Dear CrossFit NBS Members,
I have a bitter confession to make and I hope you will hear me out…
In April 2017, I hated working out.
I absolutely despised it, to be honest.
There is an endless list of things I would have rather done with my time than thrusters, powerlift, run, have my ego humbled by a bodyweight WOD that looks easy on paper only to find out its insanely difficult and taxing after only two rounds. I would much rather have sat in my recliner watching Cheers (Yes, I watch Cheers. That show is the greatest of all time), play video games, eat pizza rolls, or heck… Most of the time I’d rather work my 9-5 job than train or workout in any capacity.
As our good friend Christian Anto so succinctly put it, “That’s some female shit”. Not sure what he meant to be honest, but whatever. It just wasn’t any fun anymore. I had gone between getting buff to getting lean multiple times over without making considerable progress in either direction. Finally, one day, I decided on one goal. To simply be healthy.
At this point I successfully dieted down by 6-8 pounds doing traditional push-pull-legs split. I was ready to build a home gym and was ready to guide myself in nutrition and plan for gradual, but steady progress over the long term. Because I was still heavier than I wanted to be, because I wasn’t as lean as I wanted to be, and most notably because I decided out of the blue to watch “The Fittest on Earth” documentary on Netflix, I decide to give CrossFit a try.
I did a few workouts at home with the equipment I had. Just enough to feel comfortable with some of the movements. Then, one Saturday morning, I decided to attend a CrossFit NBS class.
I can’t tell you what the workout was, all I can tell you is that I hated CrossFit more than anything else I had ever done before. However, I knew I had to do it based on my schedule, life requirements, home gym limitations, etc. CrossFit was essentially my only choice based on my life at that point in time.
So back track, I left CFNBS hating CrossFit. I never wanted to do it again, and I was frustrated that I didn’t have much of a choice in the matter. This feeling lasted about thirty minutes, where at that point, I began to reflect on what just happened. I had pushed my body to certain limits I haven’t even fathomed since my days as a high school athlete. Then I thought to myself “If I pushed this hard in my first workout, how far can I push if I keep doing this for a couple weeks, months, years even!?!?”
So that’s where I am now. All the workouts suck, and I hate doing it while I’m doing it. When I’m barely breaking parallel on a 95-pound thruster and hating life, I miss my recliner and I miss Norm Peterson. I even fantasize about having a beer with Norm and Cliff. Is it just me or does that beer in that show look better than normal beer? Anyways, I digress….
The point of this letter however is not to point out where I am personally. The point of this letter is to demonstrate and highlight the power of CFNBS and where that power stems from. It’s the power that drove me to come back and do workouts I hated each and every Saturday.
In the Level 1 Seminar, they clearly explain what makes a box a good box. As you can imagine it all comes down to coaching. The best boxes don’t have the best equipment, they have the best coaches. And think about it, that’s absolutely correct. How many of us know someone who has had an unpleasant experience with a bad coach? We don’t need to look very far. I know two people personally, and one of them is my wife.
So yes, CFNBS is Memphis’ Best CrossFit because our head coach Angie knows her stuff. Not only that, she knows how to communicate that knowledge so we can understand. On top of that, she also knows how to push us to be our very best. She gives us clear, concise, honest feedback based on where we are and with consideration to where we want to be.
But let’s take it a step further. Let’s say you’re not new to CrossFit. You don’t necessarily need a ton of cues or feedback to ensure you move safely and efficiently. What would make CrossFit enjoyable or fun to you?
As I previously mentioned, I hated working out, and I also hated CrossFit. But there is a reason I came to the Saturday classes at CFNBS repeatedly. There is a reason why I put myself through something miserable each week, when I could’ve done a bullshit, ultra scaled Fran at home and felt just fine about myself.
The reason and the resulting power of CFNBS is our members.
Today is the Powerlifting Meet at NBS. As such, our CFNBS class was cancelled. I didn’t want to workout in the garage, and I also wanted to experience other CrossFit gyms. Just to see how they ran, how they coached, etc. I wanted to visit to pick up things that would make me a better coach for CFNBS. Angie and I are constantly trading ideas or thoughts to see how we can improve the experience at CFNBS, and this was an opportunity to gain some extra knowledge or input. This was important to me personally as my only CrossFit experience has been with CFNBS.
I dropped in at another local box and went through a partner workout. The coach (who was previously at Wolf River) was very nice and accommodating. He had been recently injured and was not fully aware of everything that was going on since he had been out during their recent move. He showed me around, had me sign a waiver and sign in, engaged in conversation a little bit. I couldn’t have asked for more from an introductory standpoint.
At 9AM, it was go time. He coached us through the warmup, then the workout, yadda yadda and I left. In my entire time there, I spoke to two other athletes. I spoke to my partner(obviously) and one other athlete who was a full-time member. However, the latter doesn’t count because I knew him from years ago. In total, I spent over an hour at this box and not one person spoke to me.
Contrast that to my first time at NBS, where Angie spoke to me in depth. Tina spoke to me in depth. I’m pretty sure Nicolle made a crude sex joke (she has a habit of that) …Granted, this was all made possible because Angie introduced me to the class(Remember, it all starts with coaching). But just because Angie introduces me doesn’t mean I will be embraced and accepted the way I was during my first few visits to CFNBS.
In short, CFNBS is Memphis Best CrossFit because we have one of the best coaches, period. But the underlying aspect to our group, which had a profound impact on me personally and other members as well, is the camaraderie within and between our group.
If I can leave you with anything, it is this. I gave up researching other CrossFit gyms in April after one workout at CFNBS. That’s because and only because of you, our members. The atmosphere was incredibly humble and welcoming and I cannot begin to express how appreciative I am of everyone who was there and welcomed me with open arms.
With the new building coming soon, we can certainly anticipate some growth. I personally have no issue saying that all of you will be critical to our success in the coming months. And the best part is you don’t have to do anything other than be yourselves.
Thank you. Thank you for welcoming me as both a member, and as a coach. Thank you for making me and other new members who have joined since April welcome. And most of all, thank you for simply being you.
Sincerely,
Rylan