If You Want To Take Something More Seriously, Do It Publicly

Team Snack Attack & Tres Leches @ The Granite Games, Fall 2019

By: Marcos Hernandez

Are any of you in a book club? If not, I’m sure you’ve heard of it. The premise: you agree to finish a certain title by a specific date, all with the intention of coming together with the gang in the future to discuss the book in question.

Now, I’m not here trying to guilt you into reading more. I bring up book clubs because they are a good example of the point I’m trying to make: by assigning your name to a task, in public, you are giving yourself a kick in the pants to make sure it gets done. The other people are there to keep you accountable.

“Social pressure forces you to up your game.” – James Clear 

The obvious parallel to the gym is the CrossFit Open. For five consecutive weeks a year, we throw our hats into the ring and put up the best score we can. Ideally, you would’ve announced your intention to do The Open by signing up online, or more informally by committing to show up every week here at the gym as we track scores internally as well. Since your score is tabulated each week and shared with the group, it's a great way to hold you accountable by making sure you don’t miss weeks. One bad/missed score can cost you points in the final rankings!

If we apply this concept outside the Open, there are plenty of CrossFit competitions in the area. Just between Thanksgiving and the end of 2019 are three opportunities to compete locally: Granite Games (sold out), Syndicate Vault, and the Vekter Games. CFSS is sending multiple teams to the Syndicate Vault competition just next month. 

Or, if you enjoy running, why not sign up for a race? 5k, 10k, and even 10 mile distances are manageable with consistent CrossFit training, as are most obstacle course races like the Spartan Raceor the Tough Mudder. Signing up would give the normal habit of coming to class heightened importance, which would ideally result in increased consistency and focus. Throw in a day or two of supplemental running every week for as the race approaches and you’ll be good to go!

Weightlifting and powerlifting competitions are always available for the strength-inclined athletes out there. Let us know if you’re interested and we can get you into Barbell Club where we regularly compete as team!

When you do sign up for an event, bring a friend! Community and a sense of camaraderie are what make the concept of signing up for these things so powerful. You would have a training partner and someone with you in the trenches on game day you know and trust. Why do you think partner/team CrossFit competitions are so popular?

The point of all this is, agree to something in the future, put your name on it for the world to see, and train like it matters. You might find that with the extra purpose fueling you, the plateaus you may be experiencing recede into the rearview mirror.