There Is No Hiding In the World of CrossFit

Written by Bryce Smith

My favorite thing about CrossFit is that you cannot hide. When you are absolutely awesome at something, everybody knows it and it really shows. The same holds true when you are not so awesome at something. That is where you see one’s true colors shine. Every competitive athlete has had a few interactions with that thing called adversity and you can tell a lot about a person in those moments.

We see athletes fall apart all the time but we have also seen athletes kick adversity’s door in, introduce themselves, and then eat all of adversity’s food out of their fridge. Robert Horry put it best, “Pressure (or in this case adversity) can bust a pipe, but pressure can also make a diamond.”

Work Your Weaknesses

Fatigue truly makes cowards of us all but it is how we react while fatigued that really counts. If we have a hard time with pull-ups, ring dips, muscle-ups, handstand push-ups, barbell work, or any other movement, are we taking the time to work on those weaknesses? I see many athletes come in to the gym each day avoiding many of the things they should be working on. And when I say working on them, I do not mean simply practicing a few reps when you are fresh; I mean practicing those movements when you are exhausted.

Let me toss a quick disclaimer out there that if you are learning a movement for the first time, we should practice in a controlled environment when you are NOT fatigued; but movements where you are proficient yet struggle when you are tired should be practiced under tired conditions.

Practice Exercise Specificity

It really is not rocket science. Do you know how you improve muscle-ups, pull-ups, and ring dips? Do muscle-ups, pull-ups, and ring dips! There are so many accessory things you can do to compliment those movements, but at the end of the day, you need more time to practice the motor recruitment pattern and more time to enhance your level of confidence. Every minute on the minute time domains work great for this. Another option is to grab a buddy and alternate every three to five repetitions for five minutes. Volume accumulation and time under tension does wonders for practice and confidence building.

In many cases, confidence is the main issue. That thing between your ears remembers a specific encounter when you failed and you are now programmed to fear failure. I recommend trampling your fear of failure and getting out there and practicing the movements that you suck at.

Control Your Emotions and Enhance Your Mindset

On the flip side, imagine being in a workout with one of those movements that you are not so good at is tossing you around a little bit. You are beginning to get frustrated. You are beginning to get annoyed at your coach for holding you accountable to intensity, irritated by others in the class for being too close to you, you feel like you need more chalk, you hate the song that is playing, this random injury magically appeared, etc. This is just a mini-list of the many things that go through an athlete’s head when they begin to reach their breaking point. Remain poised and calm at all costs.

I recently heard an incredible piece of wisdom that I want to share with you all, “Fear is normal. Panicky is death!” Never allow yourself to become panicky and always remain poised in the face of adversity.

There is no hiding in this sport. We all have weaknesses and they will be exposed. It’s what you do in the moments of exposure that matters. CrossFit will bring out your true colors, but at the end of the day, you will become better for it.