When I first started CrossFit in 2016, I was seriously deconditioned. Even though I was a police officer, I hadn’t done much since I got out of the Marine Corps Reserves in 2002. To say I was sore at first would be a gross understatement. I started working out three times a week, but I was sore for most of the week. If you're just starting and feel like you'll never stop being sore—trust me, you're not alone. That soreness means you're growing. Over the next three months, the soreness gradually became less intense. After about six months, I ramped up my training to 5–6 times a week and found myself sore all over again. This time, though, my body acclimated much more quickly. But little did I know, that soreness I felt in the beginning would become my new dragon to chase.
Fast forward a couple of years, and I was ramping up my training again. We switched to 12-hour shifts at work. I don’t do well with change—it’s all or nothing for me. So I went all in. I worked the night shift, getting off at 6:00 a.m., and headed straight to the gym. I’d go back to work at 6:00 p.m., but before that, I’d hit the gym again. Usually, it was a strength session after work, and at 4:00 p.m., I’d jump into the class WOD (Workout of the Day).
You might be thinking, Wow, this guy must have been pretty good! Nope. I went from sucking to sucking marginally less. But I did earn a spot with the “cool kids” at the gym—a group of awesome folks who worked out in the middle of the day. When I was off and didn’t have to sleep during the day, I was honored to join their ranks.
Joining that group pushed me in ways I didn’t expect. They raised the bar and I wanted to keep up. Those days of two-a-days and training with the cool kids made me a much better athlete. I stretched more, spent time working on accessories, and put in countless reps under the bar. Saturdays were no different. We’d spend two to three hours putting in some serious work.
But life happens. To quote Andy Bernard from The Office, “I wish there was a way to know you’re in the good old days before you’ve actually left them.” Things changed—and kept changing over the next five years. I’ve gotten both better and worse, sometimes simultaneously. I can lift heavier now, and sometimes I can even move faster than I used to. I’ve progressed with the times.
The title of this blog is Chasing the Dragon. As I write this, I realize it could have a double meaning. At first, I thought of the soreness as the “dragon.” You see, I have an addictive personality. I’m a recovering alcoholic, and this CrossFit thing has become my current addiction of choice (along with copious amounts of caffeine). There are worse things out there, right?
Meth addicts and sometimes heroin addicts refer to “chasing the dragon.” From what I’ve been told, nothing compares to that first hit, and every hit afterward is an attempt to recapture that initial high. I still remember my first day at CrossFit. I don’t recall the WOD, but I remember the finisher: running. It killed me dead. And I was hooked.
But that’s not the dragon I’m chasing. CrossFit’s real hook for me is the soreness. Sounds crazy, right? Maybe. But I crave that feeling of soreness. Sometimes I’ll get a taste of it. We’ll have a brutal workout—or even a string of them—and I’ll feel it. But nothing compares to those first three weeks of soreness. Nothing.
And the other meaning of Chasing the Dragon? Well, I think that’ll have to wait for Part Two.
Until then, keep chasing your dragon—whatever it may be.
See you at the gym.
