Thursday, 20 October 2011: Never Cheat Yourself

As you travel through life you will encounter several opportunities to choose a path. You can choose the path that is well worn, frequently travelled, easy to navigate, and the destination is well known and not very exciting. Or you can choose the path that few travel, has several obstacles to overcome, and the destination is not well known, but there are rumors of the Fountain of Youth and other riches at the end. Which do you choose? Do you take the path that everyone else treads, where the path is clear of obstacles, and nothing is gained in the traversing of it? Or do you take the unknown, where you'll encounter things that will test your resolve, but you'll come out on the other side stronger, better, and faster?

If you choose the easy path, you're only cheating yourself. Just like in a WOD where you don't do the full range of motion just to get more reps--cheating yourself. In a run where you cut the corners just so you can get to the head of the pack--cheating yourself. Not putting a challenging weight on the bar--cheating yourself. Not bending down and touching the line with your hand during suicide runs--cheating yourself. What does cheating yourself get you besides others questioning your integrity? It may get you the top spot on the board, but at what cost? You sacrificed your integrity so that you could claim a high score for the gym on a CrossFit WOD. That is completely ridiculous. The breaches of integrity may start with a CrossFit WOD, but soon they'll migrate to your work, to your relationships, to your life. Do you really want to try and cheat life? If you do, you'll miss out on all the great and wonderful things that life has to offer.

Take the road less travelled. The unknown will always present challenges that will make you grow. Never take the shortcut. It may seem easy, but the results are always mediocre. Face the unknown, because you never want to cheat yourself of a challenge.