I am asking you this because there may be a time when it is a spouse or family member that you think you are working out for. You know, you want to look your best for them, or you want to be around to enjoy your time with your kids. Well that will get you into the box and give you that extrinsic motivation you may need.
But once that clock starts and the lactic acid is building up and your lungs feel like they are about to burst you really have to be doing it for you. At that point you have to know that you are doing this so that you are getting better in yourself. The only person you ever have to beat in a workout is the person you were yesterday. We don’t pay too much heed to who comes first in the WOD, we are usually cheering on the person finishing last the loudest. If you completed more reps in Cindy than you did last time or shaved 15 seconds off Karen, than that is what we want to see here. And that keeps the focus on you.
You really have to find your intrinsic motivation to stick with what you are doing. For me CrossFit is the way I love to work out. It challenges me in ways I have never been before but most of all it lets me know who I am at any given point in a workout. When I find that weak point I go ahead and I work it until it is no longer a weak point. Most of our CrossFitters would know that I could not jump rope at all well 6 weeks ago, I am now in the process of linking double unders together, I’m at 3 now!, and that is a start. But a week ago I could not really do one. That is a 200% increase in a week!
Now my challenge to you is to apply this to yourself. At your next WOD forget everything else except YOU. Go after that time, the reps or the weight that will make you even just the tiniest bit better than yesterday, while it might only be a 1kg increase on a snatch, it is an advancement and should be celebrated. YOU outdid YOU.
And when it all comes down to that last rep or second, that is all that really matters.