Crossfit experience number one

[clevermanka]

We survived our Intro to Crossfit class!

At one point, I thought I was going to throw up (they had us run for godssake--I don't even run when chased), and after that I just walked in a little circle before I felt like I could pick up my kettleball and proceed to the next movement. And you know what? Nobody sneered, nobody yelled at me with some misguided form of aggressive encouragement. One woman came over to make sure I was okay. I laughed and said "I'm just not throwing up here." She smiled and said "That's cool. Start up again as soon as you're ready."

I did have one freakout/meltdown when they had us do box jumps. Those...didn't go so well. I am the girl who cannot make herself walk down stairs without looking at her feet, hates being carried, who cannot ride a bike or roller skates, who didn't even crawl until way late and was nearly two before she walked on her own. I do not like not having ground under me. Not at all.

mckitterick stood in front of me so I could sort of hold his hands as I made my first try. I barely managed two jumps before my brain said "that's enough." Once mckitterick left to do his own (stellar!) box jumps, I stood in front of my box and looked at it and could not get my feet to leave the floor. Two of the trainers came over to me and gave me (good, patient, friendly) encouragement, but no go. I don't think anything short of a loaded gun to my head could have made me jump on that box. The trainers must've seen that something was very wrong and this wasn't just a matter of my legs not being strong enough. I think I'd gone pale and I know my hands were shaking like crazy. The lead trainer guy working with us said "That's fine. No problem. Just do step-ups on the box." Step-ups were great. Step-ups were fantastic. I did my step-ups with a smile.

Our WOD (Workout Of the Day):
Run I don't know how far--100 yards? with a medicine ball
15 Kettleball Swings
15 Box Jumps (or Step-Ups if you are Miss Red)
15 Sit Ups
12 Kettleball Swings
12 Box Jumps
12 Sit Ups
9 Kettleball Swings
9 Box Jumps
9 Sit Ups
Repeat run with medicine ball

I finished with a time of 17:29. I could've gotten it closer to 17:00, but the woman who was behind me had gotten a heavier medicine ball on the last run and she was struggling as she ran toward me on my way back. I stopped and made her switch balls with me--nearly doubling the weight I was carrying the last half of the second run. I didn't care if I came in last (although I didn't, quite--she and I tied for last), and she looked like she was just suffering, poor thing.

When we finished up with everything, I realized I'd had fun (well, except for the running parts). I'd had more fun doing this than any other exercise program or personal trainer sessions. Everybody's just so nice. Not sickeningly nice, but friendly and pleasant and approachable. And there's certainly no opportunity to get bored.

At dinner afterward, mckitterick wondered if the people who run the place thought we newbies were a bunch of wusses. I don't think so. I think they don't judge at all. They're just happy we were there and gave it our best shot. After my experience with Trainer Chris D and his frequent disparaging remarks about other training styles (and other trainers), I like this non-critical approach to fitness training.

I can do this thing.

Thank you so much to mckitterick for going with me (and paying my start-up fee). You are my rock star.

Comments

[redheadfae.livejournal.com]

I'm so glad for you! How cool it is that there's a sort of camaraderie even in the first go!

How heavy are kettleballs? (ooh, and would you consider putting a crossfit tag on this?)

[clevermanka.livejournal.com]

There's an assortment of kettleballs. I don't remember how heavy was the one I was using. Eight pounds, maybe? Ten? Unsure.

I don't know yet that I want a separate crossfit tag. If I do, though, I'll go back and re-tag old entries.

[redheadfae.livejournal.com]

Oh, I see. Like bowling balls with a handle :)

That's cool, I'll tag it in memories for myself, in case I get brave/flush

[saffronhare.livejournal.com]

I think it's awesome the way everyone assumed you'd Do as opposed to Not-Do. It was simply a matter of calibration. Sounds like a really challenging and empowering kind of environment. Yay!

[clevermanka.livejournal.com]

That's a perfect way to describe it. Yes, it was never matter of "If," just "When."

I think you'd love it.

[saffronhare.livejournal.com]

Ha. Like your trainer asked, "In which way would you prefer to be awesome?" The awesomeness was never in question, because DUH. AWESOME. :)

[mckitterick.livejournal.com]

Yes, exactly! No one was a dick, and they didn't seem to judge. During the cooldown and stretching afterward, the intern working with me was absolutely awesome and helpful.

[carmy-w.livejournal.com]

I absolutely HATE first day classes like that!

But it feels so good to go back the second time!

Hey, does mckitterick ever wear ties? These are pricey, but are handmade in America of silk, look great, and the company has a really wierd sense of humor (check the FAQ page, and they have a tag on the back that says Untie for Sex)! When I saw your post about finding him vests the other day, I nearly sent you the link then.


http://www.leeallison.com/

[clevermanka.livejournal.com]

Those ties are gorgeous. McKitterick and I both wear ties fairly regularly. In fact, I've been trying to find some actual yes-you-have-to-tie-them-yourself bow ties (for me--bow ties on McKitterick, doesn't really do it for me). I can't afford these right now, but I'll definitely save the link for later!

[renniemom.livejournal.com]

Pastor David LeRoy, Feather in your Cap on fb, one of our Great Bend renfriends, makes real bow ties and does a GREAT job at a reasonable price! pastordave at cox dot net He wears one almost every day :-)

[clevermanka.livejournal.com]

AWESOME. Thank you!

[stuology.livejournal.com]

And Cyberoptix ties! I really like those. I need to get another one for Jay since he outgrew his itty-bitty one.

http://cyberoptix.com/

[stuology.livejournal.com]

Apollo cockpit tie: http://cyberoptix.com/apollo.php

[mckitterick.livejournal.com]

OMG, that and the Project Mercury: WANT. Also laser kitty.

[clevermanka.livejournal.com]

*head explodes from tie lust*

[stuology.livejournal.com]

The crossfit group sounds great! It is tempting me enough to look at their schedule to see if I can fit it into mine.

[clevermanka.livejournal.com]

That's awesome! If you go, I'm very interested to hear about your experience.

[mckitterick.livejournal.com]

This is the first time I've actually made time to go to a gym IN MY LIFE. I suspect I'll do most of this on my own eventually, but it's great getting the 1-on-1 training at first.

[shrijani.livejournal.com]

Wow. That sounds really great. Really hard, but really great. Non-critical, non-judgmental? Now I think it is a possibility that I might be interested in this at some point, though I am certainly not ready for it, yet.

[clevermanka.livejournal.com]

I'll keep you appraised of my continuing experiences.

[amjhawk.livejournal.com]

I had a similar experience with box jumps. I wrestled with hesitation, with teammates' and coaches' "encouragement" getting me to just do it. Unfortunately, my hesitation meant bad things for my junk.

I'd recommend (especially if they have scaling boxes) to just work your way up. Once you've actually done a big jump, and your mind realizes that you can and how it feels, it should be much easier going forward. At least it was for me, hopefully this holds true for you. Good luck!

(My high school football off-season workouts seem to have borrowed many elements from what would become CrossFit. There's actually a crew of former teammates that run a CrossFit studio in Austin.)

[clevermanka.livejournal.com]

Cool! The woman who turned me on to Crossfit is in Austin.