Recently I decided I needed to get in shape and commit to working out on a regular basis.  I had just had a baby six months prior and was feeling very out of shape. Many of my neighbors had started doing Crossfit and said it was a hard core program and working wonders for them. Maybe you have heard of it as it is spreading like wildfire in the gym world, but I do not go to gyms. I have never weight trained, let alone do a pull up or proper push up. I might be considered somewhat fit, but more so for outdoor sports like mountain biking and surfing. This is a summary of the website for Mammoth CrossFit. “Mammoth Crossfit is a serious training facility for those looking to elevate their current fitness level. Mammoth CrossFit will change your perception of fitness and health. If you are an athlete in training, or just training for life, you will be humbled. If you’re looking for fancy machines, lots of mirrors, or a date for the weekend, you’ve come to the wrong place.” Well, that pretty much sums it up. It is not a pretty gym, but a raw industrial space with a very minimal selection of weights and equipment. Everyone starts by taking a series of private lessons to show you the basic techniques in weight training and other movements. After these sessions you join the group classes where you pair up, or work individually through various exercises and competitions. I was concerned about working out very fit athletes and trying to keep up, but everyone has strengths and weaknesses so everyone can do some things better than others. They nice thing is that you usually have a partner to help motivate and push you through the pain. Sometimes that motivation is trying to perform because your partner is suffering through a task until you finish yours, which turns out to be very motivating. At other times that motivation is that if you fail the entire class gets the privilege of doing additional pushups or burpies as punishment. At this point, I think I need to reiterate how completely humbling and taxing every single workout is. It truly pushes a person in every way and the things that seem to be easy are not. Let’s take jump roping. It sounds simple right? It took my trainer about a half an hour to show me how to jump rope properly and I still can’t do it. You know, that style of jump roping you saw Rocky Balboa do, well it’s extremely hard! Sometimes I have to force myself into the mind frame of going to class, but I am always happy I did. It has been about two or three months now and I can see the difference in my body and physical ability Are you ready to try it? Find out more about Crossfit in Mammoth at www.mammothcrossfit.com  By Brandee Dell’Aringa brandee@rpexperts.com (760)935-3903