How To Be an Ideal 2024 CrossFit Open Athlete

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Good morning and welcome to the Morning Chalk Up.

In today’s edition:

  • How to be the ideal Open athlete — your coaches and gym owner will thank you

  • Jacob Heppner discusses Monster Games programming with Scott Freymond

  • CrossFit Equity rallies behind owners’ family member

  • And, how to watch CrossFit Open Announcement 24.1

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“I should’ve posted, ‘Heads up guys, do not try to do your max toes-to-bar on the first set, because your other two will be atrocious.’” - Jacob Heppner on the Monster Games qualifier workout “Fearless”

CROSSFIT OPEN

9 Ways to Be a Low Maintenance CrossFit Open Participant this Year (Your Gym Owner Will Thank You) 

The CrossFit Open and Quarterfinals can be a stressful time for many, especially for those looking to qualify for the next level of competition.

I remember. I was there once. Or five times.

I competed at the Regionals five times back in the day and in the 2014 CrossFit Games as an individual, and I was admittedly anxious each year during the Open.

Being well on the other side now, I feel I have to apologize to my coach for my high-maintenance tendencies.

I apologize for the after-hours texts asking when you were going to validate my score and for asking you to come to the gym on Sunday so I could redo the workout and get one extra rep. And I apologize for talking your ear off as I was debriefing after the workout when you had another client waiting for her one-on-one session. 

I apologize.

What I, of course, didn’t realize as an athlete was just what my coach — and many coaches and gym owners — also go through during the Open and Quarterfinals each year.

Not only do they volunteer countless hours — hosting Open Prep sessions and Friday Night Lights, putting out additional recovery programming, taping the floors and prepping the gym, printing out scoresheets, navigating the logistics of each workout, and then throwing a kick-ass Open after party (the list goes on) — they’re also left managing their members’ range of emotions for three weeks. 

By the end of the Open, coaches and gym owners are exhausted. Probably more exhausted than the athletes themselves. So as an athlete, the least you can do is be a low-maintenance Open Athlete this year.

Don’t read this list as a set of requirements. Instead, take it as a list of things to consider, reflect on, and maybe put into action.

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SPEED READS

🚨🚨 Syndicate Crown Community Event: Sweat before you spectate! The Syndicate Crown (North America East Semifinal) announces a new Community Event that will take place concurrently with the Semifinal Event on Friday, May 31 through Sunday, June 2.

  • Community divisions will compete outside on Mary Costa Plaza located directly in front of the Knoxville Civic Coliseum.

  • Registration will go live on Wednesday, February 28 at 12:00 p.m. ET.

  • Pick your format (Solo, Team of 3, Pair) and division (Rx, Scaled, or Intermediate) and get signed up now. Each format is scheduled to compete a different day, starting with “Solos” on Friday.

Bethany Flores is “UNBROKEN”: Check out the first episode of a two-part series giving a behind-the-scenes look into Bethany Flores’ Semifinals run in 2023, which culminated in her return to the CrossFit Games.

🎟️ 🎟️ Semifinals Spectator Tickets Available Now: Want to check out the top 40 men and women, and top 30 teams in the North America West and Europe regions early this summer? Early Bird tickets are available now for both the French Throwdown and North America West.

Working with Larger Bodies Seminar and PRVN Fitness: Athena Perez and Scaled Nation will be joining PRVN Fitness at their new headquarters in Nashville, TN to present the "Working with Larger Bodies" seminar. The event will occur on April 21, 2024, beginning at 9 AM. Register now!

ICYMI: In part two of our exclusive interview, Haley Adams talks about what she learned during her break and her plans for a 2024 comeback.

MEMBER EXCLUSIVE

Photo Credit: Instagram / @jheppner66

Scotty Scores a Spot at the Monster Games, Debriefs with Jacob Heppner

On the 1st Phorm Monster Games website, it reads, “Zero spots are given, every invite a conquered task.” 

I decided to take on the online qualifier and, afterward, got a chance to debrief with co-programmer Jacob Heppner.

COMMUNITY

Phot Credit: Krista ryan

Maryland Affiliate Members Rally to Host 5k for Owners' Family Member with Cancer

Jen Dant was diagnosed with cervical cancer in 2022. She’s just 32. Her cancer has progressed to stage four incurable cervical cancer, which has expedited her treatment and overall everyday needs. 

CrossFit Equity, a gym owned by her brother-in-law and sister-in-law, plans to host a virtual and in-person 5k event to raise money for Dant's treatment and care. While she isn’t local to the Elkton, MD area where CrossFit Equity is located, members of the gym and the local community have come together for its owners and Dant. 

Krista Bryan, co-owner of CrossFit Equity and sister-in-law to Dant, shared Dant’s emotional story and all that she’s endured since her diagnosis at such a young age. 

  • “Jen will be 33 in May. She’s very young to be diagnosed with cervical cancer,” said Bryan. “They [Jen and her husband Nate] currently live out in Wyoming but between seasonal jobs, they’d come and live back here [Maryland] and before she got sicker she was doing some CrossFit at our gym and a gym in Wyoming.” 

  • “But, she's at a point where her body can’t tolerate that much anymore.” 

Dant announced her updated diagnosis to the family this past January and when they heard the news “some other friends from the gym who are around different states said they wanted to organize a 5k and we kind of just collaborated.” 

CROSSFIT OPEN

Photo Credit: Instagram / @crossfitgames

How to Watch CrossFit Open Announcement 24.1

The first live CrossFit Open workout announcement of the 2024 season is coming in hot on Thursday, February 29, on the official CrossFit YouTube channel. And we’ve got all the details you need to know heading into the event:

  • Open Announcement 24.1 is presented by Momentous, the Official Sports Nutrition Partner of CrossFit, and will take place in Pleasanton, CA, at CrossFit Pleasanton.

  • The 2023 Fittest Man on Earth, Jeffrey Adler, will take on his friend and fellow Canadian, Brent Fikowski. 

  • On the women’s side, two young stars who finished only 15 points apart on the 2023 CrossFit Games leaderboard, Alex Gazan and Alexis Raptis, will battle it out.

  • The 24.2 announcement takes place on March 7 at CrossFit Shred Shed in Boise, ID, and will feature a head-to-head battle between Justin Medeiros and Colten Mertens.

  • The 24.3 announcement features Tia-Clair Toomey-Orr competing against Arielle Loewen. 

  • Tune in to the CrossFit Games website or CrossFit YouTube channel for the live 24.1 workout announcement on Thursday, February 29, at 12 p.m. PT. As always, the Morning Chalk Up will provide workout strategy guides and full leaderboard coverage and analysis as events unfold.

    Morning Chalk Up will also publish details on the next two workout announcements in the coming weeks.

THINGS TO…
…DO

The 2024 CrossFit Open

If you haven't registered yet, you're not too late. Three weeks of challenging workouts, competing against fellow CrossFitters throughout the world, with nothing to lose. Just sign up already. 

…HIRE
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…PRACTICE

Rushed Versus Controlled HSPU

Check out these tips from Ben at WODprep, where he goes through the downfalls of rushing the HSPU. It's great advice to consider with the Open about ready to go down!

…WORK

Core Strengthening Routine

Try these moves, shared by Games athlete Bethany Flores, with efficiency tips included. A strong core can make all the difference with better movement, bigger lifts, and protection against injury.

…GET

The World's Most Versatile Gym

One piece of equipment can lead to hundreds of different workouts and can be packed in a bag and brought anywhere. The TRX system is your best friend when traveling or for small, limited spaces. 

HIGHLIGHTS

Celebrating a PR, hosting a fundraiser, this, that, or otherwise? Send us a tip.

  • 🏋️‍♀️Congratulations to Madison from Mile High CrossFit in Centennial, CO, on the 245-pound/111-kilogram clean and push jerk. 

  • Great work to 13-year-old Jaimon of Iowa on the strict ring muscle-ups. 

  • Congratulations to Macarena of Spain for getting her first bar muscle-up.

  • Congratulations to everyone from the RX Gymnastics Training program on their weekly wins.

  • ⭐️Congratulations to Nadia from CrossFit Invictus in San Diego, CA, on her first bar muscle-up.