Laid Down A "Sweat Angel" (46/366)

"I never go lying on my back. It’s a sign of weakness and surrendering. Never lying on my back.”
~ Mikko Salo, 2009 CrossFit Games Champion


Gross, I know, but you chose to read this. Ha ha ha! Anyway ...

A lot of CrossFitters like to collapse on the floor after a WOD and just recover for a few minutes. When they do, their sweat leaves a mark on the floor temporarily that CrossFitters have come to dub the "Sweat Angel". I don't lie on my back after a WOD, and loved when I saw Mikko Salo's quote about never lying on his back after one. That added more fuel to my fire on not "surrendering" after finishing a grueling workout. Still, some sweat angels are really pretty cool, like these ones Nick left after a particularly horrible WOD last year:


Today's WOD:
Eight rounds for time of:
10 Burpees
15 Jumping alternating lunges
20 Double-unders
25 yard Shuttle sprint (5 x 5 yards)
Rest 90 seconds

While watching the WOD demo video for this one, I realized this would probably be a good candidate for making a sweat angel. Like Doug Armstrong says during the demo, there's nothing heavy and nothing too technical in the workout - "just" eight short sprints to go as hard as you can. Unfortunately (or maybe fortunately) for me, someone needed to park in front of our garage this night so I couldn't move the car out and had to make due with the limited space I had.

Here's some video for you to enjoy. I can't say I really enjoyed making it:


And here's another shot of my masterpiece:


Some may argue that if you can sit or stand up after a CrossFit WOD, you didn't go hard enough. Now that I've tried both, I can actually respectfully disagree. The ten general physical skills you develop as a CrossFitter are Endurance, Stamina, Strength, Flexibility, Power, Speed, Coordination, Agility, Balance, and Accuracy. CrossFit is about pushing yourself to, and yes, even past your limits, but not while sacrificing control of your body. If you truly have to lie down after finishing every WOD, just like if you shake hands with Pukie during, you're probably actually going too hard. And in saying that, I'll also say I don't think most CrossFitters actually do have to lie down after a tough WOD - they're just used to it. Because of the foundations of the sport, committed CrossFitters (at any level) truly are such great athletes that if they made it a practice, I know they could survive a fire-breathing workout without giving in to the sweet mat music after. But now having laid down my very own sweat angel, I can ALSO say ... damn, it does feel good to just collapse on the floor.

Related Links:
CrossFit.com
Buddy Lee's Aero Speed Hyperformance Jump Rope with Replacement Cord