The Open ... In The Words Of Calibrated Members

It’s that time of year to sign up for the Open! The more people that sign up, the more fun this event will be for everyone. If you aren’t sure exactly what the Open is, just sign up because you don’t want to miss it. We had many members sign up within the first week of registration and collected their feedback about participating.

Why are you doing the Open this year?

The overwhelming majority of members are doing the Open at Calibrated just because it’s fun! They love the camaraderie with other members supporting each other during the workouts. It’s also exciting to see personal progress and the progress of others.

Jamie V is doing the Open “for Gordy. He can’t officially sign up because he is only 13 and it’s killing him. He has been talking about the Open for months and counting down the days. When I signed up, he said he was jealous.”

Allison W “thought the open was only for the competitive athletes. I loved the atmosphere of the open at Calibrated.” She judged last year but she decided to sign up this year.

Terra Burke is doing the Open “to show my young daughters that fitness is fun, to feel confident and empowered, and to teach them how to be supportive of their teammates. Also, to be one year closer to doing at least one Open workout as prescribed!” The Open is perfect for tracking progress, no matter what your fitness level.

What is your goal for the Open this year?

Many of our members simply want to improve from last year and have fun! Just showing up every week and doing the workouts is a great goal, shared by Janette and Allison. Another good challenge is to do as many workouts Rx. Jamie H is getting ready for his 3^rd Open and would “like to do every workout Rx. For me, that most likely means getting muscles ups.” Molly also wants “to perform each workout Rx. Last year I was afraid to do workouts Rx, even if I could do all the movements and weights, for fear of doing poorly. I also want to give everything I have in every workout.” Drew and Amanda T are aiming for as many Rx workouts as possible and Amanda P wants to get at least one WOD Rx. We can certainly cheer them on in achieving these goals!

For others, the goals are about personal mindset. Jamie V’s goal is “to not look like an ass :)” and Allison’s goal is “to not be insecure and nervous – to do my best and be proud of myself.” Luckily, we have so many members focused on having fun that this positive mindset will be contagious. Ronne just wants to “try my hardest and cheer even harder for my CrossFit teammates. I love the open’s environment and sense of community.” Terra would like “to get all the members to wear their Calibrated gear on the same day. It would be great for a picture!” We agree that the Open makes for some fantastic photo-ops :)

How are you going to prepare yourself for this year’s Open?

Most members are simply going to continue doing the daily workouts at Calibrated as preparation. But the Open has motivated them to be more consistent and focus on diet/recovery just a bit more.

Sally is “going to prepare for the Open by dialing in a few areas of my overall health to support my training AND recovery. I’ll make sure I’m getting enough sleep, staying hydrated, eating properly to fuel my body, & spending some extra time doing mobility.” Amanda P says she will “Show up to train now. Rest, stretch, recover, eat clean. One of my goals was to nail down T2B before it started, and I’m 97% of the way there! [The Open is] also a great excuse to get some new gear.” Jamie H says that “Knowing the open is around the corner definitely gets me into the gym a little more consistently. It also does make me think a little more about how I’m eating and drinking (or NOT drinking). And, I am working on those muscle ups.”

For training preparation, Drew is doing as many Rx Calibrated workouts as he can. Molly is focusing on improving movements that are often repeated (such as thrusters, toes-to-bar, double-unders, etc.). Once the workouts are announced, Charlie says he will “envision myself going through the workout the day/night before.”

In the Open, we are all going to have to do movements that we struggle with. Carly’s mindset for attacking her weaknesses is “when I see a movement in a workout that I’m not good at or gives me trouble, I try to embrace it and see it as a chance to get a little bit better for when it comes up during the Open.” This attitude turns these trouble movements into a positive challenge to motivate yourself to get better.

What is your favorite part of the Open?

Members love the community aspect, the support they give and receive, and the energy in the gym during the workouts.

Amanda P says “My favorite part of it is how the entire gym rallies behind you. We don’t always see every member because of class times, so this event is pretty cool for bringing everyone together.” Charlie loves that “you have the opportunity to compete among athletes that have the same goals and objectives that you do.” Amanda T “did the Open last year, my favorite part was meeting other members, and seeing the more advanced athletes do the same workouts and totally kill it.” Carly says “I absolutely love the atmosphere at the gym on Saturday mornings when everyone is completing the workout and cheering each other on. It’s fun being able to see the members who wouldn’t normally sign up for a competition be put in that setting and really push themselves.” Terra’s “favorite part of the Open is how inspired I was by all of my Calibrated friends. To watch them all compete and to see all their different strengths is an amazing sight.” The Open is so exciting because it’s a chance to get everyone together and see what our gym is made of!

In addition to seeing everyone together, Ronnie enjoys “Watching the [WOD] reveal on Thursday, then the anticipation and planning for Saturday Morning. The chatter on strategy is always fun!” Lisa loves “Seeing all of the ‘firsts’ moments…first muscle up, first PR at a certain weight, etc.” Nothing is more exciting than seeing someone achieve something for the first time in a competition setting!

Overall, Sally says that “Seeing others feel accomplished and happy to be in the gym is what makes the atmosphere special and exciting. Celebrating during the after-the-open party is so fun and rewarding after 5 weeks of killer workouts!!” Grind through the workouts and celebrate with our most popular party of the year, on the last day of the Open on March 25. This day is also Coach Brandon’s Birthday!

What are any fears/doubts/nerves you have in anticipation for the Open and how are you going to conquer those?

Many fears include certain skills coming up that members haven’t mastered yet. The Open is extra incentive to practice those skills. Drew says that “Double unders are challenging. I have worked up to stringing together a max of 25 reps. If they come up, I will try to keep my breathing consistent and focus on good jumping form.” Amanda T “Knows the workouts are going to be hard but I’m sure I will be able to do them.” The scaled option adds extra peace of mind for beginners and enables everyone to participate together. Sally wants to do Rx for all the workouts, but worries “I will have to scale workouts, which is discouraging to me. I’m going to conquer this by comparing my progress to previous years, which I KNOW has been increasing. I can’t be mad about that.”

Because the Open is a competition, it’s completely normal to have some nerves. Jamie H “Thinks everyone, at some point can have some anxiety around putting it all out there.” Carly “Always get nerves and slight anxiety leading up to the workout announcements on Thursday nights and then Saturday morning up until go time. Once the clock starts, all thoughts go out the window and I’m just focused on getting the workout done!” Janette says “I hope I don’t freak out and hyperventilate! [Our coaches remind her to] calm down and have fun.” Having fun is most important, so pace yourself and enjoy the moment if you feel the nerves creeping up too much.

Challenging yourself is scary because we don’t like to fail. Charlie “Fears that I won’t perform as best as I can. But you can’t let the fear of failure get in the way of your success. Just go out there, do your best, focus on the task at hand, and most importantly, have fun!” Allison is nervous “That I won’t be able to do something, that I’ll be the last one who finishes a workout. I’ll just keep practicing and working hard. All I can ask of myself is to do my best.” Ronnie “Used to be worried about getting embarrassed on my time or my capabilities but not anymore. The Calibrated family is super positive and supportive.” Amanda P also says “I’m always afraid I’m going to go for something and completely fail. The Open is certainly a time to take chances, so I’m going to ride that adrenaline and remind myself that no one is rooting for failure. In fact, everyone watching and supporting you wants you to take those risks. It’s like having that voice inside your head, the one that says, ‘DO IT!’ coming from every person in the gym.”

What would you tell someone who is on the fence about signing up?

Our members say you have nothing to lose by signing up. You only lose if you don’t sign up. Missing out on the Open is worse than any nerves or fears going into it. Sign up for a member who can’t.

Sally “Didn’t even know what the Open entailed the first time I did it, but Arjuna forced me to sign up anyways. Even if you have to scale workouts, I guarantee you will not regret it.”

This is Allison’s first Open at Calibrated and she says “You have nothing to lose! Let’s do it together!” Drew pushes people to “Just sign up. I was nervous about signing up last year and I am very glad that I did. I did better in some areas than I thought I would, and there were other movements that I needed to work on. The scaled workouts were a great way to ease me into the Open. Everyone is so supportive and it is an amazing feeling completing the weekly workouts.” Janette adds that “Failing is not trying. If you need to modify or stop, so be it. The whole point is to push yourself to try things you never thought you could do. And you might be surprised how strong you are!”

Participating in the Open is a win-win situation. Ronnie says “There is no downside to learning more about yourself and what you are made of.” If you are a member of our gym, you will be physically prepared for the Open workouts. Amanda T says “It’s not expensive, it’s really fun, and you get to be part of a worldwide competition. The workouts we already do are at the same level as the Open, and you’ll be glad you did when next year rolls around!” Terra also says “The workouts are just like every other day at Calibrated, except you get more support and cheering from your Calibrated friends.” Molly adds that “The open lit a fire under my ass and really got me excited to come into the gym everyday. I was blown away by how much support everyone gave each other.” Jamie H reassures you that “Nobody dies! I think the pain of regret [from not signing up] will be worse than doing it. [Each week is] just another workout.” Lisa says to “Just enjoy the ride, have fun, and trust yourself to know that you can do amazing things.”

If you don’t like being super competitive, Carly says “Don’t think of it as a competition or worry about being ranked or judged. I think of the Open more as bringing the whole community together and for five straight weekends.” Did we mention there’s a party at the end?

*This truly is a community event. We encourage all members to participate, especially beginners, because the scaled option is appropriate for anyone who has taken our On-Ramp course. We also LOVE to see members bring family and friends to watch them compete! We do the Open workout every Saturday morning from February 25 – March 25. If you cannot make it on a Saturday, you have from Thursday evening at 8pm until Monday evening at 8pm every week to complete the your workout with the supervision of a Calibrated coach.