Loving What You Don't Love

If you know me at all, you know that generally... I don't take things too seriously.  I don't take myself that seriously.  I love joking around and I speak fluent sarcasm.  Sometimes, people think I'm complaining, but in reality, I'm just trying to make things less scary.

These past 5 weeks of the Open have brought out some other things in me, and I thought I'd share them with you.  I've seriously been working on this for 5 weeks, so... enjoy!

There are so many things about CrossFit that I LOVE.  And a few things I don't love.  There are things I excel at.  There are things that I think I will NEVER be able to do.  It's so easy to love!

I love the intense (Oh, Em, Gee... I'm going to die) workouts.
I love the way I feel when I get to do a lift or movement I am strong at.
I love when I PR.  Who doesn't?
I love when realize I actually CAN do something.
I love the people I get to see almost every day.
I love when I get to witness someone else's accomplishments.
I love the community I get to be a part of.
I love when my non-CrossFit friends ask me, "You PAY to do that???"
I even hold a special place for the bruises I get from this crazy sport.

But what about all that stuff I don't love??
Instead of telling you what I don't love, I am going to tell you what I love *about* what I don't love.  Ya with me?

**I love that when I see a WOD that scares me, I know that I'm not alone in that feeling because we all stand around the whiteboard and whine about it for at least 5 minutes.

**I love that if I were to ever think about skipping a WOD, there are people that will hold me accountable for it and call me out on Facebook.

**I love that when I feel like quitting, there is always someone there to encourage me, or in some cases, say to me, "Jen!  Pick the bar up.  NOW."

**I love when I see someone KILLING the WOD, it fuels me to push a little harder.  There are so many "When I grow up, I wanna be just like..." athletes that this applies to.  Yes, I'm talking about YOU.

**I love that I might walk into the box feeling like I need a pity party, but walk out feeling strong enough to be a shoulder for someone else.  Even if it's a little (ok, a lot) sweaty.  And dirty.  Really, really dirty.

**I love that even though the Open was hard, and frustrating, and at times I thought, "what's the point?"... I love that when it comes up again, I will be stronger.  I will be better.  Please note:  This does not apply to 14.5.  You can keep that one.

**Speaking of 14.5..... I love when a WOD literally makes me cry, it usually means I was working through something that needed to come out.  And it really does bring out the green in my eyes, so it's a win/win!

In all seriousness, loving what I don't love might be the best part about this awesome sport I LOVE.  Let's face it:  It will always celebrate when I don't suck.

But, more importantly, it will consistently challenge me.  It will consistently put me in my place.  It will consistently remind me that I will have a bad day, but that I will come back from it stronger.  It consistently reminds me that I am not without friends or support on my worst days: my ugly, what-did-you-do-to-your-hair, I suck at everything, why can't I be like X,Y, Z... kind of days.

Here's to loving what you don't love, on the daily.  :)