My single biggest frustration with CrossFit is ironically it’s biggest appeal. Variety! The upside of it is that it keeps things fascinating and exciting. The downside is that there are times you really need to focus on a specific strength and the WODs just aren’t going in that direction.
Yes, there are always Open Gym times, but they don’t always work with my schedule. So as I recognize that I need more strength work, I decided to take ownership of my problem. More specifically, I took ownership of my own gym. It’s a modest gym. It has to be, since it is stuffed in less than 60 square feet that I was able to carve out of my garage.
On Thanksgiving Eve, I heard this pounding on my door at about 7:30. It was the UPS man, a poor, tired man, who had already worked more than twelve hours. So here he was, hours before Thanksgiving, playing the role of a Rogue Elf, dropping off a few hundred pounds of iron and rubber to my house in the cold dark of night. I stashed the gear in the garage and struggled to close the door.
Thanksgiving Day was a lovely day spent with Suzanne. It was just the two of us. But I must admit, my mind was prone to wandering. Whenever there was a lull in the conversation, my mind would drift to finding a place for a sheet of plywood and a couple strips of rubber, to set up my barbell.
When Friday morning came, I drank my coffee and headed out to the garage, desperately seeking every square foot of space I could reclaim from Suzanne’s antique storage. When I had cleared sufficient space, I headed off to Lowe’s for plywood and to Tractor Supply for a Stall Mat. When I got home I had to trim everything to fit.
When all was done, I had spent 11 hours and $75 for my gym (oh, I suppose you could include the cost of the bumpers and barbell, but in the interest of marital harmony, I am trying to downplay that part of the story). Space is tight, I can lift enough weight to get a workout. I can lift to work on form. I cannot lift weight that may require bailing, because there is no room to throw a bar. Hey, Spring is only a few months away, then I can roll out into the driveway.
I hope Suzanne sells a bunch of antiques soon, I need room for a squat rack.
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