I love that CrossFit forces you to show up and confront your weaknesses daily - it’s not just about what you’re good at, but finding the things you’re not good at and then working on them until you are. I had some major back pain a few years ago, and you want to know what hurt it most? Squats. Any type. My mobility was trash, my core was weak, and I had no idea what made a squat “good” or “bad”. I remember doing an air squat for a doctor whose response was something like, “YIKES. We need to work on that.” I was in pain but also so embarrassed. I wanted to get better, and decided I would. I made a commitment to myself that I would become the “best squatter ever”. It sounds silly, but it still drives me. There’s always something to work on, always something to learn, always something to improve. Last year I squatted 305 lbs for 11 reps with absolutely no pain at all. It took taking time off of squatting, mobilizing daily, lots of heavy carries & accessory work, squatting with no weight, squatting with light weight, squatting slowly, and thennnnnn squatting heavy. I like sharing stories like this, because I think it’s important to see that strengths usually come from struggle, and that it’s usually the little things that make the biggest difference. Remember: movement quality first, then consistency, and then finally: intensity & weight.