WHATEVER IT TAKES; ALL YEAR ROUND
THIS CHRISTMAS WE WANT TO CELEBRATE TRAINING AND FITNESS AS A TOOL FOR WELLBEING, PERSONAL GROWTH AND CREATING HABITS ALL YEAR ROUND.
WIT ARE HERE TO SUPPORT AND INSPIRE 365 DAYS A YEAR, NOT JUST AT CHRISTMAS.
We want to celebrate YOU. YOUR achievements. YOUR hard work. YOUR commitment.
This year at WIT we are looking at Christmas a little differently. We want to challenge the rhetoric that inevitably comes around this time of year, situating the festive period as a time of over indulgence, followed swiftly by the new year narrative of stringent resolutions. At WIT we want to move away from these stark contrasts and instead give credit to the consistency and hard work you have put in all year round.
Because WIT is not just for Christmas but is a year round mindset. It is a commitment to yourself to do Whatever It Takes.
We want to celebrate the small wins as well as the big wins, the ongoing habits as well as the new challenges, and the mindset moves that allow you to enjoy this festive period.
Because a healthy lifestyle means enjoying the festivities without having to worry about regressing or hitting it hard in your training to keep up.
Doing Whatever It Takes is a year round thing.
But don’t just take our word for it.
We have gathered some of our members and coaches from our London HQ: WIT London, to ask them what they have been working on this year and what keeps them showing up and doing whatever it takes all year round.
Read below to find out their why.
VIC
I TRAIN FOR THE COMMUNITY
Occupation: Grocery Manager for Jubel Beer
Vic is a member at WIT London, and is a consistent face in the early morning classes getting her training in before the work day begins. As October member of the month she has shown up day in day out since joining almost a year ago, and is dedicated to mastering the elusive RX movements that keep members coming back for more.
What keeps you training all year round?
I think it's quite daunting to go to your first CrossFit class. But yeah, came along. The community is amazing. Everyone is amazing so there’s no need to stress about it...I've made so many good friends through CrossFit and yeah, just the mental boost as well. It's amazing.
What movement have you mastered?
The real highlight of this year was getting my free-standing handstand pushup. There's been two now so.
Vic also noted how she doesn’t have to look far for daily inspiration,
So I think the women at the top of the sport who are crushing it are amazing, but for me it's kind of like what people doing have full time jobs and they're still doing incredible competitions, training here, doing insane things. Yeah, yeah, pretty inspiring.
PAUL
I TRAIN TO KEEP FEELING YOUNG
Occupation: Architect
Paul is a member at our WIT HQ and loves a morning Metcon to set himself up for the day. As May member of the month Paul prides himself on consistently showing up and putting in the work to be the best version of himself.
What keeps you training all year round?
The reason I train is because I turned 40 this year and I actually feel better now than I did at 30… I think that training has really improved my level of fitness and also my general outlook and well-being and made me feel really great.
I think for me it's just that sort of functional idea of fitness. And that's the thing, is that it improves my everyday life and the things I do generally outside of the gym as well…I think keeping motivated is how I can improve my everyday life from having loads of energy and getting up every morning…Coming into the gym, it sets me up for the rest of my day.
What does next year look like?
So my goals for next year are really to improve my handstand push up max reps. I've really been enjoying getting into that, and I've really been enjoying when we do handstand workshops. That would be a really big goal for me.
SEEMA
I TRAIN FOR MY MENTAL AND PHYSICAL HEALTH
Our May Member of the month Seema joined WIT in April 2021 and has taken part in our WIT throwdown's and this year’s CrossFit Open. Since joining she has been heavily involved in the community and notes its benefits on her mental health and wellbeing.
What keeps you training all year round?
I train for mental health…I always try to remember how great I'll feel after sometimes, it just helps to. It's like meditation, it helps to break the constant thread of what you're thinking. So yeah, I just try to tell myself how great I'll feel after.
What movement have you mastered this year?
My back squat. I've been able to improve my one Rep Max back squat. I've been able to do strict pull-ups and have worked on my technique for cleans.
Seema also noted how she feels empowered by the WIT community,
Women over here who I see focus more on strength than you know looking a certain way, I'm really inspired by them.
RICH
I TRAIN BECAUSE CONSISTENCY IS KING
Occupation: PR and Communications
Rich Rigby, a name synonymous with the 6.30am class and one of WIT’s most famous shakes, the Pineapple Press. As November member of the month Rich is mister sustenance visiting the nutrition bar after every Metcon making sure he fuels up so he can keep consistent with his training. For Rich, showing up and persisting is what his training centers on. He is a man with a plan and can be relied upon to always grace the morning Metcon.
What keeps you training all year round?
I train because it makes me feel good. The more you train, the more you want to improve and then it's easy. There is a good atmosphere and that makes me love training CrossFit and weightlifting.
What does next year look like?
My focus next year will definitely be in my Olympic lifting. Managing to get under the bar properly. I think it's my main focus.
What accessory can you not live without?
I say the accessory I couldn't live without throughout lock down and straight after lock down was my headband and aspirin. My wristbands, maybe my lifters, but mainly my headbands.
JESS
I TRAIN BECAUSE I LOVE IT
Occupation: Coach at WIT
Jess is one of our OG coaches having been at WIT since its inception. Along with her Canadian cheer Jess brings a focus on female empowerment to her coaching hosting workshops for Women in Fitness. These female led talks focus on empowering the female position in fitness and dismantling misconceptions about women and strength training. Women in Fitness is a workshop to encourage more females to train and to feel confident doing so.
Do one thing today that will get you to where you want to go tomorrow.
What keeps you training all year round?
I train because I love it.
What are you most proud of this year?
The thing I'm most proud of this year is starting women in fitness, it's a fitness event for females that we run once every three months. It’s all about bringing females together inside a space where they can meet each other and realise training doesn’t have to be scary. They can do a workout in a safe environment and they can walk away learning how to do a new skill and feel empowered and confident.
What does next year look like?
I'm working towards a stronger snatch, so that's definitely on the goal list. And more ring muscle ups.
JORDAN
I TRAIN BECAUSE I LIKE WINNING
Occupation: Head coach at WIT London
Jordan, aka Shelleybeats, is the Head Coach at WIT London taking charge of the class programming and the DJ decks when required. Having started out as a member in 2016, Jordan is the definition of working through the ranks and is now the man in charge of over 300 members' weekly workouts.
What keeps you training all year round?
I train because I like winning. It feels pretty good when you win something by accident or with luck, but it feels even better when you win when you've really trained for it or worked hard.
You have two choices. You can make it easy, or you can make it hard.
What does next year look like?
I have an Ultramarathon in July…it's 100 kilometres of unbroken running…my biggest run to date is a half marathon, so this is quite a stretch above that. But yeah, it should be a good challenge.
What accessory can you not live without when training?
Fairly minimalist when it comes to training, but one except it's not really an accessory, but the Nike Metcon for me is a staple.
LIVVY
I TRAIN ALL YEAR ROUND AS A WAY TO MANAGE MY WORK-LIFE-TRAINING BALANCE
Occupation: ICU Nurse and athlete
Liv, aka the CrossFitNurse, is one of our WIT ambassadors and lives and breathes the WIT way, doing Whatever it Takes to balance her training, work and social life. She is relentless in the pursuit of her goals and is a guaranteed friendly face if you are visiting WIT London.
You just need to have structure and a good attitude and motivation to train.
What keeps you training all year round?
I train all year round as a way to manage my work-life balance.
I'm a full-time intensive care nurse and so I work shifts at the hospital. The patients in the hospital mostly can’t move and a lot of them can’t breathe. They can’t really do anything basic for themselves so to be able to move is a privilege and to be able to train the way that I do is even more so a privilege.
What have you learned this year?
The most important thing I have learned this year is that you don't need to over train to peak in performance or to progress. I have really focused this year on balancing training, sleeping, fueLling and my social life because from my job I know that one day I might not be able to.
LOUIS
I TRAIN BECAUSE I HAVE BIG GOALS
Occupation: Coach at WIT
Louis is one of our WIT coaches bringing the Northern charm to his classes. Having moved to London just over a year ago Louis has well and truly settled in and is a regular in our Open gym sessions. Always your biggest hype man, Louis gets you through the tough reps and always has a song lyric to quote at you to get you through.
What keeps you training all year round?
I have clear goals of where I want to be within CrossFit and I know what I'm capable of. So if I ever have sessions where I don't put in the effort that I think I'm capable of, it eats me later and always really annoys me. So it's like the thought of disappointing myself that keeps me going and keeps me focused.
What does next year look like?
I'm looking to still improve on my mobility. It holds me back slightly in some movements and so just efficiency more than anything.
I'm working towards some bigger competitions next year, trying to get abroad to some fun ones around Europe. It would be cool.
