Have You Ever Been in Over Your Head?

Have you ever gotten in over your head and signed up for something you weren't ready for? What did you do about it?

Did you make an excuse or quit? I hope not! Life is a series of choices. Some choices are harder to execute than others.

I hope that when you are faced with a task or commitment that is over your head that you decide to power through no matter how daunting it can be.

A couple months ago I signed up for a partner CrossFit competition. I read all the requirements and picked the division I was qualified for which was "RX " - the one with more difficult moves and heavier weights.

Then they posted the workouts for the competition, and the weight for one of the moves was the most I have ever lifted for only 1 rep.

I was shocked, surprised, I doubted myself & my decision to compete at all. Now I had a choice to make - I could drop down a level, give up & not compete, or take my chances knowing that my partner would have to pick up my slack. I really did not like any of those choices. I suppose I could also complain that there wasn't a lighter Master's dass.

My partner was very strong & ready. Honestly, it wouldn't be fair to her or the other athletes to drop down. One because she was so talented and two because doing lighter weights & different moves meant I would end up doing a lot more reps and overall work. I'm not gonna lie - that sucks. Plus, I didn't know if my body could handle that much.

If you know me, you know that once I commit to something that's it - I'm doing it!

Fast forward to competition day ... my partner and I came up with a game plan. A big part of the plan was to communicate well with each other and give it our all. I wasn't nervous but was feeling a little disappointed that I probably wouldn't be able to do equal the amount of work as my partner, Amber. I mean there is a reason they call it a partner workout. I never like to let my partner down and I had to put that aside and honor our plan.

I did all I could do, I pushed as hard as my body allowed me. Was I as fast or as skilled? Not even close! Did I hit the heavy 125 lbs. clean that was previously my 1 rep max? (Read on to find out).

Since I knew the workouts I could practice so l asked my coach for advice, I did what he said as much as I could with my busy schedule.

I ate plenty of healthy food, I did extra back squats, I stayed after class & did Romanian dead lifts. I practiced the 125 lbs. clean and I missed it - I didn't even get close to that weight most days.

Did I give up? NO! Did I get discouraged? - Yes, but only for a moment. To help me from going to the dark side of doubt and giving up on myself I dropped into my mind and saw myself hitting every move of every workout with perfect, precision, form and ease.

To me, believing in myself and seeing it in my head is just as important as the physical practice. I actually think it is the key to success.

To finish my story, I hit quite a few 125 lbs. cleans. How did I do them? One at a time. That was all I could do. I wished I could knock them out several at a time but up until that moment I could only do one after trying for an hour and this entire workout was only 11 minutes... I was grateful for 1 rep.

My partner performed like the amazing beast that she is. She worked extremely hard and was so patient and kind to me.

She had every right not to be too happy with me but she wasn't. We had a great time, lots of fun and got to do what we both love. 

I hope that I inspired at least one person watching or reading this just because I showed up and didn't quit!

Thank you to my friends who were screaming at the top of their lungs to cheer me on. Go do something to really challenge yourself. That is when you grow. Believe you can do it. I KNOW you can.