From Pam’s Blog – Why Would You Do That?

I liked Pam’s latest post on her blog so much I wanted to repost it here.

CFCMatt

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“Accumulating injuries are the price we pay for not having sat around on our asses.”

- Rippetoe

I know its been a while since I blogged.  Its not for lack of want or trying.  Heck, I’ve got 5 topics started and in process in drafts.  They’re all deep and profound and require lots of thought and effort.  That’s my story anyway.  As for this quote…

I have this quote of Coach Rippetoe’s written up on the one board at the gym.  It’s one of the few quotes of Ripp’s that is ok enough to put up on the wall where mixed company can see it.  If you’re unfamiliar with Coach Rippetoe he is the owner of Wichita Falls Athletic Club, is the author of Starting Strength: Basic Barbell Training, Practical Programming for Strength Training and Strong Enough? Thoughts on Thirty Years of Barbell Training.  For anyone following Coach Rippetoe’s quotes on Facebook…well…they are all thought provoking in some manner and not all fit to print everywhere.  That’s cool.

Hardly a day passes that we don’t have someone come in with an injury of some sort, some new ache or pain that has never before been experienced in their training programs.  What a statement.  Most of our folks come from some form of fitness background, whether that be years in traditional gyms or bootcamp programs or long ago high school or college athletics.  The high school and college athletes have trained and competed injured and are aware that it is a normal part of training.   Plenty of the gym athletes haven’t looked at their training as a sport and are surprised by the soreness, the twitches and the aches involved in pushing their bodies past what they’ve previously done.  CrossFit falls into that vague arena not quite a sport and not quite just training.  We’re both.  So to train here you will end up with something sore/hurt/injured at some point.  It’s not on purpose and we try to avoid as much injury as possible but sh*t happens if you’re pushing yourself.

Recent examples of training through and around injuries would be – Lindsay almost has her ankle brace off for workouts (an injury she got playing soccer) and Stephanie has her broken ankle all trussed up for workouts so she can continue.  Mike had his shoulder rebuilt in December last year and was back in here long before the physical therapist gave an official ok.  He and Tami are practical and tough in their response to obstacles in a way most folks wouldn’t dream of being.  Something might be painful to do but if it’s necessary then it gets done because anything less than their best isn’t what they’re willing to live with.  Talk about tough!  These are just some examples of current athlete injuries and they don’t touch the chronic issues folks carry with them on a day to day basis.  Excessively tight hips, shoulders, backs.  Fused vertebrae, knees with multiple surgeries…you wouldn’t believe what folks walk in our doors with and shrug off when we suggest adjustments to workouts for them.  They’ve lived it for a while and wrapped their minds around where they are at.  The options are to sit life out or keep throwing punches.

I would venture to guess that the vast majority of professional athletes compete regularly with something not working right.  A back, shoulder, hip or knee bandaged, wrapped, braced or otherwise rehabbed a.s.a.p. after their event.  That’s life.  If we wait until all conditions are perfect before getting under that bar or stepping up to the starting line we might be waiting forever.  There is no perfect time.  There are no perfect conditions.  That’s the challenge of life.  Doing your absolute best with the conditions you are given at the time of the test.  Some things you can control as the athlete…your nutrition, stretching, practice…other things are what they are.  Wrap your mind around those things and get on with it already.  So step up to that bar and hit it.  You can whine about it later (in your car on the way home).  Here at the gym we’ll all sit around and share our injuries like vets comparing war wounds.  It’s not whining if you’re not going to let it stop you.  What it is is bonding and there is an appreciation for the toughness of the folks you train with.  These injuries are the price we pay for not sitting around on our asses and I love them!

CFCPam