Last night I went out with some of my friends from the box to celebrate a birthday.

Was so interesting to see each other in regular clothes, dressed up a bit, wearing makeup or having made an extra effort to do our hair. Another thing I realized was the fact that we were enjoying ourselves, joking and laughing although our ages were ranging from 21 to … and it is the same at the box as well. We not only “leave our ego at the door”, it seems everyone is also leaving their number, be it their age, weight, height or anything else they might feel ‘defines’ them. All this is no longer relevant when entering the box.

We are all there to give it our all, each coming in with their own goals in mind, having their own struggles and weaknesses but in the end it is fun time, therapy, socializing, sweating, being badass and taking control of our minds and bodies. We respect each other because we’ve all been there at one point or another. Wanting to quit, doubting ourselves.. then seeing the results, feeling the warmth of the community, being supported and cheered on all the way to the last second. We all strive for a better score or time on a benchmark workout, or a PR or just manage to finally get a muscle-up. Of course numbers make a difference, but they don’t define us.

I have to admit, I believe I am spoiled at UnScared. The standards are high and I hope I will be lucky enough to visit boxes that share the same principles. Not only in terms of coaching, programming and quality of the box itself. The standards are high because of the quality of the people and the owners’ approach to what community stands for. They won’t just teach a class and go on to the next. They want us to know each other’s names, help each other in any way we can – in business or in life, socialize, have a cup of coffee and in general care. You don’t just go in and out of our box. You are embraced.

This is one of the challenges I will be faced with during my travels. I don’t know how things work in other boxes and, to be honest. I have only visited a handful of CrossFit boxes during my vacation as a drop in but I know that starting from my own home country will not be very representative of what is actually out there. This is why I want to select the boxes I visit too. I don’t want to be imposing myself or just going to train and leaving without having met new people, being a stranger. Given I am quite emotional and led by my heart rather than my mind, it is important for me to feel wanted and embraced. Feeling I belong. I’m usually quite easy to please, but in this case it feels like it will be a tough game to win!