Last night, I had a Bar Muscle Up call (the course I’m taking through Ben Dziwulski at http://www.wodprep.com) and this saying came to mind.

Everything in CrossFit (and Olympic lifting for that matter) is practice.  EVERYTHING.

It took me a year and a half to finally have confidence in my double unders ie. not messing them up all the time.  I practiced for 6 months every day in the beginning.

Bar muscle ups.  I finally got them.  They are ugly and sloppy.  But now every time I jump up I get one.  I’ve practiced this on and off for 9 months.  Now, I’m focusing on perfecting my form through this class.

Snatches.  I used to get so frustrated cause I could never break past 85 lbs.  But I never gave up.  Never.  I’m up to 105 and 95 is now fairly easy for me.  Practice.

Running.  For some reason, most CrossFitters dread this move.  Not me.  It’s one of my favorites.  But I’ve had to train it.  Hard.

Rowing.  It’s one of my least favorite moves, but I’m improved.  Cause I keep at it.

Same with rope climbs, pull ups, toes to bar, chest to bar, cleans, deadlifts, squats, push ups, etc.  It’s all practice and time and training.

Which is what I’ve learned this year through my strength book.

Quick tip:  QUIT WORKING OUT.

If you’re mindlessly showing up to your box and doing whatever they tell you, you need to stop.  Unless that’s all you want–a workout.

You’ll improve.  To a point.  But if you want to excel, you have to train.

That means finding a strength program with specific goals in mind.  Training all the moves.  Doing it every week.  Along with the programming.  I work out at home before I go the box.  I work out when I don’t go to the box.  I follow my program.  Period.

Sure, life happens (like my arm).  But you keep moving.  Keep training.  Keep progressing towards your goals.

Cause guess what?  The Games are over.  Now it’s serious training time for the Open.

And I don’t know about you, but I want to kill it this year.  I did good last year.  But I want to kill it.  I’ll be twice as strong.  Twice as fast.  Twice as prepared.  I’m getting older.  I want to hit CrossFit hard while I still can.

Nothing in life worth doing is easy.  And CrossFit ranks right up there.  I can’t tell you the number of people who come and go out of my box.  It’s definitely someone special who never gives up.  Who comes despite the soreness and the tiredness and when they are burnt out.

And the rewards?  Incalculable.