That's why I was excited, and surprisingly nervous, about an event at Crossfit Anaheim, called "Beat Your Best." The event challenged women to try to beat their best time for a workout called "Helen." This particular workout involves: a 400 meter run (1/4 of a mile); 21 kettlebell swings (35 lbs for females); and 12 pull-ups, all repeated for a total of 3 rounds.
My friend Michele and I signed up for the event together, and arrived a little early just in case, since Anaheim is about an hour and a half away. It surprised me that I had a hard time falling asleep the night before. I was really excited to try to beat my old time, which was 17:11 back in October 2010.
But when we arrived, my heart raced and my stomach showed all the classic signs of nervousness. I had to remind myself that I was there to have fun and to beat my own time. It was not, and has never been about, winning for me. However, self-defeating thoughts ran through my mind: "What if I finish last?" and "What if I don't beat my own time?" Every time I walked into the Crossfit Anaheim gym, these nervous thoughts were there, so I spent as much time in the sun outdoors, distracting myself with the vendors, and getting some amusement at how many ladies had "big hair" at this event. I guess it's the LA influence, but it was a bit of a culture shock to see women dressed like big-haired divas at a Crossfit competition.
The event finally started, and I was in Heat 1, which consisted of the slowest times. I felt better that Michele was also in Heat 1, because who wants to be in the slow heat by themselves?!! However, we were the only people representing from Crossfit Mission Gorge, so being in the same heat meant we couldn't cheer each other on or take pictures and videos for each other.
Round 1- I started at a steady pace. I wasn't the slowest runner, but definitely not the fastest. Some women had to stop, and it felt good that I knew I could keep going. I did the kettle-bell swings unbroken, which I knew I could do. The pull-ups did not go as well. At our gym, on our bars, I can easily string together 5-6 pull-ups using the blue resistance band. At this gym, the bars were rough on my hands (not taped) and even with chalk, I could not keep my grip. I strung together 2-3 pull-ups at a time. I looked at the clock, finished the round in 5 minutes, and was excited at the possibility of getting a 15 minute time.
However, Round 1's pace did not continue into Round 2 and 3, as far as running goes. During my 2nd run, I was strategizing. "Should I sprint in on Round 3? At what point do I start the sprint, I would have to decide then." Ultimately, I decided to keep my pace steady because when I sprint, I also need recovery time before starting the next task. It probably would not be worth the few seconds saved. I heard Coach Ian's voice, saying "pace yourself" and decided to stick with what I knew to be the best course of action. I was also encouraged, because even though I was one of the last to leave the gym, I caught up to the others running and was not far behind Michele.
Overall, I shaved 1:03 off my original Helen time, and my best time is now: 16:08. I was happy to have beaten my old time. I was not as happy with my performance on the pull-ups, because I know in the right conditions I can string many more together.
After Michele and I recovered, we watched the rest of the competition. It was disheartening to see so many women not getting their chin even close to above the bar. There were women who could not do pull-ups, and they were going "RXd." I could get my chin as high as they were, and would never consider it a pull-up. It was even more disappointing because I knew if these women showed up here performing like this, then their coaches have led them to believe they are doing pull-ups and it's okay to do them this way. I was disappointed in the "competition" factor of this event, because anyone could beat their time by several minutes doing these silly-looking pull-ups.
But I reminded myself of why I was there. I was there to beat my best. My best is chin over bar on a pull-up. My best is showing full range of motion in every movement. And on that day, my best, even at an unideal location, meant that I was over a minute faster.
Will I attend the next event? I'm not sure. Those pull-up bars hurt my hands. Many, if not most, women did not perform their pull-ups correctly. The next event is Fran. I can just imagine how many women will not be showing the proper range of motion on a "thruster." But then I remember why I was there. Why I show up every day to Crossfit. It wasn't about the competition with others. It's about beating my best. And I'd love to try. So, if we can get a large group of women together to represent from our gym, I'm willing to go. However, this brings up another thought- if I don't think this event is being run the right way . . .what's holding us back from sponsoring and hosting our own "Beat Your Best" series, open to both men and women?
No comments:
Post a Comment