6 Things I have learned in 6 months at CrossFit

Hi guys! This post is taking about all the guts I have to share with you because it's hard. I don't talk about my "before" story a whole lot but in order to show you my transformation in it's entirety ,its time. And this is a HUGE deal to share these pics with you because I have shed many a tear over them and felt pretty awful about myself. With that in mind, I continue. I have never been the "skinny girl" and when I was around 10 years old kids would make fun of me which caused me to be a pretty shy and bashful person. So at that young age I began my journey to a healthier self with a lot of yo-yo dieting that simply didn't work for me. Then about 4 years ago, there was a lot going on in my personal life and unfortunately I made the poor decision to abandon my healthy ways and the results were not a good one. I stopped caring about what I ate or about exercising. Period. I felt I had to put other things on the front burner before myself and before my health. I stopped letting people take pictures of me so I don't have one of me from 4 years ago. But the first pic in my transformation photos is from 2 years ago at our wedding reception! AND this is AFTER I had lost a lot already! It took me 2 years from that photo to discover what healthy eating and weight lifting can do for your body. Not just physically, but emotionally too! I found myself again. Then I discovered CrossFit.The second picture is from the Open earlier this year...it took a lot for me to participate and attempt these new moves in front of so many people and then I saw this picture...and I was devastated.I immediately doubted myself again. I asked myself over and over ,"What's wrong with me?" "Why do I still look like that?" " Am I not working hard enough?" and then I took a very critical look at my life style. Yes, I went to CrossFit 3 days a week and ate pretty clean. But honestly, the answer to the last questions was "no" I am not doing everything I can do to feel happier with myself. That's when I discovered the missing piece to the puzzle: The Whole30. I did it and saw immediate results. I lost countless inches and pounds. I began to smile more. I wear smaller clothes now. I wear cute clothes to the office and am willing to take pictures! That is why I am sticking with the Paleo lifestyle. Because Paleo + CrossFit = results! And CrossFit has transformed me in more ways than I could have imagined and I wanted to share with you what I have learned in my short 6ish months ( almost 7!) here at CrossFit

 

1. “You’re braver than you believe, and stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think.”

This is one of the biggest things I have learned thus far. Walking in on my first day I was pretty over whelmed. I tried to put on a good poker face and show I wasn’t afraid…but I was. Then as the weeks passed, I hit PRs and my confidence grew. I became less afraid of that bar and even more than that I was less afraid of myself.

I tend to doubt and second guess myself on just about everything. And now, 6 months later I am definitely much surer of myself.

I throw that barbell above my head with less hesitation. I run without fear of being last, because I am not last anymore. I am definitely so much more than I ever though I could ever be.

 

2. Keep it UP!

Consistency is KEY if you want results. I started out struggling with 3 days a week here at Crossfit. After that 1 hour I was pooped. But as I continued to see progress at the gym and in my reflection I was more determined to try harder and do my VERY best. Not to prove to others what I can do, but myself. I am now a 4 times a week goer along with a few runs during the week/ push-up challenges! BRING IT!

 

3. Don’t be discouraged!

Not every day is a PR day. Face it not all of us are throwing 200# and dancing with unicorns with glitter pouring all around us. Some days are pretty gloomy at Crossfit. Some days I go in and I can’t even get close to lifting my last PR weight and the day before I was on my A game. I have learned to accept this. We can’t beat ourselves up about our performance…we are all human and have limits. I also have made significant progress both on and off the scale since starting this journey and I have days where the mirror is my friend and the next day I am like” seriously? All my hard work I do and I look like that??? Yuck!” I am still getting over this hurdle and hopefully will see my progress every time I look in the mirror!

 

4. Be smart!

I never developed much of an ego when starting Crossfit because I didn’t know what I was doing to begin with. I am always willing to listen to our coaches' advice and suggestions during a workout. I know they have my best interest at heart and I am not offended by it. I also know when I need to ask for help or if  I need to scale back. It’s not worth injuring myself to prove I can do something better than last time.

 

5. I am PROUD

I am PROUD of myself more! Even though I do beat myself up more than most, I am proud of the major differences I see not only in the mirror, but I weigh a lot less, I am 2 sizes down, and I get a lot more compliments than ever before! It has me smiling ear to ear some days!

 

More so I am proud of what my body can do and I now know what I am capable of: anything I put my mind to. 😉

6. NUTRITION!!!!

Most of you know nutrition is the heart of progress. Whether you are looking to gain or lose. I have done the Whole30 ( where you eliminate grains, dairy, legumes, alcohol, etc.) and focus on eating real clean food. It is where I saw such a major difference in myself and saw the fat start burning off of me rather quickly! I am now fully paleo with another round of Whole30 starting this past Sunday! WOOT!

Enough of my blabber…go GET SOME!