It’s over. After five weeks of excitement, nerves, energy, and sweat, the 2015 CrossFit Open has ended. For those few elite athletes, the Open is beginning of the journey to the CrossFit Games. However, what about the rest of us mere mortals….what did the Open mean to you?
The Open serves many purposes for me, even when I am not competing. First, the Open means community. From a workout point of view, getting everyone together in one place and at one time for a WOD is awesome! The energy and enthusiasm is contagious. I am suddenly able to find the strength to complete those last 2 reps! This year, I was reminded even more of how this place feels like home. After being away for a few weeks, walking in the door Saturday morning and seeing everyone was like walking in the door of your house after being gone from a long trip.
The Open is like hitting a reset button….it always re-energizes me. Just like everyone else, I can fall into a rut or get discouraged or just get busy with life. Each year, the Open reminds me of why I love CrossFit! The adrenaline rush as the 10 second countdown begins, getting one chest to bar pull up for the first time, and the feeling of accomplishment after each WOD are all the reminders I need. I re-commit to my workouts, rather than just going through the motions.
Most importantly, the Open is a way for me to see how far I have come in the past year as well as set my goals for the upcoming year. I tend to gravitate to those items that I am best at ….burpees anyone J When I don’t train my weaknesses, I am able to forgot how bad I am at them. The Open does not allow me to hide from any movement, but gives me a realistic assessment of both my strengths and weaknesses. Once I get over my frustration at not being good at everything, I pick one or two movements that I want to focus on over the next year. Don’t get me wrong…I am not going to stop doing workouts that have my strengths. I mean, everyone needs a morale booster every once in a while. However, I am going to put my extra time and energy (and open gym time) into those one or two movements I have admitted that I suck at. Come the 2016 Open, I will be able to see how much progress I have made when they announce the workouts and I no longer cringe when I hear pull ups.
As I look forward to the year ahead and watching those elite few in the CrossFit Open on tv, I wonder……What did the Open mean to you this year?
The Open meant trying something that definitely put me out of my comfort zone on many occasions. Trying movements ( like HSPU) that you know you are not able to do right now but you try anyway. That was a humbling experience. While embarrassed that I couldn’t achieve 1 rep, I was still motivated by the family atmosphere within Crossfit 1607 to keep pushing. Nothing like pushing your body past its comfort zone, racing the clock for those last reps and more importantly cheering on your fellow box mates. The open definitely gave me a road map of movements that… Read more »