Dear CrossFit, The Open is Over, Now What?

So the Open is over.  I’m glad it’s over. I’m ready for a couple of easy weeks without competition, and I’m ready to reflect on what it all means. 

There were many emotions to be experienced during the Open.  The highs of a good performance (13.1), the lows of a poor performance (13.2, 13.3, 13.4), the exaltation of hitting a new move for the first time when it counts (13.5).  The pride in an army vet (Tony) who no-repped himself at CrossFit Murfreesboro on Thursday and the abject horror at the cheaters and padders and standards-violators.  The sadness for an injured athlete, and the elation for the athletes who hit PRs, who hit moves they’d never hit before, and who competed with wild abandon.  The slack-jawed wonder at witnessing first hand the virtuosity of top performers, and the enormous pride in friends who got so far out of their comfort zones trying moves and competitions.

Here are the universal truths I’ve distilled from the Open this year.  Stronger people who can move heavy loads for a decent period of time excel at moving moderate loads for relevant periods of time.  More mobile people who can control their body to get into ideal positions excel at repeating body weight movements for relevant periods of time.  Athletes who have made the choices that got their body fat percentage to more optimal levels perform better than athletes who’ve made less optimal choices.  Those who care about their nutrition are leaner, and they are more appropriately fueled, and thus can move longer, better, faster, stronger, more efficiently and more beautifully than those who don’t care about their nutrition.  Athletes who respect the standards in every rep, when warming up, when teaching, when demonstrating, when wodding in a group, when wodding on their own, do better than athletes who either disrespect the standards, or who knowingly avoid knowledge of the standards.  Athletes who spend more time looking at their own numbers do better than athletes who spend more time looking at others’ numbers.  The most truly exceptional CrossFit athletes and coaches are committed to every CrossFit athlete, even those at the back of the pack.

So what are some goals to consider for the next 47 weeks?  Respect nutrition to achieve more optimal body fat percentage and more optimal fueling.  Learn new positions to faciliate learning new skills.  Get stronger, much stronger.  Raise where the 100% bar is, and then learn how to work at 85% for longer periods of time.  Engage the Community.  Respect all the other athletes, and respect yourself.

I wonder what tomorrow’s WOD will be…