In high school I was a 119 pound wrestler sophomore through senior year. I was never very good, but I was in great shape. I was lean, strong, and felt like I could do anything.
I was 125 pounds when I got out of Army basic training. I scored a 300 on my physical fitness test every single time. 90 push ups in 2 minutes, 100 sit-ups in 2 minutes, and a 11 something 2-mile run. I stayed in great shape all four years on active duty. I was lean, strong, and felt like I could do anything.
I got out of the Army at age 23. I went to college, paramedic school, fire academy, and eventually got a job as a firefighter/paramedic. Somehow in all that time I lost my way when it came to working out. At the beginning of last summer, before my 29th birthday, I was 190 pounds. At my annual physical my B/P was 138/84 and my resting heart rate was 88. (I had to go back and find the copy of my physical). Bad cholesterol was up, good cholesterol was down. I was soft, weak, and did not feel like I could do anything. Confidence and self esteem were at an all time low for me. On top of that I was worried about the direction my health was going. High blood pressure, and heart disease run in my family.
Lou had been bugging me to come to crossfit for about 6 months. I finally decided to try it. I was scared cause I knew I was out of shape and it was gonna suck and hurt. Needless to say I got a DNF my first time and my back was sore from KB swings for about a week. I was on the fence about coming back.
The thing that made me come back was how much it reminded me of my high school wrestling days and the Army. I did difficult things I had never done before. It sucked, it sucked a lot. It was exhausting. But, there was camaraderie. There was competition. There was a sense of community. I wasn’t good at it at all but I wanted to be. For some sick reason, I liked that it sucked.
I’ve been coming to CFC for 7 months now. I’m down to 170 pounds. I had my physical last week. B/P 110/60, resting heart rate was 56. I’m very happy with the direction that my health is going. I’m getting lean, I’m getting strong, I’m starting to feel like I can do anything again. I owe all that to CFC.
(May’12)