Everything is Hard Right Now - Stroud CrossFit

Everything is hard right now.

Let me repeat that,

EVERYTHING IS HARD RIGHT NOW.

Now, let me explain - when talks of the Coronavirus hitting countries hard such as China, Iran, and Italy, we knew it was only a matter of time until it made its way into our homes and that our way of life would be changed as well. For many, it meant taking work from home days and for others, it meant taking that long vacation that no one asked for. For those in the fitness realm, most of us were not prepared to close our doors or have the doors to the place we know and love closed.

We were not prepared for the emotional battle we are facing. Yes, there are many out there who are really going through a tough time. My mom is one of them! She has been a nurse for 30+ years and works tirelessly now as a director of multiple departments. Her days are long and they are spent being on the front lines of this pandemic. Members of the gym that I own are nurses, doctors, firefighters, and police officers - people who are out there in the midst of the chaos.

But it's still hard no matter who you are.

My husband and I have owned our current gym, Stroud CrossFit, for close to 4 years now. We have developed close friendships with the people who frequent our facility. We’re responsible for providing them quality programming, coaching, and guidance to help them achieve their goals. When the mandates to close non-essential businesses were put into place, we felt like we had lost the ability to help. We felt useless.

When we got word that the shelter in place was extended to April 30th and could be longer, I knew that my last chance to qualify for the Crossfit Games was becoming more and more unlikely. The Crossfit Games in general are looking unlikely. That harsh way to the end of the season breaks my heart not only for me, but also for those who have worked so hard to prove they belong there. I felt gutted.

It’s hard, but you know what? There is a lot to learn and take away from this situation.

We learned that having built the community we do now meant there were a ton of people there to stand by us, support us, and let us know that they weren’t going anywhere and it was going to be alright, even if their happy place was temporarily closed. They see and understand how hard we are working to continue to keep helping them towards their goals. The closing of our gym meant we were going to have to be creative in getting workouts to them! We started programming at home, rented out equipment, provided personal programming, put together social hours, made sure to call and check in with them, and put ourselves out there for the rest of the world to see how we were going to promote positive change during this weird time. The quarantine pushed us to grow in ways we might not have before. It taught us and our members to be resourceful and diligent. It made us more appreciative of each other.

As a competitive athlete, well, it's still challenging. I have to really dig deep into my WHY to get my workouts going these days. It's not that I don’t want to workout, I do! The drive is slowly fading as the season appears that way. I have days where I feel on top of the world, then days where it feels like the whole world is sitting its big weight on me. What I try to do is roll through it. Maybe I don’t go at a high intensity when I'm feeling stressed or on edge. Maybe I go hard and get all my work in for the days when I feel like I was born inside a rainbow and the sun shines out of the butt. It's all about feel and grace. I've learned to give myself permission to feel tired, take my time, and then move on. I've also learned to enjoy running more, something I am terrible at that really seems to hold me back in big competitions. Beating yourself up is not an option anymore. We don’t have time to feel negatively about ourselves when there is so much going on in the world. We have to live and enjoy it, relax, and have fun with it.

It's going to be hard, no matter who you are, but we are going to get through it – promise!


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