Written by Dave Pinkerton, RCFP
Community. One of the most common words associated with CrossFit. Being able to walk into a box and to be accepted whole-heartedly whether it’s your first time, a seasoned veteran, or just visiting another box.
“The CrossFit culture is infused with the expectation that you will sweat together and cheer each other on with mutual support. It doesn’t matter if you’re meeting for the first time or if you’ve been friends for years; you may expend almost as much energy encouraging each other, as you will be exercising. In addition to being one of those unspoken, seamlessly transmitted CrossFit traditions, this practice of competition and support may well be embedded in our psyche.” Dr. Allison Wenglin Belger, The Power of Community
We see this time and time again each and every year during the CrossFit open with people reaching new heights and doing things they thought were unattainable. Is it because it’s the “open”? Is it because your friends and workout partners are there cheering you through every rep? Is it that little competitive edge you have deep down inside? Is it a combination of everything? One thing for sure is that you have the support of the members and they will be the first one to tell you that you crushed it. Friendships are born within the walls of FirePower where they would have never been made before.
Many of us have engrained CrossFit into our schedules for one reason or another. And for a lot of us that one-hour class each day is the most important hour of the day. We all know what the workout of the day is as it’s posted online. We could easily go to another “globo gym” or our basements or garage and get the workout in but we don’t. We choose to come into the box, a class environment and hit the workout with friends and family where we know we will work our hardest.
On a personal note, I originally began to incorporate some CrossFit training into my standard routines at the “globo gym” and more times than not, people would stare and question why I was moving through movements quickly and what exactly some of those movements were. It was fun to change things up but there was still no drive or desire to work any hard then I had to.
It was the moment I began working out with like-minded people who were all chasing the same goals that I realized I found what I was looking for. Knowing that the person next to you is going through the same thing and giving there all, immediately triggers you to go a little harder and push yourself farther than you thought you could. Becoming comfortable with the uncomfortable. Relying on others just as much as they rely on you. Being held accountable everyday and giving it your all.
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The CrossFit Games Canada East Regional goes this weekend, May 16-18 and the CrossFit Community will be evident. Thousands of people from across Eastern Canada will come to cheer on their friends and workout partners as well as their favorite CrossFitters from the region. The Athletes that we are sending to Regionals need the support of the FirePower community more than ever. They need to hear their family encouraging them through every rep the same way that they do for us day in and day out. We all know the time and sacrifices that these athletes have put in, in order to improve their fitness and compete at this level.
Along with these top tier athletes a lot of us are familiar with the roots and culture of CrossFit. How we stick together until everybody is finished the work. Lets keep that a tradition within the walls of Reebok CrossFit Firepower so when a new member goes through their first class they feel the same way we did when we first started. The community is what makes this place and sport so great.
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Reference: The Power of Community, written by Dr. Allison Wenglin Belger
