That’s what I tell myself every single time. It doesn’t matter if I hate the lift, or if I suck at it.

Be Present.

It can be the warm-up after a really long day. Or it can be snatches and double unders, or Murph. It can also be a practice clean with a PVC pipe or it can be a 90kg on a 1RM deadlift.

Be Present.

If I approach a warm-up or a WOD without being present, I suck. I must forget about my life, my problems, and my current state of mind, or my chances of crushing that movement or WOD will blow up in my face.

It’s like when I watch CrossFitters doing the WOD in class before me. There’s a difference between those that are Present and those that are not. The Present ones crush the workout and are oblivious to everything around them. It doesn’t matter if they finish first or last; that’s not the point (Okay, not the whole point). But they care more about controlling their minds and for that, they finish strong.  The Non-Present ones struggle from the getco. They probably will make it through the first set unbroken, but after that, it’s usually an uphill battle. They take rests and look around (stealthily), measuring how much work they need to finish to not come in last. They do just enough to salvage their egos.

If you’re not present, you won’t learn to love a movement you currently hate. And hate is a powerful deterrent to progress. If you’re present, you’ll learn to lose yourself in snatches and learn to love landing with that bar above your head.

Take everything head-on and give it your all. Life won’t reward you for going around a problem; it will make you stronger for wading through it. If you’re present, you’ll clear the mud for 1 RM in Snatches, and PB’s in Diane and Fran.

Awesome job for crushing today’s WOD.

Be Present – by Carolina Baker Thames CrossFit