By Thomas Mathis
Before I was a CrossFitter, I was a Mountain Biker. I bought my first Mountain Bike in 1992 and got hooked after my first real single-track trail experience. Similar to CrossFit, many Mountain Bikers have memorable experiences of their introduction to the sport. I ran a Mountain Bike (MTB) Boot Camp and I remember one girl telling me about a horrific first ride with an ex-boyfriend which ended in the dark, cut and bruised, and she an emotionally shaken and crying wreak – she swore she’d never MTB again. For some reason, even after all of that – she had to come back. Introducing folks to MTB is very similar to introducing folks to CrossFit – it is a lot easier to just take them for a ride than try to tell them about it. As an MTB Boot Camp instructor, I got the chance to introduce hundreds of folks into the sport. Folks are always surprised to realize we’d been out exercising for a couple of hours. They discovered that MTB was a fun, exciting, and often very social way to exercise since most dirt rides are in group settings. Granted, MTB wasn’t just fun – it resulted in a profound transformation of many folks sense of self. A typical MTB ride is loaded with challenges – logs, rock gardens, slick roots, drops, stream crossings, roots – all sorts of thing that can easily intimate and/or injure a rider. Some challenges and trails are so infamous they are named. Surmounting these challenges turned the simple act of riding a bike on dirt trails into an integral part of folk’s life and identity. MTB, took folks out of their stale lives and presented them with real challenges, and adventures where hard work, dedication, and the perseverance of indomitable will paid off. The rest of folk’s life could be a suffocating fog, but on the trail, in a group ride, they could find themselves and maintain perspective. The people you rode with became part of you – an extended family of folks who knew you as no other. At this point, the ride becomes an addiction, and that rider becomes a Mountain Biker and was welcomed into the Tribe.
As a member of the Tribe, new riders are exposed to a global community, culture, and traditions. I could go anywhere and if I encountered another Mountain Biker – it was on, we’d revert to our own language and incessantly chatter in our secret code. I swear I once got a job because the hiring manager was a Mountain Biker – most of the interview we talked about riding. If traveling for work – I’d ping folks in the local web MTB forums and get recommendations on where to rent a bike, ride, and even invited to ride. It was not unusual for a local rider to loan a stranger a bike and take them on a tour of choice trails – we were Tribe. In the Tribe folks are encouraged to try new things and everyone celebrates their success from cleaning an obstacle for the first time and/or just desperately hanging onto the tail of a hard ride, refusing to get dropped. You didn’t have to be a great rider, what mattered was getting out on the trail and sharing experiences on a soulful ride with your local wreaking crew. However, within the Tribe we were divided. There were Riders and there were Racers and within these two classes there were even more divisions. All Mountain Bikers liked to race and compete against each other – it was a core facet to every ride and friendly competition made every rider better. However, the key difference is that MTB Riders were folks who just enjoyed the lifestyle and the shared experiences from simply mountain biking. MTB Racers, were more focused on training rides, formally competing, and the associated recognition. These divisions often resulted in friction based on different priorities and competition for limited resources. Fortunately, at the end of the day there was and remains one Tribe.
I started CrossFit in 2011 as a desperate, last resort to maintain my personal fitness. I didn’t have a unique story – Marriage and Kids have killed off many a Mountain Biker. Any married parent appreciates physical fitness is a team effort – even if one parent doesn’t exercise. My Spousal Unit and I couldn’t find a happy compromise that enabled me to mountain biking three to four times a week for hours at a time. I decided to quit mountain biking and reverted back to Martial Arts. I had a long history in Martial arts. I ran the Martial Arts club when I was at the US Military Academy and continued training while an Infantry Officer in the US Army. I could always find a Martial Arts class late in the evening after work and after all family commitments completed. Unfortunately, I couldn’t easily control avoiding injury in Martial Arts training – after a couple of injuries I decided I needed a better fitness option at 40. I could ill-afford the disruption in my professional and personal life of injuries. Since I never found success or interest in going to a globo gym, I finally followed the advice of a few of my ex-Army buddies who kept pushing me to try CF. The rest is pretty much history – I am one of those folks who totally got it after their first WOD. CF changed my life! Today, , 30lbs lighter, no longer on cholesterol medication, I’m CF-L1, have a robust home box, coach my Wife, her friends, and my kids, and live a CF lifestyle of WOD, mobility, and paleo-zone dieting. I was confident I had found my new me – I was a CrossFitter … until I started to get injured.
My first injury was during the 2012 CF Open. I severely injured my “Ass” (Glute) during 12.2 Snatch Ladder. I had been CrossFitting for over 7 x Months, just got my CF-L1 where I was introduced to the Snatch the first time w/ a PVC pipe. So 12.2 Snatch Ladder was the first time I ever really did the Snatch w/ a loaded barbell. Although injured, I finished 12.2 and 12.3, but then had to drop out and seek medical attention – I could barely walk and couldn’t sit comfortably at all. It took me several months to recover. My second serious injury happened in preparation for the 2013 CF Open. I was fired up over learning there would be a new 40-44 Masters category. I set a goal to benchmark against my CF peer group so I could develop a training plan for the 2014 Open. I started ramping up my training for the open and ignored the persistent pain I was experiencing in my left shoulder. I eventually couldn’t ignore there was something wrong, and I finally saw a doctor and was prescribed with “weight lifters shoulders” (an injury rooted in overtraining and poor mechanics), given a cortisone shot, and told to stop all upper body training (except arm curls) until the pain is gone or risk surgery! My doctor couldn’t say how long it would take or if I would fully recover – I was only prescribed a path of eliminating the pain, by not doing what caused pain, basically, virtually stop exercising. After going through the phases of grief (denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance). I made the hard decision to quit my box and to WOD at home since my injury required tailored programming that tested the infinite scalability of CF with no upper body elements. I watched and followed the 2013 CF Open alone.
I’m pretty self-disciplined and continued to WOD 4 – 5 times a week. I lost my CF tribe and found some solace through Facebook and my coaching of my Spousal Unit and two of her Mom-friends three times a week in our “garage gym.” One day I realized I was losing my calluses on my hands. It was a breaking point – without participating in the CF Open, without a Box, without the ability to do upper body elements- I started to think it was hypocrisy to consider myself a CrossFitter. Then it hit me, I’ve been here before as a Mountain Biker, but in MTB, you didn’t have to be a racer to be part of the community. I then appreciated that CF has to work harder to emphasize and recognize the distinct classes of folks who CF: Lifestyle Athletes and Games’ Athletes.
I started CF to maintain a lifestyle of fitness, but in my CF journey my priorities shifted on success during the CF Open, romantic hopes of going to Regional’s, and the Games. I got caught up in the hoopla that the opportunity was there to compete on a level playing field against the stars of our sport. I lost focus and rushed to failure in my CF training. Once I got hurt and couldn’t be part of the community, I thought I wasn’t a CrossFitter. I blame myself for this – but, I also realized it was easy for me to loose my perspective of my personal priorities because the CF Games is a dominating facet of the CF Community. I realized it didn’t matter that I couldn’t participate in the Open or be a member of a Box. CrossFit didn’t improve my life by giving me a sport to participate in – CrossFit’s value proposition is making me truly mentally and physically fit so I can stay focused and deal with the BS at the office, to be an engaged husband, and to parent by leading by example. I started to better appreciate why some of my favorite CF Athletes are folks like Lindsey Smith and Julie Foucher, because even at the highest levels of the Sport of Fitness – CrossFit promotes a quality of life for them beyond the Box.
A CF lifestyle Athlete may WOD at home, a Box, a globo gym wherever they can, but what defines them is the adherence to the CrossFit Methodology as a conduit to achieving a lifetime of fitness. There are many folks out there who want the value of Crossfit, however, they don’t necessarily have the time or ability to join a box, they don’t want elite fitness – just good enough neither fitness, nor can tey participate in every box-related weekend activity. I have a couple of friends who are parents that I pushed to join CF and they did and stopped because they wanted to get fit but really disliked the peer pressure to represent the gym in local competitions or participate in every charity events, etc. I mentor friends and family with personal fitness systems. This is a real time suck for me and I don’t do it for a fee, so I encourage them to join a Box. Unfortunately, they get turned off by the expectation of having to give 100% all the time and achieve elite fitness. I could relate, I once had a falling out with a much younger, well-meaning, CF coach who happened to make it to the CF games. I was in my 40s, an ex-Infantry Officer, Airborne, Ranger Certified – I’ve lived a hard life, have a family, a full time job, and I made it clear that 100% for me was just showing up. Dependent on the day, that would define my level of intensity I could bring to the workout. I made it clear that I’d not interfere with class – but if I didn’t want to do anything beyond what I set out to do, stay out of my face and just move on in order to avoid a visible confrontation in front to the class. Anyways, I could see how in a box or how our community can be unsympathetic that folk’s have competing demand, especially parents who have to be there for their kids and that weekends are for birthdays, soccer, baseball, lacrosse, or whatever activities their children are engaged in. I always explain to folks that I have had my childhood – it is now my time to ensure my children have theirs. I believe CF is for everyone, I’ve proven this to myself from helping folks adopt the CF lifestyle as part of their personal fitness program in a busy life. However, the sport of fitness is not for everyone.
A CF Games’ Athlete may be anyone who seeks glory or just fun in local competition, the open, regional’s, or the Games. Performance is the priority of a CF Games Athlete over general fitness. A Games’ Athlete is willing to get injured, take supplements so their body can endure the hardship of extreme training regimens, and make personal sacrifices outside the box to achieve max athletic performance in competition. Two-time female games’ champion, Annie Thorsdotter, is only 23 and suffered a second serious back injury knocking her out of the 2013 Open. Serious back injuries at 23 is not necessarily the formula for establishing a lifetime of fitness, it is a Sport, thus both entertainment and a business. I think it is okay for an elite competitive athlete to take these risks because it is their chosen profession, i.e., their job! I was an Infantry Officer and to this day I have physical issues that I work around and I fear how they’ll manifest when I get older – but that is okay, it was my Job! However, for that computer programmer, stay at home parent, schoolteacher, sales person, police officer, military member – a proper fitness regime minimizes the risk of injury, promotes physical wellness, and doesn’t require significant personal sacrifices to achieve good enough performance. Folks may argue that you have to train for the unexpected. I was in the Infantry, we trained for the unexpected, and we did not design fitness or training regimes that injured our soldiers, we tried to minimize that risk. However, when we went to the field for more realistic training we accepted more risk as we prepared for more primetime like training. Professional fighters also manage risk in training – they don’t fight all the time and risk injury. They drill and situationally spar – it is only in training camps leading up to a professional bout do they turn up the volume, increase sparring, and accept more risk and prepare for the unexpected in the main event. In general, we accept getting injured is part of any activity and all Crossfitters are susceptible to this risk, however, we should recognize a Games Athlete accept more risk for sports performance. This is an important distinction for the CrossFit community to emphasize and recognize. CrossFit Games’ Athletes are generally not very good role models for the CrossFit lifestyle.
I’m not hating on the CF Games, I’m a huge fan and can’t keep my web browsing eyes off the sport of fitness year around, however, I think the framework of the Open WODs should change to balance helping to grow Crossfit and promote the sport of fitness while helping folks learn how to better embrace a Lifestyle of fitness. The CF Open would benefit from having a framework where each WOD in the series aligns to an athlete’s relative experience so that all CrossFitters can participate in the WODs while adhering to the CF mantra of mechanics, consistency, and then intensity. For example the first WOD consist of low skill and risk elements that any Joe or Jane Bag-O-donuts can do off the street (e.g., 7-min AMRAP of Burpees) where the biggest risk is just passing out. The second WOD should consist of elements that someone with 6 months of experience should safely handle, etc. The third WOD has elements for folk’s crossfitting for 1-2 years. And the last 2 WODs are for the more seasoned athletes. When you register for the WOD your price of participation is relative to your experience and your score counts that way also. For example, if you are brand new – you can register for only the first WOD and that is your open. A noob could sign up for all the WODs, but that wouldn’t be advisable. CrossFitter’s success in the open can be simply getting to the level where they can attempt all the WODs and/or just those requisite to their experience. This way less experienced folks could go into the Open recognizing that their goals are about RX the WODs relative to their experience. Coaches would also have a way to help guide their membership on what WOD’s they should go for. Let’s be honest, not all CF Coaches are created equal – a noob athlete with only 6 x months experience would know and the coach would know it may not be a safe thing for them to attempt to RX a *.4-5 WOD in the open. When the CF Open is explained, the community could emphasize the tiered framework of the open WODs to balance providing the CF Community the chance to compete against the world to get to the games, but at the same time have some built in Controls so that people don’t attempt things over their heads. A noob could do *.1 and not even attempt *.2 and we’d high five them because that is freaking success. Next year they can try *.2 WODs and more! This revised framework for the opens would still providing the opportunity for the entire community to compete against the stars of the CF Sport yet has intrinsic controls so both Lifestyle and Games athletes can safely participate.
Of course, you could argue why break what’s not broken – the sport of fitness is growing at phenomenal rates. In the early 2000s the sport of mountain biking was flourishing. There were pro-riders making solid salaries, some making up to six figures from being on a factory team and product sponsorships. Mountain Biking had some big names like Brian Lopes, Shaun Palmer, Missy Giove, Eric Carter, Alison Sydor, Anne-Caroline Chausson, Cadel Evans, and many more. Mountain Biking had some big corporate, out of industry sponsors like Volvo-Cannondale and Mountain Dew Specialized who saw MTB as a good marketing investment. However, the buzz seemed to flounder around 2003 – the sport didn’t make for good television, the out-of-industry sponsors lost their interests, the top XC riders left for Europe for better salaries and purses, and it seemed like more bike industry brands were consolidating than new companies birthing. Mountain Biking didn’t die, it kinda just faded out in front of us. The MTB Industry made a strategic bet of showcasing the extreme facet of the sport. To the layman being a Mountain Biker met you were some extreme sport enthusiast, the average person could not relate and the sport’s grow could not capitalize their 15-minutes of fame. The US national level race series faded and gave way to regional race series and the rapidly growing phenomena of Adventure Racing. Mountain bikes continue to be one of the top selling types of bikes in the industry, but has really faded from mainstream media.
CrossFit is at a great time in its growth – the future seems bright. Reebok and other corporate entities sponsor the games for the marketing value and current demonstrated growth of CrossFit. Top athletes can actually make a living in the sport and local events are flourishing. I keep thinking at this rate we’ll see CF in the Olympics one day. However, I believe for the Sport of CF to grow to it’s maximum potential it has to be built on the foundations of a broad and diverse population of CF lifestyle athletes. To accomplish this, we have emphasize and recognize that CF can be for everyone and the Lifestyle Athlete has firm place in the CF community.