“Finishing Last” is an editorial series by Christina Crumpecker, MD. Check out Christi’s Featured Athlete profile here. 

Finishing Last: Reasons Why I Can’t Go to CrossFit Today

I’m the girl who spent months stuck in Fundamentals classes. I’m the one who took week-long “breaks” from the gym.

I had every excuse in the book for not making it to CrossFit Memorial Hill for regular classes. And it’s not that I didn’t want to go or didn’t like the place; there just always seemed to be something getting in the way. So I wrote a list of that stuff and made plans for how to address it. That has helped me turn the corner and get myself in to the gym. Maybe you’ll see something familiar here.  Maybe you have something to add. Maybe you’ve never been affected by any of these reasons for not making it to CrossFit, and if so, good for you!

But I think most of us have at least one reason in common for not walking in the door today…

8. Shoes and shakes and wrist wraps

Why does everybody have so much stuff? Because they’ve been at this for a while and know (or are figuring out) what they need to get the most out of their workout.

Do you need all that stuff to start CrossFit? Nope.

I’ve been going for months in the same beat-up pair of running shoes. They serve me just fine for now. As does plain water for hydration. It took me a while, but I did come around to a mostly Paleo eating plan—after asking lots of questions and a bunch of dietary trial-and-error. I got interested in wrist wraps after a coach let me borrow his for a workout when I recognized that this was a weak point for me.  Ask questions about the equipment people are using. They are more than happy to tell you what works for them and where they found it.  Gradually you’ll figure out what you need to support your body’s needs.

But you don’t need anything special to start.

Nor do you need to eat a particular way or drink anything special (even the Kool Aid). You just need to show up.