the gender gap

I certainly hope I'm not disclosing any deep secrets coveted by my sisterhood, but...
men and women enter into each day of their CrossFit experience with such different outlooks.

Men throw on some clothes, grab a water bottle of some sort, and show up.  Sure, some of you guys might give a thought or two to what shirt you want to wear.  If you do, it's likely because it's some bright color, a bawdy saying that you are SURE will get the conversation flowing toward provocative innuendos, or it's a new one you just got for your escapades outside of CF.  If, however, that shirt is hangin' out in the laundry pile, you'll shrug your shoulders, grab another shirt, and go.

Women, on the other hand, plan.  We think about comfort and function.  We think about our asses...aka, *Do these pants make my butt look big?*  [Of course, we all know CF women want big butts, but not because of a poor cut of their pants. :) ]  We think about what bra to wear...especially those women who know they'll rip off their shirts in the middle of a WOD.  We think about what shirt to wear based on what goes well with the pants chosen for the day.  We think about the WOD (for those of us lucky enough to know ahead of time) and how the choice of clothes will move during that WOD.  Oh yeah, it's tough not to plan.  It's COD before the WOD.  [I'm guessing you can figure out what COD means! ;) ]

Then, men and women alike go to their respective boxes.  Men, as I said, show up.  Women walk in, tug at their clothes, adjust their bra straps, and go look at the whiteboard to double check their outfit choice. 

3-2-1 GOOO.  Rowers start humming, equipment gets tossed around, burpees get done, chalk dust flies through the air, weight plates clunk onto the floor, and the time clock shows an end to the WOD.  Men and women alike lay a few sweat angels down on the mats, chalk grime pools in the creases in everyones' hands or end up as handprints all over  clothes, hair reverts to *bed-head* status with a sheen of well-earned moisture, chatter and laughter rise up over the music, and all these post-WOD people who are on the floor have become just that, people.  Not men, not women in their CF *outfit* of the day, just people who all  got a little fitter and a little happier for doing so.  This is where the gender gap closes. 

In the end, I suppose women could learn a lot from our male CF counterparts....pick something and go.  It won't matter after an hour anyway.  It's just material to prevent us from being arrested for indecent exposure and sop up a little sweat.  But still, if there are burpees in the WOD, there will always be some thought put into the pants a woman chooses that day.