Does nature punish the specialist?

One of the statements that caught my attention when I first found CrossFit in 2004 was that nature punishes the specialist.

Over the years I have learned from numerous coaches and athletes who are very accomplished in their respective sports, whether it is Powerlifting, Strongman, Underground, Olympic Weightlifting, CrossFit and more.

In the overall scheme of things we need to make a distinction between training just for general fitness and training for a competitive sport.

Being able to lift, run, swim, climb, jump, carry, fight, etc. are all part of a generalized approach to fitness.

This approach can be extremely useful in daily life, especially as the world gets crazier, it seems, every day. You never know what you might encounter, and this is a way to be better prepared.

However, if you a competitor, it is vital to be a specialist in your sport. The things that are great for generalized fitness will not be helpful, for example, in getting a big total in Powerlifting.

It is important to know why you are training and what your goals are before you begin your training journey.

If you are already training, and decide to change from generalized fitness to a competitive lifting sport, you will need to dial in your training to fit that new goal.

Make smart choices and follow through on them.