Heroes of a different kind

I try the best I can to keep this blog lighthearted, but a couple of months ago something really struck a chord in me that I wanted to share.

A few months ago, an email came to all members of CrossFit Hutt Valley, asking if we'd like to take part in a charity event at WOF CrossFit in Porirua. It seemed like a good cause so I put my name forward to be part of a team of 6 from our 'box' (I'm afraid I'll probably never get used to calling it a box!).

The event was "24 girls in 24 hours". The "Girls" are short, intense workouts, so the event would see our team taking turns to do one of these workouts every hour on the hour - each of us completing 4 hard workouts over the course of the event.

The cause was an incredibly touching one. A guy who lost his wife to cancer and is raising four children on his own. A youth worker, an artist, and a man passionate about working in and for his community. The fundraiser was to set up a trust fund for his children.

A few nights before the event, we got together to put our bids in for the workouts we wanted to do, with coach Donny gallantly offering to take what was left. Strangely I managed to choose lots of pull-ups and running - neither of which I'm actually any good at. Ah well, "how hard can it be?" I found myself naively wondering...

On the night of the event I was also due to go for dinner with some girls from my antenatal group, so I had made sure my first workout wasn't until later. Fuelled by a plateful of prawns and cashews, and a lovely evening of girly gossip, I made my way to Porirua ready for my first workout, Chelsea. I will never forget doing Chelsea at 12.30am. Every minute, on the minute, for 30 minutes: 5 pull-ups, 10 push-ups and 15 squats. I managed to do 23 of the 30, which I was proud of, even if I did substitute ring rows for the pull-ups. And I was SO grateful for the support of my team mate counting for me and cheering me on. My next workout was 6.30am, so I should have gone straight to bed, but I stayed up to pay it forward and cheer on my next team mate as she smashed out 150 wall balls at 1.30am.

Our sleeping quarters that night was a space above the office, which was still very noisy, but with an airbed and a foam mattress, and being a slightly darker space, this was positively luxurious compared to those who had just bedded down on them floor of the gym, right in the thick of it. It was hard to get any sleep, but I think I managed a couple of hours, which was enough to get me through my workouts at 6.30am (Nicole), 10.30am (Jackie) and 1.30pm (Nancy).

If by now you're thinking one of two things "four workouts doesn't sound all that bad" or "wow - that sounds quite hardcore". Then I'll put it into context for both of those schools of thought. Over my four workouts I did:

5.2km of running
345 squats
230 push ups
278 ring rows
60 overhead squats
50 thrusters

And for those who concluded that this sounds like a hard day's night (and, oh man, was it tough!), the context is this:

At around 3 o'clock, with everyone feeling tired and beaten, we were reminded of why we were all there. A special guest arrived to speak to us all. In front of us stood a shy-looking man, hugging a framed photograph of his wife. He spoke from the heart. Of family and community. Of the loss of his wife, and of making the choice not to sink into depression, to strive to keep himself on top of things, be strong, and build a future for his children. One love, one heart, one whanau.

And that folks, is why all of that hard work was worthwhile. A community coming together to raise money for someone truly deserving.

I guess my point is that for those 24 hours, a huge group of CrossFitters came together and became one whanau, working together and supporting each other to achieve something awesome. And it was an amazing feeling to be part of it.

Thanks WOF CrossFit - you guys rock.