OPENNESS

Openness

*the free expression of one's true feelings and opinions....in other words, what I write on this Blog.

HEY JOHNNY! You doin' the Open this year?

It's a question I hear from some of the athletes at my Box, New Species CrossFit.  The question is usually directed by someone who either highly intends to participate OR they've already signed up.  The tension is already high this week.....hell it was high last week.  The CrossFit Games Season is upon us.........like it or not.

By the way, NSCF is a GREAT fucking box! Great people, great athletes, great culture, great - great - great! 

Back to the question, that I always appreciate by the way.  I appreciate it because it generates energy.  Good positive energy for something I love.  Afterall, the CrossFit OPEN has as much to do with the ever increasing success of functional-constantly varied-intense exercise, as the athletes themselves.

No matter what it is you're chasing or trying to cure by doing CrossFit, most athletes in any level of CrossFit are constantly looking for ways to become proficient in movements that were once foreign to them.  I'd like you to think about this for a second.....many of these movements were never even attempted by your ancestors.  Hell, many of these movements will never ever be attempted by most people you know over the course of their lifetime!  Holy shit!  How fucking awesome is that?  The fact that we  get to participate in something that most would never even think of doing.   I think about that sometimes and say to myself - this is one more life experience that I get to have because I refuse to become a weak member of the herd.  God willing, I am fortunate and able, so I might as well be an opportunist.   It's not an elitist attitude.....It's just instinctive wiring that I tend to think about.....a lot.  Such thoughts change from time to time.  But for the most part these thoughts stay focused on the need and drive  to achieve more physically and mentally no matter what age or society decides to throw my way.  I hope you can see my point.  I urge you to consider how fortunate you really are to be living and have the opportunities that you have everyday.....with your family, faith, career.....CrossFit.

HEY JOHNNY!  You doin' the Open this year?

Every so often, I achieve a new PR or become more polished in some form of movement.  Just last week I hit PR's on my Olympic Snatch as well as my Olympic Clean.  Once we achieve new heights, we should immediately begin thinking how to go beyond the newfound achievement....Always improve somehow.  It's part of the evolution - the progression from SICK to WELL to FIT.....Always moving towards FIT.   It doesn't always have to be heavier or faster.  It may be the way you think about the movement. Perhaps gaining a better understanding of how the movement translates to something else you do OR how you can perform it without expending as much energy (ie; a slight hop -vs- high hop while performing Double Unders).  In short, figure out how to get from point A to point B with better speed, efficiency and overall technique.  "High Speed - Low Drag".  We must strive for all of this without sacrificing rules and standards laid down by our coaches and by CrossFit HQ.  

My advice to anyone reading this is to film all of your movements on a regular basis.  Look at what you're doing.  I'm not talking about the "selfie" to show your friends just so they can see how fucking special you think you look.....I'm talking about looking at a box jump for example.  How do you take off from the loading stage at the bottom? Where is your weight centered?  How do you drive your hands up for lift in conjunction with your hip drive?  What does the trajectory of your upper torso look like prior to your lift-off? I can go on and on.....There is good movement to be achieved out there and the best part is it's FREE!  All that you have to do is watch and look for easier ways to perform.  Every solid CF Athlete out there has film for you to watch.  Watch it.  Mirror and mimmick it.  If it involves you getting more mobile in order to achieve the movement, then work on it.  If you've done this stuff for any amount of time then you already know.......short cuts do not exist in CrossFit or any of the disciplines that comprise it all.   Please don't be the fuck-stick who's constantly  fucking around trying to hit Muscle Ups every time they walk into the box.....If you're that athlete......then STOP!  Just stop doing that stupid shit and take the time to understand the movement.  More importantly, take the time to learn the progression and strength elements associated with creating a solid "Slow MU".  Do this, all of this, over time.  Do it all BEFORE taking the shortcut and succeeding to crank your body into every possible horse shit position  just to say you can rise above the wood rings......hahaha! I said "rise" and "wood" in the same sentence.  Funny.  Stupid.  Both. Fuck you. 

HEY JOHNNY! You doin' the Open this year?

Soapbox time.......I've been doing this shit (CrossFit) for awhile, and it just keeps getting better and better every year.  Like it or not, CrossFit IS A SPORT.  It's a sport with beginners and professionals alike.  Any one individual can compete within their own head at CrossFit.  That same individual can compete within their box during group WODs.   Still yet, that same athlete can compete locally or even go so far as to compete  in the CrossFit OPEN....Globally.   Why the CrossFit OPEN?  Well, Greg Glassman put it best a few years back; "We (CF) want to find that freaky fit motherfucker that trains in their basement".  So Coach Glassman and Dave Castro came up with the wild idea of creating an Open Competition.  Open to anyone.  If someone thinks they have what it takes to be the next "IT" in CrossFit, then this will be one way to find out.  Pretty great idea really.  I mean, let's face it, competetive athletes will swat a lot of blood, sweat and tears in exchange for points and recognition. IF.....and that's a big if, IF points and recognition are what's important to them. 

Let me ask you, have you ever run into someone who thinks CF is bullshit?  I mean I think it's bullshit, but only because this method of training runs my life and the thoughts and visions of CF are forever present in my mind.....therefore, CF is bullshit in a good kind of way for me.  But I'm referring to the dick-wad that says CrossFit is dangerous and stupid and doesn't work and "it's just a fad".  First of all, fuck that person.  And to be fair, fuck all of us if we don't respect other training methods out there without trying them first.  FUCK FUCK FUCK!  It's not Lent yet!  Back to the dick-wad....Shame on them for not knowing what CrossFit is.  Shame on them for not trying to understand it before they pass judgement on this beautiful organization of human movement.  And lastly, SHAME THE FUCK ON THEM for calling our shit a "FAD".  We have our own fucking line of shoes & apparel for fuck sake!  Reebok used to be a bullshit brand....now it's all any other shoe company can do but to get in on what we're doing.  Hell, CrossFit is all any other shit stick gym can do to keep serious athletes as members.  They're all stealing with their eyes and ears.....I can't say I blame them.  Sure there's a side of me that says, HEY- those little bitch wanna-bee fuckers can't steal OUR shit.  But as long as their trying to do it right, well then I guess the world will be a better place.  Just know that it's all because of OUR SHIT that there is an Alpha or Omega program setting up shop at every GloboGym or warehouse in the world. 

HEY JOHNNY! You doin' the Open this year?

 ANSWER - NOPE - I've participated in previous years.  It's not why I got into CrossFit.  I have my own version of CrossFit energy to feed off of.  To be more clear, I already know, thanks to CrossFit, that I am faster, stronger and have bigger lungs than I did last year....and the year before that.....and the year before that....almost 7 years of this constant progression.  I'm not a monster, but I'm a pretty capable mouse that enjoys 90% of everything I've ever encountered with CF.  The remaining 10% is full of dick-wads that hop into CF and own every piece of equipment before they ever even learn how to perform pass through's with PVC.  Eventually even those same dick-wads end up figuring out their brand of what CF is to them and over time, they too calm down.  We've all been there.  Well maybe  not with the equipment problem, but our movements looked just as horrible in the beginning.

Let it be known that I love the CF OPEN....and you should too!  I think it's fucking great.  It's raw and unforgiving.  It's brutal for some and one big party for others.  For some athletes it's a chance to set the record straight.  Whether it be with themselves, just to prove they can do the work, or performing for Regional recognition.  The Open is the gateway to the next level.  But the next level is anything you want it to be.  It's CrossFit.  It's your choice to play......or not.  So if you're not doing the OPEN, at least keep something OPEN............Your mind. 

To all those WHO ARE & ARE NOT participating in the Open - Good luck this year.......
And always remember WE HAVE OUR OWN FUCKING SHOES!


Stay strong!
Peace - Johnny