A Box is Not a Platform

I've been practicing box jumps at the Rec center since the platforms were installed. And I've conquered the platform at level 3, which is the closest level to the 20" boxes at Crossfit. But until today, I still had a dark cloud hovering around the idea of doing box jumps, because the wooden box that bit my leg and made me afraid to jump again was still not conquered.

Sure, I could have tried a box jump even though the workout didn’t strictly involve them. Especially when there were pull ups, since I use a box to help me reach the band around the bar safely. But I didn’t. I hesitated to do a box jump when no one else was jumping.

And I managed to miss workouts that included box jumps… Until today:

CrossFit Conditioning:
For time:
10 – 9 – 8 – 7 – 6 – 5 – 4 – 3 – 2 – 1
- Dips
- Box Jumps

I wasn't worried about the dips, because I knew that I could use bands to work at my own level for them. The box jumps, however, sent a bit of a thrill through me. This would be it - I would either conquer my fear, publicly, or fail.

I hadn't been stringing together many sets of 10 at the gym lately. My husband and I had been doing sets of 5 so that we could switch off between the platform and the landmine more efficiently. But I had been practicing, once a week or more, and I knew that even if I hit my leg again, I could do it. I'd been doing it, getting bruised and getting back up.

Surely the metal platform hurts more than the box?

Before the time started for the workout, I took an experimental jump beside the box to get my nerve up. Then I did a single jump on to the box. And I landed it, heart pounding and hands cold.

55 reps to go.

I knew I wouldn't be able to go fast, because I wanted to do each rep right and not land on my shin again. Also, aerobic exercise becomes mysteriously more difficult when you're breathing shallowly and feel like you're going to faint. But I did it anyway. I counted down my 10 reps on the box and then took a nice break doing dips.

I convinced myself that since I had done 10, that meant I could do 9. And I did. But by the time I had finished my 5 set, everyone else had already finished all of their reps. Once again, I got to be the last person working, listening to shouts of encouragement and exhortations. I finished just under 9 minutes, every jump accomplished and only one almost miss.

I did have one of those flub jumps where your foot catches but doesn't land on the box, but it only threw me off a little bit. No injuries, and no stopping.

After everyone had put up the equipment, and we had all finished stretching out, I went up to the trainer. I felt so good about what I had accomplished that I just had to share it with someone, even if I felt a bit silly sharing.

I told him that this was the first time I'd done box jumps since I'd injured myself on one back in December, and that I'd been practicing on platforms that weren't quite as high as the box. He told me that my form was really good, and then he thanked me for telling him.

I'm not sure why he thanked me, of course, because I can't read minds. But I like to think that he was glad to hear about someone conquering a fear of box jumps that resulted from a box attack. I like to think that he found it inspiring, because I did.