The Open is over

but only for 6 months!

It’s over.

It leaves a hole that needs to be filled.

Fill it with the next six month’s of training because this is a Golden Year of CrossFit with two Opens in one year. The next one is in October; close enough to keep this one in mind and to remain focused on the goal.

When you have to wait a whole year to do the Open again, goals fade into the distance and you forget what was hard and what was an achievement….six months is close enough to keep it all in mind.

So what should we do between now and then?

1 - get stronger!

Our new programming kicks off with a focus on strength. What is the one thing that is going to make CrossFit easier? Being stronger! If your one rep max thruster is 60kg, 30kg thrusters are going to feel OK. If your one rep max thruster is 40kg, 30kg thrusters are going to feel less ok. Get stronger - feel better.

So every time you lift a barbell, especially in the next two months, focus on getting stronger. Think about going heavier, push yourself a little bit harder to go a little bit heavier than you are comfortable with; not so much that your form goes to shit but heavy enough so you bloody well know about it!

2 - rest less!

Let’s think about 19.5. What actually ate away at your time? The two seconds it took to do each thruster or the 5 seconds between the sets of thrusters you broke them up into? Was it actually 5 seconds? Was it 5 seconds to get back to the bar and then another 5 while you stared at the bar before you actually picked it up again?

Moving faster on the thrusters and pullups is not what is going to get you a faster time. Resting less is what is going to get you a faster time.

So for the next 6 months, where it is appropriate, work on reducing your rest time first, then, when you can do that, work on speeding up your movement. That way you have something to improve - rather than just speeding up your work but having to increase your rest as a result.

3 - treat every single workout like gold dust!

Every workout is an opportunity to improve your attitude. What makes thrusters easier other than being stronger? Being more efficient in your movement. What makes your movement more efficient? Better quality movement. How can you improve the quality of your movement? Have a better attitude! Decide to move better, not more!

Make every movement thoughtful, careful and beautiful. The better you move, the faster you will move. The better you lift, the heavier you will lift. So do better. Be better.

I am so unutterably proud of all our athletes, whether they competed in the Open this year or not but we are here to grow and grow we shall.

So treat the next six months as an opportunity to become a better person. Better people make better athletes. Address your mental attitude - not just to your training but to everyday life. Address how hard you push yourself - not just in your training but in everyday life and address how you pace yourself - again, not just in your training but in everyday life!

Be better. Be stronger.

Roll on October, people!

CrossFit New Year