Another CrossFit Open season has come and gone, bringing five weeks of sweat, laughs and PRs to an end.
The Open means something different to everyone who participates. For some, it provides a first glimpse into the competitive side of CrossFit, offering an official arena where they can push a little harder on a workout and with the benefit of a crowd cheering them on. A little taste of competition may have even motivated some to try out competing more often in the future.
For others, this year’s Open was a social event, a way to meet new friends and members and to create a stronger sense of community within both Alchemy’s Hamilton and Brantford locations.
Finally, some looked at the 2020 CrossFit Open as a measure of personal fitness, a five-week battery of skill testing that revealed how well the last year of training has paid off.
As an athlete, I like to view the Open primarily from the latter standpoint. Although it is fun to cheer on friends and share a couple of cold beverages after a hard workout, I find it valuable to test my abilities and see where my weaknesses are. To ask myself questions like: do I need to get stronger, better at gymnastics, or just improve my staying power?
Each Open workout demonstrates an aspect of these elements and can act as a kind of fitness score card that tells you where you’re at and where you need to go. I am not discouraged by what I learned about myself during the Open, but rather plan to use it as a motivation in present and future training.
As a coach, I hope all of our athletes view the Open as a combination of competition, community-building and personal challenge. I love watching our members put themselves outside of their comfort zones and kill the workouts, having a blast every step of the way. So many people were able to lift more, push harder, and achieve greater results than they expected this year.
That’s why I believe that, regardless of your ability level or your appetite for competition, every member can and should participate in the CrossFit Open. It not only helps push you as an athlete but further strengthens our community. I hope everyone who participated this year took something useful away from the Open and will do it again next year!
Kyle Woeller is a coach at Alchemy CrossFit.