Learn to be patient, trust the process and the results will blow you away.

By Coach Matt

I often hear a lot of talk amongst members giving each other advice on “the best ways to get better” or become more efficient in their CrossFit performance which is often ill informed or very specific to particular cases. Here’s the cold, hard truth – there is no quick fix, overnight magic remedy that will turn you into a games athlete. What there is though, is your choice to make the correct decisions on where to focus your energy when it comes to training. 

My sporting background was built on rowing. Thousands of hours spent refining the slightest technical details on the water doing everything for that extra millisecond on race day. Crammed between water sessions was early mornings and late nights building a bullet proof engine to make sure that after the first 1500m of a race at max HR, you were able to drop a gear in the last 500m to do whatever it took to inch in front of the boat next to you. 

Following this, I found my love for weightlifting, a very similar structured sport which demands hours of the real shitty hard work for 10 seconds of platform glory when you “perfectly” execute those two pretty lifts. 

My love for CrossFit rose from the teaching side of the sport. As trainers, we are so blessed to be able to see people do things with their bodies that they never could’ve ever believed was possible and so fortunate that we are able to play such a big role in the journey of these achievements. For some it might be jumping on a box for the first time in 5 years, while for others, it might be stringing their first set of 10 butterfly chest to bar together. The fact that we’re all able to stay in our own lane, yet celebrate our achievements on the same scale is what makes our sport unlike anything else in the world. 

For the coaches at The Bloc, individual journey plays a massive role in our day to day coaching approach of individual members. We realise that some of our members are with us just to get a little bit fitter, stronger and healthier while others are here to become the next Rich Froning. The one constant in both types of people is that they are still showing up to our classes with the hope of improving their quality of life in some aspect. This circles me right back to the topic of this article: Learn to be patient, trust the process and the results will blow you away. 

The box program runs on a 6 day cycle, and it’s no secret that we are currently following the affiliate and individual program by CrossFit Mayhem (the top performing box with teams and individuals in the world) and there is also no denying that every single member has improved their physical fitness, strength and skill since joining the box. However, there’s always that want for a little bit more fitness, better gymnastics and heavier weights right now. Unfortunately this isn’t online shopping.

This is where we can split the deck – are you training to be able to put your phone down and shut off to the world for 60 minutes? Or are you trying to set every box record and podium at every possible competition? Or, are you somewhere inbetween?

Nobody else can tell you what you want, except you. 

So you’re the type of person that has a full time job looking after your spouse and 3 kids and your two sessions a week allow you to come blow off some steam and escape the world for 60 minutes. Good on you! Well done. We’re proud of you for making the effort! Your two sessions are perfect for your purpose. 

You’re the member that wants to have everything down, be proficient in every movement and throw up some decent lifting numbers? The best possible way to become a better, fitter, stronger, well rounded athlete is to find something that works, and be relentless in your consistency. This could be narrowed down to a training program, a certain coach, specific class time, training partner etc. 

Now I perfectly understand that training 6 days a week might seem impossible, but remember consistently good will always trump inconsistently great. You cannot show up for 2-3 classes a week and go full tilt, to either rest on the days in between because you’re too broken (missing key components from a balanced program) or try and fill the gaps with too much volume overtraining targeted areas to “quickly” strengthen weaknesses resulting in injury or just more gaps in other parts of your game. You do not have to black out in every workout to improve, but you do have to show up to learn new things. 

What now? How should I approach my training from here?

1. Define your goals – what kind of member are you now? What kind of member do you want to be?
2. Figure out what your goals require to become achievable and decide what you’re willing to put in to make that happen.
3. If the points in step two don’t align, redefine your goals or shuffle your priorities. 
4. Relentlessly commit to the process of making your individual goal achievable. 
5. Listen to your body. If you have a shoulder niggle, don’t just take the week off so you can dive back into the volume next week. But also don’t take the “f*ck it” approach and jump into a kipping pull up workout and smile through the pain.
6. Use the resources you have available on your doorstep. Your coaches are here to help you. 
7. With the above in place – stay consistent and trust the process. 

Now go get it!