The C Word

no, not that C word either

No ... not that C word. 


"Can't"


Kim called me out on it (and didn't even want to hear my intelligent, reasonable rebuttal excuses).
For a very long time at Crossfit I've had an enormous list of can'ts/sucks/goats. Lack of strength, flexibility, courage, and fitness, and an abundance of asthma and weight all conspiring against me and keeping me from being able to do things scaled, try or even show up to the WODs.
I've had some time to think about this today. During the last 49 days of this challenge, I've finally started breaking down some of those barriers and am making real progress. 
Some examples: 

• Just this morning I did my first ever bridge (with a little help from Kim, but not a lot according to her), my first pike handstand from my toes on a box instead of my knees and my first ring pushups from the floor.
• Thursday night I had my first banded pull-up ... one of my challenge goals
• Last weekend I competed in my first competition
• The week before I had my first tripod stand

All of these firsts are starting to really add up and were, in the not so distant past, "can't"s.
So what's the lesson here.
Before I say can't, I'm going to stop and think for a few seconds about why I don't think I can do something. Am I afraid of getting hurt? or looking stupid. Am I underestimating myself? Am I forgetting the progress I've made, the weight I've lost, or the muscle and skill that I've developed? And then ... I'll try. At least try. And if it's truly a can't YET, I'll keep working with the coaches on scaling options that I CAN do and making progress towards the can do without scaling. And soon, the balance of those lists will shift in my favor.