Battle of the Sexes in Review

Last weekend 12 of your fellow fiends went over to CrossFit Durango to compete in a competition called Battle of the Sexes. For 10 of the 12 participants this very well was their first CrossFit competition. Every one survived the day injury free and with smiles on their faces - that is a GOOD day. The event gave an opportunity to meet 88 other CrossFitters from around the 4 corners and thus broaden the scope of the community that all of us are apart of. We all got to witness some fast box jumps, impressive ground to overhead performances, and slick foot work in the relay race. 

Competition is comfortable for me but what did your fellow friends and athletes have to say?

• "CrossFit Durango did a great job with this event....The judges that we had were fair and had lots of encouragement. All the events went smoothly and we gave it our best!"
• "This was my 1st CF comp. I was very nervous before first round, but once it was over you realize no matter how u rate compared next to others it really doesn't matter. No one is judging you. It's like a marathon: just going out & doing it matters more than how fast/hard u perform."
• "Participating on this event was good for me on few different levels.
  1. It was inspiring to see the varying levels of athleticism in the participants.
  2. I realized that if I really want to compete then I have to take my fitness and the work that goes into it much more seriously.
  3. Comparitevely, I am not nearly as strong as I think I am. This realization was good to put the ego in check and prompt some introspection into my goals and motivations."
• "Ever comp is a new experience...never easy but always worth it...something always to take from it... I love our group at CFP we always come together... So I like when we share that with other boxes. I also make new friends or acquaintance... I think we always conduct ourselves in a professional and prepared group (which reflects on you) and ppl and event planners like that. And again it's about having fun!"

As a Coach there are a few take aways that I would like to stress about competition as well - there is a skill to competing. It is a trained and learned behavior in knowing when to warm up, cool down, how to stay primed but not exhausted, what to eat and when to eat, how to strategize an unknown event, when to go hard, how to bend the rules of proper movement for fast movement. CrossFit as a sport and competitive activity is much different that CrossFit as a fitness regiment. If you take on CrossFit as a sport then you will be sore much more. You will foam roll, lacrosse ball, stretch, mobilize, floss, soak, and see professional help in the form of chiropractors and massage therapists on a weekly to monthly basis. You will have to become an expert on YOU, your gaze will be highly tuned into how you are moving. You will become highly coachable and your ego will have to leave you. Competing and the skills of a competitor are not for everyone and that is fine but it is my belief that everyone should experience it once. You need to see what is possible and what the standard is. You need to get out of your "pond" and realize you aren't the fittest person to grace your postal code. Competition is like drinking: if you do it alone in your house all the time it can be depressing. Go out drinking to a bar and you might just have more fun.