have to be a certain fitness level to do this. That is the furthest from the truth! Even if you were so sore that you couldn’t move after your first workout. You were not alone. You won’t feel that way after every workout, and you probably would be able to do that same workout again without same level of soreness.
I make a promise to anyone starting out. No one here will make you feel inferior for either finishing last, or not being able to do a certain exercise. If someone does, that person will be asked to leave. That is not what we are about. I take pride in the strong character of people that train here. We all have taken the time to learn these movements. We all have struggled with it at one time or another. So don’t be afraid.
I am hoping that some of the crew can comment on what is like for them when they started. It’s always inspiring to hear. Whether it was the fear of doing a box jump, the fear of lifting weights, or just the fear of walking in the door.
I would love to see the comments section fill up with anything you can share on this topic.
I look forward for your stories,
Jordan
Tags: Community, courage, fear, first time, intimidated, pride, strong character
July 23, 2009 1:09 pm 11 Comments
Other Links to this Post
RSS feed for comments on this post. TrackBack URI
Subscribe
By Jay, July 23, 2009 @ 4:00 pm
Like the other day when we were doing box jumps to see how high we could get. That was scary! There were a couple I thought for sure I wasn’t going to make it and it took a lot to go for it anyway. Someone once told me most people live their lives where having fear equals DON’T ACT. She suggested that taking on having fear equals ACT ANYWAY, is a powerful place to be in. Whenever I get scared and feel like running away from a workout or exercise I think of those words, and some of my best results and hardest pushes have come from having fear and acting anyway. It also helps when the environment you train in is incredibly supportive. While having fear and acting anyway has opened a whole new world of possiblity, having great trainers and great peers cheering me on everyday, every workout, has pushed me beyond what i ever thought I was capable of. Bottom line: have a fear of CrossFit? ACT ANYWAY! The people you have to support you and the surprising results you get from not letting fear run your life is inspiring and exciting.
By Jen, July 23, 2009 @ 11:34 pm
I think there are a lot of valid points in this post and I’m glad you brought this up Jordan. Crossfit is tough… We wouldn’t do it if it was easy. But it is making me tougher everyday.
I came to the gym a relatively shy person with a lot of fears (and excuses.) It took me months to get a box jump for fear of falling on my face. There were many days when quitting seemed easier than finishing 150 wallballs for time. Jordan is not the only one who wouldn’t let me give up, it’s all the other people there too.
The truth is, CF is more of a mental challenge than physical somedays, and those are the workouts where you learn that you can push harder, faster, whatever you need to do. Read the blogs from other CF’ers that explain why they do it and what they get out of it. It’s what keeps us coming back…
I still have never finished a workout first in the class. I was on the leader board for all of 2 hours. But I know that I will be up there one day… And the pursuit of that felling is why I do it.
By jordan, July 24, 2009 @ 1:16 am
Thanks Jen and Jay. I think that everyone of us has a story they can share. Hopefully they do. Yes, the truth is that most of what stands in the way of what we want is not physical, it’s usually mental.
Keep the comments coming! And Jen, that workout will come where you will finish first, and your name will stay up there for longer then 2 hours, just keep doing what you’re doing!
By Molly, July 24, 2009 @ 3:05 am
Im the type of person who really draws on the energy of the people around me, it fuels me both professionally, in my personal life and in my relationships. Same applies with my time spent out on the hill and in the gym… in running with the thread here i just have to say that i’ve never been more motivated and inspired than @ Crossfit. Granted i know that i need to come in more often, but when i do make it in the door there are times when i think that there is no way that i am going to be able to finish a workout but its the people cheering me on, and the energy that surrounds that gym that get me thru the finish…it starts to feel like a family after awhile.
…did i mention that working out is way more fun @ crossfit?
By Lori, July 25, 2009 @ 12:08 am
Yes I remember one of my first crossfit wod’s. I thought it was really tough. And jordan and heather probably remember very well that I fell over backwards and landed on my ass learning backsquats! That was embarrassing! I have to say that I still get anxious certain days knowing what the wod’s are or could be (thanks to my group of spy’s). The anxious feeling is something I am not sure entirely goes away, at least not for me anyway. I have it right now as I have had to miss a week being out of town and super busy at work. Crossfit keeps me coming back for more, the community and support has helped me stick with a training program longer than any other I have tried. You all make the hard work fun and I am inspired by everyone every day! THANK-YOU!
By Melanie, July 25, 2009 @ 11:00 am
I was really intimidated to begin Crossfit. I will confess, I was, as Jordan calls it, a bit of a “lurker” on the website. I pestered every “Crossfitter” I knew with questions, trying to understand what happened there. I am pretty sure my first question to Jordan was something along the lines of “am I going to die?” It took me about 2 months to convince myself to walk in the door and when I finally did, I remember asking myself “Why didn’t I come sooner?” It is amazing to see how much you improve and when you get your first pull-up (only took 4 months!) or beat your previous record, the feeling is amazing. And just as inspiring is watching your fellow athletes achieve their results. And it is these things that make you come back for more! There are still many things that I find intimidating and things that I dread, and walking through that door not knowing what you are going to face that day can be scary, but you learn to know you can get through them. And not only do you get a kick ass workout but you meet so many amazing people along the way!
By Jordan, July 25, 2009 @ 12:29 pm
I love hearing it! It’s a reminder just how far so many of you have come, and how every day you keep on amazing me!
Jordan
By Mike Peiman, July 26, 2009 @ 12:20 am
This sh*t will change your life, no kidding. And we all want to see you here. This style of training creates a real sense of community - because everyone is working hard and seeing results. We all (”we” who have been doing this awhile) know your pain, and know how much benefit there is from working this hard. This stuff will not only get you in the best shape of your life, it builds character, mental toughness and willpower. There’s some very interesting research as well on lasting happiness, having to do with cortisol and dopamine… I won’t get into details, but we get lasting happiness only through achieving goals which require challenge. It’s like Dad said, challenge builds character. And in this case, can turn geeks like me into athletes.
Anyways, that’s all very general stuff, but really think about it. This is about pushing your personal limits in a very supportive environment. It’s literally empowering. I am in the best shape of my life as a direct result of this training. So go for it already! We’re here to share your pain and cheer you on!
By Matt, July 26, 2009 @ 12:32 pm
When I talk to my girlfriend about crossfit her first question is usually “did the girls beat you again today?”
There are tough kids at our gym, it’s impressive, inspiring and could be intimidating. When I first came to the gym, I had expectations of performing well. I never expected it to be easy but I thought I could get through everything. For the first month I suffered, and I still suffer. Some days are worse than others, but everytime I’m grinding out the last rounds I hear a chorus of encouragement from everybody and I hear the same voices on days when I finish first.
By jordan, July 26, 2009 @ 11:52 pm
To sum it up. We all have different reasons to be intimidated. Some very different then others. But, the one common thread here is, fear didn’t stop them from coming in, and they are all so much better off for it.
Is everyone ready for a hot week in whistler?
By Budgie, July 27, 2009 @ 2:19 pm
Such a hot topic I need to toss in my two cents.
I read a tiny bit about crossfit about a year before I stumbled across the gym. I think I was picking up a bottle of Rye next door ;). I had checked out a bunch of the workouts online and was indeed intimidated! Man!! searching crossfit on youtube and you sort of get the impression that it’s a pull up cult. Pull up this, pull up that.. kip pullup, deadhang pullup, butterfly pullup.. videos of folks banging off 20 pullups and stepping up to bar and then back again. That was a concern as I was pretty aware that I was going to max out at 5 deadhang pullups.
I got a chance to meet Jordan at Fanatykco and kinda quizzed him a bit about how it all went down.
I was asking specifically about pullups and I’m pretty sure that Jordan assured me that pullups weren’t the cornerstone of crossfit, however if I didn’t feel like I could bang off a bunch maybe it was time to come down and train. Made sense.
After being at the gym for a bit now, I realize that I’ll be working on pullups as well as every movement until the end of time. Where you are in the progression of a movement relative to someone else’s is completely irrelevant as long as the effort is being made to be forward moving.
I think as we get older we all have a tendency to get stuck into the same movements that we think came to us naturally, forgetting that it took alot of work to master all of the things that we excel at. Progression at Crossfit has shed light on the “old dog new tricks” cliche and has steered me out of constantly hanging out in my comfort zone simply snowboarding and biking, landing familliar drops and tricks.
I can honestly declare that nothing is more mentally rewarding than shirking repetition, setting new goals and seeing results.
For the record, I can do a few pull ups now :).. hey and side note- Still great that you can workout and pick up a bottle of Rye in the same trip! location location location