10 Ways To Be a Better CrossFitter

Warning: I wrote this post to myself. But if the lifting shoe fits . . .

10. Hold the bar straight.

9. Pay attention to your breathing.

8. Use less chalk. Really.

7. Read the CrossFit Journal articles and watch the videos. What's this going to take? Like 15 min a day? Stop whining and commit.

6. Stop whining and commit. Yeah, that was so good and simple, it needed to be said again and for like all of life.

5. Put sh** away where it belongs. You might call it housekeeping but, really, it's a form of discipline. You don't want bumpers or collars or KBs or whatever all over the place. Pick your item, use it, and put it away. Mental discipline is as important as physical discipline, maybe even more so.

4. Get to class 15 minutes early, all the time. Use that extra time not to chat or work on stuff you're good at -- use it to suck. Suck at L-sits, suck at deadhang pull-ups, suck at KB snatches. All the stuff you and your ego have been avoiding. Put on your big girl panties and do the stuff you don't want to do. It's called being a grown-up. And a CrossFitter. Go do it.

3. Shut up about programming. Nobody's ever happy with programming unless they're the ones doing the programming. Do the workouts. If you're getting stronger and quicker and feel better, guess what? The programming is working. And if you're not getting stronger or quicker and you don't feel better, grab a coach and address your concerns privately.

2. Pay attention. Stop chatting and daydreaming and goofing off. Focus.

1. Stop praying at the bar. Gather yourself, address the bar, breathe, and lift. Don't make it more complex in movement or thought than it needs to be. Lift the flippin' bar.