Whip It

My friend Anna used to tell her students, “Nobody’s good at everything, but everybody‘s good at something.”

And that’s pretty true at CrossFit. Most people excel in one area. They might be good at other things, but they rock it out on one particular lift or skill. You have people like that guy I watched blow through push-ups and box jumps like it was a stroll through the park. There’s my sister-wife who can dead-lift ridiculous weights. Colin climbs on and over stuff like a monkey. Phil can snatch his own body-weight. Erin will run circles around you. So will Paul. (Actually, Paul can do most things. But he’s kind of a freak of nature.)

There’s really nothing that I excel at at CrossFit. People don’t point to me as an example of how to do anything in the gym.

In the gym.

Did you get that part?

Because last Wednesday, a bunch of us CrossFitters went rollerskating. Turns out, I’m kind of a bad-ass in the rink. I had no idea I could skate like that!

Could it be my secret fantasy is not a pipe dream, after all?

7 thoughts on “Whip It”

  1. When I was little, I had to take extra-curricular karate. After a couple classes, the karate guy said, “You’re really good at school, right?” I said, “Uh, yeah, why?” He said, “I figured you had to be good at something.”

    I really hated that karate guy.

  2. Amy, you are far too gracious with your compliments. I am NOT good at many CrossFit skills, particularly lifting. In the short time I have known you, your skills have improved dramatically. Remember the first time you tried pull-ups? Box jumps? Double unders? What yours truly likes most about CrossFit is that EVERYONE is treated with kindness and respect. (Everyone, that is, except Michael Kelley. I hate Michael Kelley.) I’ve had the opportunity to lead the last two community workouts, and acceptance and respect are two of the first things that I emphasize. The next thing I discuss is scalability. Soooooo, you don’t have to excel at anything, but you can do well at everything. And you, my dear, do just that. Even you we may not need another one, you are my hero, and CFD is our Thunderdome.

  3. Dani, that karate guy sucked.

    Paul, totally agreed—it’s the progress, not the mastery that counts at CrossFit.

    Phil, how’s your front lever these days? BURN.

    Lindsay, you’ll begin receiving kickbacks when the nickels start rolling in.

    Margo & Deborah, I want to come be your caretaker, but your driveway would be kinda hard to skate on.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *