Perhaps you have heard talk about “The Open” at the gym or noticed that we have been doing workouts from the CrossFit Games Open. If you are new to the gym and are not quite sure what this is make sure to read through the entire post for a quick explanation. For all of the vets out there, this post will contain all of the information for how we will run the Open this year.
First off, what is the Open?
The Open is a 5 week long celebration of the CrossFit community and test of our fitness as a whole. Last year 272,000 people tested their fitness ranging in age from 14 to 86 years old. The beauty of the Open is that you can see where you rank throughout the world, in our gym and even versus the “professional” CrossFitters. At it’s core the Open is just 5 CrossFit workouts. But, in application the Open ends up being 5 weeks where we see tons of personal records, new skills learned, heavier weights lifted and an elevation of your fitness to levels you might not have known you possessed.
When does it start and when do we do the workouts?
This year’s Open starts on Thursday February 25th with the announcement of the first workout. These announcements are always very entertaining as they have top CrossFitters go head to head within moments of hearing the workout. From there everyone has until Monday evening to officially submit a score.
At CrossFit 414 we will be continuing our tradition of Friday Night Lights; kicking off on Friday February 26th at 530pm and continuing for the next four Fridays after that. Everyone comes in, we run multiple heats of the workouts and then we celebrate afterwards with some drinks and partying. This is always a great way to kick off the weekend!
How do I sign up?
The event is officially run by CrossFit Headquarters and you can sign up here. Make sure to select CrossFit 414 as your affiliate and I will add you to our official team roster.
Registration costs $20 and for that you are able to officially submit your score and see how you rank on the leaderboard. There is both an as prescribed and a scaled division. This means that no matter where you are at with your fitness level you will be able to participate.
Do I need to sign up?
You do not need to sign up officially for the Open. Everyone is welcome and encouraged to swing by on Friday evenings for the workout and enjoy the fun and encouraging atmosphere that the Open always brings. However, here are some quick reasons that I think you should:
- You will dial it in for 5 full weeks! Everyone who signs up for the Open suddenly starts to eat a little better, sleep a bit more and focus their training knowing that they will have to submit that score soon. Think of it as a mini 5 week challenge to optimize your fitness level where each week culminates with a test in which you push harder than you have before.
- The Open celebrates all of your new found strengths and skills while also showing you what you can work on. Every week there are countless “firsts”. The first time to get a chest to bar pull up, the first time to clean 95 lbs, the first time to do double unders in a workout. These workouts are expertly designed to stretch your comfort zones and help you realize you are capable of more than you thought.
- It gives you a fitness benchmark. If you register this year and finish in the top 40 percent, maybe next year your goals is to be top 30 percent. When you officially sign up it also gives you access to the leaderboard where you can compare yourself by age, gender, state, affiliate amongst other options. See where you rank among your peers or perhaps against your friend who does CrossFit at a gym in California.
No matter where you stand for registering make sure to clear out your calendar for the following dates for a workout and celebration at the gym:
Friday, February 26th at 530pm
Friday, March 4th at 530pm
Friday, March 11th at 530pm
Friday, March 18th at 530pm
Friday, March 25th at 530pm
If you have any questions make sure to ask in class.
