To grow as individuals it is important that we set goals for ourselves. We should have goals based around all aspects of our lives, whether it be our family, career, finances, or health. While all of these categories are important, I want to discuss the goals that we set for ourselves inside of our box.

 

For the past year I have had a goal of completing the King Kong workout. King Kong consists of 3 Rounds for time of 1 deadlift at 455#, 2 muscle ups, 3 squat cleans at 250#, and 4 handstand pushups. Looking at this workout I knew that I could complete 3 out of the 4 movements. The squat cleans were going to be the challenging part for me. When I first set this goal my 1RM squat clean was 245#. It was not the best looking squat clean either. Watching and analyzing my squat clean I could see that I was rushing my lift. This caused me to chase the bar with my hips and inevitably I would land on my toes and 80% of the time I would end up missing the lift. Needless to say, in order for me to obtain my goal I knew I was going to have to work not only on getting stronger, but work on my technique as well.

 

In the following months to come I worked extremely hard to try an fulfill this goal of mine. I spent countless hours watching videos on how to improve my mobility, correct my technique flaws, and increase my overall strength. After doing my due diligence, I then set forth a plan on how I would achieve this goal and by what date. I originally wanted to be able to complete this workout by December of 2013. Unfortunately an injury in October had me out of action for two months and I was unable to achieve my goal by this date. When I got back to 100% I refocused myself on improving my squat clean and getting back the strength that I had lost. I will admit, there were plenty of frustrating moments, but I never lost focus of my goal.

 

Lets fast forward a few months to June. For my workout that day I had to obtain a 1RM squat clean. I went through my typical warm up weights and hit each one with precision and ease. I start to climb from 225 to 235, then to 245, then to 255. As I hit the 255# clean I was amazed at how good that felt. I had never gotten under the bar that quick with such a good position. So I ended up doing it for another two reps. It wasn’t exactly what I was supposed to be doing during that training session, but it made me realize that I was finally ready for King Kong. So on that day I posted on Facebook that I would be attempting King Kong the following Saturday. I made that post for two reasons. First, I wanted to hold myself accountable and by making that statement, there was no way any negative self talk could stop me from attempting the workout. The second reason was to have the moral support of my fellow cross fitters at Albany CrossFit.

 

When the day finally came I had quite a few people ask me if I was ready for the workout. My response was an enthusiastic “Yes!”. It was now time to achieve my goal and reap the reward of all of my hard work. As the words 3-2-1 were counted down I told myself “You are going to crush this.” I went through the workout methodically as I had planned. When I got to the squat cleans I reminded myself that I have hit that weight plenty of times before and that I could do it again. After getting that first squat clean I knew that I was finally going to achieve my goal. On that day I did indeed achieve my goal and I even completed the workout well under the time cap I had established for myself. The moral of this story is that I want each and every one of you to write down some goals that you have for yourself. You should have a few goals in mind. Have a 3 month, 6 month, and a yearly goal that you would like to accomplish. It is these goals that will keep you focused and on the right track. If you have any questions or would like to talk about setting some goals please feel free to come and talk with me.