8 Reasons You Should Consider Doing Crossfit

I'm going to preface this post right now with the fact that I am not a bodybuilder. I am not a personal trainer. I have zero background in the medical field (although I am a licensed dental assistant so if you have a cavity, I can take an x-ray of it, and suction your spit for you while a dentist actually fixes said cavity... but I digress). I'm just a person who has been very active for most of their life participating in many sports and group exercise classes, and today I'm going to share why I personally really love Crossfit. 

If you've been following along on the blog or other forms of social media lately, you know that about six weeks ago, I started going to Crossfit, and posting more about meal prepping and things of that nature. I promise this blog isn't going to turn into a fitness only space, but most of you know I tend to post about new topics when I'm really jazzed about them, and so today I thought I'd share 8 reasons why I really love Crossfit, and why it might be a good fit for you! 

1. You hate planning your own workouts: I'm that person who wanders around the gym aimlessly from one machine to the next with no real idea of what I should be doing. I love that I can just walk into "the box" (what Crossfit gyms are called), each day, and there is already a fully outlined workout plan that I didn't have to make. Someone tells me what to do and I do it. 

2. They scale the workouts for you: This may come as a surprise... But I can't squat 200lbs, or do a full pull up, or a full push up... or a lot of things that a lot of people at my box can do, but the trainers don't mind! They help scale all the workouts to my level to make sure I'm learning good form, and pushing myself so that I eventually can do those things. 

3. The people at the box are super supportive: Everyone wants everyone to succeed and hit new goals. Even if we're all at different fitness levels, we're all still cheering everyone on. Usually everyone stays until the last person finishes the workout, and everyone is rooting for that person until they do that last squat, run that last 200 meter, or finish that last pull up. It is one of the most supportive communities you can be a part of. (You know, coming from the person who had to leave early yesterday with a screaming two-year-old who didn't nap)

4. You want to build endurance: As you all know, I've been a runner for years, but the last several years I felt like I'd hit a wall and couldn't run past a certain point anymore. Crossfit has pushed my cardiovascular endurance a lot over the last six weeks in ways that jogging mile after mile hasn't. Last year the fastest mile that I ever ran was 9:30+. Monday I ran my first mile in the Memorial Day Murph in 8:23... which after thinking about it might have been my fastest mile since being married six years ago. 

5. It builds confidence: Clearly this is something I lack after pouring out my soul in this post a few weeks ago... but I've literally done more things at Crossfit in the last six weeks that I never thought I'd be able to do in my entire life. Everyday I leave the box I feel so accomplished just from finishing the workouts, and that confidence spills over into other areas of my life as well. 

6. You get real, measurable results: Each box (that I know of) has a program where all the athletes track their benchmarks or records each day after a workout. That way you can see where you were the first day you started, and where you're at 100 days in. My third day of Crossfit I recorded a 50lb power clean. Just last week when we were working on them again, I got a new "max" for myself, beating my previous record by 20lbs. If you go consistently, you'll see results. 

7. It inspires change: For me, once I started going to Crossfit regularly, I was more motivated to make changes in my eating habits, and then I started taking workout supplements to fuel myself through my workouts, and then I started sleeping better. One lifestyle change has essentially created a ripple effect in my entire life. And it's changing our family's life too. Jay loves watching me meal prep and has eaten so many new fruits and vegetables willingly because of it. Derek has even started taking my meal prep lunches to work, and has been talking about working out more too (which for Derek, just talking about it is huge)

8. It's like group personal training: Because there are only about 10 people or less per class, you get a lot more one on one  time with the trainers who are more able to help correct form, teach you proper technique, help scale things for injuries  or abilities, and it's just a lot more of a personalized experience when compared to other group fitness classes. 

These are just some of the reasons why I really love Crossfit. I will say that not all "boxes" are created equally, so if you're looking into getting started, you may have to try a couple before committing to one. Always try and find a box that encourages form and technique over intensity, and that will help you as a beginner reach your full potential without injury. If you're in the west Atlanta area, I go to Crossfit Paulding, and I cannot recommend it enough. It seriously feels like my second family. I drive past two different Crossfit Gyms to get there each day, but choose to go to the one furthest from my house because it was the best fit for me.