Yet

Many people have said that can't should not be part of your vocabulary if you want to succeed. I think that can't is okay in certain contexts. It's good to be aware of your limitations at any given moment in time. The important thing is that any can't should be followed by a yet. Yet is hopeful. Yet thinks of the future. Yet is full of possibility.

When I started CrossFit I could have said, "I can't do burpees." I probably did say it. When I weighed 353 pounds it was difficult for me to get down on the floor and I was afraid of putting pressure on my knees and of looking like an injured elephant trying to get back up. I might have been able to do regular burpees in the beginning, probably not the prettiest looking ones, but instead I did a modified version up against a weight bench. Then I was shown that I could get down on the floor and get myself back up, and I haven't looked back. Every time I have to do burpees in a WOD I kinda get a happy feeling inside, even though burpees are still hard and still suck, because I CAN do them. They're still not pretty, but they get better and faster every time. To me burpees are a symbol for building strength - repeatedly throwing yourself down on the floor,  but always getting back up, and celebrating that feat by jumping up and clapping for yourself. (Never thought of them quite that way, did you?)

I probably said, "I can't get up off the floor" or "I can't run." I probably didn't say yet, and I should have because almost 10 months later none of those things are true. I didn't say the yet in the beginning because I wasn't sure that those things would be possible. I hadn't proven to myself that I was strong enough, or capable enough, to do things that seemed impossible. I know better now.

I currently have a long list of "Can't Yets." These are just some of them.

I Can't:
1. Do pull-ups
2. Do a muscle-up
3. Squat, Snatch, or Clean my body weight
4. Do consistent 20" box jumps
5. Do handstand push-ups
6. Fit into women's pants at Lululemon
7. Take a trapeze flying class (I currently exceed the weight limit)

YET

These are all things I can't do now, but that doesn't mean that I don't want to be able to do them, or that I will never be able to do them. All said and done, some of them may take me years to achieve, or not be possible at all, but that won't stop me from trying. Yet allows me to dream and hope that I can be and do more than I currently am and can do.

I think that what we say about ourselves is very important to our success. I think that what we say is reflective of how we think. Even if we say we're joking, there is some element of truth in what we say. I remember dropping in on a box out of town and lifting with some girls who commented that they couldn't lift as much as me because they were weaklings. That made me sad. I really wanted them to say yet - "I can't lift as much as you, yet." They should never feel like they're weak. The fact that they lift at all makes them strong. Everyone starts somewhere and if they keep at it they'll lift more than they ever thought possible.

So, be mindful of what you can and can't do. Know who you are and what you're capable of in this moment, but don't let it limit what you can be. Do burpees and celebrate that you can do them. Say yet. Mean it.




And then there's this, for my little sister Sammi. (Beware of foul language.)