I arrive at the gym at noon with my iPod in hand, green earbuds wrapped around my armband in neat circles and I kind of cringe when I admit to Coach Lu that my back - the left side, by my ribs - is feeling pretty effed. I don't understand it, I can't explain it, but I'm kind of addicted to these intense, almost spastic workouts that have me gasping for air and whinging with full-fledged exhaustion at the end of ten minutes or so. And it makes me a bit sad to potentially have to sit one out.
I scan the white board to see if the Crossfit Workout of the Day might be something I can do without tweaking my back (definitely not situps, certainly not pullups), but the blue scrawl indicates that I am out of luck -- the workout today is "Fran", a killer combo of thrusters and pull-ups that I know would send shocks of pain up my back (I think I popped a rib muscle earlier in the week, probably by overdoing things, which is very par for my course.)
I am prepared to velcro my armband at the top of my arm and do a 10K run to my new spring mix and god, that actually sounds beautiful. The air smells like grass and the sun is slanting over the inlet and the daffodils are yellow and beckoning spring and since when, exactly, did I come to think of a 10K run as something easy and relaxing?
Coach Lu offers to modify the workout for me, though, and I do a slightly altered warmup, an easy technique refresher, and then a "Half Kelly" - a 200m run, 15 box jumps, and 15 wall balls...times 5. For time.
I pair up with Mo, a twenty-something blonde with a ponytail, a readyt smile, and a sore bicep that is her own pull up inhibitor. We start off together, running down the street, out of the parking lot to the spray=on 200 meter marker down the sidewalk. Then we start on the box jumps, which sound a whole lot less benign than the reality. My arms flail and I leap, and then crash down again and gasp, breathless with effort. We do 15 of those. Then we start hucking an 8 pound medicine ball high in the air up against the sign on the gym buiding. I start ahead of her on round 2, then she overtakes me on round 3 when I stop to guzzle water and try to get a handle on my rattly breathing. I'm naturally competitive, and I want to catch her.
I know it's a suburban gym and that none of this counts for Points to Heaven or even to an improved body but it's Gut Points, dammit, and I want them. Gut points are the most important currency in life, aren't they?
The entire workout takes us less than 14 minutes, and in the end she pulls ahead of me, finishing off when I still have 8 beshitted wall balls to complete. I am gasping and my muscles are seething when I finish the last wall ball and stagger inside to join everyone else. That was intense and I am pissed off at myself for not going a bit harder that last set, I slacked a little. But even so: this, like every Crossfit workout, was one of the most intense and rewarding workouts I've had in years.
I am more stoked on this kind of intense, full-out, short Crossfit workout than I've ever been before. I'll keep running, for sure, that's something I've been doing since I was a kid, but I see no need to ever step back into a gym. What I love about Crossfit:
1) The everyday variance. You have no idea what workout you're going to do before you get to a Crossfit gym. You just know it's going to be gruelling as all hell. And that you will feel like a million bucks when you're done.
2) The competitive edge. There's a white board that tracks record times at the gym for dozens of the most common workouts. It serves as inspiration to be quicker
3) The electric, satisfying feeling of giving something your total, your all. It's easy to waddle through life, half assing presentations and putting forth 3/4 effort: I know, because I've done it very often myself. There's very little left in life that we do at full tilt. A Crossfit workout is pure, unbridled, gutsy effort and damnit, it feels really good.
4) Finding your forte. The people at our Crossfit gym vary in age from early twenties to mid sixties. There is a lady in her forties who can lift more weight than I have ever seen a female do. Her arms blow me away. There are two guys in their sixties that talk a lot about "old man strength" They are my Dad's age and their legs are sinewy, they can do multiple pullups and make it look effortless. There are twenty somethings of all kinds of body types, all with different strengths. Power, exertion, and improvement are exalted way more than a 6 pack (though if you eat the way they suggest and do Crossfit workouts 5 days a week - that 6 pack will likely come on its own.)
5) Community spirit. The friendly vibe of this gym is one of the largest attractions for me. Everyone is outgoing - introductions are made at every class there's someone new - it feels like a community. And that's what so many gyms are lacking. This feels like a phys ed class on speed, with all your buddies cheering you on, and meaning it.
Naysayers argue that it's too intense, the gym is too expensive, that all these exercises can be done in one's garage for free. All of these points are valid. Still, though, I am enjoying the hell out of Crossfit. I think it's something Corey and I will be doing for many years to come. Hopefully by the time I'm 60, I'll be doing as many pullups as the Old Guy at my gym.
PS - When you are bored and feeling uninspired, have a look here. These ladies kick some serious ass and I would like to tape them all to my refridgerator.
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