​Phil & Jamison are back to discuss The CrossFit Open - some details, stories, and why it is a good idea for everyone. 
Register for The CrossFit Open at www.games.crossfit.com

F I T N E S S   T R A C K  (FX) 
Your goal is general health. You want to move well for a long time, 
to look good naked, and to have more energy in every aspect of life. 

P E R F O R M A N C E   T R A C K  (PX) 
Your goal is to perform better in athletic environments. You want to be
 stronger than your average bear and to learn new and challenging skills. 

C O M P E T I T I V E   T R A C K  (CX) 
Your goal is to improve in the sport of fitness. You want to prepare to
 compete locally and worldwide, to put your capabilities to the test,
and to become really comfortable with being really uncomfortable.

We want you to be intentional about your time in our Box, that you understand why you are here and what you are trying to accomplish. Once you set your goals, our coaches make sure you are training specifically to meet them by directing you to a track that aligns with these goals. 

A critical component to our tracks is that they are goal-based tracks not ability-based. You might determine your goals, choose a track, and then look at the workout and think you’ve made a terrible mistake because you could never do those movements or that weight. That’s normal. It’s also how we would prefer it, for growth occurs when we are challenged and change happens when we are uncomfortable. This does mean that it may be a while before you are able to perform the workouts as “prescribed” for your track, and you may spend a substantial amount of time modifying workouts and movements. We are not  concerned with this, nor are we concerned with you doing the same thing as everyone else in the class. We are concerned with  helping you reach your specific goals. In order to do so, your training needs to be challenging and it needs to be tailored to you.  

So, we encourage you to choose a track based on your goals and not your abilities. We also want you to choose a track for the long-term and avoid hopping back and forth between tracks every other workout. Significant progress is made through consistent effort. If you cannot do your “prescribed” track workout for the day, modify movements and weights to your individual needs. If you want to make the switch to a different track down the road, talk with a coach about your new goals, and we will set you on the right course. 

These tracks are meant to help you and challenge you. Regardless if that challenge is getting off the couch and moving for an hour or training for your next competition, each goal, challenge, and fitness journey is important and valuable.  But more than we value these goals or results, we value your commitment to them and your commitment to improve. So choose a track and let’s get started working towards your goals.  

When we talk about setting goals we’re primarily pointing out the things about ourselves or our lives that we want hope to be different. To us, we are currently at point A, and we really want to get to point B. Essentially, a goal recognizes that there is a gap between where you are right now and where you’d like to be. That gap from where you are now to where you want to be isn’t as daunting as you think. It’s not about jumping the gap, it’s about closing the gap with small points of action. As a gym we'd like to offer an anecdote to the traditional goal setting mentality. If you hate it, that’s totally fine but I have a suspicion that it may be exactly what you need to make the progress you want. 

New Years resolutions are an excellent example of a horrible goal setting tactic. Of just Americans, 80% of people who set new years resolutions have given up by February. By the end of the year Under 8% of those who set resolutions actually end up following through in any sort of effective way. So this intense approach to changing something about your life works super well, just not for 92% of the population. 

That 92% is given a really tough reputation. We like to assume it’s because they’re unmotivated, weak-minded, and don’t have the will-power to follow through. I’d argue that the system of change itself is what sets them up for failure from the start. Also 100% of us fall into that 92% of the population category. In some way, each one of us has experienced what it feels like to tap out of trying to reach a goal we were so passionate about pursuing. The goal setting system sucks. Not only does it not work, but it leaves you feeling like a complete failure in the process. 

It’s very simple. We don’t ever reach the goals we set, because it’s not goals we are setting in the first place. What we’re actually setting are outcomes, results, or events. ​

Let’s first talk about a primary reason people are often unsuccessful in reaching goals. We can become easily frustrated and experience failure in our goals because we’re setting ridiculous, unachievable goals in the first place. Our quick-service, consumer-obsessed, and give-it-to-me-now culture has brain washed us into believing that when we decide we want something, we’re going to get it. Well there’s this idea that’s really helpful when we consider what goals are appropriate to set in the first place. It’s the concept of the “Law of Diminishing Investment." We like to think about this using the metaphor of climbing a mountain with 5 peaks. 
To get to peak 1, it requires a moderate investment. Peak 2, a bit more. Peak 3, the reward opportunity is high, but the risk is growing. Peak 4, you’re taking a huge swing. Peak 5, everything you have is required…you’re betting the house and sacrificing everything else to summit the top of the entire mountain.
 
The idea here is that you first need to know what level you want to reach, and secondly you need to understand what investment is required to do so. The third, and most difficult step, is to honestly ask yourself if you’re willing to put what’s required in to reach that level. 

So let’s connect that to fitness. Here are the levels and what they entail. 

It is the most unhelpful thing to set goals you have no intention of doing what’s required to reach. You will never feel successful because you’ll always be measuring success with the wrong metrics. 

I’m not saying to aim low - aiming low is for cowards. I’m saying to aim right. Set your intent, own it, and be proud of it. Reaching any one of these levels on the health and fitness continuum is worthy of being proud of. Just stop comparing a peak 2 life to peak 5 results. It’s also REALLY helpful to determine this so that you stop making inappropriate investments based on your desired results. You shouldn’t need Level 5 investment in any capacity for level 2 results and you’ll burn yourself out by doing that. 

We walk alongside people to help them set scary, yet attainable goals and to understand what kind of investment it's going to require to reach them. Your journey is your own and should not be compared to anyone else's. Who you become in the process of reaching your "peak" is so much more rewarding than reaching the peak itself. 
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