CrossFit Blackbrook isn’t the only way to get healthy, fit and strong - although for most people it is probably the best way...
People love to train what they are good at. I’m pretty confident that most gym goers would much prefer to go to the gym for a winning experience rather than be harshly exposed to their weaknesses and true capabilities...
Here’s the thing though: progress isn’t some fake conversation about how good you are at everything you currently do... It’s the full package... It’s your strengths and your weaknesses, with the emphasis being placed on your weaknesses...
The reason for this piece isn’t because I think that everyone needs to train at Blackbrook - the reason is because there seems to be a growing trend where people hide from their weaknesses rather than dealing with that s***, working hard, moving on, and becoming the person they want to be.
I train gymnastics at Brighton & Hove - there are new faces pretty much every week, but few show up again... People don’t come back because they hate feeling bad at gymnastics - inflexible, slow and graceless - but the reality is to improve your gymnastics you need to train gymnastics, then the flexibility, power and grace will come… Instead though, they will find a way to train that will conveniently keep these glaring issues hidden from their view… These people that wanted to be good at gymnastics never will be, meaning they never will be the person they wanted to be purely because they couldn’t suck it up for a couple of months.
Many people feel they are missing something or need to try something new or “switch it up”, but they aren’t “switching up” their training to get the strength, flexibility, speed, power, endurance, stamina, balance, accuracy, coordination, and agility that they need... They most often try something else, like zumba, bootcamp, hiking, etc, because it’s easier and it feels like progress without having to be brutally honest about their weaknesses.
If you have a hip issue, a knee injury or a “shoulder thing,” quit with the attitude that you aren’t meant to move and be capable and that you are somehow exempt. That’s just silly. All it means is that you, just like everyone else, have a weakness to address. Address it and move on. It’s your shoulder, it’s not going anywhere, address it now and move on.
There are no exceptions to the number one rule of: deal with your s***, work hard, move on, and become the person you want to be.